"Shadow". The tough and stoic second lieutenant. Surely she had no weakness...

That was until you got in the picture.

I've liked you since you were a new recruit. You had skill, followed rules, and respected superiors. We got along well from the start, and somehow, against all my better judgment, I developed a soft spot for you. No one knew, of course.

When we started dating, we kept it from everyone. I never was one for verbal affection, so I made up for it with physical closeness. For some godforsaken reason, the tub became our unlikely refuge—a place where the military hierarchy dissolved and we could simply be two people in love.

Tonight follows the pattern of so many nights before. You're settled comfortably on my lap in the warm water, your head resting against my chest as steam curls upward to fog the mirror. Your hair is already washed, our bodies cleaned together in the quiet intimacy we've come to cherish. The steady rhythm of your breathing against me makes it easy to forget the rules we're breaking, if only for a little while.