Life of Fame (JAELE)

Oh Boy!

Jace gave a small knock and opened the door a little, poking his head in.

"Mr. Manchester, you wanted to see me, sir?" He said, feeling a bit anxious.

"Ah yes, come in, Mr. Norman" Mr. Manchester flashed him a bright smile.

Jace returned the smile and opened the door wide to enter but stopped when he saw Chloe sitting in one of the chairs. She had a not so subtle smirk on her face, which made him curious.

"Why are you still standing there, Mr. Norman? Come on in and take a seat" Mr. Manchester said pointing to the chair next to Chloe.

Jace comtemplated for a moment before walking over and sitting in the said chair. From the corner of his eye, he could see Chloe trying to garner his attention but he ignored her.

"So, I know you're probably wondering why I called the two of you here" Mr. Manchester paused to see the reactions on their faces. They were listening intently.

Mr. Manchester smiled and continued. "As you might've heard, our school has been selected to host the regional level competition of the US Academic Bowl, this year" he announced proudly.

"That's great, sir" Jace said, still a bit hesitantly.

"Yes, sir, that's really great!" Chloe chimed in with an enigmatic smirk. Jace squinted his eyebrows suspicious.

"Yes it is, Mr. Norman, and since you and Ms. King have done a good job in conducting the Annual Spelling Bee competitions last year, I was hoping you two could once again team up for this project" Mr. Manchester informed.

"But sir, I don't....." Jace began to protest but got interrupted by Mr. Manchester.

"This is a very prestigious event for our institution, Mr. Norman and I'm putting my complete faith in you two" he spoke further.

"Of course, sir. We won't let you down" Chloe said, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"Isn't that right, Jace?" She added turning to him with a wily smirk.

Jace gave her a warning death glare and turned to Mr. Manchester. "I'm sorry sir but I'm already...."

"Before you make a decision, Mr. Norman, you should know that if you pull this off, I'll be considering you for the permenant teaching position" Mr. Manchester said with a smile.

Jace fell silent, not knowing what to say. "So, you'll do it?" Mr. Manchester asked him, optimistically.

"Okay, sir" Jace replied and Mr. Manchester's smile widened. "Okay, Ms. King, Mr. Norman, I'll have my secretary send you all the details of the event so you can get started right away. Best of luck" he said before dismissing them.

After coming out of the principal's office, Chloe turned to Jace with a smile. "So Jace, what do you say you and I go back to my place after scho....."

"Look, Chloe, I don't know what game you're trying to play here, but it isn't gonna work" he said curt and left.

"Mhmm, we'll see about that Norman" Chloe smirked to herself.

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On his way home, Jace bought a dozen roses and a box of chocolates for his wife, in an attempt to butter her up, so she won't freak out when he tells her about him and Chloe working together for the next few weeks.

Upon entering the house, he saw his mother and sister sitting in the living room, watching TV.

"Hey, guys, where's Riele?" He inquired.