My name is Nora Thompson. I'm a freshman at Greensville High School. My life is no more interesting than the next person. I'm basically invisible.

You know how in middle school, the friends you thought you had all of a sudden think you're not 'cool' enough to hang out with them, then ditch you? They start putting labels on you like geek, teacher's pet, popular, freak, etc. They start forming their cliques, like some sort of alliance against the other cliques in a never-ending war. But for what exactly? Popularity? Fame?

Well, when I was in middle school, my friends did indeed ditch me, and I was basically eating lunch alone, walking the halls alone, never having anyone to really talk to. Maybe I had some sort of people repellent; no one really talked to me, except to ask to copy my homework.

During middle school, everyone changes. Boys start going through puberty, girls start to develop their boobs and curves. Body glitter and makeup, skinny jeans and tight tank tops, dyeing their hair in outrageous, flashy colors. I was never one to fit in with them. I hated wearing makeup. Skinny jeans were too baggy on me and I liked wearing character t-shirts that had Hello Kitty on them or the name of a band no one's ever heard of. I thought my straight brown hair was as good as it was and didn't need hot pink or lime green to 'enlighten it' anymore. My figure wasn't exactly showing, I barely developed when I was in middle school, so I didn't have a line of boys lined up to ask me to homecoming or prom. Boys barely even noticed me, even my own little brother Daniel said I was unattractive.

When yearbooks were handed out towards the end of the school year, everyone was excitedly signing their friend's yearbooks and making plans for summer vacation. I sat at a table in the back, reading a book, and trying to tune out the deafening squeals of the girls. Some girls broke off from their cluster of friends and came over to me. One of the girls asked, "Hey, can I sign your yearbook?"

At the mention of this I looked up. The girl's name, I faintly remembered, was Alice, and her friends behind her, Maddie and Serena. They were part of the so called 'popular' clique, a clique I wanted nothing to do with.

"So? Can I?" she asked again, uncapping her bright red ballpoint pen. Alice always liked to stand out and start a new trend.

"Uh, sure?" I replied.

I slid my yearbook toward her and she opened to the first blank page designated for autographs. With a flip of her dyed bright red hair, she signed my yearbook, and with a flourish, slid it back toward me, a smile playing on her lips.

"Have a great summer Kora."

"It's Nora."

"Sure," she said walking back toward her group of friends.

I hesitated before opening my yearbook. Scrawled in her fancy handwriting, she wrote:

Quit being depressed and go make some friends. Have a good summer. ~Alice 3

Not a great summer, good summer. And she actually called me depressed. I was torn between being just the tiniest bit happy that she acknowledged me and a bit angry at her thinking I was depressed just because I didn't have any friends and sat alone.

So far, my summer vacation had started off bad with that one bad yearbook entry. But when I looked on the positive side, it was my first and only signature, so I got all happy again.

I thought once I hit high school, there would be more people, fresh faces that I could get to know, and more clubs to get to take part in. I was setting my sights on Art Club. I loved art. Yes, I was ready to start fresh and branch out for once. Little did I know that my mediocre life was about to take a 180 degree turn and become something daring, dangerous, and totally fabulous all at the same time.

=============================

A/N

Hello everyone!  I hope you enjoy this prologue.  This is my first book on this site, recommended to me by a reviewer on FictionPress.  I'm glad to be sharing my story on a new site, and I hope to become just as aquainted with this site as I am with the others. ^^

Note: This is actually a prologue, not chapter 1.  So chapter 2 will really be chapter 1, and so on and so forth. 

2: The Boy Next Door

It was about two weeks into high school. I was still invisible. No one invited me over to their tables to eat lunch with them, no one really talked to me in class, it was basically middle school all over again. Contrary to what I previously thought in middle school, I decided to dye my hair a bright blue and I definitely stuck out like a sore thumb, but people still didn't talk to me.

Yet, I found myself not caring.

As I trudged through my last period class on a Monday, I reflected on what my life had become. How have I, a girl who had tons of friends in elementary school, find herself friendless? It just didn't seem fair. Life could be very cruel to me.

When the bell sounded, ending the school day, I gathered my bags and hurried toward the bus. No reason to lag behind and then come on and find no seats available. I wouldn't have anyone to talk to after school anyway. Once I boarded the bus, which was almost completely empty, I sat down, pulled out my i-Pod, and listened to music. It calmed me down. I closed my eyes and laid my head back against the cool leather seat.

The bus filled up quickly, then pulled out the parking lot. Everyone was sitting with someone, but the seat next to me was empty. I, personally, wasn't surprised.

 

After the bus came to a screeching halt at my street, I got off and found my best friend standing there: Sam, the boy next door. He happened to be my only friend nowadays. We've known each other since we were in diapers. Me, being the aggressive one, and him, being the pansy. We somehow stayed friends throughout our difficult lives.

He held up a hand, "Hey there, stranger."

I rolled my eyes and gave him a smirk, "Didn't your mom tell you not to talk to strangers?"

"She did," he said brushing an invisible piece of lint off his shorts, "But this stranger was so pretty, I had to talk to her."

I laughed, "I'm not that pretty."

"Says who?"

"Says me. 'Cuz my word is law."

He chuckled, "You wish."

I noticed that he had a 7-Eleven bag that he tried, in vain, to hide behind his back, "Whatcha' got there?"

He took the bag from behind him, "Oh, this?" he asked feigning surprise, "I was just, feeling a bit hungry."

"Is there Kit Kats in there?"

He smiled, "And beef jerky and Cheetos."

Sam was the only person who knew my favorite candy and other snacks. He shared these same likes. Whenever I felt down, which nowadays was often, he'd go to 7-Eleven and buy these snacks. Then we'd walk to the dog park and eat them while watching the dogs and their owners do cute tricks or just chase each other around.

"Wanna go now?" he asked.

I put a finger to my chin, "Hmm, I do have a lot of homework to get done. Of course we can go now."

He laughed and put out his elbow for me to take, "Shall we m'lady?"

I smiled and did a curtsy, "Gladly," I said taking his arm.

Ah, the power of friendship. It soothes the aching heart and takes away the sadness and pain. If it weren't for Sam, I don't know where my life would be.

 

Today in the dog park, the only dogs there were a Cocker Spaniel and a Corgi. The Corgi was chasing a tennis ball and the Cocker Spaniel was trying to get the ball away from the Corgi.

Sam and I sat on the bench and chatted with the owner and offered him some snacks. So much for the no talking to strangers rule. He took a bite-sized piece of beef jerky and gave it to the Corgi, who happily wagged his tail while munching it. The Cocker Spaniel retrieved the ball and trotted over to the owner who took it and threw it.

When he left, it was late in the afternoon, so we decided to head home. Along the way, Sam kicked at a pebble on the sidewalk.

"So how's life?" he asked stuffing his hands in the pockets of his dark wash jeans.

"Crappy as usual. I guarantee you that mom and dad will be fighting when I get home."

"How much are you willing to bet?"

I shoved him playfully, "Nothing! You always win!"

We walked in silence for a few minutes, then I asked, "How'd you know I was sad?"

"I have emotion sensors."

"Ha, you're such the comedian today aren't you?"

He smiled and tilted his head toward the sky. I never noticed it before, but the setting sun gave his head an almost angelic glow. His dirty blonde hair shined and his blue eyes sparkled. I pursed my lips together as my heart skipped a beat.

Finally, he said, "The truth?"

I nodded, then he sighed, "Yesterday, when I got a ride to school from my mom, I saw you at the bus stop. You looked so sad, and you kept glancing at the other girls and boys who were talking about God knows what."

They were actually gossiping about their other friends, but that wasn't something I needed to point out.

"So naturally, an alarm went off in my head. It was my 'Nora is sad' alarm. I know you don't have many friends. So seeing all of them talk and laugh with each other probably got you feeling like a total loser."

His words were so true, yet it felt like someone had stabbed me in the heart.

"So I wanted to cheer you up. That's why I met you at the bus stop and played hooky to get the 7-Eleven stuff."

I stopped walking and turned to him, "You played hooky?!"

He shrugged and smiled, "Yeah."

"But, what if your mom finds out?"

He jutted out his chin in defiance, "She's so busy at work, she barely pays attention to me anymore and comes home exhausted every day. What's the worse punishment she can give me?"

In a way, he was right. Sam's parents got a divorce when he was 6. Sam's father was drinking way too much and got into horrible fights with his mother. Sam described it as being caught between a rock and a hard place. He didn't know which side he should choose. In the end, he ended up living with his mother after the divorce. His mom worked even harder to support them, so she was always tired and didn't care much what her son did sometimes.

Once we reached our houses, I turned left onto my driveway and he turned right. When I turned the lock, mom was sitting on the couch, sipping tea. She drank tea all the time, year-round. Even when it was hot outside, you'd find her sitting in the kitchen or living room drinking tea. "Like an old woman," my dad used to mutter.

I dropped my bag in a nearby chair and sat on the couch, "Hello mom."

"Hi sweetie," she said giving me a sad look. Just from that look, I could tell mom and dad had been in another fight. I had avoided the storm…for now probably.

"How was school?"

"Good." My usual reply.

"Good," she said sipping her tea.

I heard dad's footsteps coming downstairs. I quickly grabbed my bag and made a beeline for the kitchen. Trying to avoid my father was pretty hard. He was anywhere and everywhere. Even in places you didn't think possible. It was what made him so scary.

"I heard the door close. Is Nora home?" he asked.

"Yeah," replied my mom.

"Where is she?"

"Bathroom," she lied.

He walked to the bathroom near the office. Quickly, I stood up, flashed a 'thank-you' smile toward mom, and dashed up the stairs to my room and shut the door.

It wasn't as if I hated my father, I do love him, but sometimes, when he says we need to 'talk', it's usually about my behavior and my grades that were starting to slip. In the end, he was yelling, I was screaming back and crying, and we basically got nowhere. We had this conversation at least every week. It was starting to become a pattern. I hated Monday's, but I didn't hate it so much when Sam was there to comfort me. What would my life be without the boy next door?

3: And Then He Got Caught

Ah, Tuesday.  I prefer Wednesday's and Friday's over all the other days of the week.  On Wednesday, I give myself a congratulatory pat on the back for making it through half of the week.  On Friday, the only thing on my mind, and a lot of people's minds at that, is the weekend.  But Tuesday's, sigh.

I was in a particularly sour mood that Tuesday.  My dad came back from the bathroom where he tried to find me and argued with my mom of covering me for something I did.  He then called me downstairs, then the usual talk of grades and attitude, me not caring, then the yelling and screaming.  Same old same old.  My dad said he honestly didn't know what went wrong after I stormed upstairs to my bedroom, which fueled a whole new argument with my mom that lasted half the night.  Listening to that, let me tell you, really takes a toll on you. 

I grudgingly trudged through 1st period English, then Biology, and then toward Health, and onward to Math.  I know it may seem hard to believe, but math is my favorite subject.  My class is interesting, my classmates actually talk to me, and I have a good laugh now and then.  If I had my way, I honestly wish I could have math the rest of the day.  But unfortunately, all good things come to an end.  I sat in my usual seat in the courtyard and silently ate my lunch.  Then trudged through Spanish, then P.E., one of my least favorite classes.  I was very thankful that it was the last period before the end of the day.

On this particular day, we were playing tennis.  One of the very little friends I have, Kimi, was my partner.  She was great and all, but it wasn't the same kind of friendship I had with Sam.  I was just grateful to have another friend who is a girl, and Sam is too.  He thinks trips to the lingerie section of Target are a mixture of heaven and hell.

"So how'd it go yesterday?" she asked, serving the tennis ball to me.

"Lasted about twenty minutes.  A new record," I replied, using a backhand swing to hit the ball.

She nodded and hit it back to me, "That's good.  Maybe you and your dad could bond over something you both like.  Maybe minimize the fighting?"

I scoffed, "As if!"

Kimi swung hard at the ball causing it to come toward me at double speed, a special move she liked to call the Fire Shot.  Usually, I avoided these shots and let it hit the fence or some other poor passerby retrieving their ball, but this time, something surged through me.  If it was anger toward my messed up life, sadness at how lonely I was, or jealousy of other girls, I don't know.  All I know was that I felt the contact of the ball with my tennis raquet, and the ball went flying...right towards Kimi's face.

I gasped and closed my eyes, trying to block out the sight of Kimi's most likely bloody nose.  The sight of blood has always made me nauseous.  But I didn't hear any screaming, or crying for that matter, on the other side of the court.  I slowly opened my eyes to see Kimi holding her hand up in front of her face, the ball had hit her hand and rolled off somewhere.  Her hand wasn't bleeding, but a small bruise had formed in her palm.  She slowly lowered her hand, revealing a huge grin. 

I gave a weak smile back.  Words were not necessary to describe what I had just done.

 

After P.E., and after I bid goodbye to Kimi, I stood at Sam's locker and leaned against the door, waiting for him to show up.  After most of the school cleared out, I got a text from him:

Got caught playing hooky.  Detention.

Oh great, I thought.  If anyone could get caught playing hooky it would be Sam.  As usual, Sam would most likely beg the administration not to call his mom.  He would tell the sappy sad story of his parents' divorce and the stress his mom was under...and they eat it up every time.  Taking pity on him, they don't call his mom, but give him two extra days of detention.  This was no exception.

I knew that the teacher who usually watched over the kids in detention was in the teacher's lounge watching her soap operas.  As long as the kids weren't roaming around the school, she didn't care what they did.  Which meant I could easily sneak in and hang out with Sam.  It gave me something to do, at the very least. 

First, I texted him back saying to try to leave the back door to the school open.  Then I headed out and down the street to the 7-Eleven.  Sam knew my favorite junk foods, and I knew his: a jumbo bag of Hot Cheetos, a king size Snickers Bar, and a mix of blueberry and cherry slurpie.

I paid for these things (knowing full well that he had to pay me back every cent just like I did to him) and left for school again slurping my slurpie (nothing special, just a pina colada).  Just as I asked him to, the back door was propped open just a crack, so I easily slipped into the school.  I went up to the detention room and opened the door to what was literally a zoo. 

"Duck!" someone yelled.

I quickly ducked an incoming spit ball that hit the wall behind me, then wove my way between the scattered desks and chairs to where Sam sat, at the back of the room surveying and laughing at the action.  The people in detention were known as the 'delinquents.'  No one could tame them or make them do their homework.  They all treated school as a joke.  Naturally, I was like a rose patch of weeds.  Despite my semi-bad grades and bad attitude, I have never been sentenced (I mean issued) a detention. 

I sat in a nearby chair and gave Sam his food. 

"Thanks," he said popping open the bag of Hot Cheetos.

"Anytime," I replied reaching in the bag for a handful.

"Hey Nora," said a red-headed girl named Roxy turning a chair around and sitting in it backwards, "Didn't know you had detention."

"I don't," I replied bluntly.

She chuckled then got up and hugged Sam from behind, "Well my boy here has been here for a looong time.  And he's told me lots of things about you."

I looked at Sam surprised.  He shrugged his shoulders and continued eating his Cheetos.

"Like what," I said challenging.

"Well, a lot actually.  I can't remember them off the top of my head 'cuz I'm basically stupid."  She took a moment to laugh before continuing, "But he said he was too afraid to admit that he really li-"

Sam quickly clamped a hand over Roxy's mouth.  I raised an eyebrow at Sam.  He gave me a weak smile before saying, "I really like how you keep me company."

I nodded my head and looked down, "That's what I thought you said."

 

After detention was over, Sam walked me home.  It was another long quiet walk with emphasis on the long because we missed the bus.  Once we got to my driveway, he turned to me, "About what Roxy said-"

"It's cool," I said raising my hand, "I'm sure you said a lot of great things about me.  'Cuz I'm awesome."

He smiled, "Yeah, you are."

I returned his smile then waved goodbye to him as I walked up my driveway to the front porch.  Just as I was about to open the door Sam called out to me, "Be well little angel!"

I smiled and secretly blushed at this comment.  When we were little, I was always fascinated with angels.  I spent my elementary and middle school years researching the existence of angels.  Sam used to call me 'little angel' because I would always wear a pair of angel wings to school.  Of course, as I grew up, the possibility of angels existing became farther and farther away from me and I slowly lost interest.  Why he was bringing that up now...was anyone's guess.

4: Soccer Day Miracle

"Okay girls!  Hurry up and get changed then head out to the soccer field!"

Excited chatter and the closing of lockers could be heard throughout the locker room as girls headed out toward the soccer field.  I hurried to change into my navy blue P.E. shorts and white shirt and yank on my socks and sneakers.  I quickly closed my locker and ran out with the other few girls that lagged behind.

It was Wednesday, and I patted myself on the back this morning for surviving up until now.  Now it was two days to Friday where I could really relax, but only four days until Monday hit again.  Still, I liked to enjoy Wednesday's, Friday's, and the weekend while I could.

I stepped outside and was greeted by a gentle warm breeze that blew my long, unnaturally dyed blue hair from my face.  I slowed down to enjoy the breeze more before I got tortured in the required class of Physical Education.  Didn't I have enough of that in middle school?

Once the last of the girls spilled out onto the soccer field, the coach blew her whistle and the chatter died down, "All right girls!  We have soccer coming up, and-"

Everyone groaned and more chatter started up.

Coach blew her whistle again, "And!  I'm placing you on teams of six.  Each team is going to take one portion of the soccer field and play against your opponents.  Know your teammates ladies, and for goodness sake!  The ball won't bite!  Just kick it!"

The girls giggled and elbowed each other.

"You all know how to play and if you don't, you'll learn pretty darn fast.  As soon as you get your teammates together, designate a captain, and vote on a team name.  The whole thing is like a tournament.  In order to be the best, you have to win.  So winners move up the ranks, losers run laps the entire period.  The team that wins gets to skip the mile we'll be running next week.  Any questions?"

Coach glared at us all, daring us to ask.  We all kept our heads down and avoided her glare, which was especially shooting daggers at me.

"No?  Then, I'll call out the teams."

As coach shouted out names, I looked at the track next to the soccer field. The boys were running around the track, though most of them were walking.  I scanned each boy that passed, hoping I could spot the dirty blond head that would flash me a thumbs-up whenever I had P.E.  A way of us saying 'Good Luck.'  Unfortunately, no such luck.

"Nora Thompson!"  shouted the coach.

I whipped my head back at full attention to the coach, "Yes?"

"You're on Team 4.  Pay more attention next time.  You're not deaf."

Girls snickered and I could feel my face go hot, "Yes coach."

I ran to catch up with the girls on my team, already heading out toward the field.  Once I caught up with them, they were already going through introductions.

"Hey wait, I didn't catch that," I said, panting.

An Asian girl with long black hair rolled her eyes and whispered to a girl with dyed orange hair.  I looked at them all, wondering if they were going to continue.

"Ahem," a girl in the middle said, "My name is Alice.  That is Lucy," she said pointing to the girl with orange hair, "The girl beside her is Ami."

I recognized Alice!  She was the girl who signed my yearbook last year.  But I guess she only did it to make me feel better.  She had no intentions of becoming my hopeful friend this year.  Had she not told me her name, I wouldn’t have recognized her.  Over the summer, she must’ve gotten a tan and cut her bright red hair.

A girl with toffee colored skin and jet black hair introduced herself as Zealand.  And two other girls with sun-kissed skin and beach blond hair introduced themselves as Rose and Jessica.

"I'm Nora," I said once everyone gave their introductions.

"We know," said Ami with a flip of her hair.

I nodded, "Right..." then I looked at Alice, "Do you remember me?"

Alice's bright blue eyes studied me up and down, then she frowned and shook her head.  I was afraid of that.

"So anyway," Ami said, walking up to Alice and putting an arm around her shoulders, "I nominate Alice for team captain.  All who agree?"

All hands went up except for mine.

Ami sighed, "All - any - opposed?"

I didn't raise my hand again.

"You have to vote once Dora," said Ami with a sneer.

"It's Nora.  And everyone has already voted Alice, so why would my vote matter?"

"True," she said with a smirk.  I have a feeling I just called myself out on being an invisible girl and everyone else thinks it’s fitting.

"What about our team name?" piped up Zealand.

Ami waved her hand, "No time for stupid team names.  We'll just call ourselves blue jays after our beloved mascot."

You see?  Other schools have fierce mascots.  Cougars, bobcats, mountain lions.  But what do we have?  A blue jay.  A damn blue jay.  The mascot is a blue jay, but the costume looks more like Big Bird dyed blue and painted with black and white stripes.  At the football and basketball games, you could hear the other team snickering as the blue jay danced across the field.  I wasn’t surprised when Kimi told me that someone in the crowd threw a hot dog at him.

Once the other team was ready, we commenced our game.  I was put on goalie duty, another bad idea.  For one thing I'm terrified of balls.  I have more bruises from balls than any other natural injury and soccer is my least favorite.  What's so great about kicking a little black and white ball and getting excited over it?

I watched as my teammates chased the ball and passed it to each other like pros.  I walked around in my goalie box, praying the ball wouldn't come on this side.  Unfortunately, God must've been busy, because the ball was coming fast.

A girl with her hair in twin braids and a slightly muscular build came toward the goalie box.  She stopped in front of it, raised her leg back, and kicked the ball with so much power; it could've torn a hole in a brick building.

I shrieked and ducked.  The ball hit the net and the other side cheered.  My teammates groaned and Ami stalked up to me, fury in her eyes, "You let them get a point!"

"Hey!  That ball was going at 50 miles per hour!  I don't need a hole in the head, thank you very much!"

"Well at least a hole in the head would let out all that hot air!"

Ouch, I thought.

"From now on, you're playing defense.

I moved up while Ami took my spot.  The game then resumed.  My teammates made sure I wasn't on offense or goalie, which was fine with me because no one passed the ball to me and I didn't want to kick the ball anyway.  I would either go the wrong way or have it taken from me right as I got it.

Eventually, the team huddled in together for a final battle strategy before coach blew her whistle to head inside.

"All right you guys, we're tied with the other team.  So we need to use the fake-'em-and-kick-it technique."

"The what?" I asked.

Ami rolled her eyes, "Where someone pretends to pass the ball to someone else they weren't initially going to pass it to.  Then while everyone goes to guard her, you continue and kick it into the goal."

"Oh, couldn't they have come up with a better name?"

Lucy and Jessica giggled.  I was glad someone saw my joke was funny.

Ami shot them an icy glare that could have felled a bear, "No time for names Dora.  We'll use that technique."

"It's Nora."

"Whatever!"

My eyes burned as I tried to hold back tears.  It was obvious that these girls didn’t really care about my being on this team.  To them, I was just the background scenery.

"You guys!" said Alice in a sharp tone that immediately put Ami to shame, "Nora is a part of this team too.  So don't treat her like leftovers that no one wants."

I didn't see how her comparison to me with leftovers was that great, but I was glad someone stuck up for me.

"Now Jessica, Lucy, and I continue to be offense.  Nora, Zealand, and Rose, defense.  Ami, goalie."

"Alice I'm tired!" said Jessica, "Send someone else in to take my place."

Alice bit her bottom lip, "Oh okay.  How about you Nora?"

"Me?" I squeaked.

"Her?" said Ami, "Do you want us to lose?"

Alice's eyes darkened and she walked up to Ami until she was practically in her face, "Nora gets a chance, Ami.  If you don't like it, then go ask coach to be on another team."

Ami sighed and rubbed her temples, "Fine!  She can be offense.  But if she makes us lose-"

"It doesn't matter who wins and who loses.  The important thing is that we all have fun."

Ha! Understatement of the century.  Everyone says that, but in the end, everyone really only cares about winning.

The ball goes back into play.  After careful instructions for me to pass the ball to Alice at every opportunity, our team was slowly moving up the field.  Now we were near the goal.  One strong kick could win us the game.  Our game and legs depended on it.  I was so not up to running tomorrow.

The ball came to me again, I was about to kick it to Alice when I saw she was heavily guarded.  I gulped hard as I saw more girls coming at me.

“Kick the ball!” screamed Ami from the other side of the court.

“Just do it!” said Alice, still trying to find an opening, but to no success.

Without much thought, I swung my leg back, and kicked the ball.  It soared through the air, girls ducked out of the way, then coach blew her whistle. 

“Time to come inside!”

But I could barely hear her over my team screaming, laughing, and high-fiving the other team.  I had just won the winning point for my team.  As we jogged back to the locker room, Alice smiled at me, “Good job Nora.”

I smiled back, “Thanks.”

Then Ami came up to me.  Instead of a congratulatory hug, a smile, or even a high-five, she had a scowl on her face, “Watch your back,” she hissed as she walked by.

I stopped and stared at her retreating back with her long black hair swishing back and forth.  It was the only reaction I could have to something like that.

 

After detention with Sam, I walked home playing over and over the final kick in my head.  Final kick...like Final Fantasy?  Awesome!  That would be the new title for my new kick.  Final Fantasy Power kick had a nice ring to it.  I smiled when I saw the other team's faces.  It was truly something to behold.

As for my afternoon, I was planning to celebrate with a hidden stash of Oreo’s and the awaiting couch.  But instead, like the good friend and neighbor, I kept Sam company in detention.  Total days spent: 2. Total days left: 1.

Once I got home, I grabbed my Oreo’s, but also grabbed some fruits and vegetables, cut them up, then took some leftover chicken and cut it up too.  I put it in a bowl, then headed outside.

There was this dog that wandered into my backyard a few years ago.  The poor thing was so starved I could see her rib cage and she was limping.  Despite my dad's stern orders to put her out of her misery, my mom and I carefully nursed her back to health until she was running like the wind again and was so plump she could barely run too far anyway.  Ever since, she has camped out in our backyard under a little shed my mom bought just for her.  I have taken care of her ever since.

I walked outside and whistled for the dog to come.  She gave a happy bark and with a tail wagging a mile-a-minute, I bent down to pet her and give her some food.

"Hey there!" I said in a babyish voice, "Did you miss me?"

The dog barked, ate the food, then went back to the shed where she slept.  That was the thing.  She liked to run, eat, sleep, and growl but never was seen outside for too long or played with mom and me for too long either.  As a result, mom stopped coming out to see him.

I sighed, gathered the bowl, and went inside.  The couch was screaming my name.

5: Fallen Angel

Saturday had finally come!  Oh sweet heaven!  My favorite part of Saturday, aside from sleeping until noon, was getting to spend the entire day with Sam.  Oh!  I mean, it's not as if...well, okay it is what you think.  I have a tiny crush on Sam.  But it's really tiny!  Like so tiny you can barely even see it!  Because like I said, I've known Sam for a long time and he really is only a friend! 

Sometimes, Sam comes over to my house, save for the embarrassment my parents put me through.  It's like they live for it, I swear!  Then we do what any normal teenager does: pig out, watch stupid viral YouTube videos, watch MTV, you know, the usual stuff.  Sam also likes the dog that I'm taking care of.  He goes out back to pet it all the time.

I was looking forward to another long Saturday afternoon with Sam. 

Unfortunately, Sam's mother found out about his playing hooky, and getting detention, and using his soppy sad story to keep from getting in trouble with his mom (honestly, he treats that story like he's bribing someone). 

"And you're sure you can't come over?" I asked him after lunch.  He had phoned in just to call and tell me that.  He was only allowed one phone call to the person of his choosing before his cell phone was taken away.  How sweet!  He called me when he could've called anyone else.  Not that I'm overly excited about that or anything, I just think it's a nice gesture.

"Yeah, sorry Nora," he said on the other end.

"Since the Saturday plans are ruined, I am declaring a day of fasting!  You are to not touch one piece of junk food.  Not even a crumb at the bottom of the Doritos bag," I said.

Sam laughed on the other end.  I like his laugh.  It sounded like a hefty laugh but at the same time, kind of tinkly, like a small bell.  The laugh of a troublemaker I tell you.

"We are having this fast because of you're getting busted playing hooky, by both the school and your mom.  And to sacrifice our pig out Saturday's."

Sam laughed again, "Oh Nora!  Wow, you're funny!  I'm in tears, literally!"

"As if!" I joked, "Samuel, if I was there, I would smack you upside the head!"

At that we both laughed.  It's amazing how even when we're in the worst possible situation, we can still make each other laugh.

After we hung up, I walked out back to check on the dog.  Lately, it didn't play, or bark, or eat all of her food.  Just sat near the garden hose and growled even more than she already did.  When she started growling the first time for no reason, I walked over to where she was sitting to see what she was growling at, and always found nothing.  Eventually, I didn't care and just came out to bring her food and water.

Today, though, something amazing happened.  The dog barked!  I couldn't have been happier. 

"Good girl!" I said, genuinely happy.

The dog wagged her tail, growled a bit, and then, "Help!"

"Wha-!?"

I was so startled I dropped the dog.  The dog laid flat on the ground, and whimpered a bit, then got back up and looked at me, "That hurt!  Thanks a lot!"

"But...you're....and...talking!"

The dog sat down and looked me in the eye, "Great!  I've learned to talk!  It's about time!"

"Damn," I murmured slowly sinking to the ground.  My gaze continued to stare a the dog, who apparently, took great amusement in my confused expression.

"I know you're surprised, confused, and probably a bit scared.  And before you run to the house, I come in peace."

"What?" I asked.  Was it just me, or was the house spinning?

The dog barked once before saying, "Sorry, just wanted to say that.  The stars always say it in those sci-fi movies right?  When the humans meet the aliens and say 'I come in peace.'  Well, anyway,  just to let you know, I'm the spirit of a fallen angel trapped inside this stinky, disgusting, mangled body of a dog and need your help."

"Wait, did you say fallen angel?"  I said.  Now I know I was dreaming.  Angels either didn't exist, or looked over us silently and while being invisible.  As much as I loved angels and being called an angel, as I grew up, I put my childish beliefs behind me.  But there was still a small part of me that believed they existed, and my proof just might be right in front of me.

"What do you need?" I asked, "How did you get trapped in that dog's body?  What's going on?"

"One question at a time girly!" barked the dog, "Now, take me to a guardian angel so his power can set me free."

"What?"  I asked again.

The dog sighed, or what I think was a sigh.  It came out sounding more like a low growl.

"Must I do everything?  Fine!  Do you know the boy named Samuel?"

I nodded my head, "Yeah, he and I are friends. He lives next door."

"Take me to him."

"What?"

"Is that all you can say?  I do believe the Big Guy gave you a brain and you can say more words than 'what?' you know."

"Oh, right, sorry," I blushed.  Being told off by a group of mean girls at school was not as bad, or as strange, as being told off by a talking dog.

Wait a minute, I thought, a talking dog!?  That's not possible... oh wait, I think I get it now.

I smiled and picked up the dog, "I know what you're doing.  Where's your battery pact?"

"What?" she yelped as I turned her over.

"Wow, they did a good job of hiding it," I muttered, concentrating on finding the batteries, "There's just no freaking way a dog can talk.  I know someone put you up to this.  Was it the AV club?  They've always hated me."

"Why?" the dog asked.

"Never mind that.  Where's the microphone?"

"Listen!  I'm not a fake!  Put me down this instant!"

I don't know why, but I put the dog down, then said, "They definitely put you up to this didn't they?  They're the only ones I know of who hate me enough to put me on a hidden camera show."

I looked down, remembering them saying I would "Rue this day!"  It was an accident though!  I didn't mean to spill my soda on their expensive, shiny new high-definition equipment!  But in all honesty, they needed to at least run the wires under a carpet or something.

"Look," she said impatiently, "It's taken me a while to be able to talk to me!  I'd really like to talk face to face and not face to snout!"

"Fine!  But I don't buy it for one second!  The second I see a camera, I'm dropping you!"

I scooped up the dog in my arms and hopped the fence into Sam's backyard.  I looked into the window on the first floor where Sam's room was.  He usually left his blinds open during the day to let in the sunlight.  I saw Sam, sitting on his bed, looking miserable as his mom shouted at him for doing a crazy, stupid thing. 

She then sighed, gave him a big hug, then after a few more words, Sam nodded his head and she walked out his room and closed the door behind her.  I knew that she was here on her lunch break and probably didn't have time to reprimand him when she went to work that morning.  Quickly, I looked toward the front of the fence to find her car backing out of the garage, and leaving.  After counting slowly counting to ten, I rapped on Sam's window.

"Wha-!?  Nora!?" I could hear him say through the glass.

"Let me in," I said.

Sam lifted his blinds, then lifted the window pane as I climbed in. 

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"The dog told me to see you."

"What?  You're dog?"

I nodded my head and glanced down at the dog happily curled up in my arms.  I put the dog down, then said, "Speak."

"Samuel," she said with a nod of her head.

Sam's mouth dropped open, then he looked at me for an explanation, "Long story short, dog is fallen angel spirit, trapped in dog body and told me to come here and see you.  That's all I know.  Though I have a sneaking suspicion the AV Club is after me."

"Again?" asked Sam.

"Right, well, let's get to business," the dog interrupted.

The dog stood on her hind legs and tried to push Sam down onto his bed, "You want me to sit?  Little doggie?" he asked.

"Call me that again, and I'll chew your arm off," growled the dog.

Sam pursed his lips together and sat.  The dog hopped onto his lap and stared right into his eyes.  She started to mutter a strange incantation in a foreign language; she began to get louder and louder.  Not once did Sam look away. 

"What are you doing?" I asked the dog.

Finally, the dog closed her eyes, and then said, "Awaken!"

Sam continued to stare at the dog under heavy lids.

"Oh for Pete's sake!  Awaken dammit!"

He continued to stare under heavy lids, which slowly started to close.  The dog made a low growling in her throat, "Okay, you leave me no choice!  I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to do this!"

She jumped down at Sam's feet, then slowly lifted a leg...

"Oh my God!" I screeched.

Suddenly, Sam's eyes popped open.  His brilliant blue eyes stared at me a moment, then he looked from side to side, then after realizing where he was looked down, and nearly exploded, "What the-!"

"Good!  You've awakened," said the dog, sitting down, acting as if she didn't do something unthinkable.

"Wait, what?" Sam questioned.

"Good grief!  Is that really all you humans can say!"

Sam's eyes darkened, "You haven't changed a bit have you?  I bet that runaway mouth of yours is what got you kicked out of heaven in the first place."

The dog growled, "Look here Samuel..."

"Anyway!  My leg is wet thanks to a certain someone," he paused to glare at the dog, "I'm just gonna change my pants."

He walked over to the bottom drawer where he kept his pants and pulled out his favorite dark wash jeans, then he turned to us, "Um...do you mind?"

The dog promptly turned around while I cocked a hip and crossed my arms, "Sam, I've seen you stark naked before.  This is nothing new."

"But we were kids then!  Now it's just awkward."

I threw up my hands and turned around.  He quickly changed, then said we could turn around again.

"Alright, what's the deal?" I asked, "I want answers and I want them now!  Sam, why do you know that dog?  What have you 'awakened' to?  And-"

The dog held up a paw, "Alright!  We'll talk, promise!  But first, Samuel, change me back.  Then let the dog go to a nice family, okay?"

Sam nodded, then with the flick of his wrist, a light surrounded the dog.  The dog's limbs started to grow longer and the body more slender until a beautiful girl with long, flowing pink hair that came to her waist and startling green eyes replaced the dog. 

She stood up, revealing the armor she was in: a golden breastplate with a chain mail skirt and a red scarf tied around her neck.  There were bronze armbands traveling up her arm and her gold boots nearly blinded me.  In her right hand, she held the biggest sword I've ever seen with a long handle and in her right hand, a short necklace with a cross on it, dangling from her wrist.

"Thanks," she said to Sam, then she turned to me, "My name's Olivia.  Sorry to startle you."

Sam continued to stare, transfixed by the girl's presence.  When he caught me staring at him, he blushed and quickly looked away.  Even though I just met her, I instantly had a small bit of jealousy towards her for looking that good and getting Sam to look at her a whole five seconds longer than when he looked at me.

"So you're probably so confused right now," she said. 

I nodded, then pulled out Sam's desk chair and sat down, "So tell me the story.  From beginning to end.  Don't leave out anything!"

Sam and Olivia glanced at each other, "You wanna tell her?" she asked.

Sam shrugged, then looked at me, "As you know, Nora, Olivia is an angel.  And so am I."

I knew it! I thought, I knew angels existed! 

"So starting at the beginning," he continued, "I'm a guardian angel who used to live up in heaven.  Of course, the Big Man sees all; past, present, and future, and at that he saw a horrible future coming.  Heaven, being attacked, by a massive invasion of monsters from the Underworld.  There is no hope if hell breaks through heaven's barriers and takes down our battle angels.  But, the Big Guy saw a glimmer of hope.  One normal girl, such as yourself, is going to save heaven from this awful fate."

My mouth dropped open and Olivia snickered behind her hand, "A lot to shoulder, huh?"

I shot a glare at her, then turned to Sam, "Continue."

"So seeing this fate, he knew that the monsters of the Underworld would try to seek out and destroy that glimmer of hope.  So he contacted my mom..."

"Wait, contacted?  Does she have the Big Man on speed dial or something?" I asked.

Olivia laughed and Sam did as well.  I blushed crimson.  It wasn't a joke, I was honestly wondering how the Big Man contacted us.

After Sam and Olivia had their laugh fest, he continued, "No, no nothing like that.  You see, he told her in a dream.  Like, you know the virgin Mary who gave birth to baby Jesus?"

I nodded my head.

"Well, it's like that, only my mom couldn't give birth in the first place.  So I was designated to be your guardian angel and was beamed down from heaven and placed in a basket on my mom's front porch.  You see, the reason I'm such good friends with you is because I was there to guard you.  But eventually, your influence, along with everyone else's influence, caused me to forget my duties and my status as guardian angel."

Olivia jumped in, "That's where I come in!  A few years back, my big mouth got me into some hot water with the Big Guy.  You see, he doesn't like mouthy angels.  Or angels that break his rules.  That's why he sends them on earth with an objective.  So that's what he did to me.  But instead of sending me down as an invisible angel, slowly completing my objective with no one watching me, my spirit was trapped in a dog!  Even worse was that I got into a fight with the other stray dogs, leaving me limping for quite a while.  And I was starving!  I refused to eat the garbage the other dogs ate.  But then, I remembered my goal, and you and your mom saved me Nora.  When I found you, you saved me!"

I smiled at the memory.  I treated the dog as if it belonged to me my whole life.  As if I helped it along ever since it was a newborn puppy.  That's how much I love dogs.

"So that makes me a fallen angel.  Although I was previously a battle angel, which explains my armor and weapon."

I nodded.  It made sense now...wait...fallen angel?

"Why a fallen angel?" I finally said.

Olivia rolled her eyes, "Isn't it obvious?  I was kicked out of heaven.  That automatically makes you a fallen angel, duh!"

And just when I thought we might get along, even a little.

"So what's your objective to get back into heaven?" I asked.

"Help you.  Again, duh!  You need to learn how to fight.  You've been designated as the person to save..."

"I get it!  I've been designated to save mankind!  You don't need to explain!"

Olivia smirked, "Now that's where you're wrong!  You've been designated to save heaven!  The Underworld doesn't give a damn about earth.  They put it this way: take over heaven, take over earth.  Gosh, do I even need to say 'duh?'"

I stuck my tongue out at her and she stuck out hers in reply.  I know it's incredibly childish of me, but I was totally fed up with her attitude.  It's no wonder she was kicked out of heaven.  She made my attitude look like a stroll in the park.

"All that aside," Sam finally said, "Olivia will help you train, along with many other angels designated to help you.  My job is to guard you from monster attacks.  Now that you're aware of your position, the monsters can sense you a bit clearer.  Especially since your powers will start to awaken as well."

"Sounds very...I dunno, cheesy," I said.

Olivia rolled her eyes, "Well I can't think of another way to introduce you to what's happening here and now then telling you flat out!  None of this riddle crap they have in books and movies!  Just the facts!"

"For once, I agree with you," I said.

"Now that you know what's happening, you're training will start tomorrow," Olivia said, "And be on time."

I breathed out.  This was a lot to shoulder.  Why would the Big Man choose a nobody like me to save the heavens?  It just didn't make sense.  There was nothing special about me!  Well, aside from that awesome tennis serve and that killer soccer kick, but that's nothing!  Just a stroke of luck...

"So Samuel..."

Sam winced, "Please just call me Sam.  Samuel makes me sound so old fashioned."

"Whatever, Samuel.  I guess I'll be staying with you.  You're mom's so busy, she probably won't notice another person in the house.  I'm easy to stay with, so don't refuse!  At the very least, I don't need to eat all the time."

"What a miracle!" he said, mockingly throwing his arms up in the air.  Olivia karate chopped him on the head.

"Well, I guess I better...go now," I said, sadly watching their playful banter.  Another obstacle that stands between me and Sam, and it looked like that obstacle was here to stay for a while. 

"I'll help you out," said Sam, standing up. 

He ushered me out the window, the climbed out the window himself.  Before I hopped the fence into my yard, he suddenly grabbed my arm, and whispered in my ear, "I can't wait until you're training is done.  I'll finally be able to see your final form."

I turned to him, surprised, "My what?"

He smiled, "You'll see.  For now train hard and be well, little angel."

He climbed back into his room through the window and closed it.  I waved to him through the window, then hopped the fence. 

Then it finally hit me: that's the most contact Sam and I ever had!  At this realization, I blushed ferociously, then chuckled nervously.

Looks like things are going to get a lot more interesting...and dangerous, I thought.

6: Day 1: Swords and Shields

I opened the door to my room and flopped onto my bed, messing up my comforter.  I rolled over, and stared at the ceiling.  I never noticed it before, but there was a crack in the ceiling.  My life is like that crack.  Things used to be simple.  I was the invisible girl.  The type who was easily ignored, whose opinions didn't matter.  At first, it bothered me, but I've come to accept the facts and face the music.  I just couldn't understand why a girl like me was chosen to save the heavens, and to a lesser extent, the Earth.  Training tomorrow, school the next day, my life was going to be hectic.

I heard the door open and close.  My little brother, Daniel, must be back from his soccer game.  My parents congratulated him and murmured at how great he was.  I heard the heavy thump of him coming up the stairs and he burst into my room, "Hey Nora, guess what?"

"What?  Chicken butt?" I replied sarcastically.

Daniel stuck his tongue out at me, "No stupid, I won my soccer game."

"Good for you," I said, covering my eyes with my arm.  I was tired and my head was swarming, like a million bees.

"Are you okay?  You don't look so good," said Daniel.

Surprised, I turned to him, "You care about me?"

Daniel shrugged.  I was genuinely surprised that he took an interest in my well-being.  He never really did care.  I smiled a little, touched by his concern.

"Of course if you don't feel good, then I have no one to test my latest concoctions on," he said with a smirk, knowing full well that he just gave me false hope.

I groaned, "Okay, you got me.  Now go away!"

"Hmm....am I bothering you?"

"Yes."

"Then in that case, no!"

I took my pillow and threw it at him.  He dodged and laughed, running to his own room.  Probably to make more concoctions.  My parents gave him this weird chemistry set thing that has many unnamed ingredients.  The whole point was to mix the ingredients to make a yummy drink, which my brother failed miserably at.  My parents refused to test those concoctions; my mom's excuse being her job as a lawyer and needing the time to review files and my dad's excuse being too busy helping out around the house to test it.  Leaving me to drink the concoctions that almost always made me puke.

I continued to stare at the crack in my ceiling.  My life...like that crack.  It was messed up, now that I had this burden on my shoulders.

 

I don't know when, but I somehow fell into a restless sleep.  Usually, I can't remember my dreams, but when I woke up, I remembered it in perfect detail.

It started out with Sam, his body filled with a holy presence.  Light shone all around him and when he touched my forehead, light extended from his fingertips.  He smiled, and I instantly got a head rush from that beautiful, angelic smile.  But the scene changed.  I saw Sam being attacked and torn apart by wolves.  I watched the horrible act being committed.  I tried to help him, but I couldn't move.  I couldn't do anything, but cry and cry.  Then out in the distance, I heard somebody's voice, calling my name. 

"Help us!"

I turned my head to the side, "Who's calling my name?"

"Nora!  Save us!"

A dungeon.  I could see a dungeon, with my parents in it.  From somewhere in the darkness, a voice roared with laughter.

"Come to me little angel.  I'll crush you!"

I gritted my teeth, about to charge at the demon when a light appeared...a doorway.  I ran to the doorway, my parents' faces illuminated in the light. 

"Help us!" they pleaded.

"I'm trying!" I huffed.

No matter how hard or fast I ran, I never got closer.  The laughter began again, and I was swallowed up in the floor.  Drowning in what felt like water.  I couldn't move, I couldn't scream, and could feel the last of my breath leave my body.

And I woke up crying, remembering everything, and fearing for my life.  I looked to the Hello Kitty alarm clock by my bed.  The red light was bright in my otherwise dark room.  It read 2:34. 

Without much thought, I grabbed my cell phone and dialed Sam's number.  After ringing five times, I was about to give up when I heard a click

"Hullo," he mumbled, sounding extremely tired.

"Sam," I said in a shaky breath, "Meet me in my backyard."

 

"Wow, I can't believe it," said Sam, laying back on the cold grass in my backyard.

After I called him, I told him my dream.  Every single detail.  Even the painful one of Sam being mauled by wolves.

"Why would I get a dream like that?" I asked.  I feared that it had to do with my new status as the 'chosen one.'

"I think its because your powers are awakening.  You'll start to do different things you weren't able to before," he said, twirling a piece of his dirty blonde hair around his index finger, "Of course, you didn't get it before because I was protecting you.  You needed time before you could get those dreams, when Olivia told you you're going to save heaven."

I drew my legs up to my chin, "But everything is going so fast!  One minute I'm invisible girl, and the next I'm Supergirl?"

Sam laughed, "Supergirl?  I doubt it!  After all, you're much cooler.  Plus, you don't have a cape."

"Or underwear on the outside," I pointed out.

We both laughed.  Being with Sam made me feel better. 

"So what now?" I asked after we stopped laughing.

Sam's expression turned serious, "Your training.  We need to help train your powers.  Since Olivia is a former battle angel, she'll most likely teach you how to use a sword and shield. There are supposed to be two other angels to help you out, but I don't know who."

"Really?  Even with your memory back?" I asked.

He nodded, "My head is still just a bit fuzzy from all of this."

I nodded in agreement. 

"So is that all you had to tell me?" Sam asked, standing up and brushing the grass from his pajama pants.  Despite it getting colder, Sam always slept without a shirt.  Even during the middle of winter. 

"Yeah, just the dream.  What do you think it is?"

He smiled, "I'm Sam the Guardian Angel, not Daniel the Dream Interpreter."

I gave him a puzzled look and he chuckled.  I bet if I looked hard enough, I would find a Bible somewhere.

"That dream..." he said, trailing off, "I think...it might be...foreshadowing maybe?  Maybe the Big Guy knows something bad is going to happen and is giving you a warning about it.  So maybe I'll get hurt trying to save you, and you have to rescue your parents."

"That's not very helpful," I said bitterly. 

Sam noticed the tone in my voice and frowned, "Nora."

I looked up, "I'm just saying!  I don't want you to get hurt, nor do I want my parents captured."

Sam sighed and walked toward the fence, "I'll see you tomorrow."

I watched as he jumped the fence into his own backyard.  Frustrated, I picked a clump of grass and let more tears fall down my cheeks as I watched the grass blow away from my hand.

 

Luckily, the next day was Sunday.  I wasn't exactly thrilled to start my training.  There were so many questions I had to ask.  Such as why was I chosen? Why did I have that dream?  And why was this happening so fast?  Were we running out of time?  If so, then why didn't they train me when I was in middle school?

I went to Sam's house and knocked on the door.  His mother came out, "Oh, hello Nora."

She gave me a tired smile.  I could tell that work was getting to her and Sam was most likely getting under her skin, she looked exhausted.  Lucky for her, Sunday's were her day off.

"Are you here to see Sam?"

I nodded and she opened the door a little wider for me.  I quickly got to Sam's room and found Olivia in full battle gear with Sam, who was putting on his armor as well.

"That's strange," I said, closing the door behind me, "I mean, don't guardian angels not wear armor?"

Olivia laughed, "Shows how much you know!  You really shouldn't have let go of your dreams of angels."

My cheeks burned bright red.  I had enough torture from the girls at school, I didn't need another dose of humiliation here too.

Sam shot Olivia a dirty look, then said to me, "We typically don't.  There are different types of guardian angels.  One type is the guardian angel that guards heaven's borders.  The other type is the one assigned to look after a person until they can look after themselves.  I'm the latter type."

"Well, that makes sense..."

"Alrighty then!" Olivia suddenly said.  She went over to Sam who had trouble getting his shin guards on and tied them tight behind his calves.  He yelped as the ropes dug deep into his flesh, "Not too tight Olivia!"

"Whoops.  My bad.  I forgot you didn't wear armor," she said, loosening the ropes.

I watched them with a straight face, but on the inside, my heart started to burn.  Really, I wasn't jealous.

Olivia stood up and looked at me, "So your training begins with swords and shields.  The basics and stuff.  I brought my spare swords and shields and armor.  You'll be practicing on Sam."

"What!?" he yelped, shooting Olivia another dirty look, "I really don't want to be Nora's punching bag!"

I bit my lip, "Me neither.  I'd rather practice on an inanimate object if you don't mind."

Olivia huffed, "Fine!  Well, let's go."

I looked around, "To where?  If we practice out in the open, people are going to stare and get the wrong idea."

Olivia smirked, "I know just the place."

She put a hand on Sam's shoulder and gestured to me to come over.  Then she put a hand on my shoulder.

"Hang on tight."

A sudden flash of light and a whoosh later, we were in a space that was literally...empty.  There was no air, yet I could breathe.  Nothing for miles and miles, or what I assume is miles and miles.  It reminded me of the door I was trying to reach in my dream.  Despite there being no air, I shivered at the memory I so vividly recalled. 

"What is this place?" Sam asked.

"Well now Samuel, you should know."

Sam concentrated, then shook his head, "Nope, sorry."

"Then I'll tell you.  This room is the stimulation chamber.  I can't tell you where it's located, that's against the rules, but if you think of a place you want to be, anywhere in the world, even the moon, then it'll take you there.  Only it's a simulation, an illusion.  If you beam yourself to, say, Hawaii, you can't talk to the people, and the people don't notice you, but you can swim and eat and whatnot."

"Wow..." I breathed out.  I was liking this room.  A trip to Hawaii didn't sound bad.  It might clear my mind about this whole nightmare thing.

"What do you use it for?" asked Sam.

Olivia shook her head, "I can't believe that even after I gave you your memory back, you're not remembering anything!"

Sam shrugged as if to say What can I do?

"This room is used to help train angels in their new position.  Whether it be guardian, battle, or weapons angel, or any angel for that matter.  The simulation helps to place them in the position they respond the best to.  But for your sake, Nora, we'll use it for you also."

Olivia closed her eyes and stood still for a long moment.  After a while, the white space with no air gave way to what looked like a forest.  There was grass everywhere, and trees, but not an overwhelming amount.  There wasn't an animal in sight and the air smelled of the many flora that was scattered around the forest.  It felt good to breathe in pure oxygen.  The sun was bright, but not too bright or too hot; it was just the right temperature.  The rays of the sun warmed my cold skin, and I instantly felt relaxed.

"Wow," Sam breathed out, spinning around to look at the forest.

"I know right?" Olivia said, flipping back her hair, "Well, we should start training.  Time doesn't move in here, but it does in the real world, so it's hard to tell when we should leave exactly.  The sooner Nora gets how to use swords and shields, the better."

"Are you ready?" Sam asked me.

I pursed my lips and nodded.  I was terrified, really.  Swords were hardly used anymore in modern times, and having one was probably really valuable.  The only swords I saw were used by people on TV, like Samurai Jack. 

Olivia pulls her sword out of its sheath.  The sword is made of iron, the handle of gold.  The sun glints off of its shiny exterior, temporarily blinding me.  On the sword, there is an inscription in a writing I can't recognize or read. 

I take the sword Olivia hands out to me.  Instead of a wooden, harmless practice sword, it's an actual sword.  I suck in a breath as I stare at the shiny surface. 

Olivia smirks, "If we start you off with a wooden sword, you would be too terrified and uncomfortable handling a real sword," she said, as if she could read my mind.  Seeing as she is an angel, it was possible, "And besides, we don't have a lot of time."

"I get it," I said irritably, "So let's get started."

"Fine then.  First, the sword.  It may be cool to hold one and you feel all powerful and all, but it's actually quite hard.  Think of the sword as an extension of your body, and not just a weapon."

In actually, I didn't feel powerful holding a sword, but I wasn't going to tell her that.

"Second, you'll get a shield later, so don't get too comfortable handling just a sword.  By the way, that sword is one-handed, so you don't have to worry about being exposed like you would with a two-handed sword."

"Anything else?"

"That's pretty much it.  Your magic powers is something we really need to train.  The sword is for offense, and shield for defense, in case you can't get the hang of magic."

Like that would ever happen.  I may not be the smartest fish in the fishbowl, but I'm not a dunce either.  Just who does this girl think she is?

"Okay, watch me swing the sword, then you mimic me."

I nodded and she took a deep breath.  She gripped the sword in her right hand, then swung quickly to the left.  The sword cut through the air gracefully, then she swung to the right, behind her, and twirled to the left, swinging the sword again.  Finally, she rushed at a tree, stuck her sword deep in the bark, then using one foot on the tree and both her hands gripping the sword handle, she removed her sword.  The tree disintegrated after she pulled her sword out. 

I gazed in awe at all that was happening.  I turned to Sam who looked equally as impressed.  I had not idea if I could even do half of what she just did.

Olivia brushed a strand of pink hair to the side, "Now, you try.  But take it slowly.  Breathe in deeply, get a good grip on the sword, and remember, make it an extension of your body."

I breathed in deep, gripped the sword in my right hand, then swung to the left.  The sword felt heavy and awkward in my hand, and I came dangerously close to slicing my left arm off.  I swung to the right and almost lost my grip on the sword.  Frustrated, I swung behind me, but the heavy sword made me do a 360 spin before I swung again.  My head felt a bit fuzzy, and my eyes were dizzy, but I charged a the tree anyway.  At least something went right, I was able to plunge my sword into the tree.  I smiled, and positioned myself like Olivia to take my sword out.  Unfortunately, the sword continued to stay stuck inside the bark.  I pulled with all my might, and fell backwards.

Olivia chuckled and walked over to me, lying on the cool grass, my face so hot you could boil water on it.  My arms were exhausted and I let them sink into the cool grass, into the questionable earth. 

Olivia removed my sword in one easy tug and handed it to me, "Until you learn how to do it right, we're going to go over this again and again.  So get up!"

I groaned and took the sword again.  Olivia showed me the correct way to grip a sword, and where to move my other arm when I'm swinging to the side.  She showed me to plant one foot into the ground and swing the other around when swinging the sword behind me and to not plunge my sword too deep into the bark of the tree.

"Do you think you have it?" she asked me after she finished showing me.  I nodded and tried again.  Unbelievably, I did better.  This time, I swung right and left the correct way, but still had trouble spinning and attacking the tree.

 I fell to the ground, exhausted.  Even though time didn't move, I felt as if I had been training for hours. 

"You're not done yet," Olivia said to me, "You need to train with a shield too.  Lucky for you, it's quite easy, so you'll be able to get it better than the sword."

I grit my teeth and stood up, about to tell her off when she tossed me a shield, "Think fast," she said.

Now when a person says 'think fast,' they have intentions of hurting you, but making it seem as if it was an accident, because let me tell you, that shield hits hard. 

I fell down again the shield gripped firmly in my hands, right in front of my face.  I caught it too late.  The shield was big, and it hit my chest and face.  My chest hurt, my face hurt, and my nose was bleeding like crazy.

"I'm so sorry, Nora!" Olivia said to me, "I thought you would catch it!"

Another example of the 'think fast' principle, they think you could actually catch it.  FYI, some people have slower reflexes than others. 

 

After Olivia helped clean up the blood, I slipped my arm into the two handles attached on the inside of the shield.  The shield was considerably easier to handle.  For one thing, I only needed it to cover me when I'm about to be attacked or to hit someone back with it.  Simple, and I picked it up in no time too.

Olivia, however, did nothing to encourage me of my accomplishment, "Defensive moves are usually easy since a human's natural instinct is to run or fight.  As a result, defense is built into you.  You do everything to defend yourself when you're about to run."

For once, I wanted to hear something nice come out of her mouth.  Now I can see why the Big Guy kicked her out of heaven.

All the while, Sam watched me closely.  I couldn't tell if he was impressed or just bored.  Finally, after a while of Olivia re-positioning me to hold the sword and shield correctly, he asked, "So am I going to need this armor?"

Olivia sighed and looked up the sky.  The sun stayed in its same spot throughout the training session as if it too, was too lazy to even move.  That's how I felt this morning, and maybe that's why I was so tired now. 

"You most likely won't.  I was hoping Nora would learn how to use a sword faster, but she's still having trouble.  I wanted you two to duel it out, to see how she reacts, but it looks as if that's not happening."

I gripped the handle of my sword.  It was as if Olivia said I was 'dumb' just because I couldn't use a sword properly, and it pissed me off.

I felt a sudden rush of adrenaline, and before I knew what I was doing, I rushed at Olivia, my sword set to slice her stomach.  Olivia quickly drew her own sword and clashed into mine, but the force of my blow knocked her back.  She quickly recovered and charged back at me and slashed forward.  My shield came up just in time and I swung my sword toward her stomach again, this time, succeeding in seeing a  long gash.  It wasn't deep enough to kill her, but she doubled over in pain, so it must've hurt.  Without thinking, without a smidge of compassion, I kicked her down onto the grass.

But I wasn't done yet.  I don't know where all this rage was coming from, but I charged once more, determined to make another cut in her when a pair of strong, warm hands grabbed me from behind and pulled me back.  Olivia looked up at me, a hint of fear in her eyes.  Sam held onto me strongly as I wiggled and writhed in his grip.

"Nora stop!" he said, "What's gotten into you?"

"Let go of me!" I shouted, clawing at his hands.

He held onto me tighter and I screamed, trying to get away.  Olivia slowly stood up, blood pouring from the gash in her stomach, staining the grass and her armor a dark red.  My head hurt, my body hurt, and my heart hurt.  A million different thoughts swirled in my head.  I felt dizzy, light-headed, like I might faint at any moment. 

"Why are you like this?" he asked me.

"Because of her!  She's just really pissing me off!  So what if I'm not good with a sword the first time, it's called practice makes perfect!  You didn't have to fucking throw the shield at me!  You don't have to be so snide and make me feel like an idiot!  I get enough of that at school!  Thanks to you I'm black and blue all over!  Where's your compassion you stupid angel!  WHERE IS IT!?"

Olivia stared at me in horror, her eyes as wide as dinner plates.  I continued to push my way out of Sam's grip.  Sam held me tighter, almost with a sense of urgency, "Please Nora, stop."

"No!" I screamed.  I felt so very light-headed.  My body felt a bit weak and I stopped clawing my way out, instead, I tried to stomp on Sam's feet and elbow his stomach; to escape his grip and let out my rage.

Olivia's eyes watered up, and still clutching her bleeding abdomen, she said, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry!?  You only say your sorry after all this!?  Sorry doesn't cut it in the real world!  If you think that's all it took, why do we have laws and the police!?  It's like murdering someone, then getting let off the hook because you said 'I'm sorry!'  Well, it doesn't work!  It just doesn't!  In all my years of living, no one's ever said 'sorry' to me!  No one's...ever...'sorry...'"

My body shook at the sudden realization of what I just said.  I found out that it's true.  Whenever someone did something against me, they never said 'sorry' or 'my bad.'  They never took responsibility for their actions.  I didn't realize it bothered me until just now. 

Suddenly, I burst into tears.  My knees gave way underneath me and I sank to the ground, letting my salty tears stain the still questionable earth.  Sam holds me close and strokes my hair as I cry into his breastplate.  I can hear Olivia come closer, she puts a comforting hand on my head.

I don't know how long we stayed that way, but after a while, I stopped crying.  I look up from Sam's armor, covered in tears and look at Olivia.  The bleeding has stopped, but she still looks like she's in pain. 

None of us says a word.  The silence is so thick, you could slice it with a knife, no pun intended.  I get up, wipe the few tears away from face, and hug Olivia.

"I'm sorry.  Really Nora, I am," Olivia says, "Sometimes, I can be such a bitch.  It's true.  Even I realize it.  I'm working hard on my attitude, but I didn't know I was hurting you."

I sniffed, "Yeah, well, I'm kind of used to it.  I just got so frustrated when I was using the sword and you were pushing me so hard.  It's just...well...I get so put down at school, that I didn't want the same here."

"I understand," she says to me, holding me at arm's length, "But I push you hard because you'll learn faster that way.  We don't-"

"Have a lot of time, I know."

Olivia winced as she clutched her stomach again, "Sorry about that," I said, feeling guilty,  "I had no idea that angels could bleed just like humans."

"It's fine," she said, "Anyway, it's been a long day, most likely.  Let's get you home."

 

Sam

After dropping off Nora at home, with promises to train after school, Olivia and I head to my house.  It was around 7 p.m. by the time we got back from the stimulation room.  Nora apologized to Olivia once more then hugged me and thanked me for being calm when she was going crazy.  After quickly running to my room, refusing the take-out Chinese food my mother bought, I quickly brought out some hydrogen peroxide, bandages, and cotton swabs, from the medical cabinet and headed to my room.

Olivia was already there, her armor off.  She already slipped on her pajama pants (I was able to sneak a pajama set from my mother's room that she never used) and stood in the middle of my room, wearing nothing but her bra on top.  I blushed at this, then quickly looked away.

"At the very least, can you put on your shirt?"

Olivia pouted, "If I do that, then my arms will get tired, having to lift up my shirt so you can clean the wound.  It's better this way.  Now hurry up blondie, the germs are coming!"

"Have you no shame?" I muttered.

I then rolled my eyes and put down the supplies on my lamp stand, "Sit," I told her, gesturing to my bed.

She sat down and I took a cotton swab and put some hydrogen peroxide on it.  I hated this stuff.  As a kid, I got a lot of scrapes and cuts.  Then again, name me a kid that doesn't?  My mom would put hydrogen peroxide on any cut.  Let me tell you, it really hurt!  I actually cried when it started to sting and mom told me that's because the germs were being killed.

"This is gonna sting," I said to her, kneeling down. 

"Fine," she retorted, "So long as it gets cleaned and bandaged.  Damn, she really got me.  I can't believe it." 

She shook her head, "Okay, do it."

I pressed the cotton swab to her wound and started wiping off the blood.  Olivia put a hand over her mouth and balled her other hand into a fist, as if she was about to punch something into next week.

After cleaning the wound, I got the bandages out.  "Hmm..." I thought, glancing at the box.  It was the standard box that had small, square bandages for small wounds.  The regular bandages and the huge bandages.  Unfortunately, Olivia's was too big for any of the bandages. 

I took out a few big ones, peeled off the paper, then slowly spread them across her abdomen, "I'll go get gauze," I said standing up.

Once I got the gauze, I carefully wrapped it around her abdomen, then cut off the end and used tape to tape the ends down. 

Olivia examined the gauze, then smiled, "Not bad Samuel."

"I really wish you would stop calling me that," I said.

She dismissed the subject with a wave of her hand, "So anyway, what should we do about Nora?"

I paused, considering my words carefully.  For one thing, what happened today was a side of Nora I've never seen before; her blinding rage.  She's usually a very passive person, so Olivia's words must have done something to tick her off and become aggressive. 

"Well, she's still a teenager," I finally said.  It was a weak argument, but it was all I had.  Everyone criticized teens for their rebellious behavior and sometimes their odd style, but what else can we do?  It's how we stand out, or rather, how we usually act.  Hormones, duh.

"I get that," Olivia says, putting on her pajama shirt, "But why now, all of a sudden?  I thought you said she could handle it?"

I shrugged.  Nora could be unpredictable sometimes.  No telling what went through her head on a daily basis. 

"She can handle it, but only so much, y'know?"

Olivia sighed and padded over to the inflatable bed I unearthed out of the garage, "Well, I'm tired.  I think I'm gonna hit the hay.  G'night."

"Night," I said, taking off my shirt before climbing in my own bed.  I hated wearing a shirt to bed.  I felt more free and at ease without one.  Don't judge me.

I had no idea what Nora was going through.  Even though we go to the same school, I got in trouble a lot, we had different lunch times, and different classes.  I requested a schedule change, but they never replied.  Probably because of my reputation, but still, I think Nora lashed out at Olivia (literally) was because she wanted a friend.  Not another person to add to her misery with their put downs.  If only Olivia could realize that, then things would get easier in the future.

7: Day 2: School and Armor

I woke up the next morning feeling groggy, irritable, and definitely sore all over.  After my meltdown yesterday with Olivia, I went straight to my room to stare at that crack in the ceiling again, and to think over what I said to her.  The fact that I finally came to the realization that I was indeed lonely and just dying for more than one friend shocked even me. 

Thankfully, when I went to sleep, there were no bad dreams waiting for me, but it wasn't exactly a good dream either.  In my dream, I was with Sam again.  He was decked out in full body armor, and boy did he look good!  His pure white wings fluttered out of his gold breastplate and his thick broadsword swung against his gold leggings.  I watched as in one swift motion, he drew his sword, held it up high, and swung it all around him.  The monsters dissipated with screeches and hisses that chilled me to the bone.  Sam smiled, then put a light hand on my shoulder, making my heart skip a beat.

"Don't worry.  I'll protect you," he said.

"Are you sure?  What about that dream I had last night?  Y-You were being ripped apart!" I replied in a shaky breath.  The very memory of it sent a new wave of sadness over my heart.

He shook his head, "Angels are immortal.  They can't die.  The enemy is just trying to shake you up.  Make you unstable.  Don't let that happen.  Be strong."

I nodded my head.  It would make sense.  But, still, my parents.  I know I don't exactly have a great connection with my mom -or my dad for that matter- but I still worried for their safety. 

 

I didn't put much effort into what I wore.  Usually, a character T-shirt, skirt and sneakers were all I needed since skinny jeans, in some unexplainable way, were too baggy on me.  Today, I picked out a pink shirt that had Hello Kitty decked out in a giant bow with the Union Jack on it, a white, pleated skirt, and knee-high black socks with my pink Converse sneakers.

"Nora!  Breakfast!" my mom called from downstairs.

I quickly grabbed my Hello Kitty messenger bag and zoomed down the stairs and to the kitchen. 

"Morning mom.  Where's dad?"  I asked. 

Daniel rolled his eyes, "Duh!  He went to work, why else would he leave so early?  Keep up Nora.  Just because you look dumb doesn't mean you have to be dumb."

I growled at him, then without thinking, I took the soccer ball he had on the table, and bounced it on his head, "Shut up pinhead!"

"Ow!!  Mom!" Daniel whined.

Mom gave a tired sighed, "Nora, keep you hands off of your brother."

"But I didn't even use my hands!" I protested.

"And Daniel," my mom continued, ignoring my protest, "Don't call your sister names.  Now hurry up and eat your breakfast you two.  You have a bus to catch Nora and you have a long walk ahead of you Daniel."

Daniel grumbled as he pushed around the uneaten potatoes on his plate.  Mom set down a plate filled with a raisin bagel smothered in strawberry cream cheese and potatoes in front of me.  I sighed as I took a bite of the bagel while at the same time, reached for the ketchup to dip my potatoes in.

After breakfast, I walked out the door and immediately put in my ear buds.  I took out my iPhone and quickly scrolled through my selection of songs.  Unlike what my personality was like, I was really into classical, instrumental, and the occasional foreign K-pop or J-pop song, aside from others. 

Not finding a selection I liked, I randomly picked a calming piano tune from a recent video game and slowly walked to the bus stop.  I was reminded of last week, when Sam played hooky just because he saw me feeling down when I was at the bus stop.  The thought of his kind gesture made me smile as I came to a halt at the bus stop. 

I surveyed the scene: there were what looked like sophomores doing the same thing I was, listening to their music and not caring about everyone else.  There were other freshman who were excitedly talking to each other, and some of them were doing their homework that was probably due today.  I never got why teachers found it so amusing to assign us homework over the weekend.  It was exhausting to do when you were too busy having fun, unlike me.

"Oh my gosh!  Nora?  Is that you?" a shrilly voice said.

I jerked my head up and quickly looked from side to side to see who called me.  For one thing, I had no friends, or acquaintances, on this stop, and those who did know me didn't exactly like to hang out with me outside of the class.

"Over here silly," the voice said.

I turned around to see a girl with toffee colored skin and jet black hair; a girl that looked strangely familiar.  Her big, brown eyes looked me up and down, as if to judge me.  I quickly looked at the ground, hoping whatever mean thing she had to say, she would just come out and say it. 

"Cute outfit."

I looked up in surprise to see her smiling, "I don't know a lot of girls who can pull off an outfit like that.  The Hello Kitty tee is cute and goes great with the Converse.  And the black socks and white skirt give it that sort of...preppy look."

My jaw dropped as the girl smiled and hopped down from her perch on top of the brick wall that separated the housing complex from the main road.  She walked toward me and took a strand of my blue hair in her hand, "Now, if only I had some rubber bands, then I could put your hair in braids to complete the look.  Or maybe...a low ponytail?"

I shook slightly as she dropped the strand and gave me a radiant smile.  Finally, I came out of my shock and blurted out, "Who are you?"

The girl sighed, but her smile didn't drop, "It's a given you wouldn't recognize me.  I'm Zealand Chambers.  The girl who's on your soccer team in Coach McSwain's class?"

Suddenly, it all came back to me.  She was one of the girls who didn't laugh or make fun of me whenever I made a fool of myself.  Despite the fact that I was just now meeting her, face-to-face, I liked her already.

"H-hi!" I said, with a little too much enthusiasm, "I, d-didn't know...we...h-had...the same...bus stop."

Oh, now I was stuttering.  Geez!  I wasn't very good at making friends, so I had no idea what to say next.  Usually, the other person asked the questions and I answered them.

"Yeah me neither!"  Zealand cheerily replied, "That's pretty cool though.  To think, I didn't even know your name until last week.  And you didn't even know my name until...just now!"

I gave a weak smile in response as Zealand continued, "So, what did you do over the weekend?"

Oh no!  I thought, I can't tell her that I was training with swords and shields!  Or that I'm really the 'Angel to Mankind!'  What do I do?

Fortunately, at that very moment, the bus decided to show up.  Inside my mind, I blew a sigh of relief.  Zealand smiled at me, then looked at the oncoming bus, "Aw!  It looks like we're going to have to cut this convo short.  Sorry.  I'll see you on the field!"

And with that, she twirled on her platform wedges and boarded the waiting bus along with everyone else.  I took a deep breath as I boarded the bus as well.  It was my first conversation with a person I had just recently met, and one that didn't make fun of me.  Even though she didn't sit next to me on the bus, I was inwardly happy that someone talked to me.

 

Once I got to school, I went straight to my locker and took out my books for first period biology.  As I went up the stairs to the classroom, I heard an all too familiar giggle followed by a series of short laughs from a gaggle of guys and girls.  I stopped short, whipped my head in the direction of the noise, and nearly had a heart attack on the sight.

Sitting on top of a picnic table in the courtyard with her long, pale legs crossed was none other than Olivia herself!  She was wearing knee-high black biker boots with a flaming red skirt, and a crisp, white blouse.  She had a series of glittering gold bracelets on both her wrists, and dangling gold earrings with hearts on the end of them.  A white, Gucci tote bag filled with paper, pencils, and notebooks sat beside her and her long pink hair was tied up into two low pigtails. 

On the other side was Sam wearing a T-shirt with Bob Marley on front and skinny black jeans with black Converse sneakers, his black backpack dangling on one arm and his eyes darting from side to side as if to find someone he knew so he could talk to them and get out of the crowd. 

I gasped, then immediately stormed up to Olivia, pushing some irritated guys and sneering girls away.

"Oh hey Nora," Olivia said with an innocent wave of her perfectly french manicured-nailed hand, "What's up?"

"The sky, and also a series of questions," I replied, barely able to contain my irritation and shock.  Despite the searing wound I left on her the other day, there seemed to be no bandage showing through her blouse, no mark, absolutely nothing.

Olivia laughed, which got me more irritated, "Oh Nora, you're just so funny!  Isn't she funny guys?"

Some of the girls laughed in response and the guys went back to making googly eyes at Olivia.  I sucked in some air, then went up to Sam, "What is she doing here?"

Sam shrugged and tucked his hands in his pockets, "Actually, that's going to require a bit of explaining."

"Well what the hell could've happened between now and the past ten hours and, "I quickly pulled out my phone and checked the current time, "Seventeen minutes?"

"A lot actually," Sam replied with a smile, "I think it would be best for Olivia to explain it."

I looked back to see Olivia having a great time with her sudden new-found friends.  In my heart, I felt a twinge of jealousy, and a lot of sadness.  To think in the space of a half-hour, Olivia managed to make more friends -or, sort-of friends- than I could make in my lifetime.

I looked back toward Sam and shook my head, "I don't think so.  Olivia looks too busy with her friends to pay any attention to us."

Sam shrugged again and led me away from the crowd and into a quiet hallway.  Personally, I believe I was doing him a favor by getting him out of that situation.

"Alright," he said once the hallway was clear.  It was, after all, 7:17 in the morning.  School didn't start until eight, so it was relatively quiet inside.

"After we went to sleep last night, my mom ended up waking me up this morning, and she was shocked to find Olivia sleeping next to my bed.  And in her pajamas no less!"

I imagined the look on Sam's mom's face as she discovered a strange, yet beautiful girl in Sam's room.  Then again, I understand now that she might've gotten the wrong idea.

"So after she woke me and Olivia up, she demanded to know what was going on.  So I introduced her and explained that I had recently woken up as a guardian angel.  You should've seen her face!  Her smile was so wide I thought her face might freeze like that."

I rolled my eyes, "And how exactly does that transition for Olivia to be in school?"

"I'll tell you how!"

"Speak of the devil," I muttered under my breath as Olivia walked towards us.  Her new friends started talking to each other as they waited for their new 'leader' to finish talking with her 'subjects.'

"Sam's mom accepted the fact that I was here to help you as a part of my assignment and that Sam was going to keep protecting you as well.  But she said it would be boring to stay at home and that now that you have awoken as the Angel to Mankind, you'll be an even bigger target."

"What?" I asked.

Olivia twirled a strand of pink hair from one of her pigtails, "Your powers as the angel, they're starting to awaken.  They've been lying dormant for a while.  That's part of the reason why most low-level monsters haven't found you and tried to kill you.  But Sam was there to truly mask your scent.  Or rather, your powers.  There are many high-level and extremely dangerous monsters that can sense you even when your powers were dormant.  Now that they're awake, all monsters can sense you, and you'll never be safe.  Not even your dreams are safe."

I gasped and turned to Sam who gave me a sheepish smile, "I'm sorry Nora, but I had to tell her.  But I made it up to you!  Didn't you see me in your dreams last night?"

I blushed and looked away, "Yeah, wait, you entered into my dreams!?"

"Yeah.  Actually, I had to pull a few strings with the dream angels.  Their job is to protect the children from nightmares.  But, you know, as you get older, you can tell when a nightmare is a nightmare and it won't scare you as much right?  That's why they protect children, and that's probably why a high-level monster was able to change your dream into a nightmare."

"Well, I guess that explains the dream," I said, "But was it really a vision into the future?"

Olivia shrugged, "It may be.  But these monsters like to play around.  Some parts could've been real, and some were fake."

Now this truly terrified me.  I didn't know which part I wanted to be fake: my parents tortured cries for help or watching Sam get ripped apart by monsters.

"But anyway," Olivia said, "Sam's mom said that it would be better if two people could protect and keep an eye on you at all times.  So she suggested I enroll in the school as well and play myself off as a distant cousin of Sam's."

That would explain why Sam continued to stick around the crowd earlier, even though he hated participating in gossip and stuff like that.

"Also," Olivia continued, "There are probably other guardian angels watching over you.  Unfortunately, they are on a higher level than I can sense, and Sam's angel abilities have been dulled due to an extended period of time on earth, so you're not completely alone.  But I've requested a schedule so that I'll be in almost every one of your classes."

"Great," I said weakly.

"And another thing, you can't be alone.  At all!  There' s no telling when a monster disguised as human could attack you.  Especially when you're weak and defenseless at the moment."

My cheeks burned as I could feel the angry sensation from yesterday come back.  Yet again, Olivia was really pushing my buttons.  To think I would have to spend, God knows how many days training with her seemed a bit like throwing myself into a pit of lions, no pun intended.

"So during lunch, when you're walking home, on the bus, and even when you're using the bathroom, you...cannot...be...alone!"  Olivia said, with gusto.

"I get it already," I said, readjusting my messenger bag strap.  I looked at a nearby clock on the wall and saw that Olivia had killed the extra time I had in the morning to get to my biology classroom and finish the bell work before everyone else. 

I sighed, "Look, I-we have to go now," I said heading towards the doors.

"Wait, one more thing!"  Olivia called after me.  I stopped just short of the doors and she walked toward me with Sam in tow behind her, "Never discuss your training, my existence, or anything about your new status to anyone!  If you do-"

"Monsters could overhear and attack me, I get it," I said irritably.

"And if you're worried about your house, don't worry!  Sam and I have it under a magical barrier."

I nodded, pushed open the doors, and hurried to my biology classroom.  Even though I didn't say anything, I was actually quite relieved that there was a barrier protecting my house and family.

 

"Pass it to me!  Pass it to me!" shouted Alice.

I watched as the girls ran up and down the soccer field later on during P.E.  True to what she said, Olivia showed up and introduced herself to the class and went as far as to get a gym locker right next to mine.  Many of the girls went green with envy at this seemingly perfect entity while others believed her 'perfect looks' meant that she had 'flawless athletic abilities' and fought over whose team she was going to be on.  In the end, she chose, no surprise, the team I was on and no further questions were asked, especially by my teammates.  In a way, they seemed downright happy that another good player was going to cover up my clumsy playing.

The soccer ball soared through the air as Jessica kicked it Alice who quickly dribbled it towards the goal.  This time around, Alice, Jessica, Zealand, and Olivia were on offense while Rose, Lucy, and I were defense.  Ami was goalie again. 

Alice reared her leg back and kicked the black and white ball.  It went past the opposing team's goalie and into the goal.  Olivia gave a cheer and high-fived Alice while Jessica and Zealand jumped for joy.

"Ugh, I don't believe it!" Lucy complained, kicking a clump of grass, "Those guys are so good that we're getting no action back here!  I feel useless!"

Rose shrugged and watched as Lucy angrily took out a rubber band and started to put her orange-dyed hair in a ponytail.

"I don't know what you're complaining about!" Ami shouted from the goalie box, "This is a good thing!  After all, if it did come over here, you two will need to work extra hard to keep Nora from, oh I don't know, accidentally kicking the ball in our team's goal?"

My face turned red and I looked away from Ami's smirking face.  Lucy and Ami laughed while Rose twirled a piece of beach-blond hair while staring at the guys running the track again.

"I'll show them I'm not dead weight," I muttered under my breath. 

The game resumed and the ball continued to stay on the opposite side of the field.  Throughout the period, the ball never once came on this side.  By this time, Ami gave up on trying to be prepared for when the ball came on our side of the field and decided to sit in the goalie box and play some game she had on a cell phone she snuck onto the field.  Lucy started to put her hair in what looked like a complicated braid, but kept messing up and starting all over again and Rose continued to dreamily stare at the guys on the track.  Some of them, noticing her stares, started to take off their shirts as if to flaunt their non-existent six-pack abs.

I sighed and kept looking at the action on the other side of the field.  Already, we had scored three more points to add to the three points we already had.  At this point, there was no need to play so hard, we were a shoo-in for the next round of the tournament tomorrow.  I just felt sorry for the other team who would have to run laps with the other tournament losers tomorrow.

Suddenly, I heard a screech then, "Heads up!" yelled a girl.

I gasped at the oncoming ball that had accidentally been kicked from the next field over.  Without thinking, I tried kicking the ball back to them, but somehow, I kicked the ball behind me.  I landed on the grass hard and a searing pain shot up through my left arm.  Ignoring the pain, I quickly looked to where I had kicked the ball, and nearly fainted at its path.

Ami suddenly jerked her head up from her phone in time to see the ball smack her right in the face.  She let out an ear-splitting scream and dropped her phone, covering her face with both hands.  Everyone stopped what they were doing to witness this latest spectacle and I hurried over to Ami to see the extent of the damage. 

Coach McSwain blew her whistle and rushed over to Ami as more girls stopped what they were doing to crowd around her.

Once I got to Ami, I looked to see what had happened.  It appeared that the ball had hit her, thankfully, across the cheek, leaving a huge bruise on her cheek.  I was relieved it didn't knock out her teeth, or break her nose. 

"Are you okay?" asked Lucy gently.

"What's going on?" asked Rose, breaking her stare off of the boys and onto Ami.

"I'm so sorry!" I said, "Do you want me to get you some ice?"

Ami took her hands away from her face and trained her brown eyes on me in a killer glare, "You!  You did this!?"

"W-well technically I didn't mean to, I mean, the ball came from the other f-field, and I, I t-tried to kick it back, but-"

Ami let out a terrifying screech and lunged at me.  I screamed and tried to dodge but she got a hold of my hair and yanked hard.  I cried out in pain as some hairs were forcefully pulled out.  Ami then pinned me to the ground and started to punch my face.  I tried desperately to block my nose and mouth while at the same time kick her off of me, but she was surprisingly strong for someone so scrawny. 

All around me, the girls gasped, screamed, and chanted 'fight!'  I squirmed under Ami's grasp and finally managed to pin her to the ground.

"Stop!  Stop!"  I yelled to the girls and to Ami who was now trying to grab my hair again.

"I'll kill you bitch!"  Ami screamed, "I'll fucking kill you!"

I glared at Ami and slapped her across the cheek in the exact same place where the ball hit her.  She howled with pain and I raised my hand to slap her again, "I don't know what the hell I did to piss you off so much, but you've done nothing but belittle and bully me ever since I got on this team.  What the hell is the matter with you!?"

I slapped her hard across the other cheek and was about to do it again when a hand grabbed me from behind and pulled me off her.  Ami whimpered on the ground and held her cheeks as I turned around to see who stopped me.

"Stop Nora, please," Olivia said, a sad look in her eyes.

Seeing that expression in her eyes suddenly melted my anger and I lowered my hand. Olivia probably sympathized with Ami since she too was at the blunt end of my aggression.

"What is going on here!?" shouted the coach as she finally made it to Ami.

The girls 'ooh-ed' as they knew what would come to Ami and I for our little fight.

"Girls!  Go inside and get changed!"

The girls quickly scattered and ran off the soccer field.  A few friends of Ami's gave me triumphant little smirks as they went.

Coach then turned back to help Ami off the ground, "Alright ladies.  Please explain to me what happened."

Suddenly, Ami clasped her hands together and gave coach her sweetest glare, it made me sick just to look at it, "Oh Coach McSwain!  It was absolutely awful!  I was minding my own business being the goalie when all of a sudden, Nora picked up the soccer ball that the team on the field next to ours kicked out of bounds and threw it at me!  I didn't have time to dodge it, so it hit my cheek.  Then she pushed me down and started slapping me.  Why, if Olivia didn't get here in time to stop her, she could've shattered my teeth.  It was terrifying!"

"Why you little-!" I began.

"Stop!" Coach shouted, holding up a hand, "I've heard enough!"

Ami looked at me and smirked as I glared at her.  To think she would say such an outrageous lie!  Everyone knew that I was totally incapable of hurling a ball fast enough to make a mark that big on Ami's cheek, let alone throw the ball more than a few feet from where I was standing.  And as aggressive as I could be, I had slowly stopped becoming as aggressive as I was when I was little in an attempt to control my anger.

Coach turned to Olivia, "Olivia, take her to the nurse."

"But-" Olivia began, looking at me.

"Go.  Now," coach said in a no-nonsense tone.

"Yes coach," Olivia said glumly.  She took Ami's hand and led her off the soccer field, but not before giving me a sympathetic look.

"And you," coach said, "I presume this is the first time you've done something against the rules?"

I nodded and she sighed, "You do realize that fights are prohibited on school grounds, that includes the soccer field-"

"I know coach, but-" I interrupted.

"And!" she said over me, "Because of your actions, you'll probably get a detention from the principal.  Maybe even a suspension."

"Su-suspension?" I squeaked.  Getting a detention was bad, but a suspension was worse.  This would probably go on my permanent record and wouldn't get me into a good college! 

"Now, go change with the other girls and march straight to the principal's office.  And don't even think about running off campus either.  I'll make sure the principal knows you're coming and make sure the deans will keep you from escaping too."

Wow, that's a little harsh, I thought glumly, It's not as if I'm in prison.

I walked back to the locker room to change and meet my fate.

 

"I'm sorry that happened," Sam said, kicking a stray rock with his sneaker.

"Me too," I said sadly, shoving my hands in my pockets.

"I just can't believe-" Sam began.

"That Ami would do something like that?  Well, I can," Olivia seethed, "It's just in the nature of popular girls.  When a good looking girl comes by and starts stealing the attention of everyone else, they find a way to destroy that girl's reputation and make her the loneliest girl in school."

"Ha!" I exclaimed, "Story of my life.  But I have no idea why Ami hates me.  And you came along Olivia, so I don't know why she isn't hating you either."

Olivia shrugged her shoulders as we came upon our two houses.  I sighed and stared up the driveway, dreading the conversation that would likely ensue once I stepped foot in my house.

"Are you going to be okay?" Sam asked, putting a comforting hand on my shoulder.

I sniffed and nodded, "Yeah, I'm going to have to face the music sometime right?  Might as well get it over with now."

"Good luck," Sam said, giving me a hug.

"Thanks," I muttered.

He pulled away, but this time around I harbored no feelings of wanting to stay in his arms forever. I was too upset as to what was going to happen next.

Olivia patted my back, "I was planning to do more training with you in the stimulation chamber and teach you a few new moves, but I think under the given circumstance, we'll skip all that."

"Gee, thanks," I replied.  After all this, Olivia still wanted me to train?  I get that it's crucial, and I admit, letting out my anger and frustration by slicing a few trees to death seemed appealing, but I definitely wasn't in the mood. 

"But there's one thing that can't be held off," Olivia continued.

"And that is?"

"Your armor fitting.  The sooner I can get your measurements, the more time the armor and weaponry angels will have to make you a really good piece of armor.  The more protection, the better.  So afterwards, meet me in Sam's backyard, just climb out your window."

I rolled my eyes and watched as Sam and Olivia slowly climbed the driveway of Sam's house.  He looked back at me one more time before disappearing.  I sighed and cilmbed up the driveway to my house and unlocked the door. 

No sooner had I stepped into the living room, my father yelled, "Nora!  Get your ass up here!"

I gulped hard.  Dad usually never swore in the house because it would set a bad example for Daniel, so I could tell that he was truly pissed off.

I climbed the stairs, tossed my bag in my room as I walked past it, and came to my parent's room.  Dad was standing up, his arms crossed and his hands curled into fists, waiting for when I walked through their door.  Mom sat on the bed and nervously clinched a blanket she had been knitting for my newborn cousin Cloe.

"Hello Nora.  How was school today?" dad said in a calm manner.

"Um, it was, pretty...interesting," I replied.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Interesting?"

"Yeah."

"Well, you know what else is interesting?" my dad said, his voice wavering from trying to hold back his anger.

"No," I said, just to be on the safe side.

"That I get a phone call from your principal saying that you've picked a fight and brutally slapped a girl in physical education today!  And that you will have a whole week's worth of detention plus a well thought out, detailed apology to deliver to the girl you hurt today!  Do you have anything to say for yourself!?"

"It's not my fault!" I protested, tears brimming at the corner of my eyes.

"Oh?  It's not your fault?  Because according to the principal, you left very big bruises on this girl's cheeks!  What the hell were you thinking!?  I'll tell you what you were thinking, you weren't!"

"Dan!" mom said in a stern voice, "Lower your voice.  Can't you see Nora's gone through enough today already?"

Dad took deep calming breaths and put a hand to his temple, "Tell me Nora.  What really happened, if you say that the principal and the girl was lying."

"Well, we were playing soccer, in P.E. today, and, um, the field next to ours, their team, um, kicked their soccer ball onto our field.  So I tried kicking it back, but, um, it went backwards, and...hit...Ami.  So she, she grabbed my hair, and started punching me, but, I-I slapped her back."

Dad raised his eyebrows. 

"But only once!" I quickly said.

Dad sighed and started to rub his temples, "Well, this version of the story sounds very different from the version your principal told me.  But it sounds more likely that your story is true."

Mom nodded, "How about this: we go to your principal and tell him the story you told us, then see if we can lessen your punishment."

"Thanks mom," I said as a few tears slipped down my cheeks.  Mom put down the blanket, got up, and wiped the tears from my face while dad turned around to think about something.

"Now, go to your room.  Your father and I need to have a talk," mom said, eyeing dad, "I'll call you for dinner."

"Thanks mom," I said again as I made my way to the exit, "But I think I've lost my appetite."

 

After many hours of staring at the crack in my ceiling yet again (I swear, it's getting bigger), I did my homework, flipped through an issue of Teen Vogue (a magazine that my mom kept pushing me to try) and listened to the soothing sounds of a clarinet.  Finally, I decided the time was right to go to Sam's house.

I carefully opened my window, then gently stepped out and onto a ledge on the roof.  I found another ledge and hopped down, then continued to hop down until I safely got to the ground.  I then hopped the fence into Sam's backyard.  Already, the window to Sam's room was open and Olivia and Sam were waiting for me inside.

I squeezed through the window and they both looked at me as I came in.

"So, how'd it go?" Sam asked.

"Well, dad did all the yelling, but for once I was able to get my parents to believe that it wasn't me who started it."

"Good for you," Olivia said defiantly, "Now, let's get your armor ready!"

"Is it just me, or are you way too chipper with this armor fitting?"

"Gosh, I just love armor fittings!  There are endless possibilities as to what the armor and weaponry angels will make you once I give them your measurements."

"Measurements of what?" I asked as Olivia got out measuring tape and a clipboard.

"Duh!  It's like getting measurements for a costume.  We need to measure height, shoulder length, hip length, arm length, leg length, and breast length."

I blushed as she said breast length, and looked at Sam who also blushed and looked away from me.

"Let's get these measurements going!" Olivia said, unrolling some of the measuring tape.

 

The measurements took no time at all, and before I knew it, we were done, with everything except the breast measurements. 

"And last but not least, your bust size," Olivia said, "Now, turn around."

I did so and waited for the measuring tape to come pressing down, it wasn't as if they were big anyway, so there wouldn't be much to measure. 

Olivia measured then stifled a giggle, "Oh wow Nora.  With this measurement, you're still an A-cup?"

My face turned red, "Shut up Olivia!"

Olivia laughed then poked Sam hard in the ribs, "Did you hear that Samuel?  An A-cup!  How small!  But it's kinda cute!"

"I didn't hear anything!" Sam said turning away, the tips of his ears turning pink.

"Aw, Samuel!  You're so bashful!" Olivia said with a wink.

"Are we done?" I asked, folding my arms across my chest.

"Yeah, we're done," Olivia said, "Get some rest okay?  We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

"I'll say," I muttered as I climbed out the window, "Good night Sam."

"Night Nora," Sam replied, giving me a bashful smile.

As I made my way back to my own window on the second floor of my house, a thought suddenly came to me: it was Monday.  It...was...Monday.

I sighed and shook my head.  I hate Mondays.

------------------------------------------------------

OMG I'm so sorry this took so long to come out!! *bangs head on table*

Things were hectic for the longest time and I didn't have much of a chance to upload anything! I'm so terribly sorry!! TT.TT

To make up for it, I'm posting double updates! I hope you enjoy!

8: Day 3: Put it All Together

"Nora, can I see you in my office please?"

I screeched to a halt near the principal's office on Wednesday, causing several people behind to crash into me. Annoyed, they sent me seering glares as they maneuvered around me.

I gulped hard, "Yes Principal Chapman."

Hiking my bag up my shoulder, I followed him into his office. He sat down behind a massive, white leather chair while I sat on an uncomfortable plastic chair. His office was surprisingly big and cluttered with papers, printers, and two computers. He had filing cabinets on one side of the room and an assortment of trophies in a spotless, glass case on the other. His desk was also white and took up most of the back of the room, near the window, the blinds closed as usual. I was shocked at how normal everything was. Most people thought I had the principal's office memorized, right down to the number of cabinets he has, but in all honesty, I never even saw his office until yesterday.

He pushed aside a stack of papers before putting his elbows on the desk and lacing his fingers together. "So, Ms. Thompson, do you know what you're here for?"

"For Monday's...incident?"

"Precisely," he said.

I squirmed on the plastic chair. It was no wonder people felt nervous coming in here.

"Your parents and I had a nice little talk this morning. About what happened. After they gave your side of the story, it actually seemed to be a bit more...believable."

"R-really?" I stuttered, surprised that the principal would take my side over perfect little Ami's side.

He nodded, then gave me a soft smile, "It seems as though you were falsely accused. I'm terribly sorry about what happened on Monday."

I gave a sigh of relief and sank back in the chair, "Oh good. Because my dad seemed really mad, so, it's good that I'm off the-"

"However," he interrupted.

I froze, clearly not expecting more after his apology.

"You did hit Ami. As you know, violence on campus, verbal or otherwise, is inexcusable."

I pursed my lips. And I was so close! I thought.

"Well," he sighed while taking off his glasses and rubbing the bridge of his nose, "This is your first, and only offense. So I'll let you off with a severe warning. Next time an incident like this happens, well...there won't be a next time right Ms. Thompson?"

I nodded my head hard, "Oh yeah! Definitely."

He nodded, then turned to his computer. I watched as he opened and closed several windows, then typed some things in. I nervously fidgeted with my iPod earbuds, hanging around my neck. I had the sudden urge to put them in and listen to Mozart.

"Nora," the principal finally said.

I jumped at hearing my name, "Yes?"

"Are you thinking of joining any after school clubs?"

"Well, I was thinking of joining the newspaper club, but all the spots were taken. I want to join art club, but I take the bus home, and I'm afraid no one will take me home if I ask," I said, twirling the left earbud.

"Hmm," he said, as scrolled down the page he was viewing.

I looked down at my shoes, the ones I colored myself. They were a pair of white Vans when I got them. I thought they looked too boring, so I took my markers and drew cartoonish doodles all over them.

Today I decided to just throw on whatever I found first, which happened to be these Vans, a pair of cutoff denim shorts, rainbow-colored knee-high socks and a plain blue shirt. Zealand complimented my outfit, even though I didn't put in much effort when picking it out. What was the point, when little-miss-popular Olivia had designer-like outfits to show off to everybody.

"Well, I do know the art club is having their first meeting today, after school. We don't have a late bus to take you home, but I'm sure the president will take you home. He's a junior and already has his license."

My eyebrows shot up,"Wait, how do you know the president has that?"

Mr. Chapman winked at me, "He and I are pretty good friends, actually. He used to be a bit of a troublemaker when he was a freshman." He chuckled, "He got in here so many times, and all for the dumbest reasons. I think people just hated him. But I could see some potential in him. So I continued to let him go with minor punishments. Eventually, he turned himself around, and he and I have been friends ever since."

"Oh," I said, dropping the earbud, "But, to be fair, don't you think that's a bit...awkward? To be best friends with a principal, I mean. No offense Mr. Chapman."

Mr. Chapman shrugged his shoulders, "None taken. Well, that may be, but when you think about it, many students are also friends with teachers too."

I nodded slowly. Though I have never been friends with a teacher, I vaguely knew what he meant.

"Well anyway, Ms. Thompson," Mr. Chapman said, suddenly ending all friendly conversation, "I'll see to it that Conner can drive you home. I expect you to be there at the art club this afternoon. I'm sure it will be quite a lot of fun."

Oh, great. So I definitely wouldn't be getting out of this one. If I wanted to stay on the principal's good side, I was going to have to join the art club.

"Now," he said, taking a pen from the cup on his desk, "Do you need a note for your next class?"

 

I moved back and forth in the goalie box, later that afternoon. It was one of those rare October days that was hotter than usual, but also a sign that autumn was coming soon. Before we knew it, fall would come, and it would start getting chilly. Sweater season, I called it, my favorite time of the year.

A breeze blew my hair back, and I wiped the back of my neck. It should have felt refreshing, but it only felt like being stuck in a hairdryer.

"Incoming!" someone yelled.

I looked up to see a few girls moving toward the goal, expertly passing the ball back and forth between them.

"Make sure to block it this time!" Ami yelled between intakes of air.

Our team had been playing hard today, and we were all sweaty and tired. The other team, jokingly called the Toilet Pixie Plungers, was giving us a hard time. Two other teams were also playing on the field next to us. This was the last game before the big one, and the fact that we made it this far stunned us all. Perhaps it was Olivia joining the team, or my sudden ability to actually kick the ball straight, but we didn't plan on losing when we were so close to the coveted run day passes.

As the ball got close, I held my hands out, back straight, squatting, just like Olivia instructed me to do.

The girl with blond hair, tied into a tight ponytail, and a girl with purple streaks in her black hair and an eyebrow stud came toward me. Blondie smirked at me, "This...is just too easy."

Eyebrow stud laughed, "Take it easy Kira. Maybe give her a chance to block it, instead of chicken out and duck."

Their taunts filled me with anger. I wasn't a soccer star, so what? This was P.E., not the freaking Olympics.

"Give it your all, Mia!" Kira encouraged.

The girl named Mia smiled as the ball was passed to her. While Kira blocked Olivia from trying to steal the ball, and Ami was hopelessly trying to find an opening, Mia reared her leg back.

Everything slowed down as the ball came to me. It was going fast. Way too fast. Suddenly, I had a moment of panic. What if it hits me? What if I get hurt? What will I say to the others if I don't block it? They would be so angry.

I had an urge to just duck out of the way, but Kira and Mia's taunts rang in my ears, and filled me with a new determination.

I'm going to block that ball! I shouted in my head.

Summoning up every ounce of strength I had, I quickly ran toward the ball and caught it. Wrapping my arms around the soccer ball, like it was a precious baby, I fell backwards onto the plush grass. A shot of pain ran up my back, but I ignored it as I held the ball, and marveled at my amazing block.

I slowly sat up to see Kira and Mia, their mouths wide open, while the rest of my team cheered.

"That was awesome Nora!" Alice said, running over to me and helping me up.

I smiled weakly as I dropped the ball and brushed the blades of grass from my gym shorts, "Thanks, Alice."

She grinned, then looked over at her other teammates, "Gotta go. The battle's not over yet!"

My smile slowly faded. Oh, that's right. It's only the beginning.

The sudden miracle that had once again happened on the soccer field made the ball come over my way more often. Ami, with a glare and a sneer, made sure that I wouldn't get my fifteen seconds of fame again, and kept the ball away anytime it got close.

Alice barked orders to the others playing offense: Ami, Zealand, and Olivia, while Rose, Jessica, and Lucy decided it was social hour and started talking to each other.

I blew a stray strand of blue hair from my face, and folded my arms. I smiled at the remembrance of my amazing block. Maybe it was the training sessions with Olivia. The defense moves during sword training must've transitioned over to soccer playing as well.

"Hey, Nora!" someone shouted.

"Huh?" I said, looking for the voice who called my name.

Jessica waved from her position as defense, I waved back and she smiled, "I meant to say, nice block!"

I smiled, "Thanks."

"Ha! Beginner's luck!" Lucy snorted, flipping her orange hair over her shoulder, "I bet the next time it comes over here, she'll duck like she did last time."

"That was a week ago," Jessica snapped back, "At least she's doing something!"

Lucy narrowed her eyes at her, Jessica narrowed them back. I backed away slowly into the safety of the goalie box, wanting to stay as far away as possible from their little showdown. Rose looked up from her cell phone, and stared quizzically at Jessica and Lucy.

Fortunately, the ball didn't come our way again. Our team, which was falling behind by a few points at first, finally started to catch up. By the time Coach McSwain blew her whistle, our team had caught up and got ahead, by one point.

"Nice work girls," Coach said, high-fiving the teams remaining. Alice jogged over to give the coach our score while the other girls who had been running the perimeter of the soccer field complained about how hot it was and how unfair it was that they had to run.

"Hey Nora," Kimi said, coming up behind me.

"Oh, hey," I said back half-heartedly.

Ever since last week, when we started the soccer unit, Kimi and I didn't talk as much. A few hello's here and there, a couple waves, but not much talking. Luckily, my team didn't have to face Kimi's team. Yesterday, her team got beat by the team we finished taking on today, so she had to run.

"Ugh, I swear! It is too hot to be running! Coach McSwain is gonna give us all heat stroke."

"Yeah," I chimed in, not really knowing what else to say.

"So, did your team win or lose? I know it's kind of hard beating the Toilet Pixie Plungers. They have Kira and Mia on their team, and they're real soccer players!"

"Oh, no wonder..." I muttered. I guess trash talking on the field was also something they specialized in.

"Did you win or lose?" Kimi pressed on, excitedly.

"Won."

"Awesome!" she said, holding her hand up for a high-five.

I slapped her hand and smiled, "I also blocked a shot one of them made."

"Doubly awesome!" she shouted, pumping her fist in the air.

Okay, so maybe soccer isn't so bad. But all I knew was that tomorrow, we were going to have the challenge of our lives.

 

The bell rang at the end of the school day. I packed up my bag slowly while the other students made a mad dash for the door and out the English classroom, as if the room was on fire.

After I packed up my bag, I followed the crowd to the double doors at the end of the hallway. All day, I had been anticipating art club, but at the same time, I dreaded it. My biggest question was, would they really accept me?

I remember walking into the newspaper club classroom and getting strange looks when I asked if there were any job opening.

"Um, they're, like, all taken," said a girl with pink-tipped blond hair, narrowing her eyes at me and looking me up and down.

"Yeah, sorry," said another girl with bright red lipstick. By the tone in her voice, I could tell she wasn't really that sorry.

Embarrassed, I mumbled an apology for disrupting their work and ran out the classroom as fast as I could. Behind me, I could hear their laughter. I pushed out the double doors and quickly wiped the tears that had already spilled, shortly before Olivia came up to me and babbled on about her new sorority friends.

Just thinking about it now made the tears come back. I stopped as I stood outside the art club classroom, suddenly having second thoughts. But suddenly, the door flew open, and a tall boy with shaggy black hair that hung in his bright green eyes smiled at me.

"Oh! You must be Nora Thompson," he said, drawing the attention of the others already inside the classroom.

I blushed at the sudden attention, "Um, yeah. This is art club, right?"

"Mhm," he said, motioning me to come in.

I walked through the door and was greeted by the colorful walls. It seemed every inch of the once gray walls was covered in drawings and paintings. The teacher's desk in the far corner of the room was filled with sculptures made out of all kinds of mediums of art. The board was covered in doodles and the words Art Club was written in fancy, cursive lettering. Clearly, this was a place where creativity shone.

"Alright everyone! Take your seats!" the boy said, clapping his hands.

The chatter died down as people took their seats. I took a seat in the far corner of the room. So far, no one had given me a cold stare, or glared at me while whispering to their friends, and laughing at something that was so obviously not funny.

"Welcome to art club!" he continued, "I'm the president, Connor McDonald. I've been president since, well, just this year. Our supervisor, the art teacher Ms. Watterson, appointed me this position before last year ended. Our former president graduated."

Connor chuckled, "It was quite an honor. Of course, I have no idea how to be a president."

Everyone else chuckled at this, except for me.

"But, I'll do my best!" he said.

Everyone clapped and Connor bowed. So, I was getting a ride home from this guy? Great.

After the clapping died down, Connor continued, "So, Ms. Watterson isn't here today, but she wanted to let you guys know that she's happy to see all of you, even if she can't see you."

People laughed, I didn't. To me, I felt the introduction was too long. I wanted to get to doing something.

"So, I know it's only the first meeting, but I want to get to know all of you better. I'm going to hand out some pieces of paper, and I want you to draw your personalities."

People murmured in agreement and some dug out pencils and erasers out of their bags.

"Be unique, creative," Connor continued, while passing out the papers, "I want to see creativity at its finest. It doesn't matter how good or bad you are at drawing. Just because it's drawn differently, doesn't mean it's not art."

Connor got to the back and handed me a piece of paper. He winked at me, then continued to the front, "Now, if you need a pencil, I have some up here, but otherwise, get to drawing!"

Excited chatter filled the room as people began to discuss what they were going to draw. I stared at my blank sheet of paper, my pencil clutched in one hand.

What should I draw? Music, clothes, my name? I bit the eraser of my pencil and thought hard. Well...cartoons. I should draw my favorite cartoons. Hello Kitty? Most definitely! Converse? Why not? Double rainbows?

I smiled to myself as I remembered the Double Rainbow song and a short flash animation I watched with it. Just thinking of it filled me with inspiration. I quickly put in my earbuds, plugged it into my iPhone, and lost myself in the drawing and music.

I didn't realize time was up until Connor came over and yanked out my left ear bud. I jumped in surprised.

"Hey, time's up!" he said, smiling.

"Oh, okay," I replied, turning off my music and taking out the other earbud.

"Why don't you go first?" he said, "Say your name and tell us what you drew."

"Me?" I squeaked.

He nodded, and I reluctantly got up and made my way to the front of the classroom. I stared into the expectant, yet unjudging faces of the other members.

"Um, hi. I'm Nora Thompson. This is my...poster...er, drawing, I...guess." I held up my poster and some people 'ooh-ed' and 'aah-ed.'

"Up here, I drew my name, in block letters. These are double rainbows, which are also the color of my socks."

People laughed and someone said, "I love your socks!"

I smiled, confidence suddenly starting to pour in, then I continued, "These are clouds, 'cuz my head is almost always up in the clouds." More laughter, "Then these are my favorite cartoons, Spongebob and Invader Zim. I'm not that into anime, but I like Hetalia. I drew Germany and Italy."

"How cute!" someone piped in.

"This is a violin, I'm into classical music. And a guitar, I also like some rock songs. The Converse logo, 'cuz I have, like, a million pair of Converse's. And, lastly, Hello Kitty. I absolutely love her. And...I guess that's it."

I blushed as people clapped and whistled. Connor beamed from across the classroom, "That was wonderful Nora!"

I made my way back to my seat, happy at my performance. Perhaps I could fit in in this art club after all.

 

"Ready to go?" Connor asked, at the end of art club.

I looked up and smiled, "Ready."

After everyone gave their introductions and drawings, Connor collected them and promised that by the time the next meeting rolled around, the pictures would be up.

I followed Connor to his car, a slightly beat up, but clean silver Nissan Altima, and gave him my address.

"Please excuse the mess," he said with a sheepish smile. He opened the passenger side door and threw some stuff in the backseat before gesturing to the seat. I slowly got in and put my backpack on my lap. He closed the door and climbed into the driver's seat.

"You're not one of those reckless teenage driver's are you?" I asked nervously.

He laughed, "Nah. I stopped living in the fast lane after I reached junior year."

Connor started the ignition and backed out slowly, "By the way, you did an awesome job. With the presentation I mean."

I blushed, "It wasn't really that good."

"You kidding me?" he said, merging into traffic, "That was the best poster I've seen so far. I've never seen anyone who could draw Spongebob, or that anime, for that matter. And double rainbows? Classic."

"Really?" I asked him.

He nodded, "Yeah, really. By the way, nice shoes."

"Thanks."

"Really cool. Makes me want to go out and buy a pair of white sneakers so I can draw on them too. But I'm broke all the time."

"Me too!" I said in agreement.

"Well, being broke is gonna prepare me for college someday," he said with a chuckle.

I laughed, "Thank God I have a few more years before then."

He laughed too, "Yeah, lucky you."

"Turn left here," I instructed as we came up to an intersection.

He quickly turned left, then said, "So, what's your natural hair color?"

"Huh?" I asked, turning to stare at his profile.

We came to a red stoplight, and he turned to me, "I'm just wondering. Don't get me wrong, I totally like your blue hair. But, I'm just saying..."

"Oh," I said, nervously twirling a strand, "It was brown before. But everyone was dyeing their hair, so I thought I would try it too. So, you know, I could stand out, hopefully make a few friends..."

I trailed off as I remembered my revelation to Olivia last week. Back then, I would have never dreamed that Connor and I could be sort-of friends, or that Zealand would actually talk to me.

The light turned green and Connor hit the gas, "Yeah, I guess that's trending or something. All I see is guys and girls everywhere with dyed hair in the craziest colors. I heard that a few years back, anyone who died their hair a bright color would automatically get expelled."

"Wow, that's tough," I commented.

He nodded, "Well, it's just a rumor, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was true. Personally, I don't buy into the whole thing. I like my hair the way it is."

"Yeah, it's nice," I said without thinking, then blushed and turned away after the realization of what I just said hit me.

"Thanks," he said ruffling his hair.

We finally came to a stop in front of my house. I was about to get out when he said, "You're nice too."

I turned to face him, "What do you mean?"

He shrugged, "Haven't you heard? After your fight with Ami on Monday, people were kind of afraid of you, and kind of mad, since Ami's popular and all."

"Wow," I muttered, "What did she say?"

"That you attacked her on the soccer field when she didn't block a goal."

I slowly drew in a breath, then breathed it all out noisily. Connor studied me closely, "Well? Did you really do that?"

I shook my head, "No. Actually, she attacked me. Because I accidentally kicked a soccer ball in her face. But...I did hit her." I hung my head in shame.

"What?" Connor said.

"It was an accident!" I protested, but when turning to face him, I found a bemused grin on his face.

"You think that's funny?"

"Hilarious!" he replied, slapping his knee, "It's about time Ami got what she deserved. I don't really like her," he confessed, lacing his fingers together and putting them behind his head.

"Really? Why?"

"She tried joining art club in her freshman year. Even back then, she was as mean as she was now. During the first meeting, she criticized everyone's drawings and made everyone feel bad. Yeah, total bitch."

I stared at him in surprise and he sighed, "I don't like swearing and all, but there really is no other words to describe her. I can't stand people like that."

"Me neither," I said, remembering the tormenting she dished out to me everyday on the soccer field.

"I can tell," he replied, gazing at me intently, "You're different, but in a good way. And you're pretty too, not a snobby kind of pretty."

I blushed as his green eyes stared at me with growing intensity. I quickly got out, "T-thanks for the r-ride," I stammered, slowly backing away.

Closing the door, I hurried up the porch steps and into the house. I glanced back at the driveway through the window. He smiled and waved. I waved back, and he drove away.

My heart beat fast as I slid down the wall, my face still hot. This...was definitely something new.

 

"Awesome job!" Olivia said as I cut down my third tree.

I wiped my sweaty bangs out of my eyes and smiled at my handiwork. After I had dinner, Olivia decided to have a quick training session in the stimulation chamber. It was only a review since we all had homework. For once, Sam was actually going to do it, not because he wanted to, but because Olivia was forcing him to.

"Okay, we're done here. So tell me, why weren't you on the bus?" Olivia asked, taking my sword and shield away.

At this, Sam looked up from the videogame he was playing on his PSP and gave me a similar curious look to Olivia's.

"Oh, um, I decided to join art club," I replied.

Olivia considered this carefully, "It's good that you're joining a club, but there's no one there to keep watch over you. What if there's a monster?"

I shook my head, "The people were really nice. They can't possibly be monsters."

"That's what they want you to think," Olivia retorted, jutting out her chin, "But that's only an act."

"But they were really nice! Especially Connor."

"Connor?" Sam asked, "Who's he?"

"The...president, of the art club," I said carefully. If I didn't know Sam very well, I probably couldn't have detected it, but was that jealousy I was hearing in his voice?

He nodded, then looked away. I turned back to Olivia who sighed, "Well, just be careful, okay."

Olivia dissipated the stimulation chamber, then smiled at me and flounced back to Sam's house. Sam looked at me, "Especially around him."

"Oh?" I said in a teasing voice, "Sam, are you getting jealous?"

"What? No!" he protested, "I'm just saying to be careful. Some monsters might get close to you and when you let your guard down, they'll attack you!"

"Yup, you're jealous!" I said, "Jealous jealous jealous!"

"Am not!" Sam snapped, he looked like he was really angry. I stopped teasing him and nodded, "Okay, you worrywart, I'll be careful. Though I doubt he's a monster."

"Maybe, maybe not..." he muttered as he walked back to his house.

I watched his retreating back, and smiled. Yeah, he was definitely jealous.

------------------------------------------------------

And here's the second part to this double update! I hope you enjoy!

Since school is letting out soon, I promise the next few chapters won't come out so far apart!

9: Pictures of Evil: Part 1

As soon as I woke up the next morning, the memory of the car ride and conversation with Connor flooded my mind.  I blushed hard and hugged my knees to my chest.  Surely, he can't be in love with me?  Right?  I'm not that pretty.  And very ordinary.  Not like the other girls in school. 

"You're different, but in a good way.  And you're pretty too, not a snobby kind of pretty."

My face got hotter as I remembered what he said.  He just came out and said it, and it sounded as though he was telling the truth too.  I couldn't deny something like that.

"Nora!  Daniel!  Fifteen minutes to breakfast!" my mom called.

I quickly got out of bed and started getting dressed.  I didn't know if it was because Connor took an interest in me, but I decided to put some effort into my wardrobe choice today.  After all, who knew what we were doing in art club? 

For today's outfit, I pulled out a black skirt with flowers cut out at the bottom, and paired it with a hot pink Hello Kitty tee, black knee high socks, and my DIY white Vans.  I smiled at my appearance and twirled once in front of the mirror.  It was the first time I felt this girly; trying to dress up in an outfit that would catch a boy's eye.

I went to the bathroom and took time brushing my hair.  I never realized how long it was when it was properly brushed.  I just put it in a ponytail or ran my fingers through it real quick.  Spending extra time in the morning just to fix my hair?  No thanks.

After brushing my hair, I skipped down the stairs and to the breakfast table where my family was already eating.  For once, my dad was here in the morning, sipping from his cup of coffee and reading the newspaper.

"Morning mom.  Morning dad.  Daniel," I said, setting down my bag and sitting at the table. 

Daniel's jaw dropped, revealing the half eaten bagel he had in his mouth.  My dad stared at me over his mug of coffee and my mom looked at me quizzically.

Okay, so I wasn't the type to really say "Good morning," which would explain the stunned silence.

"Good morning Nora," dad said, as he flipped to the business section of the newspaper.

"Morning Nora," mom replied as she slid a plate of bagels toward me.

"Are you sick or something?" Daniel asked after swallowing his bite of bagel.

I rolled my eyes, "No, I'm not sick.  I just happen to be in a happy mood."

"So you had a good day of school yesterday?" mom asked.

"Something like that..." I trailed off, gazing at the bagel on my plate. 

Why am I feeling so giddy? I thought, This isn't like me.  I should tone it down, before mom and dad get suspicious.

I cleared my throat, "Actually, I joined Art Club yesterday.  So I'm quite excited for that."

"Oh that's wonderful!" mom said, clapping her hands.

Dad folded his newspaper and went to the kitchen to put his empty mug in the sink, "Are you sure you should be joining Art Club?"

I frowned, "Yes, dad.  It's what I like, so it's what I want to join."

He shook his head, "Nora, even though you're a freshman, you need to plan ahead for the future.  When you apply for colleges, they look for extracurricular clubs that do volunteer work, like Key Club.  It looks good on applications.  Art Club... do they do anything to better the community?"

I bit my lip, "Well, no, but-"

"Then, to be quite frank, it's a waste of time."

"But, I love art!  And it's not as though I'm applying to an Ivy League college or something!"

"It doesn't matter if it's Ivy League or not, they still look for that on applications.  You can join Art Club now, but I expect you to join something else next year."

I could feel tears brim at the corners of my eyes.  Here I was, trying to do something to help make me more social, or at the very least, make a few friends, and he didn't care about it at all!  He only cared about what I put on my college applications, which were three years away.  I had time, but why rush things? 

Suddenly, there was a loud honk outside.  I rushed to the window and opened the blinds to find a familiar silver Nissan Altima outside.  I drew in a quick breath and my heart beat faster.  From the driver's seat, Connor smiled and waved, then got out and walked up to my door.

"I g-gotta go," I mumbled as I fumbled for my bag and my bagel to take to-go. 

"So soon?" asked my mom, "And who's outside?"

The doorbell rang and my father lifted an eyebrow, "I'm sure we'll find out soon enough."

I pursed my lips as he strode to the door and opened it.  Connor had his hands in the pockets of jean shorts, his black hair didn't even look like he brushed it.  It made me feel kind of silly; making all this effort to look good when he didn't even care.

"Hello Mr. Thompson.  Is Nora there?" he asked.

"Yes, but I'm not letting her go anywhere with you until you explain who you are."

"Ah, yes," he said brushing his hair out of his eyes, "My name is Connor McDonald.  I'm the president of the Art Club and drove your daughter home after club yesterday.  I was wondering if I could take her to school too?"

"Well..." dad said, looking at him up and down. 

"My license, sir," he said pulling it out of his wallet, "And I don't have a record or anything.  I don't drink, I don't do drugs, and I don't smoke."

I giggled behind my hand.  It was the first time I saw my dad do something so fatherly.  Of course he would harass any guy who came to his doorstep looking for me. 

Dad nodded and handed Connor back his license, "Alright, you can take her to school.  But if you try anything-"

"I can assure you, sir, that I won't take advantage of Nora."

I pursed my lips harder as I tried not to laugh.  Connor, seeing my expression from behind my dad, smiled.

"B-bye everyone," I said quickly as I pushed past my dad and out the door to Connor's car.

Connor nodded to my dad and went to open the passenger door for me.  Once I got inside, he got in the driver's seat.  I waved to my dad out the window as he pulled away.  As soon as I was sure we were out of his line of vision I burst out laughing.

"Oh my gosh! That was so funny!" I said, holding my sides.

"That was pretty funny," Connor said, chuckling a bit, but keeping his eyes on the road, "I mean, he was so uptight about letting you go.  I thought the next thing he would ask was for my medical records and blood type!"

I laughed harder.  I had never seen my father act so, well, fatherly.  It filled me with a sense of hope.  My dad did really care about me.  He just didn't show it so explicitly, but he still cared.

After I calmed down, I blushed and looked out the window, "Um, Connor?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you want to take me to school?"

"I assume you take the bus?" he asked, coming to a stop at the stoplight. 

I sighed, "Yeah.  My dad usually leaves the house early and my mom works from home, so no one drives me."

He smiled and looked at me, "Well, I could give you a ride."

"Everyday?" I said incredulously.

He nodded, "Everyday.  I'd be more than happy to.  Besides, it beats the bus right?"

"I guess so..." I said, taking a slow bite of my bagel.

That meant spending everyday with him; mornings and afternoons.  Not to mention extra time in Art Club.  The very thought made me blush harder.  The giddy feeling came back and I wanted nothing more than to run outside and shout, "He may really like me!"

"Th-thanks..." I said, after a while of silence. 

As the light turned green and he hit the gas, he said, "Art Club's after school today too."

"It is?" I asked.

He nodded, "Yeah.  I decided that this year, Art Club is going to meet once or twice a week every two weeks.  The more art, the better.  Right?"

"Yeah," I agreed.

"I can't wait to see what other art you'll come up with," he said.

By this point, my face was so hot, you could boil water on it.  Connor looked at me, "Nora, are you okay?  Your face is really red, do you need me to turn up the A/C?" he asked, reaching for the knob.

"I-I'm good," I stuttered.

He withdrew his hand and put it back on the wheel, "Okay then.  But be sure to be here after school."

I nodded as he pulled into the school parking lot.  After putting the car in park, I quickly got out.  I had to splash some cool water on my face.  I was as red as a tomato. 

"Thanks for the ride," I said, shouldering my backpack and turning toward the school.

"Oh!  By the way, Nora," he shouted after me.

"Yeah?" I asked, turning my head around slightly.

"Your outfit is really cute."

My stomach did flip flops and my heart beat faster as I ran toward the school without saying "thanks" back to him.  Who would've thought all that taking time to get ready in the morning, would actually work? 

Art Club couldn't come fast enough. 

 

I guess my prayers were answered, since I was in P.E., and was two periods away from Art Club.  Unfortunately, because of the soccer tourney, P.E. seemed to drag out forever too.  But I had to be honest, I didn't think my team could get very far.  As I eventually found out, we were the only team that didn't have at least one person who played soccer as a sport for school.  Although I asked Alice, since she was so good, if she played soccer, and she said no. 

This time, I was on defense, much to Ami's chagrin, along with Rose and Lucy.  Alice, Olivia, Zealand, and Jessica were on offense, but to my surprise, they weren't doing as well.  Today was the last game before the run day tomorrow, and both teams were giving it their all.

"Over here!" shouted Alice, farther down the field.  She was ways away from the goalie box, and Olivia, who was guarding the ball, was desperately trying to find an opening.  So far, our attempts to make a goal ended in failure.  We were behind by five points this time.

Olivia finally found a small opening, and kicked it toward Alice.  But before Alice could intercept it, a girl with long brown hair tied in a tight ponytail, stole it away.  Her teammates cheered as she dribbled the ball towards our side of the field. 

Okay, I can do this, I thought, I can do this.

My confidence seemed to grow with every miracle shot or block that I made.  I could feel the familiar adrenaline rush as the girl dribbled the ball closer and closer to the goal. 

"Don't worry!  I can block it!" Ami shouted.  She then turned to glare at me, "Don't even think about it," she snapped.

I glared right back at her, "You can't stop me."

As the girl got closer, she dodged Rose and Lucy's attempts to stop her, then reared her leg back to kick.  I saw a momentary look of surprise in Ami's eyes before she regained her composure and prepared to block the ball.

I can't let her win!

Without thinking, I rushed toward the girl as she got ready to kick the ball.  Everything seemed to run in slow motion as Ami put up her hands and I rushed toward the ball.  Once I got close enough, I slid on the grass and towards the ball, my foot extended to push it out of the way.  I don't know why, but I closed my eyes tightly as my foot made contact with the ball.

I opened my eyes and grinned in triumph as I saw the ball move out the way, then felt a sudden, jarring pain in my side.  I screamed as the girl's foot made contact with my side, kicking me over until I was face down in the grass. 

I could hear my teammates gasp and rush towards me, and I could hear Ami's snicker behind her hand, "I told you not to do it."

"Ohmygoshareyouokay?!" said a voice above me.

I winced as some helping hands turned me on my back; my face to the sky.  My side felt like it was on fire, and that fire was quickly spreading. 

"I'msosorryIdidn'tmeantokickyou!" said the brown-haired girl. 

"W-what?" I whispered.

"I said, I'm sorry.  I didn't mean to kick you," the girl said slowly, then she blushed, "Sorry again, I tend to talk fast."

"Nora!  Are you okay?"  said Coach McSwain, coming to a stop near my head.

"I... think so..." I trailed off.

"Try to sit up."

I braced my hands on the grass and sat up slowly.  I clenched my teeth tightly as the pain spread again. 

"I'm fine," I lied, slowly standing up.

"Are you sure?" asked the brown-haired girl, "Because I can run you to the nurse's office..."

"I'm fine, really," I said to her, surprised at how kind she was to me.

"Well, you should put some ice on that wound," she replied, "That should make it feel better."

I smiled, "I'll try that when I get home."

Ami rolled her eyes, "She's fine Casey.  Give it a rest."

The girl named Casey glared at Ami, "Why don't you give your attitude a rest!"

Ami huffed, "Whatever!  Rose, Lucy, let's go.  The period's over anyway."

Coach McSwain looked at her watch, "The period really is over.  That was fast."  She blew her whistle and the girls running the field started to head inside.  

"Well, as for you guys," she said, looking at the two teams, "I'm very impressed with your performance, Mockingjays.  But unfortunately, you weren't able to beat Sizzling Hot Bubbles.  Which means you'll be running tomorrow."

My team groaned as the other team cheered.  I furrowed my eyebrows.  How could we not beat a team with the name Sizzling Hot Bubbles?

Coach turned to me, "Nora, if your side still hurts tomorrow, you can be excused from running.  I'm sorry that happened."

"O-okay," I stuttered. 

Maybe this injury isn't so bad after all!  Sure it hurts, but at least I don't have to run tomorrow, I thought as I headed inside with everyone else.

 

English ended and this time, I was with the others in the mad dash out the school.  Only, I was making a mad dash to the Art Club room. 

"Hey! Watch it!" snapped a girl with familiar long, black, silky hair.

I stopped in my tracks and turned to Ami.  It was no wonder I ran into her.  Right in the middle of the crowded hallway, she was texting and talking with her group of friends.  I hated when people stood in the middle of the hallway talking instead of walking.  It was annoying.

"Why don't you stop standing in the hallway like an airhead and actually walk!" I snapped back.  I didn't know why, but this kind of aggressiveness always popped up around Ami.  She was so rude, it was starting to get on my nerves. 

"Whatever!" she snapped back, flipping her hair.

I rolled my eyes and kept walking, this time at a slower pace, to the club room.  Once I got there, despite the fact that school had let out only a few minutes ago, there were already a lot of people.

"Hey Nora!" said someone.

"Nora, hey! Over here!"

"You rock Nora!"

I blushed at the compliments.  This time, I took my seat at the front of the room with a bunch of other people with a kaleidoscope of hair colors. 

Just then, Connor materialized at the doorway with a box in his hands, "Okay everyone!  Settle down!  We've got a task for today!"

Everyone quieted down as Connor set down the box, "Today, we're going to be taking pictures of nature."

Connor pulled out a camera from the box, "I'll be giving these out to everyone.  First, choose a partner, then grab a camera and head outside to take pictures.  And don't just take pictures of anything, make sure it's a picture that depicts an emotion, or symbolizes something.  Nature is beautiful, and I want you to capture that beauty."

I nodded.  That seemed easy enough, right?  Nature was beautiful, and it shouldn't be too hard to depict that.

"Alright everyone!  Choose your partners!"  Connor said.

Everyone got out of their seats, claiming their partners.  People were shouting and shoving to claim their friends.  I looked at Connor and smiled as he looked at me.  Just as I was about to ask if he wanted to be my partner, Kira came, blonde hair and all, and grabbed his arm, "Connor!  Be my partner?"

I gasped as she hugged his arm tighter, "C'mon!  It'll be fun!" 

"W-well, actually-" he tried saying.

"Let's go!  I've got our cameras!" she said, quickly grabbing two cameras from the box and practically dragging him outside.

I sighed dejectedly and grabbed a camera.  It looked as though everyone had claimed a partner and was heading outside.  As usual, I was the loner, and the odd one out.  And just when I thought this club would be different.

"Um, do you have a partner?" said someone behind me.

I turned around to find a guy with thick black glasses, short black hair and big brown eyes standing behind me, rubbing his arm, "I... don't have a partner yet..." he trailed off.

"Sure," I said, then handed him a camera, "My name's Nora."

"I'm Kevin.  Nice to meet you," he said, taking the camera from me.

We went outside together and started taking pictures in silence.  I sneaked a glance at Kira and Connor on the other side of the courtyard.  Kira took a picture, then showed it to Connor, who nodded his head.  She laughed happily at what he said, then tried to reach for his camera.  Connor kept it out of her reach, barely, and laughed as she tried to get it from him. 

I gritted my teeth.  If only Connor knew that she had made fun of me on the soccer field yesterday.  She and her friend Mia, who thankfully, wasn't in this class.  In fact, I had no idea that Kira was in this class either. 

"Nora?  Are you okay?" Kevin asked.

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts and looked at him, "Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"Oh, I was just wondering... you blanked out a bit."

I blushed and looked down, "Sorry.  We should probably keep taking pictures."

He nodded, "Yeah.  Should we move somewhere farther away?  Maybe there's more wildlife for us to take pictures of where it's not so crowded."

"Sure," I said absent-mindedly. 

He led me farther away from the courtyard and outside the school, past the parking lot until we reached a large expanse of lush, green wildlife right next to the soccer field. 

I gasped, "Wow!  This is amazing!" I said.

Kevin smiled, "Isn't it?  This is being taken care of by the Gardening Club.  I have a friend there who told me about it.  I sometimes come here to relax after school and do my homework."

"We're going to get the best pictures for sure!" I exclaimed, slapping fives with him, "Let's get to work!"

Time seemed to slow down again as I got myself lost in the beauty of nature.  I focused my camera on a monarch butterfly, resting on a leaf.  I quickly snapped the picture, then the butterfly flew off.  I giggled and took another picture of a ladybug climbing up one of the petals on a soft pink flower. 

"This is incredible," I whispered.

"I know," Kevin smiled.

I snapped another picture of a giant oak tree with leaves that spread out fan-like; waving in the warm breeze as sunlight filtered down through the openings in the leaves.  I looked at the picture and smiled.  It was going to turn out beautifully.

"U-um, Nora?  Can I tell you something..." Kevin began.

I lowered my camera and turned to him, "Yeah, I guess so."

He rubbed his arm again and looked down, "F-for a while now, I've had a crush on you..."

My eyebrows shot up.  I never thought that any guy could have a crush on me.  In fact, I hadn't even realized it until now, but Kevin had been with me since the start of middle school, I just never noticed him.  And yet I complained about being invisible.

"R-really?" I asked.

He nodded and blushed, "Yeah.  I've always wanted to tell you that, but I was too scared to.  So I thought today would be the perfect opportunity, when you're alone with me, and all..."

I smiled, "That's really sweet, Kevin."

Without warning, Kevin hugged me, "Thanks.  I'm glad I finally told you."

I hugged him back, then took a deep breath, "Actually, I'm..."

"You're what?"

"N-not... that... interested..." I began.

"What?" he asked, but something had changed.  His voice was deeper, and more sure, instead of hesitant and a little higher pitched than most guys I heard.

"I'm really sorry," I continued, "I hope you understand."

"I do," he said, "But unfortunately, I don't take "no" for an answer."

"What?" I asked this time.

As I tried to break from the hug, he hugged me tighter, "I can't help but do this.  I know the boss'll get mad, but it's my chance to prove to her that I'm more than what she thinks."

Before I could question what he meant, I suddenly felt a sharp jab at my neck, then two needle-like teeth entered my neck.  My eyes went wide.  Was he a vampire? 

He bit into my neck harder as I felt blood drip down my neck and trail down my shirt.  He held me tighter as I felt something leave my body.  It wasn't blood, I didn't feel faint... what is it?

Before I could faint, I screamed loudly.

==========================================

Long time no see! Right now as I vacation in Long Beach and after a long day spending time outside (which I very much hate, due to it being summer), I figured I would upload another chapter to this book. Hope everyone else is having a good summer! :)