Introduction
It was a hot August day in Peachtree City, Georgia. It’s the day that parents count down to and the kids dread every single summer. The first day of school. As the students arrive on the campus of San Carlos High School, the incoming freshmen scramble to find where they are supposed to be. Will every freshman have an easy high school career? Or will the high school drama get the best of them?
Chapter One
“Is this thing on?!” Principal Corely yelled into the microphone of the PA system with a thick British accent.
“Um..yes ma’am.” Kylie, Principal Corely’s assistant, whispered to the yelling principal.
“Oh..well okay then.” The principal then hesitated to talk for a few moments to gather all of the thoughts that were swirling around in her head. She then put a huge smile on her face and began to speak with happiness.
“Hello all students! Welcome to San Carlos High School for the 2011- 2012 school year! Since today is only the first day, the faculty and myself want to make sure everyone is aware of the campus before you get caught up in the homework and classes. So, as I said before, today is a day to just kind of relax, and to get to know your way around the school and the other students around you. Once the bell rings, please proceed to homeroom. Your homeroom number should be written on your schedule, if not please come see me in my office and we will get everything situated. Have a great day ladies and gentleman!”
The principal let the “talk” button of the microphone release from her fingers. She looks out of the window in her office to see one of the hallways of the school bustling with both new and returning faces. On the other side of the hallway, she sees two girls that seem to be a little confused on where they’re supposed to be going and who they’re supposed to be looking for. Just as the principal got out of her chair to go see what was wrong, she heard the two girls start talking to one another about the situation..
“Uh, excuse me? Do you know where room 457 is?” A girl with blonde hair asked as she tapped a brunette on her shoulder.
“No, I don’t..I’m guessing that’s your homeroom you’re looking for?” said the brunette as she turned to face the blonde.
“Yeah..I’m a freshman..So I’m not really sure where I’m supposed to be going…My luck is that I’m no where near the room I’m looking for.” the blonde let out a nervous laugh.
“Oh, well don’t worry. I’m a freshman too..and according to my schedule that’s my homeroom too! Let’s go see where we’re supposed to be going..” the brunette replied.
Both of the girls were talking about their summer adventures and all the cute guys they saw in between. Soon enough, they were talking like they have been friends since childhood. About halfway to the classroom, the girls noticed that they have been followed by two guys since they were standing infront of the principals office. One of the guys looked like he just stepped off of the beach. He had short, dirty blonde hair, blue eyes and a tan that made it known that he was on the beach near town for most of the summer. His physique made him look like a surfer, while the other resembeled a football player. The football player had dark brown hair, green eyes, and was a lot taller and muscular than his friend next to him. Both guys looked as old as the girls where, so they couldn’t help to think about where the two cuties where walking to.
“Oh my gosh..the guys behind us are adorable!!! Don’t you think?” the brunette gushed.
“Shhh…they’re gunna hear us talking about them” the blonde laughed at the brunette’s lack of subtlty. “But I will totally agree…they are pretty cute.”
“PRETTY cute?! Are you out of your mind?! They’re totally hot!” the brunette practically yelled. And to no surprise, the blonde boy nudged the bruntte guy in the arm and gestured towards the girls to tell him that they were talking about them. Then the brunette continued..
“Look! 457! That’s our room!”
The girls entered the room and took the two seats near the windows in the second row from the back. Just as the set their things on the floor, the two boys that were walking behind them took the last two seats in the room behind them.
“So..your name’s Liliana? I’ve never heard of that name before..” the brunette asked.
“Yeah..uh..how do you know me?”
“Haha, relax..it’s written on your paper” the brunette then held out her hand for a friendly handshake. “I’m Tara.”
“Nice to meet you. And yeah..my family’s very Italian, so that’s where Liliana came from. But, just call me Lily. It’s so much easier.” Lily replied.
Just as Lily was going to shake Tara’s hand, the surfer boy walked between the girls’ desks and knelt infront of Lily.
“Well, you certainly like to make an entrance, don’t you?” Lily asked him with a subtle tone of annoyance in her voice.
“What can I say? I like the attention.” The boy smiled at both the girls, but winked at Tara when he noticed her presence next to him. “So, what are you two fine ladies doing in this school? You both look like you’re supposed to be in Hollywood.”
Tara looked pleased with all the attention the boy was giving her, but the more he hit on both of them, the more Lily seemed to be turned off by him. The boy was soon closer to Tara, giggling with her and playing with her hair. Since Tara and Lily were no longer engaged in conversation, she started to copy the list of which teachers teach what and where their rooms are within the school. When she was about to start writing, she felt someone behind her tap her on the shoulder. When she turned around, she was looking into the eyes of Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome himself. The football player looking guy that was following her earlier. She couldn’t deny it. He was drop dead gorgeous. His looks made him look like he just stepped out of a sports magazine. She found herself gazing into his grassy green eyes when he spoke..
“Excuse me..I’d hate to bother you..But my friend has my pencil..and it looks like I’m not going to be getting it any time soon.” He points to the surfer how has the pencil tucked behind his ear.
“Oh..sure..” Lily hands over the pencil and turns around so she can continue writing.
Lily didn’t want to make it seem too obvious that she was into the boy. She barely knew him, anyway. The bell rang to let the students know that homeroom was now over. Lily and Tara looked at each other in terror..considering the now have no idea where they are supposed to go next. The surfer dude stood up, wrote something down on a tiny piece of paper, and slid it across the desk to Tara. Instead of both of the girls paying attention to what the teacher was saying, they were in their own little worlds..Tara was flirting up a storm and Lily was somewhat depressed by the fact that the guy behind her probably had no interest in her at all. By the time Tara and Lily gathered their things, they were in the classroom alone.
“I have my schedule and a map of the school..I need to get to class.” said Lily.
“Wait!! What class do you have?” asked Tara.
“Um, History with Mr. Owen. Why?” Lily said to Tara as she stopped talking and turned to look at her.
“Me too!!” Tara said excitedly while hurrying out of her seat and almost losing her balance because of her too high heels.
Lily knew that Tara and herself were going to be friends, but she also knew that it was going to be an interesting experience. She likes Tara, really, she does..but the two of them are very different and that might be a problem.
The two of them walked out of the room and down the hall to History class. Of course, this wasn’t going to be one of those regular shuffles to class, there were some important topics that had to be discussed.
“Was that dark haired kid talking to you earlier??” Tara asked intreguingly.
“Not really..he only asked me for a pencil.” Lily stated.
“It definitely looked like more than that!! I think he’s into you Lily..”
Lily hoped that this was the truth. She did like him..but how can someone like someone else that fast? It hasn’t even been a day..
The bell rang for the next class to start in the middle of the conversation. Lily bolted down the hall and into the classroom with Tara following close behind her. It turns out that Lily was running a little to fast for herself to handle in her new shoes.
Tara stopped dead in her tracks. Since she was a little while behind her friend, all she heard was two loud screams and a hard thud. As she was almost in the doorway of the History room, she saw Lily’s papers fly into the hallway and scatter all over the floor. Tara peaked her head around the frame of the doorway when she saw Lily lying face first in the tile, looking completely lifeless. And as soon as she saw her friend on the floor, she saw blood trickling from an open wound on Lily’s head.
Chapter Two
Before Lily knew it, she was laying on the floor with about five people hovering over her. She sat up and saw a thin, black haired girl sitting on the floor, rubbing her forehead. Another girl then helped the dark haired girl off of the floor.
Since everything was still blurry to Lily, she rubbed her eyes to make sure she still had sight. Once her sight finally returned to normal, the cute guy from homeroom was kneeling infront of her. Lily was lost for words as soon as her gaze met the boys’ glossy green eyes. Not only was she amazed to see him, but she was amazed to see how much her head hurt after the fall.
“You okay? You and Kylee hit pretty hard. I thought you were out cold.” said the boy.
Lily became more confused one she heard, from the boy, that she and Kylee had hit into eachother. She looked to where the girl was sitting, but she was unable to find her. She felt something dripping from the right side of her forehead and winced at the pain when she touched the cut on her head with the palm of her hand. She looked up at the boy with eyes full of confusion, terror, and worry.
Mr. Owen, the History teacher, franticly came rushing over to aid Lily. Apparently, Kylee was sitting in her desk and talking to another girl in the classroom about the fall, looking completely fine. But Lily..Lily looked like “She got hit in the head with a bat” according to the tall blonde in the cheerleading uniform sitting in the desk infront of her. Lily stopped paying attention to what everyone was saying about her and paid more attention to the boy who was trying to talk to her about how much pain she was in.
Before Lily could ask any questions as to what happened, people were helping her off of the floor, and trying to stay calm. She didn’t think she was in that bad of a state..her head just her and there was a little blood. It was nothing that a bandaid couldn’t fix. But a girl who tried to walk past her seemed to disagree. The girl screamed when she saw all the blood that was surrounding Lily on the floor.
“You” Mr. Owen pointed to Homeroom Boy. “Take her to the nurse and stay with her while she’s there. I don’t want this young lady walking herself there with that kind of gash in her head. Don’t worry about the details we’re talking about in class today..I’ll make sure a classmate gets them to you.”
Lily had no idea who Mr. Owen was speaking to, but suddenly the boy swung Lily’s arm over his shoulder and picked her up off the floor in one swift motion. Before Lily could register who the guy was, she was being cradled like an infant in the arms of the gorgeous green eyed boy.
“What…what are you doing?” Lily asked in a small voice.
“I’m not going to let you walk to the nurse by yourself. It’s pretty obvious that you need support. So, it would be best if I just carried you there. You know, so you don’t hurt yourself.” The boy looked down at Lily and flashed a smile which revealed his perfectly straight and white teeth.
Lily looked at the boy with her dark brown eyes. The boy noticed that she wasn’t used to being handled this way, because she kept fidgeting around in his arms. While Lily was looking at him, she noticed something different about his expression. It wasn’t the look of satisfaction since he was with her, but instead he looked kind of worried.
The nurse’s office must not have been that far away from the History room, because Lily was soon sitting in the hard wood chair against the wall in the office with her new guy friend sitting next to her.
“I’ll be right back. I’m going to go find you the nurse.” Just then, the boy got up and disappeared into another room across the office.
Doctor’s offices and hospitals where never on Lily’s “Favorite Places” list, so it wasn’t a surprise that she felt uncomfortable when she saw all the medical books and equipment surrounding her. While she was looking at the skeleton in the corner, the boy returned with a nurse right behind him.
“Oh my. Look at that cut. This must be Lilliana.” the nurse said while she was trying to keep her composure.
“Yeah” The boy said somewhat confused. “That’s her Mrs. Kay.”
“Okay. Well, we’re going to get you bandaged up in no time, don’t worry.” Mrs. Kay informed Lily.
“You can head back to Mr. Owen’s, I think I’ll be okay here by myself.” Lily told the boy.
“It’s okay. I’ll stay here with you, it’s not that big of a deal.” the boy stated.
The nurse walked back into the other room to get ready to take car of Lily, leaving Lily and the boy alone.
“Alright, fine. But..can you tell me what happened? I heard from you that I collided with a girl named Kylee? Who is actually very pretty. You should go for her, she looks like your type.” Lily said, trying to find out more information.
“She isn’t my type.” he said with a smirk on his face.
“Oh, please. You seem like the type of guy that any girl is your type. Just go for it. The worst she can possibly say is no. And if she does, she’d be a fool because of the type of guy you are.”
Lily couldn’t belive that she actually said that. She was trying so hard to not make it noticable that she found this guy even the slightest bit attractive. She thought that the cat was out of the bag now, but the boy was too clueless to notice. Instead, he was happy because she called him attractive in a low key kind of way. Before he spoke, the boy let out a flirtacious laugh and smiled at her.
“No, it’s not that at all. I just don’t think that our parents would approve of that kind of action.”
“Wait..our? You just confused me.” Lily was confused about him not going for her, but “our parents wouldn’t approve”? This made her head hurt even more. The boy let out a little giggle followed by a sigh.
“I wouldn’t be able to date her. She’s my sister.” the boy said while looking at her.
Lily felt her cheeks become hot with embarrassment. She was trying her hardest not to mess up the conversation, but he was just naturally easy to talk to. She soon found herself laughing with him at her mistake.
“I’m sorry. It’s just that you two look nothing alike. I never would have guessed you’re siblings.”
“Yeah, we get that a lot. Well, Kylee’s hair used to be the same shade as mine. But after she saw ‘Sex and the City’ the movie, she wanted her hair to look like Sarah Jessica Parker’s after she dyed it.” the boy laughed casually, then started to fidget.
The expression on his face started to puzzle Lily. It seemed as if he was almost disappointed at the fact of her dying her hair. Why was it such a big deal though?
“Well, it looks great. She can really pull it off.” Lily encouraged.
“There’s more to the story. Well, you see, she…”
Then he was cut off. The nurse came back into the room.
“Lilliana Harding, you can come on back now sweetheart. Let’s get you fixed up.” the nurse said politely.
Lily looked next to her to see what the guy was doing, but he was gone. He was right next to her a minute ago..
“Ms. Harding?” the nurse asked to get Lily’s attention.
“Oh, yeah, right. Sorry.” Lily said. She started to feel confused because ever since she was talking to the boy, she completely forgot about why she was in the nurse’s office in the first place. Lily forced herself out of her chair and began to walk toward the room that the nurse went into. Lily forgot all about the gash in her forehead while she was talking. But since she remembered it, Lily’s painful headache kicked back into gear. Or was it because she was thinking too much about the boy whom she knew too little about?
Chapter Three
“Well Ms. Harding, you’re good to go.” the nurse said with a warm smile.
“Thank you so much for everything. I’m starting to feel much better already.”
“Oh, it’s no big deal Lilliana, it’s my job.” the nurse replied with a giggle.
“You’re right. But I still want to thank you. But before I go..could you call me Lily please? Lilliana sounds too…royal.”
“Sure, whatever is better for you, Lily. Feel free to stop by anytime.”
The nurse then walked Lily out of her station and into the secretary’s office. The secretary and Nurse Kay then talked about what happened earlier, and in a few minutes, Lily was handed an early dismissal slip.
“Go home and get some rest dear. You look like you’re going to need it.” the secretary told Lily. the secretary reminded Lily of her grandmother. She was a petite lady, with very gray hair. She was older, maybe about 70, but she was as sweet as cake. Lily automatically knew that her and the secretary would be talking again. After all, her friendly personality made it seem like Lily could talk to her about anything.
Once Lily took the slip, she walked toward the main doors of the school. Since her house was only a few blocks away, she didn’t seem to think it was necessary to call her mom to come pick her up. After all, her mother would probably react a lot more worse if she got a call to come get her than Lily just taking herself home. Her mom wasn’t the type of person to let things go easily. During her brisk walk home, Lily couldn’t help but think about the reaction her mother was going to have against the big gash in her head. How was she even going to explain that type of story?
Chapter Four
Lily shoved the door to her house open with one motion. She set her purse and her backpack down on the chair that was pressed up against the wall. She reached up to touch her gauze covered forehead from te school nurse and realized that the pain was still noticable. She decided to grab a bag of ice and just go to bed. Maybe sleep with help take away some of the pain. But before she relaxes, she probably should tell her mom that she was home, that way her mom wouldn’t have a heart attack when she sees her daughter laying in her bed with a blood soaked patch on her head.
“Mom? You home?” Lily asked in the echoing house.
Lily’s mom came into the foyer where she saw her daughter standing infront of the stairs. She was wearing a simple tan dress that hugged her thin body, with her long blonde locks hanging on her shoulders. To Lily, her mother resembeled one of those moms that you usually see in the movies who are always entertaining people from work with dinner parties and casual lunch dates. Lily’s parents are just recently seperated after a nasty fight gone physical, and her mom hasn’t been handling it well at all. Her mothers only crutch in this whole thing is her beloved bottle of red wine. Lily’s dad was hardly ever in picture, considering he is now living with brother in California.
“Hi sweetie..what happened?” Lily’s mom, Julie, asked as she almost spilled her wine on the freshly cleaned white carpet. It was obvious that it has been another hard day of loneliness for Julie, considering her appearance clearly showed that she was tipsy.
“Well, I fell at school. The nurse put this thing on my head and told me that I needed to go home.” Lily said.
Lily sat down with her mom on the living room couch. She explained the whole story to her mother about her embarrassing collision as well as her talk with the cute guy. Her mom might be a drunk, but she was able to tell her anything. And boys were definitely her specialty.
“Leave it to you to get hurt and be babied by a cute guy because of it. Of course you must get it from your mother.”
“Wow..thanks mom.”
Lily’s mother then patted her daughter on the arm and told her that sleep is best. Lily walked up the stairs and into her bedroom that looked like it belonged in ‘Seventeen Magazine’. All of Lily’s friends used to tell her that they would kill for this room. It was so teenager-ish with all the music posters, animal prints, and bright colors. The plasma screen TV, queen sized bed, and huge stereo obviously added to the reactions. Lily didn’t see her room that way, though. It wasn’t just a sweet room, it was a place that she could go to write, listen to music, and just get away from everything happening around her. Today especially, she needed this place. She plopped down face first onto her bed and dozed off into a deep sleep.
