17-year-old witch Ellie Flores attends high school in Beverly Hills, California. Although Ellie is a direct descendent of witches, she promised to stay away from witchcraft after her mother swore off magic years ago. But when her best friend Riley g...
My name is Ellie Flores and I'm 17 years old. Oh yeah, and I'm a witch.
I attend high school in Beverly Hills. If you know anything about Beverly Hills, I'm sure you can imagine what that's like. It isn't easy being a teenage girl in a place like this. Add the fact that you're a witch and you've got a recipe for disaster.
You've probably heard that California is a pretty open-minded place. That's true for the most part, but you'll probably change your mind once you step foot inside Beverly Hills High. If you don't fit into Beverly Hills High's perfectly sculpted mold, you can kiss your social life goodbye. I've never fit into the mold.
Life isn't all that bad though. I live comfortably in a beautiful house with my loving mother, Lillian. And I have the two best friends in the world, Riley and Kyle. They are my oldest friends and the only people, besides Mom, who know that I'm a witch.
As for being a witch, there's really not much to say. I know that must be disappointing to hear. I'm a little bummed about it too, to be honest. Even though I descend from a long line of witches, I have never practiced witchcraft myself.
My mother only casts a handful of spells she finds useful. Her favorite spell rewinds time. She is never late. Aside from the time spell, and a few other spells, she refuses to practice witchcraft. She swore off magic years ago after my dad died when I was seven. My mom compares magic to having a house full of ten thousand pets - it's an overwhelming responsibility, too much for any one person to handle, and life is just easier without it.
I can't say that I'm not curious about witchcraft, however. There have been a few times throughout my life - ok fine, there have been hundreds of times - when I thought about pulling out my mom's old spell book and teaching myself a few tricks. Nothing too dangerous or too difficult, just spells I might find useful having in my back pocket. If I got caught, however, mom would freak out and I may never have another chance. It's really just easier letting her cast spells when we need them, even if it's just something as boring as rewinding time so we aren't late for an appointment.
I look at my watch. It's 7:58. As usual, I'm right on time for class, with a couple of minutes to spare.
"Hey, Ellie! Wait up!" I spin around to see Riley calling my name as she runs down the hall in my direction.
"Hey! Did you get your essay done?" I ask when she catches up to me.
"Yeah, finally. I stayed up all night, but I got it done." She replies as we walk into Mr. Riddle's class.
As we turn the corner into the door, we nearly bump into Maddie.
"Hey, watch it!" She shrieks as she cuts her eyes at us.
Maddie is the ringleader of the three most popular girls in our graduating class. Bridget and Libby are her two little sidekicks. If you find yourself in a class with all three of them at once, you will likely wish you were never born. Together, they somehow manage to turn bullying into an art form. I never understood why they have so many friends. They're pretty but that's all they have going for them, much like most people around here.
Riley and I take our seats in the back row of the class. Riley glances over to the opposite side of the room to see if her ex-boyfriend Logan is sitting in his usual seat. He's cutting up with his group of guy friends. She's been sulking over Logan all year.
"I don't know why you're still hung up on him," I whisper to her.
"I don't know either."
I look back at her and shrug. We've had this conversation probably a hundred times this year. Logan may be one of the cutest guys in school, but in my opinion, Riley is way out of his league. She has more going for her than she realizes.
The bell rings and Mr. Riddles begins the class. "Please bring your essays to my desk and I'll get these graded before the next bell. Be sure to come and see me after class to see your score."
As we turn in our essays, I look over at Riley as she nervously places her essay onto the stack with the rest. The essay is the last big project before Spring Break and she needs the points to boost her grade. In order for Riley to take her yearly vacation to Cancun, her parents said she must pull her grade up 10 whole points.
"Don't worry, Riley. You've got this!" I say in my best attempt to encourage her. She nervously smiles back at me.
After gathering everyone's essays, Mr. Riddles turns on a documentary and begins grading.
We sit through the next forty-five minutes watching a boring economics documentary, while Riley impatiently eyes the clock.
RI-RI-RING!
Riley excitedly hops out of her seat, grabbing her books in one big swoop as soon as the bell rings. She is the first one at Mr. Riddle's desk to receive her graded essay back. I watch her from my desk as I stand gathering my things.
After a minute, Riley turns back in my direction, her shoulders sinking. I know what that look means. I quickly grab the rest of my things and meet her at the classroom door.
"No Cancun trip. I was only two points below what I needed," she says in a disappointed voice.
"I am so sorry, Riley. I know how much this trip meant to you. It's so unfair."
"Thank you, Ellie." She says back to me, her voice in a cracked whisper.
This has been a rough year for Riley. It's times like these that I wish I knew just a little magic.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
