Yeah, I should be working on my other two incomplete stories, but shut up, I wanna start another! Haha, this is just something that's been rolling around in my mind for a few weeks and decided to write it out. It may go somewhere, and it may dead-end. Who knows? Anyways, I kinda feel bad because I'm so mean to Sarah in my other stories, so I figured I'd try to actually be nice to her. We'll see how that goes.
As always, read and review, please! Seriously, should I keep going or am I wasting my time? Let me know what you think!
Oh, and a cookie for anyone who knows where the name "Calixta" comes from without having to Google it.
One More Notch
Chapter One
"Holy shit," I said, as my taxi pulled up in front of Spenser Academy. The cab driver's eyes flicked to me in the rearview mirror and I could just feel his disapproval radiating. I sent him a nasty smile and opened the car door, flipping open my cell open as I stepped out. I quickly dialed Sarah's number and started pulling my luggage out of the open trunk.
"Hello? Calixta are you here?"
"I am. I'm downstairs."
"Yay! I'll be right out." I smiled at the excitement in my step-sister's voice as I slammed the trunk and handed the cab driver his money.
"You have a nice visit, now." I nodded at him and he pulled away. I sat on the edge of my massive suitcase when Sarah burst out of a door a building over.
"Cali!" she yelled, running towards me. She skilled to a halt and grabbed me into a ridiculously tight hug.
"God, Sarah, did you miss me or something?" She rolled her eyes.
"Of course, silly." Glancing down at my big suitcase, my backpack, and makeup bag, she started to laugh. "You know you're staying for a whole semester, right?"
"Yeah, I packed accordingly," I replied, patting my luggage. "Besides, we wear uniforms during the day, right?" She nodded and grabbed my hand and my makeup bag.
"Come on, Cal, I want you to meet everyone."
"Everyone?" I asked, allowing her to drag me and suitcase along.
"Yeah, the guys, oh, and Kate. She's my new bestie."
"I think you mentioned her before. And what's your boyfriend's name again?"
"Caleb. Caleb Danvers."
"Caleb. I think I can remember that."
"He's kind of hard to forget," she said, giving me a wink. I pretended to gag and she laughed and continued to pull me towards what I assumed to be the admissions office. Once we got there, I was given my schedule, my dorm number, locker number, and uniform. I looked from the uniform to the secretary and then at Sarah.
"You have got to be kidding me." She sent me an apologetic look and shrugged.
"At least everyone has to wear them. And the boys look hot in their blazers. Ooh, and hey, at least you have a dorm room to yourself." I nodded that was true. It wasn't that I didn't get along with people, it was more that I didn't get along with girls. And of course, coed housing here was completely unheard of.
Sarah took me to my dorm room and helped me unpack. I made the bed and sat on it as she finished putting my clothes in the dresser. She turned around and smiled, sitting beside me.
"I'm really glad you're here, Cali." She took my hand again. "I know it wasn't really your choice, but I am excited about us getting to spend some time together." I didn't have the heart to tell her that I'd fought with Mom and Dad for months about this. I didn't want to hurt her feelings by telling her that I'd actually run away from home so that I didn't have to come to Spenser. I also wasn't about to mention that the cops had had to pick me up against my will to get me home.
I'm not a bad person, really, I'm not. I just have authority issues. I like doing what I want, when I want, how I want. I don't care that I'm only 16 years old. I hate it when people tell me "no." That only fuels the fire and drives me to do something that I may have only halfheartedly wanted to do in the first place. I wasn't into this whole "better education" thing. Spenser was a great opportunity for Sarah, but it was just a boarding school for me.
My entire life I've had to hear about how great Sarah is from our shared father. When I'd get into trouble, my dad would always ask me why I couldn't be more like Sarah. I get it. Sarah is like the ideal child. She's pretty, smart, bubbly, a virgin. I'm the complete opposite of her. I'm dark and cynical, rough around the edges, not a virgin. Granted, we only share one parent, but the only thing she and I have in common is our fair skin and our cheekbones.
So, are you completely confused? I guess I should elaborate a little on this whole ordeal. Sarah's mother and my father were married for like 10 years before she finally got pregnant with Sarah. There were financial problems and the marriage dissolved pretty quickly right after Sarah was born. By that time, our dad had met my mother. Once Dad's divorce was final, he married my mom and I came along pretty soon after. Like 3 months after. Yeah.
Sarah and I have never been super close. She's always seemed a little awkward around my mom, but when it's just Sarah and me, we're obviously sisters. Anyways, my parents decided that I was quite the handful and they just plain needed a break from me (they, of course, didn't actually tell me this, but it's pretty obvious). I apparently need to "take a lesson from Sarah" and learn to respect my education and what it can do for me. Ugh, parents are such a drag. They think Sarah is going to be a good influence on me. Haha, they've got another thing coming.
"Whoa, earth to Calixta." I glanced at her and she raised an eyebrow.
"Have you been listening to anything I've been saying?"
"No." She sent me a smile but I could tell she was cussing me in her head. I bit back the smirk that was trying to appear on my face. I never said anything about making this easy on Sarah. Maybe she could take a lesson from me. It certainly wouldn't kill her to loosen up a bit.
"I was saying--" she stopped talking when her phone started ringing. She looked at it and I saw her eyes light up. Ew. "It's Caleb."
"I'm going to check out the bathroom," I said, grabbing my makeup bag and stepping into the small half bath attached to my dorm room.
"Yeah, she's here. Of course, but I want you guys to meet her first. Okay, well, swing by and pick us up? Yeah, okay. See you then. I love you." Seriously? She'd known this guy for a semester and they were already exchanging "I love you's?" Wow. That was fast, especially for Sarah "Whatcha doin', Calixta?"
I looked at her in the mirror. "Nothing, just unpacking my toolkit." I pointed to my overflowing makeup bag.
"Toolkit, good one." I rolled my eyes. "Well, get to work, we're going to a party at the Dells."
"Virgin Sarah going to a party say what?" She glared at me.
"Shut up." I smiled at the blush rising in her cheeks.
"You are still a virgin, right?"
"Yeah, of course. Maybe not for much longer, but for now, yes." My mouth dropped open and my eyes bugged.
"Oh my God, I cannot wait to meet this guy who is managing to make his way through the steel gates this quickly." She swatted at me.
"It's not like that. Not like that at all. He's--different."
"You mean he's actually nice to you?"
"Oh, you're a fine one. You only like guys who treat you like shit."
"And you're cussing? What the hell? You're supposed to be the good sister." Her smile broke through her scowl.
"It's not like I have much of a competition." It was my turn to smile.
"Damn straight."
"You don't even care, do you?"
"Not in the least. Now, back to this party thing."
"Every semester there is a big Spenser Academy party out at the Dells."
"What's the Dells?"
"It's just this huge field in the middle of nowhere."
"Sounds cool. There is alcohol there?" She gave me a strange look.
"Yes."
"I never thought this day would come."
"And what day is that?"
"The day that you take me to a party. Then again, I never thought that I'd actually see you at a party." She shrugged.
"So, you're in?"
"Of course."
"Okay, well, I'm going to go take a quick shower." I nodded as she left the room. Smiling at myself in the mirror, I stifled a giggle. I really couldn't believe Sarah was going to a party. Maybe this place had actually made her human. I grabbed a curling iron out of my bag and plugged it in. I darkened my makeup and changed my clothes, slipping on my favorite dark grey skinny jeans and black pumps. After curling my hair and changing into a sequined black halter, I was ready to go, and I felt damn good.
Sarah came back into the room a few minutes later and whistled at me.
"Too much?" I asked her. She shook her head.
"Nah, it suits you." She checked her cell phone.
"Alright, come on, Cal. We've got to get to my dorm. The boys are meeting us there."
I followed her to her dorm room, where Kate was brushing her hair. My mouth dropped open and the word "goddess" came to mind. She was beautiful. I wondered if she modeled. She should.
"Kate, this is my sister Calixta. Cali, this is Kate." I smiled at her and she smiled back.
"It's nice to meet you, Calixta. Sarah here has told me a lot about you." I cut my eyes at Sarah and she shrugged.
"You can call me Cali. Everybody does." Well, everyone but my mom. She insists on Calixta, but she would, since she's an English professor at Emerson College in Boston. We didn't talk much more before there was a knock on the door. I was closest, so I swung it open and swallowed my heart. There, standing in front of me was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen in my life. He was tall, with dark brown hair that fell around his face in long layers. He had bright hazel eyes and long lashes, and that was just his face. He had on a tight black t-shirt and he was thin, but you could tell that it was all lean, taught muscle.
"Hi," he said his deep velvet voice rubbing over my skin, giving me smirk. Oh, God, I think I just came. Please don't be Caleb, please don't be Caleb. For the love of God! Don't. Be. Caleb. "I'm Pogue." Whew.
"Calixta," I replied when I found my voice, holding out my hand for him to shake it. I'm not going to lie, I just wanted to touch him. His grip was firm but conscious, his hand soft with rough calluses on his fingertips. Ooh, he worked with his hands.
"Pretty name." The smirk was still on his face. Oh, yeah, he knew I was hot and bothered, and he liked it.
"Hey, baby!" Kate said from behind me, moving between us to hug and kiss Pogue. Oh, of fucking course. Not only did he have a girlfriend, but it was Goddess Kate. I was still recovering when three other guys moved up behind him.
"Caleb." Sarah moved in front of me, too, pulling another tall, dark haired boy into the room. He was pretty fine, too, but not nearly on the level that Pogue was. "Cali, this is Tyler and Reid." The blonde one gave me an arrogant smirk and the one with the dark hair and bright blue eyes gave me a shy smile.
"Cali, is it? I'm Reid Garwin."
"Cali," I returned, not offering my hand. He gave me the up-and-down and I turned towards Tyler. "Hi, Tyler."
"What's up?"
"And this is Caleb." He gave me a genuine smile and shook my hand.
"So you're the one who has stolen Sarah's heart, huh?"
"Yeah," he laughed, "I think that would be me."
"It's nice to finally meet you, Caleb."
"Likewise."
"We should get going, guys," Tyler said, twirling a set of car keys around his finger. Everyone agreed and they led me into the parking lot and to a black hummer. Oh, great, they're all hot and rich. Perfect.
I went for the backseat but Sarah quickly directed me to the front.
"You're sitting with Tyler," she said, giving me a sly smile. Was she serious? I climbed in the front passenger seat and looked into the back.
"Where'd the other two go?" I asked speaking of Pogue and the blonde one, Reid, I think it was.
"Pogue's taking his bike and Reid's probably taking his Corvette," Tyler explained, pulling out of the parking lot and onto the main road. About that time, a bright red Z06 came zooming by us.
"Damn, that's a nice ride. I think I'm jealous." Pogue passed us, too, looking like a vision with his tight ass sitting on that Ducati. "Hey, Kate, how come you aren't riding with Pogue?"
"The wind tangles my hair." Was she serious? I looked back at her. Yeah, she was.
"Just wear a helmet."
"That gives me helmet hair," she said with a smile and a shrug. Oh, my God. No wonder she was so gorgeous. She was one of those girls. I faced forward and saw Tyler try to hide a smile. He glanced at me and I smiled back. I was trying to ignore the conversation in the backseat between the three while also trying to think of something to talk to Tyler about.
"Cali, Tyler is a junior, too," Sarah offered. Sometimes she could just read me.
"Really? Are you younger or slower?" He playfully rolled his eyes.
"Younger."
"Bummer. It sucks, doesn't it, being the youngest?"
"Oh, yeah. So, what classes are you taking?"
"Uh, I have no idea. I didn't really look at the schedule."
"She's taking French III, Contemporary American Lit, Psychology, and Macroeconomics," Sarah told us.
"How do you know that and why am I taking all of that crap?"
"I picked your classes." I threw her a death glare.
"You thought French III was a good idea? And Macroeconomics, really?"
"You're fluent in French, so yes, and Macro doubles as your economics and your math class, and you have a free period, so quit your bitching." I folded my arms against my chest.
"I'm not going to say thank you." She laughed and leaned into the front seat to ruffle my hair. "Um, no." I quickly smoothed it down before the Hummer came to a stop and we all jumped out. The bass of the club music was thumping crazily and I could feel my adrenaline begin to rise. The collective scent of cologne, beer, and hairspray always got me ready to party.
I followed a hand-in-hand Sarah and Caleb to the field where the party was being held and couldn't help but laugh.
"Wow, Sarah, when you said it was in the middle of a field, you certainly didn't exaggerate." She handed me a drink that came out of nowhere and dragged me along. She introduced me to tons and tons of people, the majority of whom were ridiculously good looking. "They must breed for beauty here."
"It's definitely a different world from Boston."
"Do you miss it?"
"Sure, and I visit when can't handle it anymore. But I love it here, Cali. I've got a great group of friends that really care about me, and I really care about them. And now that you're here, I'm just so happy." I actually smiled at that and even hugged her.
"Thanks, Sare." She went to reply but a fight broke out a few yards away from us. I heard Caleb and Pogue yelling and saw them pulling Reid back from some guy.
"Leave it alone, Reid." Caleb told Reid, holding him in place.
"He started it," Reid shouted back, pointing at the other guy who I was getting a better view of. Uh, two words: jaw bone. I felt my heart do a little pitter-patter when his eyes locked on mine. Gorgeous, blue-green eyes that were looking right at me. He was studying me, trying to figure out if he knew me. I moved to stand beside Sarah who was standing slightly behind Caleb.
"No harm, no foul, let's move on and everybody have a good time," Caleb announced. I was quickly realizing that he was the leader of this pack, Pogue was his right hand man, Reid was the flunkie, and Tyler was the little boy who trailed the big boys.
"Who is that guy, Sarah?" I asked her, glimpsing at him again to see that he was stealing glances of me.
"That's Aaron Abbott, only the biggest asshole in all of Spenser."
"He's hot."
"Ew, no. Stay away from him, Calixta. You might catch something." Oh, no, she'd just done exactly the reverse of what she should have done. She'd told me to stay away from him, which meant I was going to do the opposite. And I certainly wasn't unhappy about it. I had the rest of the semester to worry about Aaron Abbott, though, and tonight I was going to have a good time with my sister.
I raised my plastic Solo cup to hers and we drank together happily.
Thanks so much for reading!
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