After getting off of the bus, Gabe and Riley looked around, wondering which way to go.
"The instructions say: go up Spruce Street." Riley said, holding up the pamphlet for Cascadia.
"Which way is Spruce Street?"
"I don't know."
"I think it's that way."
Gabe and Riley turned to see the origin of the unknown voice.
It belonged to a girl shorter then Gabe and Riley but tall nonetheless. She looked about their age. She had almond shaped hazel eyes and a small, perky nose. She had brown hair but it was light and had a small tinge of blonde in it that was tied back in a ponytail. She wore a blue muscle shirt that was appropriate considering the heat. On her legs were tight blue jeans.
"How do you know?" Riley asked, rolling her eyes.
"Because that dude's going to Cascadia." She pointed to a rental car driving down a road. "And they're going down that road."
"Okay then." Riley said.
"You going to Cascadia then?" Gabe asked, shouldering his guitar. With their new guide, they set off down the road, following the now distant car.
"You bet." she said. "I'm Max West."
"Gabriel Dawson." Gabe said, nodding to her. Their arms were packed with suitcases and duffle bags so there wasn't any shaking of hands. "This is my sister, Riley."
"Nice to meet you." Max said, nodding.
"Pleasure." Riley said.
They walked for a few more minutes, finally reaching Spruce street.
"So are you two like twins."
"Yeah." Riley said, the hint that she hates being asked this question present in her voice.
"You look alot alike."
"We've been told that before." Riley said, her usual pleasant tone of voice misplaced.
"Riley, let's not be rude." Gabe said.
"It's okay. I'm sure that question gets annoying." There was a mild awkward silence.
"So, Max. Where are you from." Gabe asked, trying to make some more conversation. Max was quite cute.
"Nova Scotia. I took a plane to Toronto and then rode from there."
"We've never been to Nova Scotia." Gabe said, interested. "Nice up there?"
"Pretty nice. Good view of the ocean."
"Cool."
The three of them then stopped. They had reached the open gates of the school.
"Whoa." The three of them gasped.
The school was huge. There were many kids walking talking in on the front yard. The three freshmen walked through the gateway, looking all around at their surroundings.
"Check this out, Riley!" Gabe said excitedly. "I can't believe we're finally here!"
"This is amazing." Riley said, nodding to a couple students who had turned to see who the newcomers were.
"And this is only the front yard." Max said, smiling at the twins. "According to the pamphlet, this place a swimming pool, library, rec areas and 30 courts."
Gabe and even Riley returned the smile.
After a few more minutes, a man dressed in a suit came out of the school's front doors. He was middle aged, about 45 and had a pompais look about him. This had to be President Bates.
"Attention!" he shouted. No one seemed to be listening. "ATTENTION!"
The talking amoung the students ceased.
"Now, if you'll all make your way to the auditorium, we will begin the greeting of the new students!"
As Bates walked back inside, the students began milling their way by the right end of the main building, towards the auditorium hall.
"So that's Bates then." Riley said as the three made their way into the auditorium.
"I hear he's a real tight ass." Max said.
"Well let's not jump to conclusions." Gabe said, as they sat down in the elegantly padded seats.
Bates walked onto the stage, holding a microphone.
"Welcome, kids, to Cascadia Tennis Academy. Here we will teach you how to, not only better your skill at the great game of tennis but to learn everything you would in a High School. You may choose your own dorm rooms. Boys are the building on the right outside this hall while girls are on the left. I must say that I am getting tired of the requests for co-ed dorm rooms."
Everyone laughed. Bates, however, looked disgruntled.
"I am serious. It's not going to happen." He paused as the laughing subsided.
"Practice schedules will be posted on the doors of your dorm rooms. Classes and practices will begin tomorrow morning.
And that's it. Let me again welcome you all to Cascadia and have fun!" He then did a really goofy thumbs up and walked off.
Gabe, Riley and Max smirked amoung one another. They gathered their bags together and followed the crowd outside.
They stopped outside on the lawn and looked around. Gabe saw the boy's dorm on the other side of the hall.
"So are you two going to dorm together?" Gabe asked, facing the girls.
"I guess so." Riley said, looking at Max. "Max?"
"I'm fine with that." she said.
"Okay, well I've got to find a room. How about we meet in the rec centre. The "Open" or whatever its called."
"Sounds good." Riley said. The two girls turned and walked off. Gabe was glad to see they were in conversation.
Riley had always been the popular one out of the two of them. You couldn't help liking her. But sometimes she tried a little too hard to impress people. Gabe susposed he did care what people thought about him but he didn't go out of his way to make them like him.
Gabe walked into the dorm building, his luggage beginning to slip from his fingers. He would be glad to set this down in a room. Finding one was the trouble. Everytime he passed a room, the it was already filled with three people. There had been a note saying that, due to over-enrollment, there would be three people per room. Gabe didn't mind though. He had lived alone in his own room for his whole life so this would be a nice change.
He turned another corner and knocked into another student. The person he hit had fallen down but Gabe had remained on his feet.
"Sorry, man." Gabe said. He extended his hand but then retracted it when he saw who he had bumped into. It was the guy from the bus. The one he had accidently tripped.
"You again!" the guy said in the same tone he had used while on the bus. "Don't tell me you're going here."
"Uh, yeah actually. I am." It struck Gabe that this must be the guy that had rode here in the rental car.
The kid got up and shoved Gabe in the chest. Gabe flew backwards into the wall.
"This is the second time you've pissed me off today, kid. Obviously you need a reminder not to cross me."
Gabe tryed his best to stay calm. In truth, he had never fought anybody before but his temper could get the best of him sometimes.
"Look, man. It was an accident. I'm not looking for a fight." Gabe said, keeping his voice level.
"Too bad cause I am."
Gabe closed his eyes but the punch never came.
"What's going on here?" Gabe opened his eyes and saw that a shorter teen with spiked, light brown hair was standing beside Gabe.
"This is none of your business!" the pissed teen said, throwing the other kid a dirty look.
"Well, now I am involved."
"I'm warning you to back off."
"Well, you should know that if you're going to start a fight in the hall, it'll be broken up pretty fast because one of the coaches is down the hall right now."
The flicker of fear appeared on the mean teen's face.
"You're not worth it." He picked up his suitcase and purposely knocked the other kid in the shoulder as he strolled away.
"Phew." Gabe said, picking up the duffle bag. "Thanks."
"No problem. I can tell that you wouldn't want to start a fight on the first day you are here."
"That's the truth. Is the coach really down the hall?" Gabe asked, smiling.
"No but I've seen his kind before. There scared to death of teachers." He returned the smile.
"I'm Gabriel Dawson." Gabe said, putting the duffle back down and extending his hand.
"Theodore Kennedy." The kid replied, taking the hand. "You can call me T.K."
"Pleasure." Gabe said.
"Can I take on of those for you?" T.K. said, motioning towards one of the bags.
"If you don't mind." Gabe said. T.K. picked up the duffle on the floor and the two began walking.
"So you got a room yet?" T.K. asked.
"Not yet. I came with my sister and another girl is the only one I've met."
"Well, I found a room and no-one's moved in yet. You want to bunk with me?"
"Yeah sure." Gabe said.
T.K. led Gabe through the halls to a room near the back of the building.
T.K. pushed it open and Gabe followed him in.
The room didn't have any posters or anything to dignify that it belonged to anyone.
"That's my bed." T.K. said, pointing to the bed by the window.
"First come first served." Gabe said, throwing his bags by the bed near the door. He set the guitar against the wall and flopped onto the bed.
"Nice place." Gabe said.
"I hear the girl's dorms are bigger." T.K. said, as he sat down on his bed.
"Figures."
"So where are you from?" Gabe asked, eager to know a bit about his roommate.
"Calgary. You?"
"Toronto."
"Nice over there?"
"Pretty good, yeah."
Gabe was about to ask how he had heard of Cascadia when a knock came from the door.
"Uh, come in!" T.K shouted.
The door was pushed open by a medium sized teen with dark skater hair that sank into his eyes. He wore a light red t-shirt and long shorts that sank to his shins. He also had a tennis racquet stuck between his teeth and was struggling to hold his bags. He spat the racquet out of his mouth and looked from Gabe to T.K.
"Uh, hi guys. Is there a vacancy here?" The kid spoke with a slight French accent
"Yeah, sure." T.K said, motioning towards the vacant bed.
The look of relief appeared on his face. He speed walked over to the bed and threw his bags onto it.
"Thank you both." he said, walking over to his racquet and picking up it up. "I must've walked around this place like three times and they're all filled up."
"Well, you got a room now." Gabe said, sitting up. "I'm Gabriel Dawson, this is T.K. Kennedy."
"Chase Dubois ." the boy answered. "So you guys just meeting?"
"Yup." T.K answered.
"Well, that's good. That means I haven't missed the initial meet and greet." Gabe then remembered what he had told Riley.
"Uh, guys. I sort of promised my sister I'd meet her in the Open."
His new roommates' exchanged looks. They looked slightly mad.
"But you can come." Gabe finished. It had been his original intention to invite his new roommates in the first place.
They're expressions changed.
"Well, let's go then." T.K said,getting up.
Lucky for Riley and Max, they were two of the first to enter the girl's dorm so they pretty much got their pick of any room they wanted.
After selecting a room with at the top of the building with an awesome view of the lake, the two girls began to decorate their rooms according to their respective personalities. Max had always favored tennis above everything else and hung posters of stars like the Williams and Kournacova. She noticed that Riley had posters of rock bands like Greenday and Not By Chance. Cool taste in music.
"So." Max said, trying to make some sort of conversation with her new roommate. "Uh, your brother's cute." Wrong thing, idiot.
"Yeah, I think so." Riley answered, sarcastically. At least she said it with a smile.
"Look, Riley." Max said, trying to clear the air. "I'm sorry I seemed like a smart-ass when we first met. I just..." She wondered if she should go any further but it's been her experiance that honesty can sometimes be the best policy. "I kind of get nervous when I meet a guy that's, well, cute."
Riley turned from pasting a Spike Poster from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and faced Max.
"Look, Max. I'm not exactly great with first impressions. I shouldn't have given you the cold shoulder like that and I'm sorry about that."
She walked over and extended her hand.
"Friends?" Max grinned from ear to ear and shook it.
"Roommates."
They began to laugh.
"And about my brother." Riley said, diving into her bed. "You won't have been the first to fall for him."
"I haven't fell for him." Max said, throwing herself onto her own bed. "I just think he's cute."
"That's what they all say." Riley commented.
Max threw a pillow at her, which Riley caught.
The door then opened.
In walked, in Max's opinion, the most make up she had ever seen on a person. The girl wore a dark green, strap-less top and a very short mini skirt. She had long brown hair that parted in the middle. In her hair, she wore a butterfly. Behind her, she dragged several suitcases.
"Okay." She said. "My name is Lara. I don't want to be here. I asked for my own room but I got you two instead. You don't talk to me, I won't talk to you. You don't bother me, I won't bother you. Are we clear?"
This caught both by surprise.
"Uh...yeah." Riley said, looking questioningly at Max, as if asking whether she picked up on a joke that Riley hadn't.
"Okay."
Lara dragged her gear over to her bed and dropped her luggage. She threw herself onto her own bed and layed facing the wall, away from Riley and Max.
Riley looked at Max and jerked her head towards the door. Max nodded, looked one last time at the motionless Lara and fled the room with Riley.
"What's up with her?" Max asked, as they walked threw the dorm halls. "What does she mean she doesn't want to be here? How can you come to one of the most prestigious tennis schools in the world and not want to be here?"
"Beats me." Riley answered. "I don't know her."
"But did you get a load of the clothes she was wearing?" Max said "Or rather, the lack of clothes. You mark my words, my friend. She will have the mops out by this afternoon cleaning up the drool from every single guy here."
"Well, who's to say we won't get a little eyeballing ourselves."
The girls laughed again as they stepped back out into the blazing Quebec sun.
Gabriel, T.K and Chase walked into the Open. There weren't a whole lot of people. Gabe guessed that everyone had started practicing on the courts. On their way out, the three roommates had decided that it was too hot to practice. And they were pretty confident they would do okay tomorrow on their first practice outing.
"So where are the girls?" Chase asked, looking around.
"Not sure." Gabe answered.
The three of them had managed to nab a big spot on the floor with lots of room for the girls.
"So, wherabouts are you guys from?" Chase asked, curiously.
Gabe and Chase revealed where they were from.
"Montreal, born and raised." Chase said, after T.K asked where he came from.
"So you speak French?" T.K asked.
"Oui, Mousier." Chase answered, smartly.
"That'll be a lovely girl magnet." Gabe said, clapping him on the back. To their surprise, he bit his lip and began to lace his fingers into his other hand.
"I doubt it." the French teen said. "I'm awkward as anything. I suck at talking to girls."
"Oh, come on." T.K said. "Even I've had a girlfriend or two and I'm the biggest dork I know."
Gabe nodded in agreement. He himself had had his fair share of girlfriends though he'd rather not share the number in this little Q and A session.
"The best opening line I've had is "I play tennis?"
Gabe and T.K remained silent.
"So, where's your sister?" T.K asked, looking at Gabe. Chase looked thankful for a change in subject.
"She's always late." Gabe said, looking around the room.
"Whoa! Check out those hotties." T.K said, grabbing Gabe's shoulder and pointing.
Gabe looked to where he was pointing and almost laughed out loud. He was pointing at Riley and Max who had just come into the Open.
"They're okay." Gabe said, trying his hardest not to laugh. "The one in the blue top is cute." Riley had spotted him. She tapped Max's shoulder and they began to walk over to where they sat.
"What's wrong with the other one?" Chase asked. "Oh my God. There walking in this direction."
"Well, the other one happens to be my twin sister." Gabe said, mock casually.
The looks on his roommates' faces were priceless.
"Hey, Gabe." Riley said, sitting down beside her brother.
"Sis." Gabe said, smiling still at T.K and Chase.
Max sat down on Gabe's other side, bewildered at the looks on T.K and Chase's faces.
"What's up with them? I mean, I know were hot but this issort ofembarrassing."
Gabe laughed this time.
"No, they actually commented of how good you both look." Gabe indicated his new friends.
"These are my new roommates, T.K and Chase."
"You're a jerk!" T.K said, smiling but he reached across the circle and pushed Gabe slightly.
"Well, its out in the open now" Gabe answered.
The new friends laughed at the awkward moment they had just experienced.
A/N: I know that Bates' speech should have been longer but I don't know how to commentate the opening ceremony of a tennis academy. Furthermore, I needed all the characters to be friends really quickly so cut me some slack if they're chummy faster then expected.
P.S: I forgot to mention that this fanfic is dedicated to Vadim Schneider (Sebastien) and Jaclyn Linetsky (Meghan). Rest in Peace, guys.