Chapter One
Thirteen Years Ago
“Julia! Where is the toaster? I’m gonna be late for work!” my guardian said. My guardian is my moms’ best friend. She is the person who is keeping me safe from harm.
Guardians are the angels who protect their charges with their lives. Mine just happened to have grown up with my mom.
“I think it is in the cabinet. Where is always is,” I said, with a smirk on my face as I slipped on my neon orange coat.
“Wow. So helpful. I guess I will see you after school, then?”
“Yeah. Probably. I might have play today. But if I do, I can just catch a ride with Lizzy.”
“Kay. See you later.”
I grab my backpack, swing it over my shoulder and open the front door.
“Hey, Jules,” my best friend, Teagen, says. His hand is hovering just above the door, almost about to knock.
“Hey. Long time, no see. How’ve you been?” I say pulling him away from the door and down the steps.
“Good, good. What classes do you have? I have all honor classes, but I am expecting you to see the same,” Teagen says.
“I don’t know. I have to pick up my schedule before class. I’m probably gonna be late to class.”
“Oh. Well, I will see you later!” Teagen says, already walking to his homeroom.
I meander slowly up the steps, and into the office. “Hi! Umm...I haven’t had time to pick up my schedule yet, but I would like it now,” I say, a nice smile on my face.
The office lady looks at me like I was the gum on the bottom of her shoe, and sneers, “I am sorry, but the schedules were supposed to be picked up by yesterday. All of the schedules that were not picked up were recycled. So, if you really want your schedule, you will have to digging through the garbage to get it.”
“Oh. Well, from what my guardian said, she made it sound like you were going to keep the schedules until this afternoon, after school ends. Then you were going to put the schedules into the recycling,” I say with a half smile on my face, then I continue, “but, if it really is a big deal, I can just talk to the principle about it. I am sure that he would understand what would happen if he found out that you were not respecting one of his highest paying students...but that is only if care about your job.”
The office lady gives me a nasty look, but suddenly turns that look into a nice smile. “Hi Mr. Applegoat! I was just trying to nicely explain to this lady why she can’t have her schedule.”
Mr. Applegoat gave me a nice smile, but that smile turned into a glare directed at the office lady. “Mrs. Sandiee, I was standing in my doorway since Julia had walked into the office. I am sure that I recognize what has happened in my own school. This is your first warning, if you get another one, I will be sure to see that you are fired. Now, you will be nice enough that you will give Julia her schedule.”
“O-Okay,” Mrs. Sandiee stutters, with a nervous look on her face she reaches down on to her desk and gives me my schedule.
“Thank you, Mrs. Sandiee,” I say, and walk out the door.
“Hey, Julia! How’s summer been for you?” Jack says, a sixth grader that I knew from when I baby sat him when he was in fourth grade.
“Good. Pretty good, if you count that I had to skip watching you for the weekdays,” I smile at Jack.
