What is Soar*__________

Soar* is an epic story of a girl called Echolalia Xu, who gets a scholarship to go to a rich senior school {Year 11 & 12 only} to study. It's highly recognised, & although very expensive - she can go for free! So who is she to complain?

But the school... isn't a normal school. There's more to Vaelen International than meets the eye. Let's just leave it at that.


Notes from the Author__________

I started Soar* back in 2004. I've been on a long hiatus since, but hopefully since BY REQUEST it's being posted on here, I may be inspired to continue it further. It's nothing to do with writer's block as to why I stopped. I know perfectly well how this story will go, & how it will end. I suppose it's a matter of writing it all down that put me slightly off.


Commenting__________

Please, since this is an ongoing story all comments should go HERE. It will make things more tidy, & easier to view through, chapter to chapter.


End note__________

I hope that you enjoy Soar*. This isn't the final product since the story is yet to be complete, so please excuse my mistakes, I am aware of them. I mostly just want to share with you my work, & hope that by doing so, it will inspire me to finish.



Thankyou.

Chapter One: Welcome to Vaelen__________


Lia Xu sat at the window seat of the bus. It was her first day at Vaelen International Grammar School and she was mortified. Vaelen was a well known rich private school, which she had gotten into on scholarship, and the fact that her mother had rich connections, literally.

She had only wished she had gone to the same school as Rae, her younger sister. Rae was extremely talented at the violin, and was attending a school that specialized in the creative arts such as photography, painting and music; and Lia was jealous.


Since Lia was studying somewhat the same courses as her sister, she had hoped they’d go to school together at the same institution. However, she was wrong. For that, she missed her sister and had wished she wasn’t starting on a new road all alone.


Lia sighed at the sight of the buildings and houses she watched pass her by through the window. She was extremely nervous. What would these people be like? What would life at Vaelen be? Were these people nice?




Lia was not rich, though her parents were not that poor either. Her mother was a secretary and her father was an engineer. But compared to the students at the school, she was probably seen as poor. All the students at Vaelen International Grammar School were sons and daughters of businessmen, lawyers and some even from famous families, fortunate to be born under such a rank.



Digging into her pockets, she took out a crumpled piece of paper which she had written the details of her dorm room that she would be staying in. Her mother had insisted that Lia stay at the school dormitories as it would be easier for Lia to access at the school. Thus, this is why Lia had hoped for her sister to come, but yet her hopes and anticipations had failed her.



Before Lia could depress about anything else, the bus reached its destination. Thanking the bus driver, she quickly hopped off and headed towards the office, not hesitating to admire the beauty and immenseness of the school.



As she reached the office, a secretary noticed her and welcomed her in.



“Welcome to Vaelen International Grammar School.” the young lady mechanically chirped.


“Would you please fill in some forms to confirm your arrival?”

Lia blinked at this question, she had never had to do this for any other school, however this school was obviously different, it was a private school after all.


“Yes alright, where are the forms?”

The secretary coldly handed Lia the forms with a pen, then quickly continued on with her work.


As Lia sat at a seat and filled the forms in, she noticed a group of eight boys walking through the halls of the office. Lia stopped to study them. They walked with an aggressive, compelling air about them. To Lia’s surprise, the secretary noticed them in an instant and seemed somewhat intimidated by them.

Confused, and hoping to leave before any conversation erupted, Lia handed the now completed forms back towards the secretary, who exchanged them with her timetable. Once she obtained her timetable, she left the office hurrying towards her first class at Vaelen International Grammar School.

Chapter Two: Perception__________


Lia slowly walked through the halls, and outside amongst the pavement in the direction of the English Department Building. Her eyes laid upon all the rich students surrounding her, all wearing their branded labels of clothing, and not uniform.



Her eyes dug deep into the fine stitching of their shirts, the craftsmanship of their bags, and the sleek watches that they adorned. Pausing to take a deep breath, she felt the wind blow at her shoulder length black hair. Her raven locks flowing like blue cascades against the caressing wind, urging her to walk on.



She continued to study the students that passed her by, going into a somewhat dreamlike state, taking in everything to account of what was before her. Everyone was so beautiful, so fortunate; Lia could not help but stare in awe at the people that passed her by. She then compared herself to them, looking down at her clothes, at what she wore.


She was wearing her best clothes; her black shirt, her pinstripe pants, and black boots. She felt that she looked quite pretty, well presented, and somewhat stylish. However compared to everyone else around her, Lia was nothing special. How could she keep up with dressing nicely in a school such as Vaelen?




Lia didn’t have an impressing line of clothes in her wardrobe back at home. Nor did she have enough clothes to have a different stylish outfit each day to wear, just to attend the school. She’d have to try and work with what she had brought in her luggage, which school escorts had set up for her already.



The school was extremely well off, rich and enduring. The dormitories were like a hotel, which rented out and provided rooms for students who lived far from the school, or didn’t have a rich family to send them out to school everyday. Students who were well off didn’t have to stay at the dormitories, and most of the richer students preferred to continue living at home.



Lia checked her pockets just in case, to see if she had her room keys with her, thankfully she did, and let out a sigh of relief. She lifted her head and started to walk again towards the English Department Building.



Arriving quickly, she reached out to open the door. Before she swung it open, she closed her eyes and took in another deep breath. She was nervous, and it was obvious that this was going to be one long day.

Chapter Three: Someone__________


Lia stepped into a classroom unsure if it was the right one. She had already paced across the halls of the English Department three times before entering the classroom. She nervously checked the timetable in her left hand, her right arm holding a pile of books for the classes she was due to attend today.

As she stepped into the room, she felt many eyes lying upon her. Before Lia felt any tension between herself and the rest of the class, a teacher stepped forward to speak to Lia.



“You must be Lia Xu!” The teacher chirped.


“I am Ms Klinks, welcome to our Psychology class. Come in and take a seat dear.”



The teacher tilted her head, and whilst clasping her hands together in joy, she gave off a warm smile. Because of this, Lia felt much better, the nerves lifting off her shoulders slightly.



She walked over and filled an empty seat next to a girl who wore a pink shirt with butterflies all over them. She cringed at the thought of the shirt, it looked awful.



The girl did not welcome Lia, and continued to gaze at the whiteboard emotionless. Lia felt terrible at this response. Weren’t the people welcoming here? However once the teacher, Ms Klinks had asked for the students to pair up for a task, the girl suddenly introduced herself and spoke to her.



“Hey, I’m May. Would you like to pair up?” May asked this question cheerfully, however her facial expression did not match her voice.


Lia felt the urge to say no, after experiencing a rude first impression from her. However a “Yes,” escaped from her lips, and they worked together ‘til the end of the class.




Bidding May goodbye, Lia headed towards the cafeteria to have a snack. If her timetable was right, this was Lia’s free period for today.


Being a senior student, everyone had their own choice of subjects and electives, also receiving one period of free study time. This was Lia’s. She had decided to spend it recuperating before she did anything else.



There was no next period; there was a break, and then a double period of Drama awaiting her. She was right; it was going to be one long day. It had only been one period, and already Lia was drained of energy.




As she sat at a table alone in the cafeteria, she felt a shadow come up from behind her. She had only hoped it was not May.





“You’re new.” The feminine voice spoke. It was not a question, but a statement.



Lia’s nerves kicked in, she shivered, fearing to turn around. The shadows towering behind her soon formed into an individual, a young girl like Lia herself, who was now sitting next to her at the table. The girl extended her hand and offered it to Lia.




“I’m Vanessa, Vanessa Sui. It’s nice to see a different face for a change.” The girl smiled and spoke in an upbeat tone, Lia recognizing her act was genuine.



Lia grinned, taking Vanessa’s hand and shaking it. She spoke up in a tone of relief and gratitude.



“I’m Lia Xu; it’s great to meet you.”

“Let me guess, everyone has been rude and ignoring you?”

“Yeah, it’s like I’m invisible, and I’ve only had one class so far.”

Vanessa laughed, “Do you have Drama next up?”


Lia nodded.


“I’d better give you the low down on things around here then.”

Chapter Four: Intuition__________


Staring intensively into Vanessa’s face, Lia listened to the people that Vanessa mentioned, never cutting in, nor asking questions. She wanted to hear full on what Vanessa had to say, but found herself envying at Vanessa's flawless long, dark brown hair, which she wore with a fringe.



Her hair was held up with a red clip in the shape of a rose. Lia had remembered seeing the clip at the local shopping mall back at home, and had remembered it had cost a fair bit.



Vanessa also wore a red three-quarter sleeve shirt, and black denim jeans. On her black jeans there was a long part of material at the back, which made the pants seem like some sort of skirt.




To complete her outfit, Vanessa wore black and red runners. It was more casual than what Lia had expected people to wear at Vaelen, but also very stylish. Lia had seen these clothes before, but she couldn’t understand where. Vanessa seemed to notice Lia’s gazing and began smile to cheekily.




“I know. Everyone acts like that when they see my outfits. It’s stylized by my auntie, Anna Sui. You’ve heard of her right? She’s the designer with the retro style, beauty products, and perfume fragrances.”




Lia widened her eyes surprised. She could not believe what she was hearing; here she was with the niece of Anna Sui. Lia was not really into beauty and fashion labels, but somehow she always admired the Anna Sui label for its retro unique like qualities.





“So you get to wear her creations?” Lia asked excitedly.



“It’s not that of a big deal. My mother has been influenced by my auntie’s style, so they’re all a bit insane about fashion. I’m pretty much used to it. This is as casual as I can get when it comes to school. Otherwise they’ll try to dress me up and decorate me as if I am going to some fancy horse racing carnival.”



Lia grinned. It was an odd perspective of looking at things; Vanessa was used to being piled with clothes from her auntie. It was after all, a relative’s business. But from Lia’s point of view, she found it practically amazing. Vanessa grinned and patted Lia on the shoulder.



“Hey, if it means that much a big a deal, I’ll give you some clothes if you like. They give me too much of the same things, but they say it’s different by perhaps the stitching or something? I don’t really get it. But then again I’m not a designer anyway.”




As Vanessa said this, she laughed and shrugged her shoulders.


Lia nodded and looked around.




“Well since we’re in the cafeteria, and there are no classes after this period until the end of the break. Do you want to get some food early?”



“Not many people eat from the canteen, even though all of the food is free as it’s paid for in our school fees.”



“How come? Why not?”

Lia was curious. Maybe there was something wrong with the food. She did not know.



“Oh, no!” Vanessa laughed once more sensing Lia’s thoughts.



“There’s nothing wrong with the food, everyone’s just picky that’s all. Some people have a free period after this break, so they get ushered out to restaurants for a snack. It’s quite ridiculous actually.”



Lia frowned, “I wouldn’t say it was ridiculous if it was lunch though.”



“I second that. Anyhow, I’ll go to the canteen, and you mind my books alright? I have yet to put them back in my locker. I’ll buy the snacks, my shout.”




Lia didn’t like the sound of Vanessa paying. Just because she was poor, doesn’t mean she wanted to be treated like a charity case. But this was Lia’s first day, and Vanessa was kind, so she didn’t say anything to upset Vanessa.



Whilst she sat and waited for Vanessa’s return, she watched as a young man entered into the cafeteria. He wore a white blue stripped shirt and gray jeans with a small hint of a checker pattern on it, its tones of different grays.



The young man walked across the cafeteria with an assertive air about him. Lia didn’t trust his actions, it was either that or there was just something about him that she didn’t like.




One of the students who also had a free period greeted him with a wave, which he waved back to whilst making his way over to the canteen behind Vanessa.




Something was oddly wrong with that young man as he seemed to study the female students in the line quite extensively, that it made Lia feel a shiver down her spine, and extremely uncomfortable.




Once Vanessa returned to the table carrying a tray of food, Lia pointed out the young man.


“Who is that?” Lia asked, speaking in a curious manner.



“Oh him?” Vanessa asked whilst pointing also, making sure Lia was pointing to the right person.




“Yeah that guy, who is he?”


“Oh don’t worry about him! He’s just weird. Lia you’re so silly.”


“Huh?”



Lia didn’t understand why Vanessa was dismissing her question so eagerly.




“That’s the drama teacher.”

Chapter Five: Quick Leave__________


Lia watched the drama teacher, her eyes glued to him watching every move that he made until he left the cafeteria.



By then the bell had rung for class and she had finished her breakfast school snacks that were offered to her. Double thanks to Vanessa who had helped her finish it.



Vanessa did not have drama as Lia had expected, since Vanessa had guessed correctly what classes Lia had next up after their break. Vanessa had two other different class subjects next that Lia did not want to study; Physics and Chemistry.



Personally, Lia thought Vanessa was crazy for taking such subjects. But then again, Lia was not good at the academic side of school.



She preferred subjects like Art, English, Literature, Photography, and Music. She still wondered how she ever got accepted into Vaelen International, where they preferred people who studied the evil subjects; such as the ones Vanessa was studying.



Slowly getting up out of her seat, she bid Vanessa goodbye and headed out towards her room at the dormitories. She did not feel like attending a double period of drama with a man who she figured out to be some pedophile.


It was her first day of school, and she had no time to rest in between from her departure to her arrival. In all honest truth, she wanted a nap.



As she made her way to the dormitories, which looked more like some giant five star hotel, she held her breath as she walked inside. There was a lobby, and even some service desk attendants to make the dormitory facility even look like a hotel.



Walking up to the reception, she decided she had made the right choice in not attending a double period of drama. Asking the reception lady for some assistance, a school escort guided Lia to the right level of the dormitories towards her room.

Chapter Six: Keys Please__________


The key, it was in her pocket, she was sure she had checked before, or had she placed it in her bag? Lia was not sure. The school escort had already shown Lia towards her room, 8-16.



Lia was afraid of heights, and there were much higher levels than her floor, floor eight. So in a way, she was thankful she was still on a single number level of the dormitories.



She stood in front of her room rummaging through her pockets. She felt herself begin to sweat in stress, as the nerves caught up to her once again. Did she drop her keys? Where were they? She did not know.


Grumbling, she took her school bag off from her shoulder to dig in, in hopes that her keys would be found.





"So you're locked out aren't you?" asked a voice.



Lia turned around to look towards the direction of where the voice was coming from. She found out that the voice belonged to a young lady that looked around the same age as Lia, with blue eyes and red wavy long hair.


She had thin lips, and a bit of freckles around her nose, but Lia still felt that this girl was very pretty. She also wore a brown sleeveless shirt, and blue flared denim jeans.



Before Lia could explain or say anything, the girl giggled at Lia.



"You're new right? 8-16? I'm Sharina, I live in the room just opposite you, 8-35."



Sharina pointed, and indicated her room across from Lia's; Lia looking at the number of the room, which Sharina had said.



"I'm Lia," Lia smiled offering her hand and shaking it with Sharina's.



"I just got up here, I'm sort of missing out on a class right now, but I figured I wanted to check out my room, to see if all my belongings were here first.



The school escorts picked up my luggage back at home, so it would be easier for me to go straight to attend class on the first day. It's been quite stressful already. I didn't know that my room would be so high up!"



"There are fourty rooms on each of the floors. It's like a mini hotel really, I think the highest level goes to level thirty, I'm not so sure. I never really pay attention to these things. It's good to see a new face at Vaelen International! I'm only part time here though."



Sharina smiled, and studied Lia, noticing the stress on Lia's face straight away. Lia was a type of person that could easily be read, and so even though Sharina had just met Lia, she knew how Lia was feeling already.



"I can help you unlock your door if you like, I'm free right now."



Lia was thankful that Sharina had offered to help, but had found her keys in her bag pockets the moment Sharina had offered.



"It's okay, I've found them." Lia grinned holding up her keys. "I need to get myself a spare sometime."




"The dormitories use card keys usually. It's what's most commonly used actually, but for new comers they usually give normal keys, because the school doesn't like risking the loss of a keycard if the student chooses not to come."




"Ah! Thanks Sharina, I'll make note to collect my card downstairs at the lobby right?"




Sharina nodded in response to Lia's questions. Lia turned to open her door and place down her bag.





"So what are you doing right now Shari? Do you mind if I call you that?"




"Ohhh, not at all! I was actually in the middle of painting in my room. Would you like to come and see?"




Lia grinned, "Sure, I'd love to."




She was beginning to like this school after all.

Chapter Seven: Happenings__________


Vanessa sat in her Physics class. Feeling drained, she waited for her teacher to arrive whilst fidgeting with her pens and flicking rubber bands at the other students, who automatically flicked the rubber bands back towards her.



Halfway throughout the period time, a school secretary ran into the room, and told the class that the teacher, Mr. Robertson was absent. So Vanessa decided to head towards the school library.



Whilst walking over towards the library, Vanessa decided to stop over at the canteen to get a drink. As she walked into cafeteria, she noticed a dark figure at the edge of halls that seemed to be up to something. Thanking the canteen lady for the drink that was given, Vanessa decided to see what the dark figure was up to.




She walked up towards the other side of the hall where she had seen the figure and realized that she was standing in front of the school sick bay. Stepping backwards, she peered in from across the hall, trying not to be seen.




As she watched, an ambulance worker rushed in with a stretcher, followed by another ambulance worker who held the stretcher’s other half.



Vanessa could not see what was happening once the ambulance workers had entered into the school sick bay. The windows of the room were tinted, and all Vanessa could see were silhouettes carrying a limp broad body, which Vanessa was sure belonged to a man.



As the stretcher was wheeled out of the school sick bay, she recognized the body of the man that lay before her. It was the drama teacher, Mr. Deyson.




He had been badly bruised and beaten towards the head; Vanessa could see it clearly, without asking what had happened to the poor man. Feeling frightened, and knowing if she stood there any longer, she would be noticed; Vanessa rushed towards the school library.




Meanwhile, Lia sat in Sharina’s room, admiring the paintings that Sharina had created.




“They’re beautiful, so you’re studying art?” Lia asked this whilst studying the paintings extensively, enchanted by how realistic every piece of artwork resembled.




“Yes, it’s really great fun; however I’m not sure what I want to study when this year is over.”



“I don’t know either. Do you have art the next two periods after lunch?”



“No sorry, I already had art this morning; I guess we’re not in the same classes.”



“It’s okay! You’re still across the hall from me, I can stalk you!”




Sharina laughed at Lia, they had just met, and already they were getting along extremely well. Sharina suddenly remembered a requirement she had to do for class.



“Hey Lia, would you mind if sometime I painted a portrait of you, I just need to do one of those old style portraits, like of people sitting with big gowns in those older times?”



“Yeah sure, I wouldn’t mind!”



“It’s just that it’s a requirement in class, and I usually prefer painting landscapes. So if I do this, and I distort your face, I don’t mean to make you look bad!”



Lia laughed, “Nah its fine, I’m happy to help.”



“I’m glad. You’d have to wear a costume though, and have photos taken of you of course. So you don’t need to put it on every time, and pose for me with it.”



Lia’s eyes widened surprised. She loved getting pictures taken, so this was somewhat a rush of excitement for her.



“Sure, of course! Just contact me if you need anything alright?”


Sharina nodded, “It’s almost lunch now. Would you like to go eat?”


Lia smiled but shook her head, “I’ve already made plans with my friend Vanessa, maybe next time. Is that alright?”




Sharina nodded once more. Lia bid Sharina goodbye, and went towards her room to take a nap. She turned closing Sharina’s door behind her, and slowly turned the knob of her room door.

Chapter Eight: Late__________


As Lia walked into her room, she stopped stunned with the beauty and elegance the room adorned. The room had silk drapes coloured in a cream toned gold, the blankets were white and fluffy, the carpet was a dark wood brown, and the walls were of a white as well.



She walked into the bathroom to check what it had to offer. As she turned on the light, she noticed a shower, a bathtub as well as a small spa, all in the bathroom; the toilet had its own room however, which Lia was thankful.


She clapped her hands together with glee, and as she did this, the table lamp near the king sized bed went on.



Lia couldn’t believe her luck, it was one of those clap on lights! But before Lia could run and jump on her new bed, the telephone in the room rang.


Who would call this room though?


Lia hadn’t had a chance to give out the number yet, but she knew it all the same. She rushed over to the telephone and picked it up, curious to see who it was.


“Hello?” Lia asked.

But there was no answer. Lia was confused, what was going on? She did not know.


Sitting on the bed, wondering what was going on, Lia suddenly realized the time, as she gazed at the clock that flicked to change in her room. She was meant to meet Vanessa for lunch! Had the time passed that quickly already? She did not know this either.





Quickly having a shower, and changing her clothes, Lia took her bag and headed back towards the main school building, away from the dormitories. She would’ve bid Sharina goodbye, but Sharina’s door was closed, and Lia did not want to disturb her.



Rushing out of the dormitory building, Lia ran towards the school.




It was lunch already, and Lia was late. Vanessa impatiently sat at the table that she had met Lia at; she wanted to know what happened to the drama teacher. Why was Mr. Deyson badly bruised? It was obviously a beating, it had to be. But who would beat Mr. Deyson up, and why?



Vanessa swore she saw him fine in the early morning break, when she had first met Lia. Which meant that Mr. Deyson must’ve gotten hurt after then, and after that break, he only had a double period of drama class.



Overhearing the teachers worriedly gossip about Mr. Deyson, Vanessa realized something. Lia was attending drama class! Maybe she could ask Lia what happened, from Lia’s point of view.




“The students of the drama class are too afraid to say anything, something bad must’ve really happened.”



Vanessa overheard Ms. Zeki, the music teacher whisper this to the other teachers, which were also eating in the cafeteria.



It was a normal thing for the teachers to also eat at the cafeteria, especially with all the delicious foods available that most students tended to ignore, and decide not to touch.



“But why are they afraid, they should know that they have nothing to fear! This school is well protected!” Ms. Klinks, a psychology teacher exclaimed.




Vanessa silently agreed with Ms. Klinks’ statement. The school indeed was well protected. There were gates and guards, as if the school area belonged to royalty, that’s how well protected the school was.



However there was an opening for the bus depot, so that the students could rush in, and not have to walk up to the drive in gate to enter Vaelen.



“But we’ve still gotten many terrorist threats you know,” Mr. Dashwood spoke out.



“Nonsense James, this has nothing to do with Hewitt’s injuries!” Ms. Klinks scolded towards Mr. Dashwood.



Vanessa sighed, she didn’t like overhearing the teacher’s conversations but she couldn't help it, they weren’t really being secretive about the whole deal.




Lia rushed over towards the cafeteria, and spotted Vanessa waiting patiently, or so it seemed that way.



“Thank goodness! Are you alright Lia? You’ve worried me sick, why were you late? What happened in drama class?”




Lia blinked surprised. What did Vanessa mean by what happened in drama class? Was drama class that terrible?





“What do you mean?” Lia asked curiously.


Vanessa then noticed that Lia was wearing different clothes from this morning, and came to another realisation.




“You didn’t go did you?”

Chapter Nine: Puzzle__________


Vanessa spent the entire lunch break explaining things to Lia. She sounded extremely worried and passionate about the entire dilemma with Mr. Deyson being badly bruised.


The descriptions on what Vanessa saw all seemed to make Lia feel more curious rather than afraid.




“Do things like this normally happen at Vaelen?”

“Yes.”



Sure the school promoted itself in such a way to be excellent, well furnished and academically strong, but in the end it still had flaws like every other school contained.


Imperfect individuals that seek no grounds to concentrate on improving their lives. Instead, these specific figures would rather run around trying to control, or mock society.



“I do not understand, don’t these people have everything they want? Why rebel?”



None of it really made any sense to Lia. They’re rich. They practically have everything, and with anything they didn’t have, all they needed to do was call for it, and it would come.



Lia spent the rest of the day trying to figure out everything in her head. She tried to solve the puzzle in her mind, but it didn’t make any sense. She had not seen the puzzle pieces before it had been broken, how could she figure it out?




After the brief lunch, Lia went off to her literature class with Mr. Dashwood. It was a draining experience, as Lia felt that Mr. Dashwood’s mind was obviously elsewhere.



He kept repeating himself, and talking about other things that had nothing to do with literature. Perhaps he was thinking about what happened to Mr. Deyson? Lia did not know.


At the end of the day, Lia bid Vanessa goodbye and headed up towards her room at the hotel-like dormitories.





It had been an odd first day most definitely, and Lia wanted to finally do something she hadn’t had a chance to since she arrived. Rest.




As she placed down her bag, the telephone rang once again. This time, she crawled over the bed to answer it.




“Hello?” she asked into the receiver.




No answer.

Chapter Ten: Words & Wonderings__________


Lia placed the phone back on its cradle on the left chest of drawers to the side of her bed, sighing with exhaustion. At the same time, she reached over to retrieve the television remote.





Turning on the TV in the bedroom, she realized that the Vaelen Dormitories also had its own cable subscription channels; a deal that came packaged with living at the dorms, as well as studying at Vaelen full time.



As she flicked through the listing of the movies and television shows available with just a touch of a button, she recognized a series available to watch, which she truly loved.




"Cappuccino!" she shrieked with delight.




Cappuccino was Lia's favourite television program, as it was about the character called "Haiku Utsumi", who was an aspiring writer. In the series, Haiku wanted to publish fantasy books, and she worked at a bookstore cafe.



One day Haiku spilled a cup of cappuccino on a customer, who then noticed her and made Haiku become a model instead.




Throughout the story, Haiku goes through many troubles of being stereotyped as the typical model "air-head", having the right promotional chances, and advertising, except for something that was not Haiku's dream.



During the series story, Haiku also goes through many love story moments, which was why Lia loved Cappuccino so much.




Back at Lia's old school, she would chatter about Cappuccino all the time. Practically everyone was a fan of the endearing television series. Sometimes lunch break discussions would only be about Cappuccino. Lia then noticed something whilst flicking through the Cappuccino directory on the screen.




"What's this? Cappuccino episodes that haven't been released yet?" Lia was obviously stunned.



The next day, Lia spoke to Vanessa about Cappuccino during lunch.




"Yeah, the people at Cappuccino, the directors and producers used to be former students at Vaelen! That's why they show us some episodes ahead of the public. Great isn't it?"




Vanessa spoke words of such excitement, however her tones were flat, and it was evident that Vanessa was tired.



"Vanessa what's wrong?" Lia asked wondering, but also concerned.



"Haven't you heard? Mr. Deyson is thinking of quitting teaching at Vaelen."


"What? But why?" Lia was surprised, but also curious enough to wonder why Vanessa was so down about the whole situation.




Lia stared deep into Vanessa's eyes, questions filling Lia's mind.




What was so great about this teacher, Mr. Hewitt Deyson? He was the drama teacher right? Lia did not remember.



Why be so upset over the whole thing? Was she close to him? Was he a good friend of hers? Could there possibly be a relationship between them?




Vanessa noticed Lia's looks, and shook her head towards Lia, quickly getting up from her seat.





"You wouldn't understand."

Chapter Eleven: Barricades & Butterflies__________


"What do you mean I wouldn't understand?" Lia asked raising her voice in response to Vanessa's words.




"Isn't it obvious?" Vanessa questioned, glaring daggers into Lia's eyes.




"No it's not. Why don't you just tell me?"




Vanessa's forehead wrinkled up in frustration as she sat down on the seat again, leaning over towards Lia. Sighing, Vanessa dug her eyes deeper into Lia's and prepaired to let out the facts straight.





"He's gay alright! There now, are you happy!?" as Vanessa said this, she pounded the table with her fist in angst.




Lia's eyes widened in surprise at Vanessa's actions and she jumped back. Vanessa noticed this, reading the expression on Lia's face, of what Lia had been silently thinking before, and scowled.




"You thought I was having sex with the drama teacher! Didn't you!?" growled Vanessa angrily in shock, and in accusation.




Lia was lost for words.




"Well...not really?"



"Yes you were! How could you even think of that? How could you even think of that about me?"




"I didn't mean to Vanessa!"



"How could you!? I mean I've been so nice to you and you thank me like this!?"




Before Lia could chase after Vanessa, who was storming off in a rage, a young man tilted over to face Lia.







"It's okay, don't worry about her. She's just full of hot air sometimes, and needs to get it out of her system."



Lia turned her head towards the young man and studied his features. He had short dark blonde hair, and blue eyes, which Lia were asphyxiated with.




"I'm Adrian, Adrian Stevens. I'm friends with Vanessa?"

"Oh, hi! Sorry I'm a bit distracted with everything, are you sure she'll be alright?"

"Yes, I'm sure of it. She's always like that."





Lia sighed and hoped that Adrian was right. As she sighed, she noticed his shirt; it was coloured dark chocolate brown with a white imprint of a giraffe looking up at a cloud. He also wore baggy cream brown cargo pants, and red runners.




"So how come I haven't met you before?"



"I was sick yesterday, so I wasn't at school. It's a good thing I was sick, actually. Otherwise Vanessa probably wouldn't have been so outgoing in meeting you. She's usually not so extroverted you know."



Lia nodded in thought about this new fact on Vanessa. Did Vanessa only make friends with Lia because she had nobody else to talk to?



"Oh, don't think anything bad! Vanessa is a great gal! It's just that she sometimes lets things pass her by. She obviously didn't let you pass her by though! Right now I am really proud she's made friends with a new student."



"Wait, how do you know I'm new?"

"You just look it."

"Is it that obvious?"




Adrian laughed and made a signal towards Lia with his hands for her to come follow him.



"C'mon, let's go. We'd better see if Vanessa's alright."







Meanwhile, a dark haired young man sat at the bus on its way to Vaelen International. Confused if he was going to the right place, he leaned over to speak to the bus driver.




"Excuse me sir, is this the route to Vaelen International Grammar School?"



The bus driver stopped and turned around to look at the young man during a traffic light to answer his question.



"Yes, this bus service belongs to Vaelen International. However some people who take this bus don't necessarily attend the school, their stops are just along the way. What is your name?"





"Err, Daniel. Daniel Whyte."



As Daniel answered this, his face went somewhat red. He was not used to attention. He had always felt uncomfortable when people put him on the spot, and had never grown out of it.




"You're a new student Daniel?" the bus driver asked whilst his eyes once again fixed on the road.



"Yes I am. I'm an exchange student actually."

"Really now?" the bus driver raised his eyebrow at this remark.

"From where?"




The bus driver began to shuffle through his clip board, as if looking for Daniel's name. Was it really that strict at Vaelen?



Before Daniel could respond, the bus arrived at its destination. With much kindness, Daniel thanked the bus driver with a smile, and headed towards the school he had only dreamt about going to.





"I can't believe I'm here." Daniel whispered to himself.




As he walked among the pavement towards the office, his eyes adorned on how vast and amazing the school looked. It looked brand new, the school buildings were huge.



Next to the many scattered yet impressive buildings, there was an even bigger building that looked somewhat like a hotel. Daniel couldn't help but gape in astonishment.





"So this is it." Daniel stated to himself.



"Okay, here goes."




He took a deep breath in and walked towards the office, excitement and nerves filled his heart.

Chapter Twelve: Run__________


Vanessa shook her head as she rushed off towards the bus depot. She didn't care what classes she had next up.



She wanted to see Mr. Deyson and have a word with him, hoping to find out what exactly happened yesterday during drama that caused him to be badly injured. Was it because of his sexuality? Vanessa did not know.




Mr. Deyson was never open about his sexuality, and Vanessa knew that every student in the school loved him, as he was a great teacher. So why would someone beat him up now?


What did he do wrong? Was he defending anyone? Did he offend anyone at all?




Vanessa was sure it had nothing to do with Mr. Deyson’s sexuality, and if it had been, she would’ve known.




As she dashed over towards the bus depot, she noticed her desired bus pull in. She did not hesitate to look back to see if either Lia or Adrian were behind looking for her.




It was not the fact that Lia’s words had upset Vanessa, but the fact that Lia was not the only one who had presumed such tidings. Everyone had considered that Vanessa was in a relationship with Mr. Deyson, and although they were friends, there was nothing else between them.





Mr. Deyson had been a family friend of the Sui family long before he had become a teacher. He had helped Vanessa out of many troubles in the past, especially with Vanessa’s stealing problems.




Since Mr. Deyson had helped Vanessa out, she wanted to find out what had really happened yesterday, and help him in return.




As the bus pulled away from the depot, Vanessa turned to stare out of the window towards the school.



“I hope I am doing the right thing.”




Lia ran towards the bus depot. For some crazy reason she believed that Vanessa might’ve been running off as she had hurt Vanessa’s feelings, and perhaps Vanessa wanted to be alone.




“Vanessa!” she cried out loud.




Running as fast as she could towards the bus stop after recognizing someone wearing a rose hair clip on the bus, Lia accidentally bumped into a male student, making his books topple out of his hands and onto the concrete floor.




“Oh! I’m so sorry! Here, let me help.”




As Lia helped pick up the student’s books off the ground, she looked up at him. He had short dark brown hair, light brown eyes and a concerned look about him.



As she watched the student also pick up the books, she studied his clothes. He wore a red t-shirt which said “Colourblind”, dark blue denim jeans and black sneakers.





The young student seemed nervous, and Lia did not understand why. Nervous for picking up books? It seemed a bit silly to her, but she was always considered a weird individual amongst her family and friends.




Once all the books had been picked up, she apologized once more, and rushed towards Adrian, never asking for the student’s name.




Turning to Adrian, Lia tilted her head down and sighed.



“I think I just saw her on the bus, she wore her rose hair clip again today right? Doesn’t she have a test next period? Lunch break is almost over.”




Adrian nodded and spoke softly, “We’ll go to the office. We have to report that Vanessa’s left the school as she’s having…family problems, so she won’t fail.”




Lia frowned at Adrian’s answer.



“Do you know where she went?”




Adrian shook his head.





“No, but I have an idea.”

Chapter Thirteen: Attendance__________


Once arriving at the hospital, Vanessa rushed towards the nearest desk and requested to see Mr. Deyson.



“I’m sorry, are you a relative of Hewitt Deyson?”


Vanessa needed to think quickly, but what could she say in return? She looked nothing like Mr. Deyson, and they were completely different in their appearance and ethnicity.




“I’m his step sister.”

“Oh really? Alright, right this way.”






Lia kicked at her locker in the female change rooms. How could she have gotten caught so easily?


Mr. Thompson, the Physical Education teacher had spotted Adrian and Lia trying to sneak out of the school premises, and had dragged them back to attend their last two periods of P.E. even though Adrian didn't have class with him.




“Gah! This sucks…” she muttered angrily to herself.


A girl overheard Lia muttering and spoke up whilst they changed.



“It’s not that bad! We can get rewarded and go to the Olympic Games if our class attendance is top notch. Only one class can go which is a reason why everyone is trying to come to P.E. as much they can, including myself.”




Lia widened her eyes at the sound of this opportunity.

“You mean if we come to P.E. we get rewarded if we have the most attendance compared to the other classes?”



“Yup! But we also can’t just show up and do shit all, ya know? We need to be determined and try our hardest. The trip is all paid for, except for our passports, and our spending money. I’m really excited though, I’d love to go to the next Olympic Games. They’re this year, and I can’t wait!”




“Yea I remember now! They are this year! Where are they at though?”

The girl grinned and replied enthusiastically.



“They’re going to be in China! I’m really excited! I haven’t been to China before.”


Lia felt the same rush of excitement as the girl that was speaking to her. However Lia did not simulate the girl by squealing with joy, and jumping up and down.



“What was your name? I did not catch it.”

“Oh sorry! I forgot to introduce myself! I’m Carasel, Carasel Flint. You must be Lia right?”

Lia nodded slowly, “Yes, yes I am. How did you know that?”



“You’re the only new female student in the class, there’s this guy who is new too. He didn’t bring any clothes for P.E. class ‘cause he just came today. He seemed pretty shy, but he’s quite the looker!”




“Oh, really? What does he look like?”

“He’s got messy dark brown hair, a red shirt on, and dark blue denim jeans. His name is Daniel by the way.”




Lia thought to herself curiously, was this the same guy whom she had knocked his books over?




Once she had changed she walked with Carasel into the indoor sports hall, just next to the change rooms. Mr. Thompson was marking down all the names, calling them out to see if the following students were present.




“Echolalia Xu?”




“Yes!” Lia called out waving towards the teacher, and sitting down on the floor with the rest of the students.




“I prefer to be called just Lia by the way.”





Mr. Thompson nodded, wrote something on his roll call sheet and continued to call out for other students.




“Vanessa Sui?”



When Mr. Thompson called out Vanessa’s name, there was a moment of silence.



Lia could not help but relate this to Remembrance Day where students would have one minute of silence for the soldiers who had lost their lives during a war.



However, Lia could not remember which war this was for, World War I, or World War II. She did not really pay attention to History Class back at her old school anyway.





Cringing at the uncomfortable silence, Lia tried not to think of Vanessa as dead. But she couldn’t help it.




Thankfully, the silence was interrupted by an excited remark from Mr. Thompson, on what physical task the students had to complete for today.




“Today we’re going bowling!”




The students cheered with delight. Lia felt excitement rush through her veins, but then felt down after as she had heard students whisper about Vanessa ruining their current running top rank of attendance.




“We’re not going to make it to the Olympics at this rate if that stupid Vanessa keeps skipping P.E. class!”




Lia did not turn to scold the owner of the voice however. Instead, she shuffled over closer to Carasel, who was the only one she knew in the class, even if she had just met her.




Lia had hoped Adrian would go looking for Vanessa after he finished his single period of Business Management. They were not in the same class, and Lia had no way of contacting him, since she had no mobile phone with her, nor knew his number.



Adrian had promised Lia that he would go find Vanessa after his early finish from school. He knew Mr. Thompson would be heart broken if a new student didn’t attend their first day of his P.E. class, and so had consoled Lia not to follow him. Lia had only hoped Vanessa was alright.




“Gah..” Lia grumbled to herself yet again.



Carasel looked towards Lia and tugged at her sleeve. Lia turned to look at her, this time paying attention to every detail she adorned.




Carasel wore a yellow and black stripped tank-top with a skull head on it, baggy dark blue denim three quarter pants, and red, and black runners which Lia swore she had seen before somewhere.



Her hair was coloured red, she had blue green eyes, and she had some freckles which made Carasel look much prettier.



She grinned at Lia’s surprised looking face, and began to drag her, pulling her up from the floor by grabbing her arm.




“C’mon couch potato! Let’s go bowling!”



Lia noticed that all the students were rushing out of the indoor hall, and it was obvious that Lia had been daydreaming, or perhaps thinking too much to realize that the class were leaving already to go bowling.




“Don’t you even like bowling, Lia?”



Carasel gave off a facial expression which seemed to Lia that Carasel felt Lia practically hated everything. In response, Lia grinned sheepishly towards Carasel.




“Oh I’m sorry, I guess I wasn’t paying attention.”

Chapter Fourteen: Pain__________


Vanessa leaned over to study Hewitt Deyson. She had been right. He had been badly bruised, and was taking a nap in his hospital bed.





Awakening softly, Mr. Deyson looked up towards Vanessa and gave her a sheepish smile.




"C'mon, don't look at me like that, Ness."



Taking a hold of his hand, she smiled at him and asked what had happened.




"What!?" she raised her voice towards his direction after Hewitt had explained everything.



"How could you do that? You can't go around asking students for money, and on top of that never giving it back!"




"I did a stupid thing okay?" Hewitt said this apologetically.




"Then after you get the money, you go off to the pokies and spend it all! How could you do this Deyson?"



"Bloody hell, get over it Vanessa. Can't you see I'm sorry? I'll try to pay them back alright?"





"Don't you bloody hell me! Do you have any idea how much you owe all those students? You borrowed thousands from them! How are you going to pay them back now?"




Hewitt had no answers, and so remained silent to Vanessa's accusations and questionings.



"Now this is going to cost you your job." Vanessa growled in response to his silence. "I can't believe I came here and thought you were entirely innocent for this stupid incident."





"Vanessa! Don't tell your auntie! She will disown me. You know how your relatives feel about me! I'm like family to them!"




As Hewitt shouted this out towards Vanessa who edged away from the hospital bed where Hewitt laid, her mobile phone rang.




"Hello?" Vanessa asked into the receiver.

"Vanessa? It's Adrian. Are you alright? Where are you?"

"I'm at the hospital; I was just about to leave as a matter of fact."


"I'll come, and pick you up."


"No, you don't have to do that. School is now finished isn't it? I'll see you tomorrow then Adrian. Bye."




Adrian grumbled at the sound of Vanessa hanging up. Why did she have to be so stubborn? It irritated him so much.




Vanessa had also forgotten that she was meant to go out with Adrian this afternoon, as Adrian had to go to the music store at the local shopping centre to pick up his preordered CD album of Eskimo Joe.




"Maybe I should ask Lia when she's done with sport."



Growling after this thought, he then hit his fist against the wall in anger. He was sick of being taken for granted by Vanessa.




Maybe it was because she was richer than him? He didn't want to know the answer, nor did he have the act for caring at that very moment; at least not for Vanessa anyway.




All he wanted was someone to be there for him, for once. He had found out something that was heartwrenching on himself, and he had yet to tell the bad news he had just found out to a single soul.





As he looked at his family photo in his wallet, he began to cry unused tears, and sighed sadly.





"I'm sorry I couldn't save you."

Chapter Fifteen: Torn__________


"Strriiike!!" Carasel shrieked with glee.




Carasel had just completed four strikes in a row, and in their lane, Lia was losing. She pouted jealously, but also playfully, as she was still having a great time.





"Damn girl, you're good." replied a male voice from behind the both of them.




Lia and Carasel turned around to look at who the voice belonged to, then recognising his face, Lia offered her hand to introduce herself.





"Hey I'm Lia, nice to meet you. I'm sorry about the books earlier this morning."




Daniel smiled, taking Lia's hand and shaking it.




"It's no problem, I tend to be a bit clumsy myself."



Then turning his head towards Carasel, he raised his eyebrow and spoke towards her slyly.



"You know I've met you already. I came over to you guys 'cause I bet I could beat you at a round or two. I can out score you!"




Carasel grunted, "Excuse me? I'm the best in the school!"


Lia widened her eyes, "Woah! Are we getting competitive here guys?"



Carasel glared at Lia, and Lia understood.




"Woah, Carasel you're competitive! Are you sure you can beat him?"



Daniel laughed, and shook his head at Lia's questionings.



Carasel pushed Daniel aside to press the reset button on the scoring, and to collect her metallic red bowling ball.




"Watch me."






Meanwhile, Adrian had decided to go to the local shopping centre without the company of Vanessa. He couldn't rely on her, even after all the times he had helped her with her stealing problems.



As he walked over towards the music store, he stopped to gaze at the bookstore cafe, Musé soon recognising a familiar face behind the counter desk.




"Charlie!" he called out to the young lady, waving towards her direction.


Charlie noticed this and beamed in response, waving back towards Adrian.





"How are you?" Charlie asked politely. "Haven't seen you for a while since I finished school, and moved away."




Adrian sighed, "You know I have no excuse for not seeing you, you only live a few blocks away."




Charlie nodded, "Yeah, but I've been busy. Do you have any idea how many idiots ask for me, and expect a GUY!?"




Adrian laughed. "It's a unisex name, you don't have to tell me."




"Gah! It makes me so mad! So what brings you here today?"



"I saw you, so I decided to say hello. I was headed to the music store, but I saw you here. Now, I would like some coffee."



He grinned at the end of his sentence, and watched Charlie glare across the counter into Adrian's eyes.





"What's wrong with coffee?" Adrian asked innocently.




"There's nothing wrong with coffee. Just there's everything wrong with your coffee. You know it's a bitch making it."



Adrian laughed, and sighed. His eyes wandering at the books of the store, and he noticed there were no other staff members of Musé working, except for Charlie.




"Alone?" he asked curiously.



"Yeah, the staff members all conveniently got sick." she growled as she made his coffee, with the help of the coffee machines behind the counter desk as well.





"I could keep you company, I've got nothing better to do."

"What about your family? Don't Tuesdays you usually..."




Charlie stopped talking when she noticed Adrian's eyes beginning to shine with tears. His face expression was of complete sadness. She widened her eyes, in shock, curiosity, and concern.




Quickly digging into her pockets for some tissues, she found them, and handed them to Adrian, guiding him towards the couch they had in the store.




She rubbed his back comfortingly, placing her arm around him, and tried to look at him straight.





Before she spoke, she studied him carefully, his posture, his facial expression, and his eyes. She then realised the possibility of the answer why Adrian was complete torn.




Taking her hand to have Adrian's head lean on her shoulder, she pushed his head down, and stroked his hair, speaking soft calming words.





"Tell me everything."