My Undercover Life

Episode 9

The rest of Lunch went by in a blur. All I could think about was Bradlee. I knew for sure he was looking at us, but why? I couldn’t have upset him in any way, right? I mean, I know I was a bit pushy this morning, but that’s not something to be upset about, right? Or maybe, it was because I took his pen? Ugh, why the hell am I even thinking about this so much? So what if Bradlee was there? I’m probably just jumping to conclusions. He could’ve just been walking by, and happened to see me.
Yeah. That’s probably it.

After coming up with that conclusion, I went through the rest of my classes in a breeze. By the time I made it to my last class of the day, the excitement that I was the ‘new girl’ finally decided to die down. Most of the people in my grade already knew ‘me’ from the gossip they’d heard throughout the day. With that, they were satisfied enough to stop asking me a boatload of questions everywhere I went.
After getting changed into my gym uniform, my new PE teacher gave me, I made my way back into the sweaty gymnasium. My steps halted when I saw the one person I’d dreaded sharing a class with—Hunter. Before I had time to even run back into the locker room, he waved at me, calling me over.
I, of course ignored him, and slightly prayed that Ian would hurry up and save me. I’d found out earlier today that we shared last period together, and I was grateful I’d someone I could talk to. Having gym alone, would’ve s—-d. Especially if we had to partner up in some of the sports or games we’ll be doing. I wouldn’t want to be that one person who’s left alone because they didn’t have anyone they could partner up with. Megan was lucky and had Annemarie, and Asher with her during her gym period which they had right after lunch.

Now that I knew Hunter was also in my class, I seriously wanted a schedule change. But, most likely that wouldn’t happen. My cousins, Skylar and Demitri will probably refuse saying it’s the perfect opportunity to make friends with them or something like that. I bet they’re eating this up as we speak. I knew they were watching this scene with that stupid camera they gave me this morning.

“K—y!” Hunter called, using that dreadful nickname once again. I think anyone who was in a ten mile radius from me could tell I was eyeing him murderously. Well, anyone but him.
I purposely ignored him for the second time, flipping my high ponytail at him. Stomping my way up the bleachers, I sat as far away from him as possible.

“Oh come on,” he started whining, his bottom lip sticking out. “Don’t give me the silent treatment. Anything but that.”

I raised a brow at his comment and that ridiculous face, before shrugging.

“That’s all I’m gonna get? A shrug?” He puffed his cheeks out, his face becoming more baby-faced. “Did I do something to upset you, K—y?”

Well no s–t, I thought.
“If it’s about lunch, or this morning,” he started saying, scratching the back of his neck. He bit his lips, nervously. “I’m sorry,” he finally whispered, exhaling loudly.

When he didn’t get a response from me, he gave a loud sigh, running his fingers through his dark locks. “I’m really sorry, okay?”

When I heard the sincerity in his voice, I almost gasped in surprise. Seeing the sorrow swimming through those brown orbs of his made me almost want to give in. Keyword: almost. When he saw that I was far from giving in to him, his shoulder slumped forward, his face looking dejected.

“I’ll call you Avery if that makes you happy, yeah?” he tried again, a slight accent slipping through his tongue. I licked my lip, feeling the fake metal rings present, as I tried to figure out that accent of his. It sounded almost australian but maybe it was british? I wasn’t very good at pinpointing accents, so I wouldn’t know the difference between those two.

“Avery,” Hunter said softly, almost afraid of my reaction, “I’m sorry. Really.”

I blew out a puff of air, tucking my legs closer towards my body. “I know you are.” I couldn’t watch those eyes of his anymore.

They looked so hurt. So broken. And honestly, I didn’t know why. I mean, we just met.

He instantly smiled, his d–n eyes lighting up like a freaking puppy. “You’re talking to me!”

I chuckled quietly, seeing the excitement oozing out of him. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Thank you!” he chirped, scooting closer towards me. “I promise I’ll be good.” He touched his chest, swearing on his life.

I was about to say something, when someone decided to make his entrance known to the entire class. When I looked up, it was Ian. I automatically smiled watching him. The students lingering on the other side of where currently Hunter and I sat, watched him too, probably expecting him to do something crazy. They all rolled their eyes when Ian decided to scream, “Gym! Ol’ how much I love, gym.”
“Oh come on guys!” Ian shouted, trying to get our classmates more preppy. “It’s gym! The most beautiful class of the day!” Ian sang when he had gotten a chorus of groans from our fellow students.

“Cheer up guys!” he yelled excitedly, spinning in circles. He did a few skips, doing a cartwheel. “Life is a lot happier if you smile!”
I couldn’t help but giggle at that. Ian was practically dancing in the center of the room, throwing fake flowers as he started singing, “One flower for you, one flower for you, and another for you!” and so on. We carried on watching, eyeing his next move. Even Hunter who was next to me couldn’t help but laugh as well. And this time, he wasn’t laughing at him. Seeing the twinkle in his eyes, and the soft smile on his face, made me think. Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy after all.

“And a special flower for my dear friend Avery!” Ian cheered as soon as the teacher came waltzing out of her office. She gave him a look, appearing to be unaffected by his behavior. Guess he does this all the time as well.
“Come on Ian.” She urged him towards the bleachers. “I have to get class started.”
“Oh yes!” He smiled, bowing dramatically, swinging his arms in the air. “Go ahead, the stage is yours!” he said, ending his sentence in a high-pitch, as he made his way over to me. He flopped his butt on the space next to mine, giving me a quick hug before I could even react.
In the corner of my eyes, I saw the slight frown on Hunter’s face, before he turned his body away from us.

“Today, we’ll be playing dodgeball.” A loud chorus of cheers sounded across the gym, including a very loud Ian. “Now, before we start, let me take attendance first.”
She went through roll call quickly, knowing the student’s faces and names by memory. It was when she got to the ‘L’s’ that she paused. Pushing her glasses up, her hazel eyes roamed around the room, searching for a student.
“Bradlee?” she called.
My eyes widened when I heard his name. He’s in this class too? Oh, great. Not only do I have Hunter in this class, I also have it with his twin? Plus, Ian. Which means, I have all three suspects with me during gym. Fun.
When no one answered, she called his name again, but again, silence.
“I think he went home early, Miss. M,” Hunter decided to say next to me.
“That’s the second time this week,” I heard her say, before she scribbled something down on her clipboard. When she looked back up, she called Hunter’s name next, before Ian’s. He, of course, shouted “here” at the top of his lungs, damaging my eardrums in the progress.
She sighed. “I know you’re here Ian.”
He gasped, pointing a finger at her. “How?”
“You were dancing in the middle of the gym when I walked over here, Ian.”
“Oh, yeah! I was!” He laughed, his blue eyes filled with joy. “I forgot.”
She chose to ignore him, only nodding her head, probably already used to Ian’s behavior every time eighth period rolled around. She soon went back to calling the rest of the student’s names, and when she got to my name, I raised my hand. She gave me a small smile before, moving on. She only called three students after me, since my last name was now at the end of the alphabet, and there weren’t many students with last names after ‘R’.
Once she was done, she asked for a few volunteers to help her out. A few guys towards the front, raised their hands. She motioned her hand to follow her. They disappeared for a bit, behind the bleachers before they came back with bags filled with different color balls. The three guys helped set the thirty-something dodgeballs in the middle of of the gym, before they went back to leaning against the wall.
“Alright, last names beginning with A to Le, you’re on the left side, the rest of you will be on the right side. Got it?”
We all nodded, heading towards our respected destination. When Ian and I started making our way to the other side of the gym, Hunter gave me a small smile before he went to the opposite side of us.
“Okay Avery. You stay behind me, okay?” Ian asked, pushing me back gently. He got into a protective stand. “I’ll make sure you won’t get hit.”
“Um…alright?”
“Good!” He smiled widely. “I promise I won’t let you get hurt. You’re too cute to get hit.”

I blushed at his compliment, mumbling a small thank you in return.

“Alright, ladies and gentlemen,” Miss. M, called, raising her hand up in the air. “Once I blow the whistle, you guys can go crazy. Remember, once you’re hit, you’re out. And don’t think I won’t notice if you cheat.”

We all lowered our heads in understanding, before the whistle sounded through the air. In a flash, all I felt was a gust of wind, before Ian disappeared from my sight. He let out a loud roar, yelling, “I got this!” before he started racing towards the blue line in the center field. Glancing around me, every guy in the room was racing towards the same goal, trying to carry as many balls as they could before they started hitting each other with them. The girls stayed back, as they waited for the balls to come to them. Once a ball rolled up to their feets they would pick it up, and aim it at the other team, but the balls usually only ended up going so far, missing their targets completely. There were only one or two girls on our team who actually aimed pretty well, and got three guys out.
Within twenty minutes, most of the class were out, and the only remaining people were Hunter, two girls would couldn’t care less if they win or not, a guy who I didn’t really know the name of, and Ian and I.

The two girls were on our team, and Hunter and nameless face dude were on the opposing team. Most of the balls had ended up on our side of the field, leaving Hunter’s team with only three balls left.

“You’re both going down!” Ian shouted, before throwing three balls all at once at them.

Hunter avoided them quickly, before any of the balls could reach him, but Ian did managed to get Hunter’s friend out.
“Ha! I win!” he shouted in victory, spinning around in circles. He grabbed his leg, and did this weird dance move, before he spun around and faced me, a big smile still located on his face.
“We’re almost winning ladies!” He winked, mostly at me. The other girls on our team, nodded their heads, looking quite bored.

Before I could even say anything, the blonde girl with nicely painted nails shouted, “Ian, look out!” It was too late though. A blue dodgeball hit him square in the back, knocking him forward.
“Ian! You’re out!” the teacher shouted, blowing her whistle.
“What!?” he cried, stepping towards her. “That’s not fair! Hunter cheated!”
“Ian, Hunter didn’t cheat.” She sighed, rubbing her temples. “You turned your back towards him.”
He pouted, trying to guilt trip her. “B-but.”
“Just get out here.”
“Fine!” he grumbled, stomping his way over towards her. “You can do it Avery! I believe in you!” he cheered me on, giving me a thumbs up, his previous mood completely gone. I nodded, turning my head towards Hunter.
It was now between Hunter, me, and the two other girls. Knowing that the two girls weren’t going to do anything, I picked up a ball laying near me, and threw the ball at Hunter. It went half way across the room, before Hunter easily dodged it.

Picking up the balls Ian threw at him earlier, he hit the two girls easily on the their feet, getting them out in one go, leaving me by myself. I gulped. I was so going to lose.

When he bent down to pick up another ball, I knew it was game over. I watched as he threw the ball as hard as he could, but it never made contact with me. Instead it hit the backboard bouncing back, flying straight at him. In the next second, Hunter jumped in the air, and touched his shoulder with the red ball, before he jumped back down.

When the teacher blew the whistle, signaling the end of the game, I couldn’t help but ask Hunter why he threw the game. He and I both knew, he would’ve easily won, if he didn’t do that. I watched him earlier hit five guys without breaking a sweat, so I knew he lost on purpose. But, why? Why not hit me, and win?
The corners of his lips turned upwards into a friendly smile. “Because, I couldn’t and won’t hit you,” was all he said, before he brushed past me, his shoulder blade touching mine in the progress. I blinked rapidly, staring at his back. Did Hunter really just say that? Hunter? Seriously? No, freaking way.
Before I could even get over my shock, he disappeared into the boy’s locker room, along with the rest of the boys.
Feeling the weight of another person jumping on my back, I was almost knocked over when I felt warm hands wrapping around my shoulders.
“Bye-bye Avery! See you tomorrow!” he sang at the touch of his lungs, before giving me a light kiss on the cheek. I felt the familiar blush creeping up my cheeks at the featherly touch.
He didn’t wait for a reply before he jumped off my back, and ran towards the locker room. As the door opened, I could hear Ian, yelling, “Stop stripping, Ian’s finally here!”
I shook my head, laughing quietly under my breath. I think it’s safe to say that Ian is indeed very special. No guy—or person would ever say that. Only him.

Heading back into the girl’s locker room with a smile on my face, I hurried to change back into my school’s uniform. I didn’t want my mom waiting in the parking lot for way too long. I knew my mom, and she was probably already in the parking lot waiting for Megan and I. After I was suitable to leave, I stuffed my gym uniform in my bag, before running out of the locker room. But before I could walk any further, I saw Bradlee walking out the boy’s locker room, with his backpack slung over his shoulder.
When his icy blue eyes met mine, he stared for a second before he kicked the doors open, leaving me standing there in confusion. W-what? I thought he left earlier? Don’t tell me he ditched class and was hiding in the locker room this whole time? Referring back to the file my cousins gave me, I remembered them saying something about ditching classes. But I wasn’t positive. I could be mixing it up with something else Bradlee did. He really didn’t have a clean record like his brother and Ian.

But before I could figure it out, the bell blared throughout the gym, as my eyes widened. S–t. Pushing the double doors open, I ran out the gym, rushing down the marble floor hallway, before turning right. Bypassing the crowded lobby, I ran down the few steps that was located there, as I felt the sudden gush of cool air.
Pulling my blazer closer towards my body, my eyes searched the parking lot for my mother’s familiar car. When I found the jeep at the far end, I immediately ran towards it. When I inched closer, I could see Megan already sitting in the front seat. Of, course. Typical Megan. She’s always early.
“Sorry for making you guys wait.”
“Nonsense, sweetie.” My mom smiled, removing her glasses. “I just got here.”
I smiled back as my mother unlocked the car door. I gave it a small tug, before hopping into the backseat.
“Don’t forget to buckle-up,” Megan reminded me, her eyes staring at the rear-view mirror.

I rolled my eyes, but did as she said. Knowing that if I didn’t, not only would I get a mouth-full from her but also from my own mother.
The drive back didn’t take long. It was rather quiet as well, save for the occasional questions from my mom. She of course, asked all the typical questions a mom would ask her daughter on her first day of actual school. How was it? Did you make any new friends? Did you like your teachers? Your classes? Did meet the killers? Were they mean? And so on.
Okay…so I lied. The drive back wasn’t exactly quiet, but I thought that if I believed it, my mom would stop asking me so many questions. But, of course, she didn’t. She just continued on talking, as I answered her questions with a nod or a no, praying that she would drive faster, so I could get away from her.

---

In fifteen minutes flat, my mom’s car was parked in garage. And within seconds, I was jumping out of the car, and running towards our front door. But before I could even reach it, I heard the black van driving into our front gate.
Hearing the loud honks of a horn, Demitri cut the gas, and parked his van right next to my parents’ cars.
“So, how was school?” he asked casually.
“Just peachy,” I couldn’t help but say sarcastically.
“That bad huh?” Skylar asked, coming up right beside his partner in crime—literally.
“Cut the chit-chat.” I rolled my eyes, placing my hands on my hips. “You guys saw everything. So you know exactly what happened.”
Demitri smirked, crossing his arms across his chest. “Fine. Here’s our conclusion then. We think Bradlee’s the killer.”