IT Technician class was my kind of place \u2014 rows of computers, the faint hum of cooling fans, the clean smell of plastic and metal instead of cloying cologne. This was one room where the wolf in me didn\u2019t want to bolt for the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gabriel was already at the pod when I walked in, sitting at one of the four workstations arranged in a square. He glanced up briefly as I dropped into the chair across from him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMorning,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMorning.\u201d I logged in, the keyboard clicking under my fingers. \u201cWhat\u2019s today? More network config or are we still on hardware repair?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHardware, I think.\u201d He smirked faintly. \u201cYou\u2019ll be bored in five minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m never bored if I can take something apart.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That got a small laugh out of him, and before long we were talking \u2014 really talking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo, Columbus, Indiana, huh?\u201d Gabriel asked, leaning back in his chair. \u201cThat\u2019s\u2026 a long way from here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYeah. New scenery. New\u2026 everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I shrugged. \u201cParents wanted a change. Figured the ocean was a better backdrop for ignoring me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOuch.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEh, I\u2019m used to it. What about you? Barnstable lifer?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPretty much. Same house, same streets. Been playing guitar since I was ten.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExplains the Trivium cover.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou recognized that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got ears. And taste.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our conversation was interrupted when Mr. Harris, the teacher, walked over. He was holding the printer cable like it had personally offended him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAlright, folks,\u201d he said, addressing our pod. \u201cI need the four of you to move that laser printer from the back corner up here to my desk. Too many\u2026 inappropriate print jobs when I\u2019m not looking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I glanced at the others \u2014 Gabriel, a short kid named Devin, and a tall but very lanky junior named Matt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDon\u2019t worry about it,\u201d I said, waving them off. \u201cI got it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Devin chuckled. \u201cUh-huh. Sure you do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Matt smirked. \u201cThat thing\u2019s like a hundred-sixty pounds, dude.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gabriel raised an eyebrow but didn\u2019t say anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I walked to the back corner, crouched by the hulking gray printer, and gripped it on either side. The wolf in me shifted under my skin, muscles coiling and tightening, and then \u2014 just like lifting a toaster \u2014 I stood up with it in my arms. No grunt, no strain. Just walked it to the front like it weighed nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr. Harris blinked. \u201cUh\u2026 thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I set it gently on the table by his desk, made sure it was lined up with the edge, and walked back to my seat. The room was dead quiet except for the faint hum of the machines. Every pair of eyes followed me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I sat down, logged back into my computer, and pretended nothing had happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gabriel was still staring at me, his expression caught between surprise and calculation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou, uh\u2026 work out a lot?\u201d he asked finally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSomething like that.\u201d I gave him a small, knowing smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He didn\u2019t push it, but I could tell he\u2019d filed that moment away. And for the rest of class, I caught him glancing at me every so often \u2014 not like he was suspicious, but like he was trying to connect a set of dots he didn\u2019t know existed yet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
IT Technician class was my kind of place \u2014 rows of computers, the faint hum of cooling fans, the clean smell of plastic and metal instead of cloying cologne. This was one room where the wolf in me didn\u2019t want to bolt for the door. Gabriel was already at the pod when I walked in, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-high-school-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19\/revisions\/20"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}