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The Ride
publish date:
2026-07-10 09:37:19
Latest chapter
Black Ice Whispers in the Hall
~PROFESSOR RICHARD LANGFORD~The university's large auditorium was full for the annual Business Innovation Showcase. Bright lights shone on the stage in the dark room, and the sound of two hundred students, teachers, and local investors filled the space.I stood at the podium, holding the edges of the dark wood. Next to me, Dr. Elena Morales fixed her glasses, and Dr. Samuel Kline sat in the front row with his arms crossed."You both don't believe he's actually going to show up," Samuel said to Elena."Stay hopeful, Samuel," Elena replied sharply.Samuel seethed with a roll of his eyes but remained silent."Every year," I spoke into the microphone, my voice echoing off the high ceilings, "this competition showcases the sharpest minds our business school has to offer. But this year, the judging panel faced a scenario we have never encountered in the history of this university."The background noise in the auditorium stopped right away."The grand prize winner," I kept going, holding
Black Ice The Hidden Pages
~TOBY~My favorite spot on campus was a little, cracked stone area behind the old maintenance shed. It was hidden by tall, overgrown juniper bushes and a rusty chain-link fence.Nobody came back here.I sat on an inverted milk crate, my knees pulled up to my chest, and opened my leather notebook.Before sunrise, Aaron sent me three new spreadsheets. They included a breakdown of how much money his company is spending and a reworked pitch deck for his Series A funding round. I quickly wrote on the yellow legal pad, turning his messy projections into clear and simple formulas.In this small part of the world, sitting on a milk crate with dirty shoes, I was not the weak, broken kid that Richard Pike disliked. I was not the janitor that people ignored.I was completely in control.The numbers matched perfectly. I created a stress-test model in the margins, showing that even if market demand fell by thirty percent in the third quarter, Aaron's company would still have a positive cash fl
Black Ice A Mind No One Sees
~TOBY~I sat on a turned-over plastic bucket in the corner of the third-floor supply closet, with my back against the cold metal shelves.The air smelled of citrus floor cleaner and dust. I pulled my worn leather notebook out of my bag, resting it across my knees.The pages had a lot of thick, hand-written notes, market trends, and money plans for Aaron’s tech startup. I always understood numbers. They were honest and had no hidden reasons like people do.My phone vibrated against my leg, making me jump. Aaron’s name flashed across the screen. I answered quickly, lowering my voice."Hey, Aaron.""Toby! Tell me you're alone right now," Aaron’s voice burst through the speaker, breathless and high-energy. "That pitch revision you sent me on Thursday? The one adjusting the investor burn-rate projections?""Yeah," I said softly, tracing the margin of my notebook. "Did it work?""Did it work? Toby, they were ready to kill the seed funding and walk out the door," Aaron laughed, a sound of ab
Black Ice The Boy Behind the Uniform
~TOBY~I worked a double shift on Monday. On Tuesday, I asked my boss for an extra building to clean. I just needed to keep moving.If I stopped moving, I would think about the weekend. I would think about the roar of the motorcycle engine, the quiet diner by the lake, and the feeling of Alan’s leather jacket under my hands. Those moments should have made me happy. Instead, they terrified me. Every second I spent with Alan felt like taking a hammer to the walls I had spent four years building.By 9 PM on Tuesday, the campus business building was completely empty.I pushed my cleaning cart down the long, dimly lit hallway. The rubber wheels squeaked on the shiny floors. The strong scent of bleach filled the air. I wiped down desks that were already spotless. I emptied trash cans that only had one or two crumpled sheets of paper. I liked working in the dark. Quiet meant no one was looking at me.If people looked too closely, they might figure it out. If anyone on campus typed my
Black Ice The Sound of Laughter
~ ALAN~I rode up to Toby’s dorm building just past eight on Saturday morning. The spare helmet was strapped securely to the back of my seat, and my pulse was racing faster than it usually did before a major game. I wanted today to go well. I wanted him to enjoy himself.When Toby finally stepped through the glass doors of the building, he looked like he was walking toward a firing squad.His face was pale, his shoulders were hitched up to his ears, and his fingers were tangled tightly into the hem of his oversized gray hoodie.I cut the motorcycle engine, kicked down the kickstand, and stood up to meet him.“Hey,” I said gently, keeping my hands seeable and my pose loose to put him at ease.He stopped about five feet away, eyeing the bike like it was a wild animal waiting to pounce. “Hey.”“Look at me, Toby,” I said softly. He flicked his eyes up to mine. “We don’t have to do the practice track today. I’m not going to force you onto a bike by yourself if you’re terrified. We can
Black Ice Watching Him Fly
~TOBY~The noise got louder when the real races started. Engines thundered. The fence vibrated under my hands as I gripped the metal wire. The smell of hot rubber and gas was thick in the air. I wanted to shrink back into the crowd, but then Alan rolled out onto the track.He looked different in his cool black racing gear. He looks bigger and Focused.The flag dropped, and the bikes shot forward.I couldn’t look away. Alan leaned so low into the turns his knee almost brushed the ground. He didn't look scared at all. He just looked fast. Every time his black bike roared past my section of the fence, I found myself leaning forward. My chest felt tight, but in a good way. I cheered for him in my head. ‘Go. Go.’Other riders tried to crowd him on the corners, but he cut right past them. He moved like he owned the track. When he crossed the straightaway, the crowd around me yelled. I didn't yell, but I couldn't stop smiling. For those few minutes, I forgot about the noise and the
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