As soon as I walked into the doors, I saw the whole school running around the halls, and the noise five times louder than usual. I resorted to sticking my fingers in my ears so my eardrums wouldn't burst.
I already knew the noise was because of someone new.
Every time Nymphs Private High School noise level rose like this, it was because our school brought someone new to our doors, which was big.
I lived in California; near the ocean where the weather was cool, not blazing hot like the rest of Cali. Our private school was hard to get into; it was an art private school. All the departments in our school was programmed and created for pros at the subject. Theatre, Art, Music, and Dance. The best teachers in the state, with the best curriculum. It was a privilege to be able to study here, and at auditions to get in, if you don't fit every single requirement in your subject, you don't get in.
Like I said, it's hard to get in.
If you goof around, get in fights, or aren't focused on your schoolwork, you get kicked out. That's the only reason everyone who gets in doesn't slack. We all have futures to worry about. So, when a new student enrolls and gets in, it's big.
My friend Kimmi ran up to me, almost knocking me over. She laughed. I scowled.
"Who is it?" I whispered excitedly, almost wanted to jump up and down. Kimmi paused dramatically, and I wanted to strangle the answer out of her. Her blonde hair whipped around when the door behind us opened and slammed shut. I waited, my patience wearing thin.
"No clue, but everyone's saying it's a guy. Yum, right?" She said her green eyes sparkling with hope. I laughed at her constant want of guys. She has to test out every single one of the guys at our school. Everyone besides Cam, my super handsome boyfriend. I smiled at the thought.
"Yum," I laughed, "how do you even know if he's cute enough yet?" Kimmi just shrugged and stared off into space. Probably thinking about guys, as usual. I sighed. She followed me as I walked to my locker to pick up my dance bag. Kimmi's locker was right next to mine, so she picked up her dance bag too. We were probably the best dancers in the school, since we've been dancing since we were two. Here we were, thirteen years later, still dancing.
I checked my reflection in my compact mirror. My soft golden curls tumbled down to the middle of my back, and when the hit the sunlight, it had a glimmer of red. Kammi laughed and joked that I had 'lion's colored mane', but just lots of curls added. My gray eyes with violet specks looked back at me, and my clear, zit-free skin shined.
"Hurry Clara! We have to be able to sneak a peak at the new guy before math!" Kimmi yanked on my arm and I ran down the hall with her. Phillip, one of the star football players that were friends with Cam shouted at Kimmi, who halted at the sound of his voice. She liked him a lot, but usually he didn't speak to her much.
"Hey Phillip," Kimmi said surreptitiously, trying not to sound so excited, making me want to laugh, "What's up?" Her side bangs kept falling into her eyes, and she had to push them back.
"Kimmi, I was wondering…" Phillip trailed off, eyeing me. I smiled and nodded, walking away so he could ask her out. The hallways were emptying, so I hurried down to math before the bell. I knew Miss Lillian would get mad if I was late. She had a strict policy on tardiness. The longer you were late, the more time in detention.
"Clara! Wait up! Oh my god, Phillip just asked me to the dance coming up! Oh, I think I'm going to faint!" Kimmi skipped down the hall. We were the only two left, and I knew school already started. We were in so much trouble.
"Kimmi! Were late! Come on!" I half-giggled, half-yelled at her. I dragged her down the hall, trying to get to math. The halls were oddly silent, even quieter than it normally was. The classroom door was closed when we arrived, and Kammi and I shared the oh-god-we-are-going-to-die look, and then I knocked on the door, knowing Miss Lillian would make a kid answer it before she questioned who was there. I didn't realize I was holding my breath until I let a huge one out.
"Oh god. You guys are in soo much trouble." A boy in our class said when he opened the door. I couldn't think of his name right now though, so I just stayed silent and gave him a glare.
As if I didn't already know that.
Miss Lillian gave us her famous glare, the one where you have that creepy cold feeling come up your back and you can't look away. Kimmi and I shivered simultaneously. When she released us from her glare, she stopped us with a hand held up. Oh, gosh. What now?
"You have interrupted a new student. For that, you both will be guiding him around today as a punishment, instead of the usual punishment of detention. You have the same classes, instead his major is different." Miss Lillian said. I finally noticed a boy at the front of the class, staring straight at me with a small smile playing at his lips. His black hair swooped in front of his black eyes, leaving his face shrouded. He must have been introducing himself while we walked in. "Sit." Miss Lillian added.
Kimmi and I sat next to each other, listening to the new guy's presentation about himself. His deep, rumbling voice had a sort of melodic sound to it, and he sounded sure of himself; kind of cocky. Kimmi laughed. A snotty girl in front of us named Camille shushed us. We ignored her.
"He sounds so hot doesn't he?" Kimmi said somewhat dreamily. I shrugged. He wasn't as hot as Cam was. Cam had the beach blonde hair with the bluest eyes, and that perfect face that barley anyone had. Everything about him was perfect really. He was nice, sweet, hot, and had ah- mazing abs.
I hadn't seen Cam today yet, but I knew he would come after dance to take me to lunch. Hopefully, we won't have to take this new kid with us to lunch too. Now that would be awkward.
"So, I moved here. I'm a major in art, but mostly painting. I like to paint people. That's all really." The new boy finished. God, this kid wouldn't shut up. He's been blabbering for almost an hour.
"Any questions for Jett?" Miss Lillian asked the class. I realized she must be talking about the new kid, because he looked around the class for hands. The girl, Camille in front of us raised her hand. This must be good. "Camille?"
"Jett, do you have a girlfriend?" Camille asked with a fake innocent smile. I coughed up water I was drinking. Kimmi and I tried to hold in our laughter, while Jett looked unfazed by the question.
"No yet." Jett said. Kimmi and I laughed uncontrollably behind our hands. Miss Lillian looked over at us slowly, and we stopped immediately. "Clara. Stand outside please." My eyes must have looked really angry, because Kimmi whispered not to get angry. I calmed a little.
"But I wasn't the only-" I began.
"Stand outside." Miss Lillian said again.
I stood up, and walked slowly to the door. I still tried not to laugh when I looked at Jett. Not yet. What a laugh riot. I heard snickers and whisperers around the room, and saw a few thumbs up from football idiots. I giggled again and stepped out into the hall. I figured it would be awhile, so I sat down.
I didn't realize it wasn't Miss Lillian that came out.
"Hey." Jett said as I turned to face him. I looked away. Why was he sent out here? I kept my eyes on the locker across from us. He sat down next to me, to close for comfort. "Miss Lillian sent me to make you apologize. I doubt you would though." He said, laughing at some kind of inside joke. I still kept my gaze on my locker. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a frown on his face. "Clara." Jett put his fingers under my chin and turned my face to him. I flinched at his cold touch. He still didn't take his fingers off my chin.
"I-I have a b-boyfriend." I said. His gaze made my thought melt; an all I could think about was his earthly smell and his deep black eyes. I tried to clear my mind, but I couldn't do it. His smile seemed to illuminate the room.
"You do?" Jett asked, holding me with that soulful gaze that surrounded me. His fingers ran down and up my arms, leaving me with a chill.
"I d-do?" I said, seeming more like a question than a statement. I tried to tell myself to look away, but nothing was working. "I do. I do. L-let me go." I said repeatedly. He finally listened, and I turned to face the lockers again.
"Okay, you may come in. Clara, you'll be escorting him." Miss Lauren said as she opened the door, eyeing me as the bell rang. We both ran in to get our things, and I was almost out the door before I heard Jett said to wait up. I sighed.
"I'm going to Art. It's right here. I can walk myself there." Jett said, trying to make me forgive him for earlier I guess. I just nodded and walked past him. I spotted Kimmi down the hall, frantically waving at me. I hurried to her.
"What Kimmi?" I asked my breathing shallow. Her eyes glimmered.
"So, did he kiss you? Spill the deets girl." She said, smiling.
"No! Eww, no! He was…annoying." I said, trying to find the right word. Kimmi just smiled. I rolled my eyes at her. "Come on Kimmi! We got to get to dance!" I tried to make her move.
"Whatever." Kimmi said with an all-knowing smile. We walked quickly to dance, getting changed in the corner like we always did. We were all girls anyway.
"Girls! To your spots! We have a special surprise for you today." Mandy, our dance teacher said. Her brown eyes were bright. I smiled. Her surprises were always the best. "The art students are coming in today to paint each of you! You may pick who. Come in boys!" Mandy said excitedly. My heart dropped into my stomach.
I'm going to art… that's what Jett said. Cam is in art today too. Hopefully he'll be here… Then he walked in. I already could recognize his blonde hair when he walked in. I breathed a sigh of relief.
"Cam! Over here!" I yelled, and I smiled as I saw him look over with that gleaming look in his eye. He hurried over, and then nearly pummeled me like he does on the football field. "I'm so glad you're here today Cam." I said as I hugged him, leaning my head on his warm shoulders.
"Me too. Now I can paint your beautiful face without having to force you too sit for so long. Now it's a two-week long project." Cam smiled. I blushed at his complement.
"Two weeks?" I asked, leaning back. "That's…nice." I said, happy that I could spend more time with Cam. He must have known what I was thinking, because he leaned over and kissed me. He was kissing me… He had never kissed me before. Why the sudden urge? He tasted like honey, rich and sweet and I blushed when I remembered we were in school. I leaned away. First kiss in school. That's original. I laughed to myself. Cam just took out his canvas and paints, and set it up in front of me.
"Okay, I think I want you to lie facing me, and clasp your hand loosely on the ground in front of you. Look serious, but a somewhat playful smile on your soft lips. Elbows closer in." Cam said. I blushed at the 'soft lips' part. Did I have them? He laughed. "Perfect Clara, you're perfect." He said. I wondered if he was talking about my pose or me in general.
He painted me for twenty minutes, and told me he was talking a break. I gladly agreed. It felt like my lips were stuck.
"Thanks." I laughed. Cam just smiled at me. I sat up, and he came next to me.
"Peach? I packed them this morning." I nodded, and he handed me some. Kammi whispered from behind me, and I saw her scooting closer.
"Clara, look who Jett is working with!" I looked over where she was pointing, and saw Camille laying like a flat out skank. She pushed on sleeve down, and pulled down the dress so far practically half her breasts were showing.
"I think I'm going to barf. Please bring me a bag." I said. Cam laughed.
"At least you're not like that. Jeez." Cam added, smiling at me. I turned back and saw Jett putting all his effort into painting, like he was trying to pass off as working but wasn't.
"Thank God." I said, ending the conversation and went back into my pose so Cam could start painting again.
Dance ended, and Cam and I parted ways with a longer kiss.
This time though, I felt this strange pull towards him I hadn't felt before. His honey-sweet scent seemed to move me; I felt like I was flying. His lips softened, and his arms closed around me, and it felt like we could've kept on kissing if it hadn't been for a loud throat-clearing behind me.
Damn it, I have to walk Jett to our next class, I thought.
Jett was standing with a hard stone-like expression in his eyes, pointed right at me. I quickly turned to say goodbye to Cam, but he was already gone.
I gave Jett a hard stare when I turned around to look back at him. He seemed to loosen up since Cam had left, but when he saw my stare, his eyes narrowed.
"Are you trying to get in the way of my love life?" I said angrily, noticing that we were alone. Jett's stare didn't falter.
"Maybe you should make out with Goody-Two-Shoes well…never!" Jett growled. I stared at him in shock. Who did he think he was! Telling me who I should date? And how is Cam a 'Goody-Two-Shoes?' He wasn't some goody goody!
" Excuse me? You- you just need to shut up. My life is none of your business!" I screamed. He didn't respond to my outburst; he just stared off behind my right shoulder. I turned to see Camille yelling at Cam. I gasped, seeing Camille flick her fingers and suddenly, Cam was on fire.
I screamed, but no one came running. Jett just kept looking at the scene, where Camille smiled evilly and Cam screamed in agony. I kept screaming, but still, it was like no one heard.
"Cam!" I screamed again, and my voice was horse, and I couldn't talk, much less scream anymore. Jett didn't looked worried at all when he saw the scene in front of him, like he thought it was normal for Cam to be on fire. I tried to run to Cam, but some invisible shield held me back.