This is my first fanfic ever so don't judge too harshly :) Review please!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything (yet!) and I'm not making any money.


It was a gorgeous spring day. It was at least 80 degrees, the sky was almost obscenely blue, and there wasn't a cloud in sight. To almost all of the 600 students at Central High School in a borough of San Francisco, California it was a perfect day. And all but one student was eagerly awaiting the shrill ring that would signify the end of the day, and the start of the weekend.

The only student that was positively dreading the upcoming days off was one Alex Rider. Days off meant struggling to fill the long hours, eventual boredom, and finally the memories that clung to his subconscious like the ever-present sweat clung to his skin in this miserably hot place. In truth, Alex hated weekends, holidays, and most of all, summer vacation, which was right around the corner. Unlike most teenagers, he loved school. He paid attention, participated, and was on the fast track to becoming his class valedictorian.

During these breaks Alex made himself as busy as possible. Boredom meant dwelling on the past, and he refused. So he filled his time with hobbies like karate, boxing, surfing and swimming. He also recently acquired a dirt bike and spent much of his time riding out at the local track. Moreover, he was (finally) allowed to take piloting lessons with his guardian, Edward Pleasure. In addition to all this Alex had a job at a local sporting goods store that he had held for almost eight months.

Alex was so involved in his schoolwork (a ten page essay on Alexander the Great) that he barely noticed when the bell finally rang. He quickly gathered up his belongings and headed to dump them off in his locker.

Alex put his books away, grabbed his backpack, and headed toward the student parking lot. He spotted his used silver Chevrolet Malibu, a gift to him from his guardians for his sixteenth birthday, which was a few months ago. Leaning against the passengers side door was a very pretty girl, a year older than Alex, with dark hair. It was Sabina, Alex's best friend and almost sister.

He knew that when he first moved here, everyone thought he and Sabina were a couple, or would become one. Alex realized very quickly that he really didn't have any romantic feelings for Sab, or anyone, for that matter. So they were best friends, she being the only one close to his age that knew about all the hell he'd gone through in the past.

When he finally reached the car and unlocked it Sabina made a rude noise and huffed, albeit teasingly, "Took you long enough!"

Alex rolled his eyes and got into the drivers seat. Within minutes Alex had dropped off Sab and was heading to work.

Smith's Sports and Outdoors was located on the outskirts of the of the small suburb, where beach bums met the outdoorsy type. The store stocked everything from surfboards to shotguns.

The actual building was rather large and had log siding on the outside. There was a large parking lot in front and in back there was a small employee lot. Alex pulled towards the back. He made his way through the employee entrance, passing his boss Jay's office on the way to the employee lockers. He could hear Jay yelling at someone about fishing rods and smiled to himself. After stowing his possessions away and glancing around to make sure he was alone, he changed his shirt to the standard red polo with "Smith's" embroidered across the right breast.

He clocked in then made his way to the left front of the store, the athletic department, where he worked. On his way he passed the gun counter and, like always, shuddered inwardly. Alex was determined to never touch a gun again. He had too many bad memories.


Thanks for reading! I've already written like five more chapters so I hope you liked it!