Chapter Two - The Bad Angel

Disclaimer: I own ALL characters in this story and the storyline as well.

Chapter Two

It was already 3 o’clock in the afternoon. I was in a baggy t-shirt and shorts with my bikini underneath, waiting by the school’s poolside for the swim team to appear. My hair was still in its ponytail. I felt dumb wearing my bikini. I knew that competitive swimmers didn’t wear bikinis, they wore one piece suits. But I had no one piece suits. My uncle told me to wear whatever suit I had, the coach wouldn’t mind. As long as I showed up.

I was drawing patterns in the water with my right toe when I felt someone approach me from behind. I turned around and saw a tan guy in blue swimming trunks. A really hot guy. He had tousled blue black hair, navy eyes, a strong, nicely-shaped jaw and he was tall and muscular. He wasn’t like the football players who were way too muscled or one of those skinny guy types either. Still, he had abs. And did I mention he was seriously smokin’ hot?

“Hey, ‘sup?” he asked me, smiling.

I got up and smiled back. “Hey.”

I never had trouble talking to people. Even hot guys like him. He’s hot all right, but he’s also just a normal human being. Just that he was blessed with good looks.

“Don’t mean to be rude, but who’re you?” the guy asked me tilting his neck slightly downwards to look at me. “And why’re you here?”

“I’m Hera. Hera Wolfe. I’m here to be on the swim team,” I answered.

Apparently he found that a little hilarious. “That’s funny. You don’t look like you swim at all. You don’t look very athletic. You look so feminine and your skin looks as if you never went out into the sun at all. You look more like the cheerleader type.”

Apparently, he on the other hand, had no trouble speaking out his thoughts.

I huffed. “I don’t swim. And I do sports all right? I do track and field sports. I think being a cheerleader is overrated. I never asked God to make me a freakin’ blonde or to give me skin which won’t darken no matter how darned long I’m under the sun.”

“Seriously?” he gave me a skeptical look. Ugh, now I kinda hate him. At least he didn’t say I look like the good girl-type who ran for class president which most people thought I looked like.

“Your hair looks too bright to be natural,” he told me.

I rolled my eyes. “I told you, I never asked for my hair! It’s natural! Do you want me to pull out one to show you my roots?”

Without waiting for an answer, I plucked out a strand of my hair without flinching and showed it to him.

“See?”

He leaned in to take a closer look. And squinted his eyes.

“All right, I believe you.”

“Thank you.”

“But still, you’re too fair to be athletic. I never heard of people whose skin won’t darken no matter what. Does that mean you can’t get sun burnt? And that you don’t need sunscreen?”

I took a deep breath. Okay, I might be a little strange. But aren’t I a strange person?

“I won’t say I’m super athletic and I love sports, but I will say that I do, do sports. I have no idea why my skin is strange as it is. And I still do use sunscreen because after staying under the sun, my skin will turn red and hurt for a while. The next day, it returns back to normal. Anything else?”

This guy didn’t even introduce himself and he’s asking me so many questions.

He blinked a few times and studied me closely. “Prove it.”

“Huh?”

“Prove that you do, do sports. If you do sports, you should have at least some muscles.” He flashed a grin at me.

“Are you asking me to strip for you?” I asked him sarcastically.

“No, you should at least have some muscles in your biceps right? Or your calves?”

Huh, easy for him to say. It wasn’t easy for me to develop extra muscles in my upper arm or calf areas. The only area which I seem to develop extra muscle was in my abdomen. One of my girlfriends who is a hardcore volleyball player told me that I was lucky. She told me that she hated her muscular biceps and calves. They made her look so manly.

“You’re so lucky Herr, your arms and calves don’t get flabby or too muscular either!” my friend had said. “I have to keep fit in order to not let them get too flabby. But then, the muscles become too large, and then I have to go muscle shaving! It’s tedious!”

I was a little curious about what she meant by muscle shaving but I figured it was none of my business.

“I have no visible muscles there, sorry.”

“Meaning?”

“Okay, aside from having weird looking hair, freaky skin, I can’t seem to develop visible muscles in those two areas.”

“So meaning you have no visible muscles?”

I hesitated. I didn’t want to be such a slut and show him my abdomen. It might be discriminating.

“Well, I do…but they’re on my ya know, my abdomen?” I said hesitantly.

He didn’t look at all bothered. “All right, that’s fine. “

I hesitantly lifted up my shirt just until above my belly button and showed him half of my femininely sculpted abs. The guy didn’t come very close to look. He must sense that I feel insecure showing him my stomach. He looked at it for a few seconds.

“All right, that’s enough proof. Nice abs by the way,” he flashed me another one of his grins.

I dropped my shirt. “Thanks.”

I thought he had way nicer ones. I mean, it’s not, like, they make me look super hot. They totally made him look hotter than he already is.

“Sorry to intrude your privacy like this,” he said apologetically. “But it’s weird that someone like you is being put on the swim team. You told me that you don’t even swim. I have to be honest with you. You look like a…”

I waited for an answer. “Yep? A Barbie?”

He shook his head laughing. “No, I was going to say you look like one of those angels or goddesses in paintings.”

I flushed a little. “Thanks,” I said again.

He led me to the bleachers by the poolside and we sat down. I snuck a glance at my watch. 3. 15. I’ve been talking to him for about fifteen minutes. Practice started around three thirty.

“Are you part of the swim team?” I asked.

“Yup. My name’s Ashton Taylor. Nice ta meet you!”

I looked at him in surprise, “You have the same first name as my-“

“Yeah, the principal.”

Oops, I was gonna say ‘my uncle ash’. I didn’t really want people to know I was related to him. Not cause I’m embarrassed, cause maybe they’d think that my uncle favors me or something.

“Well you have the same surname,” Ashton said.

I lied without batting an eye. “Yup. Small world, huh?”

I pretended to be interested in a lock of my hair.

“So… why’re you here anyway? You told me you didn’t swim,” Ashton said.

“Well, do you know about the rat thing in the cafeteria today?”

“Yeah, I wasn’t there. But one of my buddies told me about it. They said it was hilarious.”

Oh really? Yeah right. My mind flashed back to when I was watching all the students, guy or girl, were frantic and clamoring onto the tables. And it was only six rats for goodness sake.

“Hmm… I was the one who did it.” I confessed.

“Seriously? Man, that’s so awesome. How’d you have the guts to do it? You surprise me even more. What’s next? You’re the president’s daughter?” Ashton laughed.

“Well, I was just planning to let them go back to their nests quietly. Somehow, I think they got really afraid and started going berserk and ran around the cafeteria. I never meant for it to turn out the way it did. Honest.”

“It’s okay. I believe what you say. And also, I’ll keep the secret that it was you. So, what does that incident have got to do with you joining the team?”

“The principal thought that I lacked discipline or proper common sense. He thinks by banishing me from the debate team and Arts club into the activities I detest most, I’d be more disciplined,” I said, wrinkling my nose.

“Huh, interesting. So, even though you look like an angel, you’re like a trouble maker?”

“I wouldn’t say that. I was doing what I thought was right.”

“Sure,” instead of a smile or grin, he was giving me a teasing smirk.

“Hey Ash!” I heard an unfamiliar voice call from across the pool.

Both me and Ashton looked up and saw a group emerging from the pool entrance. They were all dressed in baggy t-shirts and shorts. Leading the group, I saw a young woman, probably in her late twenties, with a whistle around her neck, wearing track pants and a white t-shirt with the caption ‘ I’M NOT PROUD, I JUST HAVE DIGNITY’, with her chestnut hair done up in a ponytail.

Ah, that was probably the coach.

I leapt of the bleachers and Ashton followed suit behind me.

“C’mon,” Ashton beckoned me to follow him towards the group.

I came face to face with the members of the swim team. They looked so intimidating. I heard from my uncle that they were all juniors and seniors.

“Who’s this? Your sister?” a girl with short, straight red hair asked. She had sparkling green eyes and a sprinkle of freckles across her nose.

“That’d be weird Jenny, they both look so different. Ash’s a brunette and well, she’s blonde,” a tall, broad-shouldered guy with spiky, strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes said. He gave me a secretive wink. I was a little surprised. I didn’t even know him.

“Well, well, who do we have here?” the coach stepped forward to stand in front of me. “Hera Wolfe?”

I grinned sheepishly. “Yeah, that’s me.”

I swore I heard one of the girls give a small gasp.

“I’m Coach Nancy Grey. Nice to meet you. Welcome to the team,” she smiled warmly and held out her right hand.

“Yeah, nice to meet you too,” I said back, shaking her hand. Her hand had a nice, firm grip.

“Well, these are your teammates,” she gestured towards the others.

“That’s Faith Randall.” The coach pointed to a tall girl with straight dark brown hair which was a little past her shoulders and hazel eyes. She looked at me and smiled. I smiled back.

“And that’s Warner Foxx.” She pointed to a muscular guy with caramel colored buzz cut and green eyes. He held up his hand in greeting, I nodded at him.

“He’s Zachariah Ray.” Coach Nancy pointed at the strawberry blonde guy who winked at me just now. He grinned at me.

“This is Jenny Parker.” She pointed to the red haired girl who asked Ashton if I was his sister. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes clearly showed hostility. I made an effort to give her a smile.

“That’s Rebecca Sears.” She gestured towards a girl with reddish brown hair and green eyes. She smiled perkily at me. Sears. That sounded a little familiar. Rebecca sure looked familiar too.

“And last but not least, your captain, Ashton Taylor. I presume you’ve met him?” Coach asked.

I nodded. “Uh-huh”

All in all I had six teammates, not counting me or coach.

“Well guys, this is Hera Wolfe. She has been put on the team due to some unforeseen circumstances. Therefore, from today onwards, she’ll be your new teammate. Work hard and please cooperate with her,” Coach Nancy introduced me.

“Hey. Sorry to intrude on your team. Sorry if I should suck or do anything to drag you down. I’m not exactly the best swimmer on earth,” Hera said a little apologetically.

“Nah, it’s all right,” Zachariah said. “Pretty girls are very welcome.”

“All right guys go prepare yourselves, practice starts in ten minutes,” the coach ordered.

The team advanced towards the bleachers to put down their belongings. I lagged a little behind and Ashton noticed this.

“What’s up Herr?” he asked.

“Herr?”

He shrugged and grinned. “Can’t I call you that?”

“No, it’s fine.”

“So, what’s wrong?”

I sighed. “I don’t know if you noticed it or not, but I’m not exactly wearing a suit that’s suitable for competitive swimming.”

“You mean you’re wearing a two-piece?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Don’t you have any one piece suits?”

I shook my head. “Nope. I told you, I don’t really like swimming. I was only told today that I was to be on the team.”

“Well, that sucks. Why don’t you go ask coach? She’s over there with the others.”

“Yeah, okay.”

I followed Ashton towards the others. Swimming captain huh?

“Hey coach, Herr said that she’s not wearing a one piece,” Ashton said quietly to the coach so as not to embarrass me in front of the others who were taking off their shorts and shirts.

“I know. The principal told me already. That’s okay Hera. Uhh, I need to ask you something… would you mind? Ashton?” Nancy gave Ashton a pointed look.

“Sure,” he walked off towards his buddies.

“So Hera, are you wearing a string bikini?” Nancy asked quietly.

I shook my head. “No, I chose one that I thought was most suitable. I’m almost wearing something like a one piece, except the middle part is missing.”

“That’s all right. But I expect you to get a one piece as soon as possible all right?”

“Okay.”

“Good. Go get yourself ready.”

I nodded at walked towards the girls of the team.

“Umm… mind if I put my stuff here?” I asked a little cautiously.

The perky and energetic one, Rebecca Sears gave me a friendly smile, “No, we don’t mind. Welcome to the team! By the way, do you know my brother?”

I cocked my head to one side. “Your brother?”

“You know, Ruben Sears? He looks exactly like me. Except he’s a guy, a little taller and his hair is short and spiky.”

I thought hard. “No, sorry.”

“Seriously? But I swear that I heard from his friends that a girl named Hera Wolfe rejected him. And I’m sure no one else has a unique name like yours in this school.”

Ruben. Ruben. Ruben. I thought hard again. Did I reject a guy named Ruben? Suddenly I remembered. It was a month ago; I had been busy, going back and forth from the art supply room to the art room I which I was doing my current work in. That time, I was busy making a life-sized model of Uncle Ash.

I remember carrying a huge pile of old newspapers and crashing into someone when I almost reached the art room. I remember apologizing profusely and thanking the guy who I crashed into for helping me pick up the newspapers. That guy had been fairly tall; he had reddish brown hair and green eyes. I remembered him by the onyx stud in his left ear.

“That was your brother? The tall one with an onyx stud in his left ear?” I asked.

Rebecca nodded excitedly. “Yeah, that’s him. Is it true you rejected him?”

I thought again. I remember him saying that he liked short people and asking me if I wanted to go to a concert with him. I was a bit dizzy from all the noise around us and I had just told him sorry and I was busy. Then I got up and went back to the art room for peace and serenity.

“I’m not sure really. He asked me out?” I asked, giving her a confused look. “I just told him I was too busy because I was busy working on a project.”

Rebecca laughed delightedly. “Exactly! That was you wasn’t it? Ruben’s my twin brother and a lot of girls in his class think he’s so hot. That made him really egoistic and vain. Getting rejected by you, a sophomore had been a first for him and you definitely crushed his ego! I salute you!”

She suddenly bounded towards me and enveloped me into a crushing bear hug. “You’re just so adorable!”

“Quiet down Beck, don’t get overexcited. You might suffocate her,” Faith said, an amused look on her face.

“Can’t you hurry up? Practice is gonna start soon,” Jenny said loudly. She gave me an annoyed look and brushed past us, towards the edge of the pool.

I blinked. Was it just me or does she hate me? I looked at her back, confused.

“Did I do something wrong?” I asked Rebecca.

She smirked. “Not really. Well, maybe in her case, you did. Jenny is like, totally gaga over Ashton. I mean, seriously, have you ever seen someone as hot as Ashton?”

Yup, I definitely never saw someone as hot as him all right. I glanced over where the boys were laughing loudly about something. When he laughed, Ashton’s eyes seemed to sparkle, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

“Anyways,” she continued. “When Jen saw you and Ashton, she got really pissed.”

“Why?”

“Because, I’m not sure if you noticed it or not, but you guys were sitting like, real close,” Faith told me.

Really? I never noticed. We were talking too much.

“So Jenny thinks I’m stealing Ashton away from her?” I asked, my eyebrows furrowing together.

“Exactly. Well, Ashton doesn’t even belong to her. He doesn’t seem to be very interested in girls somehow. Pity huh?” Rebecca said.

She let go of me so I could take off my t-shirt and shorts. I slipped out of my shorts, deep in thought. There was no reason for Jenny to hate me. I mean, she’s pretty. I wouldn’t say model pretty but prettier than me at least. And I was just a sophomore. She shouldn’t feel worried that I’d steal Ashton away from her. I mean, as soon as I laid my eyes on him, I had a feeling, no matter how much I fall for him, he’s really unattainable.

I folded my shorts and placed them on top of my bag. I proceeded to slipping my shirt over my head. And I folded that too.

“Hera!” I heard Rebecca squealing.

“Yeah?”

“You’re wearing a two piece! You have a great body!”

“Gee, I don’t think I do. But thanks Rebecca.”

It was weird. My body matured really quickly, but my progress in growth of height was painfully slow. At the age of twelve, I was already fully developed. I thought it made me look really fat. That’s why I doubled my effort in my track and field sports.

“No! You have really great abs! Even nicer than Faith’s! No offence girlfriend,” she added to Faith.

“None taken.” She assured her friend. “But really Hera, you’re curvy, but you have them at just the right places. How do you control that?”

The two of them looked at me incredulously as if I was an alien whom they’ve never seen before in their entire life. Is today really the most unfortunate day of the year for me? First, I get banned from my own choice of clubs, next, I get assigned to activities I hate most and finally, it’s as if everyone chose today to say various things about my body.

I wasn’t sure what to take as a compliment or an insult anymore.

“I don’t know,” I told Faith. “It’s all natural I guess. I’ve been on track and field sports for as long as I can remember.”

“Faith! Rebecca! We’re starting!” we heard Jenny yelling.

She left my name out. No matter. I didn’t really want to be on the team anyway.

“Eeps! Let’s hang out later all right? I have tons to ask you!” Rebecca said. She grasped Faith’s and my hands and towed us along with her to the pool where the team was gathered around Nancy. I felt the others staring at me.

“Stop staring,” Nancy said. “It’s rude. Hera can’t help it. She’s not much of a swimmer and she was told last minute that she was on the team. Don’t make her feel uncomfortable.”

“Nice ass,” I heard Zachariah whisper to Warner who nodded his head. Jenny was giving me a hateful glare. I ignored them.

Ashton caught my eye and gave me a sympathetic look.

“It’s all right!” he mouthed.

I nodded slightly.

“All right, pay attention to me! Warner, Zack, Jen, Beck and Faith, the five of you, do ten laps across the pool. Five breaststroke, five butterflies. Ashton and Hera, stay here,” the five of them departed to complete their orders.

“All right you two, come closer.”

Ashton and I moved closer to Nancy.

“So Hera, how fast do you swim?” she asked.

“As fast as a snail on land,” I declared. I heard Ashton stifling his laughter. Jerk.

“We’ll see about that. Come here you two,” she led us towards the starting end of the pool.

“Stand up there,” she pointed to a mini platform. I looked over to where the others were diving off other similar mini platforms into the pool. I stepped up.

“All right, bend down, the tips of your fingers touching your toes and your chin tucked in between your knees. That’s how you prepare to dive.”

I followed her instructions.

“Okay, that’s good,” I heard her voice say. “Ashton .”

I didn’t hear anything for a while but the splashing of the others swimming on the right side of the pool. I was about to stand up again to see what had happened when suddenly, I felt two strong warm hands which sent tingles up and down my spine, touching my back and forcing me forwards.

I plunged head first into the ice-cold pool. Ashton had pushed me off. I cleared my head of angry thoughts when I suddenly realized how deep the pool was. Suddenly, I couldn’t see the floor of the pool anymore. Everything looked dark and endless. Like a hole, ready to swallow me in. I was terrified. I was going to drown. Instinctively, the training from ten years ago kicked in and I kicked my legs. Hard.

I swam and swam and swam. No other thoughts but swimming as fast as I can before I could drown. The chlorine from the pool burned into my eyes but I didn’t care. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, my right hand touched a wall, and I reached up, groped around and held onto a ledge.

I brought my head up, panting. I didn’t care that my arms were aching from all the strain. I forcefully hoisted myself up, out of the pool. I needed to get out. And fast. After I made sure I was at least ten centimeters away from the edge of the pool, I took a deep breath and calmed myself down.

I reached up backwards to my ponytail and wrung the water out of it. Loose curly tendrils had escaped from my formerly dry and neat ponytail and were framing my wet and if it were possible, much whiter face. I looked towards the left and saw Nancy and Ashton jogging towards me, astonished look on their faces. Nancy was holding a stopwatch. Ugh, probably to tell me that they were so surprised that someone who can swim that slow actually existed.

As they reached me, I glared at Ashton.

“I could’ve drowned,” I said icily.

“But it was worth it!” Ashton said, with an excited look on his face. I can’t believe that this extremely uber hot guy almost pushed me to my death.

“Why? Cause you got a chance to see the slowest person in the world swim?”

“Not that. Ashton’s the fastest swimmer for the hundred meter events. He usually clears it in about thirty-seven seconds. You, on the other hand, cleared it in thirty seconds!” Nancy said. Her excited face looked like that of a kid’s on Christmas Day.

“I don’t believe you. I swear that I took at least five minutes for that swim.”

“No. Really Herr, you did it much faster than I usually do. Even on my best days,” Ashton had an earnest look on his face.

“Dude! She’s like a freakin’ fish!” I heard Zachariah holler towards us. “The chick actually beat Ash’s time! That’s, like, incredible!”

“Good job Hera!” I heard Rebecca and Faith call over.

“Back to your strokes! I know you’re not done yet!” Nancy ordered.

“Yes coach!” they chorused.

Wow. Beginner’s luck huh? Anyway…

“I could’ve drowned,” I said stubbornly. I didn’t freaking care if I swam faster than the star of the swim team. I didn’t care if they thought it was incredible. I wanted justice.

“But if we just told you to dive off yourself, you’d probably not do your best,” Nancy said. “The principal told us that it was the best way to start you off and let us see your true potential.”

I was gonna get Uncle Ash later. See if I don’t.

“It might be beginner’s luck,” I answered.

“Wanna race?” Ashton suggested. Without waiting for my answer, he pulled up onto my feet and led me back to the starting point.

“Listen,” Ashton said, as we got onto our own respective starting points. “If you win, I’ll treat you. But if I win, you have to treat me and do your best in the swim team.”

“Hey! That’s not fair!” I protested. But Ashton was already pulling on his goggles. He threw me a pair. He flashed me another one of his heart-melting grins.

“All right. On the count of three and the blow of the whistle, the race starts!” Nancy called out.

I pulled on the goggles and secured them properly around my eyes. I got into a diving position. I didn’t want to admit it, but I wanted to kick Ashton’s ass.

“One, two….” Immediately at the blow of Nancy’s whistle, I dived off into the pool, this time, taking care not to breathe in any water.

I started kicking my legs hard and pushing myself forward with my arms in freestyle. One, two, one, two. Before I knew it, I felt the familiar cold wall and felt upwards for the ledge. I poked my head out of the water and looked backwards. Sure enough, Ashton was still a few stone throws away, swimming towards me.

Whoa. I caught myself off-guard there. I could swim. Fast. What’s going to happen next? I find that I’ve turned into a mermaid?

A few seconds later, Ashton reached the edge of the swimming pool and hoisted himself up. I was already sitting on the edge of the pool.

“So,” he said, between pants. “Do you like ice cream?”

So he was indeed a man of his word. Nancy jogged up towards us.

“Nice one, Hera. Not bad too, Ash. But you might want to work on your arm strokes more, Hera,” Nancy said.

“All right, you two go take a break. The real practice will start in a few minutes as soon as the others are done.”

I got up and advanced towards my bag and took out my towel. I patted my face dry and returned the goggles to Ashton who was sitting beside me.

“Keep those. They’re yours now. So, I thought you didn’t swim?”

“I don’t. Honest. I had no idea I could swim that fast,” I confessed. I fiddled with the strap of the goggles. ‘Ashton Taylor’ was written in black, small handwriting on the inside of it. Probably permanent waterproof ink.

“Wow, you’re good,” Ashton said, good-naturedly.

I muttered thanks, a bit shy.

“Well, I had no idea you were captain. How long have you been swimming?” I asked

He seemed to ponder my question for a while. “Well, I’ve been swimming since I was in fifth grade. I guess it was kind of a hobby. I was made captain of the team last year when the previous captain graduated.”

“Gee, belated congratulations,” I said.

“Thanks. So, what do you think of the Tropical Snow?” he asked.

Tropical Snow was a café that mainly specialized in fruit based sorbets, ice cream, yogurts and the works. Perfect. I’ve been going there every Saturday afternoon since I was old enough to go around town on my own.

“Sure. That sounds great,” I answered.

“Cool. I’ll pick you up tomorrow at four after school. Where do you live?” he asked.

I took out a piece of paper from my memo pad and wrote down my address. I handed it to him. Ashton took it and read it. A look of realization dawned upon his face.

“You seriously live in that huge house?” he asked, awed.

I thought about it. My house wasn’t exactly huge. My mom just went overboard when she was designing it. She’s an architect. My house spanned around three stories, not counting the extra floor underground. There was a pool out back and a greenhouse on the front. All that still left plenty of space to park three cars, a Japanese-style koi pond, complete with a bridge overhead and a patio which my mom used for having garden parties.

“It’s not huge. Just slightly big,” I said.

Ashton scoffed. “Really. Your house is huge. All this time, me and my buds thought some old, bizarre millionaire lived there.”

“Do I look like an old, bizarre millionaire?” I asked, innocently.

“No. So, who do you live with?” Ashton asked.

“Me, my parents and my uncle. Just the four of us. I have no siblings,” I said.

“Oh… but your house isn’t based on one kind of design huh?” Ashton asked.

“My mom wants it to be unique,” I explained. “She’s an architect.”

“Ah.” Ashton nodded with understanding. “I understand you. My mom’s an interior designer.”

“So your mom designs your home interiors?” I asked.

“Yeah. She doesn’t just let our house have the same design permanently. She’s always changing the designs. She says it’s practice for her job,” Ashton said. “Your mom’s a huge gardening fan? That’s one huge greenhouse”

I shook my head. “No. My dad has his own organic health industry. You’ve probably seen the commercials on TV. It’s called ‘Wolfe for Health’. The greenhouse is for him to grow his organic vegetables and fruits.”

“Man. Your dad owns that company? Now I’m convinced that you’re a millionaire. My mom loves your dad’s diet program. She’s a worshiper,” Ashton said, laughing.

“I’ll pass that on to my dad,” I said.

“Hera! Ashton! Time for practice!” we heard Nancy call to us.

“Looks like practice time,” Ashton said. “C’mon, let’s go.”

I nodded. I followed him towards the team and for the rest of the afternoon; I spent my time perfecting my freestyle and backstroke. Throwing the occasional glance at Ashton.

Chapter Three - The Bad Angel

Disclaimer: I own ALL characters in this story and the storyline as well.

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Chapter Three

“I’m home!” I yelled out at the open front door. It was already five o’clock.

I took off my shoes and went straight to my room. My room was located on the ground floor of the house. Instead of a private balcony like my parents, I had my own veranda which led out to the pool. Besides my room, I had my own bathroom; there was the kitchen, dining room, living room, the lounge, a library, laundry room and another bathroom. On the second floor were my parents’ bedroom, Uncle’s bedroom and my parents’ own offices, Uncle Ash’s study and two guest rooms. The third floor on the other hand, was my own art studio and mini library. The extra floor underground was an entertainment room. There was also another smaller building out back, a few distances away from the pool area which was the storehouse.

I went straight to my room, dumped my bag and hurried to my bathroom, into the shower. I shampooed my hair twice with my favorite strawberries and cream shampoo and conditioned my hair for a few minutes. I had no desire for my hair to turn slightly greenish from the chlorine.

After a warm soak in the bath tub, I felt very refreshed and content. I put on a lilac tank top and a pair of navy shorts. I collected my dirty laundry and headed for the laundry room.

“How was practice?” my mom asked me as I entered the laundry room.

“Terrible,” I lied. “You and dad didn’t say anything about me having a change of clubs!”

“It slipped my mind,” my mom said, winking at me. My mom, Rochelle Rain Wolfe (her maiden name was Rochelle Rain Silver) is in her late thirties. For someone her age, she looked relatively young. She has blonde hair like mine, except that it was cut shoulder length and wasn’t as light-colored. She has blue sapphire eyes which I inherited and she has a short but petite curvy frame. Just like me.

“But it’s not fair,” I muttered. I dumped my clothes into the washing machine, tipped in some laundry soap and set the timer.

“You need the discipline, angel. And besides, sometimes a change would be a nice thing. Think of this as a whole new experience,” my mom told me.

“Right. A whole new experience.”

I left my mom to do her laundry and walked into the kitchen. I saw my uncle reading a book and drinking hot chocolate at the same time at the kitchen table. He’s not a big fan of coffee.

“Well, well, look who’s home. Hera the wolf,” Uncle Ash said, with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

“Ha-ha, how not funny,” I said, sticking my tongue at him and his lame joke. I opened the refrigerator and took out a couple of tomatoes. I went to the counter next to the sink and took out a chopping board and knife.

“How was swim team?”

I began cutting the tomatoes in half and scooping out the membrane.

“It was extremely horrible. I think my hair turned green already.”

Uncle Ash laughed. “I think it still looks perfectly fine. Surely if you look after your hair properly, you wouldn’t need to worry about green hair. Not all swimmers have green hair”

I diced the tomatoes. I guess that was true. My teammates all had normal colored hair.

“Fine. My hair’s gonna be really dry and frizzy because I have curly hair,” I said back, I put the diced tomatoes into a mixing bowl and drizzled it with extra virgin olive oil and some lemon juice.

“I already told you. Take good care and you wouldn’t have damaged hair,” my uncle said patiently. “Making bruschetta for dinner?”

I nodded and added basil, black pepper, salt and some minced garlic. I began mixing it, taking care not to crush the tomatoes. And again, he was right. My teammates all had real nice and shiny hair.

“Ms. Grey told me you had a ‘hidden talent’ for competitive swimming,” Uncle Ash said, I heard him sip his drink.

“She called you?” I put cling wrap over the mixing bowl and put it into the fridge. I reached downwards and took out a chicken which I had marinated this morning. I grimaced a little at it.

“No, I did. Roast chicken? Is it okay for you?” he asked, noticing my look.

“Yeah, it’s okay. I’ll make a garden salad. I never knew you were such a stalker, unc,” I said.

I am a vegetarian. When I was three, I watched a documentary on how people killed chickens before sending them to the markets. I was terrified and the rest was history. Now do you see the point of why I tried setting the rats free? I set the chicken onto a tray, added some herbs and sauce and slid it into the oven.

“I’m not a stalker. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t run off or something,” he said. “So how was it ‘extremely horrible’?”

“Just horrible. Let’s see, apparently, the coach and captain received orders from a concerned individual to drown me on my first try,” I said sarcastically. I began washing potatoes and dropping them into boiling water added with salt and I covered the pot. I went back to the refrigerator and retrieved vegetables for making a garden salad.

“But it worked, didn’t it? That concerned individual must be a really smart person,” my uncle remarked.

I placed the lettuce under the tap and washed it.

“Personally, I think that, that so called ‘concerned individual’ was very inconsiderate,” I answered. I proceeded to tearing the lettuce leaves and putting them into a salad bowl.

“Really,” I heard my uncle finishing off his drink.

“Herr? Ash?” I heard my dad call.

“Looks like your dad’s home,” Uncle Ash said, getting up to wash his now-empty mug.

My dad entered the kitchen and saw me furiously chopping vegetables and my uncle peacefully washing his mug without a care.

“Silent argument?” my dad asked. My dad’s name is Wyvern Ashton Wolfe. Yeah, and my uncle’s is Ashton Wyvern Wolfe. Apparently, their parents had a really good sense of humor.

I sniffed in disdain. “Uncle Ash tried to kill me.”

“Well now, who’s the stalker?” I heard Uncle Ash mutter. He dried his mug and hung it up back to where it belonged.

“So you don’t deny that you tried to kill me?”

“So, how was work?” Uncle Ash asked, ignoring my dad’s and my question.

My dad retrieved a tall glass from one of the many cupboards and headed towards the refrigerator.

After filling up his glass with some random juice, he turned to us with an excited look. “Guess what? I sealed a couple of deals today. I got a new sheep farm and an organic strawberry orchard in Australia today!”

“Way to go dad!” I said, genuinely happy for him. My dad had wanted to buy a sheep and strawberry farm for years now.

“Do you want to trade in shares? I don’t think the men diet programs are bringing in huge profits,” my dad told me.

Instead of allowance, my dad being an eccentric business man and father gave me shares from his company. In exchange, I usually come up with ideas to help him expand or improve his business.

I nodded and turned back to the salad I was making.

“All right Hera. I’ll see to the transfer of shares. Meanwhile, Ash, will you help me come up with ideas to improve the men diet programs? They don’t really have the interest……” I heard my dad’s voice getting fainter and fainter as he and my uncle headed to the library.

I savored the moment of silence and solitary for a few moments until I heard the phone ringing. I set down the knife I was holding and dried my hands with a towel and headed towards the phone.

“Hello, Wolfe speaking,” I said in a very too-fake cheerful voice.

“Hello? Is this Hera Wolfe?” I heard a familiar husky, British-accented voice speak up. Maybe today wasn’t the worst day after all.

“Eleanor!” I squealed into the phone loudly.

Eleanor Griffiths was a middle-aged English lady in her early forties who owns a really popular art gallery in town. She’s the one who always looked out for opportunities for me to show off my passion for art since I was young. I met her when I was ten. You could say we’re kindred spirits if it comes to art.

“Not so loud little wolf,” she scolded. “I’m already rather deaf. There’s no need for you to make it even much worse.”

“I’m sorry. So how’re you Eleanor? I haven’t seen or heard from you in like, eons!” I said.

“Now, now, there’s no need to get excited is there? Listen, are you free tomorrow? I need you to meet me at the usual place at around four maybe? I have absolutely wonderful news for you!” she said. I could hear the excitement in her voice.

“Sure! I’m free after school tomorrow!” I answered without a second thought.

“Perfect darling, I’ll meet you at the Tropical Snow then. Ta-ta!” she said in a sing-song voice and hung up.

As the line went dead, Ashton’s face flashed into my mind.

Oh.My.God. I was supposed to be at the same place at the same time with Ashton tomorrow! I didn’t want to miss the meeting with Eleanor because I haven’t seen her in so long… But on the other hand, this will probably be my only chance to hang out with Ashton alone.

I squeezed my eyes shut and slumped down to the cold marble floor. Think. Think. Think….

And then I heard the phone ringing again. Hopefully it’ll be Eleanor saying she can’t come after all. With renewed hope, I picked up the phone.

“Hello, Wolfe speaking,” I quipped, hopeful, into the phone.

“Uhh… Herr?” I heard an all-too familiar low voice which made my heart beat faster.

“A-Ashton?” I asked.

“Oh! Hey Herr! What’s up?” he said cheerfully.

“Not much. What about you? Did something happen?” I asked. I felt my heart drop a little. Maybe he was going to cancel the meeting tomorrow. Yes, meeting, not date. I already drew a line between him and me. There was no way am I gonna fall for him or even crush on him. He’s unattainable. Especially with Jenny Parker hovering over him like a shadow.

“No, well, actually, I kind of have a couple of things to do after school tomorrow so I’ll probably be late in picking you up…” he sounded apologetic.

I instantly felt much happier. At least he wasn’t cancelling it. “No! That’s okay Ashton. Actually, I have something to do around there as well. I’ll just go there by myself and meet you at the café.”

There was a pause. “Are you sure?” he sounded reluctant.

“Absolutely.”

He seemed to sigh in relief. “All right,” he said happily. “I’m really sorry though, Herr. I really wished I could pick you up but my mom-“

“It’s okay,” I said, interrupting him. “Really.”

“Well, thanks Herr. I owe you one.”

“Don’t mention it,” I said. Actually, I owed him one.

“All right, I guess I’ll see you around?” he asked.

“Okay. Bye Ashton.” I answered. There. Problem solved.

“Ash.”

“Excuse me?”

“Ash.” He repeated over the line. “Don’t call me Ashton. It’s a mouthful. I’ll call you Herr and you must call me Ash. I insist.”

Well, that’s surprising. “All right…Ash.” I smiled to myself.

“Perfect. Night Herr. Sweet dreams when you hit the hay!”

There was a click and the line went dead. I was relieved. At least I wouldn’t have to bail on either Eleanor or Ash.

“Who was it?” I turned around and saw my mom standing at the archway, which lead into the kitchen.

“A friend,” I answered, walking back into the kitchen. I saw that my mom had helped me scoop out the potatoes and peeled them for me.

“A boy?”

I nodded. “How could you tell?” I bluffed, faking ignorance.

“His name was Ashton wasn’t it?” I heard the familiar mischievousness in her voice. Sometimes, I wonder if the reason of why I had a mischievous streak was because of my mom.

“I think so.”

“From?”

“Swim team,” I answered, a little grudgingly.

“I told you, a whole new experience,” my mom said, winking at me.

“Right.” I went around the kitchen collecting cutlery and chinaware and brought them into the dining room. As I set the table, my mom came in with the food.

Setting them on the table, she said, “Is he cute?”

“Please mom, not now.” I wrinkled my nose.

“Come one Hera, you can tell me can’t you? I’m your mom. I swear not to tell your dad,” my mom pleaded a little.

“He’s cute I guess,” I answered, a little embarrassed.

“Ahh… my little angel has finally grown up,” my mother said, disappearing again into the kitchen.

I rolled my eyes and smiled at her affectionately. And then, I suddenly realized something.

How in the world did Ashton get my phone number?

---

“Heeerr!!” I heard a sing song voice call to me.

I turned away from my locker and came face to face; well actually, I was facing her neck, but whatever, with a tanned, bespectacled brunette girl who wore her hair in a short bob and straight bangs.

“Hey Ray!” I greeted her. Her name was really Raychel Kidd, but I call her Ray and she calls me Herr. She’s been my best friend since third grade. She was the new kid back then, but she had attitude. She just came up to me while I was sketching a drawing of a tree and said, “What’s that? A demented old man with an afro?”

And just like that, we became friends.

I studied her glasses closely. “What happened to your contacts? You won’t be able to play hardcore volleyball if you’re wearing your glasses.”

Ray was a hardcore volleyball player. And by hardcore, I really mean hardcore. She used to break her glasses all the time while playing it until her parents got fed up and got her contacts.

“Oh these?” she asked, touching her glasses. “I dropped one of my contacts in the bathroom yesterday and couldn’t find it. So I’m temporarily wearing these glasses until my dad gets a new pair of contacts for me. Meanwhile, I’m not allowed to play volleyball.”

Mr. Kidd was an optician. She grimaced at me.

I nodded at her sympathetically. “I understand you. My unreasonable uncle made me switch clubs.”

Ray gave me a surprised look. “No way. Seriously? Was it because of the rat rampage?”

“Hey, it was hardly a rampage! But yeah, you’re right.” She knew it was me because she had been with me.

“So what clubs did he make you join?”

“Swim team. And the arithmetic team. Lame, I know. I hate swimming and I’m hopeless at solving formulas.”

Ray laughed. “Lots of other people in the school who’re hardcore swimmers would kill to be in your shoes. And lots of math lovers would also love to be in your shoes.”

I shook my head. “Don’t remind me. Let me focus on thinking that this is a bad thing.”

Again, she laughed. “Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it. Come on, let’s get some lunch girlfriend.”

She grabbed my hand and I hoisted my bag strap onto my left shoulder. We headed to the cafeteria.

The cafeteria was rather crowded. Lots of the students ate food from here because they served good food. My dad and a couple of other business men and women had donated a frozen yogurt machine, a salad bar, dispensers that gave out hot drinks and the works. My uncle on the other hand, made sure he hired cafeteria ladies who knew how to cook kick-ass food. The food here is so good that even the teachers drop by to buy their lunch.

“Mmm… I smell grilled chicken and cheese sandwiches,” Ray said. She may not look like it, but Ray is a huge glutton.

Ray and I separated for a while to get our own food. I made a beeline for the fruit dispenser. As I slot in the special card that my uncle had gotten made for me (so that I didn’t need to pay for the food), I pushed the buttons to get a green apple.

“Not a fan of red?”

I turned around and saw a male Rebecca look-alike smirking at me. I noticed the onyx stud in one of his ears. Ooh… lookie, that’s Rebecca’s brother. Ruben Sears.

“Excuse me?”

“I said are you not a fan of red?” he repeated, pointing at the apple in my hand.

I looked at it. “Oh, no. It’s not that. I prefer green apples. That’s all. I like red. In fact, it’s one of my favorite colors.”

I stepped aside from the machine to avoid blocking the others. Ruben followed me.

“Oh, red is your favorite color is it? I think I should dye my hair red,” he said, flirtatiously winking at me.

I cocked my head to one side. “Do I know you?” I asked, faking innocence.

I proceeded towards the frozen yogurt machine. Ruben stubbornly followed me again. As I pushed the buttons to get a frozen Greek yogurt, Ruben said, “Of course you know me. I’m your savior.”

I privately rolled my eyes. He just helped me pick up newspapers. I turned to him with an innocent but apologetic look on my face, “I’m sorry, but I really don’t remember meeting you. Honest. I swear on Picasso’s grave.”

I turned away and started towards the table where Ray was sitting at, waving at me with an amused look on her face. I rolled my eyes at her. Ruben, unfortunately, he wasn’t familiar with the names of famous artists. He stopped dead in his tracks with a confused look on his face.

“Who’s Picasso? Your dog?” he called to me. I heard several students snicker at him.

I ignored him and sat down at the table, putting the plastic bowl of yogurt on the table.

Ray laughed even harder. “That’s one silly puppy.”

I gave her a look. “Ya think?”

I looked at her tray in disbelief. “You aren’t seriously gonna eat all that are you? I mean, sure you have a healthy appetite, but you usually eat less than this.”

On her tray were two grilled chicken and cheese sandwiches, one crème brulèe, one chocolate pudding, three slices of mushroom and pepperoni pizza, a small bowl of Mac and cheese, two cans of soda, a bowl of chocolate covered strawberries and cherries.

“True. But Shane said he’s joining us for lunch today. I bought extra in case he forgot his wallet again. Besides, I can eat all of this if he does remember. It’s not much.” Ray said, picking up a sandwich and starting to chew on it. As if on cue, a tall, lean guy with dark, wavy hair and caramel colored eyes took a seat at our table and made himself at home.

This is Shane Lancaster. He’s been my best –guy-friend since pre-school. And in Ray’s case, since third grade.

After meeting her, I was showing her around the school and taking her to meet Shane when she noticed him herself. Shane was practicing soccer that time and Ray called him a sissy who couldn’t kick a proper ball. Shane, being hot-tempered, had called her a ‘stupid chick with a stupid name because it’s spelt ‘R-A-C-H-E-L’ and not ‘R-A-Y-C-H-E-L’.

Ray had told him she liked his spunk and told him, “I allow you to be my friend. Oh yeah, by the way, have you met Hera? She’s into drawing old demented guys with afros.”

Shane had just given me a confused look and I just shrugged. Ahh, the good ol’ days. Also, Shane and Ray loved to argue and compete on who was a better friend to me. But I love both of them equally.

“Hey, what’s shakin’?” Shane reached for my yogurt and I smacked his hand.

“Your stuff is on Ray’s tray,” I informed him.

He just shrugged and took the other sandwich from Ray.

“Love the windows,” Shane commented, jerking his head at Ray.

“For your information Shane, these are called ‘glasses’ or ‘spectacles’. Windows are the ones that are a teensy bit bigger and are built into walls,” Ray said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

Shane polished off his sandwich in a few bites and reached for a pizza. Like Ray, he also has a healthy appetite. “Ahh, so I see that Herr has a new admirer.”

I shook my head. “You saw that?”

He nodded at me, his mouth full. “What’s not noticeable? One of the most popular guys in school, following a little girl, now that’s a classic.”

I scowled at him. “I’m not little all right? For God’s sake, I just don’t have enough tall genes!”

“Anyhoos,” he said, ignoring me, “I heard you’re kicked off the debate team and restricted from the art rooms.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, “Where’d you hear that?”

He reached for the chocolate pudding. “I took a trip down to your uncle’s office today. I was just gonna ask him to sign a permission slip for us to play a friendly match against our rival school. We got talking.”

Huh, not only was my uncle a stalker, he’s also got a big mouth.

“Yes, I got unjust punishment for setting innocent prisoners free. He tried to execute me as well. Too bad I survived,” I told him. “I would have been better off a drowned rat.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, the school janitors who are expert rat-trappers caught them and you can go visit your prisoners who were drowned in your place in their own glass cells in Biology Lab 5,” Shane told me with a wink.

I looked at the rest of my melting frozen yogurt and pushed it towards Shane. “Be my guest.”

He took it from me and starting eating it for me. “Thanks. But I prefer lemon yogurt.”

I gave him the evil eye and he just concentrated on the yogurt.

“What do you mean execute? It was absolutely necessary,” I heard another voice say behind me. “Besides, you’re still alive, aren’t you? Don’t be so dramatic.”

I turned around and saw Ashton sitting at the next table, facing me from his seat with a spoon sticking out of his mouth. He was sitting with Warner and Zachariah who were engrossed in talking with each other. Did I mention he looked extra-hot in his uniform? If not, well, Ashton looked extra-hot in his uniform.

His hair was tousled, as if he had just woken up. His school shirt was untucked, with the first few buttons undone and school tie and blazer nowhere in sight.

“It’s rude to eavesdrop.” I said disapprovingly.

“Who’s that? He’s a hottie,” Ray whispered to me. “The other two with him are hot too, but he’s way hotter.”

“You should see him shirtless,” I muttered back.

Ashton grinned at me. “Hey Herr.”

I nodded at him. “Hey. Your uniform’s not up to standard.”

“Yours isn’t exactly up to standard either.”

I turned to Ray and Shane. “Meet my executioner. Ashton Taylor. Part-time executioner and part-time captain of the school’s swim team and student of this school. Beware, he’s dangerous. Ash, this is Raychel Kidd and Shane Lancaster, my other halves.”

He gave me a little frown. “Aww, come on, I’m sorry about that but the principal said it was necessary. If we didn’t do it, we would never have uncovered your true potential.”

I heard Shane snicker. “That’s funny dude. I went with her to her first swimming lessons like, ten years ago? She’s a total scaredy-cat. Her true potential’s just clinging onto her friends and saying that she’ll die.”

Again, I gave him the evil eye. Trust Uncle Ash to tell him only the bad stuff, not the good stuff. He shut up.

Ashton just pointed his spoon at me. “This girl here is one wicked swimmer. You should watch her sometime. She’s fast.”

Before we could say anything else, Jenny came up and sat up close next to Ashton with a bowl of frozen yogurt.

“Here you go Ashton,” Jenny said, emphasizing his name. She gave me the evil eye. Except she did it much better than I did. “Mango, your favorite.”

Ashton rolled his eyes and gave me a wink. I stifled a giggle.

“Well now, who’s the wicked witch of the West?” I heard Ray breath to me. “No one gives my darling Herr the evil eye.”

“Possessive much?” Shane asked. He got up. “Be right back.” He disappeared into the crowd.

“That’s Jenny Parker,” I said in a low voice. “She has an invisible tag with her name on it, clipped onto Ash. She’s also on the swim team. She wasn’t very happy when she found out that she’s now the third fastest swimmer on the team.”

“Ahh…” Ray nodded understandingly. She patted my back. “Don’t worry; she’ll regret giving you the evil eye one day.”

“Who’s worried?” I said.

“So I never knew you were a fast swimmer. You said you hated swimming.”

“I do. I never knew either.”

“I’m proud of you Herr.” Ray gave me a broad smile.

“So am I.”

Shane came back with a new bowl of frozen yogurt with slices of strawberries and golden kiwis in it. I suspected he raided the fruit salad station for the fruit slices.

“Greek yogurt. With your favorite Australian strawberries and golden kiwis,” he said, smiling at me. “Congratulations on your triumph Herr. We’re really glad for you.”

I smiled at him in return. “Thanks Shane, really.” I took the bowl from him and started eating it. I noticed Ray giving Shane a dirty look.

“I thought you forgot your wallet.”

“I had some spare change in my pocket.”

“Give me back my money.”

“That can wait.”

“Sissy jerk.”

“Thanks.”

“I’m gonna get Herr a better present.”

“Be my guest. I’ll outdo you.”

Writingmon: I guess that's all the chapters I have for now. Better scram and sleep before the sun rises. I think my eyes are repeatedly gaining those few extra pounds. Better go sleep those off. COMMENT! (:

Chapter One - The Bad Angel

Disclaimer: I own ALL characters in this story and the storyline as well.

Chapter One

Okay, I seriously DO NOT know why am I even here. Right now, I’m in my school’s administrative office, sitting in one of the couches outside the principal’s office. I mean they seriously can’t think that the latest fiasco in the cafeteria was set up by yours truly, can’t they? I mean look at me, I’m short, and I have natural platinum blonde long loose curls, practically white skin and big blue eyes. I mean, I look like a freakin’ angel.

The receptionist with a salt and pepper pageboy haircut who was sitting at the reception desk in the office I’m in looks at me and gave me a reprimanding look. Her name’s Ms. O’Brien. I swear, even though she tells me her ancestors were from Ireland and that she was born here in the States, I don’t believe it. She’s just so, well, Irish. I personally think she grew up in Ireland. I love Ireland, it’s so quaint. I’ve always wanted to go there. I have no idea why she denies that she grew up there.

I caught her eye, grinned and said, “Hey!”

“Here again? What’d you do this time?”

“Nothin’.”

“I’m sure you did something, somehow again. Hera.”

Oh yeah, did I mention, my name’s Hera? Do you the underworld Greek goddess Hera who was known for her evilness or cruelty? Or something like that. If not, Google it yourself. My dear dad apparently thought that I’d be funny to name me after a goddess known for her mischief because when I was born; my parents thought I looked like such an absolute angel. By the way, I’m not Greek. At all.

“I like the name,” my dad had said. “Gives a huge contrast. An angelic looking kid named after someone known for cruelty. I like it.”

Okay, so maybe I’m a little on the naughty side. I mean, I need to show people I earned my name right? So maybe you’re wondering. What in the world did I do?

Let’s see…. I woke up, went to school, remained good till lunch time, went to the biology lab, saw a cageful of rats and took them to the cafeteria.

I felt sorry for them. They were going to meet their doom later this afternoon. One of my senior friends told me that they were going to dissect the rats and preserve them. Eew much?

So, being oh-so good hearted, I took the rats, brought them to the cafeteria and set them free!

I nodded to myself, feeling good about myself.

“I didn’t do anything wrong. I deserve credit. I set the poor rodents free because, well, who wants to die?” I told O’Brien, shrugging.

She sighed and tutted. “I can’t reprimand you for that. It’s true no sane living beings want to die. But they were for a good cause. An academic cause?”

“That’s enough Patricia,” a booming voice said. I looked to my right and saw the headmaster, the principal, and the one who calls the shots around here or whatever. He’s a super tall dude who’s in his late thirties, with blonde hair and green eyes. And annoyingly enough, my paternal uncle and my dad’s older twin brother. And of course, my godfather.

“All right,” Ms. O’Brien nodded and went back to her computer, tapping away on her keyboard.

I looked up at the principal, sorry, my uncle, and grinned. “How’re ya doin’?”

He sighed. “Come in, Hera.”

I got up, dusted my school skirt and followed him into his office.

His office was so, well, homey. Although he wasn’t married and only had a twin brother, ., my dad, his desk and walls were decorated with pictures of his family and ugly scraggly drawings done in crayon. There was an embarrassing drawing, one with a stick man holding a stick girl’s hand with a caption reading, “I luv my unkel Ash!” With the bottom right corner signed, Hera Wolfe.

Yeah, he’s my principal and all that, but I still really love him. He’s my only freakin’ uncle. My mom was an only daughter, just like me. And Uncle Ash (Ashton really,) was my dad’s only sibling.

He caught me looking at the drawing and said, “Any new ones for me?”

I shook my head, “Nope, I was kinda busy.”

“Busy creating chaos, I presume?”

I scowled. “I was being humane.”

“In what way?”

I thought. I recalled the scene in the cafeteria when I let go of the rats. I think the only ones who thought my act was positive were probably me and the rats. My fellow students were horrified, standing on the tables. Geez, who knew guys were such wimps?

“In my way,” I answered simply. I plopped down into one of the cushy seats in front of his desk and arranged my skirt neatly over my knees.

As usual, although Uncle Ash cast a critical eye over my uniform, he said nothing. Although I wore the proper uniform, I altered it a little. The lower part of my school blouse was a band which fit around my hips perfectly, not needing me to take the trouble to tuck it in properly, like the rest of my classmates. And my tie was always loosened, not properly worn tightened, around the collar. If you absolutely must know, I appreciate having enough oxygen?

And my school skirt? Let’s just say, I added pleats to make it look extra-cute and the hem was trimmed with black lace. Black lace suits a pleated red and black tartan checkered patterned skirt, doesn’t it? And instead of socks that went well above my ankles, I wore white ankle-length socks with my plain black mary janes.

And I think I misplaced my school blazer somewhere in my room closet. I didn’t do any altering to that.

“Hera. I think I would appreciate seeing you come into my office less,” my uncle started.

“So you mean you don’t want to see my face?” I asked innocently.

“No, it’s not that. It’s fine to see you. But whenever I see you in school, it’s usually to give you a lecture to behave yourself and to stop causing chaos in school.”

I blinked.

“You do not,” I said, a little offended. “You still see me onstage when I come to receive awards from you, you watch me on the debate team, you still-“

“That, doesn’t happen on a daily basis, Hera.” My uncle gave me a pointed look.

This was one of the times when I feel as if my dad was the one who was talking to me instead of Uncle Ash. Even though I can tell the difference between them, their way of just intently staring into your eyes was freakily alike.

“You can pretend it does,” I muttered glumly. I looked at my hands, twisting my fingers around each other, trying to avoid his overpowering gaze.

“Hera, you’re already fifteen…” he started.

“Yeah, yeah, you don’t need to remind me. I know I’m short, I need to take more calcium to grow taller, etcetera, etcetera.”

He chuckled a little. “Yes, but aside from that, I think it’s time that you started acting your age, Miss Hera Ashley Wolfe. And stopped behaving they way you do.

I winced. I hated it, no wait, disliked, it when people called me by my middle name. Unfortunately, him being my uncle and godfather, he knew it. My middle name was actually to be after him. Since I’m a girl, I can’t possibly be called Ashton, they changed it to Ashley.

Then I stopped my incoherent thoughts about hating it when he called me by my full name. Did I just hear him use his tone of voice which was filled with authority and finality? If I remember clearly, he used it only when telling pesky salesmen who came to the door that we didn’t want anything. It’s like there was an invisible echo of his voice saying, “And that’s final!”

I looked up to meet his gaze meekly. “What kind of torture are you gonna give me?”

Instead of his usual quiet chuckle, he belted out one of his loud guffaws. Usually, I only heard it when he and my dad are telling each other absurdly lame jokes to each other at home. I’m sad to say, my uncle Ash at home and Principal Ashton Wyvern Wolfe at school are two totally different people.

Uncle Ash at home is full of fun, wild and spontaneous. Principal Ashton, on the other hand, is serious and calm.

“Not torture, sweetheart, well maybe you, being you, might think it is.”

“What is it?” I asked in a panicky voice.

“I’m taking you off the debate team and putting you on the school’s Arithmetic team. I’m taking you out from the Arts club and putting you into the swim team,” I could see mischief burning in his eyes.

“WHAT?!? Are you crazy? I TOTALLY SUCK in arithmetic and I HATE swimming!” I argued loudly.

I disliked arithmetic. I loved literature. Unlike arithmetic, I don’t need to pay extra attention to the teacher in class to learn the proper way of writing poetry or stories. I never needed to prepare myself whenever there was a debate. Arguments came into my mind easily as breathing in oxygen. Ugh, arithmetic on the other hand? I was a total loser.

I HATED swimming and I loved art. I’m a very artsy type of girl. Even though I don’t look like it, I practically lock myself away in the art rooms at school and slave away at my masterpieces whenever there was an art exhibition coming up. It’s true, although I think the Oceanside was very inspiring for paintings and very calming, I. DO. NOT. SWIM. Period.

I didn’t like the chlorine which they used in the pools. Once upon a time, I participated in swimming classes, so that just in case I fell off a boat, I knew how to keep myself afloat. Those must have been one of the worst experiences ever. There was this stupid boy who teased me all the time because I was scared of going into the water. Hey, I was just five all right?

“Oh ,did I mention the Arithmetic team and swim team are going to have a HUGE state-wide competition at the end of the current school year and you are one of the participants?”

Clearly, he was enjoying this.

“You have got to be kidding me,” I choked out, horrified. There was no way I could be a wonderful addition to both the teams. And worse, the competitions are state-wide?

“I’m not kidding Hera. Do I look like I am?”

Even though he had on a calm expression, I could see the stern look in his eyes.

“Do my parents know about this?”

“Oh yes, they agreed wholeheartedly!”

Traitors.

“Puh-leez don’t put me on the arithmetic team or the swim team. I’m not going to spend my time with ner- uh, very smart people and I’m not going to swim with those, people,” I wrinkled my nose. “Because I am really bad at calculating a.k.a. stupid, and I only swim for safety, not for racing.”

“I prefer staying in the art room, preparing for the upcoming exhibition and arguing with other people on random subjects on the debate team. Oh yeah, I’m also seriously allergic to chlorine”

My uncle sighed. “No can do Hera. Those very smart people and people in the swim team might knock some sense and discipline into you. Until you stop being reckless and causing chaos around the school, you will be on the arithmetic team and on the swim team. I was the one who took you to your allergy test. You aren’t allergic to chlorine.”

It was like someone just slapped me.

“Just because I set free the poor rodents?” I asked in a little voice.

“Not only that. The time when you were in third grade, you left your ‘severed human head’ in the conference room; one of the female visiting officials nearly had a heart attack, remember?”

I nodded proudly. “Oh yeah, I loved that piece. I won myself first prize at the state-wide Halloween Creative Competition. I appeared on the news too!”

I remembered that episode clearly. I asked my uncle to let me have the conference room to finish my masterpiece. I had promised him that I’d be out by the time they reached there because on that day, all the art rooms were already occupied.

I didn’t purposely leave my masterpiece there. I was going around the school and looking for a box to put it in. I got a little... sidetracked. And forgot all about it. Anyway, the judges said that I had a natural talent for art. They said I was one of the youngest winners ever.

Uncle Ash gave me another reprimanding look; I took my cue to shut up. “Not only that. Back in sixth grade, you were experimenting with some liquids in one of the home economics labs to get yourself a new paint color for your painting. You left your concoction burning after you made your color and left. The new home economics teacher back then went in thought something died in there and was in hysterics!”

I giggled. “I remember that too! The color I made wasn’t very successful though.”

“I’m not here to look back at the good ol’ memories, Hera,” Uncle Ash said. “You were lucky that you were one of that teacher’s favorite students and that she didn’t kick you out for that. And all the things you did weren’t by accident. There were others which were done on purpose too.”

I stopped giggling and shut myself up. Apparently, he wasn’t reminiscing the past with me. Okay, maybe I might’ve been not so much of an angel back then and now. Don’t blame me. My dad gave me the name. Still, I didn’t want to be on the arithmetic or swim team.

“Or, do you prefer detention and community work for the rest of the school year? It’s either a switch of clubs or that.”

I gulped. Detention was one thing. But community work was horrible. It was either helping to wash up the dishes in the cafeteria, repainting walls, picking up trash around the school or something else. And my school ain’t exactly the smallest school on earth or has the lowest student population.

I saw the satisfied look in my uncle’s eyes. He knew he had dealt out an impossible choice for me. I pondered for awhile. Maybe the arithmetic club wouldn’t be so bad. I needed help anyway, or I’d fail. And maybe swim team won’t be so bad. It’d be a good change from the track and field sports I usually do. On the other hand, if I suck so much, they’ll kick me out and I’ll be free again.

I slumped my shoulders in defeat and sighed. “Fine.”

My uncle smiled at me genuinely. “I’m sorry. But this is the only way we can think of disciplining you. Please don’t hate me or your parents. We’re doing this because we love you.”

Despite my anger at them for making me do stuff I hate, it was hard to stay mad at them for long. “It’s all right unc, I’m not mad.”

“But you must promise me to do your best and give it your all in your clubs all right?”

I nodded. I never slacked off at anything. I was a stubborn person like my mom and a little bit of a perfectionist. We believe in living life to the fullest. To us, it was unforgivable if you don’t try your best in everything you do.

“All right, you can go back to class.”

“All right, see ya after school. Pray that I don't die from swimming or from a brain hemorrhage”

"I'll try."

I got up and exited the room. As soon as I got outside of my uncle’s office, I reached into my skirt pocket and retrieved a white scrunchie. I scooped my hair up into a ponytail and tied it. This was one of my weird habits that I did whenever I was a teeny bit stressed.

Ms. O’Brien noticed this and said, “Stressed?”

I nodded. “Yeah, I guess. When and where do the Arithmetic club and swim team usually meet?”

“Wait a second, honey.”

Ms. O’Brien turned back to her monitor screen, clicked her mouse a few times and printed out two sheets of paper.

“Here you go; these are the schedule for both clubs. Good luck.”

I thanked her and made my way back to my locker. I looked at my watch. It was already the last period of the day. It was a free period for me. I took out my backpack and headed to the library. I chose a seat near one of the large windows and spread out the two schedules in front of me. I also took out my own schedule of classes and also a blank piece of paper.

I went to work drawing columns and filling them with the names of the subjects I was taking. I referred to the schedules for the arithmetic club and swim team and wrote them in the blank boxes which used to be my free time which I spent either here in the library or hidden away in one of the art rooms.

God, I was so gonna suck.