Vulnerable [Calum Hood Fic]

Chapter 3

"Have you got everything? Do you need me to bring you anything?" Emily questioned over the phone. Skye was ready - or so she thought - for her first day, again. It was her fifth first day since high school started.

"Yes and no, Mom, I'm fine." Skye assured her. She sat by the entrance of her school, its name she was still unaware of. She had her phone pressed against her cold cheek, her hand was shaking as she awaited the principal's arrival. The school, she thought, was a big but simple building complex. Brick walls, typical. Big blue doors at the entrance, why not?

"I heard Mr Bickers quit," Ashton gossiped. The four of them were huddled at the back of the classroom, as the popular kids do. Noisy kids, throwing things around. Nerds, possibly completed their studies for the term. The I-can't-really-be-bothered kids and the kids who knew absolutely everything that went on in the school. The gossip kings & queens, as they were identified.

Yes and no, Mom. I'm fine. An unfamiliar voice caught Calum's attention. Where this mysterious voice was coming from, he had no clue. He felt slightly uncomfortable peeking into someone else's privacy, but what was he to do? Block his ears with a couple of buds?

I gotta go, I'll call you after school. Calum's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. How he wished there could a trail of musical notes from the girl was, leading to him. Just like those in cartoons.

"Settle down, class." The 'witch', as the students identified her, strutted in. Knee length boots, thudding against the cement floor. The class immediately fell silent with occassional squeaks of chairs. Her black dress fell slightly above her knees. She wore a dark denim jacket, her hair let loose. She looked young for a thirty year old, dressing young too. Setting her bag down, she turned to look at the class studying her students' faces.

"Sorry, Ms Evans?" Someone knocked at the door. The principal walked in. Accompanied by an unfamiliar face. "This is Skylar Daniels, she'll be joining your class from now on." Skye gave a shy smile, her cheeks flushing slightly. Her heart beat faster, 20 pairs of eyes staring, judging. Not being able to bare with the attention, she hurried to the only empty seat which she assumed was hers. Skye felt smaller by the second as if each pair of eyes seemed to make everything around her seem bigger. This was going to be a long year.

"Welcome, Skylar. I'm Ms Evans and I'll

be," she gestured to the rest of the class as well, "your form teacher for the year." A few kids grunted under their breath. Skye was alarmed, was there something wrong with the teacher? She seemed fine to her. Ms Evans jumped into her lesson for the day - biology.

Lunch break. Half a day down, Skye felt somewhat proud of herself for not having to puke every few seconds. She stood by her newly assigned locker in the hallway. Chucking in a few books, taking out some others. The hallway was packed with rowdy teens, shouting and pushing past one another. Not Skye's favourite place.

"Hey, Skylar, right?" A familiar face approached her. Stunned, Skye nodded. "I'm Destiny." She had the most strawberry-blonde hair Skye had ever seen. She was short, but she had this preppy look by the way she dressed. If popular took a human form, it would have been Destiny. "Interested in joining me for lunch?"

Skye and Destiny entered the already-packed cafeteria, a hundred blue stools and faded tables. A number of people faced Skye, watching as she made her way with Destiny. Low murmurs broke out but she could not care less. After this, she only had Math and a free block before she was allowed to leave the school compound.

"Hey," Destiny leaned down, planting her lips on a blonde haired boy's. "Skylar, this is my boyfriend Colton. Colton, Skylar." She put unnecessary stress on the word 'boyfriend'. They simply shook hands, nothing more.

"You're coming for my practice later, right?" Colton asked, his arm slung on Destiny's shoulders.

"As always." So he was the star of the football team, and she was the popular chick? Right.

There was just something odd about that new girl, Luke thought. Was it her nose? Or her eyebrows? It just seemed to be gnawing at his thoughts. Nevermind that. The pack, sat together - how surprising - at their school cafeteria.

"Lucas, what are you staring at?" Michael snapped.

"Uh?"

"You always stare at girls, it's no wonder you've never had a girlfriend." Teasing Luke was Michael's forte. The other boys snickered.

"No, it's just..." Luke debated on whether he should mention anything. "There's just something different, or weird about her."

"She's gorgeous, I can tell you that." Ashton's eyes were fixed on Skye.

Yeah, I realise that. Luke wanted to say. But that just was not it.

"Now look who caught the Luke disease." Ashton laughed at Calum, whose pupils - if possible - had become she shape of little hearts as he watched poor Skye, five tables away. It was cliche to say he had never seen anyone as beautiful as her.

Free period. Skye's first day was finally over. But she couldn't leave, and she had nothing to do. Today would go down in history, being the first time she made a friend on her first day. Hurrah.

"You coming?" Destiny asked. Skye had not realised she had been staring at thin air, her jaw probably hanging open. It was not a pretty sight.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." Clearing the contents of her tiny desk into her bag, she hurried herself.

Out in the field, the bleachers were empty except the occassional groups of supporters. The school's American football (otherwise known as rugby) team in full uniform, huddled by the benches, surrounding with what seemed to be their coach. The team's bulky bodies and wide shoulders made the coach look much like an ant in a field. Of course, it was an exaggeration.

She watched aimlessly as boys ran around, throwing themselves onto one another, against one another like there was a protective sheild preventing them from feeling any real pain. What a gruesome sport.

"Which one's Colton?" With their headwear on, everyone looked like everyone else.

"Number 37. He's the quarterback." Typical high school. Gorgeous chick dates school QB. Only thing was, she was not a cheerleader. That was a good thing, right?

"Who's number 25?" Skye asked after carefullt observing him for a good fifteen minutes.

"That is Calum Hood. He used to be the quarterback, the best player ever, actually." Destiny said matter-of-factly.

"What happened?" Calum removed his headgear and for the first time, Skye was able to take in his features. He was really really cute.

"He was banned from representing the school for two seasons. Something along the lines of him knocking an opponent out cold or initiating a fight, and he ran off."