What was left behind

1.Graduation day

Hi! I'm back again with something new for you. This story is in some kind a twin sister of Different Picture ,as it this oen is going to be written fully in Penny's pov. So I hope you will enjoy the first chapter and will keep on holding to see more soon of it ;-)

I saw the goal. The last steps and the finish line would be at my fingertips. I felt my lungs begin to burn and with great relief, in one fluid motion, I removed the mask from my face and unhooked the breathing apparatus, pulling it from my back to the ground. I took a deep breath, laid down on the ground, and started crawling to the finish line. I heard sounds coming from outside, but it all came to me as if it were coming from behind a glass window. This was the last exam, the final test. I had to give it my all, I had come too far to lose now.

With the last of my strength, I pulled myself up on my hands to get to the high slope. I was even ahead of the rest of the guys in my time group when I jumped to my feet, took off, and touched the button that ended couting my time.

Tired, I sat on the bench next to Olivia and Justin, who had already been running their rounds. I rested my hands on the edge of the bench and closed my eyes, breathing deeply just like my grandfather taught me.

It was already behind me. Years of hard work to get accepted into the Newtown Fire Academy paid off. Now I could look at all the science from a distance. I was the only girl in my entire group. Even though I lived with Olivia, we weren't in the same team. Unlike our friend Justin. As a boy, he lived in the opposite wing of the dorm, but we became friends quickly. Justin was a tall brunette with green eyes who, well, I would hate to admit it out loud, but in the first days of training he caught my eye. But it wouldn't have worked, because he was always surrounded by a crowd of girls, and I tended to stay to the side.

The sound of the break bell snapped me out of my thoughts. Olivia immediately pulled my hand with her, while Justin went towards where the boys from our group were sitting and fooling around.

"When are you going to talk to Justin?" Olivia said casually, sitting across from me at the table in the cafeteria. "The academy is over soon, we don't know if we'll see each other ever again?"

"I already explained to you. It was just a momentary infatuation," I replied evasively, clenching my fists under the table when I saw who heard this part of the conversation.

"Oh, our little Penny is in love with Justin," Paul mocked to my face. This black-haired boy hadn't changed since the beginning of the academy. Sometimes I even felt like he was following me everywhere, just like a shadow. He mocked and made jokes that crossed the line of malice with his gang, but he was most angry with me. Probably because even as a girl I still had better results than him.

"Your pride can't stand that I've probably passed you again," I retorted, trying to hide my arrogant smile behind my hand. I must have hit the mark because Paul turned red. After five years of humiliation, I learned to defend myself.

"How dare you?" He shouted angrily and raised his hand slightly, but he came to his senses in time. "I'll see you at the announcement of the results. Keep your eyes open," he hissed before turning on his heel and walking away, avoiding the gaze of one of the instructors.

After lunch, I reluctantly went with Olivia and Justin to the park adjacent to the Newtown Fire Academy. If it weren't for them, I would have bet all my books that I would have spent all of my college years completely alone. Having learned from experience, I didn't like to open up to people and rather stayed in the shadow. While the rest of us spent time loudly and in crowds, I sat in my room reading books.

We watched the fish in the pond until it was time to go back. Olivia and I went to our room and changed into our dress uniforms. After struggling with my tie being too tight, I followed Olivia out of the room where Justin was already waiting for us. The three of us went to the main building of the Newtown Fire Academy and took three empty seats in the auditorium.

I've never been excited about these appeals, but today even I felt the sense of excitement hanging in the air. Instructors from different groups read the results, then there was an official farewell and the awarding of badges. We went out in fives, our instructors congratulated us, took a souvenir photo and we returned to our seats. I was grateful that my group was at the top of the list and I could quickly get the whole ceremony behind me.

I returned to the room as soon as I left the stage, and Olivia returned less than an hour later and hurriedly tossed a piece of paper onto the book I was reading.

"Get ready," Olivia looked at me meaningfully. "You're coming with me today."

"You know I don't like going to parties," I tried to find a good excuse.

"You won't get away with it" Olivia closed the book I was holding in my hands in one smooth movement. "Today is the last day of school. A party like this will never happen again," Olivia argued, pulling me with her to our closet. "Justin will be there too."

"What? You invited him?" I asked, amazed. Justin wasn't one to attend school events.

"Not me, silly," Olivia turned to me. "He asked if you were coming."

I gave in to my friend's advice. However, I couldn't shake the feeling that I would be less bored if I stayed in the room. Throughout my years at the academy, Olivia did everything she could to get me out of the world of science and books. But I always managed to sneak out before I got into any trouble. Today I felt like I had used up all the excuses I could think of.