Candy walked slowly towards the imposing gates of Carter High, clutching her ratty old tote close to her. It was a beautiful day, with warm sunlight filtering through the trees and dappling the ground below, but Candy was so intimidated by the momentous occasion that she was quite oblivious to the lovely weather. The campus was so big she couldn't even see the school building from here. In fact, she could not see anyone else walking except her. Posh, fancy cars, and motorbikes drove up the winding drive or stood parked to the side, the owners as posh and fancy as their vehicles. To Candy's bewildered eyes the boys and girls standing around chatting and flirting with one another looked like models straight out of a fashion magazine. She was all too conscious of her shabby, worn T-shirt, threadbare jeans, and scuffed sneakers drawing her curious looks as she passed by.
Well, Carter High was an extremely expensive school catering to elite and privileged students. She was here only because of an unexpected scholarship she had gotten to Carter High. Apparently, her mother's will had mentioned the scholarship and the legal firm executing the will had finally caught up with her uncle and aunt. Even with the scholarship covering all the books and other stuff she would need at school, it had finally taken veiled threats on the part of the lawyer to convince Ed and Lucy Clarke to allow her to attend Carter High.
Candy wondered for the millionth time whether there had been some mistake somewhere. What if after a few days the real beneficiary came forward and she had to leave? Or if it was all some sort of hoax right from the beginning and there was really no scholarship at all? It seemed so improbable, she could scarcely believe the entire thing.
She squared her shoulders and clutched her bag determinedly as she approached the huge stone building ahead. This was her chance to make some kind of future for herself. Life had unexpectedly thrown her a crumb, and she was determined to make the most of it. She entered the huge hallway of the building and consulted a map displayed there. A few minutes later, Candy was knocking at the Principal's door.
Sometime later she collected her class schedule from the school office, Principal O'Neill's words ringing in her ears. "It won't be an easy journey, Candy," she had warned her. "You are a good student and academics shouldn't be a problem for you, but you'll face many other challenges here. The students may not always be understanding of the differences between them and you, but never lose sight of your goal, which is to use the quality education you will receive here to build your future. Don't let superficial differences get to you, Candy – at the end of the day, only the knowledge you take from here matters. The rest is exactly that – superficial. Carmichael Carter established Carter High to provide the finest education in the district, and you should make the most of the opportunity you've got."
Candy consulted the sheet of paper in her hand. Her first class was English, so she hurried in the direction indicated by the helpful clerk in the office.
As soon as Candy entered a pin-drop silence fell over the room. Her grip on her bag tightened as she hesitantly glanced around, looking for a place to sit. The faces she saw were curious, some openly hostile.
"Hey – you can't clean now – janitorial staff come in after 4."
A tall curvy brunette sauntered up to her as the class giggled. She was dressed in tight designer jeans and an electric blue tube top with a nearly transparent white shirt over it. She looked gorgeous, her sexy good looks marred only by the ugly expression on her face.
"Hey, you – I'm talking to you! Where do you think you're going?" she demanded, advancing on Candy as a few more boys and girls joined her.
"I – I'm a student here," Candy faltered.
"Get out – this is Carter High, not Hobo High." The girl flipped her long dark hair over her shoulder as laughter rose from the class.
"I – I -"
One of the boys snatched the sheet of paper from Candy's hand.
"Hey, Nora – she's got a class schedule and everything."
"No shit!" Another boy took the piece of paper and looked at it.
"Well, she's not sitting near me, anyway," said a slim redhead, shuddering theatrically. "I might catch fleas or some disease or something from her."
Candy's face burned as the others laughed. The brunette – Nora – turned to her again.
"How the fuck did they let this -" she gestured at Candy from head to toe – "in here?"
Just then the class door crashed open.
"Matt!" Someone from the group surrounding Candy exclaimed.
"Hey."
The newcomer's voice was deep and sexy, and Candy felt her skin tingle as he spoke.
"Matt, look what crawled out of the gutter!"
The crowd parted miraculously and Candy found herself looking up at probably the most handsome boy she had ever seen in her life. He was tall, over 6', and wore blue jeans and a black shirt that stretched tautly across his broad chest. Muscles rippled below the shirt as he moved. His hair was dark and wavy, carelessly tousled, and his eyes were a bright, brilliant blue, gleaming devilishly as he looked down at her. A pretty platinum blonde was plastered to his side like ivy on a wall.
"What sort of trash are they letting into Carter High these days?" The blonde wrinkled her dainty nose, studying Candy's threadbare jeans and faded T-shirt.
"Name?" The boy asked in a lazy drawl.
"C-C-Candy Clarke," Candy stammered, wishing desperately that she could run away from there and keep running till Carter High and its snooty students were far, far behind.
"C-C-Candy Clarke." Everyone giggled. "If you're going to study here, then there are some rules you're gonna have to follow."
"R-rules?"
"Yeah. For starters, this is Matt Kane, but for you he's Sir – you're only ever gonna call him Sir, if you know what's good for you," Nora chimed in.
"Every day when you get in, your first duty is to find him and wish him good morning." The blonde took over.
Matt smiled lazily. "Whatever I'm doing, wherever I am, you have to wish me before going to class – get it?"
"Y-yes," Candy whispered.
"And if you don't, there will be – consequences." One of the boys in the group spoke. "Matt is your boss now, so you'll do whatever he tells you to do, or else…"
"Let's just say you won't last very long here, Clarke," Matt finished with a smirk. "Do you understand?"
"Y-yes." Candy clutched her bag even tighter, her hands trembling.
"Just yes?" Nora stepped forward and grabbed her arm, squeezing it painfully. "Is that how you'll speak to your master?"
"Uhh – yes, sir," Candy faltered as Nora's nails bit into her flesh.
"Better." Nora released her with a little shove and Candy stumbled forward, thrown off balance.
"Hey – watch it!" the blonde yelled as Candy fell against Matt's tall, hard body. His hands came up instinctively to steady her, his fingers burning through her thin T-shirt like a brand before the blonde shoved her away from him.
"Careful, Matt, she probably has fleas," giggled the redhead. Candy's flush deepened as people snickered and whispered around her. Then the door opened and the teacher walked in.
"Everyone, take your seats," she said crisply. The crowd around Candy dispersed till she was the only one standing.
"Ah – everyone, we have a new student, Candy Clarke." Mrs. Denvers smiled at Candy. "Candy, you can sit over there, next to Layla." She indicated a vacant seat a few rows back, next to a girl with a mop of dark curls and a not-unfriendly face. Candy hurried over and slid into her seat, relieved to be away from the limelight. Layla smiled tentatively at her, and Candy smiled back shyly.
Time passed quickly after that and the period was soon over. Mrs. Denvers was an excellent teacher and Candy found she had enjoyed the lesson thoroughly. Only when the bell rang did she realize she did not know what her next class was. She looked around for the tall boy who had last had her class schedule.
He was at the back of the room, lips locked with the redhead's. Candy waited but they showed no sign of ending the kiss so finally she went up to them. Matt, the blonde, Nora, and several of their cronies who were standing around and talking, stopped to watch.
"Uhh…excuse me," Candy said but the two paid no attention to her. "Excuse me," she said in a louder voice, and at last the boy looked up.
"Can't you see we're busy?" he asked impatiently.
"I – I just needed my class schedule," Candy said, wishing she had just gone to the office and gotten herself another copy instead.
"Your class – oh, you mean this." He held the paper in front of her with a laugh. "You want it, take it."
Candy reached for it but he moved it higher and higher as his friends egged him on.
She'd just go and request a copy, Candy thought, giving up as he waved the sheet high above his head. She headed to the door but the blonde girl's voice stopped her before she could leave the room.
"Hey, you – come here!"
Candy turned reluctantly.
"Carry these books to our next class," she ordered, shoving a stack at Candy.
"I – I'll -"
"Got something to say, Clarke?" Matt asked, eyes gleaming.
"No, sir." Candy swallowed and took the books. She noticed that though Matt did not interfere with the blonde bossing her around, he carried his books himself. She trailed behind them to their next class, then rushed off to get her schedule and go to her next class. It was History and she was late, but the teacher excused her as it was her first day.
A few classes later, the bell rang for lunch. Candy hadn't brought lunch and she did not have any money to buy food either. She had no desire whatsoever to sit by herself in the cafeteria where no doubt everyone would be gossiping about her, so she decided to visit the school library. She loved reading more than anything, though she seldom had access to books, so the well-stocked school library was like a dream come true for her. She spent a pleasant hour in a quiet hidden corner of the library, immersed in a book, transported from reality by the far superior world of fiction.
The rest of the day passed for her without incident barring the few occasions when she ran across Gina – which was the blonde's name, she discovered – and was made to fetch and carry for her.