Thursday, May 3, 2012

What Happened to Once Upon A Time?


Alright, here's the next part of my book. Hope you enjoy, please feel free to comment or critique!  

       In physics and calculus, I didn’t pay attention. There were too many terms they didn’t review, so I didn’t understand them. Square root? Variable? Exponent? God, I didn’t even know what those are. I was able to pay attention in English though. The extremely nice female teacher was reviewing how to correctly write a multiple page research paper because in a few weeks English and physics would be teamed up for the essay. It was really fascinating to learn how to put ideas, facts, and opinions together into a structured literal work of art. I was nearly bouncing with anticipation for the opportunity to write my own essay. Everyone else seemed annoyed or agitated which I did not understand.

         After English came physical education or P.E. I walked through the gym doors into the empty ‘court’. Only the coach stood in the gymnasium since all the students were changing into their gym uniforms. I walked up to him and cautiously looked him over.

         Dressed in gym shorts and a wife beater, he looked like an average P.E. teacher… I think. He had a lanyard around his neck with a whistle and a few keys on the end. Also, good running sneakers were covering his feet and black sunglasses covered his eyes. He looked up from his clipboard and soft chestnut hair fell in front of the glasses. I had to admit, he was cute for a teacher, and he was probably around twenty or so.

         He cleared his throat. “Hey… Blair is it?” he asked. I nodded and he let out a breath. “I’m Mr. Johnson, but I have people call me Coach J.”

         Once again I nodded and he motioned for me to sit on the bleachers closest to the doors leading into the hallways. I did so and slowly, students emerged from the locker rooms-mainly boys-and stood in groups that varied in size. A teen in a far corner caught my attention. His dark black hair fell grazed over his eyes that you could tell were gold from miles away. Tanned skin stretched over lean muscles and he stood tall, around 6 feet. To me, he looked like a runner. An extremely attractive runner. And I guess others found him attractive too since girls were crowded around him. Yet, his golden orbs met mine. False green versus stunning gold.

         I looked away, down at my hands that were rested on my lap. Then, Coach J’s voice thundered through the gym.

         “Students! Line up!” he boomed. All the class scampered into a horizontal line parallel to the bleachers across from where I was sitting (thank you calculus for teaching me things). “Alright. Today Mrs. B is using the field for her class.” The students made noises of disappointment. “Oh relax. That means we are playing… dodge ball!”

         Suddenly, the boys and a few girls busted into an uproar of cheering. I raised an eyebrow at their enthusiasm. What could be so amazing about dodge ball to cause this kind of reaction?

         Coach J split the class up into two halves and they stood against opposite walls. The girls looked slightly nervous while the boys looked determined. My gaze slid to the golden-eyed teen. His eyes were locked on the red rubber balls being placed on the middle line. His hand was flat against the wall and the rest of his body looked ready to sprint. All of the muscles in his body were tensed and prepared. Unwillingly, a soft smile had spread across my face.

         I was snapped out of my trancelike state when Coach blew the whistle. Most of the teens sprinted to the center in attempt to get a ball, except for the girls who were afraid to break a nail. That included the one who rubbed on me this morning. A shiver ran up my spine and my body shuddered. I wrapped my arms around myself slightly as I continued to watch the class purposefully slam each other.

         “Why are you hiding under your hood Blair?” Coach J’s voice said next to me, causing me to jump. I looked over at him and noticed he was sitting right next to me, a few inches away. My heart pounded. I was not accustomed to being so close to people.

         I shrugged and he sent me a look. “Fine then. Take it off,” he told me, tugging on the sleeve of my sweatshirt. I shook me head and stood up. He sighed heavily and then said, “You can go to your next class if you’d like. But go to lunch when the bell rings.”

         Quickly, I nodded and walked out of the gym. As I did, the hair on the back of my neck prickled and I held back the urge to turn around to look at the person watching me exit. I walked to he music room to find it empty and locked. My head hung as I sighed, then I decided on a solution. First, I checked for watchers or passing people, but I found no one. Secondly, I lowered my hood and sighed in relief as my hair once again flowed past my waist. Then, I took the barrette out of my hair, letting my bangs out, and picked the lock. As the door swung open I stepped in and switched on the light. What I saw made me smile.

         The room-which was almost the size of the gym-had black carpeting and a deep red padding on the walls for better acoustics. Guitars of different genres, shapes, and sizes hung from hooks on the walls while pianos, drums, violins, etc were on the ground or on shelves. Everything was well spaced out and microphones or recording cameras were placed throughout the room. Warmth flowed through the atmosphere and I took off my sweatshirt altogether, throwing it by the door. I walked to an acoustic guitar and picked it up. Strumming a few chords to warm up my fingers, I cleared my throat. My fingers changed to start playing “All I Wanted” by Paramore, one of my favorite bands. Then, my voice rang through the air.

         My father always told me I had a beautiful voice, that it was smooth as silk but could have as much power as a tiger. Mother agreed with him. As I sang, my hair waved around me and my eyes itched to be free of the contacts. Never once did my voice break or my throat itch, not even hitting the high notes. My eyes closed as I felt power building in me, a feeling I always got with music. When my fingers strummed the last notes, my eyes opened. I yelped.

         The gold-eyed hottie was leaning against the wall a few feet away, his eyes closed. His posture was relaxed, as if he was falling asleep. He had the slightest bit of sweat on the back of his neck so I guessed he really got into dodge ball. At the sound of my yelp, his eyes opened and his gaze once again met mine. I couldn’t help but suck in a breath as my heart skipped a beat. That gold was just mesmerizing. He walked over, holding my gaze, and stood in front of me. I calmed my expression, raising an eyebrow, and he cleared his throat.

         “Coach sent me to tell you that the lunch bell is-“ his deep, slightly roughened voice was cut off by the bell ringing. “about to ring,” he finished. I gave him a smile, nodding, and put the guitar back on its hook. As I did so, the boy opened the door and gestured for me to exit first. I walked out and he shut the door after turning off the lights. I frowned as the room was drowned in darkness. The warm feeling of homeliness disappeared completely, leaving me once again with the empty, drifting feeling I had before.

         “You coming?” the boy’s voice snapped me from my thoughts. I looked over to him, seeing him looking over his shoulder at me from down the hall. I nodded, jogging up to him. He handed me something soft and I looked to see my sweatshirt in my hand.

         “Thanks,” I said softly and he shrugged, blowing it off. We walked side by side to the lunchroom and he didn’t make any comment to shoo me off, so I stuck around. As he grabbed his lunch from the food court, I looked around. Blue tables were spaced out around the room and there were more outside in the sun. Different groups sat at different tables, though most to all gazes were on me. I ducked my head, my bangs falling into my face. I quickly returned to the boy’s side and he glanced at me for a moment. People’s gazes practically burned through my body and I shuffled my feet uncomfortably. Suddenly, a wolf-whistle rang through the air of the cafeteria. More immediately followed it.

         The boy’s head snapped around so fast I thought he would get whiplash. I bit my lip, and he put a hand around my elbow. He led me from the building and to the outside tables hastily. He led me to a table where four teens were already sitting. The first was a female who looked to be in our grade. She had chestnut hair that waved just below her shoulders in choppy layers. Her forest green eyes were completely visible, untouched by bangs or anything of the sort and her pale complexion was untouched, almost like a porcelain doll.

         Sitting beside her with his arm over her shoulders was the teen I had seen girls giggling at this morning. This time he had brushed his blondish brown hair away from his light hazel eyes. He also had a pale tone to his skin, just the slightest bit paler than the girl’s. But he looked as though he couldn’t get a tan while the girl looked as though she could get some color. Next, the girl I had seen this morning was sitting under the arm of a guy across from the pair. A sea blue streak covered the blonde bangs that fell above her soft brown eyes that had a twinkle in them. The stick straight hair fell down to the middle of her back, reminding me of a waterfall almost. Her skin had a little more color, and freckles were sprinkled across her nose and slightly on her cheeks. She also looked to be in our grade, along with the teen that had his arm over her. He had brown hair that reached his light brown eyebrows. His eyes were a gray color that shined silver in the sun, and I bet the moonlight as well. All in all, they were a very interesting group that I would not have guessed to see.

         They all looked our way as we reached the table. All their mouths turned to smiles, except the blonde girl. Her mouth fell open slightly.

         “You… you’re a chick!” she exclaimed.

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