Chapter 5: School Life
The school grounds gradually came into view as Gwen's father's police cruiser approached the robust iron gates. "Have a good day at school, Gwen. I love you," her father said, his warm gaze meeting hers through the rear-view mirror. His words reverberated with the quiet strength that Gwen had come to rely on over the years.
"Thanks, Dad! I love you too!" Gwen called back, hoisting her backpack onto her shoulder as she hopped out of the vehicle. Her heart pounded with the promise of a new day as she stepped onto the sidewalk, the clamor of students swirling around her.
As she scanned the sea of faces, her gaze fell upon Luke and Max, two members of the basketball team she shared several classes with. Noting her presence, they threw her a casual wave, their easy grins tugging at the corners of her own lips. As much as she tried to brush it off, she couldn't help but feel a faint flush creep up her neck. After all, getting acknowledged by the school's most sought-after guys, even in the most mundane of manners, had a way of setting one's heart aflutter.
She threw them a quick nod, a small smile tugging at her lips, before she turned and plunged into the crowd of students. Not one to typically shy away from attention, Gwen found their acknowledgment mildly unsettling. Yes, she was popular, but in the world of high school hierarchy, Luke and Max occupied an entirely different stratosphere - the star players of the school's beloved basketball team.
As she walked towards her first-period class, she spotted a familiar figure waving her down. Dressed in her cheerleading outfit, Olivia, Gwen's best friend, always seemed to effortlessly own her place in the school's social ladder. As she met her gaze, Olivia's eyes lit up, and she rushed over to envelop Gwen in a hug.
"Morning, Gwen! I've missed you!" Olivia chirped, pulling back. "How was your night?"
Gwen smiled, "Oh, you know, same old, same old. How about you?"
As the two friends set off towards their first-period classroom, Olivia launched into a recount of her evening. Her words were filled with stories of rigorous cheerleading routines and marathons of her favorite TV shows, making Gwen laugh at the sheer enthusiasm that radiated from her friend.
The rest of the morning slipped by quickly, a whirlwind of math equations and history notes. As the bell rang, signaling the end of second period, Gwen packed up her things and set off towards her next class: Environmental Science.
Stepping into the familiar classroom, she took a moment to take in the soft hum of anticipation that filled the room. As she made her way towards her usual seat, she couldn't help but notice Luke and Max in the back corner of the room, their loud laughter causing heads to turn. She shook her head, a small smile playing on her lips. For all their nonchalance, they did have a way of brightening up even the dullest of classes.
"Alright, class," their teacher, Mr. Jackson, began, "it's time to partner up for the project we'll be working on this week." His words cut through the din, instantly grabbing everyone's attention.
The narrative now shifts to a different timeline, an earlier moment where Luke and Max made their entrance into the same Environmental Science class. The room was still mostly empty, the clatter of chairs and opening books echoing in the silence. Striding towards the back of the room, they took their usual seats and promptly launched into a lively round of 'Two Truths and a Lie.'
"Alright," Max said, leaning back in his chair. "First, I secretly own a goldfish named Bubbles. Second, my middle name is Cornelius. Third, I've actually read all the 'Hunger Games' books."
Luke squinted at Max, his laughter filling the still mostly empty room. "You, reading a book? I find that harder to believe than the goldfish."
"Alright, class," their teacher, Mr. Jackson, began, "it's time to partner up for the project we'll be working on this week." His words cut through the din, instantly grabbing everyone's attention.
Despite their playful argument, the two did not even attempt to look for a partner, they were under the impression that they'd naturally pair up for the upcoming project. After all, they'd tackled countless assignments together before. That was until Mr. Jackson had other ideas.
"Alright, enough with the games you two," he announced, standing by their desks. "It's time to partner up for this week's project. And no, you can't be partners with each other. I want you to actually learn something this time."
Max was quick to protest, but his arguments fell on deaf ears as Luke had already begun scanning the room for a new partner. "Luke! How could you do this to me? We're supposed to be bros!" Max cried, feigning offense.
Luke laughed it off, waving off Max's dramatics. "Chill out, Max. It's just for a week. Plus, we got a 'D' on our last project. If we mess up another one, my mom will kill me."
Max could only watch in disbelief as Luke's gaze landed on Gwen, and without missing a beat, Luke got up and began walking towards her. "Traitor," Max muttered, his eyes narrowing at his friend's retreating figure.
His voice louder now, Max hollered across the room, "What's so great about partnering up with a girl, Luke? Just because I don't have a chest doesn't mean I ain't as good as one!" His joke earned a round of laughter from the class, and even Luke and Gwen seemed amused by his words.
"Hey, Gwen," Luke greeted as he reached her desk. "I'm partner-less, and rumor has it, you're kind of a whiz at this stuff. How about teaming up for the project?" He asked, a hopeful smile on his face.
Gwen looked surprised, her eyes darting between Luke and Max, before finally settling back on Luke. Only now did she understand that the joke made by Max was in fact, targeted at her as, for some reason, Luke had decided to ditch his best friend and partner up with her for whatever reason.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Penpool
Penpool A slightly shorter chapter, trying to speed run 10 chapters to get this fac-fiction started.
After ten, the upload schedule will be much slower. I always have a trip planned in the upcoming days so I'll try to write a few chapters in advance to continue the upload schedule but no promises!
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone