Luxor wanted to slip in and make a quiet entry, but as soon as the door slammed behind her, she failed. Fifteen pairs of eyes stared in her direction, most with a look of curiosity, and a select few with contempt at her intrusion. Their books set out with pens poised and already straight into work.

Luxor's cheeks heated and her insides quivered. There wasn't a time in her memory where she felt so scared. The only saving grace was she had read once in a girl's fashion magazine if you displayed confidence, were in control, and above all had a big smile, everything wouldn't seem as bad. She pulled her shoulders back, mustered up a bright smile, and walked to the front desk hoping like hell no one saw past it.

Epic fail.

Luxor handed the slip to the teacher, a short, portly woman in her forties, who snatched it out of her grasp and let out an audible "hmmph." Rolling her eyes, she tilted her head towards the clock on the wall.

The teacher read the slip and scrunched up her face, as if she had never come across a strange name before. "Everybody I'd like to welcome Luxor Everstone. She's just transferred here from Hampton Cove. Despite her tardiness, please make her welcome." She swung an arm out an indication Luxor should take a seat.

Eyes followed her all the way to the back of the room where she found an empty table near a window behind a girl with faded pink hair. Slipping in to the seat, she quickly scattered her notebook, textbook and pens, until it surrounded the table, prepared and ready to start. Just like the other students she had her pen ready to take any notes.

"Nice stars."

Luxor's head snapped up at the voice and she dropped her pen, coming face to face with the guy from the petrol station and office, or Toffee, as she had mentally named him.

"Hello, again. Is this seat taken?" He leaned casually against the table.

Luxor shoved her belongings towards herself to clear space for him.

Toffee tilted his lips up in an easy smile, and slid in with ease. His gaze burned into hers, and the tingling sensations began again. "I'm Hunter," his voice was low and husky.

Luxor hardly heard him so she simply nodded and bit her lip. An infusion of crackling popped into her ears, similar to the bonfire parties she attended with Verity. She bowed her head, her hands travelling all over the page at the multi coloured stars in all sizes, and in the middle was a large letter L. She picked up a different colour pen and concentrated on the deep urge to cover it in stars, lots and lots of stars. Strangely enough, until Hunter mentioned it, she was unaware she was even doing it and had covered the entire page.

Hunter inched closer infusing her face with the sweet smell of Skittles. "What's your name?" A hint of amusement laced in his voice.

She mustered all of her will power to avoid his smile and eyes, it was bad enough she burned up at his closeness. No longer able to put it off, she glanced over at him and opened her mouth to respond but words failed her. Instead, she fake coughed and peered ahead.

What was wrong with me? I'm no shy little wallflower.

"Don't talk much, huh? That's fine I won't bother you again," he said smugly and drummed his fingers on the desk. A few minutes ticked by and Hunter spoke again. "I thought with us being newbies and all we've got to stick together, but that's cool if you don't want to."

Luxor subtlety bent her neck to get a better look at him. The first thing she noticed was his hair. It glistened in the sun, offsetting blue streaks in his jet-black hair. He had an olive complexion, a strong jaw, full lips, and his nose had a slight bump at the bridge as if he had gotten into one too many fights, but that only enhanced his dangerous appeal. But his eyes-were majestic and she already couldn't get enough. He was purely gorgeous. And he knew it. She quickly turned away. It would be too creepy if he caught her staring. Again.

Hunter cocked his head to the side. "Having a great perve? Don't worry, it's only natural, I get it all the time." He chuckled.

Typical, he had looks, but an over-inflated ego.

Luxor narrowed her eyes. "I was thinking, does this idiot ever shut up?"

"Oh, she talks, I was about to resort to sign language."

"That's not funny," Luxor hissed.

"True, but I wanted to make sure since you've been mute."

Luxor sighed. "Maybe I don't communicate with rude people." It was strange she was able to talk now.

Why hadn't the words not come out before?

"Now that's tragic." Hunter's broad shoulders leaned over, his taunt muscle in his arms and chest contracted under his black long-sleeved top. "Just borrowing it for a sec, I left mine in my locker."

A potent and earthy smell emanated from him, fresh and crisp, and completely intoxicating. Luxor's mind swirled, and she scooted further away just as he swiped a pen and her star drawn paper. Sure enough, he had come to class empty-handed, no pens, books, or any sign of normal classroom accessories.

Clearly, he wasn't academic, likely an actor, relying on his skills and looks to get through.

A hint of tattoos flashed on his knuckles, and she squinted to read the tattoo. GEN each letter atop the middle knuckles on his left hand. Other tattoos followed them, and if only he tilted his hand upward, she would be able to make it out.

"Luxor," Ms. Suarez said in a dour tone.

Luxor snapped to attention. "Yes. Here."

An eruption of laughter filled the room as stares darted in her direction and fixated on her.

From the front of the class Ms. Suarez gripped her wide hips, a gesture repeatedly shown by Meredith. This was not a good sign. She cleared her throat to shut the class up. "I understand you are new but I need you to keep up. Can you please explain what I have been discussing?"

Luxor gulped, and her cheeks flamed. She had zoned out from the moment she had sat down. History, she thought to herself, had to be about the past.

Make something up.

Hunter whispered in her ear and made it a challenge to conjure up an excuse. Or even a thought for that matter. Her mind had gone into blank mode. In her gut, she realised an apology and admission was needed for her lack of concentration. Lately apologising had become all too common, but it wasn't an option, it would be a disastrous start to her schooling.

"Well?" Ms. Suarez barked and flattened her palms flat on the desk with a thud.

Hunter chuckled. He hunched his shoulders and cocked his head to the side and sketched furiously, his eyebrows drawn deep in concentration.

Luxor placed her sweaty hands between her thighs to minimise the shaking and hoped he would help her out, after all he was the culprit for distracting her. But to be honest, if she heard nothing it was doubtful Hunter had either. This was the last thing she needed, not only had she irritated the teacher, but the class was deeply engrossed in the interrogation and probably thought they got lucky. The more spent time wasted, the less History everybody would have to endure.

The girl in front whipped around. "Oh, for goodness sake hurry up."

Hunter poked Luxor in her ribs with the end of the pen, and slid a piece of paper over to her side of the table. A tree was drawn with little stick figures underneath labelled with "ma," "da," and "kid" underneath in an almost unrecognisable scribble.

What the hell is this?

Luxor ignored him and took a deep breath in prepared to confess. "Well..." She elongated the word. Hunter nudged her again, but this time with his elbow, as he began to circle the images. "Ouch."

What was this guy's problem? I'm definitely going to bruise now.

"A tree?" Luxor whispered her forehead creased in confusion.

"Family tree to be precise," Ms. Suarez replied with relief and circled the room placing worksheets on each table. Once she arrived at Luxor's table Ms. Suarez paused as if to make a point that Luxor had no choice but to listen. "The subject of genealogy or family trees is the most interesting and fascinating aspect of life because it details our own history." She walked away to the front of the class barely fitting through the aisles. "After all who cares about what happened in the olden days, as many of you all would say," she said sarcastically.

Luxor internally groaned. This was bad. Very bad.

With no need to look over, Hunter fixated his gaze on her and warm prickles coursed through her again. He was responsible for distracting her, and Luxor didn't know why he would do it.

"You start at the bottom." Hunter pointed to the rectangle at the bottom of the paper. "And then work your way up to your parents, grandparents, etcetera."

"I know how a family tree works," Luxor snipped and wrote her name at the top of the page. At least it was something.

"Feisty, I like." He chuckled.

"Idiotic, I don't," she retorted.

A hole had been dug, wide and deep, and Luxor was firmly stuck in it, without a clue how to escape. It hit too close to home, to the one thing she never wanted to think about.

"Do you need help?"

"I'm fine," Luxor said flippantly. "Besides, I see you're as clueless as me." She cringed at her admission.

Hunter's face was impassive, his paper as blank as hers. "Or maybe I think families are a crock of shit."

Chills ran down Luxor's spine at his observation. Dealing with families, or the lack of them, was something she would always have to deal with. She wondered if his was as screwed up as hers but she doubted it.

Luxor blew a few stray hairs that had escaped from her ponytail, out from her eyes, and wiped her brow with the sleeve of her jumper. She tried her best to look like she was doing work.

Time ticked by, measuring every moment the hands moved, but it wasn't quick enough. At least that one horrible word; family, had finally shut Hunter up.

"You're hot," he leaned over and whispered.

"Excuse me?" Luxor wasn't sure if it was an observation or a compliment.

"You look hot," he repeated, "as if you're dying of thirst."

"I'm not," she lied, and turned her head to quickly lick her chapped lips.

Hunter slid an unopened bottle of water across to her. "Take it. I promise I don't have germs."

The bell rang and saved her from having to answer. Gathering her belongings in one big pile, Luxor shoved her notebooks and pens in her backpack, the couple of items that had fallen out she didn't bother to pick them up. She dashed for the door and knocked a few people in the process who cursed.

#############

Lunch would be a new experience for Luxor. Friends had always surrounded her, ones she had known since she was a young child, but now it was a different story. It was a strange being the loner, and the inadequacy didn't sit well. Unlike Verity, who preyed on the weak to make herself feel better, Luxor didn't humiliate or tease others, but she didn't pay much attention to them either, which was just as bad. Karma was a bitch.

She expected to see the cliques straight away, the cheerleaders and jocks, nerds, the outsiders, but instead the yard was devoid of anybody around.

Where was everybody?

"Ready for the tour?" Ayla snuck up behind her with a bounce in her step.

Luxor jumped and squealed, holding a hand on her heart. "Sure." She would have preferred to grab some lunch first but needing to know where everything else was more important.

Ayla pulled out a strap of blueberry liquorice from her beige shoulder bag, broke off a piece and wriggled it in front of her. "Want some?"

Luxor happily accepted. "Thanks."

The sweet liquorice melted in her mouth, and instantly she was transported back in time, to when she secretly lived on them. Meredith didn't care what Luxor ate, just as long as it wasn't junk, because she was too self-absorbed in her own life to provide proper food but at the same time refused to have a fat daughter. All Luxor wanted was to sit down with her parents and eat a home-cooked meal, even if it was a bowl piled high with brussels sprouts.

Ayla walked ahead towards the back of the school and returned back to the path which lead back to the gymnasium. "Do you like sports?"

"No. I'm totally un-co. I don't know how I'll survive Physical Education."

Luxor hated lying. She excelled at quite a few sports both in and out of school with track being her favourite. In her school transfer report which was sent over, it was advised she avoid it at all costs to prevent another "accident." It was strange the school was making her still do the subject. Maybe Principal Wright didn't understand the severity of the circumstance. Or he didn't care. Either way, this wouldn't end well.

"Pretty obvious. You bolted from there like it was on fire."

Luxor snorted and shoved more liquorice in her mouth. If only Ayla knew. In her case, fire and gymnasiums went hand in hand with each other.

"Okay, sports out. What about church?"

Before Luxor could answer, she was tugged along by the arm to the far left of the blocks. Up a gravel path, they travelled towards a church with a rock façade almost hidden by a cluster of trees. Although archaic, it had a charm attached to it with the sunshine beaming of its multi-coloured stained-glass windows.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Ayla beamed, her sky-blue eyes sparkling. She prodded Luxor forward with the tips of her fingertips.

An eruption of fire ignited within the pit of Luxor's stomach the moment she stepped on to the consecrated ground. And they definitely weren't hunger pains. Crouching over, she hobbled away from the church, not wanting to make her pain obvious. She threaded her fingers through her hair and pressed the burning sensation at the crown of her head, massaging it for a few seconds.

"I'm not religious. At all," she blurted out, feeling evil for saying it.

Ayla gave a small nod and a wan smile. It was obvious she was a devout believer. Her expression and eagerness were proof. If she was offended by Luxor's revelation, she covered it well.

It was only when she had gotten off the soil that the pain decreased. The further away from the church Luxor was, the better she felt.

In the distance four, white poles were erected on opposite sides of the field. The football field had luscious green grass and a track field surrounding the entire space. To the side, there was a long jump pit, and bleachers surrounding half the field. She wasn't able to absorb the beauty of the ground when she had been before.

Luxor walked up the aluminium steps of the bleachers and sat down. A group of girls and guys smoked beside them and when Ayla turned up her nose at the smell, they sneered and moved away.

"For a non-sporty person, you seem entranced," Ayla observed and plopped down beside her.

"I love to watch, there's so much energy coming off the field," she sighed as guys competed against each other in hurdles. She missed the anticipation of the whistle, the mindset she had to be in, and the adrenaline. "Do many people hang out here?"

"Only the athletes and cheerleaders, who to be honest only serve as their handbags in my opinion. Oh, and the outcasts." Ayla pulled out a small emery board from her purse, and filed her nails one at a time.

The atmosphere was peaceful and unlike the office or classroom; it wasn't claustrophobic. If Luxor was labelled an outcast for spending her time here, it wouldn't be such a bad thing.

"What group are you in?" Luxor asked. For the first time she realised instead of showing her around, Ayla could have been spending time with her friends.

"None really. You could say I'm in a special group." A small smile crossed Ayla's face.

"Yep, I know all about that."

"In that case, welcome to my group." Ayla jumped from her seat and skipped down to the bottom of the bleachers.

"That wasn't what I meant," Luxor called out, following her down. She had to fix this mistake before it grew.

"Too bad, no take backs, it is set in stone," she said with a stern expression. "How was History?"

"Boring and weird, I got told off for being a minute late."

Luxor filled her in all about Ms. Suarez and everything that happened in class as they crossed the yard. When it came to Hunter and how arrogant he was, she kept that to herself. The last thing she needed was for her to inform Principal Wright she already was having trouble. Luxor still didn't know what Ayla's role was.

Was her job as a guide over? Or did she have to report any problems new students had settling in?

Ayla laughed. "She's a stickler for punctuality. If you were any later, she would have locked you out, but not before sending you to detention. You would still have to submit the work though. With no help!"

"That's all I need, a hard ass teacher." She frowned. It was bad enough she wasn't a straight A student as it was.

"She's harmless. I like history. It's fascinating how the past creates the future," Ayla chirped with an overabundance of enthusiasm.

Luxor screwed up her face, she had enough history for the day. "You sound just like her. If you find it so fascinating why aren't you in that class, maybe it would suck less?"

"I'm a history buff, there wouldn't be anything to teach me." Ayla stopped mid-step and stiffened up, her bright smile disappearing.

"Hello, Luxor."

Hunter's husky tone sent a searing sensation throughout her body. Her stomach fluttered as if an explosion of butterflies had been let loose. Out in the sunshine, he was more gorgeous than she initially thought. If that was even possible. His eyes bore into hers, almost translucent like honey, which swirled and changed, with every move he made.

Look away. Don't stare. Look away. Don't stare.

"You're hard to track down. You left these behind in your marathon bolt for the door." He passed over her class schedule and water bottle.

Again, she rejected the water bottle. Who knows he probably spiked it or something, she thought.

"Thanks." Luxor avoided contact with him, folding the paper and slipping it into her back pocket.

Ayla tugged on Luxor's sleeve. For a moment, she had forgotten she was with her.

"Did you want to return back with me? I forgot my ummm, Spirituality book in the locker and I need it for home. Then I can show you the main privilege of this school," she said with an urgency.

"You could always borrow my copy of the Bible, it's a special edition," he said all too helpful. "I'm Hunter, by the way, Luxor's partner in History class." He thrust out his hand.

Ayla turned a ghastly shade of white. She rejected his hand, and Hunter let it drop and tucked it in his pocket.

Luxor viewed the strange interaction between them, both expressions opposite to each other. It was joy versus a fear like expression.

Why did Hunter deliberately go out of his way to antagonise strangers? And since when were they partners? For the next class, I would have to make sure I arrive early enough and took a seat next to anybody else to avoid his company.

"Let's go." Ayla grabbed a hold of Luxor's wrist, which began to annoy her. She shrugged her off and let her get a head start.

"Sure." Luxor shrugged her off and let her get a head start. Anything that was a privilege was a good thing, and so was moving away from Hunter. But he intrigued and made her feel wonderful sensations which was equally annoying. "Thanks."

He arched his eyebrows, not even containing his surprise. "For what?"

"Helping in class," Luxor replied, although what she wanted to add was, "even though you distracted me."

"Anytime." He shot her a sly grin, turned away, and shoved his hands into his jeans. "I'll take that as an I. O. U."

Luxor rolled her eyes. What jerk. The only thing he would receive from me would be a swift kick in the ass.

Luxor followed Ayla who was already a fair distance ahead, her dress billowing in the wind as a faint baby pink light emitted from her. As much as she wanted to, Luxor didn't look back for Hunter, she couldn't meet those eyes, or that smirk again. But a strong electric current surged through her, and she knew his eyes were fixated on her.