I do not own Once Upon A Time. Just the characters and ideas I add in. I hope you enjoy.

I stared down at the test in my hand. The test with the D- sitting at the top, in red ink. How had this happened? I'd never gotten anything below an A- and now this is my second exam, in history, with a D? The bell rang and students began packing their bags.

I got up, shoving the test into my backpack. I just wanted this day to be over, but at least it was lunch time. As I started to head to lunch I heard, "Ms. Mills?" I turned around at the sound of Mrs. Arnold's voice and looked at her nervously. "Please stay a moment," Mrs. Arnold asked.

Once all the students had filed out, Mrs. Arnold turned to face me. "Maddie, you know your grade has been slipping in this class, correct?"

I couldn't look up at her. However, Mrs. Arnold didn't continue. Finally, I looked up and nodded once. "Would you like to talk about anything? Is everything okay?" Mrs. Arnold questioned with sincerity.

"I'm fine. I'll bring my grade back up." I replied quietly. I preferred to be invisible. I hated being called out in class, and really disliked disappointing my teachers. Mrs. Arnold let out a sigh, "This isn't about the grade, well it is, but it's also about you. You seem very distracted lately."

"Things are a little crazy at home, currently, but I'm sure they'll calm down soon." I admitted with a small smile and trying to sound optimistic.

"I know being the Mayor's daughter comes with a lot of pressure, but you need to cut yourself some slack. You're a good student, and if you ever need anything, you know where to find me, huh?" Mrs. Arnold said, with a small smile herself. I nodded at her. I could tell the conversation was over, so I grabbed my backpack and started to leave. Before I could reach the door Mrs. Arnold said, "Oh, and Maddie, since that's your second exam with a poor grade, you'll need to have your mom sign it and bring it back, please."

"Of course." Was all I could manage to squeak out. I grabbed the door handle and quickly made my way to the courtyard for lunch.

As I sat down next to Ray she asked, "Where the heck have you been?" "Mrs. Arnold wanted to talk to me about my test," I replied back while pulling my lunch out of my bag. "Uh oh, did you fail another test?" Ray asked slightly louder than I cared for. Our friends Charlie and Derrick were just down from us, so they looked over at Ray's raised voice. "Lower your voice, will you?!" I harshly whispered back at her.

"Well?" She asked expectantly. I put down my sandwich. There was no point in trying to eat until Ray got her answers. "I didn't fail… I got a D- and have to have my mother sign it," I said nonchalantly back. I heard Ray let out a panicked, shocked, noise. "You realize you're dead, right?" She asked me seriously. I finally looked at her, "you don't think I know that? She's my mother, remember? And with Henry acting up so much recently she's been extra strict and grumpy, ugh!" I rambled back. "You mean bitchy?" Ray said, with a small laugh. I glared at her, but she was right. My mother was a little uptight and bordered between overly strict and bitchy most of the time. She had loving moments, but she was always seemed removed to a point, not necessarily cold, but also not the most welcoming.

"Hey, I have an idea!" Ray exclaimed. I looked at her, as she called down the table, "Charlie, Derrick want to come over after school?" Both guys looked at us. "Sure!" said Derrick as Charlie gave a thumbs up.

"Cool, we'll just hangout at my place and play games. Take your mind off your impending doom," Ray said with a smile. "I can't, I have to walk Henry home after school," I stated back. Ray huffed, and gave me puppy dog eyes, "Just text Henry to be home by 4:45pm and all will be good." I half laughed and replied, "why do you want me to come over so badly? It's just going to get me in even more trouble if my mother finds out, you know that."

"Come on, Mads! The boys are coming, we can make popcorn, watch a movie, play air hockey. Whatever you want!" Ray practically begged. I eyed her, as she continued, "I know things have been a little stressful at home with your mom and Henry. Plus, with this grade thing, I know you're extra stressed, since you're the queen of perfect grades… I just thought you might want to take you mind off things."

Ray was right. Home life had been extra frustrating. My mother was annoyed with Henry acting out, so her frustration meant she was extra strict with me. Meaning, everything I did needed to be perfect. My grades, my clothes, my chores. It was beyond exhausting and annoying. "Fine," I huffed back. "But I have to be home before my mom or I really am a dead person."

"Yes!", Ray exclaimed just as the lunch bell rang.

I got up and threw my uneaten lunch in the garbage. I pulled my phone out and shot Henry a text: "I'm going to Ray's after school. You know the procedure. Do what you want. Just be safe and be home before mom." With that I just had to get through the rest of school and then I could go relax with my friends.

"What?! No way! You're cheating!" Yelled Derrick, as he flailed his arm across the air hockey table, missing the puck, again. It slowly started to glide back towards me. "No I'm not," I calmly stated as I slammed the puck back towards him and it flew straight into the goal. "Damnit!" He screamed. "Ha! 7-0! I win, again!" I exclaimed back with a wink. Derrick smiled at me and I smiled back.

It was no secret that we like each other, but we never seemed to get passed innocent flirting. "Okay, my turn against the champ!" Charlie called as he walked to Derrick's end. "Actually, I need a break. Here, you two play," I said sliding my paddle down to them. I walked over to the couch where Ray was watching from. I picked up my phone, and glass of water, as I plopped down next to her.

"You were right; this has been super fun." I said to Ray, as I took a drink. I click the home button on my phone and started choking on my water. "Shit!" I exclaimed in a panicked voice. "Ray! It's 5:45, why the hell didn't you warn me?" I yelled.

"Mads, I didn't notice, I'm really sorry!", she apologized back, but I didn't hear her. There were 5 missed calls from my mom and one text that read: "Home. Now."

I grabbed all my stuff as quickly as possible and ran out of the room without even saying goodbye. All I could think was, "I'm dead. She's physically going to kill me. This truly is the end."

I ran the 4 blocks to my house as quickly as I could, which is no easy feat when your backpack is crazy heavy. For once, I was thinking that Ray was right when she mocked me for carrying around too many books all the time. I may be on the track team, but I was struggling to sprint as fast as I could in the rain, home. I finally rounded the last corner, and got to our gate, out of breath. I walked to the front door and looked at the time. 6:07pm. "Yep, so dead. So very dead," is what I thought as I paused trying to calm down my breathing. As I was reaching for the door handle, the door suddenly flew open and there stood my mother, Regina Mills.

Thanks for reading! I hoped you enjoyed the start of my story!