"Where on earth have you been?" Castor nearly jumped from his seat as I sat myself at the table at the canteen. "I had been looking for you everywhere! You look wasted!"
It's true, my eyes seem a bit lifeless and my hair could have been a little tidier since I didn't have much time combing through it in the morning. But, apart from that, I feel okay.
"At Max's place," I reply.
"Max Hatter?! You've got an invite?"
Castro's jaw drops immediately.
"And why didn't you take me with you?" He whines.
"I tried to find you last night but you were nowhere to be found!" I reply. "Seeing that it was pointless looking for you, I went by myself."
April sits herself next to Castro and lets her cup of hot tea on the table. She is wearing something casual this time, still going in the white-red colour scheme.
"What matters is that you had fun," she says, smiling warmly as always. "You had fun and made new friends, that's all that counts!"
"Yeah, that's true!" Castro laughs wholeheartedly. "There will be other times... So, what did you do there?"
"Not much. I danced, I met some pretty nice people..."
"Pretty nice?"
Behind me stands Jacklyn Jeckyll herself. Her hair is kept in a low ponytail and she is wearing a kaki t-shirt and a pair of black leggings. At the corner of her mouth creeps a sly and mischievous smile.
"Friends, this is Jacklyn," I say. "Jacklyn, these are..."
"No need for long, pointless, boring introductions," she says, cutting my chivalrous behaviour short. "I already know them: April White and Castor Montague."
"Indeed, Jacklyn," April replies. "We know eachother quite well. You often use the Music Room all by yourself..."
Between the two girls falls a tense silence, interrupted just by Castro's loud slurping as he eats his cereals. Then, as if they were actually acting their rivalry just a moment ago, April and Jacklyn begin to laugh. April even got up from her seat to hug her.
"Ah, April!" Jacklyn chuckles. "What's with all this diplomacy? Oh, if only you knew how awesome Logan is once he lets his guard down!"
"Wait a minute," I say puzzled, "was it also a test?"
"What test?" April asks surprised.
"Speaking of which..."
Castro stands up and gestures me to do the same. I look disappointed at the breakfast I didn't have time to eat with all the conversation.
"We have to Sport's evaluation today," he says with a somber tone.
"What?! It's not fair! I didn't even take part in any sport's classes!"
"Shit!" Jacklyn spits through her teeth. She is definitely pissed off. "I am not in the mood for that!"
"I don't get it," I say. "Everyone does this?"
"Yup," Castro replies. "Unlike mortal schools, all of Novel High's students have to have a certain degree of physical development. If you wish to excel in the domain it's your choice only, yet all of us must know the basics, if you know what I mean... So, each month, we have to be examined."
"And when is that?"
"Today," April sighs. "Today at 10 o'clock."
"We don't have any time left," Jacklyn says. "We need to get on the training grounds. And fast!"
YOU ARE READING
Post scriptum - 1. Act One
General Fiction"And they lived happily ever after..." And what happens next? Well, for Logan de Chagny, the answer is far from fantastic: he has always struggled to live up to his parents' expectations and feels like in his perfect family there is no room for some...
