User: alicoforever

"Ms. McCalley, we'll be arriving in ten minutes," my chauffer, Charlie, states, making a right turn at Parks Avenue. I crane my neck to see his face in the rearview mirror. I couldn't help but be attracted to Charlie. He was in his mid-twenties and was extraordinarily tall. His short black hair was always neatly combed and you could faintly make out the stubble on his chin. And his eyes – oh his eyes! – they were like silver coins! They were bright, sharp, and, well, perfect! But even though he was cute, he was no Matthew.

Matthew Jackson has been my boyfriend for two years and is the nicest jock you'd ever meet. He's the opposite of you'd expect the star baseball player to be. He doesn't care that I'm popular, or that my family is well off. Instead, he likes the way I smile and how I'm always the brightest character in a play, even if I'm just in the background.

I sigh as I think about seeing him again. It'll be perfect going through senior year with him. There'll be prom and homecoming! We'll dance all night long. I'll wear a ball gown and he'll be in a suit with a matching tie. It'll be like the fairytales!

"Ms. McCalley, we're here," Charlie said. I snapped out of my thoughts. I hadn't realized that I had been staring at Charlie, and he had taken notice. I blush furiously, hoping he hadn't taken it the wrong way. I'd never cheat on Matt!

Charlie then proceeds to drive towards the iron gates. I made a disgusted face as I looked at the ugly thick rails. I had always hated them; they made the school feel like prison, though it wasn't far off on it's own. Next I saw the infamous fountain.

It was an old fountain, yes, and it had baby angels spitting water out of their mouths. In my freshman year, I had loved the beautiful craftsmanship of the fountain, but after an incident with a football, I could never recapture the beauty of it. I turn my attention back to my phone and hit pause on my music. I casually slip my phone into my purse – one my dad created, might I add – and slip it over my shoulder as the limo comes to a halt in front of the large, double doors of the academy.

Unclicking my seatbelt, I watch as Charlie gets out of the front seat and steps onto the pavement. He walks to open my door. I then turn myself so I can easily step out. When my door opens, I hop out of the limo (horrible unladylike, I know). Making sure I have my phone in my purse, I walk towards the doors, leaving Charlie with my luggage.

My heels clack as I walk up a series of steps and push open the main doors. I'm greeted by the familiar chandelier and grand foyer that I'd seen for four straight years.  I breathe in the familiar air and head to the dorms. I needed to get prepped for orientation tonight, and you'd be surprised how long it takes me to brush my hair.

Before I could even think twice about heading to the girls' dorms, someone grabbed me from behind. I shrieked as I was lifted into the air. I swatted at my pursuer, but the unknown person didn't budge.

"Nice to see you too," replied Carter Hollow's star baseball player. I twisted around to see Matthew Jackson smiling his goofy grin at me.

"Matthew Samuel Jackson! Don't scare me like that!" I yell, both mad and happy to see my beloved. He only laughed in reply. Man, did I miss his laugh. I melted into him like I had done back in June before school had let out. I hadn't been able to see him all summer because I had a musical program and he had all-stars for baseball.

"It's good to see you Calley," he cooed, brushing my hair behind my ear. I giggled as he used his nickname for me. When he had first arrived at Carter Hollow, he had called everyone by their last names, myself included, and the name just stuck.

"You too, Jack." I laughed, using his own last name. We stayed starring at each other for a few minutes before I remembered where I was. "We probably should go somewhere private."

"Yeah," he whispered. He set me down, and I longed for him to pick me back up, but we couldn't risk a teacher seeing us. It'd be plain embarrassing. We made our way towards an empty room that wasn't too far from the foyer. Once inside, Matthew closed the door and turned to me. I smiled as he neared me. He came so close that our bodies were pressed together and I wrapped my arms around his neck.

"I missed you," I breathed as I leaned in for a kiss. Our lips touched and my heart fluttered. I had missed his kisses so much! They were warm and made me feel loved. Matt made up for my parents in the realm of affection. We kept kissing and Matt lifted me up onto a desk. Even though I was tall for a girl – no, a woman – I still was nowhere near his height.

After a good ten minutes of getting "reacquainted", I pulled apart form him. I smiled as I slid off the desk.

"I should go get ready," I said, a little disappointed I had to cut our meeting short. Matt nodded as I hurried out the door and toward the dorm. A blush was visible on my face as I walked. My blonde hair wasn't doing a great job at hiding my face, so I caught the attention of a few freshmen. They whispered among themselves. I held back a glare. I can't be mean to the little ones.

Once safely in my dorm, I enter the bathroom to refresh my makeup. A long drive from Georgia to Florida can do horrors to your face. Grabbing my makeup bag from a suitcase in my dorm, I set to work.

"So let the year begin and grow!" Dr. Bennett finished. He had made a speech about school and blah, blah, blah. I didn't pay attention. They were basically the same thing every year. Next on the stage for orientation was a former student, Arabella Blackwell. She too made a speech, but after finding a chip in my nail, I stopped listening. After the speeches, students were free to look around the castle (or school). I couldn't find Matthew in the crowd, so I decided to check out the new computer lab.

It wasn't too far from the stage, the computer lab that is. When I had arrived at the lab, it looked bleak on the outside. It wasn't any better on the inside. Boring, bulky desktop computers lined the walls. A few tiny laptops were on a tray, but they weren't anything special. They reminded me of the computers we had in middle school. I thought back to the eighth grade computers, and of course back to that disappointing day.

(indent ["Guys! The lottery results for GSMST are in!" My friend, Sara, exclaimed. I hopefully looked up from my classwork.

"Really? Oh, I hope I got in!" I screech. "Mrs. Castleberry, can I look at my phone?" Mrs. Castleberry, a lively middle-aged woman, nodded from her desk. She knew how much this lottery meant for students. If your name was on the list, you'd go to one of the best schools in the state instead of the clunky public school.

I whipped out my phone and went onto GSMST's website. I found the lottery results and scrolled down through the numbers. I scrolled and scrolled and scrolled, but my never came up. I reached the number eight hundred and fifty, but Lily McCalley never appeared on the list, nor would it ever.

I tried to hide my tear-brimmed eyes. I'd failed. I had wanted to go to that school so baldy, and of course, I didn't. I swallowed a lump that was forming in my throat. I slowly put my phone away and turned back to my geometry worksheet. I struggled to keep my tears in for the rest of the class, ignoring the happy cheers of the people actually accepted.])

I was snapped out of my thoughts by a scream. I turned my head wildly, looking for the source. What happened? How long was I out? I usually have flashbacks and they last for long periods of time. I shake my useless thoughts away as I pinpoint the source of the sound. It didn't seem to be too far away; maybe it was coming from the front office?

I headed that way. The new computer lab was right by the office, so I got their right when the chaos started.

I pushed past crowds of people, trying to figure out what had happened. I passed Matt, but kept going. I heard him call my name, urgency was audible in his voice, but I wanted – no, needed – to find out what was going on. I hated being clueless when big events happened.

When I heard the crying, I should've known not to continue, but against my better judgment, I walked on. Pushing through the last layer of bystanders, I saw it. Or should saw (indent [him]). He was on the ground, bloody and limp. My stomach lurched and I felt my head spin. His body was shot, several times. How could this happen? How? I felt my body loose t's strength as I fell backwards. The last thing I heard was Matt calling my name.