I can't believe my ears.
I look up at Hamilton, who's smirking at me in a sickening way. Suddenly, his meaty hand grips my collar, and he can pull me upwards. My feet are actually dangling off in the air.
He leans his face closer, and I can only crane my neck back to avoid any contact with him.
"This will serve as a warning for other newbies," he mutters.
'No! Stop! I am a girl!' I want to scream, but my tongue is completely frozen in place. I can't even whimper, which trust me, is something I really want to do right now.
Jonah, Evan, and Kurt begin to circle around me. Crack, Jonah's knuckles sound, as he presses them together.
I stare horrified at the bullies. I haven't even stepped foot inside this building, and I'm already about to get beaten. If this is going to be how everything in here will turn out, then maybe I won't be able to hold up for a month in this hellhole.
Hamilton pushes me against the wall so hard, that I already feel a huge bruise growing in my back.
I still can't believe he's going to beat me up.
"Ready for this?" he asks.
I begin to shake my head, wanting to cry.
They only laugh.
I begin to shake my body furiously, trying to free myself from the grip. If there is anything that could describe this terrifying moment, then think of how you would feel if some shark had caught you in its jaws.
He pushes me harder toward the wall, and I am about to scream that I'm not a boy.
When…
A tall boy gets in front of me.
Hamilton already had his scary fist in the air, so the boy says: "I'll sue if one of your greasy knuckles comes in contact with my face."
Hamilton distorts his face in confusion. "Sew? You're gonna sew if I touch your face? Then I definitely won't. I don't know if stupidity is contagious."
Hamilton's minions laugh like hyenas at his remarks. I stare at them blankly. I only thought that stupid bullies only appeared on Ned's Declassified. But apparently, they do exist. I take this moment to examine 'Hammer's' outfit. I frown. It's a purple tracksuit.
Yeah, I know what you're thinking. 'Amy, how could you be scared of a guy who wears purple tracksuits?' Well, he is a 200-pound of muscle that wears purple tracksuits.
"Goodbye, Hamilton," the boy says, sounding bored. And, might I add, in a British accent.
Hamilton looks surprised that someone isn't scared of him. "Pfft, whatever."
"Yeah," his minions say in unison, as they turn around and leave.
"Have a nice day!" Hamilton exclaims, in what is the worst British accent I've ever heard. He passes by me, and gazes at me threateningly. "Good luck, soft skin."
Soft skin? Well, I guess I should be thankful that my nickname isn't offensive.
Once the Hammers (let's call them that, shall we?) are gone, the boy who saved me turns to look at me.
My voice gets trapped in my throat. This boy is really handsome (not as much as Jake, though). Amber eyes, coffee-colored skin, and a face structure that looks as if it was chiseled to perfection. And he's British.
"You owe me," is the first thing he says. "That dimwit almost broke off my face. Do you know how worried I was back there?"
His charm decreases by 10%, as I've just identified one of the characteristics on Nellie's list of Idiots I Should Avoid. 1) Vain.
"Huh?" I blurt out.
"This face," he says, pointing at it. "Has appeared on many of the lists of Hottest Bachelors Under 18. Do you want it to appear on the cover of People all distorted and in bandages?"
2) Obnoxious.
There's a decrease in his charm by 20%.
"Uh…no," I reply.
"Then stop risking my looks," he states. He looks at me up and down, frowning at my messy appearance. "Please don't tell me you're Dan Cahill."
"Yes," I reply.
"Argh," he moans in disgust, shaking his head. "Only I have to put up with idiots like you. I am paying lots of money to be treated like I should rightfully be treated. And now I get to share a room with some dangerous guy."
3) Male version of a Primadonna.
40% down in charms.
"You're my roommate?" I ask.
"Don't you listen to what people say to you?" he snaps.
4) Temperamental.
Okay, he's now 55% down in charms, which means there's only 45% standing.
"I just said I'll have to be sharing a room with you," he drawls.
I nod. "I heard."
"Then why do you-" Ian stopped himself. He scowled. "Actually, before I introduce myself and take you to Principal Rosenbloom's office, I'd like to set out a few rules."
"Okay."
"I practice polo on Mondays and Wednesdays," he explains. "So those days, including today, make sure to stir clear of the shower. Because when I come back, I expect it to be waiting for me."
5) Bossy
40% left of charms.
"Since you disrupted my privacy and risked my safety," he continues. "I expect you to pay for it by doing me favors. Such as receiving my clothes from dry-cleaning, bringing me things when I ask you to…"
6) Primadonna times ten.
There's only 20% charm left, now.
"Don't even think of coming close to my personal space: that includes my desk, my closet, my bed, and my couch," he informs me. "Your desk, bed and closet are all located to one side, which is where I expect you to spend your time in. You don't touch my things, I don't touch your things. Understood?"
I nod, but I'm completely shocked. This school is full of stupid bullies and now, male primadonnas.
His charm is at a 5% now.
"Oh, and I enjoy cleanliness," he adds.
Okay, that's understandable.
"So don't let your filthy hands come near my things," he mutters. "If I see you touching something that belongs to me, or keeping the side of your room disorganized…trust me, there'll be consequences."
His charm is at a big, fat zero now.
"I'm Ian Kabra, by the way," he states. He adjusts his uniform's jacket. "Follow me toward Principal Rosenbloom's office."
As he walks past me, his hand brushes against mine. He looks down at me, surprised. "Your skin is soft." He looks closer at me. Placing his fingers under my chin, he raises it up. "Your face looks…well, not like a seventeen-year-old boy's. If I was an ignorant in Biology, I'd say that your mom confused you as a boy when you're in fact a girl."
I look away, uncomfortable. If he only knew…
"Let's go," he orders, and pushes the doors to the school open.
My eyes widen in amazement as I gaze at my surroundings. The floors are made of polished marble, and the walls around me are half made of expensive-looking wood, and the upper half is a creamy color. The roofs are arched, which reflect the lights engaged in them even brighter. To each side of every door, there is a palm plant. And the tall windows light the hallways even more than the lights up in the roofs. I don't spot any lockers, to which Ian explains that they aren't necessary.
The school is divided into four buildings: one for freshmen, the other one for sophomores, and the last two for juniors and seniors, respectively (currently, we're at the freshmen's, since theirs is the entrance). Since each subject has a class of its own, the classrooms have cubbyholes for the students to leave their materials for each class in there. The only thing students need to be carrying around is their sports gear and pencils. Ian says that lockers are tedious, so he's happy with that arrangement.
Ian opens the door at the end of the building, which leads to a beautiful garden. I can spot the four high school buildings surrounding a beautiful structure in the middle, which Ian tells me is the lobby, where the principal's office is found. He leads me through a stoned pathway and soon, we're in front of the lobby. Opening up its door, the smell of clove wafts in my face.
A young woman is typing at a desk nearby.
"Cheyenne, I've arrived with Mr. Cahill," Ian tells her.
The blonde woman looks up. She smiles at me. Oh…Mr. Cahill," she says, smiling knowingly.
I frown. I get the feeling that much more people than the ones who were supposed to know, know about my secret.
"Yes," Ian replies, his dull tone returning. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got polo lessons to attend to. Good-bye." Ian glares at me. "Remember what I told you about staying away from the bathroom, Daniel." With that, he leaves.
Ice princess- I mean, ice prince is gone. Phew.
"Don't worry, I found out by myself. Principal Rosenbloom hasn't announced your real identity to anyone," she whispers at me, smiling deviously. "I do enjoy eavesdropping conversations."
I nod, not knowing what to say about her hobby.
"However, I also enjoy spilling secrets," she continues, her smile disappearing. "Which is why every Tuesday afternoon you'll come here to assist me."
My mouth slightly parts open. This girl's taking advantage of my situation?
"Thank you," she replies. She presses a button on her desk. "Mr. Rosenbloom, Dan Cahill is here."
"Send him in!" the intercom in her desk crackles.
"You heard him," she tells me, pointing at the door at the end of the lobby.
I sigh. "Thanks."
I reach the door in a matter of seconds, and before I can even knock, it's pulled open. A man with glasses is at the door, smiling down at me. "You've arrived!"
"Yes," I reply, smiling back.
"Come in, come in," he tells me, pulling me in. Closing the door behind me, he points at a platter of cookies on his desk. "I brought you some."
My smile grows. "Really? Thank you."
He motions with this hand at a seat in front of me. "No problem. Any of Jake's friends are always gonna see the best side of me. Especially a girl who he can't stop talking about."
My head snaps up. "What?"
"Yes," he replies, as if his piece of information didn't mean anything to me. "Every time he comes back from Tay's, when you're there, he comes back telling me about this Amy Cahill who likes books and history just like him."
"Really?" I ask. I'm sure my green eyes are probably sparkling by now.
He nods, gathering papers. He's totally clueless of my reaction. "Yes, of course!"
I feel my cheeks turn red as I look down at my lap, a goofy smiling appearing on my face.
Could it be that he li-
No, it couldn't be. It's too good to be true.
I shake my raised hopes away and look up at Principal Rosenbloom. "If I may ask…what are those papers?"
"I prepared a set tips, guidelines, teacher lists and a schedule for you," he answers, handing me a folder with the school logo on the front.
I smile gratefully. The only ones who've been this nice to me are Nellie and my principal from Prince Edward Island. "Thank you so much…"
"You're welcome," he replies. "Now, I must apologize for giving you Ian as a roommate. But as you might've noticed, he's pretty reserved and cold towards most. I think he'd be the safest candidate for your roommate, since he'd definitely want to keep out of your business."
Now that I think of it, it does make sense. "That's right."
"Now," he continues, looking at his wristwatch. "I'm afraid you missed out the first day of classes. So go to your dorm and get a good rest. I also included a map in your folder, so you won't get lost. But just in case, each grade's dormitories are located in their corresponding building. You just head over to the junior building, find the staircase and climb up the stairs. In each building, there is one floor of classrooms, and three of dormitories. So if you add them all up, your dorm will be in the third floor. It has each of the dorm's inhabitant's names on the door, so you'll know which one is yours." He hands me a key, smiling. "Welcome to Hastings's Academy for Boys."
Author's Note: Since some of you had questions, I'm going to answer them! I'm not sure if others also wondered the same thing, which is why I'm going to answer in here:
Amazing girl: Haha, what I meant to say when Evan sinked my ship is that he ruined my hopes for Ian/Amy :P You're also wondering if this'll be Jamy or Amian...well, I'm a fan of both (right now, I'm more on the Jamy side). But this'll definitely be an Amian.
Clara0414: In this story, Beatrice is literally rolling on wads of money. So for her, sending Dan and Amy to expensive boarding schools is nothing. As long as she gets rid of them, then it's okay for her!
Vintage Apocaplypse: My reply is sort of useless now, since the reason why she's supposed to be Dan is already explained :P However, feel free to ask more about it!
Rhetorically Yours: I'm not sure what Starshipping is, but if it mean being a fan of the Starlings, then I don't oppose to it. I'm a fan of the Starling twins, and I do tolerate Sinead.
That's it! Thanks for reading, hope you liked this chapter :)