THE MORTON QUADRUPLETS

CHAPTER 1 - RACHEL

I hear the ringing of my mobile phone as I run down the familiar stairs of the three-story building on the school ground. I wind through the crowd of other pupils making their way to different classes on the grounds, while trying to find my phone in my book bag. I find my phone and smile instantly when I see that it is Ryan who is calling me.

"Yes dear?" I answer with a smile.

"Where are you?" Ryan's voice sounds agitated.

"I'm on my way to the cafeteria to meet up with the girls. We still need to go to the hostels to clean out our rooms. Where are you?"

I step out of the crowd and come to stand under a tree where it is easier to hear Ryan over the phone. It is a bright sunny day. The perfect way to end the last school year of high school.

"The Brothers and I need to head home quickly. We will be back in about three hours. Okay?" Ryan tells me over the phone. He always refers to him and his brothers as "The Brothers", as if they are something special. Well, they are special. They are quadruplets, and they are damn fine to look at.

It is never clear on who the eldest of the quads are as they manage to talk their way out of it or into it as it suits their needs. Ryan seems to take lead when decisions need to be made. Adrien is usually first to follow Ryan's lead and also has a way of enforcing any of Ryan's requests. I have always been under the impression that Greyson and Brandon are just along for the ride.

"Oh, yes that's fine. It will give us more time to finish up here." I tell Ryan in my sweetest, understanding girlfriend voice I can muster amid my disappointment.

"Thanks love. See you soon" Ryan ends the call without waiting for me to answer.

I put my phone back in my bag and make my way to the cafeteria at a slower pace this time. There is no need to rush anymore.

Three hours are long when you only have two bags to zip up and carry out. As I walk through the glass doors to the cafeteria, I send a friendly wave to the ladies working behind the counter. All but one of them offers a small wave in return. Mrs Molly never waves, never greets, never smiles. In fact, I have wondered if she is not maybe a deaf mute.

There is an eight-seater table in the far corner of the cafeteria that nobody ever occupies. It is known as the Quad table. I cannot imagine what this school will be like next year. These Quad Brothers have ruled this school for their entire time here. It was an absolute joy to be a part of it. I can only imagine how the next group who feel they have the right to rule the school will take over this table after we leave for good. This table will be like their trophy. Whoever has the table will lead the pack. I smile at this thought. Maybe there will be a small territorial war. I have tried to identify the next group to follow the quads. There are three strong groups in the school, but only two of them are really big enough to take lead.

I take out my phone to check my text messages. I am a bit upset at the way Ryan ended the call so abruptly. Maybe something is wrong at their house? It must be a serious matter though. If it was something small, only one of the brothers would be needed to attend to the matter.

I take my regular seat at the quad table, and drop my book bag on Ryan's regular seat.

I have mixed emotions regarding this day. The last day of high school. The first day of a short break. Then the beginning of our new lives. I would best describe my current emotion as sad and excited.

I send Ryan a message asking if everything is okay. He immediately returns a message saying that he cannot talk now.

I cover my eyes with my one hand. I suddenly realise what is going on. Ryan's has the most overbearing mother. I have been dating Ryan now for four years. When he first introduced me to his mother, she merely looked down her nose at me. It was clear that I did not carry her approval to date her son. I was only fifteen when I met this woman and she scared the life out of me.

Ava often tells me it is because I am such a people pleaser. Apparently, people pleasers cannot really take other people's critique of them. I cannot really disagree with Ava. I do like it when people around me are happy. Ava was the first other girl to join the quad table. I started dating Ryan first. Ava started dating Adrien a few months later. Of all the girls in the group, Ava and I have the closest bond. Ava is the artistic type. She sees the world I full colour. Everything is either interesting or beautiful. I have come to know ugly things are described as interesting by Ava.

I look up from my phone to search the cafeteria for the other girls, there is no sign of them. Usually, I am second last to arrive. Bailey is usually last to arrive. She is the typical beautiful blond with blue eyes aspiring model. She started dating Brandon last, so she was last to join the group of quad girlfriends. Ellie came just before Bailey. Ellie and Greyson had an on-again-off-again fling for about a year before they decided to date exclusively.

I have always felt very sympathetic towards Ellie. She has the sweetest and kindest heart. She didn't want to date Greyson because her best friend was in love with him, but she couldn't stay away from him either. To the world it looked like she was playing him but in reality, she was tortured for loving him.

I have not seen Mrs Marcella, Ryan's mother, very often in the last four years. In fact, I have taken great care to avoid her at all costs as much as I could. The last time I was at their residence I overheard her tell Mr Marcus that Ellie was cheap and easy, a girl who did not deserve the time of a Morton.

I didn't tell Ellie this. I have however confided in Ava. Ava told me not to let Marcella ruin what Greyson and Ellie had. They were the sweetest couple. Ellie would definitely leave if she heard what Marcella thought of her.

My train of thoughts have wandered off so far, I almost feel lost when someone drops a tray on the other side of the room. I focus on where the sound is coming from and see a young girl trying to pick everything up, she dropped when the tray fell.

Just behind the girl Ava breezes through the cafeteria door. I smile at the thought of her breezing through the door. Ava looks good all the time. Her pitch-black hair is always perfectly straight down her back. Her grey eyes always sparkle with optimism. She has beautifully formed full lips that I would definitely have painted red every day if they were mine, but Ava uses a muted nude gloss on her lips, which always looks gorgeous with her perfectly done smoky eyes. She is truly an artist.

As Ava walks over to the quad table she suddenly pauses in the middle of the room. She plunges her hand into her backpack and starts searching through it. She takes out her mobile phone and smiles at it.

I almost start laughing out loud. Idiot. I just know she is smiling at Adrien's name on her phone. He will tell her now that he is not on the school grounds anymore and that he will only be back in about three hours to pick her up.

I watch her as she answers the phone. She is perfectly beaming as she greets her boyfriend. Her smile fades. Her eyebrows contract into a questioning frown. She looks like she is still trying to talk but then she holds the phone away from her ear and looks at it puzzled.

I start laughing and she turns to face me. She walks over to the table quicker than her walk started when she entered the cafeteria. When she reaches the table, she drops her bag into Adrien's usual seat and takes her seat at the table.

"Let me guess, Adrien called, he has to rush home for some emergency but will be back to pick you up in about three hours?" I ask Ava in a sweet sarcastic tone.

Ava gives me a look that screams irritation.

"What the hell is going on, Rachel?"