Blue Skies Academy - Chapter 2

   Can't believe I had to wake up so early on a Sunday. M. de LaRoche sent a car for me, and not just any car, but a whole limousine. Meanwhile, I was on the sidewalk, in front of my house, half awake, wearing the first things that I could find and that looked at least a bit presentable while my parents were still giving me all sorts of warnings and advice. I just hope that since it's so early and on a weekend, there won't be as many people at the academy. Can't say I want to make a fool of myself on the first day of being there...

   The car makes a left turn, and we're now on a road lined with trees. It's beautiful. We come close to a grandiose golden gate. How Renaissance. Guess they're quite classic. And boy, that was the case. The school hardly looked like a school, more like a gigantic baroque castle with medieval influences. It's stunning. The greenery is everywhere, and the light is freely dancing with the shadows of the tree leaves. We enter the school's parking lot, and I get out of the car, truthfully still a bit shaky, while the chauffeur unloads my bags from the limousine's trunk. I can hardly believe where I am, how I got here, what I agreed to do, and that I actually had my first ever ride on a limo. There's a first for everything, I guess. With my bags now taken care of by some magically-appeared-out-of-nowhere butler, the driver leads me into the lobby. The inside of the school is as extravagant and mesmerizing as the outside. The walls are made of old stone, and the ceilings are rounded. Golden chandeliers are lighting the halls, their glow mimicking a diamond's.

   "Miss De Vere?" a woman asks.

   She can't be older than thirty. Her hair is neatly coiffed in a tight bun at the top of her head. She's wearing a light blue uniform, which, in my very inexperienced opinion, is really similar to a flight attendant's. Only that in this one, you can see just how luxurious and delicate the material is.

   "Yes, that's me!" I finally answer after recollecting myself a bit.

   I received, at the beginning of my car ride, a folder. My instructions were meticulously given in it: my new identity. To make sure that no one knew who I really was and to stop drawing attention to myself, Mr. De LaRoche created a whole new identity for me to slip into. Ironically enough, being the richest of the richest was here more of a cover-up than a standing out from the crowd. My name is still Kamari, which is quite reckless, seeing how punctiliously the whole project was planned out. I was now part of the De Vere family, owners of Verrerie's Shine, a famous jewelry store. I was, and still am, in awe at the amount of work put into this. After all, convincing so many people that the Verrerie's Shine is a real store is truly impressive. Then again, De LaRoche must've spent more than just a few days building up an identity for this bodyguard he needed so much. I wouldn't put it past him to invest and build up the jewelry collections and reputation of the business. So, as of right now, I am Kamari De Vere, daughter of Meredith and Thomas De Vere, next head of Verrerie's Shine jewelry production and one of the richest people in the world. Who would've thought?

   The assistant leads me through a multitude of halls and stairways, one more elaborate and well-decorated than the other. Portraits of monarchs, tapestries, sculptures, I've seen it all. We parted ways with the driver a few minutes ago, and I now feel quite lonely, even though I haven't even really spoken to the man. Still, he was the only familiar face around. Just when I was about to ask the woman guiding me if we could take a break because I was starting to feel a bit faint with all the corners we already rounded, she stops in front of yet another set of blue wooden doors with golden locks.

   "Here is the girls' dorm." she says. "There are a few rules you need to know: you are not prohibited from bringing boys here. It's a common occurrence. However, they cannot stay after curfew hours, which are 10 pm from Monday to Friday, and 12 am on the weekends. You are also forbidden from leaving your dorm after this hour. You can exit your room but not this part of the building after the specified time."

   She then proceeds to open the huge pair of doors, and I'm hit with a beautiful image of lavish décor, golden chandeliers, navy couches that looked like they were made of clouds, baroque bookshelves filled with an ungodly amount of books that would take centuries to read, a stunning fireplace with a gigantic mirror over it, carpets and tapestries in all the shades of blue you could think of and much more. I guess they're called Blue Skies because their whole building is submerged in the color. The assistant leads me through a hall lined with blue doors, each with a golden number on them, similar to a hotel's. We walk all the way to the end of the corridor and stop in front of yet another door, on the right side. Number 315. I hear a jingle of keys, and, next thing I know, the woman opens it. I find my bags in the middle of the entryway. The room is, of course, blue themed. But it's also huge. There is a mirror on the left wall. On the whole wall. The room opens to reveal two queen size four poster beds with golden carvings on the edges. Before the beds, on each wall, are enormous baroque dressers, and on the farmost wall is another door leading to the bathroom. But while scanning the whole room, I realize I'm not the first one to live here during the school year.

   "You will, of course, have a roommate. Ms. Royan is visiting her family in Monaco for the weekend, but she'll be back later this evening; she was called in earlier so you could both get acquainted. You have all day to settle in. The dorm is deserted, this one as well as the boys'. Mr. De LaRoche will contact you in the next 48 hours to check your schedule and everything else that's in that file. You are free to explore the facility, but please remain within the property. This building and the gardens are free for you to roam in. If you need anything else, you can find me at the reception. A copy of the keys is on your bed. Have a great day."

   And before I could even open my mouth, she was out the door. I look at my bags and decide that it would be too much of a waste of a beautiful day to stay in and unpack. I'll do it later. I move my bags next to my bed, making sure they're not in anyone's way, get my keys, and go out the door.

   I wander the halls, half-lost, half still working to pick my jaw up the floor, and finally manage to find my way out of the girl's dorm. I decide that some fresh air would be nice, so I go to the gardens. I rarely see this much greenery in the city so at the sight of freshly cut grass, ivy climbing on the dormitory's walls and green fences, I must take a minute and let out a relaxed breath. I guess that putting my life on the line for some rich man's child has its perks. But as I examine the landscape more closely, I see that the garden is full of roses: blue roses. I've never seen anyone with such an obsession for this one color. Must be quite the dedicated designer to bring out the blue even in the smallest details.

   As I stroll through the garden, I spot a maze. I've always wanted to go in one, even though I'm more than conscious of my very limited orienteering skills. But when will I ever have the school all to myself again and be able to enjoy some peace and quiet while I explore? Probably not in the near future. So, I venture into the labyrinth. As I pass the corridors, the air gets chillier. I get a few shivers from time-to-time, but I keep going. With every step I take, I have this feeling of needing to continue, maybe from the competitive side of me. And yet, I can't seem to find any way leading to the center, nor to the outside.

   "What a smart idea this was." I say out loud. I hear a branch crack behind me. "What- Who's there?!" I shout, not expecting an answer, but more to reassure myself that I just imagined everything. But as I take a few steps towards the corner of another green wall, a dark silhouette pushes past me and runs off. "Hey!"

   Getting back up from the ground, I start running after it. Dang it! They sure are fast... As we make more and more turns, the air starts to feel warmer again. And then suddenly, I'm outside the maze. I look around, a bit confused and still searching for that hooded figure, but they're nowhere to be found. What a strange encounter. I snort. I should totally make that my catchphrase. At least I got out of there, I think as I turn back to stare at the entrance to the mass of bushes. As I look up, though, I see that the sun is slowly setting. How long have I been in there?! It definitely didn't feel like hours, more like a couple of minutes. I make my way back to the doors, and the second I get inside the building, the same assistant as before greets me.

   "Hello, Ms. Kamari. Mr. De LaRoche is here. He's waiting for you in the office. If you could please just follow me..."

***

   As I enter the room, I see, just like the first time I met him, Mr. De LaRoche sitting at a gilded desk, and Mr. Barren faithfully standing on his employer's left side.

   "We meet again." De LaRoche says ironically. "I suppose you've gotten your folder. I will need you to comply with all the elements that are in it. The rules are simple." His eyes narrow. " But some of them are crucial: you will need to risk your life for my son, no matter what." I recall that part, yes. "You can't let anyone, and I insist on it, know what your real objective here is. If anyone finds out that my son has been dealing with safety issues, more will try to get his head." He sees me stiffen. "And do not be so surprised. In my industry, it is a common occurrence. That is why I have done everything in my power to keep him from... these kinds of events. Without him, my company is at risk. I need you to understand that." I see something similar to he tiniest glint of desperation in his eyes. "Your relationship with him should not be anything more than, at most, platonic. If I see fit, I will fire you with no second chances. I do not need to deal with your emotions over everything else as well. I also need to make one thing clear: your job is just the safety of my son. You have no right to stick your nose where it does not belong." He leans back in his chair. "If you follow these rules, we should be able to work in a performing and professional environment. But if you dare cross my limits, I will make sure you'll regret it. Also, do not worry. This assistant here is a trusted ally." He gestures to the woman in the totally-not-a-fancy-flight-attendant uniform standing next to the doors. "Have a great evening, Ms. De Vere." He finishes his speech by waving a dismissive hand at me, indicating that I should be leaving.

   The assistant leads me back to my dorm. She leaves me in front of my door, and a few moments later, I'm standing in my room. But as I turn to look in it, I find a girl sitting on the bed opposite from mine.

   "Hey there!" She says, with a smiling face as she jumps down from the bed. "I'm April Royan, your new roommate!" She extends a hand.

   "Oh hi...!" My eyes widen at the sudden meeting. Jokes on me for thinking I could catch a break before any more human interactions.

   "Sorry if I come off too strong, I didn't mean to intimidate you." Her smile becomes more apologetic.

   I hesitate before speaking again, taking a few seconds to look at her. She has short, honey hair and bright, happy blue eyes. I blink. "Oh, no, no, it's not that! It's just that I completely forgot that I should be expecting a new person in my room this late at night." I smile back to her. "By the way, I'm Kamari." I reach out and shake her hand. "De Vere." I quickly add.

   "It's wonderful to finally meet you! Ever since this Saturday, which was yesterday, you've been the subject of all the group chats! News travel fast here, but don't worry, you'll get used to it." She says, seeing that I'm not fully reassured at the thought of so many people talking about me.

   "Well... I just hope you didn't hear anything bad, haha..." I reach out to touch the elastic at my wrist.

   "Do not fret, you're still safe!" She makes an exaggerated gesture, her grin providing some comfort.

   We chat for quite a bit. Her easiness and smiles are contagious, and I find it extremely easy to talk to her. After we had quite the talk about April's amazing revenge plans at her annoying french teacher, she pauses and looks at her wristwatch.

   "If we want to make it to class on time tomorrow, we should probably get ready to sleep right now and leave the chatting for later. Quite a bummer to be fair. Bet we can catch up while I'll give you a full tour of the school!"

   "Thank you." I smile gratefully.

   A few minutes later, we're both tucked in our beds, April scrolling on her phone. Tomorrow... my first day of school in such a prestigious place. Despite my lack of attention for the past month during classes, I've managed to keep my scores high. I also think that maybe that could be a factor that made de LaRoche take me under his wing. But what if I can't keep up? And I bet there are already tons of rumors about me, too. April seems nice, though, so I hope I'll be able to rely on her. And, excluding the academic subject, tomorrow I'm also meeting the famous Dominic. I don't even know what he looks like! I should just go to sleep. I'll worry about all this later... And with that, my eyes slowly close, and I end up having my first night being spent fully asleep in a long time.