They deserve it all.

Dean

17 - 04 - 2027

"O. My. GOSH.—"

"O. MY. FUCKING GOSH!"

"Yo! You two— calm down! It isn't that big of a deal."

"Fuck yeah it is!" They start slapping each other's hands and forearms in celebration. Both of them are jumping up and down in excitement. "I got in the top 50 of the school! O. MY. GOSH!"

"I can't believe it! I'm so proud of you! O. MY. GOSH!"

Then they stop, eye each other, and then back at the board.

"Nah, it can't be."

I don't quite know what they're looking for, I just watch as they both scan the board, their eyes big and mouths gaping, probably looking for me or trying to make sure they hadn't been hallucinating.

"O.M.G! It's true! Let's fucking go!"

I let myself slip in between them, Ally and Alice, both of them so cute when they're happy, a little loud, but cute nonetheless. I have been friends with them for over 5 years, so it's become too common for me to actually think something odd of it, though some people could.

"Tone it down, will you!" It's something I can always be prepared to hear whenever they get like this, they try to ignore it, but it's inevitable. Sometimes they hear it from teachers, but this time it's from Dean, the insufferable, uptight, annoying, making my skin crawl, making my blood boil, arrogant Dean. "Some people are trying to look at their scores, yeah, and you two are nothing but a disturbance to everyone!"

They both stop celebrating, their faces so gloomy and grim all of a sudden.

Then he turns to me. "Willow Wisteria." He looks up and down and all I can do is look back. For some reason it'd be weird if he would just stare at me while I act like I don't notice.

But I cave in after a long 10 seconds. "Hi ... Dean Diaros. How are you doing today?" I keep my tone casual, try not to show how uncomfortable I am by his stern expression and his eyes that are drilling holes in my face.

"How do you think I am doing?" He scowls. "Just take a guess. Anything would be correct."

I realize what he means and so I nod slightly and take a small breath in. "Don't be so mad, you should be happy that you scored within the top 3. That should give you a good internship or scholarship, it's a terrific achievement, you should be proud of yourself."

"Oh- well, then it's all solved, right? If I'm just proud of myself it'll all be fine and rainbows and sunshine, but I don't know, I guess I'm somewhat mad, though I wouldn't know why— oh wait, I do—" His face changes expression and he aggressively point at the laminated papers pinned to the board. "Maybe because you're an unbearable competition!"

I look at the board and both Alice and Ally follow my eyes. They start pushing me and nudging my shoulder. "No way! #1! Shit—"

"No, don't be happy for that dreadful woman! You shouldn't be encouraging this! She is just doing this to spite me!"

I drift my eyes back from Ally and Alice to his and furrow my eyebrows in actual and pure confusion. "Why would I want to spite you?"

He rolls his eyes and then takes a step forward. "Because ... you know, you heard me talking on the ... on the phone. Last midterms you ended up on number 14 or something. Yet right when I spoke a bit too loud on the phone and said something rather stupid of me, you overheard me and then you turn up on number one. Now tell me that isn't suspicious."

"It isn't suspicious." I look him dead in his eyes, trying my best not to burst out in awkward laughter. "Surely you must know that not everything revolves around you. I just liked the subjects more this semester, thought they were worth practicing and studying."

He takes a step back and looks for only a moment at the board, when he does, I take a moment to study his face. The bags under his eyes shows how he got #2 within this prestigious school, the lack of smile lines on his face is concerning for a 17 year old boy, not to mention the excessive obviousness in his frown lines. His hands are shaking and his cheekbones are either sharp from nature, or he has starved himself after too many hours in his study which mostly paid off. And his face is pale, too pale for a healthy teenager, it makes me hope he's okay.

He turns to me once more, his eyes boring in mine and as I try my best not to break eye contact, no matter how badly I want to, it's his expression that makes me sad, the frustration he can only take out on himself, the regret in his eyes, it makes me feel bad for scoring so well, I know I shouldn't, I know I should be happy, but I didn't work as hard for it as he did.

Yet I don't say anything, when he looks at me again he just groans and leaves. Which is fine by me, I would have tried to comfort him best I could. I wouldn't say sorry, but I would suggest he take care of himself, though I am certain that would only come over as bragging to him.

My thoughts get interrupted right as the bell rings.

"Mother will be so happy!" Alice pipes out as she starts hopping with Ally in her arm.

"O. MY. GOSH. Father will finally buy me the headphones I have been begging for!"

Both Ally and Alice now look at me. "What will your mother reward you with? You did get top score."

I think about it for a little while, there is nothing I quite want or need, except for the lessons I have this afternoon. The sorcery lessons.

"She is already rewarding me." I smile and they don't ask me anything more, it's like they don't quite care about what I get, but that is understandable, my mother is far more rich than both their father's and mother's income combined, and that doesn't mean they are poor, no, the opposite, almost all students here come from a wealthy status, but because of that there will also be people with more money than my mother's and James their income combined roaming these halls, and people with less.

Although Ally and Alice never resented me for my not needing to beg for things to my parents, and my being capable of meeting expectations easily since everything such as money and intelligence came naturally to me, they weren't quite happy as well. It was hard to try and bond with me the way they could with others in our class, girls and boys always have something they want, but I don't. Even when I did, I would get very excited about something, such as a book or a show and the way it ended or the following books or seasons that I wanted to either read or watch, and the reviews on it or my own review or what I would have changed. I tried to talk to them about that, but they seemed to care so little that I didn't repeat the same action. And the fact I hardly like to talk about stuff like that isn't making things easier. I'm fine with it either way. I'm not totally alone at lunch, haven't been for a few years and if I want to talk to someone or not sit alone, I still have a pair of twins to resort to, just like the way they resort to me whenever they need something. It would seem only fair for them to get something in return ... and no matter how sad it may seem, that I give certain riches for a little company, it satisfies my school life.

My school life.

What a joke.

For some people, people like Dean, school is their future. School is their only option in getting somewhere. Not me though. No. I will be a writer, I'll write my own poems, my own novels. Romance, fiction, literature, anything honestly. My mother supports me and told me she'll buy my first 50 copies and display them, she'll promote them and she said she'd treasure every copy I'd bring out. She had said that she loves the idea, that it was what I am meant to be, she said that creativity had always suited me. And I even have had some practice, a few of my manuscripts have been read by small companies. They said they liked it, they did, but something was missing. My writing style was good and intriguing, my story lines were interesting and the way I used words was fascinating to them, and I'm not trying to brag, I never did, no one knows of it but my mother, but it was my genre, they said. I tried so hard to make the love within my books seem realistic, to make my characters relate, but something was missing. They hadn't a clue of what it was, neither did I, but that won't matter. They said that when I find it, I'll know, and that I could come back.

But now I can't.

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-Love, me :)