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I frowned at the boy, "Hey. If you eat my ice cream I eat yours." I leaned into his cone and took a taste. Yum. When I sat back up and the new flavor of ice cream in our mouths just melted, I caught Liam cheekily grin at me. "What," I asked, suspicious of the man. "We just had an indirect kiss," he let out casually, continuing to eat his cone. My eyes widened a little before I rolled them. "Whatever." _ "There!" I pointed up high, "We have to. You've been avoiding it all day." I was trying to get him to take me up to the Ferris Wheel. "Pleasee," I whined. It was getting late and all I wanted to do was sit at a high altitude and rest. "Roller coaster first before it closes," Liam argued, grabbing my wrist and dragging me the opposite direction. "Wait, Carter," I protested, "I can't-" I ended up being strapped down at the very front of the ride next to the boy I detested. "Liam," I started, turning to him, "I'm going to throw up my ice cream. You don't want to look like a polka-dotted alien do you?" "Is that my next disguise," he teased, giving me a smug smile before turning back to the front. "I'm not joking," I pushed, suddenly panicking as the intercom came over saying to keep our hands and feet inside the moving vehicle at all times throughout the ride. As the ride made its sharp turns, curves, and dips, I held onto my only food that had become upset due to the great amount of motion I had been forced into. After we got off, I tripped suddenly and ended up on the ground with a scrapped knee. "Great," I whined, pushing myself up, "Scrapped knee and bruised arms. And dead brain cells. Today's just not my day." "Hmm?" Liam chimed, waiting for me to get up. He held out a hand and I eyed it weirdly for a moment before accepting it. "Thanks," I let out tiredly, dusting my pants off. "Ferris Wheel?" Liam said softly, smiling amused at my unstable state. I glared at him playfully, "Now you want to?" We did go on it after a long wait in the line. I was getting tired and it didn't help that the sky was almost pitch black. Once we had gotten in, I leaned against the glass and watched outside quietly as our seat slowly rose higher and higher. The lights of the amusement rides and city street shone brightly up and illuminated the area below us. It was beautiful. My eyes slowly unfocused on the scene before me and they eventually closed for a light rest. It was peaceful and quiet all of a sudden. I could faintly hear the soft breathing of the boy sitting across me, but I didn't bother opening my eyes to check on him. "You asleep?" Liam commented calmly across from me. I let myself breathe out a few steady breaths before I softly replied, "Mm."

10| Just For Ice Cream
"Too bad I couldn't look nicer for you on our date, babe," I cooed slyly, sneaking a glance at the boy next to me for a reaction as we stood in line waiting for our ice creams. I was still in my midnight blue sweater and black leggings, but my hair was let down right now as I had taken off the black ribbon earlier. Aka, detention outfit. Liam cocked his eyebrows at me and rolled his eyes, "The cringe is real." I dropped my act and punched him on the arm, "I am a very good actor." "Uhuh mhmm," he hummed, moving up a few feet as the line became shorter, "As good as your art skills." This time it was my turn to raise my eyebrows. "Excuse you," I started, gaping in disbelief, "You did not just insult my drawing." "Eh," Liam responded uninterested. We reached our ice cream and both ordered. He got a plain chocolate ice cream on a cone while I got mint chocolate chip. When he reached to pay and one glance at the amount in his hand and I stopped him with my hand. "I'll pay for my own," I said, "I don't like being in debt with anyone." Liam stared at me for a split second before shrugging slightly and letting me pull out my own money. We eventually both finished paying for our sweets and went over to a bench to sit. "Usually on dates," Liam began, leaning back on the bench, "The boy pays." I took a tiny bite of my ice cream before replying, "Vhey?" The boy turned to me as he stared at me with his head slightly tilted, wanting me to repeat what I had said. I put up a finger as if to mean, give-me-a-sec-I'm-choking- on-ice-cream. "'Why?'" I repeated for him after I had swallowed the lump of cold ice cream that I had previously thought was a 'tiny bite.' Liam seemed to be suppressing a chuckle and only let out a quick amused scoff before saying, "Carlos never paid for you?" I mentally sighed at the name. "We never did anything fancy during dates," I answered truthfully, "Going out to practice shooting and watching the sun set was basically it." Liam eyed me curiously, "Are you serious?" "Do I look like I'm lying?" He finally let out a smug smile before turning away from me and eating his ice cream instead. "Might as well show you a good time before I kill you," he mumbled into his ice cream. "What," I asked matter-of-factly, my eyes closing as I ate my treat. "Nothing." "You sure? You said nothing?" "Yup." "Nothing like, 'show you a good time before I kill you?'" "I would never." A smile managed to appear on my face as I let out a small laugh. I covered it up as I pushed the ice cream on my lips and felt it slowly melt against my skin. "I want to try mint chocolate chip," he chimed after a short moment of silence. We both opened our eyes and turned to look at each other. "Wait-" Before I could finish he leaned closer to me and took a neat lick on the opposite side of my ice cream swirl.

I looked at Helene for a moment before she nodded and gestured for me to go ahead. My hands tucked the blanket away from her face and I was able to see the child's face for the first time. Almond brown, curly hair covered her upper head as her evergreen eyes stared widely back at me with a cheerful coo. "Cherish Glen," I said the baby's full name, hesitating a bit before gently cupping one side of her face, "She has her father's hair and her mother's eyes." I looked at the baby for a moment before snapping back to my senses, "Where would you hide her?" I turned to Helene, "You're an early mother. Not only that you're an agent. The baby's not safe." "I know," Helene replied softly, "That's why I needed my best friend with me. You were right. You're always there for me, but I've always taken it for granted. Please help me, Jamie." I silently sighed to myself and looked at her. "It's for the baby," I finally replied. "Can you keep her in your dorm for now?" Helene asked, "It's better the quicker she gets used to her surroundings. I'll most likely be assigned a room partner since I'm new and I can't hide Cherish with a stranger around." "Liam didn't get assigned one," I said, glancing at the boy. Liam shrugged. I turned back to Helene as she said, "I'm going to go find Carlos. I'll hand over the baby starting tomorrow. You still have my contact?" she asked me. "No." "Oh," she said, a little down, "You still remember it?" I sighed as I ran a hand through my brunette hair, "Of course." Helene managed a weak smile before she waved quietly goodbye as she excused herself along with her baby girl. Liam and I waited a few moments before we turned to look at each other. "You actually liked someone?" Liam asked casually, crossing his arms, "Was he like, Prince Charming too-" I frowned immediately as I eyed the boy, "Carter, can you not." "What," he stated dully, "Just collecting info on your type of man so that our little game could end faster." "What about you," I turned on him, "Haven't you ever liked someone? I know girls fly head over heels for you but has it ever been the other way around?" Liam let out a light smirk as his blue eyes stared deeply into mine, "That's a secret." Even with an expression as clear as day, I couldn't read what he was thinking. "We're out of school now," I suddenly said, "If you killed me no one would be watching. Forget the game. Come at me." Liam chuckled slightly, "Lennon, you're impatient. Besides, how could I come at you when I asked you out on a date. It's improper." I raised my eyebrows, "You're weird. When you can't kill me you try to, but when you can you refuse to." The boy tilted his head amused at me and shrugged slightly. I'm not going to lie, he looked really good with the lighting right now. The thin sun rays shining through the trees made him look golden. I caught myself before I stared at him too long and walked away, only to be stopped by his hands firmly around my smaller wrist. I turned around and pulled it away, "What do you want," I asked him. "Take a wild guess," he responded back. I sighed, "Carter, I'm not going on a date with you." "Just for ice cream," he persisted. "But-" "No ice cream?" he slightly whined, exaggerating a long sigh before releasing my wrist and turning around to leave. I'm not doing it. I'm not giving in. Who did he think he was? What kind of trickery was this- "Just for ice cream," I chimed, heading back towards the tree with a pace to collect my backpack before catching up to Liam. He had turned around and waited for me, watching my quick change in decision with an amused smirk on his face. "Just for ice cream," he restated, following casually behind me as my form walked briskly out of the woods and to my promised treat.

"Jamie-" "Don't say my name," I growled at the woman. The heat in my body was rising and I felt the urge to punch every tree in this area. "Have you ever considered how much it hurt me," I began, my body slightly shaking, "to have my best friend and my boyfriend fucking each other? I've been there for the both of you! Made time for him on dates, aided you in our missions? You even know about our relationship, Helene, my one and only relationship, and you had to take him? Why." Helene's eyes watered, "Jamie, I'm so sorry. I really loved him, but it was selfish of me, I know, I've told myself a thousand times it wasn't right but I- I didn't have the courage to tell you." I let out a tired breath, "It wasn't about telling me. It's about you doing it behind my back in the first place." Helene was finally crying, "I'm so sorr-" "I will never forgive you," I concluded softly, "No matter how glad I am to see you again." And it was all true. My mind and body hated her every guts. But my heart hurts at the sight of her and somewhere deep down, I just wanted to embrace my best friend and make things go back to the time when I didn't find out the truth. I glanced at the baby and my jaw tensed, "Why is she here? You could've left her at the corporation before you came here." "... You know I can't do that," Helene answered, her voice unstable, "If word got out that I had a baby with another R.U. agent, I would be out of the corporation. It's a rule." "And yet you made one anyway," I stated matter-of-factly, sitting up straight and crossing my arms. Helene bit her lips shut and glanced at the boy next to her for help. Liam sighed quietly and looked up at me. "I'll summarize what happened so far," He announced dully, "Your Axel sent Helene and Carlos to I.O Academy. Carlos is buying baby formula right now so he should be back later today-" "Baby formu-" "Shush, Lennon, don't interrupt me," he cut me off abruptly, "And, Helene and Carlos already know about me and Kai, thanks to your Axel. She tried to attack me when she first saw me but I took her baby and-" "You better not have hurt it," I exclaimed, finally understanding why he was the one holding the baby and not its mother. Liam stared up irritated at me, "Do you see it crying? Bleeding? Dead?" "Alright alright," I let out, hands up in defeat. Liam sighed out once before continuing, "She and Carlos are enrolling Monday. She just wanted to check out the school today and hopefully get to meet you. The announcement went on saying something about the woods being off-limits and I turned around to look and oh-wow, Miss Jamie Lennon was sitting in a tree." I nodded a little before turning to a tear-stained Helene. "What's her name," I carefully asked her. "Cherish," Helene replied, "She's two months old." My eyes softened a little. It was a beautiful name. I finally decided to come down. Once I was securely on ground again, I walked towards Liam

My brows furrowed when I realized the boy that once had his back to me had turned to my direction and was eyeing me with his blue eyes with an unreadable expression. I silently cursed. I hated it when I couldn't read his expressions. Since I was already caught, I decided to just head on over there and see what my partner's appearance means. I only got to shuffle a bit in my spot before I spotted Liam gesturing for Helene to walk with him towards the woods. I frowned a little as I could tell they wanted to go over to me, so I didn't move and stayed up in the tree. I heard the rustling of leaves and small crunches of sticks and twigs snapping lightly, marking their journey here. Eventually, I could see their identical black hairs emerging from the trees and in moments they were standing before me. Well, under me. Liam was holding a small object in his hand. My head tilted in confusion at it. "What is that," I asked, my eyes traveling up to meet his eyes. "Not 'that,' Jamie," Liam responded, holding the bundled thing covered in a soft hued blanket, "'her.'" My eyes widened as I glanced at Helene for the first time and then back at him. My brows furrowed into a deep frown, "Wait, wha-" "Jamie, it's not his baby," Helene spoke up quickly, biting her lips down. I haven't heard her voice in two years. I didn't know what to do. Should I smile and greet her, or should I hate and turn a cold shoulder? "Baby..." The strange word trailed off my lips as I would never have imagined I would ever need to say it. Helene stared up at me waiting, not sure how I would react. "Who." I stated lowly, my eyes blankly returning her softening ones. She looked away for a moment before replying to the ground instead. "... Carlos." My left hand balled into a fist that was out of sight of the both of them. Of course it was him. That sickening cheating bastard of a boyfriend. "She said she knew you and asked where you were," Liam came in casually, "I assumed she's a friend." I scoffed loudly. "I'm sorry," Helene piped, not averting her eyes away from me this time, "Jamie, I'm so sorry, I- really, please, it's been two yea-" I glared at the girl stuttering before me. She was so weak at this moment. I hated it. "I don't know her," I told Liam with a calm tone, ignoring and cutting off the girl below. Liam eyed me with raised eyebrows and a light smile, "Lennon, hear her out." "Why should I," I snapped, "She never bothered hearing me out. Heck, both her and her boyfriend can go Bleep themselves all they want. Make all the babies they want. I don't give a damn."

9| Glen Child

The weather was wonderful outside today. I was right. I didn't deserve to be locked up in a classroom when I did nothing wrong. And what was Daniel thinking. My hand ran swiftly through my hair once as I walked briskly out of I.O. Academy. I decided to not wander far from the school and just somewhere a little hidden off. My body unconsciously moved towards the deserted woods next to the school and I ended up placing my book bag on the ground and climbing a big oak tree. I sat at the very top by myself, enjoying the high and dangerous height I was at. From afar, I could spot some students still hanging around campus, being the teenagers they were. My eyes diverted away when I caught a couple kissing aggressively against the building's wall. My mind ran through the event from earlier today when Allison's boyfriend crashed his lips upon mine. It was a strange feeling. I didn't like it. I have concluded, I hate kissing or being kissed. Movies make it look so easy. Books make it flow so smoothly. And stories make it sound so exciting. Well, it wasn't what I had experienced. And that was my second kiss in my whole life. I sighed to myself as I slouched lower onto a well- supported branch and crossed my arms. I was bored. Like always. There's nothing to do. Now that Allison was nowhere to be found and I had the whole day to myself, I don't know what to do. What can I even do? I pouted silently to myself as I eyed the surrounding. Leaning against the tree trunk while still on the branch, my right hand came up slowly and pointed it at the back of a student's head from far away. The back was turned to me and there was no way he could have seen me. My ring finger and pinky folded in as my hand and fingers tightened their grip. My middle and pointer finger were aimed at the boy while my thumb was at a 90 degree angle. I waited for a second before the boy stopped shifting around with whoever he was with before I silently imitated a shot firing from my handgun. Bang. My eyes widened as my hand stopped dead in mid-air. The fingers suspended in the air immediately tensed up into a balled fist before I breathed out softly and my body relaxed. The boy had turned a bit as he was talking to a girl with black hair and blue ombré. Helene, echoed through my head as I eyed the two intensely. The other guy was not Carlos. Who was he? There was a thought that came to my mind but I pushed it away. There was no way. There were too many guys with natural hair colors. I couldn't tell. Though the hairstyle and posture was for sure 100% familiar. I just needed to see the eyes. A school announcement suddenly came on and said that all students still on campus were to refrain from entering the woods, which were at all times off-limits to every student at I.O Academy. My attention went away from the two and to myself sitting on the tree branch. I shrugged a little before my eyes went back.

Prologue
[I]Baellnar watched, as he always did. The hope in his eyes was polluted by sadness. In front of him was a swirling glass mirage. Inside it was her image trapped within a crystalline-barrier that would evaporate in the next few moments. He and Aagi could finally remove her from the isolated kingdom of Earth and bring her home. Aagi looked at him, a deep well of understanding within his eyes. Their knowing glance lasted for but a moment, until their attention turned back to the mirror. The transparent barrier that had isolated her from their protection. They could do nothing when he found her. They had to watch as he destroyed her family and stole her away from her home. He was a trickster and a fiend. He was Scelestra's 'dog', and did her biting and bidding without question. He held out his hand to Alyenna with the devil in his eyes as he offered her 'shelter' and 'love.' She was young, naive, and bereft; so, she took his hand and followed him to her thirteen-year isolation. It was time. Baellnar and Aagi could finally set her free. Baellnar's mouth twitched with pride as he watched her flee, once again, from Paul's house. He waited with tension writhing relentlessly in his veins, each second felt like a millennium. Baellnar's anxiety silently squeezed his heart, until finally, relief swept over him, Paul did not emerge from the house. The portal's image followed closely behind Alyenna as she fled through the forest. As the portal weakened he had been able to send more and more magic through to aid her. Fresh air filled her lungs and the northeastern wind pressed against her back. Pushing her forward and in the direction of the landing zone. He smiled with relief. The clarity of the picture brought him joy. It had been a while since Baellnar had been able to get a clear vision of Aly, but yesterday that had changed. He was not entirely sure what had caused the change; but, he was grateful it had happened. He also knew that she had something to do with it; because, despite The monster's constant neglect and abuse, her spirit never failed her. Good, hold on to that Aly. You will need it here. Aagi patted him on the back. He was always obnoxiously observant of those around him. Baellnar would try to hide his anxiety behind a stoic visage. A mask that Aagi never failed to see straight through. Aagi eyed his friend knowingly. "Not long now ya knife-eared mama's boy." The gruffness of his voice only added to the humor of his statement. Which in all actuality was a lame attempt to drive laughter out of him, but it worked regardless. Baellnar couldn't help the laughter that escaped him. The tension in the room had been insufferable, and as always, Aagi had a knack for ruining the serious nature of just about any situation. That apparently, included this one. Baellnar turned his attention back to the portal. The anxiety in his soul only shown by the twitch of his fingertips. Which he attributed to years of experience as a general for the rebellion. Baellnar had adopted a principle he called 'duck on water.' No matter how much he was working or how fast he needed to be pedaling. On the surface, he was relaxed. It was an art that gave his troops confidence when he had none. He used this principle so much It had become second nature to him. His attention was still hyper-focused on Alyenna's flight. "Come on girl, give us this one thing." The landing zone was three miles from the house. It was as close as they could get given the protections that Paul had somehow woven around the building. Despite Earth being barren of magic that trickster had managed to slip some through. Her foster family had done their best to keep her a secret. No one was naive enough to believe Scelestra had not found a way to Earth outside of the main portal. They had moved Aly around to different states, and school systems every couple of years. They had even done their best to keep her identity secret, even from her. They had succeeded; until her sixteenth year. The day she had begun to show her latent abilities was the day everyone had been dreading. The opening of the portal was still thirteen years away, and with magic being so rare on Earth, it did not take Paul much to detect it. It was impossible to keep magic hidden in the Earth Realm because humans there had lost the ability to wield it centuries ago. When he finally found her foster family he destroyed them, and then snaked his way into her life. Typical demon scum, he cursed inwardly as he noticed the fresh bruises on her visage. He smiled again. "The fates are smiling on us, my friend." Alyenna had no concept of how fortunate her timing was. Baellnar and Aagi had one shot and an exorbitantly finite period of time to bring her home. The portal would be open for only thirty minutes and then seal itself for another one hundred and fifty years and they would all be trapped in the bland world of Earth, and Tendaara would truly be lost. He felt his heart flutter as the glass of the portal evaporated and gave way to a dazzling mist. "It's time." He said softly. His eyes never left his charge's face. "Readeh or not Aly 'ere we come!" Aagi roared as he barreled through the portal. Once again laughter seized Baellnar as he ran after his friend. "Charge!" Baellnar roared his voice filled with amused sarcasm while he held his sword aloft and barreled through the portal. He felt the unfamiliar tingle of the magic around him for a split second and then he felt soft earth underneath his boots. He steeled himself fighting a spell of nausea that came with the transference and looked ahead. She was there in the clearing. Completely unaware of their arrival, a weathered book clutched tightly in her hands and she was yelling about the ending, again. Baellnar scanned the area. This moment had to be a perfect surprise. She did not know what she was and frankly neither did he, but she bested Paul frequently enough to make her dangerous. The current plan was to kidnap her. So he hoped for the best case scenario, that she did not see them coming. The concept of battling an angsty Aly was an alarming one. Baellnar's fears were quickly abated when Aagi took matters into his own much less delicate hands. The fiery- haired dwarf was in the process of surreptitiously sneaking up on her, the hilt of his ax at the ready. In one swift flick of his wrist, he struck her with the pommel and she collapsed on the ground. "Grab 'er!"[/i]
[A/N] Thank you for reading! I love feedback and comments they make my day! Get ready for an epic adventure filled with sword fights, demons, fairies, dragons, humor, love, and heartbreak!
[This section was built in after the original story was crafted. This story is not linear it is circular. So, please note that there will be a lot of mystery and unanswered questions in this chapter and the other early parts of this story, but it is on purpose. You will walk with Aly on this journey of self-discovery so you will be told clues as read as to who and what she really is as well as the other characters. You must read forward to have your questions answered.]

*WARNING* Story will start dark, but will lighten up in later
chapters! Also, this will not be your average cliche story!
Twists, turns, death and betrayal will be involved!

Welcome to a world filled with demons and dragons. Where
nothing is ever as it seems and trust is a fools luxury. Do
you think our world is unconnected? Are you so naive to
think that you are alone and that no one is watching?
In this world, there is a darkness, a deep and unrelenting
cruelty that can only be solved by those that choose to
move beyond it. This is no paltry romance. This is not the
story of betrothal or rebellious love. This is a story far more
real and far more unforgiving.
This is the story of people. Real people who will face the
unthinkable, and endure the unforgivable. They will do it all
to save people they do not know, for a cause and a war they
do not fully understand. Too long has Scelestra, the queen
of nightmares, been permitted to unleash her cruelty on
this defenseless world.
Nothing in this Tendaara is insignificant, nothing is
unplanned, everything has a purpose that brings darkness
or light. It has been 150 years since Eleanor died. 150 years
where our heroes have been patient and waiting. Waiting
for a girl who does not even know who she is. Waiting for a
girl who is trapped in her own nightmare. A girl that must
save herself to save the world.

About the story

Please be
advised of the following things:
--detailed descriptions that include epic fight scenes and
some romantic encounters. Though it is important to note
that this is not specifically a romance novel
--Several different demons and monsters.
--Some strong language but little to no profanity.
--This story is designed to make you think. I personally love
figuring things out as a book progresses so I like to do the
same for my readers. If you are looking for a standard easy
to predict plot you have come to the wrong place ;-) if you
want to laugh, cry, lose your breath, and be surprised you
have come to the right place.
Romance notes:
--These are real relationships. Not Alphas and their mates.
--These are not high school romances or petty dramas.

lumzybo:
Would you be happy if someone did this on ur thread?
Why are you like this?

:X

8| detention


Axel freaked out when he realized I had gotten detention
after two years of being a perfect student in school.
I only summarized it a bit through text though, still a bit
mad at him for going out of his way on planning to send me
unwanted backup.
Helene Strake. 17 years old. Position: On-and-off Spotter.
The girl with dark black hair and a blue ombré used to be
my partner.
A sniper team consisted of two positions: Sniper and
Spotter.
While we were partners, she'd be the one who helped me
set up the perfect shot by observing objectives.
Helene had a spotter scope that she'd use individually and
to avoid getting eye fatigue by staring at a target for too
long (hours or days on end), or just laying on our stomachs
for forever, we'd switch it up sometimes where I would be
the spotter and she the sniper.
Not only was she the observer, but she provided backup for
me when I needed it, carrying with her her own automatic
assault rifle.
The reason was because with my bolt-action rifle, I had to
load and chamber each round I fire, and after that clear the
shell casing.
Sniping was a two-person job. We were often, if not always,
independent from the rest of the team, and therefore had
to have a lot of trust in each other.
And this was where she failed her part and I never wanted
to see her again.
I let out a deep sigh as I changed into a midnight blue
sweater and black leggings.
My brunette hair was let down and it's natural wavy curls
gently swayed from side to side as I moved around my
room to gather my things.
Standing upright again once I had my slightly lighter
backpack on, I brushed back a piece of hair that fell in front
of my face.
I remembered how I used the black ribbon I found a few
days ago as a hair tie and I proceeded into my desk drawer
to pull it out and reuse it for the same purpose, ignoring
the faint metal smell coming off of it.
I looked around my room to check if I had forgotten
anything.
Nothing.
I turned back around to my door and opened it, closing it
after I had walked out and down the hallway.
Detention here I come.
_
Mrs. Reeling nodded at me as I entered her classroom this
Saturday morning.
While everyone else was out and having fun, I was stuck in
school during the weekends because of some rich jerk.
Whatever Allison planned to do this weekend, she had time
to do it alone for once without me trailing her.
I sighed and went to my seat before realizing someone else
was in the room.
I looked up at the big figure to find Daniel Odeon, aka
Allison's jock boyfriend, sitting casually in a desk as if he
was used to the routine.
He caught my eye and we stared at each other for a
moment before he spoke up.
"Jamie Lennon, was it," he said, cocking his eyebrows at
me.
It was exactly what Liam had said to me on the first day we
talked.
"Glad you remembered after two years of having classes
with you and your girlfriend," I responded, placing my
backpack down and taking out that assignment that I hadn't
done in class yesterday.
Daniel eyed me amused, "Woah, feisty. Were you always
like this?"
I sighed and turned my attention to the boy, "If I said no,
you honestly didn't even know of my existence, and if I said
yes, you never even noticed, so what's the point, Ordeon."
My pen was out and I began reading my assignment at the
top with the little monotone voice in my head.
"Wow, we're on last name basis now, Lennon?"
I looked up at the boy who I realized was still talking and
replied, "Can you not. Let's just stick with being classmates
who call each other by our first names."
"Yet you called me 'Ordeon,'" Daniel countered, leaning his
head atop one arm that was resting on his desk, "No one
has ever just called me by my last name."
I mentally sighed. It was an old habit. Back at the R.U., we
agents addressed each other by our last names all the time
and it was kind of hard to break that custom.
The R.U. heads, however, referred to us with our code
names.
I was Agent W; 'Double U'. UU= W. UU= two you -> two
me's. Two me's = Sniper Jamie and Student Jamie.
Tadah.
"Sorry," I piped, finally scribbling words down on my
worksheet.
Mrs. Reeling suddenly announced that she had to step out
to get some papers from the printing machine down the
hallway.
"Jamie, you're in charge," She quickly pointed before she
left the room.
I wanted to say, "Of what?" but it was too late.
Looking outside at the big window on the side of the room,
I saw how beautiful the day was and silently cursed the
Thomas kid for taking that away from me.
"You want to ditch detention?" Daniel's voice came through
my thoughts.
I snapped back to reality and glanced at the boy.
"No," I calmly answered, "I'm not like you. You can go on
and keep breaking the rules. I'll be here and have a bright
future."
It was a total lie. My future was no where bright in my
mind. If anything, it was dark and stained red.
"You're boring," Daniel scoffed, twirling a pencil between
his fingers as he leaned back in his chair.
"Thanks," I replied, gritting my teeth together, "Don't you
have any work to do right now?"
Daniel smirked and his chair landed flat on the ground
once again.
"I don't like this attitude you're giving me, Jamie," he
chimed quietly, pushing his chair back from his desk.
I stopped my pencil once I heard the screeching sound of
his chair scrapping against the classroom floor.
When I looked up, I saw the buff boy get up from his seat
and start walking slowly towards me.
My eyes slightly widened.
"Why are you coming over here?" I asked carefully, my
brows furrowing.
My body tensed up once I realized he had ignored me and
kept coming forward. Eventually, he was directly in front of
me, his hands slammed on my desk while his face became
leveled with mine.
I instantly leaned back and frowned at the boy.
"Do you know what personal space is, Ordeon," I snapped,
"You walked into my bubble. I had a bubble. And you
popped it."
Daniel scoffed, "What are we in, kindergarten?"
"Can you even spell that?" I jeered back, receiving a glare
as a result.
"You need to shut your mouth," Daniel spatted.
His eyes stared deep into my silvery ones that were once
overshadowed by my fake nerd glasses, "Let's see if you
can still spell after what happens next."
Seconds later I felt lips crashing aggressively against mine.
My eyes dilated abruptly as I tasted his slightly salty skin.
I managed to push away once and whipped out my
dominant hand.
The high pitched slap could be heard from a mile away and
I knew it would leave an obvious mark for a while for the
both of us.
His head jerked to the side due to the impact before soon
snapping back to my direction, hands now tightly grabbing
my shoulders, and began kissing me once more.
At the force he was kissing me, I was afraid of leaning back
and ultimately falling backwards on the cold ground.
His tongue made an appearance and I instantly refused any
of it from entering my mouth as I gave his chest a painful
shove.
Like I expected, my weak chair wobbled over and I was
suspended in mid-air for a split second (that sweet moment
when the two back legs of your chair are balanced so it
doesn't topple forward or backwards) before it crashed
down loudly onto the ground.
I, out of instincts, had turned my body parallel to the floor
and quickly rolled on my side to save my fall.
No matter, my head and arms still hit the hard ground and
I was sure to have a few bruises.
I waited until my head stopped spinning before I stood
myself up and looked at the smirking jerk.
"That was a kiss," I interrupted whatever he was thinking in
his head, "K-S-S."
Daniel suddenly raised his eyebrows as he wiped at his
mouth slowly, "Are you dumb? Where's the 'i'? I can't
believe you actually can't-"
"No, Daniel," I said his first name for the first time, "There
is no 'i,'" I emphasized, "I, didn't want that kiss. I, wasn't the
one doing the kissing. Therefore, I, am not part of the kiss.
Do you understand now, you rich bitch of a jerk?"
I eyed him irritated as I began wiping my own mouth with
my sleeve disgustingly.
"Why did you stop," he changed the topic, crossing his arms
as he sat on my desk, "You know you wanted it."
"What the hell, Daniel," I exclaimed, my hand coming down
from my mouth, "You have a girlfriend who gives you free
tongue massages. Call her up this weekend instead of being
an eating machine and taking advantage of other girls."
Daniel cocked his eyebrows at me once again and let out a
scoff in disbelief before he replied, "You're the first girl I've
kissed besides my girlfriend. Be grateful."
"For what," I said, crossing my arms as well and frowning at
the boy, "Giving me saliva? Vacuuming my lips? Killing my
brain cells?"
Before he could respond, we heard the footsteps of our
teacher coming back down the hall and towards the
classroom.
With one glance at each other, we quickly rushed to our
own seats. Daniel had hopped down and sprinted to his
desk on the other side of the room with his athletic, long
legs, while I forced my pained body to walk a few feet
forward to my own desk.
We made it in time for Mrs. Reeling to enter the class and
she gave both of us a quiet stare before freezing as she
examined Daniel's face from afar.
"Are you blushing, Daniel?" she asked obliviously, going
over to her desk to place down the stack of papers she had
gone to retrieve.
I bent my head down so that my hair covered my face and
scribbled some words down on my assignment.
I prayed and prayed and prayed in the few milliseconds
that Daniel took to speak.
He finally responded to our teacher and said, "No, Mrs.
Reeling. Jamie slapped me hard across my face while you
were gone."
I silently cursed at the brown haired boy under my breath
as my pencil moved quicker on my paper.
"She what," my teacher exclaimed panicked, rushing over
to check the state of her student, which of whom has
influential parents that could potentially fire her for letting
their son get hurt.
You know what happens next.
"Okay, this time I did slap him but-" I began after my
teacher had spun around and looked at me for answers.
Her eyes widened to the point where I was afraid it was
going to pop out of its sockets.
"Jamie!" she exclaimed, "You really laid your hands on
him?"
I glared at the teacher, "Why don't you let me finish? You
always say that to us in class, but I guess it honestly means
nothing to you."
My teacher was taken aback as she pursed her lips closed
and guiltily waited for me to continue.
I sighed as I pointed to Daniel, "He kissed me by force.
That's not allowed."
"Students kiss all the time," Mrs. Reeling tried reasoning.
"BY FORCE," I practically shout in her face, "Do you defend
every student in this academy besides me? Because I'm
poor? Because I'm ugly? Tell me."
Daniel watched the scene amused from the side as he let
out a small laugh in the background.
I spun around and faced him, "You, shut up."
He arched his eyebrows and closed his mouth upon
hearing my low growl.
"Jamie, that's enough," my teacher cut in.
"Yes, it is," I answered, picking up my backpack and getting
up, "My detention is up. I finished my assignment. And I've
been here long enough. I think we're going to have a
problem if you don't let me out, now."
I nodded her goodbye and didn't even give Daniel a glance
as I walked out of the classroom.My body tensed up once I realized he had ignored me and
kept coming forward. Eventually, he was directly in front of
me, his hands slammed on my desk while his face became
leveled with mine.
I instantly leaned back and frowned at the boy.
"Do you know what personal space is, Ordeon," I snapped,
"You walked into my bubble. I had a bubble. And you
popped it."
Daniel scoffed, "What are we in, kindergarten?"
"Can you even spell that?" I jeered back, receiving a glare
as a result.
"You need to shut your mouth," Daniel spatted.
His eyes stared deep into my silvery ones that were once
overshadowed by my fake nerd glasses, "Let's see if you
can still spell after what happens next."
Seconds later I felt lips crashing aggressively against mine.
My eyes dilated abruptly as I tasted his slightly salty skin.
I managed to push away once and whipped out my
dominant hand.
The high pitched slap could be heard from a mile away and
I knew it would leave an obvious mark for a while for the
both of us.
His head jerked to the side due to the impact before soon
snapping back to my direction, hands now tightly grabbing
my shoulders, and began kissing me once more.
At the force he was kissing me, I was afraid of leaning back
and ultimately falling backwards on the cold ground.
His tongue made an appearance and I instantly refused any
of it from entering my mouth as I gave his chest a painful
shove.
Like I expected, my weak chair wobbled over and I was
suspended in mid-air for a split second (that sweet moment
when the two back legs of your chair are balanced so it
doesn't topple forward or backwards) before it crashed
down loudly onto the ground.
I, out of instincts, had turned my body parallel to the floor
and quickly rolled on my side to save my fall.
No matter, my head and arms still hit the hard ground and
I was sure to have a few bruises.
I waited until my head stopped spinning before I stood
myself up and looked at the smirking jerk.
"That was a kiss," I interrupted whatever he was thinking in
his head, "K-S-S."
Daniel suddenly raised his eyebrows as he wiped at his
mouth slowly, "Are you dumb? Where's the 'i'? I can't
believe you actually can't-"
"No, Daniel," I said his first name for the first time, "There
is no 'i,'" I emphasized, "I, didn't want that kiss. I, wasn't the
one doing the kissing. Therefore, I, am not part of the kiss.
Do you understand now, you rich bitch of a jerk?"
I eyed him irritated as I began wiping my own mouth with
my sleeve disgustingly.
"Why did you stop," he changed the topic, crossing his arms
as he sat on my desk, "You know you wanted it."
"What the hell, Daniel," I exclaimed, my hand coming down
from my mouth, "You have a girlfriend who gives you free
tongue massages. Call her up this weekend instead of being
an eating machine and taking advantage of other girls."
Daniel cocked his eyebrows at me once again and let out a
scoff in disbelief before he replied, "You're the first girl I've
kissed besides my girlfriend. Be grateful."
"For what," I said, crossing my arms as well and frowning at
the boy, "Giving me saliva? Vacuuming my lips? Killing my
brain cells?"
Before he could respond, we heard the footsteps of our
teacher coming back down the hall and towards the
classroom.
With one glance at each other, we quickly rushed to our
own seats. Daniel had hopped down and sprinted to his
desk on the other side of the room with his athletic, long
legs, while I forced my pained body to walk a few feet
forward to my own desk.
We made it in time for Mrs. Reeling to enter the class and
she gave both of us a quiet stare before freezing as she
examined Daniel's face from afar.
"Are you blushing, Daniel?" she asked obliviously, going
over to her desk to place down the stack of papers she had
gone to retrieve.
I bent my head down so that my hair covered my face and
scribbled some words down on my assignment.
I prayed and prayed and prayed in the few milliseconds
that Daniel took to speak.
He finally responded to our teacher and said, "No, Mrs.
Reeling. Jamie slapped me hard across my face while you
were gone."
I silently cursed at the brown haired boy under my breath
as my pencil moved quicker on my paper.
"She what," my teacher exclaimed panicked, rushing over
to check the state of her student, which of whom has
influential parents that could potentially fire her for letting
their son get hurt.
You know what happens next.
"Okay, this time I did slap him but-" I began after my
teacher had spun around and looked at me for answers.
Her eyes widened to the point where I was afraid it was
going to pop out of its sockets.
"Jamie!" she exclaimed, "You really laid your hands on
him?"
I glared at the teacher, "Why don't you let me finish? You
always say that to us in class, but I guess it honestly means
nothing to you."
My teacher was taken aback as she pursed her lips closed
and guiltily waited for me to continue.
I sighed as I pointed to Daniel, "He kissed me by force.
That's not allowed."
"Students kiss all the time," Mrs. Reeling tried reasoning.
"BY FORCE," I practically shout in her face, "Do you defend
every student in this academy besides me? Because I'm
poor? Because I'm ugly? Tell me."
Daniel watched the scene amused from the side as he let
out a small laugh in the background.
I spun around and faced him, "You, shut up."
He arched his eyebrows and closed his mouth upon
hearing my low growl.
"Jamie, that's enough," my teacher cut in.
"Yes, it is," I answered, picking up my backpack and getting
up, "My detention is up. I finished my assignment. And I've
been here long enough. I think we're going to have a
problem if you don't let me out, now."
I nodded her goodbye and didn't even give Daniel a glance
as I walked out of the classroom.

Allison wouldn't in a million years have guessed I was a secret agent unless I'm dressed up in my suit and have a gun pointed at her. No one dared touch me or make fun of me the rest of the day, at least directly to my face. _ Math was peaceful and I headed out to the roof once again when lunch came. There was strawberry milk today and I was so happy that I took two. As I set my backpack down on the roof, I felt the nice breeze flowing past me before I made my round around the roof to check for humans. I jumped back when I saw two pairs of blue eyes stare back at me from the other side. "Hey, kitten," Kai let out, closing his eyes as he had headphones in his ears and was resting against the wall. "Kai," I let out a breath, eyes widening slightly. "I'm here too, princess," Liam murmurs tiredly. I look down to see the boy with black hair laying on Kai's lap, taking a nap as well. "Um," I started, looking around for anymore nappers on the roof, "Do you two always do this?" "You mean being together or sleeping together," Kai asked playfully, opening one eye with a light smirk on his face. "Both," I answered truthfully, "Actually... maybe it's better off if I didn't know." "How innocent," Liam commented, shifting a bit into a different sleeping position. I eyed the two weirdly for a moment before the thought of killing them sprung into my mind. It was short-liven, however. I was soon reminded with the fact that I was outnumbered. "Thanks for, um," I started again, pushing my hair behind one ear, "yesterday's incident, Kai." Kai opened his eyes and calmly stared up at me with his faded blue ones, "Hmm? I didn't do anything." I rolled my eyes, "You don't have to hide that you're the janitor anymore." "Did she just call me a janitor," Kai asked the boy laying on him, to which the boy nodded slowly with his eyes still closed. "I was just cleaning up trash. I'm a very clean man," Kai responded eventually. "Good husband material," I chimed in. "You're forgetting I'm an assassin," he pointed out right after. "I didn't," I said truthfully, "If that's the case then you're forgetting I'm a sniper. And Liam and I are secret agents undercover. We're all doing that dirty business that normal people would only see in movies or read in books. But, underneath all of that, we're still human. We still are teenagers. And I'm a girl under my act, and you are boys." Kai watched me curiously and smirked after hearing what I said. "You're cute," he commented. My mouth snapped closed. Liam chuckled as he slowly sat himself up and leaned on the wall behind him, "Don't go taking my girl." "Since when was she yours," Kai stated calmly back, glancing at Liam. Liam smiled and stared up at me, his expression turning into a smug smile, "It's just like you said. You're a girl and I'm a boy. It's easy to manipulate each other if one of us falls in love." I was getting tired of him saying that. No way in hell would I allow myself to fall for a man like him. We were enemies. We were out for each other. We had different goals. "Okay," I spoke up, getting the two boy's attention, "Let's say I do fall in love. What will you do?" "You already know the answer to that, Jamie," Liam replied dully, his eyes closing as he rested his head back. I nodded, "As expected. But don't think you won't be facing any obstacles, Carter. Who knows, if you don't watch yourself you might fall for me." That got his attention and his eyes slowly opened, his eyes meeting my dead serious ones. Kai was listening silently from the side. "Two can play this game, sweetie," I remarked, smirking into the boy's eyes, "We've pretended to be classmates. We can pretend and gain each other's love. Whoever lets their guard down dies first, simple." "Mhm," Kai muttered, looking between the two of us with an amused expression written on his face, "This is getting interesting."

Another hand spun me around, forcing my head to jerk up. I looked up at Thomas and could see his friends were watching me carefully. Remembering that my face was basically exposed more, I jerked my face away. Bad idea. The boy grabbed my chin and pulled it back around. "What do you want," I asked, disgusted at him for touching me like I was an object. Because of him and his friends, I had detention. Thomas stared at me with slightly wide eyes before saying, "Just wanted to see your beautiful face after the teacher gave you detention, lowlife." "Have you been blessed yet?" I asked, a smug look appearing on my face, "My eyes are glaring daggers into your soul, but you're too blinded to see that, Thomas." My sudden response stopped everyone dead cold and they all eyed me with confused and awe-stricken looks. My eyes darted towards Allison for the first time today and realized she and her group of friends were watching the conversation now as well. Great. So much for not drawing attention to myself. "You-" Thomas starts. I glared at him, "I've had enough of your bullshit." I pushed his hand away and twisted it painfully into another direction, to which the boy let out a muffled grunt. "Listen, you good-for-nothing rich boy," I growled next to him, my eyes burning a hole into him, "You touch me again and the last thing you'll see is my fist slamming your head down on concrete." He lunged for my face and I leaned back avoiding it. His hands scratched at air before it went down and caught my braids, pulling on them. I was able to arch back more and made him release me, only to realize that he had managed to pull my hair bands out and now my full long, wavy hair whipped out and gently cascaded down my back and shoulders. I wasn't aware of the new looks that were now directed towards me before one of Thomas's friend uttered, "Y-you look-" I had snapped to his direction and stated, "You can shut it with the insults or I can push them down your esophagus and you can have fun pooping it out of your anus." I looked around at the expressions my way and was satisfied to see that everyone was surprised and taken aback for once. With a smirk, I turned around in my seat and went back to my sleeping position, head resting lightly on my folded arms. Allison and her group of friends were gossiping especially loudly about me but I tuned them out. I didn't care anymore. They don't even know who I was, even if I literally just exposed my real self and my real looks. The only reason I was hiding it was for Allison and Liam. Liam and Kai already knew the real me so it didn't matter

Double-checking my room for anything suspicious, I finally went to bed upon discovering nothing. _ I had gotten to class a bit late that morning when I forgot about my broken glasses and kept trying to look for it. Sure enough, the outfit I'd chosen was repelling a lot of people who didn't care about being near me before. I entered Mrs. Reeling's classroom, only to be stopped by the devil itself. I frowned slightly as I asked her politely, "Mrs. Reeling?" She eyed me with a stern expression and glanced back at the class before saying, "Jamie, you have detention this Saturday." My confused mind started running through the possible things that I could've done to deserve a detention as my face looked startled. "What-" "Thomas and the whole class said that you hurt him in the hallways yesterday," my teacher continued. I looked up at her with a confused expression, "And you believe them?" I asked timidly. Mrs. Reeling nodded slowly and sighed so that only I could see. "I trust you, Jamie," she whispered quietly down to me, "But their mothers and fathers are big influential people. I could be fired if one of them ordered me out of this academy." "Still," I pressed, listening to her explain a lousy excuse in disbelief, "You can't just give out detentions for no reason. It's not fair and it defeats the purpose of you being a teacher if you can't even follow the school rules." I was mad, alright. It wasn't fair and I hadn't done anything wrong. If they'd just look at the security cameras and carried this out like adults rather than giving in to a bunch of douchebags, I'd be more forgiving. I hadn't noticed the surprised look on my teacher's face as I walked passed her without another glance and headed towards my seat. Had I noticed, I would've been able to realize that I had given my act away slightly. Though I didn't really care anymore. Even if I was the nerd Jamie, I'd still be pretty mad if I was getting detention for no reason. I didn't look at anyone when I got to my seat and placed my head down on my folded arms, which were resting on the cold wooden desk. We had a worksheet to do but I refused to do it. Besides, I had all detention to complete that junk. Not caring about anything and just closing my eyes for rest, maybe even sleep throughout the whole class, I was startled when someone tapped me. "What do you want," I mumbled out irritated, not bothering to move. "Check who you're talking to before talking to them, Jamie," Liam let out calmly, "Your act's weak right now." "I don't need to. No one else touches me anyway. If Thomas does need me he pokes. Sometimes, I just want to poke his eyeballs out and see how he likes it."

"If those small boobs of yours are considered amazing, then of cour-" "I will shoot you, Carter," I warned loudly, tilting away from the boy so that he couldn't see my chest. My boobs were fine. I don't know what he was taking about. "Joking," he said lightly, smiling up at me. "I really hate you, you know that," I stated, looking into his bright blue eyes. "Let's go on a date," Liam said suddenly. I raised my eyebrows at the boy as my arms automatically crossed and I shifted my weight onto one leg. "Excuse you?" "Let's go on a date," Liam repeated. I stared at the boy in disbelief, "What makes you think I would do that?" "The day after tomorrow is the weekends. We're off. You haven't gone anywhere have you?" He was dead right. The weekends were coming. And every weekend, I followed Allison. I never had time to go anywhere by myself for two years. But I couldn't stop now. Not with two assassins entering the scene. "No thank you," I popped, "I have plans." "Like what," he asked bluntly. I watched him eye me as if he knew the answer already. "None of your business," I responded, "Now when are you going to leave?" Liam's expression was unreadable as he glanced at the clock on my table, "Probably soon." "Now," I stated, "The door's that way." I pointed to the exit as I watched the man. He sighed before pushing himself up off the bed. Now that he was standing upright, he was the bigger and taller person in the room. I didn't flinch when he walked passed me and his thin, white t-shirt brushed gently across my exposed arm. "Be careful from now on," he suddenly said quietly, opening the door, "You may be a nerd, but don't let those boys lay a finger on you. Only I'm allowed to." I turned around and before I could utter any words, he had left. My eyes lingered on the closed door for a few seconds after Liam had left before I snapped out of my thoughts and frowned. I really couldn't tell what would come out next from the boy's mouth. He was full of secrets. My head played back the scene where he had entered my room and we had fought to the point where we causally talked like we were friends. It felt strange thinking about it and I decided to just fall asleep and forget it. I went to lock my door, even though the boy could come in anytime again and the lock wouldn't provide much protection.

"Hey," he popped casually, "Mind getting off me, princess?" I glared at him for calling me those generic pet names for couples and children before releasing his arms and turning to my side to turn on the lamp on my table. The small light illuminated the room dimly, but it was just enough for both Liam and I to make each other out. He watched me silently move before I looked over at him with a questioning look. "What do you think you're doing," I said calmly, eyeing him. Liam shrugged slightly, "Kill you." "Way to be blunt, Carter." He ran a hand through his black hair and I had to shut my mind off for being tempted to think up compliments for him. "You could've chosen a better place," I lectured, "I have an advantage in this situation since I know my room in the dark." Liam let out a small sigh and laid back down on my bed, arms lifting his head up underneath. "It was worth a try. You did it too." "I would've succeeded if Kai wasn't there." "Not too sure about that," Liam stated, closing his eyes, "Nice room." I raised my eyebrows at the boy, "Hardly. I barely did anything to it. My plans were to leave as soon as possible so I hadn't exactly unpacked a lot-" "I meant the aroma in here," he cuts in quietly, "You smell nice." I glared slightly at Liam, "You're a pervert." I glanced around my room once before looking back at him, "How'd you entered?" "Cause I knew your password and I disabled your alarm. Nice password by the way." I sighed loudly and silently cursed the school for not taking care of their students' private info more. I mean, I was grateful for it because I got information on Liam, but my info was unnecessary. "Kai doesn't know does he," I asked tiredly, "The last thing I'd want right now is for him to come in for a sleepover as well." Liam smirked at me as he slowly sat himself up. "Only I know." "Great. Do me a favor and keep it that way." I was about to turn on all the lights before Liam stopped me and said it was better off. I also agreed. Don't want anyone noticing I was up, even if no one was supposed to be up anyway. I caught Liam looking at me. More specifically, my body. My leg flew up before it was stopped by his left arm and he released it, my leg going back down as I glared at the boy. "Stop looking at me," I snapped, standing up straight again. Liam looked up at me from the bed and tilted his head, "Can't help it. You look different at night." "Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?" I asked dulling, pushing back a strand of hair that fell in front of my face while I was about to kick Liam's face for being a pervert.

7|Two can play this game

• A bit of language, You have been warned • •___•____•____•____•____•____•___•___• I refused to call for a certain someone's help as I tried to fix my fake, broken glasses. I didn't have the right tools and just ended up gluing the broken glasses on with a school glue stick. Frustrated, I dropped everything and banged my head onto my work desk. It was a bad decision because now I'd have a lump on my forehead. Good thing I had side bangs, though. I had finished my homework already and the only thing left for me to do was repair my spectacles, but I couldn't, and it makes me feel pathetic. How was I supposed to hide my face with just turning my hair into braids? I'll just wear something super ugly tomorrow to make up for it. Hopefully it makes people want to stay away and not look directly at my exposed face. Picking out my outfit, I examined my bright, yellow t-shirt with baggy jeans. "Looks good," I murmured, rubbing the bottom of my chin as if I was in deep thought, which I was. I myself was wearing a red tank top and black sweatpants with my hair let down. I pushed back my hair behind my left ear and glanced back at my work desk before turning off all the lights and going to the bathroom to wash up. As I brushed my hair, I heard a small ruffling sound. My hands slowed down its pace and I stared deeper into my mirror to catch a glimpse of whatever it was. The light reflected off nothing. I went back to brushing and finally finished. As I placed the brush down, I heard the sound again and I turned around immediately, punching the lights off. It was completely dark around me but I could tell there was someone in the room. I didn't need the lights anyway. It was my room. I knew where everything was. I heard breathing coming from near my bed and I darted forward. Whoever was there moved back so that my bed let out a small creak as they jumped off with a thud and circled around it. I assumed it was a guy from the low sounds coming from him and predicted the first move was a punch to the face. Because why not. Luckily, I guessed correct and ducked, lunging forward from the side and ending up behind the person. I violently kicked the man on the back and he stumbled forward, grunting a bit as he spun on his heels and charged for me. I'd say about ten minutes of fist and feet exchanging happened before I was able to pin whoever it was on my bed when I just so happened to trip him just moments earlier. He was a man alright. I had difficulty holding him down because I could tell a woman's body wasn't usually this big and buff. Suddenly, the man talked, "Okay. I give, Jamie." I frowned instantly and tightened my grip around his wrists as my body hovered over his. "Liam?" I asked, staring at what I assumed was an outline of his head.

Can't help it if I was taught to be observant during training. Forgetting my act for a split second, I dodged the attack by ducking. I'm a little rusty on one-on-one fights, but that doesn't mean a few minutes of practice wouldn't bring out the majority of my skills. Before I could turn around and do something unbelievable, someone stuck a gigantic, fat broom across the floor of the hallway, which made the area in front of me slippery and ultimately made whoever was out for me fall face-flat onto the hard ground. Everyone turned to see the janitor in a hooded cloak, apologizing lightly before pushing his supply crate away, whistling under his breath. I, for one, stared in awe at the well-hidden blonde-haired boy I knew was underneath that cloak. Before the people around me could make sense of the situation, I hurriedly glanced at the scene and left for math class. _ I scanned the cafeteria for Allison once I was there, but she wasn't present in there as well. She must have been sick today. Either that or she was ditching class, which I doubt because all her friends are in class and what could she do by herself? Girls like her were nobodies by themselves. All they could do was stay cool and give themself self-praise. Going to the usual milk crate to pick up my strawberry milk, I was disappointed when all I saw was an empty crate. No strawberry milk. Slightly pouting to myself, I reached for a chocolate one instead and slowly trudged outside. _ As I made my way up I thought, I've gone so many days without eating proper meals. It's true, but I'd rather not eat with the rest of them back in the building if I could avoid it. Cafeteria food wasn't that good anyway. Reaching the roof, I found the weather today surprisingly nice and decided to make my usual round around the top. I tossed my backpack down in the usual place along with my broken glasses and the two small bands that tied the ends of my braids. I ruffled my hair out and let the air blow gusts of wind through the strands to straighten it out and match my natural curls. I was able to relax when I found that neither Liam or Kai was on the roof. A smile formed on my face as I stood there with my eyes closed for a minute or two. Sometimes, it felt good to just do nothing and rest for a bit. Suddenly, a ring from my backpack made me open my eyes and turn to it, realizing after the first ring was over that someone was trying to call me. "Jamie," Axel's voice came through my device. "Well, hello to you too," I commented quietly, listening to the boy talk. Axel continued, "So what now? You know about them and they know about you. How's this 'Allison Business' going to work?" I replied, "Simple. I don't let them hurt her." "You're outnumbered, Jamie," Axel stated, "No matter how good you are, there are now two grown men that can fight after you if you get in their way." "Are you worried about me," I asked, a playful smile forming on my lips. "No." I rolled my eyes, "You, mister, are no fun." Axel sighed, "Jamie, focus." "I am," I pouted. "Do you need backup?" I frowned as my hand tightened around my phone. "What backup? I don't have anyone." Axel waited a moment before he said, "Jamie, two years doesn't erase her forever from your memory." "It does." "Jamie." I sighed and rolled my eyes, "I don't want her anywhere near me." "You're still mad at her?" "Excuse you?" I exclaimed, staring at my phone in disbelief, "I don't remember her saying sorry. After what she did she can stay the hell away from me. I went solo just for that reason." "I understand. I dealt with Carlos already." "Don't even speak his fucking name," I snapped lowly, the heat in my body rising, "I don't even care if he fell off of a building and died." "You are one harsh woman." "Thanks." "I'll talk to the R.U. about it," Axel concluded shortly, "You need backup." I glared at the phone, "Axel, I swear to god listen to me, don't you dare-" He hung up. At this moment, I just wanted to punch somebody. I wanted to destroy something. Kill something. My mind raced through my weapons that were hidden in my backpack and I had to restrain myself from reaching in there and take them out. I never wanted to see those two again. Ever. Carlos and Helene. They can stay the Bleep away from me. I'll shoot them if they come.

Class was ending and I was about to get up and leave when a big shadow fell upon me. Looking up, I was face-to-face with Kayla and her followers. "Can I help you," I asked timidly, making sure to look at all of them so that I could haunt their asses in the afterlife. "Is this... yours," Kayla began, showcasing my broken glasses. You betcha it is. Great. Time to repair some fake glasses. "Y-yes," I answered, reaching to get it. Someone slapped my hand away and I had to restrain every muscle in my arms to not straight out punch the boy with my full strength. As a sniper, the only thing close to humans near me were bullets whizzing pass my ears. Other than that, I let the agents in the assault division handle the pests running around with pistols in their hands. Kayla found amusement in twirling my spectacles a few harsh rounds before tossing it to me. My weak self clumsily caught it and placed it back onto my face. "You know, maybe breaking your glasses is a good thing," Kayla starts, "Now you can get rid of that ugly thing off your face. Might make it look better." I mentally rolled my eyes at the girl. I couldn't even care about half of my looks as much as she does hers. And I don't need anyone to look at me. If they did, it'd be the last thing they saw before I take my aim and bam, they're flat against the ground, a red stain overtaking their body and the area they occupy. I just nodded quickly and looked back to my bag as I continued packing up my books. Liam had already left as I headed out the door. I mentally cursed at the boy as I walked down the hall. He didn't even feel pity? Couldn't even save me? I mean, whatever happened to us being 'buddies?' At least, the pretend us. The real us were ready to slit each other's throats if we were alone. Fixing my glasses again, as it was now difficult to keep it on my face, I froze as a big hand grabbed my shoulders and spun me around. Before I could even process the situation, I sensed a fist making its way to my head. First, I noticed how no words were said to me as I was being directed to turn around, making me conclude it was about to be physical communication rather than a verbal one. Second, if they were to talk to me, the hand would have kept me coming forward to the person I would have then faced as it would cause me to be closer with the intimidator and cower back. Third, what actually happened was after they turned me around, their hand placed force on my shoulders to keep a certain distance. Fourth, the reason is so that whatever they planned to do, it would have enough time to build up its speed and hit. Fifth, in conclusion, I was about to be punched.

Was she sick? As I glanced at her friends, who went on casually with their day, I saw Liam had done the same. While talking to one of her friends, Kayla spotted Liam looking in her direction and she happily turned to face him, beginning a conversation with the boy. I smirked to myself for the boy's misfortunes as he had to halt his search and pick up his fake act again. Mrs. Reeling began passing back our papers from two days previous (the one where I gave false answers to the group of boys behind me). Of course, I had perfect marks. The boys weren't so luck- Poke. My eyes twitched before I turned around to the same boy that had first dared to stab me with a writing utensil. "Hey, lowlife," came his irritated voice. Huh? What was this? Was he seriously going to... argue with me about his marks...? "Y-yes?" I piped, becoming small. "What did you get for #28?" There the kid goes. "A." "Is that so," he continued, his eyebrows twitching, "I can see three digits written big on the top of your paper. You got a 100?" I looked down at what he talked about, "Y-yes..." "How is that possible if you got A for 28 then? Unless the teacher graded wrong," he growled, shoving the paper into my face. I tilted back. Not because I was scared of him, but because I was scared of his paper. Paper cuts hurt, okay. "You nerds think you could mess with me just because you have high grades?" Well, yes. "N-no," I stammered, fixing my glasses. The boy became angry and reached for my face. I had to control myself as he grabbed aggressively for my glasses and threw it across the classroom floor. I let out one big, startled breath as I eyed the direction that the glasses flew in. Allison's group of friends found the glasses next to them and picked it up, examining it with a disgusted look planted on their faces. They're just glasses, geez. They might be fake for me, but even then I don't find them weird. "P-please," I started, turning back to the boy and looking somewhere around him and not directly in his eyes, "I c- can't see without my g-glasses." The boy snickered and shrugged, turning to his group of friends for a reaction. They matched his face and all started cackling like chickens. I caught a glance of Liam while I was turning back to the front, pretending to give up. To my surprise, he was watching me with an unreadable expression on his face. I still managed to do my work for the class, however. After all, my true eyesight was better than everyone in this room. Sucks for them.

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Liam shrugged as he stared at me with a blank expression, "Since the first day I was here." I frowned, "Who told you," I continued, "I haven't been in contact with anyone for a long time." "Actually," Liam started, shifting his weight a bit on his legs, "You did." "You know damn well I didn't. I'm not that stupid." He was delusional and hiding something. I knew for certain I never talked to him about my true identity, much less even talked to him. "Who's Axel," Liam lightly asked, tilting his head at me with a smirk. My eyes widened as I heard him say the name. "How do you kno-" And I finally understood. That day... Usually, I would've walked around the whole area up here to get the breeze running through me. But today, I just felt like staying in one little area. "You were on the roof?" I exclaimed, lifting my body off of the bed. Liam raised his eyebrows at me and his expression turned into a small smug smile, "Small coincidence. But I found out something valuable." I silently cursed at myself for not doing my routinely walk- around on the school's roof. "And," Liam continued, "I realized that you took care of the ring I gave to Allison after I saw the black ribbon in your hair today." "It smelled like metal," I commented, closing my eyes and feeling defeat for not noticing the boy on the roof. Liam smirked at me, "Bravo. You should become a detective." I instantly opened my eyes and glared at him, "I fucking hate you." I'm not going to lie, his sudden personality switch caught me off guard and I wasn't too comfortable about getting used to this new Liam. "What a pity," he responded as he got off of the door frame and walked towards me. I leaned back as he bent down once he reached me so that our two faces were right in front of each other's. "I actually like this you," he continued, his minty breath hitting my skin, "No more stuttering, weak Jamie." I had to silently agree in my head. I liked this me too. For two years, I had to hide my true self. It felt good not pretending anymore. "Uhem," Kai interrupted, faking a cough in his fist. Liam was first to direct his eyes away from me and up to his friend. I followed after and said while looking at the blonde haired boy, "Who is he? What is he doing in your room? Don't tell me you're actually-" Liam rolled his eyes as he and Kai shared a glance at each other. "Jamie, meet Kai Bennet. Kai, meet Jamie Lennon," Liam started, "Jamie's a classmate. She's undercover as well, a well known sniper from the R.U., although you have to do a great deal of hacking to find that out. Jamie, Kai's my friend. He's the one that I ordered to give Allison the ring that should've blown up in her room tonight." "Tonight?" I exclaimed, "It's already so late. Shouldn't it have gone off by now?" "Do you want it to go off," Liam lamely asked as he looked down at me. I glanced down at the ring and took it off, tossing it to him as he caught it neatly in his palms. "Kai, reset it," he said, tossing the ring to the boy sitting in the chair. Kai caught it and let out a small sigh before before he spun the chair in place so that he faced Liam's working desk. My eyes lingered on the back of the boy's head before I turned back to Liam as I felt wet, cold drops of water land on my legging and seep through to my leg. "You're lucky we don't want to die," Liam commented, getting up and backing away from me. He returned to the bathroom and grabbed a towel to dry his hair. I watched the two men work silently as I tried to process the situation and ended up just putting my knife away into the big pocket of my black hoodie. "Why were you taking a shower in the dark," I blurted out awkwardly, looking at Liam. I remembered not seeing any light in the room when I entered it. "Why not," he casually replied, "In my type of field, I do best in the dark. I was surprised at how relaxed the atmosphere was all of a sudden. Not what I had expected from assassins. I was a little disappointed. Just a little. "Why didn't you come earlier," I asked, "And what do you want with Allison? She's just a normal girl." "We were on other missions, of course," Kai came in, still working on the ring, "This one could wait. I mean, the girl ain't going anywhere soon." The hateful truth in his words hurt me. "The Frances girl's father is a world famous business owner. He manages a lot of companies and uses his power to gain loyalty and money. We just need his daughter as a bait to make him come to us quickly on his knees." "So you want money," I stated in conclusion. Liam rolled his eyes at my simple comment, "It's not like money grows on trees. We have to gather them from somewhere." "And why are you telling me this? I know I asked but I didn't think you'd be that dumb," I said, eyeing him, "We're enemies." "Because," Liam began, "It's a fair warning for you to stay out of my way." His eyes grew serious as his form stood his ground, "Talks aside, take it as a 'sorry' for making you wait two years. You'll do well from now on to keep out of my work." "And if I don't," I tested him, frowning at his sudden tone. "I'll be forced to kill you." I scoffed, "Kill me? Let's see you try. Don't forget my position, Carter. I'm a sniper. I can sense a gun pointed at me from a mile away." Liam suddenly grinned as he stared at me, "You may sense it, but what if I said there was a way for you to let your guard down and, I don't know, trust me?" I glared at the boy as I tried to process what he said. When I finally understood what he meant, I deepened my expression at him. "You're speaking bullshit." Liam smirked as he kept his gaze on me while my eyes averted away from him, looking elsewhere in the room besides his face. "Fall in love with me, Jamie Lennon."

"I'm not taking my dagger away. She has her leg next to my baby-maker." Gritting my teeth, I slowly lowered the leg but didn't avert my eyes from his face. We both pulled away our weapons and I pushed him off of me. I spun around to meet eye to eye with the boy with black hair and blue eyes. "What is going on," I asked, frowning at Liam. He was shirtless and seemed to just come out of the shower with shorts on. His hair was slightly wet and had already drip a small puddle beneath him. I looked away as my eyes traveled to his well-kept six packs. Liam raised his eyebrows as he leaned on the door frame of the bathroom, his arms casually crossing. "I should be asking you," he replied in a different tone than I was used to, the one he used during class, "What are you doing in my room?" I frowned at the boy as he tilted his head as a way to urge me to speak. "I'm doing my job," I spat as I sat on my knees on his bed. "To seduce me while I sleep?" he commented slyly, smirking afterwards. "In your stupid ass dreams." "I don't dream, I create them." I rolled my eyes as I knew he referred to him being someone girls would dream of. "So this is your true personality," I said, looking at him thoroughly, "I'm kind of sad." Again, avoiding the abs. Suddenly, the boy started laughing. I kept a steady gaze on him, "What." "Don't tell me," he let out, his form trying to control his laughter, "You actually liked the other Liam?" Hell no. "Stop thinking so greatly of yourself. You'll only regret it," I snapped, glaring at the boy as he stopped laughing and met my eyes with a fake smile. "You like those types of losers? The weird, buddy type? Prince Charming?" he asked amused, running a hand through his partially wet jet-black hair. "I have a knife, Carter." Liam stopped and smiled at me, "So you do. And apparently a bomb as well." The other boy had found himself a seat and spoke up, "I don't remember giving it to you, kitten." I looked over at him as he eyed me in his rolling chair. "You gave it to Allison. I didn't have a choice but to take it from her," I replied, looking down at the shiny, red ring. Wait. So Liam wasn't the assassin? This Kai person was? But obviously they were close, so there were two assassins? "How long have you known about me," I directed at Liam, eyeing him hard. No one should have been able to access my real information.

He strides to the wall that the dagger had pierced through and as he turned around, I threw my socks at him. What, I needed them off. That took him off guard as he held his dagger high and growled in my direction. Scooting back on his bed, my knife was held in front of me with one hand as the other felt its way on the bed so that I don't suddenly fall off the edge. Liam charges at me and I raise my upper half a bit to meet him as we both held our weapons at each other's throats. Not liking his body almost towering over mine, I growled lowly, "Get off." I still couldn't see his face, but I could tell he made a smug look as he pounced forward on the bed and was now completely over me, my head and upper body being pushed down due to the force. "Move the knife, kitten" he replied, "Then I'll think about it." It was a different voice from the Liam that I knew. I scoffed in his face as my blade shined a reflection under his chin, "Do you think I'm stupid? Or are you dumb." He was about to throw a punch to the side of my face instead, but I felt the movement and lifted my leg. We both froze as he felt the presence of my leg near his lower part and I as the fist was about to make contact with my skull. "Not only will I slice your throat but I'll kick that wiener off," I snapped lowly once I'd gotten his attention, my body tense as my eyes glared daggers into the hood, "If I'm dying you're coming with-" Suddenly, a bright light turned on, making the both of us shut our eyes before jerking them back open. "What's all this ruckus," came I voice I was familiar with. Liam. My face scrunched up in confusion as I stared up at the now visible face underneath the hood as my whole body laid below him. Bright blue eyes. Dirty blonde hair that was swept to the side. It was not Liam. The new boy stared back at me with slightly wide eyes before snapping out of his thoughts and pressed his blade closer to my throat. I could feel the cold metal itching to rip my skin apart. There was a small growl from him before the other boy (at this point I don't know who was Liam and who wasn't) that had entered the scene say, "Kai, she's a classmate." Nevermind, he was Liam. Said Kai looked away from me and to the wall opposite of my line of vision. "Bruh," Kai replied irritated, "she came in with a knife and its at my throat!" "You came at me first," I defended in my confusion, glaring up at the boy who ignored me. Liam sighed, "I'll explain after the weapons are down." I frowned as Kai glanced back down at me with a hateful look.

  5|Do Best in the Dark  

Night took over the sky and everyone was quietly sleeping in their respective dorms. I had just finished changing into a black hoodie and dark leggings. The black ribbon was still tied tightly around my high ponytail. I was out of my disguise, my nerd glasses set on my working desk. I picked up the Renai's red ring and placed it firmly on my left, pointer finger. I was going to return it back to its original owner. I figured a gun would leave too much of a stain. It would be bothersome to clean up. Knife it was. It gets the job done cleanly. I'd been resetting the alarm above my door all night so that I could escape silently in the middle of the night. Taking one last look around my room, I opened my door and quietly slipped out. _ My sneakers made a lot of noise, I realized now that I'm alone and sneaking around. Sighing to myself, I took them off and placed it in the girl's bathroom before continuing down the hallway. The boy's dorms were all the way around the academy on the opposite end. It was a long walk in the dark. Axel had sent me Liam's bio and I had read and reread them over and over again after a great deal of him hacking into the school's records and the Renai's organization. It included his room number and the password to his door. _ This was it. It was the door. I reached blindly to the lock and typed in his password. unicorns rule, xoxo It worked! I smiled as the lock clicked silently and the door opened up. I walked inside carefully and quietly closed the door behind me. It was completely dark, but it wasn't the room that intrigued me. It was the smell of metal that was suddenly apparent in the air. I frowned upon realizing there was no breathing in the room except for my own muffled ones. I walked to what I assumed was the bed and bent down. My eyes were adjusting to the darkness, but all I could see were the crinkled sheets on the bed. There was no body in it. Suddenly, there were a series of noises. I had jumped back from the bed and turned around to a dagger thrown at my head. My back arched back as I caught a peek at the dark figure that was in the room with me. Blue eyes. Black cloak. It was the hooded figure from yesterday that had given Allison the ring. Aka, Liam. He threw two punches at me and I barely escaped them as my socks slipped around on the floor. I threw a high kick at him and he grabbed my foot, tossing me with great force onto the bed.