River Rock Ch. 01

This is my second attempt at starting this story, after the first submission was met with a resounding ".....that's it?" Well you were right. It looked longer when I was writing it but here we go. We'll call this one, River Rock Director's Cut or something. I hope you enjoy!!

I stared up at the ceiling in my bedroom. My bedroom. That still felt strange. I'd been sleeping here for three months now and I still felt like a guest. The room was as clean as it was when I first set foot in this house, maybe a part of me hoped deep down that this wouldn't be permanent, that one day soon we'd just pack up and move back home. There was no use getting comfortable when this is all temporary, right? But that day never came, for the time being this was home. Just me, my dad, and the others.

Dad had met Hannah one night in a bar. He went to that bar all the time, he was friends with the bartender, but this night in particular was his birthday. She saw him sitting there alone, offered to buy him a drink and the two got to talking. They got to talking all night, until the bar closed. I could tell straight away that he was smitten, the way his face would light up at the very mention of this mysterious woman at the bar. They started dating a few weeks later, and then, a year and a half after that night at the bar they were married.

There was a knock at my bedroom door, "Hmmmm?" I said in response. It was all I could muster, having woken up only a minute ago.

"Oh, sorry!" A voice whispered from the other side of the door. "Breakfast is ready!" The voice waited for no reply before I heard the footsteps descending out of earshot and down the stairs. I take a deep breath and throw the bedcover off me, I put on some pyjamas and head downstairs.

Hannah was seated at the head of the dining table. She'd already started on what looked like a delicious egg white omelette. Sitting on the left side of the table was one of Hannah's daughters, Millie.

Millie was 18, like me, and blonde like her mother, although her long hair was tied back into a tight ponytail while Hannah's shorter hair sat freely by her shoulders and somehow always looked like she just shot a conditioner commercial.

They both gave me a smile as I sat down. Hannah's smile was genuine, Millie's seemed obligatory, barely giving me full eye contact before continuing typing on her phone. Hannah's smile continued even after I'd sat down and picked up my fork.

"No Mads again?" I motioned to the empty seat next to me. Mads was Hannha's other daughter, a year older than Millie, and very rarely seen at gatherings like this. This was frustrating because I actually hit it off well with her when I first met her. I quickly discovered a mutual love of movies and games and we spent hours talking about our favourites, we even 1v1'd in an obscure fighting game I hadn't heard of, nor could I remember the name. That obscure. And she shamed me. Of course I blamed the controller to save face, but the way she laughed told me that she could see through the ruse.

"Madelyn had a late shift last night," Hannah said, "and she doesn't have classes until 2 so I thought I'd let her sleep."

"Did you ask him yet?" Millie said, eying her mother from the side of her eyes.

"Give him a minute, Millie, he just sat down!"

"Ask me what?" I said.

Hannah gave Millie a face, as if to silently scold her but she quickly went back to a smile. "We were wondering if you could drive Millie to school today. She's never liked taking the bus and we thought..."

"Oh, yeah that's no problem."

Hannah motioned to me, looking at Millie, "See? There's no problem. What do you say Millie?"

Millie shot her mother a look of her own, after a moment she looked to me again, "Thank you, Jason." There's that obligatory smile again. I barely talk to this girl, why is she so against me?

Hannah looked very excited, and she had reason to, I suppose. After breakfast she stood up and said "Right! I need to head out now, you two, shower." Us two? She can't mean- "I don't care who goes first so I won't hear any arguments about it. It's a big day for all of us and we're all going to embrace it with open arms. Yes? Yes?" She punctuated each Yes by looking at each of us, waiting for us to nod in agreement.

It was a big day. Millie was starting senior year, it was my first day in a new school in a new town, and Hannah was starting her first year as principal of River Rock High. And she certainly looked the part. She white satin button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up slightly, and a brown pencil skirt, fastened tight enough around waist that it just showed off her long, toned legs and insane hourglass curves. She was like a business woman, a housewife and a Rockette all in one package.

Grabbing her bag and keys, Hannah said "It's my first assembly as principal, I could use the confidence boost of seeing both of your lovely smiling faces," she demonstrated by showing an enormous, comically exaggerated smile which made me laugh. Millie rolled her eyes and groaned. "Jason, you're on the fast track of being my favourite, Millie's been slipping lately." She gave me a little wink at that moment, and my eyes widened involuntarily just a little. Alright, love you both, have an excellent day and don't forget...it's Ms Stanton now!" And with that, she was gone. I turned back to Millie, only to see an empty seat. I could already hear the shower running.

-

I waited in my pick-up truck, my thumb tapping the steering wheel while I waited for Millie. "Two minutes", she told me. I checked the time. We'd probably make it, if traffic was nice, but I didn't want to cut it so close on the first day. Finally I saw the front door handle jiggle and she stepped out. I gestured with my hand, silently asking what took her so long? She stopped on the driveway, motioned to her outfit as if that alone was an acceptable answer

Giving her credit, she did look good. Everything said about her mother can also be applied to Millie, but everything is tighter, higher strung and with a certain "I don't give a fuck" energy that is shared amongst most senior girls.

Every strand of hair seemed delicately placed just so to her exact specification. Her blonde hair was tied up into low braided pigtails. Her makeup (from what I could tell, never having to think about makeup in my life) was spot on, working with her natural beauty perfectly, especially around her cheekbones which looked razor sharp in this light. As usual, her angelic features, pale skin, smooth complexion and gentle eyes contradicted her bitchy attitude.

Her clothes were also well chosen. A black skirt, reaching a couple inches above her knees, a white T-shirt with something printed on it in pink cursive, too vague and swirly to properly read, and tight enough on her already tight body that I could make out the faintest outline of her abs, and a light pink cardigan sweater, the buttons done up to just below her breasts. Hanging from her shoulders was a backpack that seemed too small to hold anything at all. All of this had her riding the line of looking like a bimbo, without quite crossing it, and I couldn't take my eyes off her.

She climbed into the passenger seat, struggling a little due to her tall heels that add six inches to her height. I stared at her.

"What?"

"We're probably going to be late." I started the engine and put the truck into gear.

"Well, yeah I'm not surprised, by the time you back this...HUM-V out the driveway. We're in high school, who needs a big truck like this?" With her small frame, her outstretched legs don't even come close to touching anything.

"I just thought if I meet someone-"

"What? She'd be impressed with your big bad truck? That's so lame, Jason-"

"Actually, I was going to say she'd ride shotgun and you can roll around in the back like a piece of lumber."

"Oh, would you relax? I'm just joking."

We headed out the driveway and started the journey to school. Millie checked herself out the whole way, using every mirror in the truck along with her selfie cam. She tossed her hair to slightly mess it up, making it seem as if she didn't try so hard and that there was an element of chaos to her look. She adjusted her breasts, cupping her hands beneath them and bringing them up a little more. I'd never taken notice before, I probably shouldn't be now, but her breasts seemed bigger now than they were back at the house. Millie wasn't flat by any means, but I did wonder for a moment what kind of magic she was working here.

I could see a lightbulb went off in her head, something she had realised she had to do. She reached into her bag and pulled out a tiny golden necklace. There was a little charm on it, I couldn't make out what it was from this distance but it looked expensive for such a small thing. She put the necklace on, deliberately hanging the tiny charm so it hung near her breasts. She checked the mirror again, pushing her arms close in front of her chest and she pouted her lips like she was posing for a picture.

We pulled up to a red light and when we stopped fully, she pulled out a thing of lip gloss and started to apply it, slowly brushing her full lips with the precision of a surgeon. I couldn't help but be captivated by it. The lengths she goes for beauty, a beauty she already possessed, but just to heighten that little bit more. I never noticed her perfume before but with the windows closed, it became all I could smell, a luscious smell that I could tell wasn't cheap to bottle. For a split second I found myself daydreaming about her soft, pillowy lips, tasting them on my own. Wondering how she'd kiss. Wondering how they'd feel on my-

HOOOOOONK

Oh shit! I didn't know how long the light had been green for, but the old lady in the tiny car behind me was tired of waiting. The truck roared as I started down the road again, I waved my hand apologising to the lady.

"Hey, be careful! I'd love to not spend senior year dead, thank you. You're lucky I was done!" She used her pinky finger to trace the outline of her glossed lips, making sure she didn't colour outside the lines, and she pouted again before she made a satisfied face and finally seemed to be completely ready.

"You look fine, Millie!" I said, a little exasperated. "You looked fine coming outta the house, you looked fine the first time you checked, you're always gorgeous-"

The last word leaves my mouth before I even recognised that I was about to say it. It came completely out of nowhere, true as it was.

"Awww you think I'm gorgeous?" In the corner of my eye I saw her perfectly manicured nails before I felt her soft hand touch my skin. I felt my face flush as she pinched my cheek. "You think I'm gorgeous? Well, ain't you just the sweetest thing?" She said that in an exaggerated southern accent.

"Cut it out!" I say, lightly smacking her hand away.

"It's okay, Jayjay, there's nothing to be embarrassed about! You just have a little crush on your gawwwww-juss step-sister," she drew out the word gorgeous, posing like an ingenue before laughing at me once more.

What followed was an awkward moment. A long awkward moment. I couldn't tell what she was thinking, probably of some way to hold this over my head. Maybe that was harsh, but I always had a tendency to overthink things. The laughter died down and all that hung in the air was silence.

We sat in silence for the rest of the journey.

-

Pulling up to the school's parking area, I realised we were earlier than I thought, and I let out a relieved exhale. Millie was fidgeting with her bag strap, her eyes facing down.

"So, I guess I'll see you-"

"Thank you for the, uh,-"

We both speak at the same time. I try to reiterate, "I'll see you here at 3?"

I see her nod her head in the corner of my eye, "Yup! I'll see ya."

We both climbed out of the truck. Millie's heels once more caused her a little trouble, but she only stumbled a little.

Millie went on ahead, spotting what I assumed was her friend group, a squad of about five other girls who had taken similar care into their appearance as Millie.

I looked at the structure of the school. Big campus, multiple buildings. It'll take forever for me to get used to everything. I reached into my bag and pulled out my lesson plan for the day. Oh wait, Hannah said there'd be an assembly. I checked the map that was printed on a second page that came with the lesson plan, and made my way to the assembly hall.

Passing Millie and her friends I caught a little of their conversation.

"Oh my god, he's cute!" said one girl.

That caught me off guard, but I kept heading forward. I'd embarrassed myself enough for one day.

"Ugh, shut up..." I recognised Millie's voice.

"Millie got herself a secret boyfriend over summer!" came another girl's voice in a singsong tone.

I don't know why I turned back to look at them. Maybe it was morbid curiosity, but Millie and her friends were all looking in my direction. No, they were looking at me. Millie's face was flush, embarrassment maybe, but her cheeks were practically glowing. She looked just like how I felt back in the truck.

I give a little wave 'bye' and a smile. I saw her gasp a little, the faintest thing, almost invisible but I saw it, and she waved back.

I turned back and went on to find the assembly hall, smiling to myself as I heard Millie's friends erupt with overlapping comments and questions. It was nice to hear the teaser become the teased, even if it was because of a misunderstanding. The words replayed in my head. Secret boyfriend? That's odd phrasing. Didn't Millie tell her about me and my dad living with them?

I wish that I'd taken note of which said I was cute. Oh well...

-

The assembly hall was also the room used for theatre. A podium with a microphone stood in the centre of the stage, and the students all sat in rows upon rows of ascending seats that curved around the stage in a semicircle. From the back of the hall, I headed down the stairs to near the front where I found an empty seat. I don't know why but I wanted Hannah, or Ms Stanton I should get used to saying here, to do well today. I wanted her to know that we, or at least I, would support her.

Looking around quickly I tried to spot Millie in the crowd, to no success. I thought about the face she made when I last saw her. The way her embarrassment matched my own. Her eyes wide like blue saucers, her perfectly glossed lips shaped like an O as she gasped, her cheeks that deep shade of blushed red.

At that moment the crowd died down, the students all stopped talking and shuffling in their seats, as Principle Stanton took to the stage. I had to admit, she looked so right up there, like she was always meant to have this job. The theatre lights shining down on her, giving her already blonde hair an angelic glow. She was already a tall woman, standing a few inches taller than my Dad or even myself at 6'0, but the authority she exuded as her heels click clacked on the hardwood flooring made her seem double her height.

"Hello, students..." she began, smiling widely. "It's lovely to see you all again, and some of you for the very first time. I am Ms Stanton, I will be your principal at River Rock High, so you'd all better behave." A smattering of little laughs could be heard throughout the theatre. "I hope your time in these halls leave you enlightened, enriched, and enthusiastic to all the possibilities that lay before you. I cannot wait to see first hand all of the people you will become this year. Thank you."

Short. Sweet. To the point. As she made her way off the stage she managed to find me in the crowd, smiling at me after I gave her a thumbs up. The remainder of the assembly was fairly standard. Much of the information didn't apply to me, but after the assembly as we all stood up to head over to the first lesson of the school year, Hannah was waiting.

"Mr Thomas, this way please."

-

Hannah led me through a myriad of corridors, they all looked identical but she seemed to know exactly where she was going. I had to wonder what it was I'd done wrong, but there was no time for me to do anything wrong in the first place! Hannah's height accentuated by her heels made it all so easier to watch her walk. Her curvy waist swayed side to side with each step. It didn't feel forced or showy, she was just effortlessly, powerfully sexy. After forcing my eyes away from her rear, I looked ahead to the end of the corridor. A door with a - presumably brand new - sign that said

STANTON,

PRINCIPLE

She opened the door and allowed me to go first, at this point I was very nervous. She did seem like an entirely different person to the loving, jovial, handsy woman I knew back at the house. Like the weight of the world rested on her shoulders.

She closed the door behind the two of us, let out a deep breath and dropped her shoulders before she pulled me in for a deep hug.

"Ohhhh my god that was nerve-wracking!" She said into my neck as her arms pulled me into her, so close that I would have bet anything that I could feel her heart beating. I wrapped my own arms around her, pulling her close in return. It was the first time I caught a whiff of her perfume, it was the exact same smell that permeated Millie back in my truck. Just as intoxicating.

"You did fine! That was great!" I said, muffling into her chest.

The hug ended, I stretched my back and caught my breath.

"People didn't laugh when I said you better behave," she sounded genuinely worried.

"You're the principle, from you it sounds like a threat! They'll get to know you!"

"Oh, I hope so. This has to go well, Jason. This is my dream job!"

"I think you're putting too much pressure on yourself, I'm sure that by the end of the semester they'll come to love you like I do. Uh-or like Millie does!"

She scoffed a little. "Millie." She walked around the desk in her office, sitting in her official Principal chair. She already looked like she owned the place. "Did you see her at the assembly?"

"No, I couldn't see her from where I was-"

"That's because she wasn't there, Jason. She told me this year would be different...well, it will be. Keep an eye on her, Jason, won't you? I'm not asking you to stay on top of her all waking hours, just try to steer her right, for me?"

Knock, knock, knock.

"Ah, one second. Come in!"

The door opened and a girl stepped in. She was my age, a little shorter than me, and with brown hair tied up in a tight ponytail. She had black hair and pouty lips that curved up into a smile as she saw the Principle and I. She had sort of a stuck up vibe, but her smile seemed so genuine that maybe she didn't even realise she was doing it. Her cheekbones were high and pronounced, adding to her regal beauty.

She wore a black polo shirt, with streaks of green at the sleeves and collar. The shirt and black pants were tight enough that I could see she had the body of a gymnast or a dancer. Small breasts but a very well defined features, but everything was tight as it can be. Firm. As if you could bounce a coin off of any part of her body. She also wore a pair of sensibly comfortable, but still fashionable black sneakers, with green laces. She clearly had a color scheme going on.

"Ah, Isabela", Hannah said, holding a hand out in welcoming. "Come on in, you're right on time."

"Good morning, Miss Stanton," she brushed off her shirt of non-existent imperfections and stood completely straight, still as a statue as if she were being inspected by her drill sergeant.

"You must be Jason?" she turned to me.

"Must I? Uh, ahem, I must. Sorry, hi, yes, I'm Jason." She caught me off guard, she was truly gorgeous.

"Jason," Hannah said, "allow me to introduce Isabela Garcia. Head of the student council. Last week we had a meeting and I happened to mention that a new student would be joining us in the senior year. Ms Garcia here jumped at the chance to give you the tour, show you around, make sure you're comfortable."