by R L Medina
Maybe it was too late for that. I never blended in well at my old school and with the stuffy uniforms here, I stuck out even more.
Before I could tell the girl, it was rude to stare, the elevator stopped, and she got off without a glance back.
Shiloh led me to one of the main lounges on the second floor where a coffee bar stood. My eyebrows shot up. A coffee bar? I was in heaven. I poured myself a cup and stirred in some sugar.
“Better?” Shiloh asked.
I nodded emphatically. “This coffee is so good!”
She smiled. “My favorite is the butterscotch caramel latte.”
“Mmm, sounds good. And how is this all free?” I lifted my giant cup up.
“Part of the perks of being in House Dragon! Ooh and on the first weekend of every month, we get complimentary donuts and pastries from one of the little shops in LA.”
My eyebrows shot up. “Free donuts too? Wow, it really does pay to be a GRIMM.”
“Well, Deidra’s Donuts gives us pastries for our loyalty and a discount on tuition for her daughter. Her daughter, Avery, is in this house too.”
Discount tuition paid with pastries? The idea was funny to me, but at least it showed an attempt to make things more equal for the less privileged students.
We sipped our coffee as she took me past a game room where students hung out between classes. I peeked inside and almost fell over. It wasn’t just video games, though there was plenty of that set up too it looked like, but I spied a pool table, ping pong, and several foosball tables.
“We can go through here and check out our dorm, if you like?”
I turned to her. “Okay.”
She led me inside and past all the expensive gaming stuff. We took the stairs and exited on the third floor.
“So what is Origin of the O.G. anyway? And what’s with the weird class numbers. Are there really that many classes?”
“The O.G. stands for Organization of GRIMMs. GRIMM stands for Guardians of Realms and Investigators of Magic and Mysteries. I’m not sure how many classes there are. It seems like they’re constantly adding more.”
“So, does that have anything to do with the Grimm fairy tales? Like the brothers Grimm?”
She nodded. “Yes. They were among the founders of the organization. Their work got discovered by the ordinaire and well, you can imagine how they took it.”
“Freaked out?”
“Yeah. So, the O.G. basically rewrote history and stopped the war by sending most of the extraordinaire to other realms, but it wasn’t a perfect solution. People still remembered the magical beings, so they wrote a book. The fairy tales. Some of them were true, but no one really remembers the truth of them.”
“Wow. See that was basically everything I need to know about the origins then, right? You think they’ll let me skip out of that class?”
She tapped her lip and furrowed her brow. “Actually, that’s a good question. If you take all the tests and final exam of the classes and pass, I don’t see why you wouldn’t be able to skip the course. You should ask your mentor.”
I paused. “My mentor?”
Nodding, she threw her empty cup in a trash can as we passed. “Yes. Every student gets paired with one to help them through their courses and training. They didn’t tell you who yours was?”
“Nope.”
She frowned. “Hmm. That’s weird. They should have done that at your orientation.”
“Nobody told me anything about orientation.”
Her eyes widened. “What? But everyone must go through orientation. I’ll check with my mentor and see what he says. Maybe you should see the headmaster?”
I shrugged. “Okay.”
She fell silent, curiosity shining in her eyes as she stared at me. Wondering who I was? It was obvious the circumstances of me getting into Grimm academy were strange and with my bracelet mind control, I was limited in my explanations.
Shiloh motioned me to follow. “I haven’t had a roommate since sophomore year. My best friend transferred to GRIMM Academy Paris. It’ll be nice to share a room again.”
I turned to her. “Paris? They have schools in Paris too?”
“Oh, yes. They have GRIMM schools all over the world.”
“Huh. You miss your friend?” I gave her a sympathetic smile.
She shrugged. “We still talk as much as we can, but it’s different. It was nice having my own space for a while, but I miss having a roommate. Makes school more enjoyable when you have someone to hang out with.” She winced as if she’d said something she wished she hadn’t.
I smiled at her. “Yeah. Definitely.”
She returned my smile, a slight reddening on her cheeks.
“This is our room.” She fumbled with a key and turned the knob.
I stepped in and glanced around. The room wasn’t as lavish as the one at Javi’s mansion. It was smaller and cozier. Definitely more comfortable. A wide circular window with a bench seat stood at the far end of the room, sunlight pouring in from it. Books were piled on one end of the seat and the base of the seat had built-in shelves stacked with more books. I smiled. Turned out Javi’s girlfriend was a book snob as he so elegantly put it.
“This is nice.” I nodded.
Her grin widened. “Oh good. I’m glad you like it. And we can change things around too. Feel free to put up whatever you want.” She motioned to the walls.
I stared at the blank one above an empty bed and desk and turned to look at her side. On her wall hung beautiful Native American artwork and dreamcatchers. My eyebrow arched. Interesting. I didn’t see her as the whimsical earthy type.
“I’m part Quechan. On my mother’s side. Way, way down the line, but… well, I just love everything about their culture.” She shrugged.
“Cool. I like the art. Did you do it yourself?”
She blushed. “Yeah. It helps relax me. That and archery.”
I gaped at her, surprised at the turn her words had taken. It was hard to envision this gentle girl as a cold-blooded sharpshooter.
“Here’s the closet.” She walked over to my side, past my bed and desk and opened the wooden door to reveal a walk-in closet.
“Nice.” I nodded and glanced over at her side. “But where’s your closet?”
“Oh. Well, I have that wardrobe, but the closet is… supposed to be for both of us. But I can move my stuff out if you need all the space.”
Wow. Was she serious? Too nice. The kind of girl that gave up things to make someone else happy. I felt a surge of protection over her. Girls like that made easy targets for bullies.
“No. There’s plenty of room for both of us.”
She smiled. “Thanks. Are you sure?”
“Of course.” I nodded to a closed door next to her giant wardrobe. “That the bathroom?”
She walked over to the door and opened it. “Yeah. We share the bathroom with two other girls. Ashley and Tamara. Their room is on the other side.”
I followed her in and gaped at the huge bathroom. To the left, a beautiful marbled double sink stood with a giant mirror and a plush red rug spread across the gorgeous tiled floor. Directly opposite the sink a full-length mirror was attached to a small closet. Past the red carpet, a giant jacuzzi style bath stood and across from that, a large glass screened shower.
“The toilet is in there.” Shiloh motioned to the closed door between the tub and shower.
“One bathroom for four girls?” I shook my head.
“Yeah. Ashley made a schedule for us.”
My eyebrow arched. “A what now?”
Shiloh flushed. “A schedule for who gets to shower and stuff. But if you have go, and it’s not your time, you can go to the public bathroom right down the hall.”
I blinked, processing her words. A schedule for peeing? How did that even work? I didn’t know who these other girls were, but already I had a feeling I was going to be stepping on some toes.
I didn’t follow rules well.
“When is your aunt coming with
your stuff?” Shiloh broke the tension.
“She said after lunch.”
“Oh. Well, I have archery training then, but afterwards, I can come right up and help. If you need.”
“Thanks, but I don’t have a lot of stuff.”
“Okay. Do you want me to walk with you to your first class? I have class too so I’m going there, anyway.”
I smiled at her. “Yeah, that would be great. Thanks.”
She led me back out and locked the door. “Oh. I forgot to ask Molly for another room key. Don’t worry. I’ll track you down and give one to you. Meet for lunch in the cafeteria? When is your lunch?”
I pulled up the tablet once more. “One o’clock.”
“Hmm. Mine is at twelve, but I’ll give the key to Javi. I have class with him before lunch period.”
“One to one-thirty. Thirty minutes for lunch?” I touched the screen.
“Yeah. They like us to keep it short so we can get more classes in.”
“Sounds kind of strict,” I grunted.
Her face turned serious. “Oh yeah. They’re very strict. You should have gotten a handbook with all the policies and rules. But I guess since you didn’t get orientation yet…” she trailed off with a thoughtful look.
Handbook for policies and rules? I snorted. No, thanks. More and more I was glad I missed orientation. This wasn’t a school. It was a prison. A large, fancy, beautiful prison.
And I would not be there for long.
11
“Sorry, we didn’t get time to check out the pool or backyard,” Shiloh said as we took the elevator down to the first floor.
“It’s fine. I’m sure there will be time later. Do you think they’ll let me skip out on the first day of classes? I mean since I haven’t even been to orientation yet?” I asked hopefully.
She gave me a wry smile. “I don’t think so. Sorry.”
I groaned. “I should have grabbed another cup of that magic coffee.”
“They have coffee in the student lounge in the main classroom building.”
“Yeah. Thanks.”
We fell silent again as she led me out of the dorm house and out onto the sidewalk. Just like yesterday, the sky was a brilliant blue and the sun bright and cheery. I couldn’t see the beach from where we stood, but I could smell it. It couldn’t be too far off. I glanced around to see if I could spot the airplane hangar, but the large buildings blocked out the view. Shiloh led me across the street to the giant classroom building.
“Here. You should check to make sure your replacement card works.” Shiloh pointed at the pad on the outside.
I swiped my card and watched as the little light lit up green. Shiloh opened the door for me and let me go first. A cold burst of air hit us, making me glad for my unapproved jacket.
“My class is upstairs. You have my number on the student tablet so just send me a message if you need anything. I’ll be back in the dorm before dinner and I can show you where we can eat.”
Dinner seemed so far away. Could I make it that long? I waved goodbye and thanked her again as she entered the elevator and disappeared behind the doors.
A stream of students exited the elevators and rooms all at once, crowding me. The once quiet lobby turned into a noisy pool of people. Eyes glanced at me, a mixture of surprise, distaste, and apathy written in their faces.
Ignoring the stares, I pulled up my tablet once more and looked for the class number and map. All the way at the opposite end of the building—and it started in five minutes. I tucked away the tablet again and picked up my pace.
The first class was filled with freshman, just like Shiloh warned me. As hard as I tried to pretend I didn’t care, the students snickers and curious looks annoyed me. Thankfully, the teacher was just as annoyed that my presence seemed to disrupt her young class. She gave me a login and code for the online course. I spent the class period sitting in a chair, trying to figure out the tablet before my next class.
Class 401: Advanced Protocols for GRIMM agents
That didn’t sound like a freshman class. I perked up. Maybe Shiloh or Javi would be there. I tried to open the class roster, but the system crashed.
Giving up after five minutes of trying to get it back, I wandered the hall, looking for the student lounge. When I got there, it was filled with students, but not a single sound came from them. I blinked in surprise and walked closer. Their mouths were moving. Their bodies were moving, and the water was splashing, but everything was dead quiet.
What the hell?
A couple students noticed my stare and glanced at me. They frowned in my direction and turned their backs on me.
Well, Okaaay then.
“Hey, cuz!” Javi’s voice startled me.
I turned around to face him. More than a few heads turned in our direction; their hostility from earlier turning into curiosity.
He flashed me a smile. “How was your first class?”
“It was a freshman class, Javi. I was the oldest one there.”
He winced. “Yeah. I forgot to tell you about that.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “Yeah. What else did you forget to tell me?”
A sheepish smile spread on his face. “That’s it, promise.”
“And you drove off so fast, you took my ID card with you.”
“Oh…. Sorry about that.”
“Some help you’ve been.”
His shoulders slumped. “You’re right. I’m sorry, Rose. I should have taken more responsibility for you.”
I frowned. “No. That’s not exactly what I mean.”
“Let me make it up to you. Buy you a coffee?” His eyebrows waggled.
The boy knew my weakness.
“Fine. Extra large.”
“Sure.”
I walked over to the coffee cart with him, glancing at our onlookers. I still couldn’t hear them.
“What’s up with the sound here? Am I going deaf?”
He glanced at me as he ordered and swiped his card. “What? Oh, no. That. This lounge is warded to keep the noise level down. You can’t hear anyone unless they want you to. Since nobody knows you here… yet…”
“Oh. That’s… crazy. So, no one can hear me either?”
“Not unless you want them to.”
I smiled. “Not even if I yell at the top of my lungs? Like, something totally embarrassing about you?”
His eyes narrowed. “Like what?”
“I don’t know. I seem to remember a particular little boy who mistook dog treats for people food.”
He glanced around, eyes wide. “Shut up. No one needs to hear that.”
“But I thought you said no one could hear me.”
“Well, she can hear you.” He nodded to the girl behind the counter, picking at her nail polish.
I snorted. “She’s not listening, Javi.”
“Don’t tell anyone that story.”
“Why not? It’s hilarious. You ate almost the whole bag before you realized it.” I snickered. “And remember, you couldn’t figure out why Roxi kept trying to put her paw in your hand to do her ‘shake’ trick.”
His ears reddened. “Stop, Rose. I know stories about you too.”
My eyebrow arched. “I didn’t eat dog treats.”
“Yeah, because I’m a nice guy. I wouldn’t have let you eat dog food. But you thought it was sooo funny.”
“It is funny.”
I grabbed my coffee cup and added my three bags of sugar, still smiling at the memory of my cousin. Papi made me apologize. Pain pierced me as his face flashed in my mind.
For a moment, I’d forgotten he was gone and not just back home, waiting for me. I wasn’t ever going back there. This was my life now.
“Rose, come on,” Javi called me over to a group of people.
My chest tightened. No. I couldn’t handle their eyes and questions right now. My throat burned as I tried to discreetly motion to my cousin that I didn’t want to. He was still frowning at me, waving me over.
I
turned back to the condiment table and kept stirring the sugar in. My whole body was flushed, my ears ringing. What was happening to me? I glanced at the bracelet. Was it doing something to me?
No. I didn’t think so. The room spun around me, and it felt like something was pressing on my lungs. A panic attack? Was that what this was?
“Rose, are you okay?” Javi came up beside me.
Concern flashed in his dark eyes. I sucked in a breath and nodded, unable to make my mouth move to form words.
“I’ll walk you to the next class. Mine is right next door.” He smiled.
Nodding, I ignored the stares as we made our way to the elevators. Once inside, the panic ebbed and I could breathe normally again. It was just the two of us.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Javi asked.
I forced a smile. “All things considered.”
“You can tell me, Rose.”
“I know. Thanks.”
We fell silent as the elevator took us to the third floor. Javi apologized for not having the same lunch time, promising to change it as soon as possible. He helped me fix the tablet before heading to his class.
I squared my shoulders and vowed to get through the next class without having a meltdown. The classroom was big and set up like a regular class back home, except the desks and chairs were much nicer.
Everyone fell silent as I entered. Ignoring them, I chose the only seat left—front row. Groaning inwardly, I set my tablet down on the large wooden desktop and slunk into my seat.
To my left, I noticed a heavy stare.
A tall, brown haired guy sat beside me. His golden-tanned, muscular frame better suited for surfing than sitting in a classroom. Blue eyes met mine. Blue-gray that reminded me of the sky before a storm. I scoffed at myself. No more romance novels for me. Shaking off the discomfort, I steeled myself.
“What?” I asked.
His eyebrow arched in surprised, but he quickly recovered. “They don’t allow transfers this late in the school year. Why are you here?”
I flashed him a wolfish smile. “Guess they made an exception.”
His lips pursed and his forehead creased the way mine did when I was doing math equations. He continued to glare at me as if I’d disappear the longer he looked.