Rebellious Wings

Chapter One

           My life has always been weird. But today was beyond weird. Like it was messed up. I guess I should start with the beginning of my day.

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           I woke with a start. Another nightmare. They had been terrifying the months after the incident, but then they subsided, and I thought I was in the clear. But they would start coming back. It was always the same. I was running through the dark halls of my old house, yet they never seemed to end. I was holding my best friend with my left hand, a blood-stained knife with my right. I could hear his footsteps getting louder and louder until they were upon me, then my arm would start burning where the scar was and it would all go black and a wave of terror would flood my mind, the same terror I felt every day back then. As I sat up, rubbing my eyes, I pushed the feeling away. He's gone. He can't hurt me anymore. As I got dressed I checked the time. It was 8:31, which meant I had four minutes to brush my hair and teeth as well as try to make myself look nice. And then I'd have to be out the door by then to make it to school on time. I looked out of my floor to ceiling windows at the little city below me. Here in Del Mar, a little town in San Diego, the city wasn't very big to begin with. Seeing that my apartment was on the 15th floor, I had a beautiful view of the turquoise sea and the white beaches, along with a picturesque city. I quickly threw on a last coat of mascara, grabbed my bag, and sprinted out the door.

             I was greeted by my friends Iris and Athena at school. Iris has long tawny blond hair that she hides behind and eyes of pure emerald. Athena's hair is shortish thick and bronze colored accented by honey colored eyes. I, on the other hand, have hair that falls to the middle of my back. When I was 13, I dyed my hair a deep midnight indigo that fades into a bright aquamarine. I've kept this color for 3 years and I'm fine with it. Of course, the school doesn't approve, but honestly, what can they do? Both my parents are dead, and my uncle is a sadistic maniac who's locked up for life. The bell rang, signaling the beginning of my hellish week. I walked inside the building, gathered my books, and said goodbye to my friends. I have history first, and they have Trig. The first half of my day was uneventful plus or minus a few tacks on the teachers' chair, a classic movie cliche. At lunch is when the real action started. First, let me tell you, I don't get bullied. But I love to start trouble, usually involving the bully. Sometimes, I do not benefit from the situation.

I was walking with Athena and Iris when we heard a commotion coming from the lunch room.

"What's going on?" Iris wondered.

"Oh no. It's probably Albert. Seems just like what happened last week." Athena said, remembering the fiasco that had occurred last Thursday.

"Ugh, I'll take care of it." I sighed, walking into the fray. Just as Athena predicted, Albert, the humongous school bully was beating up some poor kid. I walked up behind Albert and tapped him on the shoulder. He spun around. 

"Oh, look who decided to show up," he snarled.

"Why are you beating this kid up?" I raised my eyebrow, something apparently only I could do. 

"That's none of your business." He looked me up and down like he was a fashion mogul, scrutinizing my outfit down to the brand of my bronzer, which was, by the way, the Guerlain Terracotta Bronzing Powder.

"I said, why are you beating him up?" I cocked my head to the side, eyes narrowing. I saw a flicker of emotion cross his face before he rebounded.

"Are you giving me attitude? You wanna be the one on the receiving end of this?" He raised a fist.

"Ha!" I scoffed. "I'd like to see you try to beat me up. Honestly, it would be so entertaining." I said, laughing.

"Hey! You better not mock me. You know what? Four o'clock. Behind the school. There will be blood." He spat, flinging spittle across the room.

"And it won't be mine," I smirked, flipped my hair, and walked off, Iris and Athena trailing behind me.

"What did you get yourself into now?" Iris facepalmed, sighing delicately.

"You do know how strong he is? He's like three times the size of you. He'll mess you up" Athena said.

"Akira, you can't just do these things." Iris looked worried.

"Look, guys," I said, pivoting on my heel to face them. "I'm a lot tougher than I look. I can fight. You two don't have to watch, but I'm gonna fight him. It'll teach him a lesson not to mess with me or anyone else at school." I said.

"Well technically you messed with him first," Iris muttered.

"That is true." Athena agreed. With that on our minds, we walked to class.