Three months later...

Erica's POV

"Yeah, sure. It's really dull around here. Come back soon. School starts in a week. Okay. Bye." I hung up and looked up from my phone to see Zoe, Cynthia and Jamie.

"What's the status?" Zoe asked.

I shook my head. "No big news. He's not sure when he's coming back."

Ben had gone to see his parents during the summer, and it had been three months. Everything was boring around campus without him, and my days were mostly deserted. I spoke to him once every three days, but that was all. Most of the time he wouldn't even pick up.

Zoe moved to my side. "He's probably still hanging out with Mike."

Mike had also gone to visit his parents, though he had only gone for about two weeks. He and Ben had posted a couple of selfies with his parents and Mike, but that was all.

"He'll be back soon, Erica. We have other work to do, though. Let's go." Jamie tugged on my hand, and we walked to the dorm rooms.

"Who's dorm room will it be today?" Cynthia asked. "We need to decide. We always end up arguing over it."

"Mine," came a voice. We all spun around.

"Mike?" Zoe's eyes widened. "You're...you're back!"
Mike smiled. "I am. I told my parents that there were way too many 'physics projects' to do." He made air quotes with his hands.

"What about Ben?" I found myself asking. "When is he coming back?"

"I don't know," Mike replied. "He didn't tell me anything else other than that he was going to stay with them for a long time." He ran a hand through his hair.

I missed Ben so much. I didn't know why my emotions were toying with me so much, but they were, and I didn't like that.

I did my absolute best to keep them in, but occasionally they escaped from me.

Cynthia and Jamie had completed their entire first-year courses, so now they were free to enjoy their summer until school started again.

That meant I would be a seventh-year student. Then I'd only have another year before I graduated. Then Ben would stay at Spy School for another four years before joining me.

Sometimes I wondered how it would feel to be normal. I kept the iciness up around everyone, but that also used to slip beyond my grasp when I was around Mike, Zoe, Cynthia or Jamie.

Everyone was special to me in their own ways. But no one was more special than Ben.

"Are you joining us, Erica?" Cynthia asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. "In Mike's room?"

"Not today," I replied. "I want to stay in my room today."

As everyone walked into Mike's room, I disappeared into mine. I stared at the kitten poster that Joshua had given me, back when he was good.

When he loved me. When he had stolen my heart.

Sometimes I found myself wondering about how Joshua would be now. If he still hated me or loved me.
Even if he was the second person to steal my heart, Ben's personality always left me breathless. He was the complete opposite of Joshua. He didn't break my heart. He never would.

I looked over my schedule again. Then I looked over Ben's, which was given to me so that I could pass it on to him when he got back.

We had no classes together. He had classes with Zoe and Jamie, while the only class I shared with anyone was Advanced Self-Preservation 5, with Mike.

Sometimes I hated it when I was better than everyone else. It worked to a great advantage, and it also worked to a great disadvantage.

"Erica?" came Grandpa's voice. He swung my door open and walked in. Even at an old age, my grandfather was healthy as he was as a thirty year old.

"Yes, Grandpa?" I absent-mindedly answered, twirling a lock of hair in my fingers.

"This isn't the Erica Hale I raised," he snapped. Only then I understood that he wasn't here to say hi. I sprang to my feet and stood in front of him.

"Yes, Grandpa?" I said one more time. He nodded appreciatively. Then he looked over my room.

"Four things." He looked straight into my eyes. "One, is Ripley back? Two, your room is a mess. Three, stop dawdling. You need to be in Principal Sidebottom's office in five. Four, why are you standing in front of me waiting? I said stop dawdling!"

I shook my head no for the first answer. He promptly marched out of my room. I did my best to tidy up my dorm room, and then I raced to the Nathan Hale administration building.

The Idiot's office was so big he needed double doors, and the guards didn't even bother to flank me at all. The sign that said 'Pirncipal' was taken down, and a nicer gold-plated sign hung on the doors saying 'Barnabus Sidebottom' etched curvy font. In front of the sign, the principal had taped another sign, this one worse than the previous, scribbled in his atrocious handwriting that said 'Pirnicipale'. I smacked my forehead in exasperation as I walked into his office. I was hit by a wave of cold air from his air conditioner. There was some sort of disgusting toupee on top of his head.

"Erica Hale." He scratched his chin, trying to look thoughtful, but he ended up looking like he had a skin infection. "Have a seat."

I sat down and glared bullets into his steel gray eyes. "What do you want, Principal Sidebottom?"

I must've frightened him well, because he didn't open his mouth, he just pushed a piece of paper in front of me. It said for your eyes only.

"What's this?" I asked as I scrolled through it.

Your presence has been made official in this new mission dubbed 'Operation Golden Egg'

"A m-m-mission. You'll r-r-receive more information when R-R-Ripley comes back," the Idiot stammered. I got up, pushed the paper back to him and strode out of his office.

My summer was no longer relaxing.

"Erica!" Zoe screamed when she spotted me walking down the hallway to enter my dorm room. "Guess what?"

"What?" Zoe was always excited, but she was overly excited. There was something that I was missing out on."

"Go to your room," she said with a glint in her eye. "You'll find out."

I walked into my room, bracing myself for whatever surprise was aimed my way. The person standing inside my room was one of the last people I suspected would stand there.

"Ben?!"

Ben only smiled. "Hi there, Erica. Missed me too much?"

I could only run into his arms as he wrapped me into a tight hug. "Hi."

"I missed you, Erica. I'm back, and we can do whatever."

I held him at arm's length. His brown eyes sparkled with joy. "First things first, we have no classes together."

The excitement in his eyes dropped down the tiniest bit. "That's no fun."

"It isn't. But here's what's fun. We have to go on a mission."

He pretended to frown. "Hey, that's no fun either. I don't want to die again."

"Don't jinx it," I replied, daintily pressing a finger to his lips. "You won't die."

He smiled, removing my finger and closing the gap between our lips for two seconds. I cherished the moment as he pulled away, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. I threw my arms around him and closed my eyes. Ben was back, and we were going to go on a mission.

My life was perfect.

Or not.

That's all; this book is over. Have a great day!