Chapter 1: Cornal high

WARNING: THIS IS A COPYRIGHTED BOOK UNDER THE GOVERNMENT OF CROATIA, OWNED BY AMANDA STEEL. INFRINGERS WILL BE DEALT WITH ACCORDINGLY. THE AUTHOR HAS GIVEN GOODNOVEL THE RIGHTS TO PUBLISH THIS BOOK IN THEIR APP/WEBSITE.

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“Olivia, it’s time to wake up! Olivia, if you don’t get up, you’re going to be late!” 

Groaning, I turned over in my bed as I heard my mother’s yelling from downstairs, grabbing my blanket and throwing it over my head as the warmth and comfort of my beautiful bed enveloped me, slowly lulling me back to sleep.

The door slammed open and the blanket was ripped away from my body as hands began to grab and tickle my sides.

I tossed and turned to get away, laughing as my brother tickled me mercilessly and relentlessly.

“Wake up, sleepyhead!” said James loudly as he continued to tickling me.

“JAMES!!! STOP IT!!!” I screamed.

“Where’s the fun in that?”

“Please stop! I’m up, I’m up!”

Chuckling, my brother stopped and looked at me. “You’re lucky I was the one who came into your room to wake you up. If it had been mom, she would have carried a bucket of water and just splashed you with it.”

“No, she wouldn’t.”

“Oh, I’ve already seen her get the bucket, but if  you’d rather have her wake you up next time, okay, no problem. Anyway, you’re going to be late for school if you don’t get up already.”

Looking at my alarm clock, I saw that I had twenty minutes to get ready, so I hurried to my bathroom, which was connected to my room.

I do believe that was the fastest shower I've ever had in my life. After brushing my teeth, doing my hair, and putting on a light makeup, I peeked in my room to see if James was still there. He wasn’t, so I went to my closet to put on my favorite jeans and white crop top.

With one last glance at the clock, I saw that I had a few minutes left, so I grabbed my shoes and my bag and hurried downstairs to the kitchen, where I found my mother at the stove preparing breakfast for us.

“Ollie, did you forget to set your alarm again?” my mother asked as she placed a plate of pancakes on the table for me to eat.

“I’m sorry mom, but I was talking to Lizzy on Skype last night and I just forgot.”

“How is Lizzy doing?”

Lizzy has been my best friend since we went to kindergarten together. She and her family were visiting her grandparents who live down south, where their flock, the Arcani, is having their annual swim, so Lizzy and her parents went to join them. In our world, the annual swim strengthens the bond between the flock members and creates a stronger family connection. The annual family swim is especially important in the Sirens world which happens at the beginning of every spring and summer.

“She is doing great. She’s already preparing for the swim that’s scheduled for tomorrow.”

“Oh, that sounds wonderful, I’m sure she’ll love it.”

As I settled down to eat my pancakes, my brother came into the kitchen and kissed our mother on the cheek. Ashe grabbed a fork, I eyed him suspiciously as he approached my seat. And rightly so, because he took a piece of my pancake and shoved it into his mouth!

“JAMES!!!”

“Mmmm… these are amazing, Mom.”

“Mom, tell James to get his own plate of pancakes, he’s stealing mine.”

Instead of getting onto James, Mom just chuckled and shook her head.

“Okay, are you ready since we have to go?” James asked me as he picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder.

“Yes, I’m ready. Thanks, mom, it was delicious!”

“You’re welcome, honey. Have a great day, you two. James, don’t give Mr. Pinkle any trouble!”

“Oh, come on, Mom! Even you can’t be serious when you say his name!”

“I mean it, James!”

“Yeah, okay, I’ll be an angel.” I scoffed when I heard my brother say that, knowing he was anything but an angel.

Our school is a mix of supernatural creatures and humans, so basically no “beasting out” is the rule, as our secret of what we are needs to stay as that—a secret.

 We are shifters in my family. More specifically, we’re Sirens.

We don’t mix much with other supernaturals, as we prefer to stay in our own groups.

“Olivia!” I heard my friend Mandy call out to me.

Turning around, I saw Mandy running toward me, her books clutched tightly to her chest, and following close behind her was Annie, my other friend.

Mandy and Annie are from my family’s flock. Mandy’s family is the beta of our flock, while Annie’s are warriors.

They were both beautiful, inside and out. Mandy with her long golden hair that reached to the middle of her back, with her hazel eyes and darker tanned skin, while Annie had a tanned skin tone and hair of the same length, only hers was dark, almost raven with blue eyes. They were both tall and attractive. As shapeshifters, it was natural to be attractive, though some were more so than others.

“Oh my God, have you heard yet?” asked Mandy, out of breath from rushing over to me.

“Heard what? I just got here.”

James got out of the car and smiled at the two girls as they just stood there sighing and staring at him.

Yes, he was my brother, and an alpha at that, but come on.

“Hello, ladies. How are you two today?” James winked at the two of them.

It was funny to watch their mouths open, and turning bright red.

“James, stop teasing my girlfriends,” I told him firmly.

“What? I only said hi. Okay, I see Tyler and Max,  I’ll see you later at lunch.”

He kissed me on the forehead and hurried on to meet up with his friends.

“He’s so dreamy!” Mandy looked after James with a twinkle in her eye.

“I don’t want to burst your bubble, but back to the topic at hand. You were going to say something?” I said to Mandy.

“Umm, yeah, sorry! Well, it seems that Cornal High School was closed, so all the students from there were transferred to our school,” she said.

“Why, what happened?” I asked her.

“It seems that their building burned down and collapsed on one side, so it’s been put up for demolition until it can be repaired.”

Gasping at the news, I couldn’t believe what she was telling me. “Oh, my goddess! How on earth did that even happen?” I asked curiously.

Mandy leaned closer and whispered in my ear, “Apparently a group of their students got a little carried away with matches.” She winked at me and leaned back.

Wow, I couldn’t even begin to process what she was saying. Who in the world would be stupid enough to burn down the high school?

When the school bell rang, I grabbed my bag and followed Mandy and Annie inside. The corridors were packed with students. Some were whispering and gossiping about the news Mandy had just told me, some were giggling, and some were looking intently at the front gates to try and spy the new student who would now be attending school with us

Within minutes, the loudspeaker resounded through the school hallway. “All students, please assemble in the gym and take your seats in the bleachers until Principal Bennett arrives and makes his announcement. Thank you.

With a glance at Mandy and Annie, we made our way to the gym and took our seats in the third row of bleachers. I saw my brother and his team sitting a few bleachers up and watched as they goofed around. A couple of cheerleaders sat nearby, flirting with them and giggling at them.  I rolled my eyes and  turned towards the podium as we all waited for Mr. Bennett.

 A few minutes later, Mr. Bennett finally arrived at the podium in the center of the courtyard and stepped closer to the microphone.

“Hello, everyone. Thank you for coming here today, I have an important announcement to make. Our school has taken the students from Cornal High School, as their school is closed for renovations until further noticeI expect each one of you to welcome and treat the newcomers with kindness and respect. All of our school’s rules apply to both current and new students without exception.

As the speech was being given, the new students entered the gym and took their seats.

“Do you smell something?” I turned to Mandy and asked.

She looked at me confused, but sniffed anyway and then shook her head as if to say no. I didn’t miss the “You’re crazy” look she gave me.

I shook my head, and then a strange feeling came over me. I felt as if someone was watching me.

I scanned the crowd looking for the source, but couldn’t find anyone looking in my direction.

James nodded at me when  he saw me looking around frantically and asked quietly if everything was alright, and I returned the gesture and smiled to assure him that everything was fine.

“So I expect you all to be on your best behavior. That means no fights, no rivalries, and of course, continue to study hard. You are dismissed and may go to your classes. Thank you.” Mr. Bennett turned and left the gym.

We all got up and walked slowly to our classes. The strange thing was that  I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was staring at me, watching my every move. 

Mandy must be right, maybe I am a little uptight. Well, can anyone blame me? My birthday is coming up this weekend, and it’s not just any birthday. This year it was special...