Gifted *Editing*

Chapter 1: Charlie Boy

"Andy Sterling?" Called a high pitched voice coming from a stocky, short and well tanned woman from behind an unreliable desk.

I looked up and peered over my book filled with notes, " Yes, Miss Ladchester?"

"Won't you come and show these pea-brained 'students' how to successfully draw a virus?"

My eyes grew wide in fright, I was not one for speaking in front of a group, let alone flaunting my intellectual skill.
I got up slowly and made my way to the front of the class. I turned around and just saw multiple pairs of eyes staring back at me. They all were chuckling and passing notes which were probably about me.

"So-S-So uhm... This is the basic structure of a virus. I like to say that they look like micro-bots..."
I realized that my class was not interested at all.
I stammered all throughout my 'presentation' and while I was trying to explain what a virus needs to live, I started to get very nervous because Tayler Wood, the spirit of pure evil as I like to say, was whispering something to Piper Robinson (one of her minions) and was eye balling me the entire time.

I looked helplessly around to find Chelsey ( my best friend) but she was typing away on her phone as usual.

I was about to give up my fine strain of hope until I saw a grinning, Christian Stone holding his hands out in a thumbs ul and felt slighlty comforted. I rambled through the last of my explanation and shuffled sheepishly to my desk.

After class I saw Christian standing by my locker, doing that sarcastic  slow clap people do when they act like you achieved something great.
"Shut up, Christian," I laughed as I opened my locker, stacked my biology notes in a pile and grabbed my Shakespeare play-write.

Christian laughed and patted me on the head,  " You look like an angry elf when you get mad, Andrea."

I rolled my eyes, " Don't call me Andrea, Chris.
Only my posh great Aunt Adilaid ever calls me that. But then again you two do look alike."

Christian dramatically staggered back with his hand on his chest and imitated being stabbed in the heart, " How could  compare me to someone that looks like a wrinkly Prada bag!"
While chuckling at his dramatics,
I didn't see Charlie Aldren, who was one of the best swimmers in our school walking straight towards me, and was too busy looking at Tayler's non-existent behind to see me in his line of strut.

I bumped straight into him, and all of the sudden it felt like my soul left my body and I was in a large and extravagant house, with a marble stair case, and at the top of this staircase was a livid man with a beer in his one hand and a wrench in the other.
He had an unforgiving sneer with glossy blue eyes that showed only hate. His dry skin was unshaven and unkept. He had a clean shaven head with dark stubbles on his chin.
I found myself saying words, with a voice not sounding like my own , " Dad, please! I didn't take your money!"

"Then how did you get them new shoes ey , Charlie boy?" He growled, showing his yellow teeth.

"I've been working by the Café, I swear!"
And before I could do or say anything else, the man came charging down with surprising speed, swung the wrench into my jaw. Pain shot through my entire body and I fell to the floor whimpering.

Then I felt like my soul was yet again jerked out of my body and I was back in my own skin (literally.)
"What the heck, Andy? First you bump into me and then you just stand there zoned out like a freak!"
I looked up startled, only to see an angry bruise smeared on his jaw.
"Uh, sorry." I mumbled
Charlie rolled his eyes and walked away.

"Andy? Are you okay?" asked a concerned Christian.
I was about to tell Christian what happened but decided that this was one of those scenarios that you keep to yourself.

"Uh, yeah I was just thinking about that Biology test coming up."

Christian looked at me hard and shrugged it off.
"You're something different Miss Sterling,"

I gave him a wink and waved him off," I'll see you later, I've got advanced English."
"Great stuff," he laughed, " I'll speak to you at the window?
The window, meaning that we live next door to each other and both our windows face each other with a thick oak tree with a large trunk stretching from mine to his window.
The first time I met him he acted all weird an nearly fell off the tree's branch when he tried his best to make a good first neighborly impression.
Now we sit on our window ledges for hours on end just talking and making corny jokes

"Maybe," I smiled.

I still had that lightheaded feeling from my peculiar experience with Charlie.

And something told me that this wouldn't be my last.