C2

DECLARING WAR

“ Good morning, people! “ A girl enters the room with a smile on her face. She brings a green suitcase along with a backpack.

“ Hello," I say. I was sitting on my bed looking at some magazine. I was dying of boredom here.

“ Oi," he says hello.

“ Are you... from Brazil? “ I wanted to guess. He spoke Portuguese so I doubted whether he was from Brazil or Portugal.

“ Yes, I'm sorry," she apologizes, taking the bed next to the door, "My name is Flavia and I forgot that they don't speak my language here," she starts to unpack.

“ I'm Amarantha. And I'm from France," I introduced myself.

“ France “ she looks thoughtful”  Have you been to the Eiffel Tower? “ she asks me curiously.

“ Yes, many times.

My father and I would go to spend Christmas and New Year's with my grandparents in Paris and we would always go to the Eiffel Tower, take pictures and so on. It was one of my favorite places. The city of love.

“ Wow it's amazing. I've always wanted to go to Paris to the Eiffel Tower," she sighs.

Flavia had a fair complexion, reddish hair and several freckles on her face. She was very pretty to tell the truth. I felt inadequate next to her.

“ Someday you will.

“ This place is more or less okay. My parents decided to send me here because they say it will be something better for my future and blah blah blah blah “ Flavia rolls her eyes as she keeps her suitcase under the bed. “ What about you?

I tensed at having to explain why I came here. I wouldn't tell her that the guy I like posted naked pictures of me on social media.

“ My father also wants a better future for me," I said.

“ That's how parents are," he says, going back and forth from the closet. He was putting his clothes away. I had put mine away a few hours ago. “ What about getting out of here? I'd like to see the place," he says.

Just then the door opens and a girl walks in. She's black” haired, short and wears glasses.

“ Hi, I'm Mell and the director sent me to give you a tour of the facilities," she says.

“ Great," I stand up, "I was bored to death.

“ That's just what we were going for," Flavia joins in.

We left the dorms while Mell started telling us a boring topic about how this school originated and all the prestige it has gone through. I watched Flavia make a bored face and I was the same way.

“ Here the boys play ice hockey.

We were passing by a huge field hockey field that was covered in ice just like Mell said. Wow, they had their own ice hockey field and there were railings all around it. They sure do some games. How cool.

“ Super. Are we going to get lessons on that? “ Flavia asks.

“ No, actually it's more like a sport for boys. It's something like a hobby. Of course, there are tournaments in which several schools participate. The girls also play with the boys. But only sometimes.

“ I'd like to try," I say. I was curious to put on skates and skate there. It was a new feeling. It's as if the field was calling me.

“ You'd have to talk to the team captain. And I don't think he'll let you in. His group is full and Gina is a bit... complicated.

“ Who's Gina? The captain? I wanted to know.

“ No. “ She's the team captain's cousin. The team captain is Elder William. And he's...

“ Mell, I was looking for you. Come, I need you to do this urgent job for me," comes a boy with an air of grandeur and pushes past me to get to Mell.

“ Why don't you look? “ I sputtered, "God, this school should teach manners.

The boy had his back to me. He was much taller than me and wore a leather jacket. Flavia and Mell fell silent just as the boy turned back to me. It looked like he wasn't at all amused that I had offended him.

Jesus, how handsome he is. He had tousled black hair, was fair complexioned and very cute.

“ And who are you? “ he laughed.

Was that funny?

“ I'm Amara," I crossed my arms, "Who you pushed past a few seconds ago.

“ Amara," she plays with my name, "I'm sure you're new. It's understandable," he says, "Mell, didn't you tell him the rules? “ she asks the girl without taking her eyes off me.

“ I didn't have time. Amara, this is Elder William," Mell answers in a more shy tone.

“ I'll take care of you," says Elder coming dangerously close to me, "First rule: don't talk to me because we are not equal. Second rule: I'm the one in charge of this school. Not that inept headmaster we have. Me. And third rule: in this school you do what I say. So be careful, Amara, if you don't want to live in hell. I'll pretend what you told me didn't happen. Because I'm new," she winks at me.

I laughed in her face.

“ For God's sake, who abandoned you when you were little? Why do you have these godlike airs if you're just a simple, ordinary boy? Just as you have your rules, I have mine," I confronted him, looking him in the eye and challenging him. Giving him to understand that no one could do it with me. I swore that no man would ever humiliate me”  First rule: I talk to whoever I want because I want to and because I can.

Second rule: I don't obey orders from you or from the inept one we have as director. And third and last rule: in this school everyone can do what you say but not me. You don't order me around. You'd better go and send the dogs from your house, Eider “ I smiled mischievously at her and then blew her a little kiss in the air. “ Shall we go, girls? “ I walked past her and headed down the halls with the girls. Even though I had confronted that boy, I felt a little nervous.

“ Amara, what did you do? “ Mell says to me as we turn into another hallway.

Elder stood there without saying anything.

“ That was great, I loved it," Flavia claps her hands proudly.

“ I just did what I felt I had to do.

“ But you challenged Elder William, don't you know what that means? “ Mell was pale.

“ No. I'm not afraid of that guy," I sighed in relief.

“ As bossy and grotesque as he is, he's handsome and sexy, or are you going to deny it? “ Flavia annoyed me.

“ I've known better," we hurried up, "what are you going to show us now? “ I ask Mell.

“ I'm processing what just happened," she says.

Flavia and I laugh a little.

Elder William will not intimidate me, even though I know he might take revenge on me, I will be very attentive and prepared. I don't know why I felt I had declared war on the devil.