1 Alexander Prep “My life has taken an unexpected turn. Things seem out of my control and my anxiety is getting worse. Now that I am close to getting answers, I can’t help but be afraid of the truth.” - Faith
September 9th came much too soon Faith Spiritwolfe. She dreamed about this day for months, both craving and dreading it in equal measure. She threw her alarm clock to stop it buzzing, got out of bed and checked her notifications. On the top of her list was a message from her father. ‘Goodluck at your first day at Alexander, text me all about it later.’ The words shone brightly on the screen for a few seconds, then it faded to black. “Wish you’d tell me good luck in person,” she muttered to herself as she walked drowsily to the bathroom. “No sleep again,” she groaned rubbing her eyes. Her make up routine would take longer than usual. “What’s the point of an alarm clock when you can’t fall asleep?” Her clothes for the day were already hanging outside of her closet with her book bag neatly on the floor next to them. Faith lightly finger-combed her long curly black locks that reached down her back. Then she pulled it together into a high ponytail and tied them into one long plait. As a finishing touch she swept her spiraling bangs to the side, so they shielded eyes. Once she had her school uniform on, Faith avoided looking at herself in the mirror, hoping her continue concealer would hide the fact that she had not slept at all. There was another reason she did not want to look at herself. It was the thing that made her different, made people stare or mothers pull their children away. What stood out the most about her appearance was not her naturally long hair, but her eyes. Faith had the most unusual eyes; they were round and bright hazel save for the black ring around it with irises so thin, it was like a cat. They stood out against her caramel colored complexion. Some people assumed she wore contact lens and Faith almost wished she did, but they were natural, just like her mother’s had been. No one else in her family had eyes like hers and she did not have any siblings. She was her mother’s first and only child. Faith had no pictures of her mother, but her father always said how much her smile reminded him of her because of her eyes. It was probably why he stayed away so much Faith surmised. Always working, traveling, and living out of hotels. Maurice Spiritwolfe had one saying, ‘Make work a priority so one day your family will be.’ Faith thought it was just excuse for him never being around, but she did not have the nerve to confront him about it. Luckily, he lived with his mother and brother, so Faith was not alone when he was away. The only other explanation Faith could produce for his absence in her life was that he was afraid of her. His freak daughter who could not stay in school, who had few friends and was always getting into fights. ‘Who’d want a freak like me for a daughter?’ she wondered depressingly. Faith’s eyes were the only proof that she was a normal sixteen-year-old. She was only 11 when she found out that she was different from everyone else. By then, Faith was used to being bullied because of her appearance. People would pull on her hair and call her ‘Freaky Faith’ daily. One day, when it became too much, Faith’s anger flared, and she set fire to her bully’s lunch. By the time she was 14, she had attended 7 different schools. Labelled a troublemaker, Faith learned martial arts to defend herself without hurting her classmates. The problem was her abilities grew along with her. The things she could do frightened her. What frightened her the most was that no one in her family displayed any magical talents. No one except her mother who died in childbirth. It was a truth she had found out in a journal hidden in an old box of her mother’s things. Most of the pages were in a foreign language she was unable to translate. But her mother started writing in English when she was pregnant with her. And there was one passage that stood out among the rest. I wonder if my baby will inherit my gifts. Will she be strong enough to face what is coming? Will I? It was the only proof that Faith’s abilities were not her own. And none of her guardians knew that she had the power to control flames or her other ability. Only two people in the world knew she was gifted, her cousin Devonté and her best friend Saoirse who had a secret of her own. Faith and her family moved all the way to a New York City townhouse from their large Pacific Palisades home in California a month ago just so she and her cousin could attend the prestigious Alexander Prep School and be closer to where Maurice’s new office. It was a tradition for the teens of her family to attend the academy because they were major benefactors of the school. Faith thought the townhouse was all right, but it lacked a certain amount of privacy given how close everyone was now. Her room was exactly like it was back home, but she had to be more economical about the space. Her bed was in between her desk, and her chest of drawers. It was still Starry Night themed with blue velvet bedsheets making it seem like she was sleeping in a nighttime river. Her vanity lights were in the shape of stars and all the lamp shades had tiny half-moons in them, so they illuminated the room with there banana shapes. Her bookshelf was next to the walk-in closet filled from top to bottom with art books, sheet music and film scores. “Faith Come down here for breakfast!” came her Grandmother Sicilia’s gravely voice from somewhere downstairs. “Coming!” Faith yelled back and she grabbed her bag then ran down the stairs and into the kitchen. Her Grandmother Sicilia, her Aunt Leti, and her cousin Devonté, nicknamed Dev were already sitting down at the kitchen table. Faith took a seat next to Dev and proceeded to fill her plate with eggs and bacon. “Good morning everyone!” she said brightly despite her anxiety about starting a new school and having to keep her powers under control. “Good morning dear,” said Aunt Leti in-between a gulp of orange juice. “Good morning Faith,” said Grandmother Sicilia with a raised eyebrow. “Are you excited about your first day at Alexander?” “Yeah. I guess,” Faith answered sheepishly. “You guess?” Grandmother Sicilia repeated incredulously gaping at Faith as if she had said something terrible. “You’re going to be attending one of the most prestigious schools in New York and all you can say is ‘yeah I guess’? Lord…” Faith looked down at her food and did not reply. “Where’s Uncle Phillipe?” Faith asked looking at the empty space beside Aunt Leti. Faith’s Uncle Phillipe was a relaxed kind of guy. The typical kind uncle who always had a smile on his face and sweets in his pockets. “He’s already left for the office,” Grandmother Sicilia answered. “Didn’t want to be stuck in traffic and unless you two want to be late for your first day of school, I suggest you leave soon. Lord knows how bad the traffic’s going to be.” Faith and Dev began to eat hastily. Her Grandmother Sicilia’s suggestion was more of an order than anything else. “Bye grandma, bye mom,” Dev said 5 minutes later, wiping the orange juice shinning on his top lip then he grabbed his bookbag hanging on the hook next to the door. “The driver knows the way to your school,” said Aunt Leti. “A little treat for your first day. Tomorrow you’ll take the train in.” “Alright.” “Goodbye and be good!” Grandmother Sicilia yelled as Faith and Dev made their way outside. Faith closed and locked the door behind them then Dev turned to face her. He looked a lot like his mother, mahogany skinned, round-eyed with a silky voice built for a singer. “So today is the day cuz. No more valley girls and stupid jocks. Now we will be meeting Manhattan’s elite, spoiled trust fund babies and overachievers. We must be on our guard,” Dev said in a mock-serious tone that made Faith chuckle. Dev was a funny boy, only one year older than Faith. He had long black hair like his grandmother that he liked to tie into a man bun. He would never let anyone cut it as he liked to have the girls, he hung around periodically braid or cornrow it for him. “I really wish you had picked up acting, and then we could join the Drama Club together. I heard Alexander has a great Drama Department,” Dev said excitedly as they got into the car. “Now Dev, you know I can’t act,” Faith admitted. “Besides, we can do judo together.” “Yeah and have my butt kicked by you, no thanks, I’m not cut out for fighting.” “And I’m not cut out for acting. Too much physical contact. Besides I could not take up another club. You know I want to play the violin. That and judo will take up all my time and I could not quit either of them. They help me channel my anger and suppress my abilities.” “You’ve been doing really well. No longer setting my things on fire. And you don’t have to keep the mini fire extinguisher in your room anymore.” “Funny. I am suppressing more yes, but they are progressing. I can do other things now. I have been practicing late at night at the courts after hours and found that I can do other things too. It scares me Dev.” “Don’t let it. It blows my mind, the things you can do. But now that we are in New York, perhaps we can shed some light on as to why and how you have those abilities.” “My dad said he and mom met at Alexander Prep so I’m hoping to do some digging around while I’m here.” Maurice always shut down whenever someone mentioned her, and her other relations never brought her up out of respect for him. “That’s partly why I’m here Dev. But first things first. Let’s try and get through our first day of school.” “Yeah.” Routine as going to a new school was, Faith could not fight the skin prickling, heart racing and hand twisting anxiety that came along with it. On top of everything else, she had to worry about people finding out about her abilities. Dev had to hold her hand several times keep her from twisting them. It took 15 minutes for Faith and Dev to reach the school. In big silver letters, the name ‘Alexander Prep’ shone brightly. It was just like the pictures on her mother’s scrap book but slightly more updated. It was still a brick school from the outside but there were Wi-Fi signs, picnic tables and a lit-up fountain in the middle where students could sit around. Faith’s voice caught in her throat as she saw the hundreds of students cramming into the large building. Then suddenly a hand touched her shoulder from behind. She tensed up, whipped around and screamed.