Tom couldn't think of anything else, so he put the fins, jacket and pants, and rubber boots into the backpack and headed toward the door. Then some diving knives on a shelf caught his eye.

"If I'm going to be diving in open water, taking one of those is just a good idea for anyone." he thought "I'm not sure that it would be in my interest to use it against anyone, but I would have that option."

Tom put the diving knife, along with a case and strap, in his bag and headed back toward his room.

***

Tom still saw Jerry on the other side of the pool some days. He didn't know if he should try to go over there and say anything. Jerry might say something about the encounter, not knowing Tom was potentially monitored. Jerry would probably be done his class by the time Tom got back from open water training. Tom had made a mental note of the name of the class Jerry was with; Tom would at least have a chance of tracking down Jerry later if he ever wanted to.

In preparation for the open water training, Doctor Conrad downloaded data from the suit and did an update so the edge of the hood around his face looked like a solid edge rather than fading into his skin. It was still bonded to him though.

***

Eventually the day for moving come. It ended up being totally uneventful. Tom packed all his supplies and books into his bag, and even got permission to bring his computer. Sergeant Sweet drove Tom in a van with separate passenger and driver compartments. The passenger section had a pit toilet and a cooler with snacks so Tom didn't even get to see the the outside during pit stops. It was pretty dull so Tom fell asleep.

By the time he woke up, they were at the cabin. It was late at night, so Tom couldn't really see what kind of area they were in. So he took his backpack and computer to one bedroom, and Sergeant Sweet went to another. They had electricity so Tom set his computer up and then came to realize the flaw in his plan. There was no Internet here. His visor was displaying the "Connection Lost" message too. Tom wasn't even sure if there was a phone line to try dial-up. Somewhat annoyed but still tired, he went to bed.

***

In the morning, Tom started his open-water training. Sargent Sweet was his teacher and diving buddy. Sergeant Sweet also started wearing a shiny black drysuit that Tom hadn't seen him wear before. Tom figured Sergeant Sweet was just switching his equipment to account for the colder water.

The training was taking place in sort of a cove. They had their own private beach, but on the other side of the cove, there were some surfers, both men and women, in wetsuits. As the training days went by, watching the surfers became sort of a hobby. Some were regulars, coming back day after day, some were one-timers. The surfers saw Tom and Sgt. Sweet too, but to the surfers, they were just some scuba divers who didn't come close or bother them.

Tom had always preferred guys, but while a handsome guy in a wetsuit he would rate a 10 out of 10 A curvy woman in a wetsuit, he would rate a respectable 8 out of 10; but he wouldn't even think about a woman who wasn't wearing a wetsuit. Sometimes his own preferences confused him.

***

As the days progressed Sgt. Sweet let Tom go out longer, sometimes out of direct supervision. Sgt. Sweet's equipment was getting worn out so he didn't always dive all the way with Tom and just made sure Tom made it back. Sgt. Sweet said he had put in a request for replacement but it hadn't arrived yet.

Tom was getting pent up with sexual energy from looking at the surfers day after day. He thought, "I could go over and talk to them sometime Sgt Sweet isn't looking. But 90% chance they're just surfers and would have no interest in me." Tom thought about Sgt. Sweet's shiny black drysuit and how he wanted to rub it. "Bad Idea! No. DO NOT." as Tom's more rational side kicked in.