Thank you everyone for all the support! I love hearing your thoughts on all of this. This story may be boring right now, but I promise it'll get better!
Oh and I heard I was supposed to do this thing called a disclaimer...? Um... so: I don't own Spy School or Stuart Gibbs. That much is evident. So I don't make money off of this...?
Is that right? Oh well, whatever :) enjoy!
"Hey Ben!" My friend Zoe Zibbell cheerfully called out.
Zoe was one of my best friends at Spy School. She has been with me through the thick of things in my social and spy life. It was revealed to me that she liked me and that was awkward for a while, and I guess it still kinda is, but we're not making that big of a deal about it now. She had green eyes and brown hair. She was super friendly and kind.
"Hey Zoe, what's up?" I asked
"I haven't seen you in awhile because of all the studying for finals. I reserved the rec room TV for the night; do you want to watch a few James Bond movies?" She asked, sounding apprehensive of my response.
I cringed. Today was the first day Audrey was going to help me train. I had helped her to find her classes and told her the way of Spy School, like who to avoid and who was nice. To repay me, she offered to train me in weaponry and hand-to-hand combat during the summer, since Spy Camp was canceled due to state regulations about weather in the area. But Zoe has been staring jealousy at us whenever we were talking and I tried to ignore it, but it was hard. She was not going to be happy when I told her I was hanging out with Audrey.
"Uh... I would love to... but Audrey is planning to train me today. Maybe tomorrow?" I asked sheepishly. Her eyes narrowed angrily.
"You've been hanging out with her a lot. What's going on with you and her?"
My face turned a darker shade of red, "What? Um... nothing! What are you talking about? I was just helping her adjust to Spy School."
"Really? She asks a second year for help when she starts as a fourth year? Have you seen her? She doesn't need help. You boys are just suckers for hot people. You are more than glad to help her because she's pretty. She's using you Ben!" She growled suspiciously.
I fumed. I was getting mad at Zoe because she thinks the only reason I would hang out with Audrey is because she is pretty. I am not that low, am I? I am trying to be a nice person and Zoe's jealous, so she takes it out on me.
"First Erica, now Audrey? Whenever I want to hang out with some girl other than you, you gotta take it out on me! Well, I like you as a friend, Zoe, not as a girlfriend! And just because I'm hanging out with Audrey doesn't mean I'm falling in love with her!" I practically shout, temper rising.
She glares at me, looking like a wounded puppy, "Right," she says condescending, "Because you're head over heels for Erica."
I was going to respond with some snarky comment I would later regret, but Zoe cut me off.
"Fine. Whatever. I'll watch the movie with Mike. He's a better friend than you are anyway." With that, she stormed off.
Her words hit me like a punch. I was being unfair to Zoe. Right? But come on, grow up! I don't have time to keep up with Zoe's babyish fights.
XXX
Audrey stood behind me. I awkwardly held the gun in my hand. I was gripping it way too hard and holding it in an awkward angle. I was petrified of hurting Audrey or myself with it.
Audrey scoffed at me, "Really Ben? Stop treating it like it's cancer and embrace it. Instead of treating it like it's your enemy, treat it like your friend. That way, you'll shoot straight."
I laughed at her cheesiness, "Wow, read that off an inspirational poster about bullying? Wise words."
She laughed as well, "Maybe, but I'm the one who's been hitting those targets the whole time." And it was true. That girl could shoot. Just before I got there, I could see her shoot and hit the bullseye the whole time. In fact, there was only one hole in the target. She kept getting her bullet in the same spot each time.
Whereas I couldn't hit a single thing. In class, I could clip the target a few times, but today, I'm drawing a blank. I don't know if it was because I was nervous, outright bad, or if I was cracking under pressure from having Audrey scrutinize every move I make.
I completely missed another one. My thirty-fourth in a row.
Audrey gave an exasperated sigh. "Stop! Just stop!" She growled in frustration, "Let me help."
She came behind me and as I was aiming, wrapped her own hands over mine as I help the gun. She helped me aim (which I had already calculated) and yanked the trigger while my hands were still on it. The gun fired and instead of me jumping back at the recoil, like every time, she helped me stand my ground and the bullet actually hit the target.
Audrey stood back, satisfied, while I ran around and whooped with joy. She smirked.
As Audrey was in close quarters with me, I noticed something very important about Audrey. She smelled really good. She smelled like gunpowder, since we've been here for over an hour, but something else. She had a unique smell, just like Erica. Not the same smell, but a noticeable smell. She also had perfectly manicured nails and no split ends on her wavy, sand blonde hair. Not that, you know, I was paying attention to that sort of thing.
I had started to hang out with her a little bit. At lunch, she found her own group of friends, but she had acknowledged me in the lunch line, unlike every other fourth year who avoided us noobs like the plague. She and I have PE (or as some call it: 'child labor and public humiliation for the teachers) along with Chip and Mike. We exchange a few words, but she doesn't really stick around for a while. Mike, however, is in full flirtation mode 24/7. Over the summer, since we can't go to Spy Camp, we've had modified classes, so people of different age groups are in the same class. Just for 'extra training' as our professors call it. Since Audrey is friendly and hot, Mike is in full swing. Practically all the guys are falling for her. Everyone used to like Erica, but since Audrey is the full package of nice and hot, Erica is losing her edge.
Erica. She's barely been seen since that incident in the capture the flag game. She's been even more distant and annoyed than ever before. She's ignoring everyone and being all moody. I would think it'd be teenage mood swings, but Erica is not a normal teenage girl. Something is up. I've tried to talk to her, but all I've gotten is "Go away, Ben, I'm busy." or "Bug off or I'll rip your face off" which discouraged me from approaching her anymore. No one's really talked to her in a while.
Anyway, Audrey thrust the gun into my hand. "Your turn. Go." Startled, I grabbed the gun.
I went back into my lame, normal routine, when Audrey stopped me.
"Pretend it's an extension of your arm. Don't hold it so tightly, just loosely enough to control it, but not grip it. When you shoot, plant your feet and have your shoulders square to the target. Prepare for the recoil; it happens every time. And pull the damn trigger." I did exactly as she told me and guess what: I had hit the inner circle.
XXX
After another hour, I was wiped. Audrey hadn't seemed that tired, but she agreed that should be done for the day. All I wanted at this point was a shower.
As I was heading back to the dorm section, I skidded in my tracks when I heard my name.
"We have to talk about Ben."
XXX
I had just passed the rec room where Zoe and Mike were chilling on the insect infested couch.
"What about Ben?" Mike asked, confused.
"Duh! Have you seen the way he's been acting around Audrey? She's manipulating him! Why or how, I don't know, but she is! Have you seen the way he looks at her."
I stiffen at that.
Mike is still confused, "Um... maybe he thinks she's hot. I do." See, my best friend knows me best.
"No! You dork! You boys are so low! Always going for the hot ones. I've noticed weird things about Audrey. I don't know what's going on, but I think it has something to do with Erica being all weird." Zoe snapped.
Mike gave her a blank stare, "Maybe. It is strange Erica is being like this right before Audrey showed up. Did Erica know this super-spy was going to show up? Knowing Erica, she probably did. Maybe that's why she's mad. A spy paralleling her talents."
I hid in the hallway so they didn't see me listening in. These ideas were valid. They did have some good points. The rec room was empty and they thought they were alone. I don't know why I was hiding from them, but it seems like a good idea.
"In fact," Zoe looked around furiously to find they were alone, "Do you want to know a secret? Don't tell anyone but someone's going to be real pissed if you do."
She leaned in but I could still hear it, "I saw Erica about a week ago."
Mike looked dumbfounded by her 'surprising' secret, "Uh... yeah. Me too. At the mess hall."
"No you dork!" She hissed, "It was around two in the morning. I couldn't sleep, so sometimes I sneak to the kitchen to grab milk. No biggie. Anyway, this is about two days before Audrey shows up. I am walking to the kitchen and I feel a whoosh of air. I was scared, so I froze. In a second, I am pinned to the wall, hand over my mouth."
Mike's face was sheer surprise, "WHAT? Why didn't you tell anyone?" I was intrigued as well.
"Let me finish!" she snapped, "So I thought it was the end. I was going to die. But I notice my captor, dressed as a ninja, had blue eyes and smelled of lilac. I automatically found out it was Erica."
"WHAT?!" Mike almost shouted.
"I know right? At first I was relieved, but then scared again. Erica is weird and shady. What was she doing at two in the morning? I don't know if she knew who I was, but then pulled out a gun. I thought she was going to shoot me. She pressed it up to my head and said this: 'Zoe, if you tell anyone I was here, I will kill you, no questions asked. I have no remorse for someone who is spying on me. I will kill you and whoever you told. Mark my words.' I was so weirded out by it and terrified. This was so un-Erica. Even though she is intimidating when she wants to be, this didn't seem like an act. So what was she doing? She unpinned me and put the gun away. I quickly agreed and ran to my room. I didn't know what to do. I haven't told anyone except you, but what the heck was she doing? Seemed very SPYDERish. I don't know, but something is going on that is strange. And now Audrey shows up..." she trailed off.
Mike was frazzled, "Why did you tell me? She's going to kill both of us now!"
Zoe snorted, "Relax. Erica can't kill us without raising a suspicion. She won't do anything risky. And I think she is human enough to realize that's not okay. Just don't tell anyone." Mike nodded vigorously.
I was shocked. Erica doing that too Zoe is scary and weird. I am now going to be more cautious when I am around Erica, especially alone.
I scampered off when I heard them get up. Something strange was going on at Spy School and I was in the thick of things.