• -Episode 1-

    Tom and Marie Wright were driving home from their son, Zander’s house. They had left their younger daughter, Joanne, with him. They were talking about how calm their life has been since their granddaughter, Emma, who turned nine years old the day before, was born.
    “Don’t you think something should happen?” Tom asked looking at his wife who was sitting next to him.
    “What do you mean, dear?” Marie asked, looking over at him with a curious smile.
    “Something big or dangerous should happen. Kind of like it use to, before we had children and grandchildren,” replied Tom looking from the road to his wife and back again.
    “You mean something that we did when we were younger,” Marie said raising her eyebrows at her husband.
    “Yes, exactly that,” Tom said with a smile. “Something exciting, so we can be young again. I liked it before we had children. We were so carefree. And then they were born and then Emma was born.”
    Unfortunately, at the same time Tom and Marie were talking, a man with black hair, brown eyes, who looked to be in his late 20’s, driving a purple semi with neon green flames, tried to pass them while another car was coming the other way. The man purposely veered into Tom and Marie’s car. The car went out of control and Tom and Marie never got another chance to see their children and grandchild again. The man had killed them with no mercy. He didn’t even look back at the deaths he had caused.


    ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼ ☼

    One year later, Joanne Wright, a fourteen-year-old girl, was on her way to her new school. Her older brother, Zander, his wife, Tracey and their ten-year-old daughter, Emma, were driving her to The Whillington Academy a month before school actually started so she could get a chance to get to know the school and the people.
    “Are you nervous, Joey?” Zander asked looking in the rear view mirror at his kid sister.
    “Sort of, what is this school anyway?” Joanne asked.
    “The Whillington Academy,” Zander replied with an impish grin.
    “No kidding. I knew that already. What do they teach at this so called The Whillington Academy?”
    “I don’t know.”
    “Yes, you do. You just don’t want to tell me,” Joanne said.
    “You’re pretty smart, kid,” Zander said.
    “You’re pretty funny, Z,” Joanne said.
    “So what are the students going to call you, Joanne or Joey?” Tracey asked.
    “Joey, Joanne is a girly name,” Joey answered.
    Joey is a brown haired, green-eyed tomboy. She was born in Florida and raised in Washington State. She lived with her parents until a year ago when they were murdered. Now she lives with Zander, but is now moving to The Whillington Academy. The reason she was going to this school wasn’t that Zander didn’t like her, but that is what her parents and Zander wanted her to do.
    Her brother is about fifteen years older than she is and has the same colored hair and eyes. Zander and Joey are very close to one another despite the age difference between the two of them. He is also about six feet, one inch tall and muscular.
    “So what is The Whillington Academy?” Joey asked looking out the car window, but all she could see were trees.
    “You’ll find out when you meet the Headmaster,” Zander replied.
    Joey rolled her eyes, “Can you at least tell me who the Headmaster is?”
    “Mr. Steve Whillington.”
    “So this school ain’t that old, is it?”
    “The school itself isn’t that old, it’s ten years old. But the school system itself has been around for many years, our parents have been to The Whillington Academy along with me,” Zander replied.
    “Fantastic,” Joey said sarcastically.
    “Just sit back and relax. We’ll be there in no time,” Tracey said.
    “Fine,” Joey said and she sat back, looked out the car window, and still only saw trees.
    This place is going to be boring, she thought, I can just tell. There is nothing but trees for miles. And why in the world am I going to this school in the first place? I was doing just fine at my other school, but no, my parents and brother have to ruin my life. After about an hour Joey finally started seeing signs of humankind. Once the trees cleared, there were a bunch of strip malls, grocery stores, and restaurants. And within another hour, Zander was pulling up the driveway to the school.
    Joey looked out the car window and could not believe her eyes. There was a horse and rider fountain in the middle of the driveway. The building looked to be about five stories high. And on the left side of the school was another building that looked like the garage.
    Zander stopped in front of the school and him and Tracey got out. Zander went around the car and opened Joey’s door and she got out while Emma got out on the other side.
    “Welcome to The Whillington Academy, Joey,” Zander said as she got out.
    “Wow,” Emma said.
    “Holy sh…” Zander put a hand over Joey’s mouth. She looked up at him, “Watch your mouth.” He removed his hand and they got Joey’s bags out of the trunk. They then walked into the school and up to the front desk.
    “Hello, Mr. Wright,” said the older woman with gray hair and glasses that she wore at the end of her nose, who was sitting behind the desk.
    “Hello, Lynn. We have an appointment with Mr. Whillington. My sister, Joanne Wright, is enrolling here today,” Zander said.
    “Welcome Ms. Wright to the Whillington Academy. I am Lynn Richman, secretary for Mr. Whillington and desk clerk for all students and staff,” Lynn said, “Mr. Whillington is waiting for you in his office which is on the fifth floor.” She fixed her glasses and started shuffling papers on her desk. Behind her desk were about 1,500 mailboxes for students. Under her desk were 500 mailboxes for staff and residents.
    Joey’s eyes went very wide, “All the way up there?” She pointed toward the ceiling.
    “Yes, all the way up there,” Lynn said with a smile.
    “Thanks, Lynn. We’ll see you later,” Zander said grabbing Joey’s things and steering her toward the elevator with Tracey and Emma walking silently behind them.
    “How nervous do you think you are now?” Emma asked Joey once everyone was inside the elevator.
    “So nervous I think my breakfast is going to reappear,” Joey replied as she stood closer to Zander and wrapped an arm around his, as if he was protecting her from an invisible force.
    “You’re going to be fine, Joey,” Tracey told Joey, “You’re really smart and pretty and you love talking. There is no way you are going to have a hard time here. And you are like your parents and brother in many ways.”
    “What’s that suppose to mean?” Joey asked looking at Tracey.
    “It means you’re strong and brave,” Tracey replied.
    “And you’re temper is always something to watch out for,” Zander added with a smile.
    “Thanks,” Joey said sarcastically.
    When the elevator stopped on the fifth floor, they all walked out into the hallway and saw teenagers everywhere, talking and laughing. Joey glanced up at Zander and he met her gaze. She quickly turned around and tried to get back into the elevator before the doors closed, but Zander grabbed her by the shoulders and whispered in her ear as he turned her around, “You’re not going anywhere.”
    “I wish I was going back home,” Joey whispered back as she glared at her brother.
    After Zander got Joey back on track, the four of them walked up to Mr. Whillington’s office and Zander knocked on the door.
    “Come in,” said a man’s deep voice from the other side of the door.
    Zander opened the office door and the four of them walked silently into the office. And they all stopped a few feet in front of Mr. Whillington’s desk.
    “It’s so nice to see you again, Zander,” said a man with graying jet-black hair and bright green eyes who was sitting behind the desk with his arms folded on top of the desk.
    “Likewise, Mr. Whillington, This is my sister, Joanne Wright. She’s being enrolled here today,” Zander said putting his hand on top of Joey’s head.
    “That’s wonderful,” Mr. Whillington said standing up and walking around his desk to lean on the front of it. Mr. Whillington did not look like an old man at all. He was six foot, two inches, had broad shoulders, and was muscular. “She will be staying in room two-twenty-two. Let me get someone to take her things to her room.” He pressed a button on his intercom and said, “Mr. Scott Brewer, please report to my office at once.” Then he let go of the button and went back to leaning on his desk with his arms folded across his chest.
    After a few minutes of waiting, a boy with black hair and brown eyes, who looked to be about Joey’s age, walked into the room. He looked to be much taller than Joey, who was only five foot, two inches.
    “Wow, you’re good,” Joey said watching the boy as he turned around to face her and the others.
    “That is why I am Headmaster of this school. This is Scott Brewer. If you need any help once Zander leaves go to him. His room is to the left of yours,” Mr. Whillington said to Joey. To Scott he said, “Take Joanne’s things to her room and if you were paying attention, you should know where it is. Also I need Tracey and…” He pointed to Emma.
    “My name is Emma,” she replied.
    “Right, you and your mother may go with Mr. Brewer to Joanne’s room,” Mr. Whillington said.
    “Yes, sir,” Scott, Tracey, and Emma said as they left his office.
    “Now, Joanne, please sit down,” Mr. Whillington said as he pointed to a chair in front of him. Joey obeyed. “Thank you. I am Steve Whillington. I am the Headmaster of this school. You’re probably wondering what kind of school this is. Now what I am about to tell you is only for you.” He sat back down at his desk, as Zander stood behind Joey his hands resting on the top of the chair.
    “But Zander is still here,” Joey said confused.
    “I already know what he’s going to say. I’ve been at this school before, remember?” said Zander looking down at his sister.
    “Oh, yeah,” Joey said quietly looking down at her shoes.
    “Are you ready? Now, this is a school for students to learn how to be spies. I know this must sound dumb to you, but it is the truth. From the ages fourteen to twenty, students learn how to use weapons for defense and offence, how to use stealth, how to drive vehicles in all terrain, and other stuff you need to know to be a spy for the Whillington Academy. After a student graduates from the Academy, they have an option of three things: One-they can join my elite team of spies who live to protect themselves and others no matter how dangerous. Two-they can stay here and become one of the teachers and teach new students how to be a spy. Three-they can become civilians like Zander. Students also learn the basic school stuff. You know math, history, English, etc. Classes start August 7th, so be ready. One week before classes start everyone gets new uniforms, schedules, books, and laptops,” Mr. Whillington explained.
    “Did you get all that?” Zander asked Joey.
    “I have to wear a uniform?” Joey said with a disgusted look on her face.
    “Don’t worry, you’ll like the uniforms. Most girls do,” Mr. Whillington said, “The uniform consists of two long sleeve black shirts with a silver “w” on the left hand corner, three short sleeve shirts with the same Whillington insignia, three pairs of tan cargo pants, two pairs of tan cargo shorts, and black combat boots.”
    “I guess I could give this a chance,” said Joey looking at Mr. Whillington.
    “Great. Are you hungry at all?”
    “Not really, I ate breakfast before we left Zander’s house.”
    “Speaking of eating, breakfast starts at five in the morning and ends at nine. Lunch starts at eleven and ends at two. And dinner starts at six and ends at ten. Everyone should be in their rooms by eleven. That is curfew; anyone who breaks it will be dealt with reasonably. Do you have any questions?”
    “Yes. Why in the world am I here? I was happy living life at my other school and living with Zander. Now I am brought to the middle of nowhere and I am learning to be a spy. What in the world?” Joey said standing up and breathing hard.
    “You are here to learn what Zander has learned and what little your parents have learned. You’re parents would want their daughter to learn to be a spy to not only protect other people, but to protect yourself from anything out there in the real world. Trust me, you will start to like it here and you will learn a lot by being here. Now, I have a meeting with all the teachers here to go to. I will see you again sometime. Hopefully it won’t be a disciplinary visit,” Mr. Whillington said, “Zander, you know where all the rooms are. Her room is room two-twenty-two.”
    “Thank you, sir. Take care of your self,” Zander said putting out his hand.
    “I hope to see you again, as well, Zander,” Mr. Whillington said shaking Zander’s hand.
    Once they were finished shaking hands, Zander and Joey left Mr. Whillington’s office. Shortly after they had left, Mr. Whillington went to the conference room to his meeting with all the teachers at the Whillington Academy.


    -Episode 2-

    After Zander and Joey left Mr. Whillington’s office, they went to the elevator for the fourth floor.
    “Are we going to see my room, now?” Joey asked as they got into the elevator.
    “Yes, that is where we are going,” Zander answered as he pressed the button for the fourth floor. “The fourth floor is where your room is. That’s where all the students’ rooms are.”
    They reached the fourth floor and they found Joey’s room. Joey slowly opened the door not knowing what was behind it. However, when she opened the door she saw Scott, Tracey, and Emma sitting on her unmade bed. In her room on her right was a desk with a chair that had nothing on it and a door that must lead to a closet. On her left was another door that must be for her bathroom. And in front of her on either side of the bed were two windows and two nightstands with lamps on them.
    “Welcome to The Whillington Academy and to your new room. I’m Scott Brewer from before,” Scott said, “I put your bags in the closet for now. You can figure out what you want to do with them later.” He got up off the bed and walked up to Zander and Joey.
    “I am Zander Wright.” Zander shook hands with Scott.
    “And I’m…” Joey began.
    “You’re Joanne Wright,” Scott interrupted.
    “Yes and no, I would prefer people to call me Joey,” Joey said.
    “That’s fair enough. I’ll be in my room if you need any help,” Scott said as he headed toward the door.
    “Thanks,” Joey said.
    “No problem,” Scott said as he left the room.
    “He seems to be a nice boy,” Tracey said once Scott had closed the door behind him.
    “Yes, he certainly is,” Zander replied. He looked at Joey and said, “So, are you going to be fine from this point on?”
    “I hope so,” Joey replied looking around her room.
    “Well we better be off then. Do not get into too much trouble. I don’t want to drive back here to yell at you or to take you home,” Zander said giving her a hug and a kiss on the top of her head. “I love you.”
    “I love you, too,” Joey replied.
    “Bye, Joey,” Tracey said giving her a hug, too.
    “Bye, Joe,” Emma said.
    After they were all finished saying their goodbyes, Zander, Tracey, and Emma left Joey and the school. Once they had left, Joey walked over to her closet to get her bags and when she opened the door, her jaw dropped to the floor and she thought she was in heaven. The closet was a huge walk-in that could hold three times more stuff than she had brought in the first place. She grabbed all three of her bags, threw them on the bed, and started unpacking them. She put most of her stuff back in the closet, but nicely put away.
    Joey was in the middle of unpacking her second bag when there was a knock on her bedroom door. She went over to it and opened it. Scott was leaning against the doorframe when she opened her door.
    “Hey, long time no see,” he said.
    “I guess so,” said Joey moving aside to let him in.
    Scott Brewer was five foot, seven inches. He has black spiky hair and brown eyes. And he sort of looked to be stuck between being a kid and an adult; actually, he looked like any teenage boy would.
    “So do you like it here at The Academy?” Scott asked walking into her room.
    “I haven’t seen anything other than this room, Mr. Whillington’s office, the inside of an elevator…” Joey began as she went back to unpacking her bags.
    “Okay, okay, I get it. You haven’t seen the school thoroughly. I’ll show you around tomorrow. So how old are you?” Scott interrupted.
    “You have a problem with interrupting people, did you know that?” Joey said as she finished unpacking her last bag.
    “That’s nice. Actually, I only have a problem of interrupting you. Now answer my question.”
    “I’m fourteen,” Joey answered.
    “I’m fifteen, which means I am in my second year here at this school and I am older than you,” Scott said.
    “So you know your way around pretty well, huh?”
    “Pretty much.”
    “That’s just peachy,” Joey said sarcastically. She sat down on the edge of her bed. “So, what now?”
    “Well, if you had a computer or a T.V., we could mess around with them,” said Scott sitting down next to her.
    “How do I get one of them?”
    “The week before classes start you’ll be getting your own laptop. Did Mr. Whillington tell you that?” Joey nodded and Scott went on. “And it’s yours for life. The T.V. and the things you want you have to pay for yourself. But don’t worry too much about all that great stuff until next year. Trust me, you will have so much work to do it won't be funny. I went through the same thing you are going through this year. It wasn’t pretty.”
    “Great,” Joey said sarcastically.
    “Hey it’s about lunch time, you want to go up to the cafeteria and eat?” Scott asked standing up.
    “Sure, but what do I do about this bed?”
    “We need to go down and talk to Lynn about that before we go to lunch,” Scott replied looking from her to the bed and back again.
    “Well, let’s get to it, then,” Joey said.
    They left Joey’s room, went into the elevator, and headed to the first floor.
    “Why don’t you show me around today?” Joey asked once they reached the first floor.
    “Because I don’t want to,” replied Scott.
    “You’re a loser,” Joey said.
    “And you’re going to be a little pain in the butt.”
    “And you’re point is?” Joey said.
    Scott rolled his eyes and they walked up to the front desk that Joey first went to when she arrived. Lynn was still sitting behind the desk.
    “Good Afternoon, Lynn,” Scott said as they walked up to Lynn.
    “Well, hello there, Scott. I see you have made our newest student your new friend,” Lynn said.
    “I guess so. This is Joey,” Scott said pointing to Joey.
    “Yes, I know. I met her this morning. It’s nice to meet you, Joey,” Lynn said standing up and shaking Joey’s hand.
    “It’s nice to meet you, too,” Joey replied.
    Scott jabbed Joey in the side with his elbow and said, “Go ahead and ask her.”
    “Oh right, what about my bed?” Joey asked as Lynn sat back down.
    “What about your bed?” Lynn asked slyly.
    “It doesn’t have any sheets or anything. It’s just a mattress,” Joey replied.
    “I know, now this is the only time someone will ever make your bed for you. You are responsible for it from now on. We will give you another set of covers for when your old ones are dirty.”
    “Thanks.”
    “Just be good. I don’t want your name to be said over the intercom for you to go up to Mr. Whillington’s office,” Lynn said.
    “Yes, ma’am,” Joey said.
    Scott and Joey then went back to the elevator and headed to the cafeteria, which was on the fifth floor just like Mr. Whillington’s office.
    “So what’s your deal, Joey?” Scott asked once they were in the elevator.
    “Excuse me,” Joey said looking up at him.
    “What’s your background?”
    “What’s yours?”
    “I asked you first,” Scott said.
    “Fine, I was born in Florida and raised in Washington State. Zander is my brother, Tracey is my sister-in-law, and Emma is my niece. My parents just passed away last year in a car accident. You already know I’m fourteen. And I really don’t like girly things like dresses and the color pink,” Joey said.
    “My turn, I was born and raised here in Washington State. My folks do not know that this is a school for spies. They think this place is for brilliant students or something. I have a baby sister whose one year old named Sherry. I have a dog named Rex. I’m five feet, seven inches. And I think this is a start of a beautiful friendship,” Scott said putting an arm around Joey’s shoulders.
    “How can you say that when we just met?” Joey asked slipping out of Scotts hold.
    “Easy, I opened my mouth and words came out,” Scott replied with a smile.
    “You’re hilarious, Scott,” Joey said sarcastically.
    “Aren’t I?” Scott said. Joey just rolled her eyes at him.
    They reached the fifth floor and headed to the cafeteria. There were many students walking around, talking, and playing around. Joey moved closer to Scott and, of course, he noticed this.
    “Just follow me,” he said looking down at her.
    Joey followed Scott into the lunch line. They had a choice of three different meals: pizza, macaroni and cheese, and cheeseburgers. And each meal came with either chocolate milk or regular white milk. Scott chose a slice of pizza and chocolate milk. Joey chose macaroni and cheese and chocolate milk. Joey then followed Scott to a table by a window at the back of the cafeteria.
    “Take a load off,” he said sitting down.
    Joey put her tray on the table and sat in the chair opposite of him. They had just started eating when a boy about Scott’s age and height with brown hair and brown eyes came over and sat down between them.
    “Who’s this?” the boy asked giving a slight nod toward Joey.
    “This is my new friend, Joey Wright,” replied Scott through a mouth full of pizza.
    “You just couldn’t wait until you finished first, could you?” asked the boy.
    “Apparently, not,” Joey said as she stared at Scott with a disgusted look on her face.
    “I’m Bradley Porter, by the way. I’m a friend of big mouth over here,” Bradley said pointing to Scott who had just taken a bite of pizza and had cheese hanging out of his mouth.
    “That is so gross,” Joey said.
    The three new friends each introduced themselves in turn; this took them the rest of the lunch period. Bradley was in the middle of introducing himself when a young woman in her thirties with reddish hair and green eyes walked up to them.
    “Lunch is over you three, you do know that right?” she said.
    “Yes ma’am, we know,” Scott replied standing up. Joey and Bradley did the same.
    “Who is this?” She asked nodding toward Joey.
    “I’m Joey Wright, ma’am,” Joey replied sticking her hand out.
    “It’s nice to meet you. I’m going to be your math teacher, Jenny Sanderson.” She shook Joey’s hand. “And before you go and call me Ms. Sanderson, everyone calls me Jenny.”
    “Like you said Jenny, ‘Lunch is over’,” Scott said grabbing Joey by the shoulders and heading toward the door with Bradley following behind them.
    “Very good idea,” Jenny said raising her eyebrows at the three of them.
    Joey, Scott, and Bradley left the cafeteria and went into the elevator.
    “Where are we going now?” Joey asked once they were inside the elevator.
    “Back to your room,” Scott replied pressing the button for the fourth floor.
    “Anyway, like I was saying at lunch; I was born in Wisconsin and raised in an orphanage there. Then one day Jenny was doing something for Mr. Whillington in Wisconsin and decided to see how things were going at the orphanage I was living at. Don’t ask me why she did it, because I have no clue what goes on in her mind. And she ended up adopting me that same day. She brought me back here and everyone accepted me. I love it here and everyone, well all the teachers anyway, are like my family now. I was thirteen when she adopted me and brought me here. And I started school with Scott a year later,” Bradley said.
    They reached the fourth floor and went into Joey’s room. “So you’re fifteen years old and in the same year as Scott?” Joey asked Bradley as they walked in.
    “Yes and unfortunately yes,” Bradley said. “Wow, isn’t this cool?” He stopped at the door.
    “What is it?” Joey asked as she turned around to look at him.
    “Scott’s room is on the left of yours and my room is on the right of yours,” Bradley answered.
    “Well isn’t that cute?” Scott said.
    “You’re a jerk Scott, you know that?” Bradley said to Scott.
    “Ooh, ooh, I know I do,” Joey said jumping up and down with her hand in the air and waving it.
    “You’re a real funny, pain in the butt aren’t you?” Scott said Joey lying down on his back in her bed.
    “Hey, look you guys,” Joey said pointing to her bed.
    “Sweetness,” Bradley said folding his arms across his chest and staring at Joey’s bed.


    -Episode 3-

    “What?” Scott asked sitting up and looking around him.
    “My bed is made all neatly,” Joey said cheerfully.
    “Oh, wow,” Scott said in a dull voice as he lay back down on her bed.
    “Okay, now I am officially bored,” Joey complained as she sat down next to Scott on the bed.
    “I’ve got something that can help with that. Just wait here,” Bradley said leaving her room.
    “What’s he going to do?” Joey asked Scott.
    “Beats the heck out of me,” Scott replied.
    Scott and Joey sat there for half an hour waiting for Bradley to come back. When he did, he had someone with him.
    “Joey, I want you to meet Ethan Collins. He’s eighteen years old,” Bradley said to Joey. To Ethan he said, “This is our new friend, Joey Wright. She’s starting here in August.”
    “Hi,” Joey said as she jumped off her bed. She went over to Bradley and Ethan as Scott sat up.
    “How are you?” Ethan said sticking his hand out.
    “I’m good,” Joey said shaking Ethan’s hand.
    Ethan Collins had medium length blonde hair and icy blue eyes. Joey could tell he was strong because when he shook her hand he had a very firm grip. He had a nice tan, as if he was outside all day. And he was six foot, three inches.
    “And why did you bring him?” Scott asked as he got off Joey’s bed.
    “Joey said she was bored. And he’s loads of fun,” Bradley said smiling.
    “Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a suck-up,” Joey announced.
    “It’s about time you realized that,” Scott said walking up to her and looking at her.
    “Jerks,” Bradley said under his breathe.
    “We heard that,” Joey and Scott said together, folding their arms across their chests.
    “Stop bickering, children. It looks nice outside, why don’t we go for a swim?” Ethan said with a smile that showed his perfectly white teeth.
    “Swimming?” Joey said surprised.
    “Yeah, there’s a huge swimming pool in the back,” Ethan said pointing behind him with his thumb.
    Joey, Scott, Bradley, and Ethan got their bathing suits on, met at the elevator, and went to the pool, which was in the back of the school. The pool was almost as big as a football field and there were about twenty people sunning themselves. The group found some empty lounge chairs and put their towels on them.
    “Last one in is a rotten egg!” Scott yelled, running to the pool and doing a cannon ball into the water. Bradley and Ethan followed suit and when they resurfaced, they noticed Joey didn’t come in.
    “You’re the rotten egg,” Scott said. Ethan pushed him back under the water.
    “The water is fine, Joey. It’s not going to kill you,” said Bradley.
    “Is it cold because I don’t do cold water?” Joey asked making a face as she peered over the edge of the pool.
    “You’re a baby,” Scott said, this time when Ethan went to push him under the water Scott bobbed out of the way and pushed Ethan under the water instead.
    “Yeah, so?” Joey asked.
    Scott and Bradley looked at each other and nodded. They both reached up and pulled Joey in. When she resurfaced she said, “I’m going to kill you guys. The water’s freezing.”
    “It’ll warm up,” Ethan said.
    Joey, Scott, Bradley, and Ethan spent three hours at the pool and when they were finished, they got dressed into regular clothes and met back at the elevator for dinner. Surprisingly, Ethan’s room was right in front of Joey’s room.
    They went up to the cafeteria and when Ethan opened the doors, Joey grabbed Scott’s arm, her eyes wide.
    “What?” Scott asked looking down at her.
    “Close your mouth, Sweetheart,” Ethan said turning around to face Joey. He put his hand underneath her chin and closed her mouth for her.
    The cafeteria had changed from a casual dining area with booths and stools and such to a formal-looking dining area. Eight long tables were placed in the middle of the cafeteria going in a vertical direction. And another long table was placed at the front of the cafeteria going in a horizontal direction.
    “Just follow Ethan and by the time school starts you’ll be able to do this on your own,” Bradley said putting a reassuring hand on Joey’s shoulders. She just gave him a ‘You’ve got to be joking’ look. And he smiled back and went into the cafeteria behind Ethan.
    Joey followed the boys to the food line and picked a meal out of four choices, steak, lasagna, hamburgers, or chicken. Each meal came with masked potatoes, corn, chocolate and vanilla pudding and either some type of milk (chocolate or regular) or juice (apple or fruit punch).
    Joey picked the chicken dish. Scott grabbed a hamburger. And Bradley and Ethan both picked steak for their dinner. Once they got their meals, they went over to one of the tables closest to the cafeteria doors in the right hand corner of the room and sat down.
    Joey looked over at the table that was at the front of the cafeteria. Adults, more than likely teachers, sat at every seat except one; the seat in the middle of the table. She also noticed that Mr. Whillington wasn’t there. Then she put two and two together and asked, “Where’s Mr. Whillington?”
    “Probably in his office,” Bradley replied cutting up his steak.
    “He usually doesn’t eat with the rest of us. Only on special occasions,” Ethan said taking a bite of his mashed potatoes.
    “Who cares?” Scott said with a mouth full of mashed potatoes and swinging his fork around, dropping mashed potatoes all over the table.
    “Swallow before talking,” Bradley told Scott.
    “Now why would he do that?” Joey asked her mouth full of mashed potatoes as well.
    Bradley slapped himself in the head and Ethan rolled his eyes and said to Bradley, “It’s no use. They’ll never learn proper manners.”
    “No, we won’t,” Joey and Scott said, both with mashed potatoes in their mouths.
    “And Scott’s a bad influence for Joey,” Bradley pointed out.
    “Yeah, you’re older,” Ethan told Scott, “You’re supposed to be a role model.”
    “Scott? A role model? I highly doubt that,” Joey said. Ethan and Bradley started laughing and Scott just looked confused.
    They finished dinner and went to the fourth floor. There the four friends said goodnight.
    “Oh and we’ll show you around the school in the morning,” Scott told Joey, going into his room. Joey nodded and they went to bed.
    The next day, Scott, Bradley, and Ethan showed Joey around the entire school. They started at the top, the fifth floor.
    “Joey, this floor is where Mr. Whillington’s office is, where the cafeteria is, and where the library is,” Ethan explained.
    “There’s a library here?” Scott asked.
    The others ignored him and went to the next floor, the fourth floor.
    “This floor you kind of already know. It’s where all the students’ rooms are,” Scott explained.
    Then they went into the elevator and went to the third floor.
    “This floor is where half of the classrooms are,” Bradley explained.
    “Yeah, you would know that,” Scott said under his breathe but loud enough for Joey to hear.
    “I’m getting the feeling that you don’t do school,” Joey said as they went down to the second floor.
    “No, I don’t. But this floor is the rest of the classrooms,” Scott replied pointing to the hallway that they were facing.
    “Which means never ask him any questions about school work,” Bradley said as they went to the first floor.
    “This floor is where the teachers sleep, the front desk is, and where the hospital wing is,” explained Scott.
    “In the back, which you already know, is the pool,” Ethan said.
    “To the side of the school is a garage. There are probably over 500 vehicles ranging from trucks and vans to cars to motorcycles,” Bradley explained.
    “Can we go see it?” Joey asked.
    “Sure,” Ethan said.
    “There are also more floors, but you’ll see them when you actually start school,” Scott said.
    “How can there be more floors? They’ve got to be under ground then, right?” Joey asked as they went to the garage.
    “You’ll just have to wait and see,” Ethan said putting his hand on top of her head.
    They entered they garage and walked around. Joey saw almost every kind of vehicle there ever made. There were pick-up trucks, cargo vans, dirt bikes, and regular motorcycles. Also, all types of cars like Ford Mustangs, Chevy Corvettes, PT Cruisers, and a bunch of other cars. They walked to the back of the garage and Ethan went to one of the cars. It was a blue PT Cruiser and he sat on the hood of it.
    “What are you doing?” Joey asked as she stopped in front of the car with Scott and Bradley.
    “This is my car,” Ethan answered, “Want to take a ride?”
    “I don’t know,” Joey said, but Scott and Bradley were already in the backseat. “Alright, I guess so.”
    They went downtown and saw some of the stores that where there and had lunch at one of the fast food joints. After about three hours in town, Ethan decided to go back to the Academy.
    “Why do we have to go back?” Joey whined as they walked back to the car.
    “Because people would start worrying about us, that’s why,” Ethan answered.
    “Well that’s crappy,” Scott said.
    “I know,” Ethan said, “But it’s a rule.”
    “Dude, you just sounded like Bradley for a second there,” Scott said getting into the backseat with Bradley.
    Bradley punched him in the arm and said, “At least I know the rules.”
    “I don’t need to know the rules. And they only make rules because, one, some idiot tried to do something very stupid, which sucks for the rest us. And, two, rules are meant to be broken,” Scott said buckling his seat belt.
    “Dorks,” Joey said under her breathe as she buckled her seat belt.
    They drove back to the Academy and Ethan parked his car back into the garage.
    “That was so much fun,” Joey said as they entered the lobby.
    “What was so much fun?” Lynn asked.
    “I took the kids into town and we went to some of the stores and ate at one of the fast food joints there,” Ethan answered.
    “Kids? Did he just call us kids?” Scott asked Joey and Bradley, he was in the middle of the other two.
    They went to the fourth floor and into Scott’s room.
    “Yes, I called you three kids because you are kids,” Ethan said.
    “You heard me?” Scott asked sitting on the edge of his bed along with Joey and Bradley.
    “Scott, the people in Florida could have heard you,” Ethan said.
    Scott stuck out his tongue at Ethan and they all started laughing. That evening at dinner, Mr. Whillington was there for about twenty minutes and then left. He didn’t eat or sit down in his seat at the teacher’s table. He just walked around. But he walked with a sense of authority.
    “What was that all about?” Joey asked leaning over the table to ask Scott and Bradley who were sitting on the other side and Ethan leaned in too; he was sitting next to Joey.
    “I’m not sure,” Bradley replied.
    “He’s probably just checking out how well the cafeteria’s going. Last year there was a food fight and none of us was the same ever again,” Scott said.
    “Mr. Whillington, Jenny, and Mr. Smith, you’ll meet him later, were angry,” Ethan said.
    “And what does that mean?” Joey asked.
    “Well the whole entire school got detention for the rest of the school year,” Scott answered.
    “When did this food fight happen?” Joey asked clearly interested in what they were telling her.
    “January,” Bradley answered.
    “Ouch, what did you guys have to do?” Joey asked.
    “Each week was different. One week we had Mr. Whillington himself. Now know this, he’s hardly seen anywhere. He’s here but he stays in his office all the time. The school was divided into two groups. One group had to swim ten laps in the pool even if it was cold outside. And most of the time it was. While they did that, the other group would run ten laps around the school; garage and pool included. And after each group was finished, we switched. Apparently, ten is his favorite number,” Ethan said.
    “The next week we had Jenny. She wasn’t that hard, but put it this way, we will never look at math the same way again. We had to do about twenty different math problems a day. And they were hard,” Bradley said.
    “I hope I never get a detention with them, then,” Joey said.
    “We haven’t gotten to the toughest one. Mr. Smith, or as we like to call him Mr. Hardass, is the evilest man alive. For him we had to do the same as Mr. Whillington detentions plus practice missions all in one night and do homework and be in bed by eleven,” Scott said.
    “He does sound evil. What are practice missions?” Joey asked.
    “You’ll find out later. But we lived through those detentions, if not we were sent to the hospital wing or home,” Ethan said.
    After dinner Joey, Scott, Bradley, and Ethan went to their own rooms, said goodnight to each other, changed clothes, and went to sleep. They were all exhausted with all the stuff they did that day.



    -Episode 4-

    The rest of the month went on the same; they went swimming and ate all day. The week before school started everyone was louder than they usually were with excitement about the start of the new school year. Schedules were handed out along with uniforms (each person got three pairs of tan cargo pants and two pairs of tan cargo shorts. They were also given two long-sleeve black shirts and three short-sleeve black shirts. In the left hand corner of each shirt was a silver “W” inside a silver circle) and a black laptop.
    “So, Sweetheart, what classes do you have?” Ethan asked, once they got their stuff and were heading to their rooms.
    “Well, first period is math with Jenny. Second period is English with Dominic Willis. Third period is history with Jack Smith…” Joey began as she looked at her schedule.
    “You’ve got Mr. Hardass? Good luck with that,” Scott interrupted.
    “Again with interrupting,” Joey said, glaring at Scott.
    “Scott, we all have Mr. Hardass,” Ethan reminded him.
    “At the same time?” Joey asked.
    “No,” Bradley said, “well, there is one class we have together with him, I think.”
    They reached the fourth floor and the boys put their things in their rooms and met Joey in her room, once they were done.
    “Finish, Joey,” Ethan said sitting on the edge of her bed, which was clearly unmade.
    “Oh, yeah, then I have lunch. Fourth period is science with Henry Adams. Fifth period is Technology, but there isn’t a teacher written here,” Joey said as she squinted at her schedule, “And sixth period is Combat Practice with Jack Smith.”
    “Good thing you have Combat Practice as your last class and not your first class,” Scott said.
    “Yeah, you’ll be sore and smelly all day,” Ethan said as he made a nasty little face.
    “But what is Combat Practice?” Joey asked, sitting next to Ethan on her bed.
    “You’ll just have to wait until school starts,” Ethan replied putting a hand on her shoulder.
    “Man, I’m tried of waiting for school to start,” Joey groaned as she stomped her foot on the floor.
    “Don’t sweat it. You only have few more days to wait. In the mean time hook-up your computer so it’s ready for use because you’ll be using that thing all year long,” Bradley said, who was standing by the window. No one even realized he was there. He had been so still and quiet, unlike Scott, who was walking around the room in front of Joey and Ethan.
    That evening, Mr. Whillington ate dinner with the school. About half way through dinner, he stood up. In an instant, the entire cafeteria fell silent. “Good evening, students and staff. School starts in a matter of days now and I just wanted to explain the rules. First period starts at exactly seven o’clock. It does not matter how you put your uniform together as long as you wear it. Each class excluding lunch is an hour long. Lunch is forty-five minutes long. Now you will notice that two of your classes are a combine of younger and older students. Those classes are Technology and Combat Practice. You all can just deal with it, understand? Good. The first year students will be dealing with a lot of work so I do not want any slacking or else. The older students will also have work, but not as much as the younger ones. You all know to be in your rooms by eleven, no matter what. I also do not want to see anyone in my office for breaking the rules. Each class also as their own set of rules for you all to follow. I also do not want anyone breaking or destroying my school or there will be some students not ever returning. And I don’t want anyone to start fights with others,” Mr. Whillington said and then he changed the subject, “I want you all to have a nice evening. For the last year students you have a meeting with me August 9th. I will see you then.”
    He sat back down and everyone started eating and talking all over again. Once Joey, Scott, Bradley, and Ethan were done with their dinner, they went back to Ethan’s room to relax for a few minutes before having to go to their own rooms for the night.
    “An hour? An hour?” Joey kept saying, “Are they freakin’ crazy?” She stood up on Ethan’s bed and started jumping up and down on it.
    “It’s not that bad,” Ethan said as he went over to Joey and caught her in mid-air and threw her over his shoulder.
    “Not that bad? When does the school day even end?” Joey asked into Ethan’s back.
    “Two o’clock,” Bradley answered as he went behind Ethan and started tickling Joey’s sides.
    Scott followed Bradley and about a few minutes later, Joey was back on Ethan’s bed, laughing too hard. She was laughing so hard she was barely breathing. And Scott, Bradley, and Ethan didn’t seem like they were going to stop any time soon.
    “Guys, enough, I can’t breathe,” Joey gasped.
    The boys stopped and sat around her on the bed.
    “This is not going to be a normal school year, is it?” Scott asked.
    “Not with Joey here, it’s not,” Bradley replied.
    “When is it not?” Ethan said.
    The group said their good nights half an hour later and went to their own rooms to sleep in their own beds.
    Around midnight though, Joey heard movement outside her door and the sound of a door shutting. It sounded like it was Ethan’s bedroom door. What is Ethan doing out of bed at midnight? Joey wondered. She put on a different shirt and her socks and shoes. She also opened up one of the nightstand drawers and pulled out a flashlight. She then left her room as quietly as she could.
    Once in the hallway, Joey turned on her flashlight and looked around. She saw Ethan heading to the elevator and quietly called for him, “Ethan!” He didn’t look back. That’s odd. I know he can hear me. She ran up to him to stop him from going into the elevator, but it was too late, he was already inside. But what concerned Joey the most was that Ethan looked right at her and he didn’t do anything about it. Where in the world is he going? Joey pressed the button for the elevator, but had to wait until it came back.
    When it did show up, she had to figure out which way Ethan went. Okay, he went up, I know that. Therefore, he must be in either the cafeteria or the library. Wait a minute, Mr. Whillington’s office is up there, and he might be caught out of bed. I might be caught out of bed. The things I do for my stupid friends. When she reached the fifth floor, he was not in the hallway. She then checked the cafeteria. He was not in there either. She went to the library and looked around every inch of it for him. He still was not there. Now, I’m really worried. Where else could he be? I know for a fact that he is not in Mr. Whillington’s office, but I’ll check anyway. She went over to Mr. Whillington’s office door and tried to open it, but it was locked. It was worth a try. But where’s Ethan? He couldn’t be any higher, then…then it hit her, there is a small door at the far end of the hallway that leads out to the roof. She ran full speed to the door, up the stairs, and out to the roof.