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CHAPTER ONE


"Nemo Me Impune Laccesit."



Each word flowed inside Sylvia's head. It kept running under the well nourished long black hair, and the porcelain white skin covering a brain unspooling a series.


It was a fine afternoon at the cafeteria. Unlike other schools, St. Claire High had its cafeterias at the rooftop and undergrounds. The rooftop was a vast area and it had a magnificent view of the town, Baywood. The rooftop was usually crowded with rich students who preferred to buy teas and Salami salads than face the lunch lady in the underground despite of the free food.


Sylvia Van Dorschner sat on her usual place with her usual companion, Kelsi Cruz. On their tables were cups of Chamomile teas and California Maki wraps.
Instead of grabbing a bite from her wrap, Kelsi spent the time tapping letters on her phone screen.
All Sylvia could do was stare blankly to the surface. She forced her eyes not to close and tried to remain awake.


She sipped a small portion from her tea and stared at Kelsi's cup. She could tell that the tea's only purpose was to soak Kelsi's dry upper lip. She hated reminding her always to drink tea instead of sodas.

Kelsi gasped and covered her mouth. She laughed and shook her head while she stared at her phone. Sylvia curled her napkin with her fist as she observed Kelsi.

"Maybe you should stop being the dumb blonde stereotype sometimes."

Considering Kelsi possesses the icy blonde hair from her polish father's genes. Yet Sylvia always thought being dumb was from her mother who gave birth to her for a very young age. Kelsi for her maybe was the best example.

Kelsi placed her phone on the table and stared at Sylvia's dark brown eyes. Her smile faded away and she knitted her eyebrows.

"Are you still bothered about Gertrude or are you having nature's call down there?" Kelsi asked with a tinge of annoyance.

Kelsi pursed her lips and crossed her arms. Sylvia shot Kelsi a glare and took a sip from her cup of tea. She put the cup down with a thud.

The Gertrude Thing

Oh great, why did it even happen?

"I swear if Ezekiel and Chesney find out about thi-"

"They won't if you won't tell," Kelsi assured.

Sylvia cleared her mouth and noticed their friends, Ezekiel and Chesney appearing from the doors.

Ezekiel Thomas turned his head to look at the seat on the corner. He shook his head and smiled. He nudged Chesney Curtis on the shoulder and pointed at their friends, Sylvia and Kelsi.


Chesney followed Ezekiel after winking to a random Asian girl who was in her way to the door.

As they arrived to their table, they immediately sat on the remaining seats and exchanged glances.
Sylvia's heart hammered vigorously. She reached for the cup but instead of grabbing it for a drink, the cup fell and spilled its contents. Sylvia slid her seat back to avoid the spill. Chesney grabbed the napkin and wiped the table. He placed the cup back to its position.

Ezekiel placed his chin on his palm and exchanged his looks from Sylvia to Kelsi. He could tell something was up. Kelsi refused to look at anyone and pretended to tap some random letters on her phone screen. He could see it from his peripheral vision since Kelsi was seated on his left.

Sylvia who was seated on his right kept on murmuring something in a different language.


Chesney eyed the blonde on the next table and smirked. The blonde girl giggled and told something to her friends that made them giggle as well. Sylvia knitted her eyebrows and grabbed her tea cup. The tea cup hit Chesney's head. Chesney broke off from his gaze and rubbed the back of his head. He looked at Sylvia and shook his head.


"I appreciate the fact of your distaste with flirtationships but you should appreciate how much I fancy it too," Chesney stated. He buried his face with his arms and yawned.


Sylvia crossed her arms and faced Ezekiel for support. Ezekiel laughed and scratched his chin. Sylvia groaned before he could speak.


"I'm tired of getting rid of the girls you are running from, Chesney. I'm starting to call the agreement off," Sylvia stated.


Chesney clicked his tongue and shook his point finger. "What's the point of our friendship if we don't support each other?" He asked.


Sylvia's mouth opened with dismay.


"Do you want to get hit by a teacup again? Oh wait! That might make you more of an idiot."


Kelsi placed her phone down to snicker. Chesney and Sylvia was always a highlight.


"Mommy and Daddy are fighting again."


Ezekiel mouthed to her. Kelsi laughed and shook her head. Her smile faded away as the screen of her phone lit up.


Ezekiel noticed the abrupt change of her expression and scratched his chin. He looked at Sylvia and thought of something but shook it off.


After lunchbreak persisted, the group separated to go to their classes. Sylvia spent the first class with the strong desire to sleep. She answered all the activities with a haste so that she could bury her face on her crossed arms. She closed her eyes and exhaled.


You're such an idiot!


She quickly opened her eyes and rubbed it. She was not going to sleep and suffer a detention. That would make Felicity more superior with her neat records.


She slid her hand on one side of her face and took a glimpse of Ezekiel who sat three seats away from her. She wondered what he was doing.


He was secretly texting someone. His texting hands were hidden inside the small compartment of the desk. His eyes were fixed on it and his face was stern.


That's unusual, she thought as she crossed her arms and lengthened her gaze.


Ezekiel hid his phone inside his pocket and turned his head to look at everyone near him. He straightened his posture and crossed his arms.


The only time Sylvia recalled seeing Ezekiel text in class was at the time when the group was plotting against Kelly Hewer, Chesney's crazy ex-girlfriend.


"Pass your papers!" The old teacher demanded with haste and irritation.


The students passed their papers and rushed out of the room when the bell rang. Sylvia leaned on the wall beside the door and waited for Ezekiel. Her right foot tapped the floor with impatience.


"Great work by texting in class," she jested. Ezekiel stood infront of her. He sighed before he decided to speak.


"Great work by sending someone to the hospital, Sylv."


He stared at her widened eyes and closed his eyes for a moment. He couldn't believe that it was true. He opened his eyes and shook his head.


She stepped back and placed her palm on the wall for support. Her eyes remained widely open. Her hands trembled and her tongue became cold and numb. She looked at her back to check for eavesdroppers. They were all alone around the corridor.


Her pocket suddenly vibrated and lit up. She quickly slid her hand inside her pocket to grab her phone.


A text popped up on the screen and it was from Kelsi Cruz.


Sorry, I slipped. I 4got to tell all the gory details. U should tell them all about it urself but I don't think Ches & Zeke's going to believe ur own version of the story.


She looked over the empty space infront of her. He was already walking away from a distance towards another class. She took a glimpse of her wrist watch and raised her right eyebrow. She was not going to class at the current period. She made her way to the direction of the stairs and headed to the infirmary.


The nurse opened the door after a few knocks. The cold air greeted her first in the room. She placed two fingers on her forehead and told the nurse she was having a headache because of sleep deprivation. She handed her a signed permit. It was a forged permit that Ezekiel made so that the gang could just go in the infirmary without telling a teacher and still be excused.


The infirmary smelled like ethyl alcohol and vomit. There were two sections of the resting beds. One for the girls and the other for the boys. Despite the covering of a curtain, she could see a ginger lying down in the girl section.


She sat down on a chair next to a blonde sophomore who was hugging herself for warmth. Sylvia made sure to keep a distance to ensure her safety.


The nurse was busy jotting down words on the records. Normally, the student would have to put their names in and specify their condition. The nurse seemed to recognize her.


"What's your name?" The nurse asked the blonde girl. The blonde girl raised her head to look at the nurse. Her eyes were weary and red.


"Shy Hewer," she responded, her voice was low and weak.


Sylvia turned her head to look at Shy and tried to suppress her lips from opening. It must be Kelly's sister?


"Proceed to Dr. Trueman's section right next to the girl's resting section." The nurse instructed and Shy immediately went ahead.


"Would you like to rest for a while or just take a pain reliever instead?" The nurse turned to look at Sylvia.


Sylvia placed her hand on her forehead and leaned her head on the wall. She looked at the nurse and sighed.


"I hate missing a class so just give me some meds. Probably two or three please."


The nurse nodded and placed her clipboard on the small desk. She immediately went to the medicine section. Sylvia flashed a quick smile and grabbed the clipboard.


Felicity Van Dorschner - Headache from Sleep Deprivation


She grinned and placed the clipboard carefully back to the table.


The nurse came back with three pieces of pain relievers. Sylvia thanked her and bade goodbye. She grinned as she came out of the clinic.


She went to an isolated restroom nearby and opened the small wraps of each pain reliever. She took out a small plastic ziplock from her bag and placed the three pills inside of it. She grabbed a bottle of water and hammered it towards the ziplock that was placed on the sink. After a few minutes, the pills were already crushed to bits. She bit the tip of the ziplock and poured the contents in it to the bottle.


If she could do this trick once then she could do this again except the victim this time was worthy of it.


The last ring of the bell signified freedom to the students. They immediately stick to their close-knit friends. Sylvia checked her phone's battery. It was off for a reason. She wondered if Pierre, her personal driver already called.


She stood infront of her locker. She was clearly waiting for time to pass for the exact time to do her action. Before she opened her locker to grab her things, her attention had been interrupted by certain boys beside her. They roared in laughter while they point and stare at a magazine inside the locker beside hers.


The blond freshman boy gasped and jumped out of the group. He covered his mouth with his right palm.


"I’ve seen this chick before!" He pointed to the locker with widened eyes. The others shook their heads and laughed.


Sylvia bit her lip and stared at them. She wondered if Chesney and Ezekiel had time to watch porn at school. She shook off the thought and took a glimpse from her watch. She smiled and straightened her posture. She took out a water jug that was filled of water with sliced lemons and crushed bits of goodness.


She went to the gymnasium and wore her best smile. It was the exact time for cheerleader practice. Kelsi used to bug her to join Cheerleading but Sylvia never had time to consider it.


The gymnasium was packed with freshmen girls who wanted to join. She saw Kelsi next to Margaret Williams, the cheer captain. They whispered details to each other while they pointed at their bright phone screens.


Sylvia gripped the jug tight and approached them. She didn't bother to excuse herself from the girls who were on her way. She bumped them and strutted her way in.


Kelsi grinned when she saw Sylvia coming near. She poked Margaret and whispered something.


"Hey, my phone was off the whole time so I didn't see any messages nor have I bumped to Ezekiel and Chesney. I heard from a freshman girl that there was cheerleader practice and Pierre was gonna be late for a couple of minutes so I came to give you a drink and time," Sylvia explained and handed Kelsi the jug.


Kelsi pressed her lips together and grabbed the jug. She sighed and placed her right hand on her hip.


"I hope you charge your phone later."


Kelsi winked and opened the jug. She looked at the lemons and smiled. She immediately drank from the jug. She was clearly thirsty which showed from how many seconds she finished the drink.


Sylvia could feel her heart flying away towards the skies. She wanted to laugh and tell Kelsi how she just accomplished being the classic dumb blonde.


Sylvia sat beside Kelsi and crossed her legs. Margaret stood up and went to the center of the gymnasium.


"Break is already over! Girls, line up now." She announced and clapped her hands to hasten the girls.


The freshmen girls shook their hands to deduce their nervousness. They quickly formed up in one line.


Kelsi pinched the bridge of her nose and blinked a few times. She bit her lip and proceeded next to Margaret.


"Whoever isn't in the line is already out," Kelsi announced. She pinched her nose again and cleared her throat. There was something funny happening to her body.


Her vision was in a blur and her head started to pound. Liquids rose up on her throat.


Margaret looked at her and approached her worriedly. Kelsi could no longer hear the girls or anticipate what happened.


Sylvia tilted her head to get a better view of her friend. She immediately turn her head around as she heard someone sit beside her. She widened her eyes and smiled as she saw Ezekiel.


He stood back up as soon as he saw Kelsi being assisted away from the gym by a few girls.


"What happened?" He asked.


Sylvia stood up and flashed a grin towards him. He quickly knitted his eyebrows and concluded a thought,


"Clinging on to the vengeful motto huh?” He asked and chuckled after speaking. He was amused by the truth as he anticipates Sylvia's proud expression.


"Nemo Me Impune Lacessit."


They recited the line in unison as they stare at each other's dancing irises. They flashed a sardonic smile towards each other and immediately turn their backs. The smiles imprinted on their faces faded out with a gloomy expression.



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