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  Trainwreck

  By Heather C. Myers

  To the best and worst 4 years of your life

  Chapter 1

  6:48am

  Sadie Brown's head rested on the cool window glass of her mother's black Pathfinder, her bright forest green eyes glancing out the window and a slight frown on her full lips. She had never gotten a detention in her entire academic career. She blinked slowly, not quite believing that something like this had actually happened to her. Sure, she could understand if she had ditched class or decided to cheat on an exam or something delinquent, but she didn't do any of that. In fact, Sadie was a good student. Sure, she wasn't enthusiastic about any form of physical science, which was why she was taking Marine Biology – something that seemed like the easiest option at the time - but even then, she only had a B- and she was working her ass off to maintain just that.

  A sigh slipped through her nose as she watched the familiar scenery of the suburbs pass her by: pockets of neighborhoods with houses that looked exactly the same, trees and parks, and an assortment of different shopping centers. Sadie loved the suburbs, but sometimes, the fact that everything looked alike bothered her. It was this reason that Sadie decided that she wanted to live in a house by the sea. At least the sea was constantly changing and she could watch the sunset every evening.

  "We're here." Though her mother knew the reason for Sadie's detention, she wasn't happy that her daughter was still required to be here. In fact, they were supposed to be celebrating her brother's something or other; Sadie could never remember. There were too many things her brother accomplished to keep track of everything.

  Sadie glanced at her mother as she slipped the long strap of her bag over her shoulder. Ellen would not look at her, her blue eyes focused at the parking lot before her. Her fiery red hair was short, barely grazing her shoulders, and was incredibly curly. Matching freckles were scattered across her pale skin, much like Sadie's except Sadie's freckles were only found on the tops of her cheeks and the bridge of her nose, blending in with her peachy skin tone. When Ellen's jaw popped, Sadie pushed her brow up and glanced down at her lap, knowing she would get no form of reassurance right now.

  "Tell Harry I'm sorry I couldn't be there," she told her mother demurely as she opened the car door.

  Ellen turned to look at her daughter, her lips pressed into a thin line. She didn't want to lose her temper and make a scene, especially seeing a few cars pulling up as well. "You should be there yourself," she finally told her daughter before turning and staring back straight ahead of her.

  Sadie opened her mouth to defend herself, but closed it, knowing that no matter what she said wouldn't deter her mother from Ellen's current point of view. Instead, she shook her head once, and quietly reminded her that she would be out at four o'clock. With that, she shut the door and paused, watching her mother drive off. When she couldn't see the black SUV anymore, she pursed her lips and turned around, staring up at her high school entrance.

  University High School was located in a suburb of Southern California. The reason it was called University (or Uni, as the kids dubbed it) was due to the fact that it was adjacent to a University of California school. It was the top ranking public high school in all of California, challenging their students more than any other high school. Due to Southern California's temperate weather, it was an outdoor school. She walked through the narrow entranceway, glancing at the large gymnasium to her left and the cafeteria to her right. Detention was going to take place in the library, rather than a random classroom, due to a theft that happened last weekend. Apparently, some kid swiped a few things from a classroom, and to ensure that wouldn't happen again, it was located in the ridiculously large library. Sadie stopped in front of the doors, arching a brow as she looked at where she would be for the next nine hours of her life.

  University High School's library was probably one of the best high school libraries ever. A few years ago, when Sadie was just a freshman, a generous donor had given University a large sum of money. Many people on the board narrowed down where the money would be spent to two options: a football field, which would get rid of having to share one with the other three high schools in the district, or a large, highly-stocked, refurbished, and technologically advanced library. Sadie was all for the football field, as were many of her fellow colleagues. As it turned out, the educational board wasn't. So while University's academic challenges were growing, their athletics were waning a bit.

  Taking another deep breath, Sadie reached for the door and opened it. She walked through the detectors as her eyes glanced around the lighted room. She wasn't quite sure why she was nervous, but she knew that it probably had to do with the fact that she had no idea who else would be joining her today. It would definitely be easier if there were someone she knew and got along with. A thought suddenly occurred to her. What if she was alone for the whole nine hours? Which would be worse: being alone or being in a room with people she didn't know? She couldn't quite say, but at this moment, she was all by herself.

  Sadie glanced at the rows of seats; they reminded her of the lab tables in the various science rooms, except with old-fashioned wooden chairs instead of stools. She decided on taking a seat in the third row center on the left side of the room. This way, she wouldn't be too far in front or in the back. It was a strategy she used whenever she was supposed to find a seat in a new class and there was no assigned seating.

  Sadie set her bag down by her feet and placed her hands on the desk, interlocking her fingers together. Her eyes managed to find the large wall clock hanging in the front of the room, behind the librarian's check-out desk. 6:52am. God, she felt like such a loser. Did she need to get here this early?

  At that moment, a short, scrawny boy with short, strawberry blonde hair and pale skin walked through. Immediately, Sadie could sense an awkwardness about him as he nervously shifted his paper-bagged lunch between his hands. He was wearing a dark blue sweater, beige pants that were too short and revealed long, white tube socks. On his feet, he wore a pair of rusty old sneakers. When his blue eyes caught Sadie's, he nodded at her, and she offered him a tiny smile. He took a seat on the same side as she had, but in the front row, and one seat over. Sadie gently placed her head in her palm and watched as the boy placed his bag of lunch on the surface of the dark table before changing his mind and setting it underneath the table. She recognized him; she couldn't remember his name, but he had been in her Algebra 2 class last year and was a grade underneath her. He was smart.

  Another student walked. Sadie immediately knew who she was. Roxy Carlson was a fantastic singer and was usually the star of all of the high school plays. It didn't matter that she was slightly overweight; she was incredibly talented. Not even Erin Triviano, Roxy's stage rival, and her multiple generous donations to University's theatre department, could deter the theatre director, Mr. Barino, from casting Erin over Roxy. She had long, curly jet-black hair that was currently pulled into a high ponytail. She had an attractive shade of pale skin that clashed beautifully with her coal eyes. She was wearing a low-cut plain black dress that was maybe too small for her frame, and black boots that reached her knees, just where the hemline of the dress stopped. Sadie had to refrain from rolling her eyes. The biggest problem with Roxy was that even though she was arguably the most talented kid that went to Uni, she also had the biggest ego. She wasn't one of the 'it' girls but she acted like she was. It was annoying.

  Sadie watched with mild interest as Roxy took a seat in the second row on the opposite side of the room, claiming the last seat in the row. Her eyes flickered back over to the clock. 6:54am.

  Another kid followed the junior in, and this time, Sadie blatantly let out a sigh before shifting her head into her other ha
nd. Paulina Sherman was the most popular, and as a result, the bitchiest girl, at University. She had what every other Southern California girl sported; straight, fake, bleached-blonde hair that went a couple of inches past her shoulders, big blue eyes, and Daddy's credit card. With an amazing body and a dazzling smile, Paulina could easily get whatever she wanted and usually did. She was notorious for dating college boys, and when she actually chose to date another senior in high school, everybody knew about it. It was actually really annoying. She was in every club possible (excluding, of course, the academic clubs) and on student council. She was actually pretty smart; not as smart as the only boy currently in detention, but smart enough to maintain a B average.

  Paulina forced a smile at Roxy, who returned the favor, and she took the seat one chair over from Roxy so she was in the center of the room. She let out a mild breath, placing her large, Louis Vuitton bag in front of her. She was wearing one of those hooded jackets that cut off in the middle of her stomach, with a silver shirt layered underneath and the shortest miniskirt Sadie had ever seen. She scrunched her nose, her eyes studying Paulina's tan legs, and realized with a contemptuous huff that if anyone could pull off the shortest miniskirt ever, it would definitely be Paulina. She had the best legs at University, and everyone knew it. Stereotypically, Paulina was also a cheerleader, though it should be noted that she was not the captain.

  Just as soon as Paulina sat down, someone Sadie actually socialized with walked in. Edward O'Reily was on the boy's varsity soccer team and had the most charming smile Sadie had ever encountered. He had dirty blonde hair that was tousled messily around so random spikes littered his head. With cool, blue eyes and a dimple in his cheek, Edward was definitely one of the most sought-after guys at University. He was wearing a loose t-shirt underneath a Letterman jacket and jeans that fit him just right. On his feet sat a pair of somewhat new (and expensive) Nike sneakers. Without even seeing her face, Sadie knew Paulina had batted her eyelashes at him because Edward had smiled politely at her. When his eyes saw Sadie, however, they lit up, and he walked over to her. Because she was on the girl's varsity soccer team, they would occasionally practice together. While the two didn't necessarily speak much to each other, it was good to be acquainted with someone.

  "Hey," Edward said, flashing a smile at Sadie as he sat down next to her, and plopped his gym bag underneath the table. He left one seat between them unoccupied, so they both had a comfortable amount of space between them.

  "Hey," she replied in a voice just above a whisper. Her eyes flitted back over to the clock. 6:59am. It was going to be a long day...

  At that moment, another guy Sadie didn't recognize walked in. He had shaggy, brown hair that fell into his face. However, because his hair was parted in the center, the middle of his forehead was unoccupied. He had a slim face that carried a natural tan and surprisingly warm, brown eyes. He was wearing a worn, brown leather jacket, a large, red plaid shirt with a long white-sleeved shirt underneath. He had on grey Dickies pants and dark combat boots. Everything about him looked used, as though he had had these articles of clothing for a while, and wore them quite consistently. From where she was sitting, Sadie noticed a plain, silver earring in his left ear. He stopped at the beginning of the aisle and began to stare intently at each and every person currently occupying the library. Sadie watched the reactions of everyone; Paulina and Roxy had similar reactions of making a sound of disgust and flipping their hair carelessly over their shoulders, as though they couldn't be bothered with the likes of him; the junior boy up in the front looked away, almost nervously, and then rested his head down on his forearms; Edward rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest; and Sadie just stared back at him, arching a brow. He looked at her the longest, probably because she looked back at him. He continued to stare her down, almost daring her to look away. For whatever reason, Sadie calmly held his gaze.

  "Sit down, Boyd," a firm, low voice said from behind the boy, and actually pushed him forward. Paulina and Roxy giggled at this while Edward chuckled. The junior boy's posture immediately straightened upon seeing some sort of authority figure while Sadie merely watched the interaction with a quizzical brow. Were faculty allowed to push students? Boyd regained his composure and walked down the aisle. As he passed Sadie, she could smell cigarettes and Christmas trees on him. A loud screech told everyone that he pulled a chair in order to sit just behind her.

  Chapter 2

  The person in charge of detention was a familiar face. Vice Principal Stewey Stewey was in a sharp grey suit with a black shirt underneath his blazer. His dark, graying hair was swept out of his face, every lock accounted for in perfect place. His dark grey eyes swept over the students with anger and annoyance, as though he didn't exactly want to be here, giving up nine hours of his Saturday either. His hands were squarely on his hips, causing his blazer to bunch where his shoulders were, and his thin lips were pressed into an even thinner line.

  "Well, well, well," he began as he started to pace up and down the cool, white tile of the library floor. "What a bunch of kids we have today. Though, Boyd, I'm not surprised to see you here." His eyes narrowed in Boyd's general direction.

  "I can't say I feel the same." Boyd's voice was like low velvet with a very slight rasp to it. There was obvious disdain in his current tone, as well as arrogance. He did look like the type that constantly got into trouble. "I thought you would be at the sorority's panty raid."

  "You better watch your mouth," Stewey threatened, his voice getting sharper.

  Sadie pulled her dark blonde hair over one shoulder so she could catch a glimpse of the guy behind her from the corner of her eyes. He was leaning nonchalantly in his chair, his feet resting on the surface of the desk, and a small smirk touching his face. Almost as though he could feel her watching him, his eyes dropped from the vice principal and moved to Sadie. Immediately, Sadie looked away and back up at Stewey. "Now, you six are here until four o'clock. There will be no talking. There will be no getting up out of your seat. You are to sit here for those nine hours." He paused, letting the silence indicate how serious he was. "Now, I will be right across the way in my office. If I so much hear a peep out of any one of you, you can bet you'll be here next Saturday." Another long, serious pause. "Any questions?"

  "What do we do if we have to go to the bathroom?" the junior asked.

  Stewey didn’t even look at him. He swept his eyes over the students once again before he turned around and headed out the back entrance of the library.

  "Shit!" Boyd exclaimed, causing everyone else to turn and look at him. He didn't seem to notice his newly- found audience watching him, and shrugged nonchalantly. "He’s right!”

  “Well, if you gotta go, you gotta go, right?" With that, Sadie heard a jingle as the chains hanging from his pants clinked together and then a zipper being undone.

  "What do you think you're doing?" she asked, her face contorting into a scowl of disbelief.

  “That's gross," Paulina said, turning back around to face forward.

  "Totally," Roxy agreed, shaking her head.

  "You had better not," Edward said, his blue eyes glaring at Boyd's.

  "Oh, and what are you going to do about it, pretty boy?" Boyd asked, tossing his hair back so he could see Edward better.

  "Why don't you push me and find out," Edward threatened, his brow pushed up almost tauntingly.

  "You know, guys," the boy from the front row began, his voice a shaky baritone, "there's a bathroom right around the corner. I mean, I'm sure” -

  "Shut up," Boyd and Edward said simultaneously.

  Boyd cast his glance back at Sadie, who was frowning now. "You're still looking at me, Blondie," he taunted, and then looked over at Edward before returning his eyes in Sadie's. "Your boyfriend won't show you his pecker, is that it?"

  "You're an asshole," Sadie replied and then turned around just as Edward said, "She's not my girlfriend, dipshit."

  Both Edward and Sadie turned back around. The latter let out a d
eep but inaudible sigh and ran her fingers through her hair. It was silent, save for the loud, taunting ticking of the wall clock. Sadie tried not to stare at it, knowing that time would only move slower if she did. However, she snatched a peak and realized it was barely a quarter after seven. She heard shifting next to her and looked over at Edward. A soccer ball was now sitting on the surface of the table, being pushed back and forth between Edward's palms. Roxy seemed to be studying something, and Sadie craned her neck to see what. When she caught glimpses of a yellow highlighter, she realized this must be the script for the fall play. Her eyes shifted over to Paulina who, unsurprisingly, had opened a compact and seemed to be reapplying her lip gloss. The kid in the front row seemed to be doing the same thing as Roxy, except that instead of a script, he had the periodic table in front of him. Glancing down at her hands that were resting flat on the table, she had a sudden desire to turn around and see what, exactly, this Boyd guy was doing. At first, she refrained. But after a long moment, she tilted her head in a very subtle manner and once again looked at him from the corner of her eyes. He was in the same position as before, only now his chair was resting on two legs instead of four. He had a match in one hand and a cigarette in another. Then, to the utter amazement of the senior, he reached into his mouth with the match and struck it on the back of his teeth, producing a flame. With his other hand, he stuck the cigarette between his lips, lit it, and then waved the match out.

  "Hey man," Edward said with annoyance, turning around to look at Boyd.

  "The name's Asher," the guy replied, smoke slipping out of his mouth with each word he spoke. "Asher Boyd."

  "Yeah, whatever," Edward told him. "I'm an athlete. I don't need you to be smoking and infecting my lungs with that shit."

  "Secondhand smoke has been proven to kill," the boy said, turning around and looking at the scene.