The Academy

I jolted awake, struggling to fill my lungs. Taking a deep breath, I shook my head, hoping to knock away the nightmares. I forced myself out of bed and sighed when I felt the soft rug against the soles of my feet. Running a hand through my hair, I made my way across the room to where Mystic was sleeping. “Mystic!” I whisper-shouted as I lightly shook her. It was pretty early in the morning, so I didn’t want to wake the other girls. “Go away!” She mumbled, waving her hand in the air. “We have to go to school, and I’d much rather leave before the others wake.” I whisper back. “Ughhhh” she turned away from me and pulled the blanket over her head. I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Come on, Mystic! The earlier we get up, the faster you can see Sam,” I said in a sing-songy voice. She hopped out of bed so fast at the sound of his name that I stumbled back. Sam was your typical jock with a reputation of being ‘more than friendly’ with the female portion of the student body. She’s never actually talked to him, but she’s been obsessed since she got here. ‘She’s never paid much attention to guys before, but I figure it’s harmless; even if he was a man-w***e. Laughing, I gave her a ‘seriously?’ look. She rolled her eyes and flipped me off while rummaging through her clothes. Most expect foster kids to be poor, act poor, and look poor, but Mystic and I were the opposite. We both have jobs. I mean, it’s not enough to pay bills or anything, but we have good clothes. We’ve been working for almost two years now, but our past foster parents didn’t like us having money, so we kept it secret from everyone. Instead, we saved up. We still save now, but we spend some of it on little things. Most don’t ask where our stuff comes from, and we like it that way. Mystic wore a blue floral dress, a jean jacket, and blue boots that appeared to be made of the same material. She put her hair in twin buns with two curls hanging down past her perfect heart-shaped face. “Love the hair,” I said, “but that’s way too much blue.” She looked in the mirror, examining her outfit, then nodded. “You're right. Everything clashes.” I went through my own clothes and handed her a black, leathery skirt. She took it and paired it with a Slytherin shirt. I gasped and ran to the closet. “I have the perfect boots!” I snatched my faux snakeskin boots off the floor, holding them up for her to see. She threw her head back and laughed. “Perfect!” She tucked the shirt in and paired it with a black belt while I figured out what I was going to wear. I ended up wearing ripped black jeans with chains hanging off, paired with a white crop top. The shirt hugged me nicely, and it showed enough of my stomach without showing off my scar. I put on my black leather boots that made me feel taller than I actually was. Then put my leather jacket on to match. We got to school early, like always, so we had some extra time before classes started. Mystic headed to the library to return some books she got last week and agreed to meet me on the lacrosse field after, which is where I spent most of my time outside of class. I lay on the bleachers singing along to 'Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing’ pretty loudly. Luckily, no one was there to hear. Just as the song ended, something caught my eye. Across the field stood a boy who looked to be about my age, maybe a little older. He looked my way but made no move toward me. The next song on my playlist played in my ear. This was such a horrible time to play Set It Off. The boy and I made momentary eye contact; his face was blank; vacant of all emotion. He had black hair and wore a simple white V-neck and black jeans with rips and chains on them, kind of like mine. His jacket was ‌black leather that looked a little worn out, with tears in it. He took a step toward me, one step, yet I hopped up to my feet. Although I wasn't easily intimidated, his presence unsettled me. Grabbing my bag, I made my way off the bleachers. I sped walked off toward the school, but I could feel his eyes boring into the back of my head. Not being able to help myself, I turned back to see him still standing there. He looked as if he hadn’t moved a muscle, but he was definitely closer than before. I pivoted the corner hoping I had lost him when I ran into something hard. I landed on my butt, looking up at the person responsible. Sam. Of course. I rolled my eyes. He had shaggy brown hair and chocolate-brown eyes. “Hey, sorry!” He gave me his hand and helped me to my feet. I looked back to where the other boy had stood. He was gone. Sam cleared his throat, gaining my attention. “Are you okay?” His face was edged with concern, but I knew better than to fall for the act. I pulled my hand away from his and ran it through my hair to get the loose strands out of my face. “Fine,” I replied plainly. He didn’t seem to notice my apparent attitude toward him and gave me a smile most would deem ‘charming’ or ‘sweet’. “Great! Wouldn’t want to hurt such a pretty face.” He looked me up and down in a way that suggested he was thinking of more than just my face. I internally rolled my eyes and shot him a sneering smile. God, what did Mystic see in him? I guess he was relatively attractive, but no amount of cuteness could make up for the douchiness. “Is there a reason you’re speaking to me?” I asked. He threw his head back, laughing at what he thought was a joke and not a clearly rude comment bred out of annoyance. “Actually, there is a reason.” He stretched his arm out to grab a loose strand of hair that rested in front of my face. I raised my eyebrows at his obvious attempt at flirting and dragged the strand out of his hand as he continued, “I was wondering if you wanted to come to my party this weekend.” This time my brow furrowed in confusion. I had known Sam for almost a year. I was the new girl who had all his attention. Even so, he hadn’t invited me to any of his parties before. He would wink and flirt, but I knew he just wanted in my pants. I’m sure this invitation is just the same. I shrugged nonchalantly and made my way past him. “Can’t. Busy this weekend.” This half-explanation seemed easy. Normally I wasn’t one to beat around the bush or spare anyone’s feelings, but I had no interest in causing a scene. Plus, even if I went, I would probably bail at the first sniff of alcohol. Regardless of my clear disinterest, Sam continued trying to sway me, saying things like, ‘It’ll be so much fun’ and ‘you need to let loose some’. He walked beside me into the building as I blatantly ignored his attempts and made my way to my locker. I swung it open, and he settled next to me, leaning against the neighboring locker. He was still going on about me coming to his stupid party. God, this boy just doesn’t give up. “If I say maybe, will you walk away?” I had cut him off. He seemed not to mind my rudeness, as he flashed me a smile I’m sure made all the girls drop to their knees. “Yup! The party starts at ten,” he practically screamed. “Great.” My voice was flat and clearly annoyed. Could this boy not take a hint? “See you there!” he said, giving me a wink before quickly turning on his heel. I was going to point out how I had not technically said yes, but he was already talking to some group of girls and I thought it best not to get involved in that conversation. I just rolled my eyes and took the needed books from my locker along with the phone I hid in there when they were doing room checks back at the home. Mystic came up behind me. I knew it was her because I could smell the vanilla and freshly baked goods wafting off her skin like an ocean of warmth. “Hey! Took you long enough. What'd you rent every book in that library?” I asked, turning around to see her shooting icy blue daggers at me with her eyes. “Were you just talking to Samual freaking Evans?!” I rolled my eyes at her dramatics and put my phone in my back pocket. “Yeah, so?” I said, trying to make it sound like no big deal. “So?!” she repeated. She shifted the three thick books she got from the library from one hip to the other. “So, what did he say?!” she asked, giving me a pointed look. I simply shrugged as we walked to her locker, which was a few down from mine. “Oh, nothing.” Don't push. Don’t push. “Nothing?! What do you mean nothing?!” I groaned at her persistence. “Just get your books so we won’t be late for Bio” She opened her mouth to say something, but the sound of the warning bell interrupted her. “Ugh, fine,” she groaned, exchanging books with her locker. Literally saved by the bell “Don’t think you're off the hook though.” She said to me just as we crossed the threshold of the first period. I groaned and rolled my eyes for what felt like the hundredth time this morning