"I'll stay up here forever if I have to; I have to save my tree."Brooke awoke with a start when she heard the rumble of engines far below. It was so p...aceful up here, the wind sighing in the branches, the birds singing, the dappled sunlight warming the walls of her tent.Her friends in the College of Engineering had designed and built a sturdy platform that when assembled fit perfectly between the branches. She had gathered her camping gear from her summer vacation in the Rocky Mountains,. The Academy also maintained close affiliation with a powerful consortium of privileged elites. Whispered rumors told of this fabled group of pledge contributors who splurged generously to attend the facilities as guest coach tutors. The students reaped the benefits of the anonymous men’s stern carnal lessons. Sometimes unsuspecting students arrived at scheduled tutoring sessions to find less anonymous males like fathers and uncles eager to teach the syllabus. The surprised young lady would be. Ding dongCaesar went off bark bark, woof woof. "I'll get it." I said and headed for the front door."Hey!" I exclaimed with happiness. Dan and Linda have arrived. "Welcome! Come in!" I let them in and we exchange hugs and handshakes. Dan and Linda are my parents best friends and had been for a very long time. Their daughter had gone to high school with me and we had dated for a short amount of time but we were not destined to be together. "I'm so glad to see you guys. How have you been?"Dan -. .” Aarash thought he had all the time in the world, but his time ran out that day, and mine almost did.He continued, almost to himself. “And the uncertainty of how much we have left makes it even more precious.”Juliet felt him tense as the memories intruded. She looked at him. “I know one thing, we’re going to make the most of our precious time the next few days.”She sighed and put her head on his chest.Eventually, she spoke again. “By the way, when you were at these events and sitting around a.