textbooks, most of which were completely unfamiliar to me.
Most of what I had learned at Angel High had been pretty
basic – World History, Post-Erosion History, Math, English
– but here the curriculum seemed to be completely different.
Not only was there an entire class devoted to the Erosion
Period – the decade during which the floods had transformed
the massive continents of the world into scattered
archipelagos – but indeed almost all the other classes were
focused on Aeros itself, ignoring the rest of the world. We
had one class just in Aeros History, and two in Mythologies
of Aeros. It appeared that the local settlers of Aeros had
worshiped what looked at first glance to be a mix of all the
other pagan religions of which I'd read – Norse gods and
traditional Polynesian ones were worshiped alongside
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Ancient Greek and Roman gods; likely, the textbook said, as
a result of traders from the Roman Empire getting
shipwrecked and stranded on Aeros thousands of years ago,
starting their own colony. It was interesting, to be sure, but
as I looked at the books I had unloaded on my desk, my heart
sank. Surely all the other students at Aeros Academy had
grown up hearing about these myths and legends, grown up
knowing who founded Aeros and when. But all that would
be new to me. I didn't know Aeros from any of the other
islands in the Pacific, except that it was pre-Erosion rather
than Post – and I certainly didn't know anything about how
the ancient Aerites worshiped the Roman god Neptune on
the beaches where the Cutter Imperial now stood. Everyone,
I felt, would be massively ahead of me – how would I ever
catch up in time to put more A's on my transcript for college
admissions? As I grudgingly started my homework, I was
glad that tonight was a Friday night, and at the very least that
I had two whole days before I'd have to present my work to
my teachers. I had a report on Early Fire Cults due for
Tuesday, two chapters of Aeros History and Culture to read
and summarize, and a quiz on the economic impact of the
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Early Erosion (2150-51) to prepare for on Monday. I no
longer had to worry about making friends, I felt. I wouldn't
have time for any, anyway!
At least Chance was new, too. I sighed as his face
came flickering back into my memory. I tried to put it out of
my mind, but the questions kept coming back to me. Why
had he treated me the way he had? What could he possibly
have against me to make him so angry at me? And what had
happened the other night at the party – the bonfire, the
flames, that sizzling sense of connection? I knew from his
expression today after gym class that he felt it too. From
glimpses of him when he wasn’t trying to hate me, I could
tell he wanted just as much as I did to give into our attraction,
our desires. But then why did he treat me the way he did? I
scowled at myself. I had never been one to let any boy treat
me badly – my mother had always given me stern talking-
tos about the dangers of mooning over crushes – but this felt
different, somehow. This was more than just a crush. There
was something I didn't know – something I had seen in
Antonio Cutter's eyes when he talked to me about Chance,
something to do with the bonfires and Chance's expulsion
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from Eton and the Cutter Scholarship my mother hadn't told
me about. Some secret that was being hidden from me.
And I didn't like it.
My mother came bustling in, her arms piled high
with papers of her own. “Insurance quotes,” she rolled her
eyes as she set the papers down on the kitchen table. “Honey,
do you mind if we order in tonight? It's going to be a busy
one for me. Some kid's having a pool party tomorrow – then
we have a wedding and a Polynesian Trade Convention.”
She sighed. “Or we could go over to the hotel. They have a
restaurant. And I could talk to Antonio about whether it's
possible to fit giant balloon animals in the main ballroom.”
It was only a five-minute walk from our house, a
small structure technically on Cutter property we had leased
for the duration of her job. “I could go for some hotel food,”
I said, remembering the taste of the fresh barbeque at the
luau. Then I remembered that Chance was probably there.
“On second thought,” I said. “Why don't we go for pizza?”
“Honey,” my mother sighed. “I thought you loved the
hotel food. And I get free dinners there...”
I knew my mother didn't like to spend money unless
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she had to. I nodded and we grabbed our things. I loaded up
my bookbag again, counting on finding a quiet place to work
in the hotel.
“That's some bookbag,” said my mother. “They
working you hard at Aeros?”
I shrugged, not wanting
