She scowls and jabs her finger at the still-blaring clock.
Nothing happens.
“
I smile. Maybe I can get Stella grounded for the entire year-at least then I’d be safe.
If her face weren’t covered in green I know she would be turning red.
When she stomps in my direction, I fling my arm out and smack the top of the clock. I don’t want her getting any of the green goop on my fluffy white comforter. “Forget it,” I say, sitting up and swinging my legs out of bed. “I’m getting up anyway.”
For a moment she looks like she wants to continue her attack, but then turns and stomps back to her room.
My brain is waking up-no turning back now.
I grab a pair of track pants, a T-shirt, and a pair of white socks out of the dresser, pull them on in a matter of seconds, splash somewater on my face in the bathroom, lace up my sneakers, and am heading out the door when the snoozing alarm clock starts blaring again. Smiling at the thought of Stella having to hunt it out from under my bed, I start down the path to the dock where we arrived last night. Where there’s water there must be a beach.
The dock is in a little lagoon, nicely protected from the open sea, with rocky cliffs on one side and a narrow strip of sand on the other. Even though I’m not going to push my worn-out body too hard, I sit on the dock and do ten minutes of stretches. Pulling a hamstring is the last thing I need.
The sun is just starting to rise and casts a pale pink over everything. I take deep, filling breaths as I reach for my toes, taking in the salty clean smell of the sea. A different smell from the California beaches I’m used to. Purer, maybe.
I twist my upper body to the one side, going for that extra oblique stretch, and notice a cluster of little white buildings on top of the cliffs. Bathed in the early morning twilight, it looks just as pink as the rest of the island. That must be the village. It seems so strange that there are people that live up there in that little village, a world away from L.A., with whole lives that go on whether I’m here to see them or not. I guess that’s true of everywhere-the cars you pass on the freeway, the towns you fly over at thirty thousand feet, and those little white buildings. Suddenly, L.A. feels even farther away.
Surrounded by pink and silence, except for gently lapping waves, I embrace the inner and outer peace. Leaving the dock for the thin strip of sand, I kick into a moderate run. If my entire year here were just like this moment then things might not be so bad. But I knowthat this feeling only exists when I run. It’s why I run. That, and to feel closer to Dad.
As the sand squishes beneath my Nikes, I lose myself in the memory of our early-morning training runs. When Dad was training in the off-season we would run almost every morning. Almost always on Santa Monica beach. We would park near the pier, run the three miles down to Marina del Rey, and then race back to the pier for ice cream. If I beat him, I got a double scoop.
I don’t even realize I’m crying until I taste my tears. Not slowing my pace, I wipe at my eyes. Why was I even thinking about Dad?
Usually I don’t think about anything when I run. I’m too focused on the sensation of running.
Clearing my mind, I notice the burning in my quads. How long have I been running? The world around me is no longer bathed in pink. A quick glance over my shoulder confirms my suspicion. The dock is nowhere in sight and the sun has cleared the horizon.
I need to get back.
Dropping to a walk, I’m about to turn around and head back when I notice another person running on the beach. He’s less than two hundred yards away from me, close enough for me to appreciate the loose, easy movement of his gait. I can tell his body is made for running, and somehow I know that his soul lives for it. I guess I recognize a kindred spirit.
Before I know it-because I’m mesmerized by watching him run-he’s jogging to a stop right in front of me. I practically melt into a puddle of girl drool.
He looks around my age and he is beyond beautiful. It isn’t just his hypnotic blue eyes or his perfect, sloped nose, or his sculpted high cheekbones. His lips are full and soft and yummily pink. The kind that just make you want to grab him by the hair with both hands-even though I can’t see his hair under the blue bandannaand make out until you can’t think anymore.
“Hi,” he says, his voice just low enough and smooth enough to send shivers down my spine.
“Hi,” I say back.
Brilliant. Normally, speaking is not a problem for me, but I’m hypnotized.
His mouth lifts up at one side, like he finds it funny that I’m staring and incapable of speech. “Where did you run from?”
“Um,” I say, continuing my display of brilliance. A large portion of my brain is distracted by the faint accent that makes his question sound like a melody. I manage to gesture vaguely over my shoulder.
“The dock.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “That’s nearly eight kilometers.”
“What?” That’s like five miles. I’ve been running for over half an hour. Even if I keep my same pace the whole way back I won’t have time to shower before meeting Damian. And the way my thighs feel, I’m definitely going back at a slower rate.
Great, I’m going to show up for my first day of school sticky and smelling like sweat.
“There’s a shortcut,” Mr. Beautiful offers. Pointing to the rocks at the edge of the beach, he explains, “That path will get you home in half the time.”
I squint at the rocks, trying to find a path. All I see are big, beige rocks and short, shrubby bushes that look like they might like to scrape the crap out of my legs.
“It’s there,” he says with a laugh. “It starts out steep, but you’ll be on the flat after the first half kilometer.”
Finally spying the narrow path, I turn back and say, “Thank-”
But he’s already gone, running back the way he came.
I didn’t even get to ask his name.
“Thanks!” I shout after him.
Without turning or slowing he waves over his shoulder. I allow myself a few seconds of appreciation-watching him from behind is even more mesmerizing. Then, shaking myself out of that detour into fantasy, I turn and head up the path.
I’m back at the house in under twenty minutes, with just enough time to shower and dry my hair before I have to meet Damian.
Following Damian up the broad front steps of the Academy, I feel my jaw drop at the gorgeous building that is my new school.
Clearly very old-ancient even-the whole stone front is lined with columns that stretch all the way to the roof. Above the columns is a triangle filled with carvings of men and women doing all different things-standing, sitting, lying down while eating grapes. It looks like a drawing I saw once of what the Parthenon might have looked like when it was new. Nothing like the single story, boring to the point of hospital decor building that houses Pacific Park.
“This building dates to the relocation of the Academy in the sixth century,” Damian explains. He pushes open the massive golden front door and gestures for me to go in. “The only changes since that time have been technological modernizations. We have one of the most advanced computer labs in the world.”
“Good to know some things on this island have reached the twenty-first century,” I say, thinking back to the ancient computer at his house.
Then I step into the expansive front hall and all thought flees.
In front of me, directly across the stone tiled floor from the main door, is the biggest trophy case I have ever seen. And it is jampacked with shining gold trophies.
“Wow,” I whisper, unable to hide my awe.
“The Academy has an illustrious history,” he says, walking up behind me when I zombie-walk to the glass
