The Gothadex Cure and the Locket (Part One) by Sophie CHAPTER 1: A NORMAL DAY IN SHELLVILLE It was just a normal day, waking up, eating my classic burnt toast with orange juice, and scampering off to school like a little penguin, but little did I know, that things would never be the same again…. BRINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGG!!! The first bell of the day rang at 9AM (way too early for my liking). I quickly walked over to my homeroom. With my BROTHER. My brother Ammon was moved up a few grades. He was the type of kid to mark someone else’s test and call out to the teacher and ask what you do if you can’t read their writing. He was only supposed to be in 4th grade, but he was in a class with 8th graders. HE IS 9, EVERYONE ELSE IS 13. Anyways, we got to homeroom. Homeroom is 30 minutes long. The teacher takes attendance, and you get to socialize, but today was different. We had an assembly. We lined up and walked to the auditorium. Everyone buzzed around as the principal walked up to the microphone in the middle of the stage. “SILENCE” he spoke in a mighty voice. The students hushed. “As you all know, Antoinette Prep is one of the most PRESTIGOUS SCHOOLS IN SHELLVILLE, BUT… HEY YOU QUIET!!! Anyways, Antoinette Prep is one of the best schools in the WORLD. We teach the ordinary…” “But we learn the extraordinary” Everyone finished in unison. That was the school motto. Principal Andys started talking again, “but, when we were looking over our stats from last month, we discovered that the average student grade is a “C”. WHAT IS THAT ALL ABOUT?! SOME OF YOU ARE 14! YOU KNOW BETTER! Now,” He said while fixing his steamed and ironed academy blue tuxedo. “Go to your next class”. I had English next. So did my brother. He ran off to class, I sighed, such a goody two shoes he was…. “Hey! Kamarri!” I knew that voice. “Cora! Hi!” “Hi Kamarri! I have something important to ask! Did you notice anything off with Principal Andys’ skin?” They asked. “Other than his pimples? No? What is it?” I replied. “Haha very funny”, she said sarcastically. “No, his skin was a little purple…” “Its fine Cora… its not our problem.” I said, “Yeah, your right… let’s get to class. Mrs. Coan holds a grudge.” We walked into the English class. “Hello ladies, take a seat! I’m all for living your best life, but we need to get to class on time, OK? Thank you.” Mrs. Coan was awesome. “OK y’all! Let’s start the lesson, today we will be learning about writing with voice. Can anyone tell me what your voice is in your writing? Andrew?” “Uh-um I think it’s when you uh- I- I don’t know, sorry…” Then a huge bellowing laugh erupted from the back of the class. “HAHA, YOU DON’T KNOW ANYTHING!!!” Said, Kyle, but Cora wouldn’t let him get way with that, “HEY STOP IT!” She snapped back, defending Andrew. “OOOOOH SOMEONE LIKES AAANDREWWWW…” The boys said in unison. “NO, I DON’T!” She replied with fiery passion. I could tell that she could feel the rage burning in her throat. “HEY, hey, stop it you two. See me after class. “OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH” The class gasped. “Ok so does anyone else know the answer? What is voice? Kyle? Yeah, I didn’t think so.” Mrs. Coan was the best. And just like that, class was over, “I’ll wait outside for you Cora!”. I didn’t hear any yelling so that was good. “Hiiii Cora!!! So, how did it go? Quickly, please, I need to get to algebra and you need to get to geometry.” I said. “It went fine, Mrs. Coan told me that she could handle the bullying and to not yell in her classroom. Kyle is getting detention until 4PM, I have to write an essay on being polite and quiet and invisible.” Cora said in an annoyed voice. “Cora, is that really what she said?” “Ughhhh no… it isn’t… I have to write a 300 word essay on civility, which means politeness. *sigh*.” They confessed. “Cora, why do you have to stand up for people?” I asked. “Well, before my mom died, I was introverted and I got bullied every day. In her deathbed she told me to stand up for myself and others, she gave me confidence and this locket. She said that if I couldn’t stand up for myself and the world was falling apart, to open it and read the note inside. I kept my promise to only open it when I need to, and my promise to stand up for myself and others.” They said, tearing up. “Ok let’s go to maths” They said. “Let’s” I replied. I walked over to my algebra class and Cora walked to geometry, not a care in the world, but little did we know, the world would really need that locket soon.
CHAPTER 2: HOTTER AND STRANGER I walked into math class, but something felt… off. I couldn’t place my finger on it. I started sweating, “Why is the room so hot?” I pondered. “Why does Mr. Emerson’s skin look… purple?” Maybe Cora was right, something was definitely going on. It was strange like this for the rest of the day. The teachers were missing, the students were more laid back, and about 10% of the people that I saw had a skin colour in a purplish hue. On my walk home with Ammon, I mentioned it to him, he said that someone in his class tried to bite someone else. That afternoon I slowly got more and more scared, thoughts racing in my head “Why are people turning purple? Is school safe anymore? Is anywhere safe? Am I going to die?!” I was a panicky person. “DINNER TIME!” Mom called out. I went downstairs, ready to eat but I froze in my tracks, like a deer in the headlights. MY MOM. MY OWN MOTHER WAS PURPLE. “MOM! YOU ARE PURPLE!” I screamed. “Oh, yeah honey, must have been a flu I caught at work, come, eat!” She replied in a voice that was way to calm for me to trust. “I-I’m not hungry” I said in a petrified voice. “COME EAT DARLING!” She said, taking a step towards me. I sprinted up to the bathroom (the only place in the house with a lock). I took out my phone and looked at the 6PM news. There is a outbreak of a species called the violet humans. If they bite you, you are infected. I slid down to the floor and burst into tears. My life was gone. I would never be able to be free. I sobbed, then I texted Ammon and Cora to meet me in the backyard, and make sure NOBODY follows them. They obviously got there very quickly. “What’s wrong?” Cora asked. “There is an outbreak, of a species called violet humans. They will infect you if you are bitten. Does your dad’s skin look a little purple?” I asked them. “Yeah…” Cora answered. “We are going to live in the secret treehouse that I have in the forest. I have our house keys, I can get food and water. Don’t worry, it will be cozy.” I said. “No, no it’s not that, I just can’t believe that I won’t be able to safely see my dad again.” They said, tears welling up in their eyes. “Me too, Cora, me too.” (pls dont comment except for @liiv_vibxs i am using the comments for the rest of the story)
