"Ella Everett!"

I quickly stood up from my seat and looked around. Oh no, I slept again! My classmates laughed at me as Mrs. Layton looked at me with her ever famous narrowed eyes and pierced lips. I tried to decipher what she was discussing, based on the notes on board, when she suddenly spoke, making me jump.

"You have been sleeping in my class again" She said the words with controlled anger. I bit my lips and exhaled,

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know-"

"Reasons!" She spat. I looked down in shame as the class went into a chorus of whispers "If you can't answer my question, I'll give you another detention and a minus on your next exam…Tell me everything about what I discussed."

She looked at me with a flat expression and the class fell in silence. I looked at my friend George for help and he showed me his notebook. On the corner, Shakespeare was written.

I looked at Mrs. Layton with a newfound confidence. It's a good thing I love reading. "William Shakespeare, or known as the Bard, is considered as one of the greatest classical writers of all time. He was a playwright and he wrote plays, sonnets and narrative poems. He is famous for Romeo and Juliet, the greatest tragedy of all time. Some of his other works are Much Ado About Nothing, Macbeth, Hamlet, Othello, A Midsummer Night's Dream and many other remarkable plays and poems. His sexuality was questioned what with some of his sonnets depicting love to the same sex, but studies said the hearsays where either true, or he was just referring to his son who died at a young age."

I went on and on about the other things I read about Shakespeare and when I was done, Mrs. Layton asked me to sit down. Weirdly though, she was just staring at me, with the same cold eyes like she was thinking of other ways to get me to detention. Maybe I stared too long but her eyes kept changing into tiny slits. I shook my head to wake myself up, because I'm imagining stupid things again.

When class ended, George and I went to Lunch together. Well, he's my only friend and I think he's enough. We've been friends since school started this year, and before that, I think my life was just a blur of attending to parties and being a loner. Ironically, those things come together in my high school life.

I had lots of friends before Junior year but after what happened to one bonfire party I attended, they all decided not to talk to me.

It all started after midnight. I was with my friends and we were drinking and telling some creepy stories. The place was a little clearing in the middle of the woods near my house. My friend Cedric was narrating his experience with an actual bear when suddenly, the fire died down. We all sat quietly, wondering how a big fire like that can turn off on its own. There was no rain, no wind, and no explanation of how that can even occur. Then out of nowhere, a huge symbol in orange light erupted before us. It was blinding and it had this weird sound that pierced my ears.

I was screaming and Kole asked me if I was okay. I pointed at the symbol but no one seemed to notice it. They looked at me weirdly as I tried to stand up and when I touched the sign, my hands got burned. They all started screaming and Kole helped me up on my feet. As we were running through the woods, they were all asking me what that was all about. I was about to answer when something wrapped around my legs. I was thrown into the ground and suddenly, something was pulling me back into the woods. They all shouted and they tried to help me, but all I did was to shout for them to run.

The police found me three days later. I was unconscious with bruises, blood and a head injury. It was reported to be an animal attack. Everything that happened was a blur, like it was all just a dream. But when I came to school after a week, rumours were spreading here and there and my friends would not even talk to me.

And then George Underwood came, this weird guy wearing a cap with his feet twisted in the wrong direction. He looked familiar, like I've seen him before. But as I've told you, since the bonfire incident, some of my memories became shrouded.

I'm a total bookworm. I spend my time telling George my feelings about the latest book that I read. He will express his feelings of boredom by giving me constant remarks of "whatever" and "that's totally cool." He would always have the same reaction except when I'll start telling him about my favourite series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

I'm obsessed with Percy Jackson. With all the guys who're trying to ask me out before, I find this guy as the type who I wanted to be in the future. Crazy? Yes, because he is fictional. But there's no harm in being in love with a non-realistic person, right?

"Here we go with the Percy fascination again." George rolled his eyes "Can you stop it already? Being in love with a fictional character would get you nothing."

"Are you totally in love with me that you're depriving me of the only thing that makes me happy?" I laughed as I flipped through the next page of The Titans Curse.

"I told you, I have a girlfriend." George said.

"Oh right." I said sarcastically "You do?"

"Yeah" He said as he ate his enchiladas "I am the Lord of the Wild. I can easily get the girl of my dreams. I'm telling you, there are lots of fish in the sea."

"Pfftt." I snorted "If you say so. But I'm telling you, if I get a magic lamp and I'm given three wishes, I'd wish to see Percy."

"And how about the other two?"

"That is highly classified." I winked.

George finished his food as he let me talk about how Percy's character was incomparable to the real guys in this world. He's charming, cute, and perfectly cool in combat. I love guys who have the natural humour. In short, he's the man of my dreams.

"You need to stop this." George suddenly said. I looked at him with question in my eyes as he stood up and grabbed his tray.

"Why?" I asked as I grabbed my tray and walked with him.

"Because you'll end up in a place you don't want to be." He said as he threw his paper plate in the trash. Weirdly though, he kept his empty can. He's been doing these for the past few days.

"What do you mean by that? I'm just expressing my love of a brilliant author's work. Is it wrong to believe-?"

"You see?" He stopped on his tracks and he faced me "That's your flaw. You believe too much. You easily see so much of things.

"What's wrong with that?" I said as I stood rooted on my spot. George took a while to answer. He hesitated for a moment before he finally spoke,

"Sometimes, believing too much can kill you."

The whole day passed and I contemplated what George said. He's being edgy nowadays. I don't know why but there was this time when we were walking home from school and suddenly, he pulled me away from the direction we were heading to. With the horror painted on his face, it was clear that he saw someone, or something, that got him frightened. He led me away briskly until we were far enough from the place we once where.

I kept asking him what that was all about, but he would just say things like "crazy stalkers from last night's party" or "just some guys I don't want to run in to."

After class, I was heading to the parking lot when I saw George with two guys and a girl I didn't know. I haven't seen them around town so I guess they're not from this school. The girl had a spiky hair and her eyes were amazing-electric blue ones-which demanded authority to whomever it sets on. Both guys with her had dark hair. One had black eyes and he's wearing an all-black attire, kind of like an emo-type of a person. He looked uninterested and in dire need of sleep. The other guy had green eyes. He had a good physique and the looks of a serious type of a person. The way he looked when he was speaking, it showed power and authority more than the spiky-haired girl.

I was about to ignore them and go directly to my car when Jane, Cedric's girlfriend, stopped in front of me. It was awkward knowing that I have not spoken to them since the incident.

"Hey Ella" She said with a wide smile "How's it going?"

But she didn't even let me speak. She grabbed my phone from my hands and began typing her number.

"Tonight there's a party at my house" She said "It would be fun if you come."

I smiled back, "I don't know about it."

She waved at a group of cheerleaders behind me before she turned back to me, "Won't take no for an answer. See ya tonight!"

"But-"She ran to her friends and talked animatedly with them. I stood on my spot wondering why she would invite me so suddenly after a no-friendship-for-a-year event.

Well whatever. I decided that it would be best if I come. It's been awhile since I cut loose from all the stress I have. I need a break.

I decided to take George with me. They were still there and this time, it looked like the spiky-haired girl and the green-eyed guy were having an argument. I walked up to them and when I was close, they looked and stopped talking.

I approached them awkwardly and when I reached them, I gave George a smile. "Hey I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Hi Ella," George gave me a smile like nothing happened today "I would like you to meet-"

"Don't take this as a joke Gro-George." The spiky-haired girl said.

George smiled even more and pointed at her, "Ella, meet my wonderful friend-what's your name again?"

The girl rolled her eyes before she turned to me, "Call me Rose."

"Pfft…" George snickered and the other two guys laughed with him.

Rose gave them a deadly glare before she turned to me, "You must be Ella Everett. George has told us many things about you."

"Oh he did?" I said flabbergasted. I looked at George and he gave me a What? expression. "What did he say?"

"How you are obsessed with the Percy Jackson series," the black-eyed guy said "I'm Raven by the way."

George laughed again and this time, he hid it in a cough. I looked at him questioningly, wondering what could be funny with his friend's name.

"Wow, he did tell you that? That's nice. Well I'm not obsessed. That's not what I call it."

"Then what do you call your excessive fascination with not just the story, but with a fictional character named Percy?" George asked.

"Um…I love Percy." I said awkwardly "Why are we talking about this anyway?"

When I said the word love, they looked like they all wanted to laugh, except for the green-eyed guy who was looking at me with an unreadable expression.

"Trust me whoever that Percy character is, he sounds so lame" Rose said. I kind of felt down because they're making fun of the way I'm obsessing with the book. If it was George, I would have slapped him in the face or threat him with strangulation, but I just ignored it and looked at the green-eyed again.

"So what can I call you?" I smiled.

He looked at me for a moment before he answered, "Alex"

"Nice. Well I was about to ask George to come with me to Jane's party tonight. Do you guys want to come?" I asked hesitantly.

"Party?" Raven said with a new light on his eyes "I've never been into a real party."

"What do you mean real?"

"Well you know, I party in the dark." He said casually. I tried to decipher what that meant but all I said was a mere "okay?"

"You know I have a bad feeling about this." George said "I think we shouldn't go." Usually, when George said something like that, it's either he's avoiding someone or he just doesn't feel like coming.

"Come on George, you know I've been stressed out these days. I need to get loose from time to time."

"Come on Ella. I promise I'll throw a party for you, but not tonight."

"Why?" I frowned as I saw him exchange nervous looks with Alex. "What's wrong with tonight?"

They all became quiet until Rose broke the silence. I thought she would shout at me or something but a mellow voice came out of her, "You shouldn't really be going out late these days…"

"Why?" I asked again "I always go out late. Sometimes I have work and sometimes George would ask me to pick him up for a midnight snack."

They all gave George a look of disbelief in which he returned with an innocent look, "What? It's not like you guys don't sneak out at ca-"

Raven stomped him hard in the foot and he gave out a painful yelp. Rose rolled her eyes at him and when I looked at Alex, I was completely surprised to find out that he was staring at me. I looked away uncomfortably and tried to throw away all the girl assumptions I had in mind.

"Fine, I'll go on my own." I said. George gave me a disapproving look and I started to walk backwards.

"Just stay in your house tonight." George said but I waved him off.

"I'll be fine, George." I heard him call my name once more but I just gave them a smile. I climbed in my car, turned on the heater and sighed. This would be a fun night.