Tracy said, “Yes, we sat together at lunch and again at supper. I was just telling Kelly what a difficult time our squad leader gave all of us today. This is only our first day, too. I can hardly wait to see what he has in store for our squad during the rest of Beast Training. Ugghhh!”
“Hi, Missy, my name is Kelly Wong,” said Kelly. “I’m a California girl. I was born in Mountain View, right in the middle of the Silicon Valley region, and this is my first time our here on the East Coast. Tracy’s from Texas but has been telling me how she’s really been all over everywhere. Where are you from?” Each year there were classmates from all 50 states plus several international countries.
Now that Missy was up close and personal with the two of them, she couldn’t help but notice how each girl had their own special scent, their unique signature scent. For Kelly, however, she could also notice at least three male scents, all from guys she’d definitely been having sex with in the last couple of months. Frequent, consensual sex. For their scents to linger like that and be combined so strongly with her own scent, she obviously had been a player. Wow. Hopefully, there wasn’t some underlying issue.
For Tracy, however, it didn’t smell as though she’d ever had sex. There was, however, a very different scent for her … Missy could only categorize it as “other”. All this, of course, was merely her initial impression which she hardly gave any thought to. She answered Kelly’s question by saying, “Massachusetts. Salem, Massachusetts. But, I’ve been through most of the mountains, from New Hampshire down to Virginia. Does that count?” Then she looked at Tracy and asked, “Where in Texas? Everyone’s always saying what a big state that is.”
Tracy said, “My family now lives in Arlington, not too far from Dallas. But, I’m an Army brat … my Dad dragged us all over before he retired as a bird colonel. I’m an only child so I get to carry on the tradition. Not only did my father come here, but my grandfather did too.”
Both girls had already squared away all their stuff and Missy emptied out her two duffel bags and quickly put everything away. She didn’t want to be the one to fail any inspections and was glad to see that both her roommates seemed to be very familiar with how things were supposed to be done. Tracy had been well prepared and had helped Kelly a little. Now she showed Missy how to arrange some of her gear, which was nice. Suddenly, she stepped back from Missy, almost as though sensing something that clearly was bothering her.
Tracy asked, “Did you say you were from Salem, Massachusetts? Really?”
“Yeah, sure. Why?” Missy looked at her, not sure what could be the matter. She removed most of her clothes, getting ready for bed, and was now standing there in only her panties and a tee shirt, similar to how both her roommates were already attired. She wasn’t self conscious any more about showing any of her body, and didn’t think twice about this.
Before Tracy could say anything, however, Kelly exclaimed, “Holy shit, look at you. Are you some kind of body builder or something? Tracy, look … she’s all muscle. Jeez, no fat anywhere at all … even I have more body fat than you do, Missy.”
Tracy still hadn’t said anything. Missy didn’t know what might be bothering her, but she didn’t think it was how her body looked. She said, “Well, I did kind of bulk up a bit, getting ready for this place. I’ll probably lose most of it during Beast Training, though, since I know my rations in the Mess Hall won’t be enough.”
Tracy finally said something that surprised both Missy and Kelly. “I can’t believe I’ve ended up in here with you, Missy. It can only mean the Fates are really pretty fickle after all. Or, maybe they just have a really huge sense of humor.”
Kelly said, “Why would you say that, Tracy?”
Missy was still trying to process what might be “other” about Tracy. But, it had been a very long day and she was tired. She said, “Let’s all get some sleep. That five AM wake-up call will be coming before we know it. We’ll have to talk about all this stuff some other time.” She hopped up onto her bunk and let her mind go to one of her many places; places with no stress. She was asleep before one of her roommates turned out the lights.
Chapter Seventeen
Jul 2018
It was morning of her third day and Missy was feeling very happy. Right after this reveille formation was the daily physical training or PT. She loved doing PT, of course. First there were the various calisthenics exercises, just to warm up. She had no problem doing them all exactly right, just the way the Army wanted them done. Some of her classmates were having difficulty and the squad leaders were quick to correct them, barking out orders that only added to their difficulty. If you didn’t show perfect form, you were doomed to failure. All part of “The Game” that Missy now considered this Beast Training represented for her.
Then, after enough pushups and sit-ups and jumping jacks had been done, they’d go for a run. She’d already been put into the fastest group, or black group, due to her performance on the initial APFT, the Army Physical Fitness Test. This consisted of doing pushups for two minutes, sit-ups for two minutes and then a two mile run. Missy had done 50 pushups and 100 sit-ups, well above the requirement even for the men. Her time for the two mile run had been just over ten minutes, earning her a spot in the black group. Her scores were the highest for any female and only a few of the men had higher scores. She was right where she’d wanted to be.
Her squad leader Jamieson was quite pleased to have a woman from his squad do so well, so he wasn’t getting in her face quite as much, criticizing her the way he’d been doing all the others. There was clearly some competitiveness between squad leaders and she knew she was playing right into that. She had played on a lot of sports teams and had always worked to contribute whatever made the team do best. That’s how she viewed her squad and, by making her squad look good, her squad leader would benefit. All part of “The Game”, right?
Tracy was in the normal group, or gold group, and only one of the guys in their squad was in the slow group, or white group. Three guys were in the gold group with Tracy and two were in the grey group, or fast group. There were two guys in their squad also running in the fastest group with her. Missy thought, overall, her whole squad ought to do well enough on any physical challenge tasks. She knew there would be a lot of those in the weeks to come.
Today’s run was on a course with a lot of steep hills. Missy was staying just behind the leaders, which didn’t require much effort for her. It did allow her to think back over the hectic days just before finally coming down here to West Point. The highlight, of course, had been her birthday party. That had also been her going away party and the huge turnout had been overwhelming. Family and friends, all wishing her well. Relatives she didn’t even know, coming up to talk to her. Her “P” Branch buddies -- Robert, Les and Marsha. Senator Maxwell and his wife Jennifer, recently returned from their honeymoon. The Stratton family, up from D. C. Mike, of course, was by her side the entire time.
She was still getting used to her short hair. It was just a little longer than a pixie cut and gave her just enough to put up in a pony tail, which was how she liked wearing it for running. But, for all the other times, it didn’t go below her collar when she had it hanging down straight. While she appreciated how easy it was now to take care of, it was still quite an adjustment to make. Of course, making adjustments was something Missy did really well.
There were two other girls from Charlie Company running up here in this group. Both were obviously runners and had been on their high school track teams. They were thin, without either the muscles or all the curves that she had. Even in her black shorts, not at all form fitting, and her simple grey tee shirt, her body looked great. She had those large, solid hips, flaring out from such a narrow waist; then, her wide shoulders and prominent bustline; finally, her movements -- so fluid and graceful. She was a sight to see and few were able to just ignore her. They actually made an effort to not watch her since they didn’t really want to get distracted. Not while coping with all the other challenges t
hey faced this first week of Beast Training.
Missy ignored the affect she was having on all the guys and just focused on the pure enjoyment of running. Gradually, as the group raced up and down the hilly terrain, the two guys in her squad found themselves staying with her, one on each side. She was their squad member and somehow, that mattered. By taking these positions next to her, everyone else was forced to stay that much further away from “their girl”. They also found it less distracting, having her at their side. That way, their eyes weren’t constantly checking out her backside with their thoughts then focused on her lovely ass the entire time.
By the end of the run, as the three of them sprinted together for the last lap, they all somehow knew without saying anything that this was how these runs would go from now on. Tony would run on her left and Marcus would run on her right. Once they stopped and caught their breath, they introduced themselves while the rest of their group finished the run and caught up with them. They had a few minutes before needing to get back in formation and march back to the barracks.
Anthony Fugia was from New York, out on Long Island. He was Italian and looked it; dark hair, brown eyes, prominent nose and a good sturdy frame, just under six feet. Marcus Brown was black, from Philadelphia. He was an inch taller but probably weighed ten pounds less than Tony. The three of them all agreed that runs like this one would help them get through the rest of the day, which Jamieson would surely be making stressful. When Missy suggested they take turns at the dinner table, distracting Jamieson in order to each get a few more large bites of their food, that had them all laughing. They agreed to try out her plan and see how much success they’d have.
Soon, Missy was in taking a quick shower, before dressing and getting into formation for breakfast. She’d managed getting in and out of the shower a couple of times now, without anyone actually paying attention or noticing her. This time, however, another girl was in there and stopped her before she could leave.
“Hey, aren’t you one of Kelly Wong’s roommates? I’m Angel Meriwether, and Kelly is in my squad. She told me about you. Bodybuilder, right?”
Missy said, “Well, not exactly. I mean, I’m Missy McCrae and I’m in the same room with Kelly all right. But, I wouldn’t really call myself a bodybuilder. I just work out a lot. I like to play sports and …”
“Whoa, look at yourself, girl! You are totally ripped.” Angel was a black girl about the same height as Missy but weighed only 120 pounds. She was fit and athletic but had more of a runner’s body. Except for her huge boobs. Now she added, “Ripped, shredded and scarred! How’d those happen, Missy?” She had been staring, studying Missy’s naked body while Missy had dried herself off.
Missy wasn’t really looking to talk about her scars or any of her history during those two years she’d spent in the mountains as a cat. She hoped she could joke about it and get away quickly. “Well, my secret’s one of those cases when, if I tell ya, then I gotta shoot ya, you know? Gotta go now. Don’t want to be late for formation. Later, maybe?” She wrapped her robe around herself and headed back to her room.
At breakfast, she decided to be the first one to try out her distraction plan. After only a few minutes, she turned to look right at Jamieson and said, “Sir, may I ask a question?” Tony and Marcus were seated on the opposite side, so when Jamieson looked at her, right away they both managed getting larger bites onto their forks and into their mouths, unnoticed.
“New Cadet McCrae, what is your question?”
“Will there be tables in here for special diets? I heard there would be some diet tables, maybe sometime soon?” Missy gave him her most innocent expression and then, as though suddenly remembering the rules, she turned and faced straight ahead, sitting at attention with her hands in her lap.
Jamieson continued to stare at Missy, allowing her two co-conspirators time for even more large bites. “The diet tables will be for New Cadets who are overweight and need to lose some body fat. Do you think you need to lose any body fat New Cadet McCrae?”
Missy was well aware that having anyone from his squad be assigned to the diet table would make him look bad. “Sir, may I make a statement?”
“New Cadet McCrae, what is your statement?”
“I think I need to gain some body fat, sir. I thought perhaps there’d be diet tables for … you know …” Missy stopped and waited.
Sure enough, Jamieson quickly yelled at her. “Are you trying to be funny, New Cadet McCrae?” He began closely examining her, noticing that indeed she was a big girl. He could see her face appeared thin but he had no idea as to what the rest of her really looked like. He knew she was in running group black. He had actually been amazed at her high APFT scores, which was the only reason he wasn’t thinking she might be too big.
Missy said, “No, Sir!” She somehow managed keeping a straight face but several of her squad members were now having great difficulty suppressing their laughter. Was she actually messing with Jamieson?
Jamieson decided he’d teach her a lesson. “New Cadet McCrae, I want you to report to the DPE for a body fat test this afternoon at 1600. Understood?” The DPE was the Department of Physical Education and 1600 was military time for four PM.
Missy said, “Yes, Sir!” She then continued to eat her breakfast.
Marcus decided it was his turn, so he spoke up. “Sir, may I ask a question?”
With an exasperated voice, Jamieson asked, “New Cadet Brown, what is your question?” Once Jamieson was looking at Marcus, Missy began sneaking her large bites. Today’s breakfast actually included ham and she’d put several pieces on her plate which she’d already sliced into decent size bites. Now she was moving them up to her mouth, one at a time, as fast as she could.
Marcus said, “Is it true the female cadets are allowed more body fat than the male cadets? I thought there was no discrimination here. A policy for no special treatment …”
This was too much for the rest of the squad and they all broke out laughing. When they quickly tried to stop themselves, that only made it worse. Some were snorting loudly as they tried to contain their laughter. Meanwhile, Missy managed to finish everything on her plate and was now just sitting there, quietly at attention. Before Jamieson had a chance to yell at Marcus, which he clearly was planning to do, the end of meal announcement was made, followed by over a thousand chairs being moved back as everyone rose from their seats and prepared to march out, in formation.
Not wanting to have his squad get noticed or draw any more attention than what their laughter might already have done, Jamieson allowed them to form up and fall into place, and then march out along with the rest of the class. He definitely planned to yell at each and every one of them. While he was marching them out, though, the realization hit him that his squad had actually just now come together and that, after this incident, they would most likely be a real team. That bond that is always desired but not always achieved, even after weeks, had already started to form for this crazy group.
Of course, notwithstanding the pride and satisfaction that he now felt about that, he’d make certain they were all appropriately punished. Each and every one of them. Just to further strengthen that bond they were now forming.
-----
Missy reported at 1600 hours, just as she’d been ordered to, for her BFT -- the body fat test. But, after weighing her and taking her measurements -- height, neck, chest, waist, hip -- the DPE officer wanted to confirm his results by using skin fold calipers, pinching fat areas at various places. Only, Missy had no fat areas. Her muscular definition was far beyond anything he’d ever seen. She had twelve pack abs and, in spite of all her curves, any measurements using calipers were not possible. He realized that only hydrostatic weighing would provide any accurate determination for someone like her who had obviously done some extreme bodybuilding.
She learned this procedure would be performed in the swimming pool and that she needed to bring her black Speedo swimming suit. When she returned, the DPE officer was waiting for her at
the diving board, where a body harness had been attached. Once she changed into her suit and then climbed into the harness, she was instructed to blow out all the air from her lungs. They would completely submerge her under the water and take a reading. Three times. Then, they’d average these readings and compute her body fat index. Missy had been a lifeguard the previous summer and had no problem with doing all this.
Missy had maybe lost a pound or two since she’d arrived and she knew she’d not gained any fat. Even so, she had prepared for this test by calling on her cat and pushing out some energy, sending harmless pulses out where no one would notice. Doing this was just enough to drain any residual fat that wasn’t essential fat. Sure enough, her BFT measurement was only eight percent. She had determined long ago that this was as low as she wanted to let herself get. Anything less would just not be healthy for her.
As it turned out, the DPE officer was very concerned. He considered this much too low for a healthy woman, even if a top athlete. He advised her to ask for additional food rations and then return in two weeks for a retest. She asked if he’d put that in a note for her squad leader and he was glad to oblige. She couldn’t wait to present this note to Jamieson at dinner -- after all the hazing her squad had received from him all day long, she was quite sure this would definitely make it all worthwhile.
Not surprisingly, when she did present him with the note, which she’d managed to show each squad member beforehand, he acted very annoyed. Even though he refused to discuss it, and only barely acknowledged it, the attitude of the entire squad during that meal was clearly triumphant. Jamieson would be hearing references to the “body fat incident” for the rest of the year as word gradually spread throughout all of Charlie Company and then went out even beyond that.
Missy Goes to West Point Page 17
