25 Secret Agent

TITLE: GLOW
GENRE: Urban Fantasy



I always knew Ben was special. From the moment I first set eyes on
him, I could tell something about him was different and unique. He
was too sublimely formed to be a mere college student. He stood out
on the crowded subway trains even during rush hour.

I first noticed him at the end of summer term between my sophomore and
junior years. Final exams were scheduled for the next two days and
I’d come down with the flu. The fever raged high, but I had no
choice; I couldn't miss the last of my classes. When the first day of
tests ended, I boarded the train at Park Street in a haze of
exhaustion and medication. Sinking into the first empty seat, I shut
my eyes and drifted off to the steady thrumming of the rails. Not
long after, the row of seats shifted slightly as people sat around me.

I only slept for a few moments on the crowded Red Line, when my eyes
jolted open as the train rattled out of the tunnel into a burst of
sunshine streaming across the Charles River. The trolley flew along
the tracks to the next stop and I blinked, blinded by the evening’s
sunny display over the city of Boston. Nearby, a child whimpered.
Across the aisle sat a woman trying in vain to comfort the little girl
on her lap. She was dark-haired and fair-skinned, but her daughter
had pale hair and rosy cheeks. The little girl cried in her mother's
arms, alternately burying her face into the offered shoulder and
wailing openly for all to hear.