I had always envied my sister. While she was upfront and brash, I was quiet and introverted. The only thing I didn't want of hers was her attitude. That and her big mouth. When mixed together, they got her into big trouble and I was never brave enough to stand by her side and stick up for her. Because of her, I had to also move schools after she had gotten kicked out. I hated moving. I had to make new friends and new enemies. Everything dragged and it wasn't fun.
"Cheer up, baby sister." Gabbie nudged me. "I'm sure lots of people here will love you."
"Yeah, right." I scoffed as I fiddled with the sleeves of my maroon hoodie. "I bet it will only take two hours before you're messing things up again."
"You have no faith." Gabbie shook her head and then started to reapply her lipgloss.
"Dad told you to take that off." I complained.
"When do I ever listen to him?" Gabbie smirked before lifting herself out of the car.
I followed her cue, slowly pushing myself out. I nervously pulled the sleeves of my hoodie over my hands, my knees knocking together as I stood anxiously by the car. My father shot me a sympathetic look before chastising Gabbie for the lipgloss. Gabbie simply strutted over to an unsuspecting boy and planted a firm kiss on his lips. I sighed and shook my head, closing the car door behind me.
"There, it's off." Gabbie shrugged and pushed the boy away from her, waltzing into the school building.
"Come on, Cassie." My father sighed, gesturing for me to follow Gabbie's lead. I did just that, never one to disobey my father.
"We're very pleased to have someone of your ability join the school, Gabriella." Christine Mulgrew praised my sister, who sat there, looking completely innocent. "Your Duke of Edinburgh gold award is a great achievement."
"We hope she can continue the sterling work at Waterloo Road." My father grinned.
"And Cassie, your grades are very excellent." Mrs Mulgrew smiled. "98% in almost every subject. That's impressive."
"We've always been proud of both girls." My mother gently placed a hand on my shaking knee.
"That's good to hear." Mrs Mulgrew nodded. "Gabriella, your academic achievements are so impressive, it makes me all the more concerned about you being expelled from your last school." Gabbie's smile faltered.
"Obviously, we take no pride in Gabriella's expulsion." My father sighed. "Gabriella is easily distracted. And these private schools are very intolerant of the slightest flaw."
"Lots of bright young people act up because they get bored." Mrs Mulgrew shrugged. "Here, we pride ourselves in getting the kids involved in mostly-"
"Well, we must be on our way." My father brashly cut off the headteacher, standing up from his seat.
"Goodbye, girls." My mother called.
I smiled warmly at her but my sister's tight posture was breaking as our parents left the room. She had always been treated as the black sheep, simply because she liked to cause trouble.
"Cassie, you'll be with the Year 10s who are doing PE." Sonya informed me as we walked down the hallway. "Gabriella, you're with the Year 12s in History."
"I don't have a kit." I said nervously.
"I'm sure Mr Reid will provide you with one." Sonya patted my shoulder.
"Thanks." I exhaled.
"You'll be fine, Cassie." Gabbie kissed my cheek before following Sonya down the hall.
"And you are?" A tall male stopped in front of me.
"Cassie Wark." I chewed my lip. "I'm supposed to have you now?"
"Ah, yes." The man nodded. "I'm Mr Reid. New PE teacher."
"Nice to meet you." I smiled. "Would it be too much trouble to ask for a spare kit? I just didn't know I would have it today."
"Not at all." Mr Reid smiled back.
Mr Reid had provided me with a black short-sleeved top and grey sweats along with white trainers. I had thanked him for the loan and assured him that the next time we had PE, I would have my kit.
"Lula." Mr Reid directed me over to a dark girl with her hair up in a bun. "This is Cassie. She's new. Please make her feel welcome."
"Hi." I said nervously.
"Hello." Lula said politely.
"What are we doing today?" I asked quietly.
"Some resilience training Mr Lowsley set up." Lula explained.
"Can we have a go at this, then?" A tall boy in a blue hoodie spoke up.
"I like your enthusiasm." Mr Reid grinned. "What's your name?"
"Darren." The boy provided.
"Well, Darren, this wall will be your first step towards greatness." Mr Reid spoke charismatically.
"What are we meant to do?" Lula deadpanned, a displeased look on her face.
"Conquer it!" Mr Reid exclaimed. "What else? Reid's Rules No.1: challenge yourself daily."
"All day, every day." I muttered.
"So, who thinks they can scale this wall?" Mr Reid smiled devilishly.
"What, we climb over it? Is that it?" Darren asked dumbly.
"Mhm." Mr Reid hummed.
Darren shrugged and stepped back a bit before sprinting up to the wall and jumping onto it. Instead of successfully climbing over the wall, he was stuck on it. His feet were dangling and he was struggling to keep his body up. It only took a few more seconds before he completely let go of the wooden barrier and fell onto his back.
"So, what was Darren missing?" Mr Reid asked, helping Darren up.
"A brain?" Lula supplied.
"Muscles?" I added, making Lula giggle.
"The means to make it happen." Mr Reid snapped, pointing to us. "You see, only an Olympic high jumper could come close to clearing this wall on their own. Glad you had a crack though, mate."
"He probably shouldn't have in the first place." I whispered.
"Reid's Rules No.2: fear is the pathway to failure." Mr Reid spoke. "So, what does Darren need in order to succeed?"
"Uh, help?" A dark male suggested.
"In more ways than one." Lula commented quietly, moving herself to the back of the group.
"Correct." Mr Reid grinned. "Reid's Rules No.3: teamwork makes the dream work." Mr Reid came over to us and sent five of the girls to Darren's side. "You lot join Darren's group. And the rest of you can take orders from this young lady," Mr Reid grabbed Lula's arm, pulling her to the front. "Who has far too much to say for herself to stay hidden at the back. You've got five minutes to come up with a strategy."
I wanted to make this a little longer but I wasn't getting very far with continuing it into a longer chapter so the rest of Episode 1 will be continued in the next chapter! So, this is another Waterloo Road fanfiction, and brace yourselves, because I have a last and final one coming up later. That one probably won't come up until I at least update my other two WR stories. This is the story of Cassie Wark, who is the younger and shyer sister of Gabriella. She's going to be involved all the way up until the end of Season 10 and is going to be paired with Dale once he enters the series. Thanks for reading and please review!