Heart of Flame: Freshmen Year

Chapter 11

One week left till homecoming. One. Week. The entire school seemed to get busier when Monday came around, and that included me. Since I'm in band, I ended up spending most of my time making sure my flute and guitar were in tip top shape, memorizing my music so I don't mess up and making sure my uniform stayed clean. At the same time, I was trying to get my grades to stay at the passing they were at.

   Thankfully, Brandon and the football team were too busy, so he didn't pick on me as much. Jessica was also busy, trying to organize everything and making sure the Student Council does everything right, so I didn't have to worry about her, either.

Oddly enough, despite the fact that this was probably going to be my busiest week of the year, it was also my most peaceful week of the year.

   "So, Sorcha, you have anyone to go to the dance with?" Ame asked. We were inside the cafeteria, during lunch, munching on whatever food the lunch ladies served us that day. I shook my head. Since I've been so busy, I haven't really thought about dates to the dance. "You already know who I'm going with." Aiden said, elbowing Nathan in the shoulder. "Oh, come on, man! I haven't even picked out a tux yet!" Nathan complained. "Well, you better hurry up, cuz I'm not letting you go in jeans and a t-shirt like Freshmen year!" Aiden said, smiling. I was now confused. "Wait, what?" I asked. Ame facepalmed herself. "I never told you, did I? Nathan and Aiden are a couple." Ame explained. "That... actually explains a lot." I said, taking a bite from my burger. "You're fine with it?" Keagan asked. "Yeah. I don't judge." I said truthfully. I honestly didn't care what people prefer gender-wise, I only care if they are good people or not. Ame nodded approvingly and we continued lunch as normal.

The rest of the day was just like any normal week-before-homecoming day, so when it was time to head home, I bolted out, wanting to just go home and relax for a few hours before mom comes home. When I got home, I put my stuff down near the couch and I belly flopped on the couch, happy to be home.

   I didn't get to relax for long, though, since I heard some scratching at the door. Not wanting to get up, I ignored it for a while until I heard some whining. I frowned. Last I checked, no human whines like that, so I got up to check it out. I opened the door cautiously, and at first I didn't see anything. The only reason why I looked down was because I felt tiny little paws petting my ankle. What I saw, sitting on my foot, was the cutest little white puppy with black stripes I have ever seen.

"Aw! Hey there, little guy!" I said, picking up the tiny puppy as carefully as I could. When I brought him up to my face, he gently licked my nose, and I smiled. "What are you doing out here all alone?" I wondered aloud. "Well, it's too cold for someone as tiny as you to be out there, so lets get you inside." I said, scratching his tiny ears before bring him inside.

   For a few hours, I tried looking up on the computer to see if I could figure out what kind of breed this little guy was. Hell, I even looked on Wikipedia and there was nothing, as if this guy didn't have a breed. Maybe he's a mutt? I wondered. I looked down to see he was pawing my leg, and letting out tiny noises. "Hungry?" I asked, getting up and walking to the fridge. I opened up the fridge to see if maybe we had some meat or something for him to eat. The fridge was looking bizarrely empty, but I managed to scrounge up some steak I had on Sunday. I threw some at the puppy before microwaving the rest so I could eat it.

As I waited for mom to get home, I ended up doing my homework and playing Minecraft with Carlos, Keagan and Ame for a little while. I told them about the puppy I had found and even sent them a picture. Took me forever to take the picture, though, since the little guy would not stop moving!
When mom got home, she wasn't exactly happy about the puppy. What happened was is I was chasing the little guy around the house because I had found out he had chewed up one of my books and I was pretty pissed off. "Get back here!" I said, trying to catch him. He was really fast, faster than any puppy I've ever seen! I leaped for him, hoping to catch him, but I ended up on my belly, and he ran off, yipping happily as he ran around a corner. I sighed and just stared at the corner he just ran around, trying to find the strength to get back up. That's when mom came home.

   "Honey, why are you on the floor?" I heard my mom ask. I looked up to see she was right above me, looking down and looking confused. "Oh, hey mom." I said. That's when the little bugger came back. He walked right up to me, looking all proud of himself, and licked my nose, wagging his tail happily. I just glared at him, annoyed. "Where did you get a puppy?" Mom asked. "Oh, I found him. He was scratching at the door, so I let him in." I said truthfully, scratching his tiny head. His fur was so soft, it was almost like he was a plush toy and not an actual dog. "You know we can't keep him, right?" Mom asked. I sighed. "Yeah, I know." I said, still petting the puppy. I kind of actually wanted to keep him, since ever since I was little I've always wanted a dog. "So, let's find him a home." Mom said, walking away. Right then, I knew exactly who would take the puppy. "Actually, I already did." I said, picking up the puppy, tucking my tail away and walking out the door

When I got to Ame's house, I knocked on the door, causing a dog to bark. "Gray! No!" I heard a girl's voice yell before opening the door. "Sorcha? What are you doing here?" Ame asked, trying to get her cattle dog, Gray to settle down. "Look what I found!" I exclaimed, holding up the tiny puppy (who was STILL squirming around!). Ame's eyes widened. "Aw! He's so cute!" She said. I let her hold the puppy, and when she put him close to her face, he licked her nose, which earned him a little giggle from Ame. "Is he yours?" Ame asked, cradling him. I shook my head. "No. I just found him at my front door a few hours ago. Mom won't let me keep him, though." I explained. "So, you gonna give him to the shelter or something?" Ame asked. "Actually, I thought maybe you would like him." I offered. I saw Ame's face lit up at that. "Of course I would like him!" Ame said, hugging him. The puppy let out a little yawn and placed his wet nose on Ame's cheek. I won't lie, it was adorable!

   We started chatting for a little while, but it wasn't long until mom started to get worried and she called me, telling me that dinner's ready, so I had to leave.

When I got home, I saw that mother really had dinner ready for me, and it wasn't just an excuse to have me rush home. We were having some lasagna that, believe it or not, mom actually made. Apparently she found a recipe online that she thought I might like, so she made it. It was actually really good, and I ended up eating the rest of whatever was in the pot.

   "I swear, you eat as much as your father." I heard mom mutter as she watched me eat my... fourth helping? Fifth helping? I can't remember how many bowls I had.

Anyways, so after I was done eating how many bowls I had, I ended up walking up to my room and playing a video game for a few hours before mom told me it was time to go to bed. I got dressed, brushed my teeth and then looked out my window to see if there were any Wyverns on the roof (this kind of became a habit for me), and I saw there were about six or seven on my roof, including the one that keeps on popping up wherever I go.

"Shoo! Get out of here!" I said, trying to scare them off. They weren't fazed, not even a little, which frustrated me. They didn't even fly off when I got out a broom and waved it at them. They just hopped out of the way. After a while, I just gave up and went to bed, thinking that it wasn't all abnormal to have a bunch of Wyverns on your roof.

In no time flat, I fell asleep, thinking how Homecoming is going to be.

Little did I know how crazy it really was going to be.