Chapter 1~

 

        Today is my first day of my last year in high school. And I couldn’t be happier. I get to leave this little town of Salem, Massachusetts for good. After I graduate, though. Why am I so, so, SO HAPPY?! Because I get teased a lot by everyone at school. I was glad to leave. Over the summer, I went away to see my oldest and only sister all the way in London, England. I miss her a lot. We’re alike in some ways.

          The obvious, of course, is that we both have waist-length, blond hair and emerald green eyes. We’re both slim and curvy and short—as in 5’3”. However, we’re also different.

          For example, her hair is hung straight and mine is hung in curls. She’s fun and outgoing, whereas I’m boring and shy. While her name is Claire Smith, mine is Bridget Sinclair. She’s married and twenty-six and I’m single (always will be) and seventeen.

          At school, everyone bothers me because I’m shy and in high school no one is supposed to be shy and all that crap. When I speak, they say, “What? I can’t hear you!” or “I didn’t quite catch that” from teachers. The meanest girl—Beth Forbes, and queen of the school—always pick on me and say that I can never get a boyfriend at all. Four years of agonizing teasing is just too much, but I’ve been through it, or I will be.

          My last year is going to be the same and I don’t think I want to change that. I hated being teased, but I’m used to it and somehow it always surprises me every time I’m teased. Especially when it’s from the gorgeous quarterback of the football team, Matthew Delaney. I’ve always had a schoolgirl crush on Matt, since the 6^th grade and I haven’t gotten over it. It’s just hard to move on from someone you like for so long. Matt was the star quarterback of Salem High’s football team. He has layered, light blond hair and ocean green eyes. He was about six feet tall and built muscular and lean. His features were perfect and he had the most perfect tan ever! We’ve been in the same school since kindergarten.

          I have pale white skin and I can never get a tan, no matter how much I try. When I blush, my face gets so red and it’s embarrassing, which makes me blush even more.

          My parents are all the way across the United States. They were in California, and they left the one-story, three-bedroom house to me. I’ve lived in this house for all my seventeen years. I missed them, but I talk to them whenever they’re not busy. 

          I was getting ready for school when my cell phone rang. From the number, I saw it was my sister.

          “Hey, Claire!” I greeted, cheerfully, despite the year ahead of me.

          “Hi, my love!” Claire greeted back. “Oh, I’ve missed you so much! So, I just called to wish you good luck on your last year of high school.”

          “Thanks, though I don’t want to go to school,” I complained. “Maybe I should just get homeschooled or something.”

          “Don’t think about that,” Jack Smith, Claire’s husband, said, obviously on speakerphone. He was almost six feet tall too, and built masculine and lean. He had thick, black hair and light green eyes. Claire and Jack have been married for six years now and they have two daughters. Rachel, who is five, and Kelly, who is four, have their father’s hair and eyes, but have the physical features of their mother. “You have one more year and don’t ruin it by dropping out.”

          “It’s not dropping out,” I argued. “It’s called homeschooled. I don’t think I can take another year of this horror.”

          “You can,” Claire reasoned. “I know you can. You’ve done so well for the past three years. And if you drop out, I will blame myself. You became shy right after I left and it’s caused you to leave high school.”

          She knew I would feel guilty and though I hated it when she does that, I know she’s right and I love her.

          “Fine,” I sighed. “I’m getting ready for school and I have no idea what to wear.”

          “Well, I’m not there, and I don’t know what you have,” Jack chuckled. He was a flirt with me and I had fun with it.

          “Hmm…I don’t think you’ll want to be here right now, considering I’m wearing nothing but a towel,” I laughed.

          “Even better,” Jack said.

          “Okay, I’ll talk to you guys later,” I said. We said our goodbyes and hung up. I had no idea what to wear and I only had about ten minutes to get ready and leave the house.

          The bell rings at seven-ten; it was six-forty. I wanted to get there early so I don’t get teased for being late.

                  

          I finally decided on a tank top, short skirt, and running shoes. I grabbed my backpack and went down to eat breakfast. Oh, what if I’m late? I thought. Who cares? I don’t want to be too early.

          I arrived at school at seven o’ clock. That wasn’t cutting it too close or far. I parked my black Mitsubishi Spyder in the seniors’ parking lot. I admit I was scared. I didn’t want to go to school; I didn’t want to face today or the rest of the year. Maybe I should come out of my shell and show everyone who I really am. I should do it for me. I hope I get respected. But then again, I didn’t care. I just let their teasing pass on over. I got out of the car.

          “Well, well, look who decided to finally show up,” Beth Forbes sneered.

          I stiffened as I realized I parked next to Beth and her posses, Matt included. As usual, I tried to ignore their laughter, but I couldn’t. Not this time, and never again. I walked right up to Beth—she was my height, so I stared straight into her crystal blue eyes. Like me, she had blond hair, only paler. We used to be best friends, but that changed after my sister left. She, Matt, and I went to school together since kindergarten.

          I glared at her. “Beth, it’s a new year. Expect the unexpected.”

          “What are you going to do, mouse?” Beth teased, and everyone laughed, again.

          I smiled and walked away.

          “Hey, I’m talking to you!” she called.

          “Huh? What? You say something?” I turned around to her. “I didn’t quite catch that. I think your voice is a little off.” That caused laughter from her friends and they were silenced by her glare.

          “Watch it, Bridget,” she said.

          “Watch what?” I asked. “Listen, Beth, I think you should be specific when you make threats. Otherwise, no one will take you seriously.”

          “Oh, man,” Matt said.

          I looked at him. “Is there a problem?”

          “No,” Matt said, quickly. “Who are you?”

          “Someone you’re going to remember for the rest of the year,” I smiled. “Bridget Sinclair.”

          “Haven’t I gone to school with you since kindergarten?” he asked.

          “Have you now?” I asked. “I don’t think so.” Why was I lying?

          “I know you’re lying, sweetheart,” he smiled, brightly. My heart skipped a beat.

          “Matt!” Beth scolded.

          “Listen to your girlfriend, Matt, you don’t want to get her angry,” I warned. “You know how she gets when she’s jealous.”

          “Me? Jealous? O-of you? You must be—” Beth stuttered.

          “Wouldn’t be the first time, Beth,” I reminded. “It’s not good to be jealous.” The bell rang for first hour. “There’s our cue—well, my cue to leave. I’m so looking forward to senior year. Bye!”

          First hour was English with Mr. Brandon Holden, my distant cousin. He was a thirty-nine-year-old man, with black hair streaked with gray. He was muscular, but sort of lanky. He’s always wearing a suit and tie. His eyes were a deep-sea green. His face was free of wrinkles, though he was close to his forties. He was very attractive and unmarried, and all the girls were all over him.

          “Morning, Mr. Holden,” I greeted him. He was behind his desk not paying attention. He was writing in some book.

          “Morning,” he said without looking up.

          “What, you can’t say a proper hi to your cousin?” I asked.

          “You’re not my cousin in class,” he replied, still not looking up.

          “If you’re going to act like this, it won’t be a pleasant year with me, Mr. Holden,” I warned.

          He looked up, surprised. “I heard you weren’t much…outgoing.”

          “I wasn’t at all,” I corrected. “It’s a new year, new attitude.”

          “Doesn’t change anything,” Brandon said.

          “Then, it won’t be pleasant, as I said before,” I reminded.

          Beth, Matt, and their friends had my class. They instantly became Brandon’s favorites. I would make sure Brandon and the other teachers know I’m not the same shy girl they heard about over the past years.

          I would be a bad student. I don’t need any of my classes because I’d already gotten all my credits. I could’ve graduated last year, but I’m glad I didn’t. This year was going to be fun.

          “Tonight, you have homework,” Brandon said, as class neared the end. “I know it’s your first day of school, but we always have to get down to business.” I was half listening to him, because I was sketching a bird on a tree outside the window.

          I had the window seat, to my pleasure. I could sketch now and get caught up in my work. This caused me not to hear the homework and I could care less.

          “Ms. Sinclair, this is not art class.” Brandon was next to my desk. I hadn’t heard him approach me.

          I looked up at him. The others were expecting a blush or me looking down in embarrassment, but they won’t have the satisfaction.

          “Oh, really?” I asked, smiling. “I couldn’t tell the difference. Mr. Holden.”

          He frowned at me. “This not going to be a pleasant year with me either, Ms. Sinclair.”

          “Okay,” I said, with a shrug. To his dismay, the bell rang. I gathered my stuff and walked away, leaving the students shocked.

          Next was Math with Ms. Rebecca Morley. She was an old woman in her late fifties. Her once-brown hair had turned white, yet her brown eyes remained the same. She was shorter than me by a few inches. She was a little plump, but was really mean.

          I took my seat in the back. There were no windows in here. I didn’t have Beth and the others in here, which was good. I became friends with Laura Blaney. She was a pretty seventeen-year-old, with light brown hair and light green eyes. She was short and slender.

          “So do you need this class?” Laura asked.

          “No, you?” I replied.

          “Nope,” she smiled. “I don’t need any of them.”

          She was going to switch out of her regular first hour into mine.

          “Same here,” I told her. “You heard I was shy, right?” She nodded. “Well, it’s going to be different this year.” I told her about first hour and also that Brandon was my cousin.

          “Hmm, I can do that with you,” she said. “I think we’ll get a kick out of not doing any work.”

          “I couldn’t agree more,” I smiled.

          At lunch, I met some of her friends and we all became friends, quickly. We all had disliking Beth and her group in common. Laura’s friends were four guys from the football team, and the entire cheerleading squad, almost; Laura was part of the squad and so was Beth. She was the only brown-haired girl. The other girls were blond-haired, blue-eyed. They were all slender and pretty.

          The guys were all black-haired, and light green-eyed. They were really tall and muscular. They were also on the football team, like Matt who was the captain.

          We sat at a long, rectangular table after we’d gotten our lunch. The football team sat together at a different table. They all had the same lunch, which was second lunch.

          I saw Beth, Matt, and the entire posse walk into the cafeteria.

          “You know what I just noticed? That all Beth’s friends are blondes with blue eyes,” I told Laura. “It’s, like, she has something against non-blondes and non-blue eyes.”

          “You’re right,” Laura said. “I just noticed that too, and her other ‘friends’ have different hair color.”

          “So I heard that Beth and you were best friends,” Gina Sanchez began. “Can I ask what happened?”

          “I became shy and she didn’t want to be my friend anymore,” I told her. “But I’m changing that. Its senior year and I’m going to enjoy it.”

          “Good for you,” Cecelia Martins said.

          Fifth hour was my free period and my new friends and I had the same class, as well as sixth hour gym. All we did in fifth hour was talk. Then, we kept talking on the way to the gym.

          Our coach was Brandon. So I had him twice in one day, huh? This should be even more fun. All we had to do in gym was play volleyball in teams. Since we had even guys and girls, we played guys against girls. There were six cheerleaders and me, which were seven. Then, there were seven boys. We were a small class, oh well. Our uniforms for gym were a red shirt and black shorts. We had our uniforms and could play volleyball today. Us girls were wearing tank tops and short shorts.

Author's Note

This is my first writing here. Let me know what you think!

Reviews

[Sinny]

i love it

[John Morris]

This is very descriptive as far as it goes describing the people however it seems to lack any intrigue to it, this may be just because it the opening chapter and so i will read the next one to see but it had little to drag the reader in. I congratulate you on writing this but I have no reason to want more.

Very well written, very desciptive but it had little flare.

[Anya]

hehe, i also like it :)
nice descriptions and interesting plot :)

[MadasonBlue]

Ha. I like it.
Stories about high school are always interesting; especially when someone makes a resolution at the beginning, a big change.
I'm a shy freshman so I can kinda see where Bridget is coming from.
I wanna see how it turns out.
Great story so far, no major problems.

[Ameerah]

thanks for the reviews everyone! i'll try to post up more chapters

[Purpleoreo13]

Very descriptive in describing the people
i can't wait for the next chapter.