“What are you doing?” she snarled.“In my village, when someone is emotionally distressed, it’s customary to give them a hug. I thought that mi...ht comfort you.”The girl whirled round and I felt something sharp pressing just below my ribs, but I didn’t look to see what it was because the girl’s hood had flipped up and I saw her face for the first time.“You’re ... you’re an orc!” I stammered, on seeing the pig-like snout and the two vestigial tusks protruding half an inch upwards from just above. ”“Enough of that. What are your plans for after high school?”“Benny and Tim have brought me into their company as a general office manager and bookkeeper. I’m finding the work far more fascinating than I had anticipated. I’m hoping after I graduate to get into a business program at Central State University.”“That is ambitious of you.”“If you don’t aim for the stars...”“You’ll never reach the stars,” he said.“One of the things I’ve learned from Tim and Benny is to go for the gold.”“Benny is. He just stood by her, until Kim meekly looked up at him. He smiled and ordered her to follow him. Kim was about to object but thought better of it. She put her lunch back in her backpack and followed her brother out of the cafeteria and down the hall towards the gym. “Where are we going?” she asked. Tommy just ignored her and kept walking. Once they reached the girls bathroom, he looked around to make sure nobody was around and ushered her inside, closing the door behind them. Kim walked inside. Sweat was running down my body, but it wasn’t because of the 95 degree weather. It was because, in a matter of minutes, the love of my life, Kent, would be stepping off of his naval ship for the first time in over 6 months. As I stood waiting with all of the other wives and families, I looked back on the day he left, and how he had promised to return safely in 4 months. When that day had come, similar to today, I had stood in this same spot waiting for a glimpse of him until an officer informed.