I'll Protect You (Original Version)

Serenaded with the beautiful Call Me Maybe

It was the most frightful, horrifying, bone-chilling, soul depriving, depressing, and nightmare-worthy experience I had ever had. It was worse than all the scary movies I had watched with Archer and Jasper when we were young (by the way, don't watch The Exorcist when you're only nine). Far more terrifying than the graveyard trips Minnie and Zen made with me, or any of our ventures down a feared neighborhood during Halloween.

I was aware of their presence as I made my way out of the academy. By the time I had arrived thirty feet away from the gate, my tolerance snapped into twigs and I whirled around. And there they stood. Those bipolar, mind-washed monsters. Blonde hair, blue eyes, untucked shirts, Versace purses, Gucci glasses, hundred-dollar kicks.

Even the misfits had gathered. They used to laugh at me too. They weren't as smart as the Prada labeled sheep that stood among them, but they had assumed they were higher in standards than I was. Broken glasses, cheap blush, greasy hair all flashed at me and I suddenly felt like a strange creature put on display.

No longer was hatred, discorn, and haughtiness splattered all over their faces. Instead, I saw admiration, intimidation, and a bit of ivy green envy reflected in their glassy eyes. I realized with a horror that was how everyone looked like when Cross strolled into school. Now they looked at me with the same feelings.

"What?" I shot, my voice barely containing the wild desire to run away to Canada and never come back. They'd never find Logan's love interest in that place, now would they?

"You're so pretty!" one of them suddenly gushed.

"She's probably that number two kid on the list!" another shouted. "She's so smart!"

"No wonder Logan likes you!"

Excuse me, headmistress. I believe your students have been replaced with clones created by the government. They're out to destroy me and I think you need to do something about it before I die.

"Can we walk home with you?"

"Will you sit with us at lunch tomorrow?"

"You're so pretty!"

Yep. Ontario, Canada was starting to sound really tempting. Would my old man mind if I told him that we were going to relocate to Canada? I pursed my lips as I tried to figure out a way to make him side with me when someone pushed me.

Yes! my mind screamed in joy. Did someone still actually hate me and wanted to chain me up in the shackles of hell? But as I turned around, frowning to hide the excitement within me, the elated bubble of euphoria burst and was replaced with actual dislike.

It was Cross. He was shuffling from feet to feet, his head bowed down as if to hide a blush. He shouldn't be embarrassed. He was the one that was popular. Whatever he did was right. No one cared if it was wrong. They thought he was being cute.

And there was me, standing there, smokey fumes rising from my head. I wanted to tackle him, beat some sense into him and force him to realize that this situation was not a good thing. I was not supposed to be pretty. I was not supposed to be considered smart. I wasn't supposed to be that girl whom everyone wanted to walk home with or sit with at lunch.

But look at what he made me. Cross had turned me into a female Logan Cross. And I couldn't take all the attention. Wasn't one of the reasons that I had left Cimeria in the first place was to escape all the fame and glory the title of princess provided?

I spun on my heel and strode away, attempting to shove every drop of pride I had in me into my steps.

"Bye, Park!"

"I'll see you tomorroow, Park!"

"You're so pretty, Park!"

Okay, whoever kept calling me pretty was going to have to start watching their back. After i figured out who it was. Though it did sound suspiciously like Pepper.