 
The Mob from TAC

(Book 1 in the Mob from TAC series)

Published by Richard Pinkerton at Smashwords

Copyright 2018 Richard Pinkerton
Other books by Richard Pinkerton

Dead End High

Dead End Town

Time Warped

The Mob from TAC series

1 - The Mob from TAC

2 - Mismatched at TAC

3 - Trouble at TAC

4 - Heroes at TAC

5 - Scheming at TAC

6 - Murder at TAC

7 - New Year at TAC

8 - Challenges at TAC

9 - TAC Boot Camp

10 - Dark Days at TAC

11 - Jealously at TAC

12 - Choices at TAC

13 - Redemption at TAC

14 - Vendettas at TAC

15 - Aberrations at TAC

16 - Final Year at TAC

17 – Conspiracy at TAC

18 – Godly People at TAC

19 – Sabotage at TAC

20 – Distrust at TAC
Acknowledgements

Joseph A Comm

Katherine Lato

Tobias D Robinson

Karen Williams

And other members of Critique Circle:

Kmart

Tootsweet

Lisa

To Georgina

who started high school when this was first published

### CHAPTER 1:  
Cutting Class

'I hope nobody saw us.'

Fifteen-year-old Chelsea Brown never considered cutting class a good idea, especially not on the first day of school. Yet here she was, a model student, doing just that, all so her two female classmates would think her cool.

'Sweet! I think we're safe,' said Holly Robinson, her newest friend, a refugee from the old high school at Akato.

'Nobody saw me,' Jacqui Donaldson said in a slightly snobby tone of voice. 'So, if anyone followed us here, it was one of you two who gave the game way, not me.'

It was the Reaper, Chelsea worried about. The Reaper as they called him, was the deputy principal at Te Arawa College and not someone you wanted to mess with. He even looked like the Angel of Death with his dark crooked eyebrows and unsmiling thin lips. He was a real pain who often seemed to know when the students were up to no good and exhibited a knack for being able to extract information out of people, causing them to incriminate themselves no matter how hard they tried not to.

The three of them met up with Rog Shepherd at the end of the playing fields and they climbed the back fence into the fields beyond. Chelsea was thankful for the wooden stile because she didn't have to hike her uniform skirt up too high to get over.

Trees and bush provided them plenty of cover from the blazing sun and the school cross-country track followed a river, their main destination.

'Anyone see you guys?' Rog asked.

'Nah, it's cool, Sheep,' Holly said, using Rog's popular nickname. 'No teachers on patrol.'

'Told ya it would be all right.' They reached the river bank and stopped. 'You okay, Chelsea?'

She pushed aside some of her long straight hair that hung down both sides of her face. 'Oh... I'm cool.' She delivered him a big smile and fumbled with her thick-rimmed glasses. Her mother had bought contacts for her but the thought of putting things into her eyes made her cringe. She gazed at her athletic, fair-haired classmate. She'd fancied him ever since she was about 9 years old. She found it hard to draw her attention away from his piercing blue eyes and confident smile. 'You know this is the first time I've ever skip-'

Sheep immediately turned his back to her and faced Holly. 'So, Holly, I hear you've known Jacqui since you were little kids?'

'Yes, we did. Our parents go way back, so we see each other all the time. It's cool that now we're in the same school together.'

Chelsea's heart sank. For a moment there, she thought Sheep was going to engage her in conversation but he seemed more interested in the Akato refugee. It wasn't surprising; after all, Chelsea could hardly compete with a beauty like her; the big brown eyes, the rounded chin and shoulder-length, flowing brown hair. The only thing she didn't have going for her was height but, nevertheless, she had a figure to be envied. If only Chelsea had half the sex-appeal Holly had, maybe Sheep would take notice of her.

Don't put yourself _down_. You have beautiful blue eyes, dear. You have wonderful bone structure _but_ you won't let anyone see it!

Her mother had said those words to her many times but who listened to their mother about things like that? They were biased anyway.

'...isn't that right, Chelsea?' Sheep turned around to face her.

Chelsea jerked to her senses and realised she stood there like a dumb blonde. She did have blonde hair but didn't want to endorse the stereotype. 'That's right,' she said, not having a clue what they were talking about. Sheep continued to look at her as if expecting her to say more. All Chelsea could do was smile again.

She wanted to kick herself, wishing she'd paid attention. Now he would think she was a flake if he didn't think that already. So much for skipping class to look cool. She was digging herself a pit she'd never get out of.

'What are you lot up to!' a voice boomed from the nearby trees.

Chelsea nearly jumped out of her skin. Her friends leapt in fright too and for a brief second, they thought they had been sprung and that the Reaper had come for their souls but when they saw who it was, they groaned in unison; relief for Chelsea but what sounded more like irritation for her friends.

'What the hell do you want, Cook?' Sheep growled as a short smiley-faced, brown-haired teen stepped out. Chelsea had known Pete Cook for years. He was the typical class clown, always fooling around, so it was hard to know when he was serious and when he wasn't. He was a fun-loving guy who also had a habit of getting into trouble with the teachers and his fellow students. He enjoyed riling people up with silly remarks and insults and often found himself the target of bullies. Most of the time, Chelsea and the other girls just tolerated him but sometimes he was good for a laugh.

Next to Pete stood a taller individual who she had never seen before. He had dark brown hair and hazel eyes with a cute smile Chelsea liked. Another Akato refugee? With Akato College closing due to a low roll, it was difficult to figure out who was from there or who was simply new to the area.

The expression on Jacqui's face had Chelsea wondering if she'd just stepped into a pool of vomit.

'Have you two been following us?'

'We were just hanging out.' A gleam appeared in Pete's eye. 'Did I make your heart skip a beat?'

'Rack off, you dork,' Jacqui snorted.

'Didn't expect to see you guys here. What you up to?'

Jacqui rolled her eyes. 'What does it look like? We just wanted to get away for a bit.'

'Yeah, and be free of bozos like you.' Sheep snickered.

'That's for sure.'

'Why don't you hop it? We don't want you polluting our atmosphere. You'll just cramp our style.'

The taller boy beside Pete grinned. 'You don't have to worry about style clashes with us around. Style is something totally foreign to us.'

Neither Jacqui nor Sheep smiled. Chelsea wanted to laugh but kept a straight face. If Jacqui didn't find it funny, then neither would she.

As for Holly, Chelsea found it hard to tell whether she was amused or not. 'Mav, since when did you skip classes?'

'So he must be from Akato too,' thought Chelsea.

The tall boy smiled. 'I considered just walking out of class was a little cliché but skipping seemed more... I don't know... getting with the rhythm of Te Arawa College?'

Jacqui screwed up her face. 'Are you for real?'

'Nah, I'm simply a cheap imitation.' Mav winked. 'Of what, I have no idea but an imitation nonetheless.'

Chelsea noticed that Holly smiled. They exchanged grins and Holly rolled her eyes in a humorous manner.

Jacqui delivered them both a dirty look. She was born and bred in Te Arawa like Chelsea. She had always been so nice in primary school but over the last few years, she had changed. She'd always had flawless skin, glossy hair and alluring crystal blue eyes but in the previous couple of years, she had begun to blossom, and become tall and shapely, being noticed by the boys. She'd also become pickier and chose only to hang out with the other pretty girls and handsome guys.

Sheep spoke up, 'Come on, girls. Let's go down to the river bank.' He turned away from the two boys and made his way down. Chelsea and her female companions followed. She glanced back to see Pete and Mav tagging along. It seemed they were stuck with them as well.

The river flowed swift and wide and the sparrows twittered in the trees as the wind rustled through the leaves. that combined with the rushing of water made for a tranquil scene. A rickety old, narrow, wooden swing bridge stretched across with a danger sign nailed to the entranceway. It was widely known by students as unsafe to cross but Chelsea had heard boys would use it as a shortcut into town. Someone had nailed barriers up on both sides to deter people from crossing but they never lasted long, as often one or two wooden boards were pried off by potential adventurers.

'Let's go across.' Sheep gave the girls a twisted smile.

'Rack off,' scoffed Jacqui. 'You're just crazy. Half those planks on the bridge are rotten.'

'Yah! No worries. There's plenty of solid support. I've been across before. What's the worst that could happen? We'd end up in the drink. We can all swim, can't we?'

'You may want to get soaked but we don't.' Jacqui curled her nose up. 'And this may be a boring old school uniform I'm wearing but it's new and I don't want to get it ruined with river muck.'

'Suit yourselves.' Sheep shrugged. 'I'll go across myself. I'll bring us back drinks from the shop.'

'Bring me back a Coke.'

'Me too,' Holly added. 'A proper Coke, you know? Not that other crap.'

'One for me too, Sheep,' piped up Pete Cook.

Sheep scowled. 'Get your own, spaz!'

As much as Chelsea adored Sheep, she had to admit he had a negative side to his personality too. He was popular, like Jacqui but had little time for people he didn't like. Anyone, he took an instant disliking to, usually had a black mark next to their name and it would take a lot for Sheep to ever consider rubbing out that mark. Pete Cook had that black mark next to his name as long as Chelsea could remember.

She didn't like the idea of Sheep trying to cross the swing bridge and didn't want to be the voice of reason because that was uncool but she couldn't help herself. 'Why go to town? Why not go to the dairy down the road?'

'And go back through the school grounds? Too risky.'

'Too risky?' Holly giggled. 'And you're crossing that river?'

'I'd rather take my chances with the river than run into the Reaper.'

Jacqui commented, 'Yeah, well, Mr Reaper isn't the type of guy you want to mess with, so I don't blame you.'

'You shouldn't go,' Chelsea said yet again. 'It's too dangerous.'

Sheep just grinned but didn't reply.

Jacqui frowned at her. 'Lighten up. He'll be alright. Just as long as it's not me who has to go. No way do I want to fall into that sewer.'

Chelsea sighed as Sheep strode towards the bridge. Getting wet was the least of their worries. The current looked strong and she doubted even Sheep would be able to swim against it.

The group followed him to the bridge where he climbed over the wooden barrier using footholds cut by a pocketknife or something similar. On the other side of the barrier, Sheep moved cautiously along, testing each plank and holding both ropes as he went. The bridge swayed a little as he redistributed his weight to firmer positions.

Chelsea straightened. 'Careful!'

'No worries,' returned Sheep from the middle of the bridge.

'This is crazy,' Chelsea muttered.

'Shut up, Chelsea.' Jacqui scowled. 'Just lighten up, will you? Experience a bit of excitement for once.'

Excitement was one thing to Chelsea but danger another. Nevertheless, to say that to Jacqui would be an unwise move.

The old swing bridge creaked underneath his weight. Sheep reached the halfway mark and Chelsea's heart stopped when a piece of rotting plank gave way beneath his foot. Fortunately, he held himself up using the ropes and looked back across at them with a smile. He continued onward and safely reached the other side, jumped off the edge of the swing bridge to dry ground, delivered a brief wave and jogged off across the field towards more bush.

'Phew,' Holly breathed. 'That was close.'

'Idiot.' Pete shook his head.

Jacqui delivered him a dirty look. 'Rack off, Cook.'

'Why should I?'

'Because I said so!'

Pete sat on the bank. 'I'll give it some thought, shall I?'

Mav sat with him.

'Butthead,' Jacqui said, then turned her head back to Chelsea and Holly. 'Sheep will be gone for about ten minutes. We might as well just stay here and wait.' However, she didn't sit near Pete; she walked a bit further down the river. Chelsea and Holly joined her and they sat on the bank for a few minutes - watching the river meander by.

Chelsea attempted to make conversation. 'It's weird having so many new faces this year.'

Jacqui plucked a few daisies from the grass. 'Well, what do you expect? We have about 150 of them from Akato College.'

'It's a pity they had to close that high school down.'

'Not enough of us there,' said Holly, taking a swipe at a fly that insisted on landing on her bare leg. 'For ages, my father has been saying it was going to merge with Te Arawa. He said it was inevitable. He was right. My gosh, I hate having to say my dad was right. that's just wrong.'

The three of them laughed.

'At least there's a heap of cute new guys.' Chelsea glanced at Jacqui expecting to get an agreement.

Jacqui raised an eyebrow at her. 'You are kidding, aren't you? I've seen more talent at the zoo. I think Te Arawa College has got a real raw deal out of this.' She plucked another daisy out of the grass.

'Gee, thanks.' Holly smirked. 'Nice to know what you really think of us guys from Akato.'

'Hey, I wasn't including you in that statement. Just losers like that friend of yours over there.' She glanced across towards Pete and Mav.

'Mav? He's okay.'

'Not if he hangs out with Pete Cook.'

Holly snickered. 'Well if he's a big a geek as you say he is, then no doubt Mav will soon figure that out and decide he can't be bothered with him.'

'Huh! Seems to me they're two of a kind. I'm betting they'll become great mates.'

Holly shrugged and said nothing more.

Several minutes passed before Sheep arrived at the other side of the river. In his hand, he held a plastic bag containing the drinks. He squeezed through a gap in the barrier and looped his arm through the handle of the plastic bag.

The girls rose to their feet in anticipation of another nail-biting crossing. It was a little more difficult for him to get across with extra weight on one arm. For one thing, his balance wasn't so good and it caused the bridge to swing a lot more than before.

The girls watched wide-eyed. Even Jacqui didn't look so cocky and flinched several times when Sheep struggled to remain upright on the bridge. He reached the halfway mark and strained to keep steady. The planks groaned with the pressure as he tried to keep himself straight.

'Come on Sheep, you can do it!' Holly called out. Just as her words came out, his whole body lurched to the side. The plank below his feet gave way. The girls shrieked and Sheep cried out in horror as he toppled over the edge and into the water with an almighty splash.

'Oh, good lord!' Chelsea shrieked.

Within seconds, he surfaced, but no longer held the plastic bag. It had sunk below the surface. It wasn't until then the girls noticed just how far Sheep had drifted. The current had quickly taken him several metres downstream.

Jacqui moved off along the bank after him. Chelsea and Holly quickly followed with Mav and Pete just behind. Sheep struggled to swim to shore but no sooner had he neared the bank when an eddy grabbed him and pulled him back out again.

'Come on, Sheep, swim!' Jacqui shouted as she ran along the bank. 'You can make it!'

With renewed vigour, Sheep put all he could into the strokes but the current was too strong. Sheep grabbed hold of an overhanging willow branch, part of a larger tree that hung low over the river. For a moment, it looked as though he was going to hang on but much to Chelsea's horror the smaller branch broke away and he disappeared underneath.

'Sheep!' Chelsea and the girls rushed towards the willow looking frantically for any sign of him.

Mav joined them at the riverbank. 'Perhaps he'll come out the other side.'

'Sheep!' Jacqui cried out.

All they could hear was rushing water.

Chelsea dreaded that he had been dragged under by the current because she couldn't see him anywhere.

'Maybe he's been caught by a root or something?' said Pete.

Chelsea's blood ran cold and by the terrified look on her girlfriends' faces, she could see they were equally as worried. Then came a sharp cry of pain from within the willow's leaves and branches. Chelsea breathed a sigh of relief as Sheep's head finally appeared.

'Bloody blackberry!'

He hauled himself out covered in scratches.

'Sheep!' the girls chimed in and moved towards him.

Pete attempted to give Sheep a hand to climb up onto the bank but Sheep pushed his hands aside with a grunt and climbed up himself. He had a sour look on his face and held up his hands with a sigh of frustration, 'I've lost our drinks.'

Chelsea simply felt relieved he was fine and joined the other girls in their giggles at the dishevelled state he was in.

'We're just glad you're okay,' Holly said.

As they trudged back in the direction of the school grounds, Sheep grumbled as he attempted to wring water from the corner of his uniform shirt. 'I can't go back to school looking like this. I might have to hang out back here, until school finishes.'

'At least you're okay,' Chelsea commented. 'You could have drowned back there.'

Sheep smiled at her and his eyes met hers for a few moments before speaking again. 'Nothing like a refreshing dip though. It's flaming hot, I was about to jump in any way.'

A man's voice echoed through the trees, causing them to jump sky-high. 'It looks as though you already have.'

The deputy principal, Mr Reaper, stepped out from the trees and he looked ready to strike them down with an imagery sickle.

### CHAPTER 2:  
Facing the Music

Holly Robinson sat on a bench outside the senior mistress's office alongside Jacqui Donaldson. Skipping class was not a foreign thing to her as she'd done it many times, however, this was the first time she'd ever had the opportunity to do it with her oldest friend Jacqui. What a pity they had been caught so easily. Where had they gone wrong? Had someone seen them after all, or did the Reaper often make visits to the back fields to catch out wayward students?

'It's just so sexist,' said Jacqui, glaring at her with her angry crystal blue eyes. 'The boys, they end up at the Reaper's office and we end up with Mrs Groucher?'

Holly snickered. 'Groucher? That's her name?'

'It's Mrs Towcher but we call her that because... _oh_ , you can figure it out. It's still sexist though. I guess the old tart would have nothing to do if they didn't pass us girls on to her to deal with. She'd most likely be sitting around knitting or getting on the Internet and complaining about how terrible the world is today. Although I can't imagine her being able to work out how to use the Internet. She'd be like my grandmother. Can't even figure out how to operate her TV set properly and record TV shows and movies.'

Holly admired her friend's wit and sarcasm. She's always looked up to Jacqui ever since they were little because she always seemed to know about everything. Sometimes she'd lead them both into trouble but it never mattered as far as Holly was concerned. Jacqui was everything she wanted to be... beautiful, desirable and someone you didn't want to mess with, especially if you were someone in authority. 'Maybe the Reaper was \- you know - too busy to deal with us all. Or maybe they deliberately kept us separate so we couldn't work together to come up with a story as to why we were back there.'

Jacqui nodded. 'You're probably right. Oh God, what are the boys gonna say? I bet that dork Pete Cook will just make up some stupid story that the Reaper will never believe which will just get us into even more trouble.'

Holly sighed. 'We might just have to – you know - come out and tell them we were just skipping class for fun.'

Jacqui snorted. 'You mean tell the truth? Oh, my god, are you trying to be square like Chelsea Brown or something?'

Holly recoiled. She didn't want Jacqui to think she was square. 'Of course not. Hell no. But what are we gonna say? We were there on a nature study or something?'

'Mmmmm, not a bad idea.'

'Right. And you really think Sheep is gonna come up with that same excuse? Or even Chelsea who's in there with Mrs Groucher right now as we speak?'

Jacqui folded her arms with a huff. 'Oh, God, you're right. That geek, Chelsea is gonna be spilling the beans and probably blaming it on us.'

Holly hoped not but then again, she didn't know Chelsea. If Chelsea really was so straight-laced, then it seemed likely she was telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God.

They sat in silence for a few moments before Jacqui spoke again, this time in a more amicable tone. 'It's just so cool to have you here. We are gonna have so much fun this year, if we can just avoid old jerks like the Reaper. If only we could hang out after school too but I guess we still won't be able to do that with you having to catch a bus to Akato.'

'My parents are looking to buy a place here in Te Arawa. So hopefully we will be able to before too much longer.'

'It will be cool if you do. I'd love that. Watch out Te Arawa when it does happen.'

'Absolutely!'

'Just a pity we couldn't hang out for a bit longer out the back. I reckon it was that Pete Cook geek and his weirdo friend who the Reaper saw heading out here.'

Holly doubted that, as it had been some time after their arrival by the time the Reaper turned up but she didn't argue. When Jacqui got an idea into her head, it was impossible to get her to change it. 'Maybe.'

'So, you know that other guy? The one with the weird sense of humour?'

'Rick Maverick. Yes. Known him since kindergarten.'

'Has he always been weird?'

'No! He's just kind of shy.'

'Didn't seem like it to me.'

'Well, he used to be anyway. I guess he's changed quite a bit over the last few years. Likes to joke around a lot now.'

'Joke around? More like be completely and utterly lame and retarded.'

Holly studied Jacqui for a few moments. She wanted to stick up for him and say he was a cool guy and she even found him quite attractive but didn't. She didn't want to admit she liked a guy Jacqui thought negatively of. She'd never hear the last of it.

The door to the senior mistress's office opened and Chelsea Brown stepped out looking a little pale.

'So?' Holly asked. 'What happened?'

'The school is going to tell my parents what happened.'

'Phew,' Jacqui said. 'That's a relief. I thought we were gonna get put on detention or something.'

'Hey, it's alright for you,' Holly said. 'My parents aren't quite as understanding as yours.'

'Neither are mine,' Chelsea said. 'I am so dead.'

Jacqui's eyes narrowed at Chelsea. 'What did you tell the old crone?'

'I told her we were just hanging out.'

'Oh great, so you told the truth then.'

'What else did you want me to say?'

'That we were doing a nature study or something? Surely, you could have come up with something. Then you could have just told us and we could have made up the same story. God, Chelsea, you are such a dumbass.'

Chelsea flinched. 'Sorry.'

Holly felt some compassion for her. She seemed so sweet. It was amazing she wanted to hang out with someone like Jacqui who was normally obnoxious to people like her. 'So, who's next?'

'You.'

Holly sighed. 'Okay, well here goes nothing.'

She rose to her feet and entered Mrs Towcher's office. She'd seen the woman at assembly that morning. She'd been with the other teachers, seated on the stage and occupied the front row along with the other more important faculty members. Holly recalled she had a wrinkly old scowl and never smiled the entire time. Even when she was introduced, she kept that dour look. A groucher alright.

Sure enough, she was still old and wrinkly, most likely in her 60s. She had frizzy grey hair and that same scowl. Everything about her seemed ancient including her office, which was made up of old wooden furniture. It smelt like musty old blankets that hadn't been washed in years. Perhaps it was the smell of impending death as Mrs Towcher was so skinny, she looked like she might drop dead at any moment.

Apart from the feeling of death, her office was tidy with a couple of tall metal cupboards and a small orderly bookshelf. She had certificates on the wall, some which dated back many decades, relating to her qualifications and accomplishments. Apart from that, the walls were mainly bare, except for one painting of Mt Taranaki, which seemed funny to Holly, as the old crone could simply look out the window of her office for a view of the same mountain.

Holly sat in the chair in front of the senior mistress's desk. She wriggled a little to get comfortable but even then, didn't seem to be able to achieve it. The ticking of the clock on the wall only made the atmosphere more uncomfortable for her, making it seem like there was a countdown to her demise. For a few moments, all the old hag did was sit and watch her, making her feel even more uncomfortable.

Finally, the old hag spoke, 'So you are Holly Robinson?'

'Yes.'

'From Akato, I see.'

'Yes.'

She eyed Holly coldly. 'So, you come to a new school and on your first day, skip class. Not a wise decision, don't you think?'

'I guess not.'

Mrs Groucher snorted. 'You guess not. Humph! I have your file in front of me from Akato College. It seems you have a history of cutting class.'

Holly couldn't help but make a joke. 'Only when the lectures get mind-numbingly boring.'

Mrs Groucher didn't even offer as much as a wry smile. Instead, she scowled. 'This is not a joke. This is a serious matter. Do you realise how dangerous that river is down the back of the school? A student drowned in that river three years ago.'

Holly made a snarky comment. 'Well it's – you know - about time they drained it then, isn't it? Fancy putting a river like that at the back of a school.'

'Making jokes is not helping your cause here! The school rules were made clear in assembly this morning and one of them was that you do not leave the school grounds without permission. That includes the back paddocks.'

Holly folded her arms and glared at the senior mistress. 'We weren't doing anything bad. We were just sitting and talk...'

'Leaving the school during school hours IS bad. And you are well aware of that fact. I don't care if all you were doing was sitting and gossiping, it was wrong. That is something we have to deal with. It is something there will be consequences for.'

Holly sighed in frustration.

'I simply cannot understand what got into you and your five friends...'

'Three! Only three. Rick Maverick and that other guy; Pete, wasn't with us when we skipped. They turned up later.'

'And what else did you intend to do down there beside the river.'

'Nothing!'

'Oh, come now. I want to know what you did. Was there smoking involved? We can soon find out whether you had cigarettes.'

'I don't smoke.'

'Three girls and three boys. It sounds very suspicious.'

Holly winced. 'Oh, my gosh, you have got to be freaking kidding me.'

'Perhaps it is you trying to kid me?'

'None of those guys are anywhere near being my type.' She said it as forcefully as possible but she didn't really believe it. Sheep was kind of cute and definitely athletic and then, of course, there was Rick Maverick... She pictured him in her mind. As warped as his sense of humour was, he had a lot going for him. He was tall, reasonably cute and very intelligent. The only thing he was missing was the physique. Holly always liked the athletes, which was what made Sheep seem appealing. It's just that Sheep didn't have the laid-back personality Mav did. He seemed more like the type of guy that would suit Jacqui.

Mrs Groucher peered at Holly through narrow eyes. 'A teenaged girl cuts class and I'm expected to believe it was for innocent fun?'

'Yes! I already told you two of them turned up later.'

'Hmmph! It's a good thing for you that your friend has pretty much backed up your story. Unlike you, she has a sparkling clean school record, so I had no reason to doubt her word. Although if she continues to be led astray in this manner, that may change.'

Holly scowled. 'So, you think we're leading her astray?'

'I certainly hope not.' Mrs Groucher tapped her foot on the floor a few times, keeping her eyes locked on Holly. Finally, she sighed. 'Look, it may be true that all you were doing was having fun and being rebellious but Rog Shepherd could have drowned in that river. He was very, very lucky.'

Holly realised the truth in that but didn't appreciate the accusatory tone of voice. 'I didn't go near the river. I wasn't gonna go on that swing bridge and we told him he was crazy. We did.'

'That swing bridge should be cut down. I don't know why the council hasn't done that yet. Anyway, regardless of whether you intended on going over that bridge, you still skipped class and that, young lady is something we will not tolerate. You do realise we are going to have to notify your parents about this?'

Holly flinched. Her parents, although liberal in many ways, never approved of her tendency to skip class. They'd warned her so many times and she knew she would be in real trouble this time around.

'So, Holly. Do you have anything you'd like to say for yourself?'

Holly gazed at the floor and shook her head. 'As if it's – you know – gonna make any difference.'

'No, I can assure you it won't. This afternoon your parents will be getting a serious phone call and I hope this time around you will learn a hard lesson. Now out you go. Send in Jacqui Donaldson please...'

### CHAPTER 3:  
Piles of Tucker

Rick Maverick met up with Pete Cook at interval as they made their way to their next class of the day, PE. 'Pete, you're alive!'

'Barely.'

'The meeting with Mr Reaper sucked. If it had sucked any worse, I'd be drained of all my blood right now.'

It had been Pete who twisted Mav's arm to skip class that morning. Mav really wanted to gain himself a new friend, as he didn't have any close ones of his own at Akato, so it seemed like a no-brainer to go along with the scheme. He didn't blame Pete though. It wasn't his fault they got sprung by the deputy principal, nevertheless, he would have serious explaining to do to his parents when he got home.

'At least we got to hang out with Jacqui for a bit.' Pete grinned. 'And her hot friend.'

'Holly.' Mav glanced sideways at his new friend intrigued. He never thought of her that way before but yeah, she was kind of hot.

Pete sighed. 'Although after what happened at Pone Road Beach during the holidays, I'm probably wasting my time with Jacqui.'

'What happened?'

They arrived outside the school pavilion and drew to a halt. 'I tried diving off a cliff into that river that runs into the ocean. Nearly broke my neck. Made a complete idiot of myself in front of her.'

Mav chuckled. 'Pone Rd Beach, eh? I was over there during the holidays, too. There was this big huge fat guy bragging about how he could dive off that cliff. Don't know who he was, never saw him before but he wouldn't prove he could. He got nasty when I accused him of being all hot air.' Mav paused, remembering the incident. 'I hope he's not from Te Arawa. He threatened to kill me if he ever saw me again. And that guy looked as though he could do it, too.'

'A really big guy?' Pete asked.

'Really enormous. If you'd put him next to a beached whale, you wouldn't know the difference.'

'Can't think who that would be. Maybe he was just here on holiday. Besides, it was probably all hot air, like you said.'

'Maybe,' said Mav. 'But I wouldn't want to poke a pin in him to be sure.' He couldn't forget the evil look on the guy's pudgy face. He had beady eyes and sticking out ears. He was like something out of a horror movie. The blob on steroids, perhaps? Maybe it was an act but he was scary and Mav hoped he wouldn't run into the guy again, just in case he was serious about his threat.

Rog Shepherd stepped up beside them. 'Hey... Cook. And you... new guy. What did you say to the Reaper?'

'The truth,' Mav said. 'That we were skipping class and ran into you guys.'

'That better be all.' Sheep glared. He turned his eyes accusingly to Pete. 'I know you, you're likely to have made up some bull to get me into trouble.'

'I didn't!' Pete insisted.

'Yeah, he didn't,' Mav said.

'How do you know? We all went in separately.'

'If he lied, we'd be all getting called back into the office, wouldn't we? But no, here we are shooting the breeze like long lost friends, about to get ready for some good old-fashioned Physical Education.'

'We better NOT be called back in. I'm already gonna be in enough shit with my parents when I get home tonight and it's all your fault, Cook.'

'Mine?'

'Yeah! The Reaper must have seen you guys coming down the back. You were the last two there.'

'Oh, sure.' Mav grinned. 'He saw us come down. Moseyed over to the staffroom to get himself a coffee first and only after that, made his way down the back to find us but not without first stopping here by the pavilion gardens to admire the flowers. Yeah. Great. Gave you enough time to get to town and back and take a dip in the river before he came down to bust you.'

Sheep snorted and delivered Mav a glare. Without another word, the three of them entered the changing rooms at the foot of the pavilion.

Minutes later, they lined up on the back fields with 24 others, wearing their standard-issue PE shorts and singlet. Mav looked forward to a casual game of cricket or softball to start the year off. The heat beat down upon them. Swimming weather, so he felt disappointed they weren't going swimming.

'Atten...hut!' shouted Mr Harris, their wild-eyed Physical Education teacher. Mav thought he looked quite comical standing there in his camo pants, combat boots and green T-shirt. He had messy brown hair, a goatee beard, and bony unshaven cheeks.

'When I say atten-hut, I expect everyone to stand at attention! _Now_ do it!'

In assembly that morning, Mr Harris had been introduced as one of the new teachers and had never worked at either Akato or Te Arawa College. He spoke with an English accent, and in his hand, held some kind of machine gun. At first, it provided curious speculation but it was hard not to notice a few knees knocking and a few wide-eyed stares from Mav's fellow classmates as the teacher pointed it in their direction.

All the boys stood at attention and waited to see what he would do next. Mav was tempted to raise his hand and ask about the gun but Sheep, who stood next to him, beat him to it. 'What's with the gun, Mr Harris?'

Mr Harris swiftly diverted his gun towards Sheep and pulled the trigger. Mav almost dived for cover himself as a round of bullets fired at his classmate's feet, making a weird popping sound with each shot, tearing away a light layer of grass in the process. Sheep leapt backwards and stumbled to keep his balance. His jaw dropped and he gaped at his teacher. Mav, despite being paralyzed with fear, noticed how comical Sheep looked, standing there with cold terror on his face.

'YOU WILL NOT TALK UNLESS YOU ARE SPOKEN TO! HAVE YOU GOT THAT?'

'Y...yes,' Sheep stared.

'Yes, what?'

'Yes, sir!'

'You will _all_ address me as Sir.' He raised his weapon into the air.

Mav's fellow classmates stood wide-eyed and even he couldn't believe what he had witnessed. For a moment he thought he might be having a bad dream and was in the army instead of at school but no, he was awake, he had no doubt about that.

'This...' Harris shook the gun. 'Is an AK47 Assault Rifle. An original army issue, a souvenir from my time as a Sergeant Major. Yes. It is real. And yes. I will use it on any unruly boys in this platoon... I mean PE class who step out of line! IS THAT CLEAR?'

'Yes,' they chimed in.

'Yes, what?'

'Yes, sir!' Mav ensured he gave the loudest shout. He had seen war movies before and realized Mr Harris was like those drill sergeants who were often portrayed; loud and fascist.

Harris's eyes bugged. 'That's better.'

Pete, who stood on the opposite side of Mav, raised his hand. Harris peered directly at him through narrowed eyes. 'Yes?'

'You can't shoot us, sir. That would be murder.'

Mr Harris imitated what Pete had said but in a squeaky voice, 'You can't shoot us, sir. _that_ would be murder.' Fortunately, for Pete, he didn't get angry and just went back to his normal loud voice. 'Huh. Murder! Death would be a relief for what you are going to go through this year. Believe you me, PE will be no piece of cake.' He paced up and down the row of boys as he spoke. 'If you've come here to play sissy games like Soccer and Baseball, forget it. If you think it's going to be all fun and games, forget it. You'll be working and working and working. I'm going to push you all so hard, you will be the toughest, fittest, most physical students in the entire country.'

Harris jerked to a halt beside Mav, causing him to pull in his gut and stand as straight as possible. Mav intended on playing it smart, behaving the way a recruit would behave when the drill sergeant demanded his attention.

'You. Name!'

'Rick Maverick, Mr Harris, sir!' Mav kept his eyes straight ahead the entire time. He stood tall, which was easy for him as he was above average in height.

His manner had the desired effect. Mr Harris's expression softened and his voice calmed a little. 'Do you like running, Maverick?'

'Yes, sir, Mr Harris, sir!' Mav blurted, still staring straight ahead. He hated running but he wasn't going to let on to that fact.

'That's what I like to hear.' A smile creased Mr Harris's lips and he continued his progression along the line. 'Because there will be a heck of a lot of running this year. Marathons, cross-country runs, sprints! And when the weather is wet there will be gruelling workouts in the gym and lots and lots of suicide and murder runs. By the end of this year, you will all be doing 50 press-ups or more.' He stopped again at another boy, a short but physically well-built Maori by the name of Ben Tamati. 'Name?'

'Ben Tamati, Mr Harris, sir!' A cheeky smile appeared on his brown face.

Mav could see more trouble looming as Mr Harris's eyes bugged once more. 'Are you mocking me, boy?'

'No sir, I-'

'You _were_ mocking me. I know mockery when I hear it.' Mr Harris's eyes narrowed. 'Run around that football field and I want you to keep running until I tell you to stop. Move it, move it, move it.'

Ben delivered Mav a dirty look and jogged away but Mr Harris gave him an incentive to run faster when he raised his gun and sent a hail of gunfire ricocheted off the ground at Ben's feet. The boy let out a gasp and accelerated his pace. Mav smirked. From what he had heard from Pete, Ben was not an easy one to get along with. He was one of the class bullies.

The other boys stood paralysed, unable to shake their gaze from Mr Harris's dreaded AK47. Even Mav, having got over the smug satisfaction of seeing Ben Tamati humiliated, now felt uneasy as he gazed at his teacher's weapon. Could it really be the real thing? The one thing that puzzled Mav though was the lack of noise it made when it fired. There had been no loud bangs, only a popping sound with each bullet it fired but perhaps it was the sound a gun like that made? Mav really had no idea.

Mr Harris stepped across to the next boy but paused when a latecomer arrived – a very large newcomer in baggy shorts and an orange T-shirt.

Mav took one look at him and froze. A chill ran down his spine. This familiar newcomer looked as though he could easily mow a guy down with one nudge of his huge body. This was the boy who had threatened him at Pone Road Beach.

'That's him.' Mav nudged Pete, unable to break from his terror.

'The guy who threatened you?'

'Yes. Do you know him?'

'Never seen him before.'

Mr Harris gazed at the boy with a wearisome look in his eyes. 'There's always one every year. Every year, a fat person. A fat person! What's your name, soldier?'

'Tucker Pyles,' the boy said, folding his arms and looking out over the sports field.

'Tucker Pyles what?'

'That's my name. Pyles is my surname.'

'TUCKER PYLES, SIR!' Harris boomed, causing the obese latecomer to jerk his eyes back towards their teacher.

Tucker finally replied with no humour, as if making a simple statement, 'No. my last name's Pyles, not sir.'

Mav chuckled as laughter came from the other boys on parade. Tucker's face turned sour and he spun his head to glare at the offenders. The evil look Mav had seen at the beach spread across Tucker's face like a disease. It chilled Mav just looking at it.

'Gordon Bennett,' Mr Harris rolled his eyes. 'We have a right one—'

'Tucker Pyles, not Gordon Bennet... sir.'

'Gordon Bennett, two times.' He let out a deep sigh. 'It seems we have a right one on our hands here. You call me sir, you understand, Pile?'

'Oh...' Tucker's glare disappeared and his cheeks reddened. 'Okay... sir.'

'Tucker Pyles, very appropriate. Obviously, you've had too much tucker, haven't you?'

Tucker hesitated. His upper lip curled up a bit and he peered at Mr Harris with his cold beady eyes but replied politely. 'Yes, sir.'

'Do you know how hard I work fat people, Pile?'

'No, sir,' his expression didn't change.

'Ten times as hard as everyone else. Be assured, I will. Be assured that by the end of this year, you will be half the size you are now. Last year at my old school, I had a boy named Derek Milford. Nowhere near as obese as you but obese none the less. He is only plump now. All because I pushed him. Rest-assured soldier, it will be the same for you. It will be a major task, maybe even an impossible task but, Gordon Bennett, we will succeed, yes, we will. Now start running, Pile. With all that fat, you need a head start over the others. And don't let me see you stop running.'

Tucker's evil expression appeared but only briefly. He glanced at the gun in Mr Harris's hand, turned, and hurried off across the field.

Mr Harris paced up and down the line. None of the boys dared utter a word.

Pete raised his hand but this time a lot slower.

'You again. Name?'

'Pete Cook, sir!'

'What do you want?'

'Are those real bullets in your gun, sir?'

'Are those real bullets in my gun?' An evil grin spread across his face. 'Perhaps you'd like to find out? Perhaps you'd _all_ like to find out. Start running. All of you. MOVE IT, MOVE IT, MOVE IT!'

They fled across the grass under a shower of gunfire. Popping sounds fired and Mav felt a sudden stab of pain as something splatted into his shoulder, causing him to gasp. Still stumbling along, he reached around and clutched at his shoulder. He could feel a sticky substance and for a moment, thought it was blood. However, when he drew his hand to look, there was green liquid all over it. With relief, he quickened his pace and continued to run.

Three-quarters of an hour later, Mav and all but one of his classmates arrived back at the changing shed exhausted. They panted and gasped - every one of them aching and tired. Mav felt like he had been through the world's toughest workout. His muscles ached and he could barely stand up. He sat on a bench to catch his breath. Some of the others did too.

'He shot me,' one boy whined. 'I'm bleeding.'

'Paintball pellets,' panted Pete. 'Not real. Stings like hell though.'

'You're a wimp, Cook,' snarled tough guy, Will Ullman, a big burly guy with long hair. He looked like he belonged in a heavy metal band. Mav had heard from Pete that at a school camp a couple of years earlier, Will or Wal as they called him, partly due to his name but also because of his love of Footrot Flats comics, had taken a tumble down a bank, whacking his head on a rock. He had bled profusely but hadn't cried at all.

Apparently, Wal was able to beat up boys years older than he. He was one tough guy and Pete held him in high esteem. Mav didn't quite know how to take him. He seemed to be rather arrogant but Pete insisted he was an okay guy.

Wal eyed Pete with disdain. 'Geez, you really are a pathetic little punk, you know that? Harris may think he's got his work cut out for him with that fat guy, but the day he makes you into a tough guy is the day girls find me resistible.'

Pete chuckled. 'Isn't that the case already?'

Wal lunged out at Pete to grab him by the shirt but Pete just managed to move out of the way.

Wal pointed an accusing finger at him. 'You're just lucky I'm resting. I'll deal with you later.'

Mav dreaded the return of the last remaining student from the field. Tucker Pyles came in last, stumbling into the changing room looking totally bedraggled with green dye all over his PE gear. He dumped himself down on a bench, panting. His weight caused the bench to creak and for a moment Mav thought it might cave beneath him but it didn't. Mav moved in behind a group of students so the large teen would not see him. He was too exhausted to deal with him and wanted to avoid him for as long as possible.

'Hey mate,' one boy piped up. 'What do you reckon about old Sergeant Major Harris?'

'He's an ubbhead!' Tucker snarled, not even looking at the boy who spoke.

'Huh?'

'An ubbhead!' repeated Tucker.

'What the hell's an ubbhead?'

'Someone like you! Shut up and let me catch my breath.'

Sheep spoke up, contempt on his face and said something unwise in Mav's opinion, 'Fat spaz.'

Tucker's eyes nearly popped from his head. He hauled himself to his feet and made a lunge for Sheep. 'What did you call me, ubbhead?' He clipped him across the ear, grabbed him by the arm and shoved him hard. Sheep fell back onto the floor and grunted in pain. He remained there glaring up at the huge newcomer. Mav figured even though Sheep was athletic and tough, he knew when he was out-gunned.

'Nobody calls me fat!' Tucker scanned every face within his view, his eyes resonating with ire. 'It's muscle, _all_ muscle!'

Almost every boy in the changing room burst out laughing, even though it was painful to do so. Mav joined in with the mirth, being careful not to get into Tucker's line of sight.

'ARRRGHHHH!' Tucker struck out at one boy and hurled a bag at another. He booted out at one, catching him in the side and then kicked his other large foot wildly at another. Boys dived out of the way, as he sent bags and shoes flying in all directions.

'Hey man, chill out!' one of the guys urged him.

It was fortunate, for that individual, Tucker was too exhausted to take further action. He simmered down, glaring from one boy to the next, 'I'll be dishing out some serious ubberings if anyone messes with me.'

There was stoned silence. Mav could only assume when he used the word "ubberings," he meant "beatings." He glanced at Wal, one of the few boys who had not tried to duck for cover. He still sat there, studying Tucker with a frown. Mav figured Wal wasn't the type of guy to get involved but then perhaps if one of the shoes or bags hit him, it would have been a different story.

Mav turned his eyes towards Ginge, another one of the class athletes. Even he remained silent, trying to make Tucker out.

Eventually, things settled and one by one, they dressed into their uniforms and chatter resumed.

'That Tucker guy sure is mental,' Pete said as he left the changing sheds with Mav. 'No wonder you're running scared. Can you believe his name is Tucker?'

'Gives the phrase "you are what you eat" new meaning huh?' Mav breathed easy again now he was out of the changing shed. The continued to walk, even though Mav's legs still felt weak.

'I wonder where he's from. What about Harris, Mav. Is he from Akato?'

'Never seen him before in my life.'

'You seemed to know how to handle him.'

'You've gotta know how to deal with guys like Mr Harris.' Mav smiled. 'He's a military man. You've got to treat him like he's your commanding officer.'

Pete nudged him and halted. 'Hey look, Jacqui's coming our way. And Holly. Hey does she have a boyfriend?'

Mav halted too. 'No.'

'You must be nuts. I'm surprised you haven't snatched her up by now.'

'That's not through lack of trying, I can assure you of that.' Mav grinned, although he had never tried. Nevertheless, he didn't want his new friend to think that. 'I don't think any one's ever had any luck with her.'

'Is she a snob?'

'Hell no, she's really nice. It's just that she goes for the athletic types. Not guys like you or I. Us nerds are not her type.'

'Hey, speak for yourself, I'm no nerd. If she's available, I might just try to make a play for her.'

Mav didn't reply. It shouldn't have mattered to him but for some reason it did. Maybe he had been kidding himself. Maybe he liked her more than he realised? One thing was for sure, there would be many guys taking an interest in her, seeing as most of them had never seen her before. He realised that if he didn't do something himself, he might just miss the boat.

### CHAPTER 4:  
Alone in the trees

Chelsea didn't look forward to going home that day because of what her parents would say to her about skipping class. She'd found it hard enough sitting in the senior mistress's office. She had never been in there before and it was not an experience she cared to repeat. Nevertheless, that was nothing compared to how her parents would react.

She sat with her friends in Maths class, waiting for the teacher to arrive. The sat at individual desks, spread out evenly around the room, facing the front. The walls were plastered with formulas, graphs and all sorts of unpleasant mathematical symbols and tables. She said nothing to Holly and Jacqui as they sat together happily talking with other girls, looking completely untroubled.

Sheep arrived and sat at a desk beside her. 'Hi, Chelsea.'

Chelsea felt a thrill course through her. 'Hi, Rog.' It was so unusual for him to even look at her, let alone talk to her. Perhaps having cut class this morning would have benefit after all, in that it had finally got Sheep to notice her.

'What you doing after school?'

'Well...' she said. 'I guess I'm going home to get an ear-blasting from my parents and will probably be grounded for life.'

Sheep chuckled. 'Yeah, I know that feeling. I'm kind of wanting to avoid going home tonight myself. My dad is gonna kill me. Hey, I know, how about we hang out for a bit after school. Delay the agony for as long as possible.'

Chelsea nearly fell out of her chair. Had she really heard him properly? Was he really wanting to spend time with her? It just seemed too good to be true. 'Sure!' she gushed. 'I'd love to.'

'Neat. I'll catch up with you at 3:30 then. We can go to the domain or someplace.'

'That would be good. Just no rivers okay?'

'Haha, you can count on that.' His face screwed up as someone entered the room. 'Oh no, not that fat spaz.'

Chelsea stared when Tucker Pyles entered the room. He was massive, not to mention ugly with his fat cheeks, double chin and beady little brown eyes.

Jacqui snickered. 'Who's that fat wally?'

Tucker strolled to a desk and sat. Chelsea was amazed he didn't crush the chair.

The teacher entered the room a few seconds later. Her name was Mrs Tantic from Akato College. She was a friendly looking lady but didn't fill Chelsea with of a sense of confidence. She was a skinny fair-haired woman and when she spoke, it was in a strained voice. 'Hello class, my name's Mrs Tantic.'

'Mrs Titanic,' Pete Cook called out from the back of the class.

The other students chuckled in amusement. Even Jacqui smirked, so Chelsea put on a laugh for her benefit.

Mrs Tantic ignored the comment. 'I'm not going to do too much teaching today—'

'Thank God for that, I hear you say,' Pete called out again.

She cleared her throat and gave Pete a dirty look. 'But over the next week, we will be learning about-'

'The Titanic disaster!'

Mrs Tantic delivered Pete an evil glare this time. 'Look you. I'm not going to have you interrupting me every time I talk, do you understand?'

'Yes, Mrs Titanic.'

'The name is Tantic. Please do not interrupt again.'

'Yeah, shut up, Cook,' Jacqui said, much to Chelsea's surprise. It wasn't like her to stand up for a teacher. 'We're here to learn, not listen to your pathetic jokes.'

'Thank you.' Miss Tantic seemed pleased to have an ally.

The big guy, Tucker, made the next comment and directed it at Jacqui. 'Who do you think you are, the Prime Minister? Why don't you shut up?'

Jacqui shot him a glare. 'Why don't YOU go on a diet?'

Tucker's eyes narrowed. 'Watch it you cow, or you'll be sorry.'

'Oh, you'd hit a girl, would you?'

He thumped his fist on his desktop. 'If you get smart to me, I will!'

'What a jerk.'

'That's enough!' Mrs Tantic snapped and stomped over to Tucker's desk. 'I'm not going to have you threatening people in my class, you, especially not girls.'

Tucker scowled. He glared across at Jacqui and hissed, 'We'll finish this later.'

Chelsea tensed up. She didn't like confrontations and even ones involving other people made her nervous.

'Fat punk!'

They spun their heads around to the boy who had uttered the insult. There was stone silence for a moment. Chelsea couldn't believe that someone was willing to cause further conflict, especially against the likes of Tucker.

The fat newcomer rose to his feet, his face flushing. He clenched his fists by his side and looked directly at the offender. 'What did you say ubbhead?'

Wal stood. 'I said... Fat punk!'

Chelsea sighed. Of course, it had to be Wal. He was known for getting in the face of people like Tucker. He liked a good fight, all though he only picked fights with people who irritated him. Tucker seemed like he would be an expert at irritating people.

Mrs Tantic moved forward quickly. 'Sit down, boys.' She moved in between them. 'There will be no fighting here in this class. Either you both sit or you'll be at the principal's office quick smart.'

'Yeah, sit down, Wal!' Jacqui snapped, rolling her eyes. 'He's a wuss. Only a wuss would threaten girls.'

Wal continued to glare at Tucker for a moment longer then returned to his seat. Tucker did the same.

'Ridiculous behaviour,' Mrs Tantic muttered. 'I can't believe such things could happen in my class, I really can't...'

Tucker glared across at Wal, his beady eyes full of venom. He then turned and peered in the direction of Chelsea and her friend, Jacqui.

Jacqui ignored him.

Tucker's eyes then turned to Chelsea herself and he delivered her a deep scowl instead. A chill ran down Chelsea's spine and she quickly turned her head away. She prayed this boy would not go through with his threats on Jacqui. She didn't want to be caught in the middle of it.

Fortunately, no further incidents occurred. When the last period of the day finished, Chelsea could hardly breathe at the thought of meeting up with Sheep. She felt certain Sheep would cancel on her but a thrill pumped through her when he turned up at C Block as she collected her schoolbag.

'You set?' he asked.

'You bet.'

'Come on then. Let's go for a walk.'

She expected him to lead her in the direction of the town domain but instead, he headed in another direction. 'Where are we going?'

'Oh, nowhere in particular.'

'I thought we were going to the domain.'

'Nah, too many people there at this time of the year. Soon it'll be full of primary school kids at the pool. We won't get any privacy.'

Chelsea stiffened. Privacy? Just what did he have in mind? As much as she'd fantasized about being alone with Sheep, she didn't know whether she was ready for that step yet. She first wanted to spend time with him as a friend so they could get to know each other better. She didn't argue though. 'Okay.'

They headed out the front gates and head in the direction of the town cemetery, which made her feel a little better. There was surely not much chance they'd do anything there in the middle of a graveyard.

'You know,' said Sheep as they walked by one of Te Arawa's primary schools. 'I never picked you as the type of chick Jacqui Donaldson would ever hang out with. You always seemed kind of... err...' He words trailed off and he cringed.

'Nerdy?'

Sheep laughed. 'Well yeah. With those glasses of yours and the fact, you're always reading and doing schoolwork in your lunchbreaks... Not really the type Jacqui hangs out with.'

'I'm trying to change that,' Chelsea said honestly. 'I began to realise I'm missing out on all the fun.'

Sheep turned his head to her as they walked and he smiled. 'That's good to hear. I guess Jacqui has figured that one out too. Just a pity about your geeky glasses and hair though. You should do something about those.'

Chelsea tried not to let his negative comments bother her. After all, he was a teenaged boy and like many, they didn't think their words might be taken badly. 'I do have contact lenses... but the thought of using them freaks me out.'

'You should talk to Jacqui and Holly. Have them do a makeover on you. I'm sure they can make you a hundred times more attractive.' He smiled at her as if he'd just paid her a compliment.

'Errr... maybe.'

'Seriously. I mean you have a nice figure. You just need to do a little work on your face and hair. You'd be great, I reckon.'

Chelsea didn't reply this time. They entered the cemetery grounds and Sheep led her to a bush out the back. She grimaced as they neared it. She saw nobody around so it seemed like the perfect place if you wanted to make out. Chelsea wasn't even sure whether she was bold enough to do that though. 'Are we going in there?'

'Yeah, it's nice in there. And private. We can be alone.'

Chelsea's heart beat faster. They entered the trees and went deeper in. A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves of the trees and the air was alive with the chirping of birds. It would have been lovely if she wasn't so nervous.

Sheep then sat on a fallen log and opened his bag. Chelsea anxiously sat beside him. He rummaged around inside. 'Nice here, huh?'

'Yeah, it is.'

He pulled out a pack of cigarettes. Chelsea was surprised to see them. She had no idea Sheep smoked. 'Want one?' He offered her an open pack.

'Ummm, no thanks. I don't smoke.'

'Pity. It would make you cooler.'

Chelsea didn't argue. She didn't believe that and thought cigarettes were disgusting but didn't want to put Sheep off spending time with her.

'You sure you don't want one?' he offered again.

'No, thanks. Really.'

'Yah, gee. And I thought you were trying to be cool.'

'Does Jacqui smoke?'

'Nah, she's paranoid it will ruin her gorgeous looks. That's what she says anyway.'

'Well...' Chelsea said. 'Perhaps that's the reason I don't smoke? Because I don't want to ruin my looks.'

Sheep snickered. 'Says the girl who wears nerdy glasses.'

Chelsea felt a little stab of pain at his attitude but remained strong. She didn't want him to think she was a whiny little girl who couldn't handle a bit of ridicule. Despite his words and despite the cigarette that now drooped from his mouth, he still seemed just as desirable in her mind. She could surely handle the cigarette smoking and if she really did consider changing her look, then he would have nothing to complain about.

They sat there for a few minutes as Sheep puffed on his cigarette. They talked about trivial things and stuff that happened at school. They talked about Tucker Pyles and how he was trying to intimidate people.

'He doesn't intimidate me though,' Sheep said. 'I mean look at the guy. He's all blubber, isn't he?'

'Well he is one big guy,' Chelsea said. 'With all that weight behind him, I'm sure he could pack a punch and I think he has some beef under all that blubber.'

Sheep didn't argue. He squished out his cigarette and turned to her. 'You know, Chels, I never thought I'd ever see the day where you and I would be alone like this in a bush. It's funny how things change. It's funny how you notice things about someone you never noticed before.'

Chelsea probed for more information. 'Like what?'

'Mmmm.' Sheep smiled and looked down at her developing bust. She had the top button of her blue uniform shirt undone and had cleavage showing.

Chelsea squirmed a little.

'You really do have a nice figure. I guess it's only been over the last year I've started to notice.' Before she could reply, he moved closer to her and put his arm around her. 'You know... now we've finally got a chance to get to know each other, I think I'd like to get to know you more.'

Chelsea felt herself tense up. His face neared her's and she could smell the overpowering stench of tobacco on his breath. She really wanted to pull away but, at the same time, she didn't want to discourage him. She'd always wanted him to kiss her and here they were in the perfect situation for it.

His lips connected with hers and he began to kiss her. The smell of tobacco though was just too overwhelming for her and she pulled back after a few seconds to breathe. She did her best to pretend she wasn't bothered by it.

'You okay?'

'Y... yes... I'm okay.'

'Then just relax.' He kissed her again and his hand stroked her right breast. She was so scared she couldn't even kiss back. She couldn't believe this was happening but the terror insider overwhelmed her completely and killed any enjoyment she had, especially with his foul cigarette breath.

He squeezed hard on her breast and it hurt her a little.

She pulled away and this time couldn't regain her composure. 'I'm sorry.' She rose to her feet.

'What? Hey, Chels, don't' go.'

'I... I'm sorry. I can't do this. It's... it's... I'm so sorry.'

With that, she hurried away.

### CHAPTER 5:  
The Boy Who Should Be Expelled

Over one hundred kilometres away was the small town of Taukauri.

Fifty-year-old Doug Andrews had just been assigned as acting principal of Taukauri College, due to the sudden departure of the previous one. He'd been brought in at the last moment as a fill-in but if all went well, he would be assigned the role permanently. It would be his first role as a principal and he really looked forward to making a difference. He had great ideas on how the school should be run; what systems should be put in place and how discipline should be carried out.

He checked himself in the mirror next to his desk, smoothing his brown hair, covering over the small bald patch, which had appeared recently. Despite that patch, he prided himself on having kept it completely brown by plucking out the odd grey hair that sprouted up from time to time. His face was becoming a little craggier but he still felt he kept his age well. He straightened his tie and dusted lint from his grey suit. All was in order.

Discipline.

That was something he was passionate about. As principal, he intended to run a tight ship. Every school needed formality and structure. He believed it crucial to gaining control over the modern student. Rules had to be obeyed and authority had to be respected. There was no room for flippancy and he had to create an impression right from the word go. He had to make those students see that there would be no flaunting of the rules while on his watch.

A bulky green manila folder that polluted his otherwise tidy desktop, dragged him from his musings. He creased his brow as he eyed it. He'd forgotten about this little matter. Trouble was not welcome at Taukauri College, especially on the first day of term.

The file belonged to a year-eleven student by the name of Rex Cassidy. It seemed to Mr Andrews as if this youth had broken almost every school rule there was to break. His file took up a whole drawer in the filing cabinet. The previous principal was the old-fashioned type who preferred paperwork rather than sitting at a computer, although Mr Andrews figured a student record the size of Rex Cassidy's would take up more hard drive space than what was available. It dumbfounded him that one student could get away with so much.

In Mr Andrews' opinion, the old principal, Matt Morgan must have been the most incompetent principal in the history of schooling. It bamboozled him this boy Rex had never been expelled. He hadn't even been suspended once.

Andrews reached over and pressed the intercom button on his phone.

'Yes, Mr Andrews?' came the voice of his PA, Miss Jenkins.

'Could you come to my office please?'

'Certainly, Mr Andrews.'

Andrews shuffled papers of the file around. He couldn't understand it; there had been nothing but good reports about this school. It had high academic and sporting standards, as well as a high standard of student behaviour. Goodness knows how students like Rex Cassidy could run rampant. There was limited bullying... or so he had been told. He had been led to believe Morgan had been doing a good job as principal there.

He had definitely done _some_ good work though - Andrews had to admit that. The school finances looked very healthy indeed. It seemed to do well in the area of fundraising. He hadn't had a chance to study the books thoroughly yet but regular large sums of money came from somewhere.

Miss Jenkins opened the door. 'Mr. Andrews?' she asked, smoothing her skirt.

'Ah, Miss Jenkins, please take a seat.'

The dark-haired 25-year-old sat in the seat opposite his desk.

'I'd like to talk to you about this student, Rex Cassidy.'

Her eyes lit up at the mention of his name. 'Yes, sir.'

'I take it you know all about this student?'

'Yes, I know him well. I am very familiar with the incidents that have occurred in the past with him. I've spoken to him on many occasions. Some of the things he does are actually quite funny. I mean, just the barefaced cheek of it like...'

'Barefaced cheek? I'm seeing more than just that in his file. Look at this! Fighting, inappropriate behaviour with members of the opposite sex, disrupting class, disrespect to teachers, not turning up to detentions, not turning up to classes and even holding a party in Maths class. And all through this file, I'm seeing things about him and his girlfriend. Seemed to be a right pair... partners in crime. Funny thing is I don't see her name on the school roll at all.'

'She is no longer with us. Oh, she was so lovely. So incredibly beautiful. Her smile would light up an entire room and whenever she was around people couldn't help but smile. Oh, Mr Andrews it's—'

'Regardless of that...' Andrews drummed his fingers on his wooden desk. 'I think I'm glad she is no longer here. The trouble those two got into together and the way they worked together to get away with their nonsense. I can't believe it was tolerated. You do realise they continually tormented a teacher, ridiculing him and making him look stupid and causing him to quit?'

'Mr Matthews, yes. He did have a certain reputation though. He had been accused of inappropriate behaviour with students but none of it was ever proven, so he remained on here. Many people were angry about that. When he quit, a lot of staff members and parents were very happy.'

'That's beside the point. They bullied a teacher!'

'I'm sorry but I am one of those people that were pleased when he quit. I have no sympathy for that man. What he got he deserved. Those two may have been a handful but they made a great pair. It's just a pity about what happened.'

'We needn't go into that. It no longer matters.'

'You are right. It's history now. Needless to say, Rex more than makes up for the fact his sweetheart is no longer here by enjoying the company of many of the other young ladies.'

'I know and that's what bothers me the most. The stuff I'm reading in his file here is simply unbelievable. All sorts of nonsense, which I would expect from some American teen movie but not going on inside a New Zealand high school. Now tell me, why the hell hasn't this boy been expelled?'

Miss Jenkins eyebrows lifted. 'Expel Rex? I... Well, sir, his parents donate a huge amount of money to this school. Without their money, this school would not be able to function as effectively as it does.'

'What do you mean? I know most schools struggle but few have trouble getting the majority of their students to a decent level of education.'

'Sure, but they do pay the school an awful lot of money. If Rex Cassidy were to be expelled, it would be a real shock to the school budget.'

'So, his parents pay the school a bribe so we won't expel him?'

'Well, yes, I guess you could call it that.' She smiled as if amused by Mr Andrews' statement.

'Miss Jenkins, it's obvious to me this so-called grant or donation is simply a bribe to prevent us from expelling this student, is it not? I wonder whether his parents would pay us any money at all if Rex wasn't such a problem student.'

'Maybe not.'

'So, we put up with his nonsense just because of a little extra money, do we?'

'Thirty thousand dollars a year, sir.'

Mr Andrews' jaw dropped and he stared at Miss Jenkins, flabbergasted. 'Thirty thousand dollars?'

'That's right.'

'By heck, you've got to be joking!'

'No joke, sir.'

Andrews rubbed his chin as the facts sunk in. 'So that's why he's never been expelled. What do the other teachers feel about that?'

'Most of them don't think it's right.'

'Of course, it's not right.'

'The ones who complain are those who have to teach him.'

'I'm not surprised. Is he really as bad as his file says?'

'Definitely. Although, I think the file does tend to make a lot of fuss, really.'

'So it should. If the things I've read are true, then I would expect more of a fuss. This is not on. We can't have a student manipulating his teachers and flagrantly breaking rules just because his parents pay the school a bribe.'

'He does have plenty of good points.'

Andrews' opinion of Miss Jenkins slipped a notch. He would not be fooled as easily as her. 'Come off it, Miss Jenkins.' He grabbed a stack of papers from the file. 'Look at all this. The kid's a menace. He's the worst student I've ever come across. I've never known one student to get away with so much. Most of the things mentioned in this portfolio were instant dismissal at my last school. This kid should have been expelled ages ago. Already today this boy has humiliated one of his teachers in front of the entire class.' He gathered his hand into a fist above the file on his desk. 'Perhaps Mr Cassidy requires an immediate example of my expectations in this school. An immediate example. Oh, I can assure you I am going to do my duty as principal and rid the school of this blight. After today he will be sorry for his insubordination.'

### CHAPTER 6:  
Getting out of Trouble?

Holly arrived home that afternoon bracing herself, ready for the backlash she knew would come from her parents. Her mother was normally home about now but her father would not get there until closer to dinnertime. She held her breath as she entered the house and expected her mother to call her immediately.

She didn't.

In the main living area, she found her mother busy mopping the kitchen floor. It was her who everyone said Holly took after the most. She was short and shapely with long dark hair.

'Hi, Mum.'

'Oh, hello, dear. How was your day?'

Holly hid her surprise at the friendly greeting. 'Ummm, yeah, okay. How was yours?'

'Excellent. We are having Shepherd's Pie for dinner tonight. I know how much you like that.'

'Yeah, I do.' Holly said, daring to hope maybe the school had decided not to call her parents. Unless of course, they had phoned her dad at work.

'Seeing as you're here, you can finish this job for me. I have to dash down to the dairy to get some milk.'

Holly sighed but considered herself lucky not to be getting an ear-bashing. 'Okay.'

Minutes later, she was putting the finishing touches on the kitchen floor when the phone rang. She answered it. 'Hello.'

'Oh, hello,' came a familiar female voice. 'Is Mr or Mrs Robinson home please?' The voice sounded elderly and then she realised who it was. The voice was still fresh in her mind from earlier that day when she sat in the office of the owner. It was Mrs Towcher.

For a moment, Holly hesitated but then she quickly pulled herself together as a devious plan sprung to mind, a plan that would hopefully get her out of trouble. She spoke in a slightly more mature tone, 'This is Martha Robinson.' She held her breath hoping she would fall for her ruse.

'Ahh good, this is Joanna Towcher, the senior mistress from Te Arawa College. I am ringing with regards to your daughter.'

Holly smiled, knowing her ploy was working. She quickly put on a serious face though and got into character again. 'Oh no, what has that little wench done this time?'

'She skipped class this morning. Went down to the river with a couple of female friends and a boy. The boy fell into the river going across the old swing bridge and nearly drowned.'

'What? You mean to say that swing bridge is still there? I thought the school was going to have that thing torn down. Why has it not been torn down yet?' She covered her mouth to muffle a laugh.

'Well, we have asked the council to remove it but-'

'The council?' Holly said in a disgusted tone of voice. 'Why doesn't the school just do it themselves? Why wait for the council? If you wait for them, you'll never get anything done. And meanwhile more foolish boys will try to cross that river and get themselves drowned. Honestly, I don't know why they are so stupid but I guess there's not much we can do. Boys will be boys but my goodness, it was all in the news three years ago when one of those silly creatures drowned in that river. I remember being glad my children were in Akato schools. Never thought that bridge would still be there now. I'm surprised they haven't even drained the river out and turned it into a landfill or something.' She couldn't hold back her laughter now and muted the phone to let out a fit of giggles.

She could just hear the reply, 'I don't think it's possible to drain that river. And it would not be good for the ecosystem.'

'Pleeeease,' Holly said after unmuting the phone. 'Don't give me that school mumbo-jumbo about ecosystems. I'm a grown woman now and I shouldn't have to hear about that sort of thing anymore. Leave it for your biology students.'

'I'm sorry, but draining the river is not a practical option. You can guarantee the school has been in contact with the council about it and I hope something will be done soon but the issue here is your daughter skipped class with these other students and on the first day of school too.'

Holly wanted to joke around some more but decided not to risk it. 'That's not good. You can bet your bottom dollar I will deal with her severely. I do not approve of my daughter skipping classes. Not at all.'

'I'm glad to hear that. We decided it best to let her parents deal with her on this occasion rather than punishing her ourselves.'

'I guess you could have her miss Maths classes for a few weeks. She really does love maths you know. She would hate to miss those.' Holly smirked.

'We can't have her miss Maths classes. I hope you can come up with a fitting punishment for her.'

Holly figured all along it was a forlorn hope to get out of her most hated subject. 'Oh, I assure you, Joanna I will deal with her severely. She will not get away with what she has done. You just leave it up to me and my husband to come up with an appropriate punishment.'

'Thank you, Mrs Robinson. We will do that. We will also be sending you a letter about our conversation so you will have a record of our call.'

Holly froze and stared down at the mouthpiece of her phone for a moment. 'Oh no, there's no need for that. No point in wasting paper and postage on our behalf.'

'How about I email it to you then? I would but we don't have your email address on record.'

Holly knew that would not work either because giving Mrs Towcher her personal email address of "HollyIncomingMailBatman would surely give away who she was really talking to. 'Ummm, no I don't have an email address.'

'We shall post it to you then. Thank you, Mrs Robinson, for your time. Good day to you.'

Mrs Towcher hung up.

Holly flinched and she put down the phone. She would now have to beat her parents to the mailbox to stop that letter from getting to them. But how could she do that when the mail arrived while she was at school? What a dilemma she found herself in.

'You sure have screwed up,' Jacqui said to her after dinner that night. Holly had been dropped off in town by her father and she met up with Jacqui so they could hang out for a bit. 'Maybe you should have just faced the music rather than tried out that scam.'

'Well – you know - it seemed too good an opportunity to pass down and Mrs Groucher fell for it hook, line and sinker.'

'So how are you going to get a hold of that letter she's sent?'

'I don't know. I might have to sneak out of school to get here to collect the mail before Mum gets home.'

'So, skip class again?'

Holly sighed. 'I might have to.'

Jacqui laughed. 'Skip class so you can get out of trouble for skipping class. What is wrong with this picture?'

Holly felt amused at the irony. 'A girl has to do what a girl has to do.'

Most of the shops were closed, so there wasn't much to do in town. They ended up heading over to the domain. It was quite a popular place and consisted of a rugby and squash club, along with a large swimming pool and picnic area. There were trees all around, including a small area of dense bush and a shallow but wild river. That evening a lot of people swam in the pool but Holly and Jacqui hadn't brought their swimming suits so couldn't go swimming. It was handy though because Holly's dad intended to pick her up from there in an hours' time.

The pool area boasted terraced seating, a couple of picnic benches, changing sheds and other facilities but they chose to sit underneath the trees on the grassy hill overlooking the pool.

'Hey, I've got something.' Jacqui opened her bag and pulled out a couple of bottles of drink.

Holly reeled when she saw what they were. 'My gosh, is that alcohol?'

'They're only RTDs. Like soft drinks but with a little kick to them. Here.' She twisted off the top of one and handed it to her.

Holly stared at the bottle for a few moments, unable to believe what she held in her hand.

'Come on,' Jacqui said, twisting off the top of hers. 'It's only one bottle. Don't tell me you're gonna be a square like Chelsea Brown?'

'Where did you get these?'

'Stole them out of my dad's bar fridge.'

'If we get caught with these, we'll be done.'

'Just keep it out of sight. Don't let people see it. Lighten up, Holl, it's not gonna hurt you.' She engulfed a mouthful. 'See? It's nice. Go on, try it.'

Holly cautiously raised the bottle to her lips. She knew she shouldn't but she couldn't very well refuse, not if she didn't want Jacqui to ridicule her. She hesitated.

'Oh, come on, for hell's sake, I can't believe you're this much of a wuss.'

'I'm not a wuss!' Holly took a mouth full and swallowed. It went down easily and although there was something bitter in it, it was mainly sweet and tasted good. 'What's in it?'

'Lemonade and Vodka. Not much. It's only 5% alcohol.'

Holly stared at her. 'Do you drink much?'

'Not much. Don't want Dad getting wind of it. Come on, don't be shy.' Jacqui set the example by drinking some more.

Holly knew she shouldn't but she really wanted to please her friend so obeyed. It once again went down surprisingly easy and she soon found herself taking mouthfuls at regular intervals. In a few minutes, it was gone and she felt pleasantly lightheaded.

'That's my girl,' Jacqui said. 'How do you feel?'

Holly smiled. 'I feel good. Like everything's just – you know -perfect in the world.'

'See? It wasn't so bad, right? Not like, we're taking drugs or anything. Now you really do belong to Te Arawa College. I guess all those other Akato people you're used to mixing with are simply just a bunch of dorks.'

They continued to chat and laugh. Holly was still in a good mood when her father arrived. She climbed into the passengers' seat next to him. 'Hi there, driver, can you please take me to Akato, please. There are some old people there waiting for me to get home.'

'You seem to be in a good mood.'

'That's because I'm getting a free taxi ride.'

'Yeah, I know, I should charge you.' He accelerated the car and they cruised off down the road.

'You should do this for a living. You know, pick up drunk people and drive them home.'

'Now why would I want to do that?'

Holly nearly kicked herself. Fancy making a comment like that and after she'd been drinking too. Still, she doubted she was drunk, after all, it was only one bottle and it contained mainly lemonade. 'Well... you're experienced that's why. Aren't people always looking for experienced people?'

'Yeah, well, I get plenty of experience driving you around all over the place.'

'See?'

Her father glanced at her with a strange look on his face. 'You're acting pretty strange, you know that? Have you been up to something tonight?'

'No!' Holly gasped. 'I just hung out with Jacqui, that's all.'

Her father didn't reply. Holly felt the nerves welling up inside of her. What if she really was behaving strangely? Would he figure out she'd had some alcohol to drink? Then another horrible thought crossed her mind. What if he smelt the alcohol on her breath?

She deliberately made sure she faced the opposite direction from him, staring out the window.

'You've gone quiet all of a sudden,' her father said.

'My gosh, Dad. What's with you? One moment you're complaining because I'm in a good mood and now your complaining because I'm being quiet. I can't win.'

'No need to get defensive. I'm sure your old enough and mature enough not to get yourself in trouble when you're in town on a Monday night, aren't you? You'd better be.'

'Of course!' She continued to stare out the window with a slight glare.

'Then every thing's hunky-dory then, isn't it?'

'Yeah...' But now Holly wasn't so convinced. When she got home, she showered, brushed her teeth and headed for her room. She didn't want her parents to know she'd been drinking. If only she'd had the guts to say no to, Jacqui. It was like that whenever they were together. It seemed some things never changed.

### CHAPTER 7:  
Suffering the Backlash

Chelsea stood in front of her parents, in the family lounge, her head hung low. The room was meticulously tidy, not a spot of dust on anything. The lounge suite had matching easy chairs as well as a couch. A smallish flat-screened TV set acted as the centre point for the lounge area. Family portraits adorned the walls, each one showing the family at different ages. A tall wooden bookshelf, almost completely full of books, stood next to the entrance into the dining room.

Her parents' faces wore deep frowns and she had to endure an uncomfortable silence, which sent goosebumps over her skin. It was the moment she'd dreaded.

'I can't believe you'd do something like that.' Her mother peered down at her. She was blonde and slim, like Chelsea and in her late 30s. 'What's gotten into you?'

Chelsea could only gaze at the floor in shame.

Her mother tapped her foot on the ground. 'Well? What do you have to say for yourself?'

'It was just a bit of fun,' she finally admitted. 'I... I know it was a stupid thing to do.' What else could she say? That she had skipped class just to be popular? There was no way she would admit that to them.

'Who were you with?'

'Jacqui Donaldson... and a new girl from Akato.'

'Jacqui? I didn't know you two were friends.'

'We've sort of just become friends.'

'Whose idea was it to skip class?'

Chelsea hesitated. If she said it was the idea of one of the other three students, then she was sure her parents would be against their friendships. Then again, she certainly didn't want to tell them it was her idea because it wasn't. She decided on a compromise. 'We just sort of decided together. I don't know who first mentioned it.'

Chelsea's father was five years older than her mother and slightly overweight. He frowned. 'The senior mistress, Mrs Towcher, said there was a boy involved. Who was he?'

Chelsea thought back to the time she'd spent with Sheep only half an hour earlier. She was so confused over what had happened. It had been a little too overwhelming for her, having the guy she desired coming onto her like that and pushing things a little too far too soon. Nevertheless, she felt guilty just running off. It seemed cowardly and she feared she'd blown it with him.

She really wanted to go to her room and give it more thought but, right now, she had to be strong and deal with the problem at hand; her parents. She didn't want to drop his name but it seemed she had no choice. 'Rog Shepherd.'

'Rog Shepherd,' her father repeated in a neutral tone of voice. 'Yeah, I know his father.'

Her mother said, 'Is that why you skipped class? Because of a boy?'

Chelsea screwed up her face for her parent's benefit. 'No, of course not. It had nothing to do with him.'

'I can't believe you skipped school, it's so unlike you. It must have been because of that boy and your new friends. That was such a stupid thing to do. I don't want you associating with people who are going to get you into trouble.'

'They're nice girls.'

'I hope so! If you're to remain friends with them, you'd better not get into any more trouble. As for your punishment... you're grounded for two weeks.'

She gasped and stared at them in horror. 'Two weeks?'

'Yes! Two weeks. And I'm being lenient. You could have all been in serious danger playing around that old swing bridge.'

'But I didn't even go near it.'

'It ought to be torn down,' her father added.

Chelsea knew there was no point in arguing. The whole discussion left a bad taste in her mouth. The most frustrating thing was her parents' attitude towards her friends. They were the type of people who would forbid certain friendships. Her mother already had a bad impression of Jacqui and Holly, plus her father didn't seem impressed with Sheep. It wasn't fair. She was trying so hard to keep this group of friends and it didn't help when parents made things twice as hard.

The next day at school, Chelsea went in search of Holly and Jacqui but came across Sheep first out the front of E Block.

'Hey, Chelsea!'

She had dreaded running into him again and still felt highly embarrassed about walking out on him the afternoon before. 'Hi.'

'What happened with you yesterday? I thought we were good and then you did a runner on me. Did I do something wrong?'

Chelsea flinched. 'Gee, I'm sorry. I really am. It was just kind of moving too quickly for me.'

'Too quickly?' Sheep looked at her funny. 'I thought you liked me.'

'I... I do but...'

'So, what's the problem then?'

She wasn't quite sure how to reply to that. She didn't want Sheep to think she was old-fashioned but perhaps she was? 'I just kind of freaked. I thought we were just gonna hang out for a bit and get to know each other better one-on-one.'

'That's what I thought we _were_ doing.'

'Yeah, but not like that. You know what I mean?'

'No.'

Chelsea ran her fingers through her hair. 'I... I don't know, I just...' She didn't get a chance to say anything more as Holly and Jacqui arrived on the scene.

'Hey, Chelsea,' Holly greeted her in a friendly manner. 'How did it go with the olds last night? Did you get in the shit?'

Chelsea felt a little relieved by the interruption. 'Oh yeah, they blew their stack.'

'Is that all?'

She didn't want to tell them she'd been grounded so made up something else, 'Oh, they'll just be complete jerks for the next three weeks and try to make life difficult for me.'

'That's too bad.'

'What about you? Did you get punished?'

'Nope.' Holly smiled. 'I managed to con my way out of it good.' She explained the phone call between herself and Mrs Towcher, and Chelsea chortled at the thought of the senior mistress being so easily taken in. 'The only problem is I have to skip class tomorrow so I can go home and beat my mother to the mailbox. And how do I get there? It's too far to walk there and back. My gosh, I don't know what I'm going to do.'

'Why don't you just throw a sickie?'

Holly raised her eyebrows. 'Now there's an idea. I like that.'

'That is a good idea,' acknowledged Jacqui. 'That way you'll be around all day and just get the mail as soon as it arrives.'

'As long as it does arrive tomorrow.' She paused as two jumior boys rushed by, nearly knocking into Jacqui in the process.

'Watch where you're going, you little creeps!' Jacqui shouted as they disappeared around the side of the building.

'What if it gets delayed?' Chelsea continued. 'I'd have to take another day off.'

'I'm sure you can put on a good act.'

'Maybe. Mum's normally pretty good at figuring out when I'm faking it though. Oh, and another thing... She normally stays home when I'm sick. I'd have to - you know - sneak in and out of the house to check the mailbox. She'd catch me doing it.' Holly sighed and gazed at the ground. 'My gosh, it looks like I'm at least gonna have to give it a try.'

Chelsea noticed Sheep had moved away and was talking to a couple of other guys by the tree and garden area. She wanted to talk to him but she didn't know what to say. She didn't want him to think she was still the square and flaky Chelsea Brown from last year. Maybe now he did?

'So, what about you, Jacqui?' Chelsea asked. 'How did your parents react to you cutting class?'

'Didn't really care.' Jacqui smirked. 'They know I'll pass my units. Besides, they say they used to skip class occasionally too back in their days. They're not hypocrites, unlike some parents.'

Holly delivered a sigh. 'Lucky for you. I'm just beginning to wish I'd let old Groucher talk to my mum and faced the music after all.'

'No way,' Jacqui said. 'Cuz then they might just try to stop you from going to the beach on Saturday.'

'True. I don't want to miss that.'

'What's happening at the beach?' Chelsea asked.

'Ultimate fun,' Jacqui said.

'You should come too,' Holly said. 'It's gonna be awesome.'

Chelsea would have loved to come, especially getting to hang out with the cool kids but there was no way she could go when she'd been grounded. 'Umm, I can't. I'm...' She quickly came up with an excuse. '...my grandparents are coming for the weekend and I'll be spending the day with them.' It was the best she could come up with on the spur of the moment but she regretted it immediately.

'Oh, how wonderful.' Jacqui clasped her hands to her chest. 'A weekend with Granny and Gramps. What a wonderful time you'll be having. A nice family picnic at the rose gardens? Maybe a spot of knitting? Maybe even an exciting game of Scrabble. Whoopee!'

Chelsea felt small and pretended as though the alleged visit was something she dreaded. Maybe she could turn things around in her favour. She rolled her eyes in discontent. 'Good lord, it's going to be such a drag. My grandparents are such bores. I wouldn't be surprised if that's exactly what we did do. If only there was some way of getting out of it.'

Jacqui snorted and waltzed towards the nearby bench near the flower gardens. 'There is,' she said as the two of them followed. 'Just tell them you're going to the beach. Tell them you can't stay. You're fifteen years old.' She planted herself down on the bench and looked up at Chelsea. 'You don't have to hang around home with your grandparents, do you?'

Chelsea sat beside her. 'My parents wouldn't let me.'

'So, what? You're old enough to do your own thing. Just go. I would.'

Holly nestled down on the other side of Jacqui. 'Yeah. They can't stop you.'

Jacqui snorted. 'Or are you afraid to stand up to your parents? A mummy and daddy's girl?'

'No, I'm not!'

'Well, then?'

'Sheep's gonna be there,' said Holly.

Chelsea turned her eyes to where Sheep still stood chatting with his friends. She had to admit it would be good to have him in a group situation where there wouldn't be quite so much pressure as there had been the previous afternoon. They could talk more and get to know each other better. That's if he still wanted to get to know her.

Nevertheless, the question remained... how did she get there when she had been grounded?

'Forget about it,' Jacqui said. 'She's just too much of a wuss. She'd rather stay at home like a good little girl and do what Mummy and Daddy want her to do.'

'Maybe her parents are – you know - really strict,' Holly said. She immediately got a dirty look from Jacqui which seemed to spur her, 'Besides, her grandparents probably won't be around for much longer.'

Both Holly and Jacqui burst into giggles.

'All right, I'll come,' said Chelsea, determined not to let Jacqui and Holly think of her as a wimp. She had no idea how she'd get there nor for that matter how she would get by her parents but somehow, she would.

'Way to go,' Holly said. 'That's what we like to hear.'

Jacqui snorted. 'I'll believe it when I see it.'

### CHAPTER 8:  
Mav makes a Proposal

'Wal, you're alive!' Rick Maverick along with Pete, ran into Wal at lunchtime, the following day, outside the college library. Mav stayed alert, doing his best not to risk running into Tucker Pyles. He hoped desperately that maybe the guy wouldn't remember him but he wasn't going to test that out.

'Yo, Mav, what's happening?'

'Had any more run-ins with Tucker Pyles?'

'Lousy scumbag,' Wal growled. 'He deserves a good smack in the head.'

Pete grinned. 'You should have done it yesterday.'

'I will if he picks on Jacqui again.'

'Sounds like Jacqui doesn't appreciate your help,' noted Mav.

Wal smirked. 'She does, newbie, she just doesn't want to admit it.'

'Yeah right!' scoffed Pete.

Wal's eyes narrowed. 'What did you say, Cook?'

'I said, you're right'

'That's what I thought you said.' He simmered down.

'Why don't you go and find that Pyles nut now?'

'I'm not going to waste my time looking for him. He can come and find me. Then I'll deal to him.'

Mav couldn't help but like Wal, despite his arrogance. He was a big tough guy who didn't seem to care about anyone but himself but there was more to this guy then what he let on. Good points that for some reason Wal tried to hide. Perhaps Pete was right about Wal and he wasn't such a bad guy at all.

'So how did it go with you guys last night?' Wal asked. 'Did you get in the poo for skipping class?'

'Hell yeah,' Pete said. 'It's extra chores for me for the next few weeks. Garden work especially. Bleeding typical. God, I hate gardening. I wish my parents weren't into that sort of thing.'

'I'm getting pocket money docked,' Mav said. 'Which is gonna be tough seeing as I get bugger all as it is.'

'Ah diddums.' Wal smirked. 'That will teach you guys for getting caught... clueless bastards. You wouldn't catch me getting caught skipping class.'

'Yeah, well that kind of goes without saying, doesn't it?' Pete said. 'If you don't get caught well, of course, you won't get caught.'

'What are you talking about, you little punk?'

'I don't know, just trying to figure out your bizarre way of getting a message across.'

'You better watch it, or I'll smash you one. Anyway, where are you guys going now?'

'Into the library,' Mav said.

'Bloody hell, you guys are a bunch of girls, aren't you? The library? Geez! Well, I gotta cruise. I'll catch you later. Enjoy your book reading... dorks.' He snorted began to stride away.

Pete imitated his voice. 'Enjoy your book reading you big dork.'

Wal swung around at the last moment and glared at him. 'What did you say, Cook?'

'I said, yeah we'll enjoy reading a big book.'

'That better be what you said!' Wal walked on.

The two of them entered the library. Mav wasn't really interested in reading, he just wanted to hang out somewhere, where he could avoid Tucker. He felt confident that a guy like him wouldn't be in here. Instead, he'd probably be sitting around eating his lunch somewhere. If his size was anything to go by, it would take him all lunchtime.

Shelves lined the walls and tables were set out in clusters around the room - quite a spacious looking library in Mav's experience. It wasn't quite like he expected to to be as students were murmuring to each other, shuffling around and tapping away on laptop computers.

The first thing to catch his eyes though was a vision of beauty at one of the tables reading a book. At first, Mav could only stare. He admired her long blonde hair, big emerald eyes and her nicely curved chin. Her skin was soft and smooth with hardly a blemish. She had the sort of beauty he could sit and admire for hours and hours without getting bored. He wished he could have the opportunity to do that.

'That's Samantha Drysdale, a senior,' Pete said, gazing at the longhaired blonde.

'Is she married?' Mav felt his sense of humour returning. It had been gone since he had first seen Tucker that morning.

'Of course not.' Pete laughed. 'But...'

'Damn, I think I'm in love. I know, it's crazy, I hardly know her... Well, actually, I've never even met her... yet but hey, will you be my best man?'

'Yeah, sure, why not but-'

'It's gonna have to be a secret wedding though, seeing as we're underage. She'll probably kick up a stink about that but what the hell, she'll probably even make a fuss about having to be the bride.'

'Yeah, well, you know, she wouldn't be the only one...'

Mav didn't hang around to hear any more. He was on a roll and he wanted to make his move while he still was. He strolled up to the table and sat opposite her. 'Hi.'

She looked up curiously with a puzzled expression. 'Do I know you?'

'You must be Samantha, right?' He tried hard to break his stare from her bright emerald eyes but he found it extremely difficult.

'Yes.'

'My name's Rick Maverick. You may have heard of me, I'm the one guy in this school nobody's ever heard of.'

Samantha let out a delightful laugh. She had a sparkling, full-lipped smile that lit up her whole face. 'Oh, so you're that guy.'

'That all depends. If you take the moon in relation to the sun...'

She laughed some more. Her eyes shone and she toyed with a strand of blonde hair.

'Yes, Maverick's my name and I'd like to make it yours too.' He tried to inject humour into his words so that if she rejected him, he could turn it into a joke.

'I already have a name.'

'Oh...' Mav feigned disappointment. 'I was hoping I could give you mine. Do you know how embarrassing it is having a surname like mine?'

'What's wrong with Maverick?'

'So you want it?'

'Haha, I didn't say that.'

'Never mind. But you see my name duplicates itself. Rick Maver-Rick. See? Embarrassing huh?'

'It never occurred to me.'

'Well, it is a famous name.'

'Only in the wild west.'

He glanced around briefly just to make sure nobody was taking any notice of them. He didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of an audience. Fortunately, people were too busy with their noses in books or holding their own quiet conversations.

'So, you won't marry me then?'

'Nope.' She smiled.

'Can we just get engaged then?'

'Nope.'

'Can we be lovers?

'No!'

'Really close friends?'

'I doubt it.'

Mav let out a mock sigh. 'Go to the movies with me on Saturday?'

'I don't think so.'

He flinched deliberately. 'Hey, we're getting close to yes.'

'Definitely no.'

Mav didn't consider himself a charmer but he couldn't stop. 'Okay, I guess my pick-up lines aren't doing too well. I expected you to turn down my marriage proposal but I thought that by the time I'd got to the movie question you'd be so relieved, you'd say yes.'

'Sorry,' said Samantha. 'I've already got a boyfriend, you see?'

''Ah.' Mav's heart sunk but he hid his disappointment. He wanted to kick himself for not considering the possibility. 'Oh well, I guess I'm just going to have to go to the movies with members of the same sex. Very depressing actually.'

'That's life I suppose.'

'I should have-'

An older student stepped up and peered down his nose at Mav. 'Who's this guy, Sam? What was that you were talking about? I heard the word "sex" mentioned.' He had meticulously combed hair, his shirt had no wrinkles, his voice was cultured and his entire manner reeked of arrogance.

Mav hoped this guy wasn't Sam's boyfriend.

'Don't jump to conclusions, Craig. We were just talking,' Sam said.

'He mentioned sex. I heard him.'

If he wasn't her boyfriend, perhaps he was an overly concerned brother? 'It's not what you think,' Mav said.

'Shut up you. I wasn't talking to you.'

Sam hissed at him, 'He was just talking about going to the movies.'

'He asked you to the movies?'

A few people turned their heads in their direction, which caused Craig to stand up straight. He narrowed his eyes at Samantha.

'He asked you to the movies?' He said it a lot more softly this time, but with the same angry tone in his voice.

She huffed and hissed back at him. 'You're jumping to conclusions again. He was talking about going to the movies with members of the same sex.'

Mav felt like telling this guy to lighten up, but didn't want to risk offending Sam.

Craig lowered his head closer to Mav and spoke in a venous whisper. 'You'd better watch it, mate. Mess with my girl and you'll have me to deal with.'

'You and your ego, huh?' Mav said, making no further efforts to be civil.

'Are you getting smart with me, peon?' Craig clenched his fist.

'Maybe by your standards.'

Sam slapped the side of her book into Craig's arm, not hard, but in a manner that showed her annoyance. 'Leave him alone. He wasn't doing any harm.'

'Shut up, Sam.' He kept his eyes locked on Mav. 'I get sick of you younger kids who think you're better than everybody else. You should show a little respect to your superiors.'

'Superior? Superior snob, yes. Stuck up sleazeball, yes. God knows what Sam sees in you.'

'Why you...' Craig steamed. He lunged forward at Mav to grab him by the shirt. Mav had already expected something like that and just had time to pull a chair into Craig's path. Mav's timing was a little too perfect. The chair connected with Craig's groin and he let out a cry of agony, a cry that diverted all attention in the library towards him. Craig crumpled to the floor, holding himself in intense pain.

Once people realised what had happened laughter broke out. Many uttered amused comments, some that weren't flattering. The librarian frowned from her desk.

Craig cringed as he glanced around the room. Samantha shrank back into her chair. At first, Mav was a little stunned at what he had done but then came to his senses.

'Oh well,' he said. 'Must dash. I'll err, catch you later, Sam.' He looked down at Craig and make one final cheeky comment in a squeaky voice. 'Cheers, mate.'

'I can't believe you did that.' Pete said to Mav outside the library with a big smile. 'That was brilliant! It was great to see that stuck-up jerk squirming on the floor, it was pure poetry in motion.'

'Why didn't you tell me she had a boyfriend?'

'I tried but you were determined to roll on in there. You know, Craig McLeod's one of the biggest snobs in the school. His parents are filthy rich. He thinks he's the king of Te Arawa College. And he treats Samantha like dirt.'

'Then why is she still with him?'

'Probably because he's rich. If I were you, I'd watch my back. Trust me, I know Craig McLeod well. He has a huge ego and thinks he's far better than anybody else. It's funny, other seniors seem to like him but the rest of the school hates him. I think it's because he splashes his money around.

'Buys his friends, huh?'

'You got it. Hate to tell you this, Mav but there's no way anyone's ever gonna be writing Maverick vs Drysdale on desks and toilets.'

'What? Maverick vs Drysdale? What do you mean by that?'

Pete chuckled. 'It's a tradition here at TAC. On sports days when they put up the sports sheets and which house is playing which house, it's like Tainui 4 vs Arawa 3 or Tokomaru 5 vs Aotea 1. So, one day... many moons ago... kids wrote names of people, going around together, in a similar way. Smith vs Jones, Cook vs Robinson, Maverick vs Drysdale. That type of thing.'

Mav thought it was a cool tradition. 'Maverick vs Drysdale. I kind of like the sounds of that.'

They were about to walk away when a gruff voice called out to them.

'Hey, Ubbheads!'

Mav froze and his chest tightened.

Tucker Pyles swaggered towards them. His face screwed into a sneer and his eyes burned. However, he didn't look at Mav and seemed more interested in Pete and his schoolbag. 'You!' he growled at Pete. 'Got any food?'

'Not for you, jerk,' said Pete in a caustic tone of voice.

Mav groaned inwardly. Not smart, Pete.

Tucker's hand swooped across the side of Pete's face, clipping his ear. Pete gasped with pain and staggered back. 'What th-?'

'I won't take cheek from you, ubbhead. Have you got any food?'

'No, I've eaten it all.'

Tucker shoved him, almost causing him to topple over. 'Why didn't you leave some for me?'

'Why should I keep any for you?'

'Because I said so. I rule this school, ubbhead. You give me food. That's my taxes I collect, got it?' He grabbed Pete by the shirt and glared homicidally into his eyes.

Pete's face paled and his eyes widened. He was quite small in stature and wasn't the type to take on a bully, especially not one Tucker's size. 'Sure, okay, no problems.'

The moment Mav dreaded arrived. Tucker turned to face him. His eyes narrowed immediately and his frown deepened. 'You... Who are you?'

'Rick,' Mav said. He wanted to look away but dared not.

'Don't I know you?'

'Err... no, I...' Mav was about to lie with sincerity but then tried another tack instead. He put on a fake Spanish accent. 'I never meet you, no. In fact, errr... me no speaka de very good English. Me from Spain. You ever go Spain amigo?'

Tucker continued to study his face for a moment. It was impossible to tell what he thought. He finally eased back. 'No. Why would I ever wanna go there? Especially if there are ubbheads like you there? I never liked Australians anyway. Because you're an Aussie, I'm gonna cut you a break today but tomorrow both of you will bring me food. Got that?'

'Food?' Mav said completely forgetting he was supposed to be Spanish. 'Seriously? Who bullies people for food?'

'I do! You got that?'

'Why not just demand money?'

'Who do you think I am? A mafia goon or something? I'd soon be locked up if I started demanding money from people. Besides, I'm just gonna spend it on food, so why not just avoid the extra step? Save a lot of time.'

Mav quickly reverted to his fake accent. 'Okay, amigo, I remember bring you food next time.'

'Good.'

Mav breathed a deep sigh of relief as Tucker Pyles strode away. 'Food... what kind of a bully demands food? Are we at Primary School or something?'

Pete snorted. 'Obviously, that jerk still thinks he is.'

That afternoon after school, Mav and Pete walked towards town. Mav would normally catch the bus to Akato but today his father intended to meet him later in the afternoon. That was great as far as he was concerned because it gave him a chance to hang out with his new friend.

'Bugger that Tucker,' Pete said. 'I'm gonna have trouble finding extra food for him. I mean I've gotta eat too, so it pretty much means I need to bring two lunches instead of one.'

'Yeah, I know what you mean,' Mav said. 'I'm gonna have to ask Mum for an extra big lunch and she's gonna wonder why. I'll have to say I'm having a growth spurt or something.'

'I can't believe he wants food. There has to be something severely psychologically wrong with that guy.'

'You only just figured that out?' Mav grinned.

Pete scowled and put on a silly voice, 'Hello, my name's Tucker Pyles-of-Fat and my brain is so small and my gut so big that all I want is food, food and more food. Yeah, my brain is down there in my stomach too.'

'School...' Mav said thoughtfully as they crossed the road. 'Why do people say it's the best days of your life? Seems more like sadistic torture sometimes. There are always people trying to make your life a misery... teachers included.'

'Now I've got Jacqui Donaldson trying to make my life a misery,' Pete said. 'You know, all I want to do is get to know Holly but as soon as Jacqui sees me she tells me to rack off.'

'I notice you've been gazing at Holly a lot.'

'She is such a babe. But she hasn't even given me a second glance. It doesn't help with Jacqui poisoning her mind against me. She hassles me and all Holly can do is laugh.'

'You really like her, don't you?'

'She's freaking hot.'

Mav pictured Holly in his mind. 'You really think she's that great?'

'Of course.' Pete stared at him. 'She has to be, without a doubt, the sexiest girl in the whole school, you know, and there have to be hundreds of guys who would want her. She seems to be getting friendly with Sheep. I get this horrible thought of him and Holly together making out under the trees. I tell you what, he'd better not be trying to steal my girl.'

'Your girl?' Mav tried not to laugh.

'My girl.'

He was about to reply when he saw Samantha Drysdale several metres up the road walking on her own. 'Speaking of dreams, look who's up ahead. My girl.' He had to admit, there was a certain perverse satisfaction in making a statement like that. Positive thinking is the key to success. _That's_ what he'd been taught anyway. 'Hey, Sam!'

She took one glance back and kept on walking. Mav and Pete quickened their pace and pulled up alongside her.

'Hi, Sam! What's a nice girl like you doing walking down a street like this?'

'Please, I just want to be left alone.'

'Hey, I wanted to talk to you about what happened in the librar—'

'I don't want to hear it. You embarrassed me.'

'That's why I wanted to talk. I wanted to say I was sorry. I guess I let things go too far.'

'Forget it. I'll see you another time.' She turned and crossed the road leaving Mav standing next to Pete.

Mav sighed.

'Looks like you blew it.'

'Seems like I have.'

'You get used to it.'

'Believe me, I already am. I've blown it with so many girls I've just about run out of dynamite.'

'Well, I'm not gonna blow it with my girl.'

A voice came from behind. 'Who? Who's your girl, Pete? Myrtle the Turtle? Woof, woof!' Ben Tamati stepped up and attempted to trip Pete up with a swooping kick to his heel. Pete stumbled but kept his footing.

'Turtles don't bark, you git.'

Ben shoved him viciously and almost sent him sprawling to the pavement. 'Don't get smart with me, e hoa! I'll give you a beat down, that's what I'll do.'

'Nah, I'll pass, Ben.'

Mav could understand it. Ben wasn't big like Tucker. He was quite short, but power-packed and quick. Definitely not somebody you wanted to rile.

'You're talking about that Holly sheela, eh?' Ben sneered. 'Your girl? What a joke.'

A sparkle appeared in Pete's eyes. 'She's your girl, isn't she?' He cast Mav a wry smile.

Ben's expression softened. Mav could see he was the type of guy who could be put into a good mood by boosting his ego a little and Pete was doing just that.

He snorted, 'Of course she's my girl, you wally. You'd better not go chasing her. She's my girl and that's all there is to it.'

Even though Mav had never seen Holly in a romantic light, he didn't like the idea of a hoodlum like Ben making the moves on her. He had to say something but knew he needed to be as diplomatic as he could. 'Hey Ben, I don't wanna upset you but I think you're wasting your time. I know Holly and you're not her type.'

Ben spun around and grabbed Mav by the shirt and a poisonous look spreading across his face. 'Oh yeah? And what do you know, punk?'

Instead of intimidating Mav, Ben only succeeded in making anger well up inside him, as all he could think about was him putting his dirty hands on Holly. His next words surprised even himself. 'I know you're nothing but a bully. And I know your ego is more inflated than Tucker Pyles stom— OOMPH!'

Ben nailed Mav with a vicious blow to the gut. A few more body blows sent Mav staggering back. He was able to retaliate with a punch of his own but Ben gave him a vicious shove, which sent him hurtling into a tall fence. The back of his head collided with the hard-wooden exterior. Ben was just too strong and fast for Mav and he dropped to the ground in pain, clutching at the back of his head. A faint woozy feeling overcame him.

'I don't take no cheek!' Ben snarled. He turned back to Pete. 'And as for you, you little punk. You leave my girl alone. If I even see you talking to her, you're dead meat, got it?'

Pete trembled and nodded his head vigorously a few times.

'Good! Just you remember it.' With that, Ben departed.

'Jerk!' Pete growled once Ben was out of earshot. 'My name's Ben Dumati,' he imitated. 'You leave my girl alone! It's my Barbie doll and you better not touch it!' He reverted to his normal voice and looked down at Mav. 'You okay, man?'

'Yeah.' Mav groaned and sat up. 'I can't believe how quick that guy is.'

Pete helped him to his feet. 'I know. Don't mess with him, man...' his voice trailed away and he peered up the path as someone approached.

Sam had returned and she reached them with an alarmed look on her face. 'Wow, I saw what happened, are you okay?'

'Me okay?' Mav hid his delight at her return as best he could. 'That's not actually a word that describes me. Demented yes, insane, yes but definitely not okay. But then that's okay, isn't it?' He rubbed the back of his head and winced.

Sam shook her head. 'You get beaten up and you're still cracking jokes.' She expressed a wry smile. 'I'd better be going.' She departed once more, leaving the two of them standing there, gazing after her.

Mav felt quite chuffed. 'How about that? She came back.'

'Maybe she doesn't like to see people get the crap beat out of them,' Pete suggested.

'Yeah... You're probably right.' But Mav wondered. Maybe he really had left an impression on her and maybe there really was a slim chance that she liked him, regardless of the fact he had embarrassed her earlier that afternoon. Perhaps if he avoided all these guys who wanted to make his life a misery, he might find out.

### CHAPTER 9:  
The Dreaded Rex Cassidy

Doug Andrews jerked his tie straight for the third time in two minutes. The green folder sat on his immaculate desk, its corners perfectly lined up with the desk pad beneath it. He glanced up at the clock; the final bell had rung. Rex Cassidy would be there any moment to discover his antics were no longer welcome at Taukauri College, and that at long last, here was a principal ready to bring the hammer down.

His intercom beeped and he pressed the button. 'Yes?'

'Rex Cassidy is here, Mr Andrews.'

'Send him in.'

Mr Andrews had hoped Rex's parents could be there too but that was not possible. It didn't matter though, as he would be sending a formal letter to them immediately and would be able to talk to them over the phone or the following day if they wished to come in.

The door opened and a tall, athletic teen stepped into his office.

'Rex Cassidy?'

'That's me.'

He was nothing like he'd expected. His uniform was immaculate, his shirt carefully ironed and not a stain on it. No piercings studded his face, no smirk touched his lips. His expression was almost...warm, likeable. He had striking deep blue eyes, wavy brown hair and a finely chiselled face.

'Take a seat.' Andrews motioned to the seat in front of his desk.

Rex walked casually over to the desk and without any warning leapt into the air, and landed, bang into the seat, his feet landing on the edge of Andrew's desk, his legs and arms crossed.

'What the...?' Andrews stared at Rex's school-uniform sandal-clad feet resting comfortably on the edge of his desk. It was hard to fathom that a guy as athletic and good looking as him would ever wear such attire but then, of course, he had no choice. The school expected uniforms to be worn by everyone except for year-13 students.

He came to his senses. 'Get your feet off my desk!' he boomed, glaring at the wayward teen, steaming at the casual manner in which he conducted himself.

Rex calmly lifted his feet and repositioned them on the floor. He seemed oblivious to the trouble he was in. Unless of course, he was one cocky son-of-a-gun who thought he didn't have anything to worry about. Well, he would be in for a real shock soon enough.

'You seem nonchalant for a boy who is in big trouble, lad.'

'What no coffee?' Rex replied, a gleam in his eye.

'What?'

'No coffee? Mr Morgan always offered me a coffee when I came to his office. Sometimes he would even open up the liquor cabinet.'

'Morgan had a liquor cabinet?' Andrews stared at Rex in total disbelief. The look on the boy's face was so matter-of-fact it looked as though he was serious.

'Oh yeah. We often used to sit down over a beer and discuss the day.'

Mr Andrews studied the serious expression on Rex's face for a moment and then realised he was being had. This guy was a con artist. Andrews had been certain this boy would not get away with his nonsense but it seemed he had severely underestimated him. He had walked right into Rex's trap with this talk about liquor cabinets and the boy had successfully led him off track with red herrings.

He peered towards the cocky teenager. 'Look, lad. You may think you can make a fool out of me like you do with the other teachers in this school but you're severely mistaken.'

'I would never dream of it. I can see right away you're the type of principal who doesn't take nonsense. I would be an eejit to try and take you on.'

'You better believe it. I don't take nonsense from any student.'

'Mr Morgan was always a little soft,' Rex continued. 'It wasn't hard to run rings around him, he was pretty gullible. You're obviously a lot smarter.'

'I like to think I am. I like to think I can match wits with my students. I can compete with the best of them, you'd better believe it.'

'I could believe that. I bet if I tried to lead you on a wild goose chase of words, I'd come out second best.'

'At least you're aware of that.'

'Definitely. I'd have to be up early in the morning to put one over on you.'

'You can get up as early as you like but it won't make any difference. I'm not going to be sucked in by the likes of you, no matter what.'

'I'll be sure to be careful about what I say to you in the future. You'll end up making me look like the eejit instead.'

'Just you make...' Damn it, he _was_ doing it again. The guy was making him look like a total idiot... or eejit as he put it. This kid was good, really good. 'Enough of this!' Andrews tried hard to hide his embarrassment. 'You've sidetracked me long enough. It's about time we talked about why it is you're sitting here in my office. There will be no coffee and there will be no alcohol, got it? You're here because of the trouble you've been causing. You may have thought you could get away with things under the old principal but you're not going to get away with things while I'm here. And I don't care if your parents are paying this school a bri- grant!'

Rex lifted his left eyebrow. 'A what? A bribe? Is that what you were about to say? That's quite an accusation isn't it?'

'I didn't say that.'

'You almost did.'

'Well, I didn't. And even if I did, it doesn't make any difference. No amount of money is going to keep you in this school, not while I'm principal.'

For the first time, a look of concern came over Rex's face. He gazed at Andrews and said nothing for several seconds. When he finally did, it was without his usual cockiness. 'What are you saying?'

'I'm saying that I am expelling you.'

Andrews waited to see what Rex's reaction would be. He expected a dramatic response, maybe anger, or even remorse.

Rex sat there expressionless.

Mr Andrews continued to study him for several seconds before speaking again, 'So have you got anything to say?'

'What needs to be said? You've made up your mind, haven't you?'

'By the way you're talking, it seems to me as though you're happy about this.'

'Not particularly. I like this school. But I also like being Rex Cassidy. That means I am who I am.'

Andrews stared at Rex. 'I don't believe what I'm hearing. You really don't care, do you?'

'Of course, I care. I've made many good friends here. But what good is me doing a big whinge or getting upset going to do? Entertain you? It's not going to change your mind. You're determined you don't want me here, so there's nothing I can do about it, is there?'

'No, there isn't. At least you can see my point of view. You see I won't tolerate fighting in this school. I won't tolerate the humbling of staff members and especially not tormenting them to the point that they would quit.' He glared at Rex for a few seconds just to let his words sink in.

Rex scowled. 'That eejit Matthews got what was coming to him. If I had my way, it would be a lot worse. He messed around with a friend of mine.'

'A friend of yours? You mean the girl you were in a relationship with?'

'Hell no. If he'd messed with her, it _definitely_ would have been a lot worse for that douchebag. It was a mutual friend of ours. We both wanted that crud bucket to go down so we came up with a plan to get rid of him.'

'You took the law into your own hands?'

'Last time I heard, constantly humiliating a teacher who deserved it was not considered vigilante justice.'

'That's beside the point. You had no business doing that. And to think your girlfriend went along with your twisted little scheme. That doesn't say much about her, does it?'

Rex's eyes narrowed and for a moment, Andrews feared he'd said too much, However, Rex spoke in a calm but serious tone. 'Let's not go there, Mr Andrews. Not if you are going to bad mouth her. So, leave her out of this and let's just focus on me, shall we?'

Andrews pretended that was what he intended, which for all intents and purposes was the case. 'Indeed, let's do that, shall we? This school will no longer tolerate the type of activities you have involved yourself in the past. Therefore, I must make an example of you. You have gotten away with too much for far too long. Do you understand?'

'Clearly.' Rex continued to peer at him through narrow eyes. 'So, I guess that's that then.'

'Yes, I guess it is but if I were you, I wouldn't be so blasé about this. Sure, you can go to some other school, some school that's struggling with its budget. You can offer them big bribes not to expel or suspend you but one day you might end up with a principal like me, one that won't take any nonsense. Frankly, I hope you do because you certainly can't go around rebelling against the system for the rest of your life. You can't keep going on bribing authority and living your life without regards for rules and those above you. And you certainly can't get away with playing the fool for the rest of your life, can you?'

Rex chuckled. 'We'll have to see, won't we Mr Andrews? We'll just have to see.'

### CHAPTER 10:  
One Act of Bravery

Holly lay in her bed the following morning. She psyched herself up to put on the act of being sick. She had to ignore the cheeriness of her bedroom, the pot plants and even the fake vine with artificial flowers coiling through the headboard of her bed. Other teenagers had posters on the wall but she had modern art instead. Unusual patterns, swirls of colour and vague images painted on canvas. Admiring it all made her feel good but she had to fight against the good feelings.

She groaned when her mother came by to wake her up. 'Come on, darling, it's time to get up. What's the matter?'

'I'm feeling sick.'

'Really?'

'Yeah. My stomach is so crook and I had to get up during the night and puke.'

'Oh, dear...'

'I... I can't go to school today and I really wanted to.'

'Are you sure you're sick?'

'Yes.' She let out another groan. 'I feel like freaking crap.'

Her mother sighed. 'Okay, I guess I'm gonna have to take the day off then.'

'Oh no. It's sweet. I'll be fine.'

'No, if my daughter is sick, I'm staying around here to make sure she's alright.'

Holly figured she would. She felt certain her mother appreciated the excuse to take the day off herself. She didn't want to push her luck anyway in case her mother got suspicious. She forced a smile. 'Thanks, Mum.'

Her mother left the room and immediately Holly felt relief. She'd brought it. All Holly had to do was remain in bed and keep an eye out her window for the mailman. She knew he tended to come by at around 11 am each morning and she hoped desperately she'd see him come before her mother did.

Her mother entered her room a few times, the first time asking if she felt like something to eat, which Holly declined, as she knew if she said yes, her mother would probably think she was okay after all. The second time she checked in around 10:30 to see if she was alright. Holly pretended to be asleep.

From then on Holly remained at the window keeping watch. Finally, the mailman arrived and he cycled up to their mailbox and dropped in mail. Holly hoped desperately that the letter from the school was there. She wasted no time and climbed out her bedroom window, still in her pyjamas and rushed over to the mailbox and opened it. To her relief, there was a letter from the school. She quickly took it and tucked it down the side of her pyjama pants. She turned and headed back for her window but froze when her mother's angry voice called out from across the yard...

' _What are you doing out here?'_

Holly did her best to hide her mortification and turned to see her mother standing on the front doorstep. She already had an excuse lined up that she intended to use if she got caught. 'I... I just felt like I needed some air.'

'So, what, you climbed out your bedroom window?' She pointed to the open window. 'Why didn't you use one of the doors like a normal person?'

'Well I – you know - didn't want you making a fuss.'

Her mother wandered over with a frown. 'Why would you come out front in your PJs? Wouldn't going around the back be more appropriate?'

Holly shrugged. 'Just wanted to come out here.'

Her mother studied her expression for a few moments. 'I don't think you're sick at all, are you? What are you up to? Is someone around here?' She scanned the yard.

'No, Mum don't be silly. Nobody's here. Now I'm feeling kind of queasy again. I'm gonna go back to bed.'

Her mother put on a staunch expression. 'No, you're not. You're gonna get ready for school and I'm gonna drive you there. I'm not having you hanging around here when you're not sick. Especially when I should be at work. Go on, go get your uniform on. We'll leave in half an hour.'

Holly didn't argue. She was just glad to get away with the letter from the school. She climbed back through her bedroom window and quickly opened the letter just to make sure it was the one she expected. She breathed a sigh of relief when she found it was. She grinned, slipped it into her school bag and went to take a shower.

She arrived at school just as lunchtime started and met up with Jacqui, Chelsea and a bunch of other girls who were eating their lunch outside E Block in a quaint garden area with trees and flowers.

'Hey, Holly, you're here?' Chelsea greeted her. 'Didn't expect you today. Did you get the letter?'

'Yep.' Holly sat beside them and pulled it out of her bag. 'I was lucky I got it when I did because as soon as I had it my mother came out and caught me. Fortunately, she didn't know I had the letter tucked down my PJ pants.'

'That's a relief,' Chelsea said, plucking an apple out of her lunchbox.

'But she figured I was only pretending to be sick so brought me back to school but that's okay. I'm just glad she never got hold of this letter.'

'Nice one,' Jacqui said. 'I'm glad the plan worked.' She took a bite out of a ham and lettuce sandwich.

Holly tore the letter into little pieces and threw it into one of the rubbish bins. 'I hope that's the last I ever hear about that.'

She sat back down with them and they chatted about more light-hearted topics. As usual, the conversation revolved around boys. This time it was about which of the new ones were the cutest and which ones were to be avoided. Holly thought it cool that almost all the boys were known by at least one of them. The only one no one knew was Tucker Pyles because he was from a completely different school.

'Don't know why he didn't just stay there,' Jacqui said, tossing a screwed-up ball of lunch wrap into the nearest bin. 'Just our luck he had to come to Te Arawa. I mean, he has to be the ugliest guy I've ever seen in my entire life.'

'That's for sure,' Holly agreed.

'And then there's Pete Cook,' Jacqui continued. 'He's been hovering around us like a bad smell a lot in the last day or so. Don't know why he bothers because he isn't gonna score with any of us. He has to be one of the biggest dorks in the entire school. And that Rick Maverick isn't much better.'

'Rick's okay,' Holly said. 'He's not a dork like him.'

Jacqui gave her a weird look. 'If you say so.'

Holly moved on to another name. 'So, what about Sheep? Chelsea, I get the feeling you have a thing for him.'

Chelsea blushed. 'Yeah, I like him. He's good looking and he's smart.'

'Sweet.'

Jacqui snickered. 'Brown vs Shepherd? No chance. He's not into your type.'

'We went for a walk after school on Monday night.'

'Oh, rack off, don't give me that.'

'We did!'

'Sure and why didn't you tell us about that yesterday?'

Chelsea fiddled with the lid of her lunch box. 'I... I was going to but...'

'But what?'

Holly examined the expression in Chelsea's eyes. It was as if she still wasn't convinced she wanted to talk about it. 'Did he do something?'

'No... well yes... it was nothing really.'

Holly felt concern. 'What did he do?'

'Well we went over to the cemetery into the trees there and he came onto me.'

Jacqui blurted. 'Oh, that is such a load of crap.'

'It's true!' Chelsea insisted. 'But I... I kind of freaked and did a runner.'

The girls around them laughed. Jacqui, however, seemed appalled. 'You what?'

'Yeah,' said Holly, equally as surprised. 'Why would you take off when clearly you like him so much?'

'I... I wasn't ready. It was happening too fast.'

Jacqui let out a groan. 'God, you are so lame. Here's this hot guy, who you want, who comes on to you and you reject his advances? What kind of an idiot dork are you?'

Chelsea's cheeks reddened even more. Holly wanted to stick up for her but didn't want to take the opposing side of her friend, so she said nothing.

'I just wanted to talk to him, nothing more.'

'Look, if a guy you fancy comes on to you, you don't just get freaked out like some little eight-year-old and go running for the hills.'

Holly felt she had to speak up this time. 'What, and make it look like you're easy? No way.' She quickly moved the conversation on so as not to give her friend a chance to respond. 'So, Chels, what are you gonna do now? He's gonna think you aren't into him. You are still into him, aren't you?'

'Yes, of course, I am,' Chelsea said. 'Hopefully, we can hang out at the beach.'

'Oh darling,' Jacqui said. 'You do realise there are going to be a whole heap of sweltering hot girls, all who will look far superior to you in a bikini who he will be more interested in. Especially after you just resisted his advances like you did. You've blown it.'

'Maybe there's still a chance,' Holly said.

'Yeah, well if there is she just better get her act together and make the moves on him, otherwise she'll miss out for sure, especially seeing as Sheep doesn't know some of the girls who are coming because they're from Akato. Girls like Mandy Evans. I've already seen the way Sheep looks at Mandy.'

' _Everybody_ looks at Mandy that way,' Holly said. 'They always have. She was like – you know - the hottest chick in our year at Akato.'

'Not from what I hear,' Jacqui said. 'Most of the Akato guys I've spoken to said you were.'

Holly couldn't believe that. Jacqui was just trying to give her an ego boost. 'Yeah, whatever, Jacqui.'

'It's true!'

'Yeah, yeah...' Holly brushed off the thought as nonsense. Then she noticed Chelsea now stared at the ground looking troubled. Holly hoped things would work out between her and Sheep.

A small disturbance, going on not far away, attracted their attention. Tucker was there with Pete and a couple of year-nine students. He was being handed large volumes of food and it appeared to be under protest by those he took it from.

'What's going on over there?' Holly asked.

'I don't know,' Jacqui replied. 'Looks like he's taking their food.'

'Oh wow... what a tough guy. Stealing people's food.' Holly watched on with contempt.

When Tucker saw the girls, he made a beeline towards them, balancing sandwiches and cakes in one hand and scoffing down a filled roll with the other. 'Hey, you!' He glared at Holly.

Holly shrunk back as he waddled over to them. He didn't even look at Jacqui who he had threatened the day before. 'What do you want?'

'Got any food?' he asked munching away. 'I'm hungry.'

'What do you need more for? You've got heaps in your hands.'

'This is my breakfast. I need morning tea too.'

'Well, don't expect any from us.'

'Yeah, you fat weirdo,' Jacqui said. 'Why don't you just rack off, you lousy piece of crap?'

A glare appeared on Tucker's flabby face. 'I'm gonna teach you a lesson.' He grabbed Jacqui by the sleeve of her uniform but she pulled away, whacking his arm aside. Cakes and sandwiches went showering everywhere.

'Get your hands off me, you butthead. Don't you dare touch me again.'

Holly rose to her feet and took her friend's side. 'Yeah, rack off, creep. Only a coward would threaten a girl.'

'Right, that does it.'

He screwed up his fist and drew it back, aiming it in the direction of Holly. She recoiled in horror and her feet seemed to become rooted to the ground. She could hardly move or breathe. Was this boy really going to hit her?

'Leave her alone, Tucker.' From seemingly out of nowhere, Mav stepped in front of him. 'She's right. You are a ruddy coward. Only a coward would hit a girl.'

Tucker's face reddened as he lowered his fist. Then he directed a psychotic glare towards Mav and spoke with venom in his voice. 'This has nothing to do with you, ubbhead.'

Mav delivered no jokes. His eyes widened as if he'd just figured out what danger he was in and he fidgeted. Holly knew this was so unlike Mav standing up to bullies like this. He was normally the passive type and for a moment she felt warm and pleasantly surprised that he would stand up for her in this manner. Nevertheless, seeing his expression told her he was far from confident.

Tucker's glare turned to one of intrigue. 'Wait a minute...' And then his glare returned, 'I do know you, don't I? Yeah... I know you. You were that ubbhead at the beach the other week. The one who made fun of me. You remember what I said I would do to you if I saw you again?'

Mav's eyes widened even more but he didn't move, seemingly paralyzed. Holly had no idea what Tucker was talking about but Mav seemed to.

Tucker lunged forward, taking a swing at Mav's head with his free hand. Mav ducked under it and in a lightning-quick move, dived into him, tackled him around the waist, and brought him crashing to the ground. Both boys grappled with each other, trying to gain the upper hand and exchanging blows whenever they could. A crowd quickly assembled around them, cheering Mav on.

Holly found herself being shunted to the back but she had to see the outcome. Surely Mav would not be able to take on a guy the size of Tucker?

'Get him, Mav!' Pete yelled out and swung his fist through the air.

Holly pushed through a gap. Both struggled, each trying to overpower the other. They rolled repeatedly and Tucker ended up on top. Mav, pinned underneath, couldn't move or breathe. Tucker sent blows to his face and chest. Mav could do nothing to retaliate. Holly could only stare in horror.

She finally found her voice. 'Stop it!' she shouted. 'Stop it right now!' She tried to reach in and pull Tucker off Mav but to no avail. He was way too big and heavy.

Then came a saviour - Wal, of all people, appeared. He shoved Tucker off with a burst of power and stood between both of them as the huge bully rose slowly to his feet, his face red with anger. The two big boys faced each other down, their eyes ablaze and scowls on their faces. 'You wanna try that on me, scumbag? Go on!'

'You're dead, ubbhead!'

Mr Reaper broke through the crowds of students. He didn't see Mav bruised and battered on the ground, only Wal and Tucker about to take each other on. 'Break it up you two!' He grabbed them both by the shirt. 'Both of you in my office. Now!'

'But—' Tucker started to say.

'Now!' the deputy principal hauled them both away in the direction of the office block.

Everybody else just stood there, bewildered while Mav continued to lie on the grass, wiping blood from his mouth. Some of the spectators wandered off, seemingly disappointed that they did not get to see Wal and Tucker battle it out. Even Holly would have loved to see that but right now her main concern was Mav.

She dropped down beside him and touched his shoulder. 'Are you all right?' She could see he wasn't. He'd taken a real battering from Tucker but he offered a weak smile. 'I'm okay.'

Holly stared at him in awe. To think he had taken a beating to protect her like that. 'I've never seen you stand up to anyone like that before.'

'Standing up?' Mav asked. 'I thought I was lying down.' He smiled and flinched, stung by a cut on his lip.

'Even with a cut lip, he jokes.'

'With a cut lip, my jokes are going to end up even more warped.'

Jacqui stepped forward. 'Is that possible? Hey, nice try, Mav. Pity you didn't waste that jerk.'

'There wouldn't have been any point. He's all garbage as it is.'

'That's the truth.'

Holly examined his bleeding mouth. 'I should take you to the school nurse. You should get it cleaned up, you know?'

'It'll be okay,' Mav assured her. 'Besides, she'd only ask questions.'

'True.' Holly continued to gaze at him. Even though red marks from Tucker's punches tainted his face and blood trickled from his lip, she found something so alluring about him right then. Could one act of bravery make a guy like Mav more desirable than before?

Pete interrupted her thoughts when he crouched down and patted Mav on the back. 'Good try, Mav. Good try.' He turned his eyes to Holly. 'Hi, Hol.'

Holly felt irritated by his interruption and didn't much care for the shortening of her name either, 'Don't call me Hol.'

'Sorry, Holly. So, what do you think of Te Arawa College so far?'

She glared at him in disbelief. 'You want to ask me that now?' She took Mav's arm. 'Why don't you make yourself useful, Pete and help me get him up?'

Without argument, Pete aided her in helping Mav to his feet.

'I should go get washed up,' Mav said.

Holly gazed into his hazel eyes, not wanting him to go. She wanted to talk to him and not just as some school friend but as something more. Then a thought sprung to mind; a way she could make that happen. She could invite him to the beach get-together on Saturday. 'Mav, wait...' She felt nervous. What if he didn't want to hang out with her? What if he saw her as just another classmate, someone he'd known for years, and not even the slightest romantic inkling for?

'What's up?' Mav asked.

'I...err... a group of us are going to the beach on Saturday. Would you like to come along?'

Mav raised an eyebrow. 'You want me to come to the beach with you?'

Holly felt small and wished she hadn't asked. How could she have let herself get so carried away just because he'd stood up for her? 'Well... yeah, we could hang out.'

She noticed Mav's eyes flicker over to Pete who stood there with his head hung low. 'Umm...' He tucked his shirt in and forced his eyes back to Holly. 'I err...' He cringed and rubbed his swelling lip. 'I'm not too sure if I can make it.'

Holly felt her heart sag. 'Oh.'

Mav winced. 'It's just that Pete and I kinda had plans.' Once again, he gazed across at Pete who raised his head looking a little surprised.

Holly wondered if he was just making excuses. She found it so hard to tell with him, so made sure. 'It's okay, you can bring him.'

Jacqui snorted but Holly didn't acknowledge her.

'Okay then.' Mav said. 'I'll come.'

'Sweet!' Holly felt a major relief course through her and she smiled. 'It'll be so much fun.'

### CHAPTER 11:  
Don't mention the D-Word

'She likes you,' Pete said after Mav had washed up and came back out to meet him.

'Who, Holly?'

'Of course.'

Mav pondered on that comment for a moment. 'You really think so?'

'No doubt about it.'

Mav snorted. 'Nah! She's never shown any real interest in me. Sure, we're friends but nothing more.'

'Is that what you think?'

'Yeah. okay, I said yesterday that I've tried to go after her in the past but I was only saying that. I've never had a thing for her.' He didn't think he sounded convincing. Perhaps he was only kidding himself?

Pete shook his head. 'You're mad, you know? How could you not have a thing for Holly Robinson?'

Mav shrugged. 'I've known her for too long. Since Kindy. Sure, she's attractive but I don't see her in the way most guys do. Probably because we've practically grown up together.'

'Has she ever asked you on a date before?'

'No.'

'Well, she has now.'

Mav chuckled. 'That's not a date, that's friends hanging out.'

'Look, man, I'm no expert on girls but whatever there was in the past something's changed. Maybe it was you standing up to Tucker?'

Mav pondered on that for a moment. Could something like that really change a girl's opinion on a guy? Supposedly, it was possible. 'Look, when it comes to girls, I've always come up short. I can't imagine she'd ever be into me. But who knows? Maybe you're right, I don't know. Does it matter?'

Pete sighed. 'I don't know if I wanna go to this beach party now.'

'Why not? You were keen a few minutes ago.'

'Jacqui doesn't want me there and neither will some of the others. Besides, do you really want me to sit there and watch you and Holly having fun all day?'

'Of course not. This is a golden opportunity for you. You could make a play for her. Show her just how studly you are. Show her how a Cook can have a good time.'

'I guess so.'

Mav rubbed his chin thoughtfully and something came to mind. A plan that might help his pal feel a bit better and perhaps even improve his chances of getting the girl. 'Hey, I've got a plan to get you in Holly's good books.'

'Are you telling me you're not interested in her?'

'Look, I know how much you like her. If it means that much to you, I'll try to hold her at bay. Besides, it's Samantha I'm interested in.' He told the truth about that. As pretty as Holly was, she was nothing compared to Sam, at least in his mind.

'A plan huh?' Pete's manner lightened up a bit. 'So, what do you have in mind?'

'You, my friend, are going to become a hero.'

'And just how is that gonna happen?'

'You are going to rescue me from drowning...'

They sat on a bench under the trees outside E Block and Mav outlined his plan. Pete seemed to like the idea Mav had in mind and his mood perked up considerably. Pete still had further questions but before Mav could answer them, Tucker stepped up causing Mav to shrink back.

Mav soon learnt he had other things on his mind; things that Mav was certain occupied his mind most of the day.

'Okay hand it over.'

Mav felt a little relieved as he dug into his bag, knowing what Tucker wanted. He had come prepared but what he had for the big bully was likely to get him into even more trouble. Nevertheless, as much as he wanted to avoid another beating, he couldn't afford to be giving his lunches to Tucker every day.

'You'd better have good stuff for me,' Tucker growled in his usual surly manner, looking at Mav in particular. 'And you'd better watch it, ubbhead, unless you want more of what I gave you earlier.'

When he saw what Pete presented to him, he let out a delighted cry. 'UBBA! Honey sandwiches. My favourite. Chocolate cake! UBBAAAAA!'

'So, what happened at the office?' Pete said. 'You weren't there for long.'

'Nope because Ullman and I never actually had a fight so he had nothing he could do us for. Ha ha ha.' He turned his glare to Mav. 'Stupid ubbhead didn't realise the fight was over and I'd beaten your pathetic butt to the ground. And Ullman definitely didn't tell him. Now, where's your's, ubbhead? What have you got for me?'

Mav took a deep breath and withdrew a solitary lettuce sandwich wrapped in plastic. The lettuce wasn't fresh. His mother had been about to chuck it out when Mav rescued it. The bread was stale too. 'Enjoy.' He smiled and extended it towards him.

'What?' Tucker gaped at the sandwich. 'Is that all?'

'Yep. A good old lettuce sandwich. Ubba.'

A scowl appeared on Tucker's face. 'Where's the rest of it?'

Mav shook the sandwich. 'That's it, I'm afraid. My mother's put me on a diet. Ruddy cow.'

Tucker's eyes popped out. 'What did you say? Don't you dare say that around me.'

'What? Ruddy cow?'

'No! The other word.'

'What other word?'

'The D-word. That's sacrilege. I won't have it.'

It dawned on Mav what he was going on about and it took quite a lot of effort not to laugh. 'Sorry about that, Tucks. I won't mention dieting again.'

Tucker's face paled and he gave the crucifix sign. He snatched the sandwich off Mav with a renewed glare. 'Lucky for you, lettuce sandwiches are my favourite.' He marched away.

Pete stared at Mav and blinked several times. Even Mav couldn't believe his luck but he smiled as if it were a plan he masterminded. He pulled out another bundle of food: A hamburger, fruit, and a carton of juice.

'You sneaky sod.' Pete's face showed no expression. 'And Tucker bought it too.'

Mav continued to smile, feeling quite pleased with himself. 'Maybe you should go on that diet too. Nothing like a good "Say you're on a diet when you're not really on a diet" diet. That's the most popular one when it comes down to it. Either that or the "See Food" diet Tucker's on. All these other diets, the Sugar-Free diet, the Apple diet, the Chocolate diet, etc, etc, are just a have, aren't they? Nobody sticks to them.'

Pete's eyes narrowed but he said nothing more.

'Yo, newbie.' Wal arrived on the scene and plonked himself on the bench beside Mav. He dropped his schoolbag on the ground. 'Didn't get into trouble, thank God. Didn't tell Reaper about you and Pyles either so you wouldn't get into trouble.'

'Thanks,' Mav said. 'Much appreciated.'

'Too bad I didn't get a chance to deal with that fat twerp. Maybe you need to take self-defence classes, Maverick. Fancy letting him pin you to the ground like that. Big mistake.'

'It was kind of unavoidable.'

'You needed to take him out before he landed his fat ass on you. that's what I would have done.'

'I'll try to do better next time.'

'You better. Anyway, Pete, I got those mags you wanted.'

Pete's face lit up. 'Oh, cool!'

'What mags?' Mav asked.

Wal opened his bag and pointed inside. There were a couple of glossy magazines with female models on the front cover. 'Five bucks a copy.

'Why would I pay for that sort of stuff when I can get that on the Internet for free?'

'Because you don't have to worry about anyone tracking your Internet usage.'

'Or catching you looking,' Pete added. 'My mum's always trying to see what I'm doing online.'

'You still interested?' Wal asked.

'Hell yeah! Where did you get those anyway? You're too young to buy those.'

'Like I said the other day. My older brother has a collection. I just swipe the odd copy every now and then. He never notices.' Wal glanced around to make sure there were no teachers about and pulled one out for Pete to look at. Pete held his own schoolbag up to provide cover and flicked through a few pages.

A scowl appeared on his face. 'Hey, there are pages ripped out.'

'Don't worry about it,' Wal said. 'It's only a few.'

Mav snickered. 'So, you rip out the best pics and keep them for yourself?'

Wal delivered Mav an evil look. 'My brother must have ripped them out.'

'Of course.' Mav suppressed a further snicker. 'Those damn big brothers, huh?'

'You have one, Maverick?'

'Nah.'

Wal continued to peer at him for a few moments and then turned to Pete. 'Well? Five bucks a copy? Still worth it.'

'I'll take one.'

'One?' Wal scowled. 'I risk bringing in porn in my bag and all you want is one copy?'

'I had to buy more food for Tucker.'

'What, you're giving Pyles food?'

'Yeah. He's forcing us to give it to him.'

Wal snorted. 'Geez, you clueless bastards need to stand up for yourself. Stop letting scumbags like him push you around. 'Okay, which one?' He pulled the other magazines out and a huge bunch of keys toppled out of his bag.

Mav gazed at them. 'That's one hell of a bunch. Why do you need so many?'

'It's my collection.' Wal picked them up and juggled them in his hand causing a jingling of metal on metal. 'Useful when you want to get into doors.'

'Fancy that. Keys useful for getting into doors.'

'There's always one in that bunch that will get a door open.' He chuckled. 'Believe it or not, I've even got one here I stole from the Reaper's office.'

Pete snorted. 'What? An actual key for his office? Not just one that fits?'

Wal threw the bunch of keys extra high this time and caught them adeptly. 'Yep.'

'Get outta here! How did you get that?'

'I was in his office one day in trouble for getting into a scrap. Sneaked it into my pocket when he left for a few minutes.'

'You da man.'

'He didn't even know I'd taken it. Never has asked about it. I've had it in my bunch for over a year now. It's easy to find. It has a pink head and the number 11 on it. The number of Reaper's office. I could go in there any time I want.'

'So, why haven't you?'

'Who says I haven't?'

Mav gazed at the expression on Wal's face. He didn't buy it. 'Why would you need to go into his office when he's not there?'

Wal narrowed his eyes at Mav for a few seconds but then grinned. 'Nah, I haven't used it. Never had any need to. Nothing in his office I'd want to nick anyway.'

'You could go in there and vandalise it,' Pete said.

'Are you serious?' Mav said.

'Well, maybe not vandalise it. Just trash it a bit and maybe graffiti his desk.'

'Hey, I like that,' Wal said. 'Cooks, you may have just come up with a good use for that particular key.'

'Let's do it,' Pete said. 'Teach him a lesson for causing me and Mav that trouble on Monday. Is he still in his office?'

'Nah, he left when we did.'

'He'll either be back at the staffroom having his lunch or back patrolling the grounds like he usually does.'

'Yeah, why not? Will give us something to do.' He shoved one of his magazines into Pete's hand. 'Here, you can have that one. Five bucks please.'

Pete reluctantly handed over the money, took the magazine and put it into his bag.

Wal rose to his feet and slung his bag over his shoulder. 'Come on, we'll all go.'

Mav stayed put. He had no desire to risk doing something so foolish as to break into a staff member's office. 'You guys are kidding, right?'

Another scowl appeared on Wal's face. 'Hey, you're in on this too, newbie. Otherwise, you're likely to go and tell on us. Besides you owe me one for not dobbing you in for fighting Pyles... if you can call getting your ass handed to you on a plate, fighting. Come on, on your feet, or I'll smack you one.'

Mav didn't want to have to owe a guy like Wal one, so reluctantly climbed to his feet and followed the two as they made their way to the office block. 'This is stupid. What if we get caught?'

Wal spoke in a wimpy little voice, 'What if we get caught? Geez, don't be a wuss, Maverick. There'll hardly be anyone around the offices right now anyway.'

They made their way to the offices and walked through the corridor as if heading to reception. They came across no one else in the corridor and reached the office without being noticed. Sure enough, the key from Wal's bunch fitted the lock and seconds later, they entered.

The room was already untidy. There were bookshelves cluttered with books willy-nilly. A large fern in a pot stood next to the vice principal's desk. It looked rather tired and Mav wondered whether it had been watered recently. The desk itself had papers scattered over it along with a couple of empty coffee mugs.

Immediately, Wal and Pete got to work making even more of a mess. They shoved papers and other items off the desk. Pete then went over to a bookshelf and pulled books from it, dumping them on the floor.

'Come on, newbie,' Wal ordered in a soft but angry voice. 'You're in on this too, remember?'

Mav sighed and figured he might as well give in and join in the fun. He picked up the potted fern and much to the delight of Wal and Pete tipped it out over the deputy principal's desk.

'Nice,' Wal said with a grin. 'I knew I liked you for some reason, Maverick. Hey, Cook, grab those marker pens. Let's draw graffiti on the walls. Write, "The Reaper is a douche."

'Right O, Wal,'

'Yeah.' Mav smirked. 'And under that write "Tucker Pyles was here."

Pete muffled a laugh. 'I like that.'

### CHAPTER 12:  
Unauthorised Beach Trip

Friday night arrived, the evening Chelsea dreaded the one where she had to lie to her parents to be let out of the house the following day. Her mother and younger brother Glen played Monopoly on the lounge floor. She would have joined them but couldn't bring herself to relax in that manner when she felt so nervous.

Her dad wasn't home that evening so it was just a matter of getting the okay from one of her parents, rather than both. She sat in an easy chair to watch the television and when her mother and Glen finally finished their game, she plucked up the courage to speak.

'Err, Mum...'

'Yes, darling?'

'Um...' she crossed her fingers, 'Mrs Johnson asked me to help out at the St John's Hall tomorrow.'

Mrs Johnson was the librarian at College and one of the leaders at the St John's Hall Chelsea attended every Wednesday night. Well, usually every Wednesday night but, of course, she hadn't been able to get there this week because of the grounding.

'Doing what, darling?'

'They're doing a clean-up that's going to take most of the day. They have some of the cadets coming but most of them aren't too keen to help. I said I would last week.'

'You are grounded you know.' Her mother frowned.

'Yes, but I already volunteered before I was grounded and I would just be working. I wouldn't be having fun. Not really. They need me and I'd just be doing my duty.'

Her mother sighed. 'I suppose it'd be alright.'

Chelsea breathed easy but at the same time felt bad. She made it a rule to always be truthful to her parents. They trusted her and had no reason not to trust her this time. The guilt seemed overwhelming.

She also worried about the weather. If it turned out too lousy, the beach trip would be postponed and the risk would be for nothing. If the sun shone, then all that time outside would improve her tan significantly. That would normally be great but not if she was supposed to be inside all day cleaning up. She would have to tell more lies to explain that.

The next day arrived soon enough and fortunately, the weather was clear and it looked as though it was going to be a great day. She headed off with her swimming gear and lunch tucked away in her bag, leaving as quickly as she could, in case one of her parents changed their mind or offered to give her a lift to the hall. A ten-minute walk took her to a house belonging to one of the girls. Jacqui was already there and didn't take much notice of her. She busily yacked with the others.

They travelled along the main road in Mr Donaldson's van, chatting excitedly. The sun shone through the glass and they had their windows wound down as the van cruised along the open road. The subject was boys and how So-and-So was going to be there and how What's-his-name was coming. It sounded like the boys were going to outnumber them ten to one.

Holly was the only one who remained quiet.

'You okay, Hol?' Chelsea asked.

'Yeah, sweet.' There was little emotion in her voice.

'What's up?'

'Oh...nothing... just thinking about a guy is all.'

Jacqui jerked her head around. 'A guy? Who?' All the girls in the van shut their mouths and fixed their sights on Holly. 'Come on, spit it out. Please, don't tell me it's—'

'Rick Maverick.'

'Oh God, I knew it. The strange one.'

Holly frowned. 'He's not strange.'

'Could have fooled me. Don't tell me you fancy that guy?'

Holly shuffled around in her seat a little but didn't reply.

'I don't believe it, you do!' Jacqui smiled with a snort. 'Since when did you fancy him? You never told us you liked him.'

'Well, you know, I've always liked him but now I, you know, really, _really_ like him.'

Jacqui rolled her eyes. 'You're mad.'

'Why?' Laura Stott asked. 'He's all right. He saved her from that Tucker scumbag, didn't he?'

'Yeah, but still, I just didn't pick him as your type.'

'Neither did I,'

'Maverick vs Robinson?' Jacqui mused. 'That just sounds warped.'

'So, what's the matter?' Chelsea asked.

Holly turned her eyes to the floor. 'Well, you know, I don't think he feels the same about me.'

'He's mad then,' Jacqui commented. 'He must be gay or something.'

'No, he's not.'

'Then what's his problem?'

Holly shrugged.

Chelsea wiped hair from her eyes as the wind blew through the car window. 'He is coming today, isn't he?'

Holly gazed hopefully out the window. 'He said he would.'

'So, he'll be here,' said Mandy Evans. 'He wouldn't have said he'd come if he didn't like you, would he?'

Holly didn't reply.

After a few minutes' drive, they arrived at the beach. The sea crashed onto the beach and the occasional gull screeched. A rocky coastline stretched either way for quite some distance. Chelsea could easily spend hours there, walking along the rocks and looking for sea anemones, small fish and crabs.

A cool breeze wafted along the shore. Other people relaxed on the beach, mainly young people like Chelsea and her companions, some exploring the rocks, others sunbathing or swimming.

Some of the guys were already there - Ginge, as well as Wayne Radovich and Alan Wood. And yes! Sheep was there.

They chose a spot near the water and set out their gear. Everyone stripped down to their swimsuits. Jacqui got Ginge to rub suntan lotion on her back and Sheep appeared to be there as backup if needed. Chelsea sighed. She hoped Sheep might come, sit and talk to her. Maybe she really had blown it with him and she was destined to sit this one out and be depressed.

She laid her towel next to Holly who seemed more concerned with scanning the beach than making herself comfortable. Chelsea glanced over to Sheep and their eyes met. Her first instinct was to look away but she didn't and her heart leapt when Sheep smiled, got up, walked over and sat beside her.

'Hi, Chels. Good to see you here. Man, you are looking hot.'

Chelsea blushed, and gazed down at her one-piece swimsuit. Did he really mean that or was he just trying to flatter her? 'It's err... it's good to be here. I'm glad you're still speaking to me.'

'Yah, sorry, I know I haven't said much to you over the last few days. I guess I was still a little miffed about what happened on Monday but don't worry about it. I thought about what you said at school and it's okay. I wouldn't want to be the beggar that was trying to push you to do something you weren't happy with.'

'I don't blame you for being a little miffed. I'd probably feel a bit the same way.'

'It's just that, well...' He twisted the corner of his mouth. 'If I'm gonna go around with a chick, I kind of expect we're gonna be able to do stuff like that, you know?'

Chelsea gazed at him for a few seconds. She wished it was that easy for her but there was a lot of conflict in her head. A huge part of her believed it should be possible to go see a guy without it having to get physical in the manner Sheep wanted. The other part of her still wanted him, despite his cigarette smoking and the way he treated people who weren't part of his crowd. 'Sheep, it's not that I don't want to do that stuff. It's just that I don't want to just do it for the sake of it, you know what I mean? I want it to be special.'

'Hey, I can make it special.'

'I guess I just like things to move a little more slower, you know? Just a little bit slower. _'_

Sheep curled up the side of his mouth again.

'Does it have to be fast?' she asked.

Sheep shrugged. 'I guess not.'

Just then one of the other girls called out to him. 'Hey, Sheep! We're going in the water. Coming?'

'Yeah, okay.' Without another word or even glance at Chelsea, Sheep climbed to his feet and scurried off down the beach after them. She watched sadly. She would have gone herself if he'd encouraged her to. Besides, Jacqui and Holly remained there sunbathing. If she wanted to be accepted by Jacqui, she figured it best to remain there with them and only enter the water when they did.

Jacqui had a large two-litre bottle of what looked like orange juice and poured some into plastic cups. 'I have been so looking forward to drinking some of this.'

'What is it?' Holly asked.

'Try it.' She handed Holly a cup.

Holly raised it cautiously to her face and took a sip. She pulled a face. ' _Jacqui._ Have you been raiding your father's bar again?'

'Yep.' Jacqui grinned. 'It's Screwdriver. I mixed it myself. Just a little bit extra vodka though.'

'If we get caught with this, we'll be in big trouble.'

'Oh, shut up and enjoy it.'

'What about Chelsea?'

'She won't drink this. She's too much of a geek, remember? She'd just be wanting chocolate milk or something like that. She's even too scared to make out with Rog Shepherd.' She drank from her own cup.

Chelsea couldn't handle the thought of being left out, even though she dreaded the thought of drinking something alcoholic. 'I'll have one.'

Jacqui nearly spat out the drink from her mouth. 'Oh _right._ Suuuure you will. Miss Goodie-Two-Shoes Brown would never drink anything that didn't have some kind of cartoon animal on the label.'

'I will!' Chelsea frowned.

'Alright then. But you better not puke it up. I don't want to see a drop wasted.'

She handed Chelsea over a cup. Once she had it in her hand though, she felt the jitters and nearly chickened out. She probably would have if it wasn't for both Holly and Jacqui watching her.

'Come on,' Jacqui said. 'Or are you just gonna continue to be a geek?'

Chelsea finally took a mouthful. She did her best not to gag as she found the taste of the vodka extremely bitter. The entire drink reminded her of some disgusting tasting medicine. She refused to let her repulsion be known to the other girls though and smiled. 'Wow, that's nice.'

Jacqui smiled. ' _I don't believe it_. Maybe you're not the total wuss we thought you were?'

Chelsea pretended to drink more and let out a fake sigh of satisfaction. This seemed to please Jacqui and she turned her attention to one of her friends on the other side of her. Holly turned her eyes back to the beach.

Quickly, Chelsea took what was left of her cup of drink and poured it out onto the sand. She covered the wet patch over with dry sand and went back to sunbathing.

### CHAPTER 13:  
Unexpected Hero

Holly rubbed suntan lotion on herself, every now and then and glanced down the beach, wondering if Mav was ever going to show. Maybe he'd changed his mind about coming, perhaps he considered it too much like a date, rather than just friends hanging out.

Her head throbbed and seemed like a complete mess. The light-headedness from drinking the screwdriver didn't either. She hoped she didn't say or do anything stupid like she did the last time Jacqui had convinced her to drink that RTD. What really troubled her though was she couldn't get Mav out of her mind and it frustrated her that she couldn't. Sure, he had always been her friend but now she yearned for something more. She couldn't figure how one slightly heroic act could change her so much. And now all she could worry about was that he didn't feel the same way about her.

She reached for her cup of Screwdriver. If it wasn't for her worries she would have been reluctant to touch it but she needed something to soothe her nerves so drank some more.

Fifteen minutes ticked by and in that time, she drank another two cups of Screwdriver. It relaxed her but at the same time made it even harder to think straight. The group who had been swimming came back and one of the boys sat beside her and tried to engage her in conversation.

'So, what do you think of Te Arawa so far?'

She knew she'd heard his name mentioned but for the life of her couldn't recall it, although wasn't particularly interested in finding out. 'It's fine, Ronald' she said without enthusiasm.

'Umm, my name is Herman.'

She nearly spat out a mouthful of Screwdriver. 'Herman?' Then she remembered her and her friends laughing about his name earlier that week. 'Oh yeah. The guy whose parents really hated him.' She laughed. She normally wouldn't have joked about a person's name like that in front of them but just couldn't help it. Perhaps it was the alcohol in her orange juice, which had broken away her inhibitions?

'Umm...' Herman's cheeks reddened. 'I don't think they hated me. They just liked the name for some reason. You're old friends of Jacqui, right?'

'Yeah.'

'I've never seen you around. You live in Akato, right?'

Holly giggled when she thought of something else funny. 'Is your last name Munster?'

'No, it's not.'

'Oh.' She released another fit of giggles.

'Ha ha,' said Herman and smiled wryly. 'There's always someone who comes up with that joke.'

'Oh no, I made an old joke.'

'I'm afraid you did.'

'Damn.'

Herman studied her for a few faces, the wry smile still on his face. 'I gotta say, you look really hot in that bikini.'

Holly didn't reply. Even the desire to joke and make fun of him died. She felt like putting a towel around herself so he wouldn't be able to gawk at her.

'So, err...' the boy continued.

Two other figures appeared, walking along the sand towards them.

When Holly saw who it was she gasped in delight. 'Mav!' At last, he was here. She was about to rise to her feet but paused when she saw Jacqui peer over at her with contempt. It reminded her to stay cool. She didn't want Jacqui thinking she was going all ditzy over a guy.

'You're here,' she said as he drew closer, Pete alongside him.

Herman sighed and went back to his towel where a couple of the other boys sat. Holly felt glad to be free of him.

'What did you say?' Mav asked, on reaching them.

'I said, you're here.'

His jaw dropped and eyes widened. He jerked his head from one direction to the next. 'Well, what do you know? So, I am!' He grinned. 'I was wondering where I was there for a moment.'

'Why did you bring him?' Jacqui pointed at Pete.

'I don't know. Why did you bring your personality?'

Jacqui glared at Mav but didn't reply.

'Join the party,' Ginge invited them in a friendly tone.

'Bit of a risk for you isn't it, Cook?' Sheep said in a rather surly tone of voice.

'Why?'

'A shark might mistake you for a lump of seaweed.'

'I thought sharks were meat-eaters,' Ginge said.

Pete didn't seem too concerned with the ridicule. He sat with Mav beside Holly and smiled broadly at her. 'Need lotion rubbed on your back?'

Holly delivered him a weird look and was about to say "Not likely," but then noticed the disgusted look on Jacqui's face, something a lot harsher was in order. She narrowed her eyes. 'Rack off, Pete. Why don't you go get a life? Why would I want a wally like you touching me?'

She immediately felt bad about it, so looked away so she wouldn't have to see his reaction.

'Yeah, Cook, get a life,' Jacqui added, with a scowl. 'Why you'd ever think a class act like Holly would want a dork like you rubbing suntan lotion on her, I have no idea.'

Holly still felt bad having spoken so meanly to Pete but pushed the feelings of guilt aside and turned towards Mav who studied her carefully. He must have thought she was awful, talking to his friend like that. 'Actually, Mav...' Holly said feeling bold. 'I was hoping that – you know - you'd do the honours.'

Some of the other girls oohed and aahed and friendly teasing came in the form of encouragement.

'Go for it, Holly.'

'Way to go!'

' _Robinson vs... what's his name again?'_

Holly couldn't look at Mav and covered her face with her T-shirt.

Jacqui snickered. 'What's the big deal? It's just suntan lotion.'

Holly felt the T-shirt pull gently from her head and her eyes met Mav's as he nestled down beside her and smiled warmly.

She giggled. 'My gosh, I hate them sometimes.'

He just laughed.

'So, come on then, boy.' She handed him the bottle. She felt empowered as she did it and the embarrassment she'd felt a few seconds earlier disappeared. 'Or are you afraid you might get girl germs?'

Mav chuckled. 'Not at all.'

She continued to stare into his eyes. He really did have nice eyes. They were hazel, full of life and he had the most alluring long eyelashes. She loved long eyelashes on a guy. He had certainly changed over the last year or so. He had always been a skinny kid but now he had filled out a bit.

She relaxed as he got behind her and rubbed the lotion into her upper back and neck. It felt so good. His hands were soft and gentle and she still had that lightheaded feeling from the drink. She swallowed more from her cup. She noticed Pete sitting there a few feet away, peering at Mav. Something in his eye bothered her; a hint of malevolence. She would expect he might look at her that way, the way she had spoken to her but not Mav. Perhaps it was simply jealousy, Mav being the one she picked to rub suntan lotion on her while rejecting him.

She ignored him and just enjoyed the pleasure of having the lotion rubbed into her skin. She closed her eyes. 'I'm glad you came. I was starting to get bored. That freak Herman Munster was trying to hit on me.'

'Oh, oh,' Mav said in an amused tone. 'Sounds like you don't want to be talked to. I'd better shut up.'

'It's okay, you hit on... you can talk to me.'

'I'm honoured.' He sloshed more sunscreen, this time applying it to her lower back.

'Don't be. It's just me, Holly Robinson remember?'

'Well how about some small talk then?' He gently rubbed the lotion in. 'They say it's gonna be fine weather all day long today. It certainly is looking that way. I'm guessing the temperature must be somewhere around 26 degrees.'

Holly laughed. 'I do not want to talk about the weather. How about something more interesting? Like Mr Reaper's office being trashed. I couldn't believe it when they announced it in assembly yesterday morning. He must have left it unlocked otherwise how would anyone get in there?'

He slowed his rubbing. 'It would seem that way but of course, Mr Reaper won't admit he left his door unlocked.'

'I'd love to know who did it. They deserve a medal.'

Mav chuckled. 'Let's just hope the Reaper doesn't find out who it is. I'd hate to see those twits get into trouble.'

Mav finished off his job and rose to his feet. Holly opened her eyes and gazed up at him wishing he could stay and continue massaging her.

'I'm going over there to swim.' He pointed to a more dangerous part of the beach, a part known for its strong undertow.

'What?' Holly stared across with concern. 'By yourself?'

'Yeah, nothing to worry about. Pete here completed a survival certificate in swimming a few years back. If anything happened to me, which it won't, he'll be there to help.'

'That's right.' Pete smiled.

Holly found the claim hard to believe and felt Mav was being a little gullible. 'But you know you shouldn't go out there. It's dangerous.'

'I'm a strong swimmer,' Mav assured her. 'I've been out there before.'

'I wish you'd stay in the safe area.'

'Don't worry about me. If I get caught in a rip... well, I'll either get dragged out to sea or I'll manage to swim to shore. If I get back to shore, there's no need to worry. If I get dragged out to sea, I'll either get rescued or drown. If I get rescued, there's no need to worry. And if I drown... well then, it's too late to worry, isn't it?' He rose to his feet and jogged off along the beach.

'He's mad!' Holly stared after him, not sure what to do.

'That's old Mav for you,' Pete said.

Holly noticed Pete's hands quiver a little; as if worried he might really be called upon to rescue Mav, then it would soon become obvious he wasn't as talented as he claimed.

Everybody watched as Mav dived into the water and swam out. Holly climbed to her feet, feeling uncomfortable with Mav's decision. 'You know, I should go and make sure he's alright.' She stumbled for balance. The drink had begun to affect her equilibrium and she decided not to drink anymore.

'He'll be okay,' Sheep said. 'It's not that dangerous out there. We can always go in after him if he gets into trouble.'

'I think I'll go in too.'

Pete sat bolt upright. 'Wait. I'll go down. Just in case. After all, I'm the one with the survival certificate.'

'No, I'll go. I know first aid. Just in case he - you know -cuts himself on the rocks... or...'

'Mouth to mouth resuscitation,' Laura Stott called out.

They burst out laughing.

'The kiss of life,' said Mandy Evans.

Holly ran down and plunged into the ocean. She gritted her teeth as the chill of the cool water engulfed her but she didn't waste time trying to become accustomed to the temperature, she simply pushed forward and swam out in the direction of Mav. He was out deep and she couldn't tell if he'd seen her enter the water. She glanced back to see Pete walking across the sand and stones, heading towards the beach too. Turning her head back, she saw Mav wrestling with the waves but he didn't seem to notice her.

Her head felt dizzy. Things became blurred.

The water got deep quickly and Holly began to regret following him out. The waves snatched at her, trying to drag her under. She found herself paddling in the water, unable to touch the bottom and the current dragged her deeper. She could swim but the waves continued to crash over her, showing her no respite.

Deciding she had bitten off more than she could chew, she attempted to swim back in but no matter how much effort she put into her strokes, she wasn't getting any closer to the shore. She caught a glimpse of Pete standing there on the shoreline, who stared back blankly.

She struggled some more, in no way wanting to have to be rescued by someone like Pete but again it was in vain. Another wave crashed over her and she got a mouth full of seawater, causing her to cough violently. Another wave bore down upon her.

She knew she was in trouble. 'Help!'

* * *

Mav crashed about in the waves. The undertow dragged at him and it took all his effort to remain above water. He glanced to shore and saw Pete standing on the water's edge. Mav had second thoughts about putting his plan into action. For one thing, it would make him look a real cretin and he would never hear the last of how he foolishly went swimming in the dangerous waters and needed to be rescued by Pete Cook. Not only Holly would think him stupid but all the girls would. Another thing he struggled with was turning his friend into a hero. What if it really did impress Holly and she did go after him?

'I have to do it. I made a promise to Pete.'

As Mav prepared to begin floundering, he heard a distant scream. He turned.

It took a moment to spot her through the choppy swell but when he did, Mav gasped. Holly flailed in the waves behind him, her face rigid with terror. He cursed himself for not noticing her enter the water.

'Help!' she screamed. Her head went under and then she reappeared, her hands slapping at the water.

'Holly!' He realised she was in trouble. He forgot about Pete, changed direction and slashed through the water towards her. He gasped as a wave crashed over his head, stealing her from sight. Mav pushed himself harder.

Holly sputtered to the surface, spitting out water and coughing. Her arms beat at the water frantically and tears glinted in her eyes. A sob escaped her lips as Mav grabbed her arm and pulled her toward him.

'I've got you,' Mav said, struggling against the undertow to get her into shallow water. 'Hold on.'

His legs burned and he gasped for breath but his feet finally found the sandy bottom. The water dragged at his legs, trying to pull him back out but he stood firm. He still held her when Pete ran out to meet him in the shallows.

'Are you okay?' Pete asked, his frantic eyes on Holly as he helped Mav walk her to shore and lower her onto the wet sand.

She coughed and spluttered some more as their friends gathered around her, expressions of concern on their faces.

Holly finally spoke, 'The current was too strong... cough, cough... It got too deep, too fast. If it wasn't for you, Mav, I might have drowned.' She placed her hand on his.

Mav glanced over at Pete, who stood at the rear of the group looking glum.

Jacqui touched Mav's shoulder. 'We should get her to a hospital. Just to check to make sure she's okay.'

'No.' Holly sat up. 'I'll be fine. I just want to go back and sit down for a bit.'

Relieved she was okay, Mav accompanied her back to the sunbathing area. They sat but Mav had no clue what to say to her and she said nothing to him, only delivering him the occasional smile. A little later, the rest of the group went swimming, wisely choosing the safer area. Holly was hesitant to re-enter the water but once she saw that the other girls were quite comfortable in there, she ventured back in, along with Mav and Pete.

Mav found the waves quite rough out there too but the water wasn't as deep and the current not so strong. They all had a good time, tackling the waves and sometimes each other. Wherever Mav went, Holly followed and not far behind her, Pete, always watching, perhaps waiting to see what Mav and Holly would do next.

In the end, Holly complained, 'Pete, do you have to follow us around all the time? Can't you go and swim somewhere else for a while?'

Pete paddled away but Mav noticed him watching from a distance.

'I wanted to talk to you without him around,' Holly said, still having to speak loudly because of the roaring of the waves.

'No problems, direct your voice this way.' A wave rolled over them and they resurfaced, meeting each other face to face.

'I... I just wanted to say...'

Mav smiled, hoping it would stave off her nervousness enough so she could finish what she wanted to say. She lurched forward and pushed her lips against his. By the time Mav registered what happen, she had pulled away. Her cheeks flushed and she dove into the water, heading back to shore.

Mav's jaw dropped, his mouth still tingling from the kiss. For a moment, Mav bobbed up and down, staring after her and then a wave crashed over him, bringing him to his senses. When he surfaced, he saw Pete swimming towards him. Pete pulled up in front of him shortly before another wave rolled in.

Once the wave had passed, Pete spoke, 'She kissed you. I can't believe it. She kissed you.'

'No, she... I—'

Pete's voice grew louder. 'She definitely kissed you. It was deliberate.'

Another wave engulfed them, delaying Mav's reply.

'Yeah, you're right, she did, but I didn't encourage it. Anyway, what the heck happened earlier? What was Holly doing in the water?'

'She decided to go in. Nobody could stop her.'

'Why didn't you rescue her when you saw she was in trouble?'

'I... I don't know. I froze. I didn't know what to do.'

'Ah well...' Mav said, no longer feeling negativity towards Pete for not having done his bit. 'At least she's okay. But you sure missed out on a golden opportunity.'

'Story of my life.' Pete sighed. 'But anyway. She sure took off fast after kissing you.'

'She was probably scared of what my reaction might have been.'

'You lucky dog.' He spoke without emotion.

Mav barely heard him over the rushing of the waves. 'Sorry about that, Cooks. But hey, don't worry about it. The war isn't over yet. Just because she likes me doesn't mean she doesn't like you. We can still turn her around yet.'

Mav didn't get to see Pete's reaction as an extra big wave crashed down upon them. Pete disappeared from sight and when Mav came up, he saw the waves had carried Pete back into the shallow water. Pete made no effort to swim back out, crawled back onto the beach and lay on the sand, letting whitewater rush over him.

Mav continued to swim amongst the waves for a little longer. He could see Holly back on the sand, sunbathing again, along with Chelsea and a couple of other girls. He waded to shore but halted on reaching the shallows when Sam's boyfriend, Craig McLeod entered the water. Mav would have walked right on by him if he could have.

'You!' Craig recognised him immediately. 'What are you doing here?'

'Ah gee, I don't know, I thought I was swimming,' Mav said, making no effort to be civil. Just his luck Craig had visited the same beach as him that day.

'Typical smart-mouthed year-eleven. I ought to knock you from here to next week and teach you a lesson. I still haven't forgotten what happened in the library the other day you know.'

'Surprise, surprise. I didn't think your brain would have the capacity to remember anything.'

'Are you getting smart again, peon?' Craig clenched his fist. 'I oughta smack you one right here and now.'

'Go on then. Why don't you?'

Craig eyed him with an evil glare for several seconds and spoke again. 'You think you're so hard, don't you? Well, we'll see how hard you are.' He paused to look around him. His eyes fell upon a steep bank at the eastern point of the beach. 'We'll have a race. A climbing race, up that cliff.'

'No way.'

'Don't you think you can handle it?'

'I don't see any point in it...' his words trailed off when Samantha arrived.

She greeted them. 'What's going on?'

'This little peon here is trying to rub me up the wrong way as usual. He's got a smart mouth and I intend to teach him a good lesson.'

Sam glanced at Mav, then turned back to Craig. 'Can't we just forget about this? What happened in the library was only an accident.'

'He was hitting on you. I'm not having that. You're my girlfriend.'

'So, what if he was hitting on me? He knows you're my boyfriend now. He knows I'm loyal to you and you should know it too.'

'So, you admit he was trying to sweet-talk you?'

'I didn't say that! I was just saying it didn't matter anyway.'

'Well, it does to me.' He eyed Mav with a piercing glare. 'So how about it? Do you have the guts or are you all talk? I reckon you're all talk.'

'What are you talking about?' Sam asked. 'You haven't challenged him to a fight, have you?'

'I wouldn't want to get my hands dirty on this blighter,' Craig snarled, his eyes still on Mav. 'How about it? Are you game or are you chicken?'

Normally Mav wouldn't even consider such a foolhardy venture but he itched to put this conceited senior to shame again in front of his girlfriend. Maybe he even had a chance of leaving an impression on Samantha in the process. 'Let's do it.'

'What?' Samantha glanced from Craig to Mav, then back to Craig again. 'What the hell are you going to do?'

'That cliff.' Craig pointed. 'We're going to have a little climbing competition.'

Sam's face turned to horror as she stared at the steep incline. 'You can't. Not up there.'

'Just a little contest.' Craig smirked. 'No real risk involved. I just want to put this peon in his place.'

'There is no way you are going to do that.'

Craig delivered a haughty laugh. 'Come on.' Craig strode off in the direction of the cliff. Mav took one look at Samantha, shrugged and advanced after him. He glanced over in the direction of his friends and noticed Holly peering at him, a puzzled expression on her face. He glanced back at Samantha and could see her still standing in the same spot she had been before.

Mav determined even more to beat the snotty senior. How he could ignore someone as caring as Sam was beyond him. He continued to walk after Craig but then ground to a halt. This _was_ nuts. What was he doing? He was no climber. What was it going to benefit Mav in the end? Would Sam really be impressed just because he beat her boyfriend in a climbing race?

He halted and advanced no further.

When Craig glanced back, he scowled and strode back towards him.

Both Sam and Craig reached him at the same time.

'What's the big idea?' Craig snarled. 'You're chickening out, aren't you? You can't go through with it.'

Sam stood on the spot, gazing at Mav hopefully as if willing him not to go along with it.

'I won't do it.'

A smile appeared on Sam's face while Craig's scowl intensified and his lip quivering in rage, 'Why, you lousy no-good yellow belly! You really are afraid, aren't you?'

'Get outta here, I'm just not stupid. What do we have to gain by climbing that ruddy cliff? Sam doesn't want you to but do you give a shit? No. It seems to me you couldn't care less what she wants.'

'Oh, and I suppose you do, do you?'

'Maybe. But it doesn't matter. One thing's for sure, I don't wanna be responsible for you plummeting to your death.'

That radiating smile decorating Sam's face. Her emerald eyes sparkling.

Craig grabbed Mav by the arm and drew his free fist back, his face red with fury. Mav made no move to retreat and waited to see if Craig had the guts to do what he was about to do.

Sam interceded and grabbed his arm. 'Leave him alone. I've had just about enough of your bullying.'

Craig's eyes diverted towards Sam, an expression of surprise on his face.

'He's right, you know,' Sam said. 'Sometimes I wonder if you really do care about me.'

A small audience gathered, Holly and Pete among them. Craig's lip quivered but he said nothing and glared from Sam to Mav, then back to Sam again. 'You know what? Fine! If that's how you want it, I'm gone.' He turned to leave.

'Don't be stupid, you're getting carried away ag-'

Craig marched off across the sand.

'Craig, come back!' Sam shouted out.

He kept on walking.

'Damn him!' she growled and strode away in the opposite direction.

Mav turned slowly away, not quite sure how to feel. He didn't get it - what would it take for Sam to see what a sleazeball Craig was?

Chelsea stepped through the water towards him. 'Good lord, what was that about?'

'Don't worry about it,' Mav replied. 'It was nothing.' He paused to glance at Holly. She had her head turned slightly away as if trying to avoid direct eye contact with him. He wondered what she made of the incident but it seemed she was not going to comment.

They returned to their beach towels. Some of the other swimmers returned in dribs and drabs too.

'Man.' Pete smiled at Mav. 'Looks like you got Craig McLeod really riled up.'

Mav didn't want to discuss it, not with Holly around anyway, so he said nothing. Holly applied more suntan lotion, refused to make eye contact with him and remained silent. It troubled Mav greatly. He had a habit of losing friends and maybe, as usual, he'd lost yet another.

### CHAPTER 14:  
Magic Words

'Looks like you got a lot of sun today,' Chelsea's mother greeted her as she came through the door after her day at the beach.

Chelsea wished she hadn't noticed but she had a story at the ready. 'Oh, yeah. I had to do a lot of work outside the hall. Tidying up the flower gardens, trimming shrubs, that sort of thing.'

'Well, I'm sure they were thankful for your help.'

Chelsea hurried to her room and lay on her bed, relieved her mother had bought her story. There she breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed.

Despite a couple of tense moments, she had enjoyed the day but it still hadn't turned out as she'd hoped. Sheep talked to her a little but mainly he spent his time fooling around with the other guys and girls to give her much attention. It disappointed her he had not taken the opportunity to get to know her better on a more personal level. It made her wonder just how much he really was into her.

Holly had been a bit of a let-down too. Chelsea had looked forward to developing more of a friendship with her because it seemed Holly accepted her more than the other girls. Not only that but she seemed like a nice sort, someone Chelsea had a lot in common with.

But never mind. The main thing was, she had been there with them and she hoped she could continue to be part of the group.

When Monday morning arrived, Chelsea came across Holly after the Akato school bus pulled in and dropped off a load of students. 'Hi, Holly.'

'Hi, Chels.' She smiled. At least she seemed in a better mood today.

'Your tan's come up nicely.'

'That's about the only thing. I sort of wish I hadn't gone actually.'

'Why?'

'For one thing, that damn screwdriver drink of Jacqui's. I should never have touched it. I can't believe I'd be so stupid as to go out into that dangerous water like that. If it wasn't for that drink I doubt I would have.'

'Yeah, I think there was a lot of alcohol in it.'

Holly huffed. 'I had four of them! Just as well they were small cups. I am so not gonna let Jacqui manipulating me into drinking anything like that again. I value my wits. It just took away too many inhibitions.' Her eyes saddened. 'It sure did. I'm pretty sure I've – you know- blown it with Mav.'

'Why?'

'I... well... I sort of kissed him.'

Chelsea gasped in delight. 'You kissed him? Good lord, how did he react?'

'I don't know. I didn't hang around to find out.' As if to endorse her claim, she began to walk in the direction of E Block.

Chelsea accompanied her. 'Did this happen at the beach?'

'Yes, when we were swimming together. You know, just before that incident between him and that Craig guy.'

'Gee, so that's why you went so quiet.'

'Yeah between that and the alcohol, I was a total mess. I'm worried I've blown everything, you know? He wasn't his usual funny self afterwards. I don't think he really likes me. I think he's more interested in Samantha. It looks like there's something going on between them.'

Chelsea thought similarly. 'It did kind of look that way but did he give you notion he was put off by the kiss?'

Holly slowed her pace as they entered the covered walkway between the office block and their destination. They had to move past students coming from the other direction.

'I don't know,' Holly said. 'He wasn't full of jokes like he normally is.'

'Maybe that was because of the Craig McLeod guy.'

'Maybe... but I don't know. It has me worried. Maybe I should just forget about him.'

They veered off towards C Block area.

Chelsea felt she needed to find some way to encourage Holly, to show her she was a friend. 'Don't be like that, Holly. Don't give up. You may still get to write "Maverick vs Robinson" on your pencil case yet. Maybe he was just embarrassed or something. Maybe he was annoyed at Craig. It could have been any reason.'

'Maybe.'

Chelsea walked silently beside her as they entered the C Block locker area. She didn't know what else to say. She didn't want to appear pushy didn't make any further comments on the issue. She would have to let Holly sort things out in her own time and if she wanted to talk, then Chelsea would be there for her.

After Holly placed her bag on a hook in the locker bay, they headed back outside to the tree and garden area outside E Block, where they came across Jacqui and Mandy seated on one of the benches.

For once Jacqui didn't have that contemptuous look on her face. 'So, Chelsea, did you enjoy our beach trip, Saturday?'

'It was good,' Chelsea said as she and Holly sat next to them.

'Only good? I thought you'd be making the moves on Sheep but you didn't.'

Chelsea didn't comment. She still felt hurt that Sheep had barely talked to her at all that afternoon.

'I think you're wasting your time, anyway,' Jacqui continued. 'You're just not Sheep's type. I even asked him once, while we were there, whether he wanted to take you for a walk along the rocks.'

Chelsea widened her eyes, keen to know more details but at the time feeling trepidation about it. 'You did? What did he say?'

Jacqui laughed. 'You don't wanna know.'

Chelsea flinched. It seemed she really had blown things with Sheep.

'Never mind, there's always Tucker Pyles.'

Everyone except Chelsea laughed. Even Holly laughed but with a look of sympathy in her eyes.

'Oh no, speaking of Jabba the Hutt,' Mandy said. 'There he is over there. Looks as though he's bullying food off people again.'

'Jerk.' Jacqui scowled.

They pricked up their ears in an attempt to hear the conversation.

'Come on cough it up,' Tucker snarled at two younger students. 'There better be some good food in there for me. UBBAAA! A carrot! I love carrots. Any doughnuts or anything?'

'Sorry,' the junior boy said. 'My mother's put me on a diet and...'

'AAAGGHHHH! Don't say that word!' Tucker's eyes boggled. 'What's the matter with this town? Is everybody gone completely ubbed in the head?' He didn't hang around to find out what the other boy had. He snatched away the carrot and rushed away.

The junior boys burst out laughing and one of them said, 'That Rick Maverick is pure genius. His "Say you're on a diet when you're not _really_ on a diet" diet really works.'

'See the look on his face when you said diet?' another chuckled.

'It was a classic. Hey, that would be the ideal thing to say whenever Tucker Pyles is around. Just say the word diet and he'll be gone.'

'A real magic word.'

The two laughed some more and walked away.

Jacqui stared after them. 'What is it with this Rick Maverick geek? Everyone seems to be making a big deal over him. First you, Holly, then Craig McLeod and now these juniors. He's just a weirdo as far as I'm concerned.'

'He is not!'

All heads swung to stare at Holly, Chelsea's included. She couldn't believe Holly had spoken in such a sharp tone to Jacqui.

Jacqui's jaw dropped and she stared at her, unable to reply.

Holly glared at Jacqui. 'Stop calling him a weirdo. He's a really nice guy. You just don't know him.'

Jacqui continued to stare at Holly for a few more seconds and then spoke in a gentle tone, not her usual sarcastic or conceited manner. 'I'm sorry, I didn't realise you were so serious about him. You should have said.'

'She's in love,' said Mandy. 'She is head over heels in love with the guy.'

Holly didn't reply but the anger went from her face and her cheeks reddened. Whether that was because she knew the statement was true, or was embarrassed about her outburst, Chelsea couldn't tell. Maybe it was a mixture of both.

'Mmmmm,' said Jacqui. 'Well, you know what, there's the school dance coming up in a couple of weeks. I want to see you dancing every slow dance together.'

Holly gazed at the ground. 'Somehow I don't think that's gonna happen.'

### CHAPTER 15:  
Mr Harris Stands His Ground

It was Wednesday morning. 52-year-old Jason Carroll, the Te Arawa College principal, sat in his office facing one of his teachers. He scratched his balding head and repositioned himself in his chair. He'd noticed lately it was becoming increasingly difficult due to his ever-increasing size. He didn't feel he was too fat yet but it bothered him a little, especially considering his pants didn't fit as comfortably as they once did. At least he still looked smart in his suit, despite his trousers and shirt feeling tight. He certainly felt he looked tidier than the scruffy PE teacher who sat in front of him.

'Mr Harris, how are you this morning?' Mr Carroll said, trying to overlook his work colleague's dubious dress code. He shuffled papers on his desk, adjusted his glasses and awaited his reply.

'Not bad, not bad, old chap, yourself?'

'I've been a bit tired lately. Don't seem to have much energy, must be coming down with something. Anyway, I've called you to my office for two things. The first matter, although quite trivial, is the one I will address first.'

'Don't tell me.' A gleam appeared in Mr Harris's eyes. 'There have been complaints I've been murdering my students, right?'

'You could say that. There have been a couple of complaints...'

'Only a couple?'

'Yes, I don't know whether it's because some haven't bothered to complain or because they aren't aware of what's going on. But a couple of mothers have rung to complain about what they see as abuse with you shooting their sons with paintball pellets.'

'Would one of those be Mrs Pyles by any chance?'

'No.'

'That's a surprise.'

'Why?'

'Her son's black shorts usually go home green after one of my PE classes.'

'I see.' Carroll tried to hide his amusement. 'Is it necessary to shoot the students at all though?'

Mr Harris stretched out his legs and folded his arms. 'Those are my methods. They've been successful in the past. When you hired me, you knew my credentials. You had a problem with unfit lazy students and poor-quality sporting teams. With my methods, I can assure you there will be vast improvements right across the board.'

'Well, yes, I definitely agree we've been a bit soft on them in the past but aren't you going a bit overboard?'

'I don't see it that way. Discipline has to be maintained and boys must be pushed. It's the only way to get them up to scratch. They've had it too easy for far too long, playing sports every week. They get that every second Friday afternoon so they definitely don't need it in Physical Education as well. Physical Education is all about fitness. All about learning to keep your body in good physical order through things like running, swimming and weight training, not through playing softball and namby-pamby games like that.'

'True, but you haven't even taken them swimming yet. You should, while it's still summertime.'

'Don't worry, I will. I intend giving them some marathon swims to do. Maybe even in the river?'

'That river is too dangerous.'

'Pah! Dangerous smangerous. If they put in a little effort, they'd be fine.'

'We almost had a boy drown in that river last week and one drowned in there three years ago. Besides, the swimming pool is there for swimming. We don't need the river.'

'Mmmm. Well, if you really do insist.'

Mr Carroll tapped a pen on the desk a few times. 'You know you could get them to play a sport once and a while. Physical games like rugby and soccer have their merits as far as fitness is concerned.'

'We'll have to see about that. It would have to be a physical game. None of these namby-pamby standing-around-for-half-the-match type of games.'

'That's up to you.'

Mr Harris drew his feet back and leaned forward, tapping the principal's desk. 'If I can't work my way and do things my way, then there's no point in me being here. I get results and sure my methods may be a little extreme but we need more of that in this day and age. There are laws against physically punishing students but there are certainly no laws against shooting them, are there?'

'Well, no.' Mr Carroll chuckled. 'There is no written rule in the school code about it but-'

'Those students need toughening up. They're too soft. They'll thank me for it later on down the track, you'll see. Once they're doing 50 K runs and powerlifting one to two hundred kilograms, they'll thank me.'

'We'll just have to see what happens. We may be able to quash the rebellion temporarily but if more parents complain, there may be further problems. Let's hope not. But anyway, on to a more important matter...'

'Don't tell me. You've given some thought to my idea about holding a midwinter swimming sports day later this year?'

'No, I haven't and I very much doubt whether we will be having one. It wouldn't be pleasant for the students.'

'That's the idea. A chance to toughen them up a bit. Nothing like standing around on a freezing cold day in your swimsuit and then diving into an ice-cold pool for a one-kilometre swim.

'That may be your cup of tea but not anyone else's.'

'Pah! The trouble with you New Zealanders is you're too soft. In England, it's freezing all year around. Even in summer, the swimming pools have a layer of ice over them.'

'Come now, that's an exaggeration, surely?'

'Where I come from they do. You know I have a wonderful idea for the cross-country this year. I have an idea for a new course, one that will be a lot more challenging than the one we currently have.'

'The one we have is challenging enough.'

'Pah! It's about as challenging as a game of Snakes and Ladders. We should extend the run — make them go to New Plymouth and back. Wonderfully scenic route.'

'That's over 30 kilometres! You must be mad. Our kids could never run that far.'

Mr Harris drummed his fingers on the desk. 'That's because they haven't been trained properly. One year with me as their physical education instructor and they'll be considering a run like that recreational!'

'Well, we'll have to see how they shape up. Anyway, the other reason I called you in is we are having a new student start at this school in a couple of weeks' time.'

'Who is he? A member of the royal family?'

'Far from it. This particular student has been expelled from another school.'

'What's it got to do with me?'

Mr Carroll leaned back in his chair. 'Let me tell you a little more about this boy. He's a 15-year-old by the name of Rex Cassidy. He was expelled on the second day of school this year.'

'Gordon Bennett. Must have been serious.'

'Fighting and disrespect to teachers.'

'They expelled him for that? I could understand if it was a recurring thing but after only two days?'

'It _was_ a recurring thing. It had been going on the previous year too. The new principal decided he didn't want this boy in his school and got rid of him.'

'On the second day?'

'He had not been made aware of this student before then.'

'And now this boy is coming here?'

'That's right.'

'So, what, he gets expelled so his parents uproot themselves and move?'

'The shift was going to happen anyway, so it turns out. It just meant they had to make the move sooner than planned.'

Mr Harris drummed his fingers on the desk again. 'What makes this boy more special than any other boy who's been expelled from one school and gone to another?'

'His parents are wealthy.'

'So, we're discriminating in favour of the rich, are we?'

'Not at all. It just so happens his parents are, as it were, paying Te Arawa College to take him in.'

Mr Harris stopped drumming. 'What?'

'They will be paying the school a substantial grant each year he is here. We're talking thousands of dollars here. We will be able to do all the renovations we've been planning for the last five years. We'll be able to pay off our loan on the new pavilion quicker or upgrade our computers. This is a golden opportunity for Te Arawa College.'

'Gordon Bennett, I know boys get into fights every now and then, I personally don't have a problem with that and boys do tend to disrespect their teachers quite a bit, especially if they're useless, but to pay a school to take a student on? There's more than meets the eye here. Surely, he must be guilty of a lot more than just fighting and disrespect?'

'Unfortunately, yes...' Mr Carroll sighed. 'His record is a lot worse than that. Fighting and disrespect are only the tip of the iceberg. He's guilty of about everything except smoking and taking drugs.'

'At least he respects his body.'

'He's also quite an athlete.'

'He is?' Mr Harris's eyebrow pricked up.

'I thought you'd like the sounds of that. That's why we are going to ask you to get alongside this boy. Keep an eye on him, be his mentor. I think a tough, no-nonsense, former army Sergeant Major like yourself, may be just what this boy needs to make him toe the line.'

'Hmmmm.' Mr Harris rubbed his cheek with his index finger. 'I think I could sort this lad out.'

'That's what we're hoping. If anybody can do it, you can.'

'When will I meet the new recruit?'

'Not sure at this stage. His parents are difficult to contact. They'll be moving into a place here in Te Arawa.'

'I see. I look forward to meeting this boy.'

'Yes... Well, I don't know whether I am.'

### CHAPTER 16:  
Incident at the Pool

Pete had acted cold towards Mav all week, saying little about the beach or Holly. It seemed to Mav that whenever he brought up the subject of her or Sam, Pete would clam up. About midweek Mav stopped mentioning their names altogether.

He had not seen much of Sam or Craig at all and as for Holly, he still wasn't sure how to approach her. While he ate his lunch outside E Block, he noticed her staring at him from across the compound but was unsure whether to smile back as he was under scrutiny from Pete. Tucker's appearance averted his gaze when he strolled up towards one of their classmates who sat on a bench nearby. His giant stomach wobbling with each step.

'Food!' Tucker growled. 'Now!'

The boy shuddered and stared up at Tucker with wide eyes. 'I'm on a diet.'

'Let me see!' Tucker grabbed his bag, opened it and peered inside. 'You must have something in here, you little ubbhead.' Tucker's eyes narrowed and he sent an evil glare at his victim. 'You have got to be kidding me! Well, I'm just gonna have to take my share in other ways.' He reached inside and withdrew the boy's pencil case. He unzipped it and pulled out a bunch of pens and pencils, which he held them in his huge hands. He grinned and with a single jerk, snapped them all.

He laughed and allowed them to rain to the ground in front of their owner. Nobody did a thing, they just watched, their gazes transfixed on the huge bully. Mav, as much as he wanted to march over there and smack his pudgy face in, remained seated. Even Wal who sat a few feet from him took no action. Mav didn't really blame him because so far everyone who had tried to take Tucker on had come off second best.

Mav sensed a definite air of apathy amongst those not affected. It seemed like the usual scenario of "If it doesn't affect me, so why should I worry?"

Another Saturday came and Mav cycled into Te Arawa to the domain. To get there he had to cross over a large swing bridge, which crossed the Rocky River. He had once tubed down that river as part of a community activity. It was a lot of fun with the whitewater about. The bridge was nothing like the one out the back of Te Arawa College. This one was about four feet wide and sturdy with wood and cable sidings. It allowed pedestrians to come from both ends with room enough to pass each other. It was completely safe and even if someone did jump off the side, the river below was shallow at that point and one could easily get to the banks. Not that Mav had ever tried it.

He cycled over the bridge and it bobbed up and down as he rode, getting the sensation of being on a roller coaster. He loved it.

On arrival at the domain, he could see many people around the pool; mainly school-aged, most of whom he recognised. He parked his bike at a stand and carrying his gear, entered through the main wire gate. Mav scanned the grounds for Pete but saw no sign of him. Never mind, on a hot day like this, he was bound to turn up eventually.

'Yo, Mav!' Wal greeted him as he climbed out of the pool. 'Good to see you. Come on in, the water's great.'

'Wal, you're alive!' He gave a friendly salute. 'But if it's so great, why are you in such a hurry to get out?'

'Gotta show off my physique once in a while, mate.'

'Ah, I see. So, you want to show everybody what happens to your body when you neglect it? Sort of a warning, eh?'

'Watch it, newbie. Any cheek from you and I'll have to give you a few dunkings.' He delivered an evil eye and then broke out into a smile. 'Just jokin, Mav.' He strolled off.

Mav, already in his swimming trunks and not wanting to hang around in the heat any longer, deposited his gear on the grass and dived headlong into the pool.

Ahhh, cool water. Relief at last.

He broke the water and leant back into it some more, floating, relaxing in the refreshing, chlorine-saturated waters. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, taking in the hot summer air. The air was filled with sounds of splashing, laughter and chatter, as well as the ever-present cacophony of cicadas in the trees.

He heard female voices drawing closer to him.

'Typical, Chelsea,' came Jacqui's voice. 'She wants to be part of our group at school during the week but won't hang out with us during the weekend or in the evenings. She just always has some kind of excuse. What was it this time? Going to Auckland?'

'It might be a valid excuse,' came an unfamiliar voice. 'If it was me, I'd want to go to Auckland. Who wants to hang around Te Arawa all the time? Te Arawa must be the most boring place in New Zealand. In the winter, anyway.'

'Yeah, but not in the summer. We have beaches. We have this place. What's her problem?'

Holly's voice spoke up, 'Give the girl a break, I like Chelsea.' Her voice trailed off.

'What?' Jacqui asked. 'Who are you...? Oh, I see. It's him. God, Holly, why don't you just go and talk to him? Stop acting like such a geek.'

Mav guessed they were talking about him and pulled himself together. He righted himself in the water but pretended he didn't realise they were there. He didn't want them to think he'd been eavesdropping on them.

It seemed Jacqui's urging did the trick. Holly waded up to him, so he turned to face her.

'Hi.'

'Hi, Holly. We really should stop meeting in places like this.'

Holly blushed. 'Yes, we should, shouldn't we?'

'Are we going to continue from where we left off last time?'

Holly reddened even more. She avoided eye contact and made no reply.

'Sorry, didn't mean to embarrass you like that.'

'That's okay.'

'I was rather surprised, that's for sure.'

'So was I. Surprised I did it that is.'

'Ah, I should have known. Something just took over you. In reality, I was the last guy in the world you wanted to kiss.'

'You might say that but it's not really what I meant.' Holly smiled.

'Ah, I see, so you actually confused your hand with your lips?'

'What?' She laughed.

'You were really trying to slap me in the face.'

'No, of course not! I...' She glanced away again then turned back. 'I thought you... you know... weren't happy with me for doing what I did.'

'Why would you think that?'

'I don't know. Just the impression I got.'

'I'm not impressed with your impressions.'

She smiled.

A disturbance, over on the grass, delayed further conversation.

'Scrap!' someone barked. 'Wal and Tucker!'

Mav leapt out of the water. Already people crowded around the two boys, eager to see fists fly and it looked as though they were not going to be disappointed.

'I've had a gut's full of you, you ubbhead,' Tucker scowled, his fist clenched.

'A gut's full? Funny that.' Wal glared back. 'And I've had the same with you. The only thing is my gut isn't so bloated.'

'Right!' Tucker snarled. 'It's time I dished out a much-needed ubbering.' He took a swing.

His swing missed by miles.

Wal, with quickness as well as strength, got stuck into Tucker. He pounded away at Tucker's body with fast furious blows. Tucker staggered back under the barrage. Wal followed up with quick powerful jabs to the huge teen's flabby face. Tucker stumbled back still further, so bamboozled he couldn't retaliate. His face turned to horror as Wal continued to blast him with a rapid assortment of jabs and punches.

The spectators stood amazed, unable to believe the lack of offence Tucker offered. A final hook sent Tucker reeling and crashing back onto the ground with an earth-shuddering thump. He raised his hands to his face, blood pouring from his nose.

Much to the amazement of everyone blubbered for mercy. 'Please. No more! I'm sorry. Don't hit me anymore!'

A silence fell over them all and for a few seconds, only the sounds of cicadas could be heard. Wal stared down at Tucker with a puzzled frown.

'Please...' Tucker sobbed. 'I'm sorry.'

Finally, someone muttered, 'He's a spineless wimp.'

'Can dish it out but can't take it,' sneered another.

Others in the crowd agreed and made similar comments.

Wal's expression changed to contempt. 'Not so tough now, are you? Can't take the punishment, can you?'

'I'm sorry!' grovelled Tucker.

'I kicked your butt didn't I, Pyles?'

'Yes. You kicked my butt, Wal.'

'You're a bloody wimp, aren't you?'

'Y...Yes. I'm a wimp.'

The spectators chortled with delight. Wal delivered his defeated opponent one last scowl and stepped away. Others drifted away as well but not after throwing a few sarcastic comments and jibes Tucker's way.

Mav didn't say anything but not because he feared Tucker but because he was still amazed at what had transpired. It seemed once someone got the upper hand on Tucker, he immediately backed down, which was often the case with bullies. Tucker's true colours had come out.

Tucker still lay on the ground, sore and bleeding and didn't seem to have the energy to sit up. Mav was about to walk away and let him wallow in his defeat when Colin Hewes and Joseph Ashley arrived on the scene. They were two tough guys, one Caucasian and the other Maori. Mav knew them both from Akato College. He'd never had much to do with them but was surprised to see them concerned with Tucker's wellbeing. The two exchanged friendly words with Tucker but Mav couldn't make out what they said.

The two helped Tucker to his feet and there seemed to be no animosity between them. Tucker even delivered them a weak smile. Jo, the sinewy Maori, dusted down Tucker and gave him a pat on the back. Maybe Tucker did have friends at this school after all?

Jo and Colin continued on their way, leaving Tucker where he stood, still groggy, but Mav had an uneasy feeling in his gut.

A vicious shove sent Mav staggering sideways.

'What the...?' He turned to stare at the person who'd just shoved him. 'You! What the hell do you want, McLeod?'

Craig pushed him again, sending him back another step. 'I've got a bone to pick with you!'

'Oh, we're not still upset about how I showed you up at the beach last week, are we?'

'Showed me up?' scoffed Craig. 'You could never show me up, you're just a stupid snivelling little yellow belly who thinks he's tough but is just a complete and utter loser.'

'I wonder if Samantha sees it that way.' Mav knew that would get a bite and it did.

'You leave Samantha out of this, you blighter!. She's my girl and I'm not having you trying to take her from me.' He paused and snickered. 'Not that you could. She's dedicated to me, you know? She's not interested in a useless yellow belly like you.'

'I'm amazed she's still with you, the way you made such a cretin out of yourself the other day.'

'Why you...' Craig lifted his fist in the air as if about to strike him. 'I ought to smack you out.'

'I see. Is that what you do when you realise you're dealing with a superior mind?' Mav would never be so arrogant to believe that but he knew saying it would rile Craig up.

'That does it!' Craig withdrew his fist. 'I've had about all I'm gonna put up with from you. A test, right here and now to see just how good you are.'

'A test?' Mav smirked. 'You really must see me as a threat.'

'Don't make me laugh. There isn't a year-eleven student alive who can better a senior of my calibre.'

'Seems to me, like all you're shooting is blanks.'

'We'll see about that!'

'So, what's this infantile test you want me to perform?'

'A running race. Through the bush, across the river and back across the swing bridge.'

'A running race?' Mav nearly laughed. He expected something a little more physically challenging and dangerous than that, all though admittedly the crossing of the river might end up being a bit of a challenge. 'What's that going to prove?'

'It's going to prove I am superior to you.'

'And whereabouts do we cross the river?'

'It's a shallow part of the river. The worst that can happen to you is a few bruises or grazes. Even Samantha wouldn't object to that.'

'So where is she now? I would have thought you would want her to see you win?'

Craig smirked. 'I'm glad you're already admitting defeat. Not that that's going to get you out of it though. Samantha's not here but it doesn't matter. Everyone else will see me put you to shame.'

'See you put yourself to shame you mean. Even if you win this race, you're still going to look like a cretin. A running race doesn't prove anything.'

'If I was someone else, I'd smash you but that's not the way I do things. I prove my dominance in other ways. If it's by running race, so be it.'

'Fine! Let's get on with it, shall we?'

Craig wasn't about to compete until he had an audience. Less than a minute later, a large group of spectators, many who had witnessed the beating Wal gave Tucker, assembled to watch the contest. Holly was amongst them.

'Come on, Craig, put that Year-Eleven douche in his place,' said one of the older swimmers.

'Show 'em what you're made of, McLeod.'

At least Mav had Wal there for support. 'Come on, newbie, you can beat that stuck-up twerp!'

A senior took responsibility for starting the race. Others had already gone to the various checkpoints of the race so there would be no doubt as to where Mav and Craig were to go. Seconds later, they stood at the starting line, near the main gates to the domain. A few of the spectators whistled, while a few others shouted out encouragements.

'On your marks...'

'You're going down, Maverick!'

'Get set...'

Mav glanced sideward. 'I'll have a drink ready for you once you get back.'

'Go!'

Craig raced out ahead, opening the gap right from the beginning. Mav didn't worry, as he ran into the bushes after Craig. One thing he had learnt from Mr Harris's PE classes was to pace yourself. It seemed unlikely to Mav that Craig would be able to keep his pace up for too long and eventually he would slow down, allowing Mav to catch him.

On reaching the crossing point at the river, Craig pulled himself up onto the bank at the other side, soaking wet and looking out of breath. Mav still felt fresh and determined that the river would not be too much of an obstacle. It looked shallow and rocky with a strong current and bursts of white water but he didn't see it as a problem.

He leapt over the bank and plunged into the water almost toppling over when his feet hit the rocky floor of the river. It was deeper than he thought - the water right up to his waist and it took a few seconds to steady himself against the current and get a good foothold.

He waded through the waters as quickly as possible but found it tough going and difficult to keep his balance. At one stage, he slipped on the rocks and plunged completely under. He struggled to pull himself back up to avoid being swept further downstream.

A few more times he slipped and banged himself on the rocks but he made good time and soon reached the other side. He climbed up onto the bank and off he went, back to the steady pace, with only a three-minute run to get to the swing bridge.

There _was_ Craig, only twenty or thirty metres up ahead and struggling. The path wound directly along the side of the river and inclined, which made the going more difficult.

Craig turned his head. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened when he saw Mav advancing. He tried to up his pace but Mav came right up alongside him, puffing but still with plenty of strength left.

Mav egged him on, doing his best Mr Harris impression. 'Come on, soldier, move it, move it, move it!'

Craig made a sideward lunge at Mav, colliding with him, sending him toppling over the bank into the river. Fortunately, it was a little deeper there, so the rocks didn't hurt him. When he surfaced, he looked up to see Craig standing at the banks with a smirk.

'That will teach you to mess with me, peon!' He continued his way, at a more casual pace, along the path leaving Mav wallowing in the river.

The current being weak at that point in the river, allowed Mav to get to the bank and once there he stopped to get his bearings. He spotted a senior standing by a tree not far away and this made Mav's eyes light up. The bewildered look on the boy's face told Mav he'd seen what happened.

There was still a chance Mav could beat Craig if he took a shortcut. Sure, Craig might accuse him of cheating but Mav hoped this witness would back him up, and then Craig would accept defeat graciously knowing turnabout was fair play.

Yeah right, thought Mav as he splashed through the shallow waters in front of him to get to the opposite bank. He could see Craig approaching the swing bridge with only a small portion of the run to go. Mav leapt up onto the bank and cut through the trees at high speed. When Craig saw him, the same look of horror as before came over his face and he quickened his pace, shooting across the swing bridge as fast as he could.

They merged onto the main path at the same time. Craig tried to shove Mav aside but Mav darted ahead. He sucked wind but knew Craig would be struggling too.

Out of the trees, Mav ran, with Craig only metres behind. Crowds of students awaited them and went into an uproar. Dead ahead, Mav saw the finish line and there was no way he could lose.

He crossed.

Craig clambered through five metres behind him and almost collapsed. He bent over, his hands on his knees and glared up at Mav, panting hard, but still with enough breath in him to protest. 'He cheated! The lousy blighter cheated!'

'Me?' scoffed Mav. 'You have got to be ruddy kidding.'

'He jumped into the river and took a shortcut!'

'Jumped?' Mav glared. 'You lying cretin.'

'Oh yeah?' Craig scanned the trees behind them and saw the guy who had seen the whole incident emerge from them. 'Havers! You saw this asshole cut across the river, didn't you? He jumped into the river and took a shortcut. Tell them, Havers!'

Everybody waited in anticipation for Havers to speak, Mav in particular. He really hoped Havers would be honest about the whole affair and expose Craig for the cheat he was.

'What are you talking about?' Havers asked. 'He went across the swing bridge. Just like you did.'

Craig's jaw dropped and he gaped at Havers.

The spectators screwed up their faces and glared at Craig condescendingly.

'You cannot be serious. You saw him do it. He took a deliberate shortcut. You were there, Maurice, you saw him.'

'Sorry, mate. The guy won fair and square.'

Mav smiled broadly. It felt so good that one of Craig's own allies had taken Mav's side. It was great that on this occasion, justice prevailed. It just disappointed him Sam was not there to witness it.

'Lying jerk,' someone said.

'You lost, McLeod. Take it like a man.'

'Beaten by a year-11er. What an embarrassment.'

'Good job too.'

'Bad luck, McLeod.' Mav said, eager to rub in the victory. 'Looks like you lose again.'

### CHAPTER 17:  
Tucker's new Allies

'Wow, did you get a look at Tucker Pyles's face?'

'I hear Will Ullman did that to him at the domain on Saturday.'

'Good job.'

'But he didn't have a thick lip after that fight though.'

'No, apparently Wayne Radovich did that to him this morning.'

Holly felt absolutely no sympathy for Tucker. It seemed many people throughout the school were doing their best to make his life a misery and his aura of fear, he once had, was gone.

'Everyone wants a go at him now,' Jacqui told her in class one morning. 'Everyone realises he's hot air, there are a lot of people looking to get payback.'

'Good job,' Holly replied. 'He deserves it, for all the bullying he's done. I heard Desmond Maisey punched him one the other day.'

'And John Walsh snapped all his pens.'

The two laughed.

'Coward,' Jacqui said to Tucker at lunchtime one day. 'Why don't you just go on a diet?'

'Ubb off!' Tucker grumbled but not in his usual forceful manner.

'What will you do if we don't?' egged Holly. 'Squash us?'

'You just watch it, Ubbhead!'

'Oooooh, we're scared,' Jacqui said.

'So, you should be!'

'I was more scared the last time I watched a Scooby Doo cartoon.'

'I should think so,' Tucker said as if a Scooby Doo cartoon was something to be scared of.

'What a dork,' Jacqui said loudly as Tucker passed by. She turned to Holly with a smirk. 'I'm just glad someone finally put that butthead in his place. It's just a pity it had to be Ullman. He's as big a butthead as Pyles is.'

They stopped in at their lockers in C Block. Jacqui paused to pull out a small bottle of something. When Holly took a closer look, she realised it was a bottle of Scotch. Jacqui opened it up and took a swig.

'Are you crazy?' Holly gasped. 'Here at school?'

'Hey, it's only a swig. Want some?'

'No way! Not after I nearly drowned myself at the beach thanks to drinking that vodka and orange of yours. My gosh, Jacqs, drinking that other stuff is one thing but straight Scotch? What the hell is going on with you?'

'Nothing's going on with me! My god, Holly, lighten up. We're not little kids anymore.'

'But we're still underage.'

Jacqui delivered her an evil glare. 'I said, quit it. I'd expect this crap from Chelsea but not from you.' She took another swig and then shoved the bottle back into her bag. 'I just need one every now and then to get through the boring lectures we have to deal with. Don't make me have to go through lectures in my bloody lunch hour as well.'

Holly said nothing more but her mind ticked over. If her friend was going to continue to consume alcohol, she couldn't just stand by and do nothing about it but what could she do? She didn't want to anger Jacqui but couldn't call herself a friend if she let her continue with her destructive behaviour. She also considered the possibility Jacqui's drinking could cause trouble for everyone else too.

They made their way to E Block tree and garden area and met up with Chelsea on the way. Jacqui lightened up immediately. 'I can't wait for the dance next Friday. Are you going to be there Chelsea?'

'I wouldn't miss it.'

'I suppose you'll be hoping for a few dances with Sheep, huh?'

Chelsea gave an embarrassed smile. 'I think he's losing interest.'

'Whose silly fault is that? If you weren't so uptight sexually, maybe you'd get somewhere. You need to just loosen up and go with the flow.'

'Look, I really like him but I don't want to be with him if it's just sex.'

'Maybe if you just gave it to him, then it could develop into something more.'

Holly wanted to argue but loathed to get in another disagreement with her. 'I don't know if that's the right way to find a guy who – you know - really cares about you.'

'Oh, puleeeeease,' Jacqui growled. 'Who cares about serious relationships at our age? It's all about just having fun, right?'

'Yeah,' Holly said. 'But being with someone for the first time is supposed to be special. You don't just – you know - give it away to the first guy who comes along. Especially if it's some guy who's not really interested in you for you.'

'And you don't think Sheep is genuine?'

'I don't know,' Holly said. 'If he really cared about Chelsea, he'd consider her feelings and he wouldn't just be – you know - trying to rush her into having sex.'

'You're sounding old-fashioned.'

'Hey, I can't stand guys who are just after one thing. I'll tell them to rack off right away. If I'm gonna be with a guy, he's gotta respect me. It should be the same for Chelsea too. She shouldn't compromise her principles just to score the attention of freaking Rog Shepherd.'

'There's a simple solution and it's one I use all the time,' Jacqui said. 'And that's to make them want me so much they'll bow and scrape and do anything I want. You make them respect you.'

'And how do you do that?'

'By making yourself so desirable that you have the power over them.'

Chelsea spoke up, 'That's all very well for you, Jacqui, but you are desirable. I'm not as hot as you or Holly.'

Jacqui paused for a moment and then replied, 'I've got an idea. A plan to make you into something the guys will bow and scrape over. We'll do you up. Before the dance, we'll all meet up... say at Laura's place. That's closest to here. We'll do your hair and makeup for you.'

'I guess so.'

'We'll have you looking so amazing, it won't be just Sheep that goes "wow," _all_ the guys will. How about that?'

Chelsea's face lit up. 'That would be great!'

'Do you have contact lenses?'

She flinched. 'Yes... but I don't like to wear them. The thought of putting them into my eyes freaks me out.'

'Have you ever worn them?'

'Once or twice.'

'Were they uncomfortable?'

'No. It's just that...' She shuddered. 'I hate putting them in. It's hard to explain but just thinking about putting them in makes me flinch.'

Holly imagined Chelsea without her glasses. She was sure she'd look great because she had the most beautiful sapphire-blue eyes. It seemed a shame to distort them with glasses. 'I think Jacqs is right. You'd look amazing with a makeover and if you got rid of those dorky glasses and wore your contacts, it would – you know - be a huge improvement.'

'You've just got to do it,' Jacqui said. 'If you really want power over guys like Sheep, it's the only way. Otherwise, you're just gonna be another girl who guys might want to get it on with but never take it further. So, come on. Do you want that?'

She winced. 'Sure, I do.'

'Then lose the glasses.'

'I don't know.' Chelsea fidgeted with her hair.

'What's the big deal?' Jacqui raised her eyebrow. 'Once the contacts are on you can just forget about them.'

Chelsea sighed and turned her eyes to the ground. 'We'll see.'

They didn't have much to do during their lunch break so wandered around the grounds in the sun. They strolled around the sports fields, to the back where they had skipped class the previous week. A groan met their ears and they found one of their classmates, leaning against one of the trees, his face battered and bloodied.

'Wal!' Holly rushed towards him and crouched at his side. 'What the hell happened?'

Chelsea and Jacqui joined her, their eyes wide.

Wal groaned and wiped blood from his nose. 'Bloody Tucker Pyles.'

'What? Tucker did this to you?' Holly stared incredulously.

'No! Not him. His two punk friends.'

Holly stared at her friends in disbelief. 'You don't mean Colin Hewes and Joseph Ashley?'

'Yeah.'

'Oh no! Don't tell me they're teaming up with him.'

Wal winced. 'Seems that way. I didn't stand a chance against those two. Not on my own. Pyles is saying he's going to teach everyone a lesson now.'

'But why would Jo and Colin team up with that loser?' Jacqui stared. 'It doesn't make sense.'

Holly examined Wal's wounds. 'We should get you to sickbay.'

'Hell no.' Wal sat up straight. 'I don't need no sickbay.'

'But you're bleeding.'

'It'll stop. I'll clean myself up. You guys go. I'll be okay.'

'Typical macho BS.'

Jacqui snorted. 'Well if that's what he wants, I say we just leave him to bleed.'

'We can't just leave him,' Chelsea argued.

'Fine, well you stay here with Mr Macho Moron, I'm going.' She began to walk away. Chelsea hesitated but then followed. Holly stood where she was for a few more seconds then glanced back down at Wal. 'Are you sure you'll be alright?'

'Yeah. Don't worry about me. Just watch that Tucker. I don't think he cares about who he hurts. He'll bully a girl just like he does a guy.'

On arrival back at E Block, more drama unfolded.

'Hey...!' a junior boy announced. 'Did you hear? Joseph Ashley and Colin Hewes just beat up Wayne Radovich. Tucker was with them.'

'Oh, shit,' Jacqui said. 'Looks like old Macho Moron wasn't joking.'

'My gosh...' Holly pointed over to the back of F Block. 'There he is there. And he's hassling Mav and Pete.'

Cautiously the three approached. Already a group of spectators assembled as Tucker stood opposite Mav and Pete with his two new henchmen at his side.

'So, all that crap about diets was your idea was it, Maverick?' Tucker snarled. 'A conspiracy to try to make me look stupid.'

'Hey, Tucker, look, I was on a legitimate diet. I can't help it if people followed my lead.'

'Don't listen to him,' Joseph Ashley snarled. 'He's been encouraging people to do it, just to stop you from getting food.' His brown eyes bugged as the brawny Maori glared at Mav.

Tucker's eyes blazed. 'Listen up!' He turned his head around and glared at those around him. _'Everybody_ listen up! I'm the kingpin here at this school and whatever I say goes. If anybody wants to argue about that, then they're gonna have me to deal with.'

'You mean your two goons!' Someone called out from the group of spectators.

Tucker swung his head around and glared. 'Who said that? Someone want to say that to our faces?'

Nobody dared say a word.

Tucker smirked. 'Good! Because I'm dead serious. And if you want to see how serious I am, just go look for Will Ullman. Because he's lying bleeding half-dead at the back of the playing fields.' He turned his head to Holly. 'What are you staring at, bitch?'

Holly backed away, her eyes wide. 'Nothing.'

Tucker turned back to Mav. 'Listen up, Maverick. You better go tell those ubbheads you put on a diet they better change it! To a CHOCOLATE diet! Because I want all sorts of chocolate goodies coming in from this day on. Consider it my taxes. And if you dare try to make an idiot out of me again, I'll have Ash and Hew... I mean I'LL beat the crap out of you. Hear me?' He grabbed Mav by the shirt.

Holly couldn't take the thought of him bullying Mav any longer. 'Leave him alone!' She marched up towards him. 'Get your hands off him, you big creep!'

Tucker spun around, his eyes protruding from his head. 'What did you call me?'

The anger and determination Holly previously felt, quickly disappeared as fear enveloped her, especially when she saw the staunch look on the faces of his two henchmen.

Chelsea stepped forward to support her but she appeared a lot calmer. 'She didn't mean it, Tucker. She just doesn't want you to hurt Mav, that's all.'

'Ahhhh, ain't that sweet?' Tucker scoffed. 'Although why you'd care about this ubbhead is beyond me. Hey, if you want a real man to hang around with. I'm your man.'

Holly backed away.

Tucker laughed. 'That's right. Be afraid. Be very afraid. Because Tucker Pyles is back in control. So, you go away and tell your stuck-up little friends they better watch what they say and do, cuz I'm gonna be around. And I'm gonna make everyone pay for messing with me over the last few days.'

### CHAPTER 18:  
New Kid on the Block

Tuesday morning arrived and the second period of the day, Biology.

Chelsea sat with her friends, waiting for their teacher Mr Knot to arrive. They sat on stools at a long bench which stretched from one width of the classroom to the other. There were five rows, all facing the front, where the teacher had his own bench and of course whiteboard. The walls were covered in work from science protects and also posters of things like the table of elements and the solar system.

Students chatted away, nobody in the least concerned that Mr Knot hadn't arrived yet. If they had their way, they'd quite happily sit there talking the entire period.

Tucker and his two new enforcers entered the room.

'Hop it, ubbhead!' Tucker ordered one of their classmates off his stool.

The unfortunate student didn't dare argue, as Colin and Jo stood right behind Tucker, giving him the evils.

It caused ire to build up inside Chelsea. There were plenty of other places for Tucker and his two goons to sit. They didn't have to force anyone to move.

Tucker clipped his victim across the shoulder to get him moving and then took his seat, his two bully boys taking stools on the other side of him.

Nobody made any comment and remained quiet until Mr Knot entered the room. He was a grey-haired, bespectacled man in his late 50s. He appeared flustered, walked stiffly over to his bench, and placed his briefcase down. He opened it up, pulled out his logbook and turned to the class.

'Good morning. I'll call the roll before we start. We have a new boy starting with us today.' He paused to glance around the room and frowned. 'He doesn't appear to be here.' He gave what sounded like a sigh of relief and allowed his shoulders to drop.

Holly leant over and whispered to Chelsea, 'I hope he's cute.'

Mr Knot began to call the roll in a formal tone of voice and each student answered when called. He then checked his watch. 'The new boy was supposed to be here this period. I don't see why he should be late. I met him briefly in the principal's office this morning.'

'What's his name?' one of the girls asked.

'Rex-'

'Cassidy.' A voice emanated from the doorway.

Everybody turned their attention to the door to see a tall, smiling, powerfully built teen leaning against the doorpost.

For a moment, silence reigned. Everybody stared at him stunned, not because he was late for class, nor because he acted so casual about it but because of his sheer presence. Chelsea marvelled. His deep-blue eyes sparkled and his smile was extremely alluring. He also had an impressive tall physique with his muscular arms, chest and legs. She could only sum him up as drop-dead gorgeous, an Adonis. It was almost impossible to shake her gaze but when she did, she noticed the other girls staring at him the way she had.

'Rex!' Mr Knot snorted. 'Why are you late?'

'Late? Me late?' Rex moseyed on into the class.

'Ten minutes late.'

'Ten minutes? Ah, but what is time, Mr Nut? Isn't time really just a figment of our imagination?'

'The name's Knot. Not Nut.'

'Mr Notnut. Sorry about that.'

Chelsea tried not to laugh. Muffled laughter came from the students, many trying their best to hold it back. Chelsea thought this boy must sure have some nerve to talk like that to a teacher, particularly a tenacious one like Mr Knot. Then again, perhaps it was simply ignorance. He had no idea what this teacher would tolerate.

Mr Knot frowned deeply. 'Look you, I'm not going to put up with any of your nonsense. There are rules in this school about turning up to class on time. I expect you to adhere to them.'

'In that case, we can't have me being late then, can we?'

'Damn right!'

With that, Rex took a stool and used it to get up to the classroom clock. Mr Knot's jaw dropped as he reached up and adjusted the time of the clock by turning it back ten minutes. 'There,' Rex smiled and climbed back down. 'I'm right on time.'

Mr Knot's nostrils flared and he breathed heavily.

Chelsea scanned the class. All the girls' eyes were fixed on Rex as he chose a seat. Even when Mr Knot spoke, the girls continued to gaze at Rex. Holly's gaze, in particular, was transfixed.

'Excuse me!' Mr Knot rapped on his desk loudly. 'I would like all attention over here, please. There's plenty of time for you girls to ogle the new boy after class.'

They diverted their eyes back to Mr Knot. He got right down to business and talked about the theory of evolution, but one by one, eyes returned to Rex - Chelsea's included.

Rex seemed to be lapping it up, delivering smiles to many of the girls and getting big ones in return. He didn't even glance Chelsea's way but that was okay, she was used to being overlooked.

Mr Knot fumed at the lack of attention to his lesson but he kept on talking.

Chelsea noticed Rex had ceased exchanging smiles with the other girls and his attention was now on Mr Knot and his eyes seemed glazed over. He drummed his fingers lightly on the bench.

After a few seconds of that, he spoke so the entire class could hear. 'Do we really have to learn this stuff?'

'What?' Mr Knot stared at Rex.

Rex quit this drumming and leaned his elbows on the desk. 'It may not be the case for you but exactly what benefit will this have when we're out there searching for a job? I can just imagine handing over my CV and my potential boss saying... He changed his voice to a toffee-nosed official. "Well, Mr Cassidy, I see you have great customer services experience, having worked in McDonald's for twenty years, but I don't think your degree in Natural Selection or your expertise on dark matter is really what we're looking for. Oh, but I hear there's an opening at Te Arawa College for a new biology teacher. Maybe you should try there?"'

Chelsea laughed and at the same time her classmates snickered and cackled. The dumbfounded look on Mr Knot's face made Chelsea want to laugh even more.

Mr Knot straightened up. 'Well, it is in the biology curriculum and so we have to learn it.'

'Anyone would think that the curriculum had been designed by a bunch of monkeys.'

Knot delivered him a wry smile. 'In a sense it is.'

'Shame on you, Mr K. Evolutionists have been trying to drum it in for a long time now that humans are not evolved from monkeys but just share a common ancestry.'

Chelsea marvelled at his words. He was smart. Intelligent as well as gorgeous.

Mr Knot delivered an uncharacteristic smirk. 'Well, Rex, it's great to see you know something about this.'

'Yeah, well, I filed it away under useless information I will never need to use unless I'm debating a creationist.' Rex smiled wryly.

'I take it you don't subscribe to Intelligent Design?'

'Intelligent Design? No. It's more like incompetent or even malevolent design if you ask me.'

'We won't go there.'

'I'm glad.'

'But we will continue on with our current topic without further interruptions from you. I'm not going to have you come into this class and disrupt it. You may have been able to get away with it at your old school but not here. If you're not careful, I just might assign you an essay to write on the subject.'

'Sure, why not? I'll leave a sheet of paper on a desk and let the words evolve themselves.' He grinned.

They all burst out laughing again.

Mr Knot's face turned sour and wrinkles spread across his brow.

Rex continued, 'Oh but if you don't want to wait a million years for that to happen, how about we just say a miracle occurred and the words just appeared there out of thin air. Oh, and that the ink is undetectable, which is why you can't actually see it. Yeah, I think that will keep the creationists happy.'

'That's enough.' Knot's face turned red. 'Detention. Lunchtime.'

'We'll have to see, won't we?' Rex chuckled.

'What do you mean by that?'

'With the laws of natural selection, I may just evolve some new immunity or ability to avoid detentions. Either that or God will come to me in a vision and tell me I no longer need to attend. When God tells you to do things, you know you have to do as you're commanded.'

'Funny Ha Ha!'

Rex made no further comments after that. He spent the rest of the period drawing sketches in his folder and exchanging smiles with female students. Just as before, he didn't seem to notice Chelsea.

Later, outside D Block, Chelsea and her friends joined the welcoming committee that surrounded Rex.

'I can't believe the way you spoke to Mr Knot,' Holly said.

'Are you going to his detention?' asked one of the boys.

'Nah.' Rex grinned. 'If that assclown thinks I'm going to turn up, he's kidding himself.'

Ben stepped up. 'You a real wise-ass, are ya?'

Rex eyed him, expressionless. 'Do you have a problem with me?'

Ben pushed his way through the girls. Chelsea could see from a mile off he wanted to stamp his dominance over the new guy and at the same time probably try to impress the girls. 'Yeah, I got a problem, punk. I don't like it when some wally comes to my school trying to be Mr Cool.'

'A bit like you, Tamati,' someone commented.

'Oh yeah, you're a real man too,' added someone else.

Laughter rang out from those around them.

Rex towered over Ben but the bully didn't back down. Chelsea knew he could put up a good fight against anyone, no matter how big they were. One thing Ben had in his arsenal was speed and she doubted Rex had that.

Rex let out an irritated sigh. He spoke with cool composure, 'Look, eejit, I don't know what your real problem is but then again, I'm not a shrink. So why don't you scram and go play somewhere else?'

Ben shoved Rex but he didn't budge.

Rex eyed him with contempt and spoke calmly once again, 'You don't wanna go there.'

'Oh yeah? I want to go there, all right. Come on, new guy. Let's see how tough you are.'

Ben made a lunge at him but Rex was far quicker than Chelsea expected. In a move that wowed everybody, Rex grabbed Ben by the arm and flipped him over. Ben landed on his back a loud grunt, the wind bursting from his lungs. For a moment, he lay stunned, breathing heavily and then climbed painfully to his feet.

Rex remained where he was and watched him tentatively.

Ben lunged at Rex again.

Whack!

Rex's fist connected with Ben's cheek and down he went, crashing to the ground. He lay there and shook the cobwebs from his head, while he clutched the side of his face. He made no effort to get up.

It was the most amazing thing Chelsea had ever seen - Ben lying on the ground, dispatched in one blow. 'Good lord, where did you learn moves like that?'

'Just a couple of tricks I picked up.' For a moment, he studied her and then smiled - a dazzling smile that could have easily knocked Chelsea down next to Ben. 'I didn't notice you in the classroom before.'

'My name's Chelsea.' She didn't know why but she felt like she was talking to a celebrity.

'You were in Nut's class? I can't believe I didn't notice you.' His deep-blue eyes sparkled and then a curious look appeared on his face. 'Your glasses.' He reached out to take them from off her face but paused. 'May I?'

Her knees felt weak. 'Umm... okay.'

He gently removed them from the bridge of her nose. She blinked to refocus her eyes. His handsome face blurred a little but it was still there and he gazed deeply into her eyes as if mesmerised. He reached out his other hand and gently pushed hair from her cheeks. She could hardly breathe. She imagined him leaning forward and pressing his lips against her's. She was sure that if he did, she would faint.

Sadly, he didn't kiss her. He blinked his long eyelashes a few times then smiled. 'You rock.'

Chelsea didn't know what to say, wondering if she needed a hearing aid as well as glasses. She stared at him like a total flake as he placed her glasses back on her face. Rex still smiled and it took several seconds for her to come to her senses. She glanced at the others around her. Their wide-eyes suggested they were surprised by Rex's actions also.

She turned back to him but his attention had already moved away and he talked to someone else. Nevertheless, that didn't change anything. He thought she rocked. Even if he hadn't been sincere, it still made Chelsea feel better than she had in a long time.

### CHAPTER 19:  
Rex Cassidy Makes his Mark

When Mav heard the talk of the new boy Rex Cassidy, he didn't know what to believe. It seemed ridiculous any student could possibly get away with what Rex had in Mr Knot's class. He wished he had taken Biology, just to see it.

Jacqui and a group of girls approached Mav and his friends later in the day. Holly was with her and greeted him. 'Mav. Has that new guy Rex turned up again?'

'Not yet.'

'Jacqui, you have to see this guy, he's awesome!'

'I can't believe he likes Chelsea.' Jacqui rolled her eyes. 'He can't be worth raving about.'

'He's such a babe! You'll see. I think I want to have his babies.'

Mav looked at Holly, feeling sick. He didn't know why he felt that way but the thought of her with some other guy suddenly appeared distasteful. Over the last few days, even the thought of Pete with her had become something he didn't like to picture. If he didn't get his act together, he might just lose her to the new guy.

He pulled Pete aside. 'What is it with this guy? The girls seem to be going gaga over him.'

'I know, sickening, huh? Must be the whole pheromone thing.'

'What?'

'We learnt it in biology last week. Animals let off a scent that makes other animals want to mate with them. Studies show it's the same in humans. Some people naturally have more of it than others do. I'd say this guy probably has it oozing out through every pore.'

'That'll explain it. Looks like Holly's been affected big time.'

Pete's right eye narrowed. 'I wouldn't have thought you'd be worried about that, being after Sam and all.'

'Err... yeah, I'm not.' Mav had to put Pete's mind at rest somehow. 'But if she goes after him, then you'll be left high and dry, won't you?'

'Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence.'

'Ah, sorry, I didn't mean it like that. But I've just never seen her so keen on a guy like this.'

'Rex, Over here!' Holly's voice called out.

Rex emerged from the office block nearby and strolled towards them. Just looking at him, Mav could see why Holly liked him so much. He looked like a guy that could've easily put Ben in his place.

The expression on Jacqui's face amused Mav. Her eyes were transfixed on Rex. If there was such a thing as a "love at first sight" look, it seemed as though Jacqui had it.

'Hey, Rex,' Pete said. 'Did you get in trouble?'

'Nah, nah.' Rex grinned. 'I was supposed to meet some teacher named Mr Harris but apparently, he's gone homesick.'

'Old Sergeant Major Harris, eh?' Pete said. 'He's one dude you don't want to meet in a hurry. Who knows, with a bit of luck, he might be sick tomorrow too. Then we can have a relieving teacher for PE.'

'Hi.' Jacqui stepped forward, her eyes sparkling. 'My name's Jacqui. I heard how you dealt with Ben Tamati. I'm impressed.'

Rex smiled at Jacqui and continued to gaze at her, as enamoured with her as almost every other guy in the school. Mav hoped maybe the two of them would get together, leaving Holly out of the picture.

Holly strode forward. 'My name's Holly. Ben's a real pest. I'm really glad you taught the creep a lesson.'

'He was an eejit.' He gazed at her the same way as he had Jacqui. It made Mav feel uncomfortable yet again.

'Are you going to the dance next Friday night?' Holly asked.

'I wouldn't miss it. I hope you'll save a dance for me.'

'I'll dance with you all night if you like.'

'I might take you up on that offer.'

Holly smiled, her eyes bright and adoring. Mav had never seen her smile like that at anyone before.

'Wait in line, Holly,' Jacqui intercepted. 'You're not going to get away that easily, Rex. I think you and I would make a great couple on the dancefloor. How about it?'

'Tempting.'

'Hey, Jacqui, what about you and Ginge?' Pete spoke up.

Jacqui delivered him a piercing glare. 'Shut up, Cook! You don't know what you're talking about.' She turned back to Rex, her scowl disappeared and her expression turned flowery again. 'How would you like me to show you around the school?'

'Sure, why not?'

'Come on then.'

Rex, Jacqui and her friends departed.

Mav remained silent. He felt a little bitter that one guy should have the attention of all the hot girls in school. Worst of all, Holly seemed so wrapped up in him that she never even glanced at Mav the whole time. He wondered whether he was now yesterday's news.

The first period after lunch was English - taught by Mr Franklin, a teacher close to retirement - a little soft and sometimes cranky. He didn't have a lot of hair and what he did have of it was greying. He had an irritating passion for old-fashioned literature.

Desks were set up in clusters around the room, ideal for group work. The teacher's desk was in the corner by the whiteboard. There was a small library area in the back-right corner with a couch and cushions which was sometimes used for silent reading.

Mav and Pete chose desks next to each other and set out their gear on their desks, waiting for class to begin. Students arrived in dribs and drabs as Mr Franklin prepared textbooks on his desk.

Rex arrived and immediately all eyes gravitated towards him. Jacqui and her friends entered with him like a bunch of drooling puppies.

'So that's Rex Cassidy, eh?' Wal asked from behind Mav.

'That's him. Unless he's changed his name in the last half hour.'

When Rex saw Mav and Pete, he strolled towards them. 'How's it going, guys?'

'Good,' said Mav

'Not bad,' added Pete.

'Mind if I sit here?' He pointed to a vacant seat.

'Go ahead,' Pete invited him.

Rex sat but had no workbooks or pencil case on him. The girls chose chairs nearby.

'So, what do you think of TA so far?' Mav said.

'It rocks. Just been on a tour of the grounds with Jacqui and the girls.'

'Jacqui?' Wal piped up. 'I hope you're not moving in on my territory, newbie.' He spoke in a grim tone of voice, just like he did when he was about to clip someone across the ear. 'She's my girl.'

'Rack off _butthead_!' Jacqui flung a piece of screwed up paper at him. It only just missed Wal's head and bounced off a nearby desk to the floor. 'I'm not anybody's girl, especially not yours, you jerk.'

Wal smirked at Rex. 'She loves me really.'

'I can see it.' Rex grinned. 'A guy like me wouldn't stand a chance with you around.' He chuckled.

Wal seemed to appreciate the comment and smiled.

Mr Franklin handed out copies of Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Pete groaned. 'We don't really have to study this rubbish, do we? This stuff is so far outdated.'

'Well, Mr Cook, you may not appreciate it now but you will once we've read it. There's a lot to value when it comes to the writings of Shakespeare. He is still a revered author today. I'm sure by the end of this year, you will all come to appreciate his works that little bit more.'

'Yeah right.' Rex spoke with a gleam in his eye.

Immediately a hush fell across the room. All ears were open, waiting in anticipation to hear what Rex had to say. It would be interesting to see how Mr Franklin would deal with it.

'What's the point in it?' Rex continued with a wry smile. 'It's old-fashioned, boring, hard to understand and no one in this day can possibly identify with it. The type of English is as Pete here said \- outdated. Give us one good reason why we should be studying this load of crud?'

'It's classic literature.'

'Well, fine. You invent a time machine, and I'll read this crap before I use it. Then I'll fit right in.'

Laughter echoed around the room. Mav chuckled too, thinking Rex certainly had a way with words.

'Plays like Macbeth are extremely interesting,' defended Franklin. 'Marvellous stories. I studied Shakespeare when I was at school and loved it.'

'You probably studied with Shakespeare.'

Raucous laughter resounded again. Mav loved it. It was the type of thing he would have said if he had the guts.

Rex continued, 'The fact you studied it back then should be warning bells it's out of date now and no longer relevant. Back in your days, this might have been the in stuff but this is the 21st century, I say throw that old stuff in the grave where it belongs. We don't want it.'

The class delivered a round of applause.

Even Mav laughed and whistled in support of Rex.

'Preach it, brother!' Wal called out from behind.

'Okay, that's quite enough,' Mr Franklin growled. 'You're all missing the point when it comes to Shakespeare. It's not all about good stories. Shakespeare is about poetry. It's about similes and metaphors. It's about making the way one speaks more picturesque. It's a way of learning to express oneself more imaginatively. That's what it's about.'

Rex snickered. 'I can do that quite well with modern-day English, thanks. I could express myself in some really imaginative ways but I don't think you'd appreciate that too much. I mean, who on earth goes around talking like that anyway?' He rose to his feet. 'Behold!' He raised his hand in the air as if on stage. 'I prattleth on like a complete and utter twit. I speaketh to thee from the heart of my bottom, speaking as an eejit wouldst speaketh. I seek out a fair maiden to dump my garbage upon.'

He stopped at the desk of Chelsea and swung around to look down at her. She stared up at him googly-eyed.

'Behold! Is this a beauty I see before me? To be or not to be? That is the question. Tis, yes it is! Her beauty hitteth me like a baseball bat to the head. The blow maketh me talk even more drivel. Juliet, my sweet Juliet. I must go now. I must travel the road that will taketh me to even more dickwaddery. Adieu, adieu, parting is such sweet sorrow... whatever the hell that's supposed to mean.'

He turned back to face Mr Franklin. 'Absolute crap! That's what it is.' He paused to cast a wink back at Chelsea and then went back to his seat under a rapturous round of applause.

'Very poetic,' Mr Franklin said once the cheers and applause died. 'In a way, Rex has demonstrated what can be done, by using poetic language, as Shakespeare does in his plays. He made good use of similes and metaphors. Obviously, it is not everybody's cup of tea, and as Rex alludes, one might sound like a bit of a twit using it in modern society but let us keep an open mind about it. We do have to study this material and you never know. It just may come in useful one day.'

'Right,' Rex said. 'And one day schooling really will prepare us for the real world.'

### CHAPTER 20:  
A Gruelling Period of PE

'ATTEN- HUT!'

It was Wednesday morning, PE period.

Mav and his friends stood on parade at attention next to the pavilion, eyes straight ahead. Alas, Mr Harris was there, alive and well, over his illness of the day before and as usual, he had his AK47 tucked under his arm.

They had warned Rex about Mr Harris and what to expect from him. Nobody thought Rex would believe the stories but he stood in parade formation along with everybody else, not saying a word. He appeared relaxed and nonchalant, which was a bit of a pity because the guys had hoped to scare him a bit with their stories. Mav hoped he wouldn't give Mr Harris any cheek like he had his other teachers. All hell would break loose if he did.

Mr Harris did his usual march up and down the line of students and did not seem to notice Rex until his third inspection. He stopped and swung around to face him. 'You must be our new recruit, Rex Cassidy?'

'That's me, Sergeant Major, Sir,' Rex replied in a cheerful manner.

Mav held his breath. Nobody ever called Mr Harris, Sergeant Major to his face. Rex was being very brave, very stupid, or very ignorant. They had told Rex Mr Harris was a former Army Sergeant Major, so maybe he had taken that a little too much to heart.

Much to Mav and his fellow recruit's surprise, Mr Harris didn't blow up. Even more surprisingly, a smile creased his lips and there it remained. 'What do you think of Boot Cam.-. I mean Te Arawa College so far?'

'Not bad, Mr H. I think I'm going to like it here just fine.'

That _had_ torn it. No way in a million years would Mr Harris would accept being called Mr H, Mav was certain.

Mr Harris's smile broadened. 'I'm glad to hear it. You have guts I'll give you that. It seems your record from your previous school is spot on about you. I think you and I are going to get on just fine. I will be expecting good things from a lad in your physical shape. I shall certainly be setting you some tough tasks to perform to really test your metal.'

'I look forward to the challenge, sir.'

'That's what I like to hear.'

Mav would have scratched his head in bewilderment if he dared even move a muscle. How was it Rex could get away with such a nonchalant attitude? Why was he not running around the field doing extra laps as a punishment? Mav could only wonder.

Mr Harris stepped back to get a wider view of his troops and spoke again. 'Right! Under pressure from the school principal I have been asked to take it easy on you all today by allowing you to play a game of sport.'

Many of the boys expressed noises of delight while others sighed with relief. Mav felt like doing both.

'But don't go thinking it's going to be a piece of cake. If you think you're going to be playing some namby-pamby game where you get to stand around the field all period, you've got another think coming.'

'What are we playing, Mr H, Sir?' Pete spoke up.

Mr Harris drew his AK47 and fired a bevvy of dye pellets at Pete's feet, causing him to leap into the air with a squeal.

Their PE teacher had that psychotic glare, the one they were used to when a student got out of line. 'I won't have any disrespect in my class, do you hear me, soldier?'

'Y...Y...Yes, sir!' yelped Pete.

Mr Harris's voice calmed. 'ONLY once you're in the shape young Rex is will I allow a few more informalities. Give me thirty, Private. Now!'

Pete hit the ground and counted aloud as he attempted to do thirty press-ups. Mav doubted he could do more than ten but, somehow, Pete would have to find the energy to do thirty if he didn't want green dye all over his back.

'The rest of you start running. Three laps around the paddock, stragglers will be shot. Move it, move it, move it!'

They charged off, except for Tucker who always took a little longer to get off the mark. He received a couple of dye pellets in the rear to get him moving. 'Come on, Pyles, get moving before I make you do ten, move it, move it, MOVE IT!'

Rex arrived back first, a full minute ahead of the rest of them and stood with Mr Harris, chatting away cheerfully, as the rest of them filtered in. Mav came in around the middle of the field.

Once everyone but Tucker arrived, it was time to move on to the day's activity. Last week they had been swimming. They had expected an easy period but it was swim, swim and swim some more and then extra swimming thrown in for good measure. Mr Harris had knackered them out so much they needed a swim afterwards to cool themselves down.

Mav marvelled at how Mr Harris could turn even the most appealing of activities into a hellish experience. He shuddered to think what was coming up next.

'Right,' Mr Harris said as Tucker continued to struggle around the field on his own. 'Today we're going to play a game of American football.'

Everyone cheered, including Mav.

'We haven't got a lot of time, so I'm not going to go over the rules but basically, it's smash into as many players as possible and get the ball to the other side of the field in the process. Sound good?'

'Yes, sir!' they all chimed in.

'Well, it won't be, I can assure you of that. Rex, you can captain one team. Wal, you can captain the other. Any questions?'

One boy raised his hand timidly.

'Yes, Healer?'

'Are we going to be wearing pads, sir?'

Mr Harris stared at Shawn Healer as if he had said the unthinkable. 'Pads? PADS? Are you _some_ kind of a wimp, Healer? In my vocabulary, there is no such thing as pads. Nobody will wear pads in my PE class, is _that_ clear, Healer?'

'Yes, sir.'

Mr Harris shook his head in despair. 'Gordon Bennett, I can't believe I've got so many namby-pamby wimps in my class. I'm gonna have to get extra PE classes going for you lot.'

That was a thought too horrifying for Mav to contemplate. Two PE classes with Mr Harris every week was torture as it was, but three? That would finish them all off for good. Who knows, maybe that's what Mr Harris wanted?

It was probably the most harrowing period of PE Mav had ever gone through. By the end, they were all battered, bruised and aching. Mav himself felt as though he had broken almost every bone in his body. The only boy to have come out of the whole game unscathed was Rex and it wasn't because of lack of effort on his part. On the contrary, Rex had been the star player of the whole game, not to mention the most violent. It was mainly because of him most of them were in the state they were.

It was almost as if Rex and Mr Harris had been working as a team to make everyone's life as miserable as possible. While Rex bowled over everyone in his path, Mr Harris shot anybody who didn't put in enough effort or anyone he thought was using tactics to deliberately avoid contact with other students.

It was a popular tactic for some to deliberately accidentally fall over if someone like Rex or Wal came charging. Sometimes they would get away with it but other times Mr Harris gave them grief, even when it really was an accident.

Tucker left the field covered in green dye. He opted for the sting of the dye pellet rather than suffering the collision of a Mac truck like Rex. Any time Tucker got the ball he either dropped it or passed it off to someone else as soon as possible. Mr Harris was not impressed, so made Tucker do two extra laps around the field after the game.

Everyone made sure they cleared out of the changing sheds well before Tucker came in, knowing what sort of a mood he would be in afterwards.

Pete groaned as he, Mav and some of the other boys left the changing sheds, 'I am aching all over.' He flinched and touched his lip, which had been split after a particularly nasty collision with Joseph Ashley.

Wal was the only one who seemed to be in high spirits, despite having tangled with Rex on numerous occasions and coming off worse each time. He had a black eye and a bruised jaw, both compliments of the guy. To give Wal credit though, he was the only guy next to Rex who had given it his all, the entire time. No matter what injuries he sustained.

'It was a good game,' Wal said for about the fifth time since it finished. 'See that touchdown I made? Even Rex didn't stop me doing that one.'

'You're mental,' Ginge said. 'The rest of the time, Rex was giving you a good walloping. Man alive, he is one tough dude.' He rubbed a sore shoulder. 'I tried a tackle on him. It was like hitting a running train. My shoulder won't be the same for weeks. I hope it doesn't affect my rugby next season.'

'You think you've got problems?' Sheep grumbled. 'I tried tripping the guy up and almost broke my leg in the process.'

'How about him and Mr Harris, eh?' Ginge said. 'Going to his office for a cold drink? That's a first.'

'I reckon,' Pete said. 'He never fired one dye pellet at him.'

'What do you expect?' growled Sheep. 'He didn't have to.'

'It would be nice if I could have had a cold drink.'

'Ha! All you can handle is water.'

'Yeah, I know.' Pete grinned. 'All though I can handle a glass of milk once in a while. Not too much though because the high calcium content gets to me after a while.'

'Spaz.'

At lunchtime, the boys still suffered soreness from Mr Harris's PE class. Mav and Pete ate their lunch outside of the school pavilion. The queue to the tuckshop window had dwindled away and the canteen operator packed up, ready to close it.

'Did you bring food for Tucker?' Pete asked as he munched on a cheese and lettuce sandwich.

'A little,' Mav said. 'But I couldn't get much.'

'Me neither.'

'I just hope he doesn't bother. I hope he'll get enough food from juniors.'

Pete scowled. 'Fat git. He pushed me off my bike after school yesterday afternoon. I ended up with a stuffed knee. It still hurts like buggery. Lucky, I managed to get through PE.' He took another bite of his sandwich.

Mav drank from a carton of juice. 'Were Ash and Hew with him?'

'No, but he said he'd get them on to me today if I got cheeky to him again.'

'So, you got smart to him, did you?'

'That's why he pushed me off the bike. He's a nut, that's what he is.'

'Well, you are what you eat as they say. And Tucker has a particular craving for peanut slabs.'

'He has a particular craving for everything!'

'True, true. They say he eats a lot of garbage too.' Mav bit into a plum.

'Just a pity he didn't get in trouble for trashing the Reaper's office.'

'Mmmmm.' Mav swallowed his mouthful. 'Didn't think he would. The teachers would have figured even he wouldn't be stupid enough to write his own name on the wall and that someone was just trying to get him into trouble.'

Wal arrived on the scene and studied the tuckshop. The front grill had been drawn down.

'Too late,' said Mav. 'The canteen lady just left.'

'Good.' He tapped the side of this school bag. 'I'm going in.'

'What?'

'Come on. I'll show you.'

Curiosity got the better of Mav and he and Pete followed him up onto the pavilion deck. The main door to the pavilion was unlocked and he walked in. He glanced around and then pulled his bunch of keys from his bag. 'Keep an eye out. Tell me if anyone comes.' He walked over and tested his keys on the tuckshop door.

'What are you doing?' Mav said. 'Are you mad?'

'I'm down to the last 20 keys. One of them has to fit.'

'What, so you come in here each day to try and break into the tuck shop?'

'Yep.'

Mav turned to look around worried that any moment someone would come up to the pavilion and peer through the windows.

There was a sound of a click 'Holy shit, I don't believe it,' Wal exclaimed and opened the tuckshop door. 'Yes!'

'You da man!' Pete said.

'Of course, I am.'

Mav was not so impressed. 'Ah, damn, come on, you have to be kidding.'

Wal began to stuff his bag full of goodies. Bottles of drinks and then packets of chips. 'Hey, you guys give me your bags.'

'No way,' Pete said. 'You're not using our bags to smuggle your ill-gotten gains out of here.'

'Just give me your bloody bags or I'll smack you!'

Reluctantly the two of them handed their bags to Wal. He stuffed both bags as full as he could with chocolate bars and other goodies and then closed the tuckshop door behind him. 'Let's go.'

Mav couldn't believe he was just going along with this but there was no way he dared get on the wrong side of Wal. They made their way out of the pavilion and back down to where they had eaten their lunch.

'So, what now?' Mav asked. 'Are we going to be lugging around your stolen goods all day?'

'For now, yes,' Wal said. 'I'll arrange to get the stuff off you after school.'

'Hey, I have to catch a bus.'

'Don't worry it will before you catch your bus.'

'And do we get a share?' Pete asked. 'We should at least get a share.'

'Yeah, you'll get some but I'm the one that masterminded this and risked getting caught picking that lock over the last few weeks, so it will only be a little.'

'I don't want any of it,' Mav said. 'I just wanna get rid of it now.'

'Well, you can't. Just deal with it, newbie. Anyway, I'll catch you guys later.' With that, Wal departed, carrying his bag with him.

Mav sighed and plonked himself back down. 'This is all I need. Getting caught up in the Te Arawa College crime of the century. The Great Tuckshop Robbery.'

'Best not argue with Wal unless you want your head ripped off.'

'Seems like everybody wants to rip our heads off around here.'

'Yeah and here's another one of them.' Pete pointed to Ben Tamati who made his way towards them.

Mav could tell by the scowl on Ben's face he was in a foul mood. 'Oye, Maverick! I've got an aching elbow thanks to you.'

'Me? What the hell did I do?'

He reached them and came to a halt. 'In that game of gridiron. You stuffed my elbow up completely.'

'What, I stuffed your elbow up? The same elbow you tried to swing into my face when I was trying to tackle you? The same elbow that missed my head and hit Rex Cassidy in the chest? That same elbow?'

'Don't try to be a smartass, you punk. If you hadn't ducked, it would be your face, not my elbow hurting. I figure I owe you a bit of pain.' He grabbed Mav by the shirt and hauled him to his feet. Ben shoved him back a few steps, which caused Mav to run his heel into something solid. He fell backwards and the object, a metal pole, went with him. It was a stringed fence, which cordoned off an area of dirt and dried up grass. It had been erected to keep people off so the grass could grow back unhindered. He had now flattened one side of it completely and in the process, had lost his grip on his bag. It wasn't zipped up properly due to being stuffed full of swag and candy bars had fallen out.

Ben noticed them immediately. 'What's this?' He bent down to check and opened the side of his bag. 'What's this?'

'None of your business.'

'Where did you get all this?' He turned his eyes in the direction of the tuckshop window. 'Ohhhhh... You stole all this from in there, didn't you? That's why you're hanging around here.'

Mav did his best to hide his mortification as he climbed back to his feet. 'How do you think I would have got in there? I paid for this stuff at the shop.'

Ben snickered. 'Haha, yeah, whatever, Maverick.' He grabbed him by the shirt once more. Mav tried to shove him off but the tough Maori held him firm. 'You're a real smartass, no doubts about that and I don't like smartasses, especially ones that rob stuff from the school tuckshop.' He raised his fist to strike him. Mav flinched, waiting for the impact...

'Tamati!'

Much to Mav's relief Ben let go of him immediately and stepped away from him. Mav opened his eyes to see a wide-eyed look on Bens' face.

Rex strode up. 'What the hell are you doing, eejit?' He grabbed Ben by the shirt but paused to glance down to Mav's bag to see it open at the top and the candy bars inside. He frowned but then turned back to face Ben. 'Well? You gonna answer me, asswipe?'

'I... We were just fooling around a bit, weren't we, Mav?' Ben said quickly.

'That's not what it looked like to me, douchebag.' Rex grabbed his shirt tighter.

'I... Hey, Mav, I was only kidding. You gotta realise, bro, I'm always kidding about.'

Mav spoke up, 'Well, you were certainly acting the goat that's for sure.' He'd probably regret his wisecrack but as long as Rex was around, he knew Ben wouldn't try anything.

Ben stood stock still, wide-eyed, awaiting whatever Rex had in store for him.

Finally, Rex grunted, 'Scram, Tamati. I don't want to see you causing any more trouble. If I do, you'll be sorry, got it?'

Ben nodded and quickly hurried away.

Mav smiled at Rex gratefully. 'Cheers, Rex. That guy's had it coming for a long time.'

'I can't stand guys like him.'

Mav bent down to retrieve his bag and zipped it up as best he could. Rex said nothing as he did it.

Pete spoke up, 'Pity you can't sort Tucker Pyles out.'

Rex raised an eyebrow. 'Tucker Pyles? Who's that?'

'You haven't met Tucker yet? He's that fat jerk. The useless one who Mr Harris kept shooting at PE.'

'Him? What's so special about him? Seemed like a right royal eejit to me.'

'Don't let him hear you say that. You'll be dead meat.'

'You are kidding, aren't you? He couldn't even run a lap of the field.'

Mav rose to his feet and lifted his bag onto his shoulder. It was heavy from the goodies inside but he felt glad Rex had not questioned him about it. 'It's not him you have to worry about. It's his two mates and one of them knows karate too.'

Rex shrugged but his expression didn't change. 'So why is this Tucker guy such a problem?'

'He's only the biggest jerk in the whole school, man' Pete said. 'He's a fascist who likes to bully everyone around and gets his mates to do his dirty work.'

'I see. Well, I might just have to look into that a little more but it's a low priority at the moment.'

'Seems you're keen on Chelsea Brown,' said Mav. 'I guess she's okay but it's not like she's the hottest babe in school or something.'

'Seriously? She's gorgeous.' Rex said. 'Her eyes...' He let out a sigh and gazed away into the distance. 'The same sapphire-blue eyes... Almost identical.'

Mav was intrigued and figured he could only be talking about one thing. 'An ex-girlfriend?'

Rex didn't reply. He didn't even look at Mav. All Mav saw was pain in his eyes.

He broke the silence, not wanting to push Rex for further elaboration. 'I guess she does have nice eyes. The glasses detract from them though.'

Pete spoke up. 'You reckon? Yeah... I guess-'

'Hey! What are you lot doing on _that_ patch?' a man's voice called out.

It was then Mav realised they still stood on the dried-up patch of grass, the area that had previously been cordoned off before it had been knocked down by him and Ben. The side of the fence lay at their feet and Mav knew they would get the blame for it.

'Oh, oh,' Pete said. 'It's the Reaper. You don't want to mess with him, Rex.'

Rex still seemed distracted but slowly seemed to be coming to his senses.

'You boys get off that grass now!' The deputy principal strode up with an evil glare. 'You know you're not supposed to be on it. And who knocked down this fence? Did you guys do that?'

'No, Mr Reaper,' Pete said. 'It was like this when we got here.'

'So you just decided you might as well have a good old stomp around on it, did you?'

Rex had completely come to his senses and smiled at Mr Reaper. 'We noticed the fence was down so thought we'd better check it out. Make sure nobody had been hurt. I'm confident it's safe to stand on now.'

Mr Reaper frowned at Rex for a few seconds. His crooked eyebrows seem to be even more crooked than normal. 'Are you for real?'

'Damn straight,' Rex replied. 'See? Nothing's happened to us yet. We've been here for about ten minutes, so it stands to reason it's quite safe to walk on this patch again.'

Mr Reaper's face darkened. 'You know darn well the reason we keep off areas of grass like this. It needs to be given a chance to grow, otherwise, it will just get scuffed up even worse, we'll lose all the grass on it and in winter, it will end up a big muddy mess. I don't know what your game is sunshine but I'm not having any of it. I don't know if I've seen you before, what's your name?'

'Rex Cassidy.' Rex extended his hand. 'The Grass Inspection Department. Nice to meet you, sir.'

The deputy principal's eyes narrowed as he studied his hand but he did not shake it. He delivered one of his iciest glares. 'So, you're Rex Cassidy. I should have known. I've heard all about you and the problems you caused at your last school and I can see you're going to be a problem here too. Well, let me tell you one thing. I will not stand for any of it, you hear?'

'Copy that, good buddy.'

'And I expect a little more respect than that too. My name is Mr Reaper and that's what I expect to be called, not as you put it, good buddy. One thing's for sure, you will have to conduct yourself a lot better than you have so far if you ever want to consider me a buddy.'

'I hear ya, squire.'

'Are you still trying to be cute?'

Rex spoke in an English accent, 'Not at all, old chap.'

Mr Reaper's voice went up an octave. 'What? You obviously haven't been listening to a word I've said, have you?'

'Oh, I heard you, boss, I just have this annoying habit of not taking certain things on board.' He smiled wryly.

The deputy principal's face turned red but he kept his composure. 'You're pushing your luck, sunshine. I will not tolerate this lack of respect and blatant disregard for school rules. You can rest assured I will be speaking to Mr Harris about this matter. Lucky for you, Mr Harris is responsible for sorting you out. Believe you me, if it were up to me I'd have you removed from this school right away.'

'It's a good thing we got off to a good start then.' Rex smiled.

'What? A good start? Do you seriously think you and I are off to a good start? You, my son, are sorely mistaken.'

'At least the grass is alright now.'

### CHAPTER 21:  
Chelsea the Rebel

Thursday night arrived and Chelsea had made up her mind. Next Friday, she would wear her contact lenses.

She had been walking on air, ever since the moment, Rex had removed her glasses from her face. If he loved her eyes so much and if her eyes could get more of his attention, then contact lenses would be what she would wear.

On arrival home, Chelsea's mother greeted her with a grim look. 'Chelsea! I want a word with you.'

'Yes?' Her mother only ever spoke like that if she had done something wrong. She wondered what it was, as she had been on her best behaviour the entire week.

'I ran into Mrs Johnson in town this afternoon.'

Chelsea froze and a feeling of dread ran through her body. Her mother knew.

'I just happened to mention the other weekend,' her mother continued in an ice-cold tone of voice. 'I asked her whether she had got all her cleaning done at the St John's Ambulance Hall. I must say I was very surprised to hear her say there was no cleaning going on at all that day.' She paused to glare at her daughter's face.

Chelsea was sure she had guilt written all over it.

'Where were you that Saturday?'

'I... I...' The feeling of guilt welled up inside her. She saw no point in trying to deny it as there was no way she could get around it. Unable to control her emotions, she burst out crying. 'I'm sorry, Mum, I really am. It's just that... it's just that all my friends were going to the beach that day and I really wanted to go.'

'So that's it, is it?' Her mother stared at her with coldness in her eyes. 'That explains the tan. I must say, I am very disappointed in you. You were grounded and you made up a story. You lied to me so you could get out of it and go to the beach with your friends. I take it, it was Jacqui Donaldson and her friends who you went with?'

'Yes,' whimpered Chelsea.

Her mother shook her head in despair. 'I can't believe you would lie to us like that. This is a very serious matter, young lady. You have abused the trust your father and I have had in you. I just can't believe this has happened. It's those friends of yours, that's what it is. They're leading you astray. Frankly, I don't know how I'm going to deal with this. I will need to speak to your father about it but as for your breaking of curfew, I will deal with that right here and now. You are grounded again, young lady. This time for three weeks.'

'Three weeks?' Chelsea stared at her mother aghast. 'But the school dance is next week. You know I've been looking forward to it all month. You can't ground me while that's on.'

'Oh, yes I can, and I will. You will not deceive us. You will not be going to that dance. And that is final.'

Chelsea could only stare horrified as her mother headed towards the back of the house. She had clearly made up her mind and there was no way Chelsea was going to be able to get her to change it. If she argued, she knew it would just make matters worse.

She thought about the dance and tried to hold back sobs. She imagined Jacqui doing all the slow dances with Rex. Then there was Sheep. Who would he be dancing with? It wouldn't be her if she didn't go. If anything was ever going to happen between her and guys like Rex or Sheep, she would have to be there, she just had to.

She knew what Jacqui would say - 'Not going to the dance, are you for real? I suppose you'll be at home studying _all_ night? If you want people to like you, you need to socialise with them. You're a loser, Chelsea, _that's_ _all_ you are. You'll never be popular and you'll never be part of our crowd. Just go back and hang out with the geeks!'

No, Chelsea had to be at that dance next Friday night, no matter what.

She gave it a lot of thought especially regarding what to tell the other girls about it. At first, she'd decided not to tell them but then considered it might be a good move to say so.

'I don't believe it,' Jacqui scoffed, the next day during lunch after Chelsea told her of the problems she faced. They sat out under the trees outside E Block. 'The school dance is coming up and you get grounded? I should have known there would be some reason to stop you from going. I'm not surprised actually; after all, you'd just be totally out of place at a dance. Chances are you'd just be sitting around all evening with no one to dance with. Bloody Hell, Chelsea.'

'Why were you grounded?' Holly asked with a look of concern.

'Because I went to the beach with you guys that other week.'

'What was wrong with that?' Jacqui asked.

'Because I went when I should have stayed at home playing Scrabble with my grandparents, remember?'

'You never mentioned you got into trouble over that,' Holly said.

'Why would I? Besides, there's no way I'm going to miss out on the dance.'

'So, you're still coming?'

'Of course.'

Jacqui snorted. 'I do not believe it. You, Chelsea Brown, are actually going to go to the dance even though your parents have forbidden it?'

'Of course. What's the big deal?' She knew she was really pouring it on but she had to make them think she was a rebel like them.

Jacqui studied her for a moment with a twisted smile. It almost looked like admiration to Chelsea. 'So, what are you going to do if they turn up to the dance to take you home? That would be even worse than not going. It would just be really bad form for your parents to turn up there in front of the half the school.'

'I'm hoping you guys could help me come up with a plan.'

Jacqui studied her for a few seconds as if deep in thought. She finally spoke, 'I suppose we could. How will you get out of the house without your parents knowing?'

'I'll climb out the window.'

'I take it you'll be meeting us over at Laura's place early to get ready?'

'Yes.'

Jacqui fell silent again, this time for a lot longer this time. The others said nothing in expectation of a brilliant scheme... or at least what Chelsea hoped would be brilliant. Not only was she beautiful but she was smart. If anyone could come up with something, she could.

'I've got it!'

'You have?'

'Oh yes,' Jacqui said. 'I've got it... and it will work like a charm...'

Chelsea left class that afternoon with a spring in her step and felt positive about the upcoming dance. She loved Jacqui's plan even though at the same time it scared her. It involved pulling a big one over on her parents and if her parents ever found out the truth, they would ground her until she was 18. She tried not to worry about it and just focus on how great the dance was going to be.

She and her friends were about to go their own separate ways and head home but ended up attracting the attention of Tucker Pyles. With him were his two goons, Jo and Colin.

'Hey babes, what you up to?' He greeted them in a cheerful tone of voice. 'Arguing about who is going to be my date for the dance?'

'As if!' Jacqui snarled. 'I'm going to be dancing with Rex Cassidy.'

It would be typical if what Jacqui said came true. She always seemed to get what she wanted.

'What, the new ubbhead?'

Holly scowled. 'If he heard you call him that, he'd waste you.'

'Ha!' Tucker scoffed. 'He wouldn't stand a chance. I'd knock the stuffing out of him any day.'

Chelsea and her friends burst out laughing.

Tucker's face darkened and a scowl appeared. 'What the ubbing hell's so funny? I'm the toughest guy here in this school; you should know that by now.'

'You're about as tough as a wet sheet of toilet paper,' Holly said. 'You need two goons to do your dirty work for you.' She turned to the others. 'What a spineless creep.'

The other girls voiced their agreement.

'Give her a clip across the ear, Hew.' Tucker ordered Colin. 'I'll teach her a lesson.'

Colin didn't move. He stood there looking staunch but made no effort to do as Tucker said.

Tucker's eyeballs protruding from his face. 'Go on, Col.'

'Nark off,' Colin said. 'I'm not gonna hit a girl.'

'Jo!' barked Tucker.

'You're on your own, bro,' said Jo. 'If they were guys we'd deal to them but they're not.'

Chelsea relaxed a little. At least the two of them had some honour. Exactly how much, she had no idea.

Tucker turned back to Holly, his face twisted with frustration. 'Lucky for you, I'm a gentleman, that's all I can say. Just as well there are ladies present or I'd give you an ubbering myself.'

They all gave him a weird look, even Colin.

Joseph Ashley chuckled. 'That's some really weird kind of logic, Tucks.'

'Yeah,' Colin agreed. 'No redundancy pay for you.'

Jacqui glared at Tucker with contempt. 'Rex is a black belt in Karate. I just can't wait to see him smash your bloated face in.'

'It ain't gonna happen, babe.'

'Don't call me babe, jerk!'

'See my mate Colin here? He's a black belt in karate too. I could deal with Cassidy myself if I wanted to but that would be depriving my mates here of a bit of entertainment. With Colin and Jo together, Rex Cassidy doesn't stand a show. Besides, Rex Cassidy's karate moves are about as impressive as a marble cake without marbles in it. Cassidy's a dead man if he messes with me!'

Chelsea spoke up, unable to remain silent any longer. 'I don't see you in a hurry to tangle with him.' Anger welled up inside her but she kept it under control.

'I've got better things to do.'

'Like what?' She wished she could slap his fat face silly.

'Eating my lunch.'

Holly spoke up. 'Oh, you mean the food you steal from other students?'

'AND from the tuckshop,' Jacqui said. 'As soon as Mr Carroll mentioned the robbery in assembly this morning, I just knew it had to be you.'

'I did not steal _that_ food from the tuckshop!'

'Oh, surrre you didn't. You would have to be the prime suspect. Who else is that obsessed with food?'

'I wasn't anywhere near that tuckshop the day it was robbed, was I guys?' He glanced at his two friends.

'Nup,' Colin said. 'Wasn't, Tucker, which even I have to say is a complete surprise.' He snickered and so did Jo.

'You can go crying to that ubbhead Cassidy if you want,' Tucker said. 'But if he tries to mess with me, then he'll know all about it, just you wait and see. I'm not afraid of him.' With a last jeering grin, Tucker moved away with Colin and Jo one-step behind him.

'Creep,' Chelsea seethed. 'Who does he think he is?' She breathed a long slow breath to calm herself.

'Mr Wonderful,' one of the other girls said.

'Mr Blunderful more like it,' Holly commented.

'I bet he did rob the tuckshop,' said Jacqui. 'Him and his two bully boys.'

'Well someone did,' Holly said. 'First someone busts into Mr Reapers office and trashes that and now someone busts into the tuckshop? Wouldn't be surprised if it was that half-wit that did both.'

'Although I can't imagine him getting away with it,' Chelsea said. 'He's too big and clumsy.'

'That's true.'

Chelsea wondered back to what Tucker had said to them. 'Holly, is Colin really a black belt? You'd know, wouldn't you? Coming from the same school as him.'

'I don't know if he's a black belt but he does belong to the karate club.'

'That's a worry. With him, Jo and Tucker, Rex might have his work cut out for him.'

'Oh, puleeease,' Jacqui said. 'Tucker's just talking shit like he always does. If he was really confident he would have just challenged Rex already.'

'Not necessarily,' Holly replied. 'Have you noticed? Tucker's never been one to bully the tougher and bigger students you know. I've never seen him hassle Ginge or Ben. He only challenged Wal because he got in his face. I think he's cautious but, you know, I think if he and Rex did cross paths, he wouldn't back down. And now that he has Colin and Jo on his side, he's even more powerful than ever. Even Wal avoids him.'

Holly's words rang true to Chelsea. 'She's right you know. And if Colin is an expert at karate, Rex might find himself biting off more than he can chew if he takes them on.'

'Imagine what he'd be like then,' Mandy Evans said. 'No one would hear the last of it if Tucker and Co beat up Rex.'

Holly nodded. 'He'd make all our lives a misery.'

'Oh, boy.' Chelsea shuddered. 'Those three together might be too much for Rex to handle.'

### CHAPTER 22:  
Life is like a Sausage

Monday arrived and there was a sausage sizzle going on outside the library to raise funds for the school dance club. Mav was there along with Pete. Tucker had been there too and collected a huge pile of sausages. Those students doing the serving protested at first but once Tucker threatened them with violence, they allowed him to take as many as he wanted. That meant everybody else had to wait while they cooked more. It irritated Mav that no teachers were around to stop Tucker from being so greedy.

'It looks like we're safe when it comes to the tuckshop,' Pete said after sipping his coffee as they sat out the front of C Block, still in sight of the barbeque. 'I was pretty much biting my nails all day Friday after it was mentioned in assembly. Was paranoid all day long expecting the Reaper to grab me by the scruff of the neck and haul me back to the office.'

'Same here,' Mav said. 'It's been worrying me something chronic. It still pisses me off that Wal roped us into that. I don't want to be one of his accomplices every time he wants to commit a felony.'

'Yeah, I know what you mean,' Pete said. 'It's like he expects us to do whatever he wants. I'm getting sick of it.'

'I guess we need to lay down the law to him. Tell him if he wants to do cretinous things, we're not gonna be involved.'

'He'll kill us.'

'Not if we both stick together.'

'He'll still kill us. The two of us together wouldn't be able to take him down. We need someone like Rex but he's not around today.'

'Yeah, I know.' Mav bit into a sausage wrapped in a slice of bread.

Pete continued, 'Apparently he's been away all weekend. No doubt enjoying a long weekend somewhere. His parents are rolling in it. He's been overseas heaps of times, lucky dog. Some guys have all the luck but not me. Story of my life.'

'Life.' Mav surveyed the rest of his sausage. 'It's a bit like a sausage, you know?'

'What?'

He held the remnants of his sausage up in the air. 'It's like looking at life. It looks okay, sure, I'm a little burnt from the sun but the world is fine. Then you look inside the sausage. You look inside yourself.'

He tilted it sideways. 'You examine your existence and you begin to see all the mushy little things - all the meaty details. You realise life isn't such a piece of pie as you thought it was. It's more like a stew. You see all the horrible brown lumps. Your girlfriend has dumped you. To overcome the sadness, you begin to smoke. Your breath begins to smell like old socks so nobody wants to be your friend. All your loved ones have forsaken you and you start to feel suicidal. You can't take it anymore!'

Mav pretended to sob. 'Like this sausage, the world eats you up! It seems _all_ the smoke in the world has engulfed your entire being. The burning searing grill of your life is making your life a blistering misery. You fall into the fire and your life becomes so charred you don't even recognise yourself. It all becomes too much for you and you cannot go on.'

He picked up his coffee in his free hand and studied it for a few seconds before continuing in a calmer tone of voice. 'Life is hard and all you've got to show for yourself is a really bad taste in your mouth. There's nothing more you can do. You're at the stage where you just have to admit... that Nescafe is a bloody good cup of coffee.'

Pete burst into laughter and almost choked on his own sausage. 'You ought to do stand-up comedy. Maybe even do your own TV show. The Rick Maverick Hour of Lunacy.'

'That would be an instant disaster. It would be about as popular as a Chinese takeaway in a cattery.'

They continued to chuckle away for the next few moments before Pete piped up again. 'Hey, it's Sam.' He pointed to Samantha who had just walked away from the sausage sizzle with a sausage and coffee in her hand. 'Look, she's sitting down alone too. I wonder where Craig McLeod is.'

'Perhaps I'd better mosey over and find out, eh?' Mav said with a smile.

'Good luck.'

His nerves ran wild as he made his way over to her but once he reached her, they calmed. 'Hi, there! If it isn't my former fiancée, alive and kicking.'

'Hi, Mav, how're things going?' said Sam, her manner quite friendly, which was a pleasant surprise for Mav. He thought she might give him a lukewarm response because of his previous meetings with Craig.

'Well, since you called off our wedding, pretty miserable.'

She laughed. 'Has it really been that bad?'

'It's been awful. Do you realise just how much pain I've been going through, knowing I can never hold you again?'

'What do you mean again?' She giggled.

'How about a first time then?'

'I don't think so.'

'How are things between you and Craig? That incident at the beach the other week had me worried. You are still talking, aren't you?'

'Barely.'

'Hope I didn't cause any trouble'

'No, we've been having problems for a while. Don't worry about it.'

Mav wanted to find out more but didn't know how without sounding nosy. 'I know that Craig is pretty peeved with me. I'd hate there to be hard feelings.'

'Has he been causing trouble again?'

'Nah, not really.'

'What do you mean by that?'

'Well... We did have a little run-in last weekend.'

Sam stared at Mav and for a few seconds, stunned. 'What happened?'

'Nothing really. We didn't get into a fight if that's what you think.'

'I don't believe it. I told him to leave you alone. I can't believe he's still holding a grudge against you.'

'Well, you know him. Craig McLeod does what Craig McLeod wants to do.'

'That's half the problem. He never listens to me anymore.'

'Then why do you waste your time with him?'

She looked pained. 'Sometimes I wonder. Sometimes I think he doesn't even want me anymore. It's as if I'm just there for show to make him look good with his mates. One thing's for sure, he's more interested in spending time with his mates than with me.'

Mav's opinion of Craig McLeod had been near rock bottom but now it was down at the level of the dinosaurs. 'The guy must be nuts. I think that all that money he has, makes him think he can treat people like garbage. He thinks he can do whatever he likes, just because he's rich.'

'You're not far wrong. In fact, that's exactly what he's like. I guess in some ways it was him, spending money on me that attracted me to him. All though, he was always so n-'

'Freaking Rick Maverick!' Craig strode across the compound towards them. 'What the hell are you doing with my girl, Maverick, you little blighter?'

Mav rose to his feet to meet the fuming senior.

Sam did too and intercepted him before he could get any closer. 'Cool it, Craig!' she ordered. 'We were just talking.'

'Like hell you were.' He shoved her roughly out of the way.

Mav was not going to allow that. He flung himself furiously at Craig, tackling him around the waist and bringing him to the ground. He sent a stiff blow to the angry senior's head. For a moment Craig appeared groggy but then using all his power, he shoved Mav off.

Both leapt to their feet, fuming at each other.

'You're dead, peon! Nobody strikes me and gets away with it.'

'You're a spineless, stuck up cretin,' Mav snarled. 'Only a coward would lay his hands on a girl, especially his so-called girlfriend.'

Sam seemed to be on the verge of panic. 'Stop! No Mav, don't. Craig, cut it out. No fighting.'

Mav took a couple of deep breaths and took a step back, deciding it best to go along with her wishes. He would be better off doing that than getting her upset by resorting to further violent acts on Craig.

Mav realised too late he might have been a little too complacent because Craig lunged forward and swung a swift right hook to his head. The blow sent Mav stumbling back, almost toppling him over. Craig leapt on him, brought him to the ground and once there, sent more blows to his face. If it wasn't for the timely intervention of the Reaper, Mav might have been in real trouble.

The Reaper roughly hauled Craig off him and stood him to his feet. Eyes blazing, Craig tried to break free to get back at Mav but the deputy principal overpowered him. 'McLeod! Cut it out now. What they hells got into you, for goodness sake?'

'He started it,' Craig snarled pointing to Mav. 'He hit me, the scummy blighter.'

'You manhandled Samantha.'

'That's a load of crap, Mr Reaper.'

'Like hell it is!'

The Reaper stared across at Sam with a concerned look. 'What? Samantha, is this true, did Craig assault you?'

For a moment, Samantha hesitated and then spoke. 'He shoved me.'

Craig gaped at Samantha. It had to be a real slap in the face for him having his girlfriend verify Mav's story but he thoroughly deserved it and Mav felt glad she'd finally spoken up against him.

Mr Reaper's face soured as Craig continued to stare at Samantha, for once, speechless. 'I'm very disappointed in you, Craig. I thought you were bigger than this. Come, sunshine, I will deal with you in my office.'

The Reaper said nothing to Mav and only delivered Sam one last purposeful glance before following Craig off to the office block. Mav remained, sitting on the ground, feeling like a punching bag but otherwise unharmed. Sam crouched down next to him. 'Are you okay?'

He grimaced. 'My face is aching, so I guess that means I'm still alive.'

'I'm really sorry.' She helped Mav to his feet. 'I'll never forgive him for this.'

'What are you going to do?'

'I've finished with him. That's the last straw. I don't care if I ever see his face again.'

'Are you sure?'

She delivered him a reassuring smile. 'Yes, I am. I've had it with Craig McLeod.'

'So, what will you do now?'

'I don't know. Play things by ear, I guess.'

'Will you be going to the dance this Friday?'

'I doubt it. To tell you the truth I was considering not going anyway. I was going to make an excuse to Craig.'

'Why don't you come? It'll be fun.'

'Oh, I don't think so.'

'Come on... what better way than to shove it in your ex-boyfriend, than by being there and dancing with other guys? Showing him that you're well and truly done with him?'

A twinkle appeared in her eye and she spoke again, 'True. There is that. You will be there too, won't you?'

'Either me or one of my split personalities. I'm sure they will all be queuing up to dance with you.'

'Great.' She smiled, 'I look forward to meeting them all.'

Thursday arrived and with it another gruelling period of physical education with Sergeant Major Harris. Mav was aching and tired from being made to practice for the upcoming cross-country event by doing a complete circuit of the course. The cross-country wasn't happening for another few months yet.

Rex was back at school and, as usual, got through the whole hour with little effort. He came in twenty minutes ahead of the rest of the field and when Mav jogged in, Rex stood there back in his school uniform talking to Mr Harris.

'I don't give a rat's butt what Reaper says,' Harris said cheerfully. 'He and the others can whinge all they like but as far as I'm concerned there's nothing wrong with you. You're a darn good student. If those pillocks can't handle you, then they shouldn't be in the teaching profession, should they?'

'Just as long as you don't get into trouble sticking up for me, Mr H.'

'Don't worry about it. So, you were expelled from your last school, big deal, I think a mountain was made from a molehill. I need students like you as examples to the others. You're the best student out of all this motley lot here.'

Mav didn't hear any more but harboured no surprise at the fact Rex had been expelled from his previous school.

After PE, he changed and headed for his locker in C Block. Mr Reaper arrived on the scene and called out to him. 'Maverick. I want a word with you.'

'Sure, what's up?'

'Come to my office now.'

Anxiety spread through Mav like smoke through a room. He wondered what he'd done. Was he in trouble because of his run-in with Craig McLeod or was it something worse? What if the Reaper had found out he'd been involved in trashing his office? Or worse, been an accomplice to the tuckshop robbery?

Once in his office, he sat in a chair. It felt eerie being back at the scene of the crime. Everything was tidy again and even the graffiti had been cleaned off the walls. The fern was also back in its pot, not looking at its best but at least it hadn't been destroyed.

'Okay, we'll get straight down to it,' the Reaper said. 'You're here because you have been identified as the tuckshop thief. What do you have to say to that?'

Mav recoiled and stared at the deputy principal in horror as his worst fears were realised. 'Are you serious?'

'I'm deadly serious. Your name has been given to me as the culprit.'

'Only my name?'

'Yes. Only your name. Does that mean there were others involved with you?'

Mav flinched. He had given away too much. Not only had he inadvertently admitted his guilt he had also implicated other people. 'Who told you it _was_ me?'

There were only a few possibilities. Pete, Wal or Ben... Although another one also came to mind he couldn't possibly ignore. Rex. He had seen his bag with the chocolate bars in it. Could he have reported him?

'It doesn't matter who told me but clearly, you are guilty. Now you need to tell me who else was involved.'

'I... I... it wasn't...' But he knew it was no use denying it. 'I wasn't involved. Not directly. I was just holding the goods. I had no choice.'

'Oh, you had no choice, Mr Maverick? Is that your excuse? Somebody forced you to break into the tuckshop and steal? Do you realise how ridiculous that sounds?'

'It's true!' He chose his words carefully. 'I was there and he made me fill my bags with things. I didn't want to but he told me I had to. He's bigger than me. I was scared of him.'

'And just who was this person who made you carry the so-called loot?'

'I...' Mav flinched. 'I can't tell you.'

'Yes you can, otherwise, I will have to presume you were in this on your own and it was you who spearheaded this whole operation. Is that what you want?'

'No, but I can't rat on a friend.'

'So, it was a friend, was it? Well, that would clearly rule out a lot of people. From what I heard you were hanging out with Pete Cook at the time.'

Mav tried to mask his emotions. 'No, it wasn't Pete. He wasn't involved.'

'Then who was it? You told me he was bigger than you. Well clearly, Pete Cook is smaller, so I'm guessing its someone else you spend time with. Will Ullman perhaps?'

'He's not my friend. Not really.'

'So, he might have forced you to help him in the theft then?'

Mav had to admit the Reaper was sharp. He never let any clue escape his observation. 'It wasn't... No, it wasn't Wal.'

'Mmmmm,' The deputy principal said. 'I think you're lying, aren't you? I can tell when people are lying and yes, I believe it was indeed Will Ullman. So, if I bring him into my office and question him, I will learn you were an accomplice to his crime? What I would do if I were you is to come clean and admit the entire thing. That way, if it is as you said and you were coerced into being an accomplice, then you can come out of this one without a black mark next to your name. Instead, it can just be the one person who suffers the consequences rather than two of you. So, wouldn't it be better to avoid the aggravation and just admit it was Ullman?'

Mav couldn't do it. As much as he could see the sense in turning Wal in, he just couldn't rat on him, even though they weren't exactly friends. He shook his head. 'I can't rat.'

Mr Reaper paused for a few moments and then nodded his head. 'Very well. I understand the code, I do. I will talk to Mr Ullman first thing tomorrow morning and we will see what he has to say for himself. If he implicates you in the crime as being an equal party... well then... you are going to be in major trouble.

Mav worried about the whole affair all night and got little sleep. He wanted to track down Wal before class and warn him but he couldn't find him. He came across Pete though, out the front of C Block. 'Pete, have you seen Wal?'

'Yeah, man. He was here earlier but the Reaper came around and called him to his office.'

'Damn!' Mav flinched and sat on a bench. 'We're in crap, something chronic. Well, at least I am. It all depends on what Wal tells Mr Reaper.'

A look of concern came on Pete's face. 'What are you talking about?'

'Someone fingered me as the one who robbed the tuckshop.'

The look of horror on Pete's face told him that Pete was not the one who had dobbed him in. 'You have got to be joking!'

'I wish I was. I denied it but the Reaper tricked me and I had no choice but to tell him.'

'WHAT?' Pete gasped. 'You better not have told him I was involved.'

'No, I never told him that but I told him someone made me do it and he figured it out. I never once said it was Wal but he narrowed it down and that's why he's called Wal into his office.'

Pete's face darkened. 'I don't believe it. You ratted Wal out.'

'No, honestly, I didn't. Reaper made presumptions. I would never do that to you guys, ever.'

'You are so dead. When Wal gets a hold of you he is going to kill you.' He peered at Mav through narrow eyes but then let out a frustrated sigh. 'This is ridiculous. Who the hell dobbed you in?'

'I don't know. I figured it might be Ben Tamati.'

'Yeah, well he's the most likely one.'

'Or maybe... maybe even Rex Cassidy.'

Pete examined Mav some more and then he spoke, this time with venom in his voice. 'How do I know it wasn't you who dobbed us in? Maybe you got the guilts and decided to report us to the Reaper. Otherwise why the hell aren't you there with him now?'

Mav groaned, frustrated he could not make Pete acknowledge his innocence. 'Nobody's called you to the office, have they?'

'How do I know I won't be?'

'Well if you are it's because Wal said something.'

'Oh, sure!' A contemptuous look came upon Pete's face. 'Now you want to make out it's Wal ratting on us.'

'Damn, Pete, it wasn't me. It had to be Tamati. Or Cassidy.'

'I get it. Blame Cassidy. You're so jealous of him because Holly prefers him to you now.'

' _Oh_ , come on. It's Samantha I'm after. She even dumped Craig McLeod so she can meet me at the dance. Besides, Cassidy is gonna be so busy with every other girl in the school, he's gonna be too busy for Holly. That will leave the door open for you.'

'Huh! And what hope have I got? You know she doesn't give a stuff about me.'

'Chill, we'll figure something out.'

'What? Like you did at the beach?'

'Come on, we couldn't have figured Holly would end up being the one drowning. That was just a bit of bad luck. We'll come up with a great plan for the dance. We'll have you two dancing the whole night away, guaranteed.'

'And how the hell would you pull off something like that?'

'I'll think of something.'

'Yeah right!' A scowl came across Pete's face. 'I don't want to hear any more of your crackpot schemes. You try to make out as though you're trying to help me but you're not. I don't reckon you have any intentions of trying to set me up with Holly.'

Mav reeled. 'What are you talking about? I've tried my best but things just didn't work out. Sure, I'll admit, I do like Holly, I've told you that before but my priorities are with Sam.'

'Crap! It wouldn't surprise me if you were trying to get both of them. You say you're only really interested in Sam but it seems like you're just as interested in Holly to me.'

Mav flinched. 'If that was the case Holly and I would have been a couple of weeks ago.'

'This is all a game to you and you're using me to do whatever it is you're trying to do and now you've gone and pretty much told the Reaper we robbed the tuckshop.'

'No! I'm telling you I didn't mean to give anything away. It must be Ben Tamati. He's the one who wants to make our lives miserable. Or Rex. I mean what do we know about that guy? He comes into this school and starts throwing his weight around. You can't tell me he doesn't have deep dark secrets. I even heard he was expelled from his last school.'

Pete's eyes widened. 'Expelled? Why?'

'I don't know. I just heard him and Mr Harris talking. I don't know if we can trust him. He could be real trouble.'

'He's really cool.' Pete then snorted and flagged him away. 'Nah, it's like I said, you're just jealous of him, that's all.'

Mav let out a deep sigh. He couldn't believe Pete was being so difficult. 'I don't get it. I've been trying to be a friend to you ever since we met. I may have stuffed up a couple of times but I've been trying really hard to do the right thing by you-'

'Give it a rest! You're a liar, that's all you ever do. You try to manipulate people and you like to talk in riddles. I used to wonder why you never had any friends at Akato and now I know why.'

'Hey, there's a good reas—'

'I don't want to hear it. You can carry on with your little games if you like but count me out of them.' Pete stood.

Mac could only stare forlornly as Pete stormed away. He wanted to go after him but didn't know what he'd say even if Pete would listen. Instead, he sat there for a few minutes before he delivered another deep sigh, stood up and made his way to his first class of the day.

Craig McLeod blocked his path. 'Maverick!'

Mav let out another deep sigh, halted and stood eye-to-eye with Craig.  
As if his morning could get any worse. 'What do you want? I'm not in the mood to deal with you.'

'Well, that's tough luck. You got me into a lot of trouble on Wednesday.'

'Me? You put yourself in it, not me.'

'Do you realise I've been banned from going to that dance because of you?'

'Good job I say.'

'Look, you!' He planted his finger into Mav's chest, a scowl across his mouth, making him look as though he was about to go on a murderous rampage. 'I'll be at that dance. Not actually in there dancing but I'll be there somewhere and if I see you there, especially with my girl, you're dead.'

'Your girl? She ain't nobodies' girl now, Bub. She dumped you big time.'

'Nobody dumps me! As far as I'm concerned, she's still my girlfriend and she'll come to realise that too. She's mine until I decide to dump her.'

'The only dumping you'll be doing is at the local tip because all that's coming out of your mouth is putrefied garbage. Face it, McLeod, it's over between you two.'

'No, it's not.' He tapped his finger forcefully into Mav's chest. 'But it will be over for you if you go to that dance Friday night, you hear? That's not only a threat. That's a promise.'

With that, he barged away.

Mav stared after him and for the first time felt spooked. He knew he couldn't take Craig's threat lightly but no threat would keep him away from the dance, no matter how ominous.

He was about to move away when Holly crossed his path and stopped in front of him. 'Hi, Mav.'

At least it was someone he wanted to see. He immediately put on a cheerful exterior. 'Holly, you're alive! How're things?'

'Okay, I suppose.'

'How're things going with Rex?'

'I think he's more interested in Jacqui actually.'

'He's mad,' he replied but noticed she sounded a little sad. Over the last few days, he had noticed she wasn't her usual perky self. Something was up and he doubted whether Rex was the main source of her melancholy.

'I wanted to talk to you about the dance,' she said.

'Well, if you've come for dancing lessons you've come to the right place. I can teach you a great little jig called the Toe Stomper. Want to learn it?'

She let out a short giggle, 'I think I'll give it a miss, thanks.'

'It's really easy. I know a number of people who can't dance who are naturals at that one. In fact, if you've never danced before, it's a lot easier to learn.'

She smiled. 'Maybe some other time. Are you going to be at the dance?'

'Wouldn't miss it.'

'Are... are you going with anyone?'

Mav paused not knowing how to answer. It was a question he hadn't expect. Technically, he wasn't going with anyone, although he was expecting to meet Samantha there. On the other hand, he expected to meet a lot of people there. He couldn't continue to ponder on it though otherwise all would be lost. 'Going with anyone? Do Me, Myself and I ring a bell?'

'Your split personalities?'

'You got it.' Mav didn't know what to tell her about Sam because he was a little afraid of what her reaction might be. 'Is everything okay? You haven't been quite yourself lately. I'm never myself, but you, you normally are. Can I cheer you up in any way?'

'Well, you could... if you will be my date for the dance on Friday night.'

He paused for a moment. It had taken a lot of courage on her part to ask him so how could he just say no? His mind went to Sam. She wasn't actually his date and it was more of a casual agreement to meet than anything else. Even Sam hadn't committed herself to dance with him and certainly not all night. Surely, Mav would be quite within his right to have a few dances with Holly as well?

Holly continued to gaze at Mav but her expression turned to disappointment because of his long pause. Mav could hardly bear the sadness in her eyes and knew he couldn't refuse her. 'Sure.' He smiled. 'I'd be honoured to'

A gorgeous smile broke out onto her face. 'Sweet! It'll be so cool. It'll be the first time I've ever been to a school dance with a date.'

Mav couldn't resist that smile but, right away, he knew he was getting himself into major strife. If only he'd had more time to consider the consequences of his decision. He didn't want to blow his chances with Sam but, then again, he didn't want to humiliate Holly. He didn't want to break anyone's heart.

Once they departed, Mav discarded his cheerful exterior. Someone was going to get hurt and chances are Mav might come out of this whole thing worse off. The dance, if he ever made it to it, had once been something to look forward to. Now it had become something to dread.

### CHAPTER 23:  
Sneaking out

The night of the dance finally arrived and Chelsea couldn't wait. The talk at lunchtime had been about who was going to be dancing with whom. Chelsea felt terrified and at the same time excited.

'Ah, Chelsea, you're home,' her mother greeted her once she arrived home from school. 'Your grandparents are here. They'll be joining us for dinner.'

Everything around Chelsea seemed to come to a grinding halt. It was one of those moments in a movie where the background music came to a sudden stop and the needle got dragged across the record. 'They're here? _Now_?' All she could think about was getting out to the dance. She had hoped to crawl off to her bedroom straight after dinner but now that would be impossible. Her parents would expect her to stay out in the lounge with the entire family and be sociable.

Her original plan was to say she was going to her room to read or study. If she was lucky, she would have at least an hour or two before her parents realised she wasn't there. Now it meant they would find out a lot sooner.

Dinner started around 6 pm and that made things even more urgent. She had to be at Laura's house by 6:30. The dance was due to start at 7:30 pm.

'Is everything alright, darling?' her mother asked just before dinner began. 'You seem rather preoccupied.'

'Oh... I don't know. I guess I just feel a bit off.'

Chelsea began to eat her dinner, debating whether to scoff it down and get it out of the way or peck at it, to make her parents think she wasn't well.

Anxiety set in. Every time she glanced at the clock on the wall, it seemed to leap forward another five minutes. If she didn't get going, she would be late and Jacqui wouldn't like that. She wanted to look her best for the dance too, so it was important she got there in time for the girls to do the makeover on her.

'I'm not feeling too well,' she complained, trying to come up with any reason she could to get away from the table. Is it all right if I go and lie down on my bed for a bit?'

'You've hardly touched your meal,' her mother said.

'I don't feel like anymore.'

'Mmmmm, very well, off you go then.'

Chelsea wasted no time in heading to her room. She already had her gear packed in a bag ready to go. All she needed to do was grab her dress from the closet and she was ready.

She was about to open her window when a knock came at her bedroom door. She flung her bag behind the bed, flopped down on the bed, and fixed a tired expression on her face. 'Come in,' she said, feigning discomfort.

Her entire body tensed up as the door opened and her mother entered the room. 'Are you sure you're all right?'

'I think I'll be all right.' It was 6.25 pm and it would take her at least five minutes to get to Jacqui's. 'If I just lie here for a while.' Her voice became strained due to the frustration but at least it made her sound as though she wasn't feeling well.

'Are you sure?'

'I'm sure.'

'All right then. Is it just a stomach-ache?'

'Yes.' She tried so hard not to show her frustration but found it very difficult.

'It could be serious you know.'

'I've had it like this before. I'll be fine.'

'I hope so.' Her mother turned to leave but then turned at the last moment. 'If you're not feeling better in fifteen minutes you'd better tell us, all right?' I'll come back soon to check on you.'

'I just wanna sleep, Mum.'

Her mother sighed. 'Okay, well you get some sleep then. I'll check on you later.' She left, closing the door behind her.

At last!

Chelsea leapt up off the bed, grabbed her dress and bag, climbed through the window, and leapt down onto the grass. A sudden thrill ran through her body as she realised there was no turning back. Who knew what the night would bring? Right now, everything was a complete and utter mystery and Chelsea wanted to be the one to solve it.

She arrived at Laura's house five minutes late. Not bad considering the amount of hassle she went through to get away. Several of the other girls were there including Holly. Jacqui didn't seem too worried that she had arrived late. She was already dressed and wearing a figure-hugging skirt and low-cut top. Her hair was done up and she had a light covering of makeup with hoop earrings and necklace to top off the look.

Holly didn't need makeup at all but had a little foundation and lipstick. She looked perfect, as always, in a patterned top and blue skirt.

Chelsea held out her dress for her friends to see and it brought smiles to their faces.

'Perfect,' Jacqui said. 'Once we've finished with you, you are going to look fantastic. Now there's no time to lose. Sit over here. We're going to do something about your hair.'

Jacqui pulled out a large pair of scissors and Chelsea widened her eyes. 'What are you going to do with them?'

'What do you think?'

'You can't!'

'Of course, I can. Don't worry - I've done it before. You'll look great, trust me.'

Chelsea really did feel sick but she left herself in the hands of her friends. She hoped like hell Jacqui wouldn't make a mistake because she didn't want to be embarrassed in front of guys like Rex and Sheep.

Jacqui snipped hair from the sides. Chelsea shut her eyes and held her breath. She seemed to be clipping off an awful lot of it. It didn't take long for Jacqui to finish the job. Chelsea itched to see what she had done.

'You just wait until we've finished.'

'That's right,' Jacqui said. 'An artist never reveals her work until the job is complete.'

Jacqui removed Chelsea's glasses, so everything became less clear, then got to work with a little lip-gloss, eyeshadow and eyeliner. They did it quickly and then Holly sat down to do her nails. They found themselves alone as Holly did them.

'Sheep is gonna be blown away,' Holly said. 'All the guys are gonna be.'

'I'm still not sure about it all,' Chelsea said. 'Even if Sheep does like me, I'm not so sure I really want him. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to dance with him and I want him to think I'm beautiful but I still have serious doubts about him.'

Holly turned her eyes up to her. 'Really?'

'I've been thinking about it. Before this year, he's never even given me a second glance and I never even let on I fancied him. Then he finds out I'm into him and then he's inviting me off to private locations to make out. I'm thinking all I am to him is a conquest.'

Holly gazed at her. 'You really think so? I mean, I'm sure he's a shallow as the next guy but he's always treated me with respect, even though I haven't known him long.'

'That's just it. I don't want to be with a guy who's shallow and he hasn't treated me with respect. I realise that now. He just wanted sex and when he realised he wasn't gonna get it he went back to ignoring me again. I saw that at the beach the other day.'

'Yeah...' Holly nodded and went back to work on Chelsea's nails. 'I guess you're right.'

'I just wish I had experience with guys like you do. If only I had more confidence.'

'Experience?' Holly smiled wryly. 'Hardly.'

'You've had boyfriends, right?'

'Nope.'

Chelsea reeled. 'Seriously?'

'Seriously,' Holly said. 'And I'm not just gonna hook up with anyone either. Whoever I end up with has gotta respect me and love me because of who I am, not because of what they can get out of me. If you want respect, you also have to respect yourself. Don't let some guy make you feel bad just because you won't get with him. He can go to Hell. You're worth more than that. You're not just some desperate blonde bimbo. You're smart and you deserve respect. I hope this makeover will really help you with that because whether you believe it or not, you're beautiful and not just on the inside. You really are gorgeous. You just need to – you know - highlight your features... and come out of your shell too.'

Chelsea smiled. She couldn't believe someone as popular and beautiful as Holly was saying things like that to her. It made her feel warm inside. 'Thanks, Holl.'

Minutes later, they finished. The girls assembled around and admired their handy work with smiles on their faces. Chelsea couldn't stand it any longer. 'Please, can I have a look now?'

'I think she's done,' Holly said.

'Yeah, she's done,' agreed Jacqui. 'Wait! Your contact lenses, did you bring them?'

Chelsea's eager anticipation turned to dread. 'Oh no, do I really have to?'

'Yes, you do,' Holly said.

'You certainly can't wear your dorky glasses,' Jacqui added

'Unless you want to go to the dance as blind as a bat.'

'Okay.' She fidgeted with the hem of her dress. 'They're in my bag.'

'Relax,' Holly said. 'You do want the guys to notice you, don't you? I'm telling you, without those glasses, they will.'

'Get dressed first,' one of the other girls said. 'She might as well be finished before she looks in the mirror.'

'Fair enough,' Jacqui agreed. 'We'll go out. You just stay in here and get dressed, Chels.'

They gave her a few minutes to dress before Holly poked her head back in. 'Ready, Chels?'

'Yep.'

'Contacts?'

'Oh yeah.' She hesitated at first and cringed as she put them in but it wasn't as bad as she thought. They felt uncomfortable at first and her eyes watered a little but, as she continued to blink, they felt better. The room became clear again and it felt so strange to be able to see yet have nothing sitting on her ears and nose.

'Alright?' asked Holly, looking amused.

'Yeah, I'm okay.'

'Sweet! You look absolutely gorgeous. Come on in to the other room and take a look at yourself.'

The other girls awaited Chelsea and she felt a bit like a model on a catwalk as she entered the room. They all smiled. When she first saw the mirror, she couldn't believe it was her. She advanced towards it cautiously just in case it was an illusion but, with every step she took, the more amazed she felt. Even she had to admit she looked incredible. Her hair was cut short and now delicately framed her face. The makeup was lightly applied but had succeeded in highlighting what others insisted were her best features; her eyes and her cheekbones. 'Good lord!' She stared. 'I can't believe this.'

'Awesome, eh?' Holly smiled.

'It's incredible. I never thought I could ever look this good.'

'The boys are going to go crazy,' said one of the others.

For a few moments, Chelsea stood there, gazing at her reflection the mirror. She wondered whether it was a trick. Perhaps this wasn't really her reflection at all?

She soon came crashing back to earth though when Jacqui reminded her about the phone call they needed to make to her parents.

Her stomach churned even more violently than before, as she followed Jacqui to the hallway phone. Jacqui did not seem concerned at all and without even hesitating, she picked up the receiver and dialled.

Chelsea held her breath when she heard her mother's voice on the other end. 'Tania Brown speaking.'

'Ah, yes, Mrs Brown, it's Jacqui Donaldson here, a friend of Chelsea's?'

'My gosh, yes, Jacqui! Is Chelsea there with you? If she is, I need to speak to her now.'

'Err sorry, she's not here.'

'Do you know where she is? She took off and we're worried sick, not to mention furious. Is she going to the dance, do you know?'

'That's what I wanted to call you about.'

'Do you know where she is?'

'Yes and no.'

'What do you mean by that?'

'I'm really worried. We told her not to but she just wouldn't listen.'

'Not to what?'

'Well, she went off to New Plymouth with an older girl who...'

'New Plymouth? Why on Earth is she going there? Who is this girl? Do I know her?'

'Probably not. She doesn't go to school anymore, I'm not even sure of her name. Chelsea was pissed about not being able to go to the dance so just decided to go into New Plymouth with her tonight. We told her it was a stupid thing to do; after all, you guys grounded her. We tried to tell her she would just get into more trouble with you but she just wouldn't listen.'

Chelsea was impressed. Jacqui sure was great at making up stories and she sounded so sincere too.

'When did she go? Where in New Plymouth?'

'She left fifteen minutes ago, so I rang you as soon as I could get to a phone. All I know is they were going to go to New Plymouth for the evening, they are going to come back but I don't know where they were going. I know you're probably worried but don't worry too much. It's just that Chelsea was really unhappy about being grounded the night of the dance. I'm sure she'll be fine. It's just that I thought you ought to know what's going on. I'd hate you to be searching all around Te Arawa for her and getting worried over nothing.'

'Worried over nothing? If she's taken off to New Plymouth, that's even more of a worry. If she had gone to the dance at least we'd have been able to go and get her.'

'Well, I think she realises it would have just been really stupid going there. That would be the first place you'd turn up, wouldn't it? I'm really sorry, Mrs Brown. The last thing we want is Chelsea to get in trouble with you guys. I just hope you won't tell her I told you because I'd hate to lose her as a friend. Normally she'd never do anything wrong. She's certainly had a good effect on us. She's shown us the importance of sticking to rules and things, so I just hope she doesn't get into too much trouble.' Jacqui glanced over at Chelsea and covered her mouth, trying to hold back a laugh. Chelsea had never heard such garbage in her life but was sure her mom would buy it.

'Thank you for saying that, Jacqui. It's good to know she has friends like you looking out for her. And thank you for ringing and telling us, we really appreciate it.'

'You're welcome, Mrs Brown. I just hope you find her soon.'

'So, do I.'

'Bye.'

'Bye, bye, Jacqui.' Then the line went dead.

Jacqui turned to Chelsea and delivered her a huge smile. Chelsea smiled back half-heartedly. Sure, Jacqui did a good job but Chelsea couldn't handle all the deception. Her parents would be worried sick all night and might even try looking around New Plymouth for her. She wondered whether it was all worth it.

### CHAPTER 24:  
Sorting out Jacqui

Holly and her friends arrived at the school hall on time - fifteen minutes late. Jacqui always liked to arrive a little bit late so she could make a grand entrance. Students already packed out the hall and the dance was well underway. There were chairs set out in semicircles around the outer rims of the hall. Upon the stage, a DJ had all his equipment set up, including large speakers that pounded out music. There was a slight echo around the wooden hall but it still sounded good. At the other end were tables laden with food donated by the Cassidys. It was a magnificent spread with all sorts of delicious goodies, which smelt divine, plus plenty of non-alcoholic punch and soft drinks to go around.

Most of the students around their age group hung out at one corner of the hall. There were plenty of seats available and people were already on the dancefloor. As the girls approached, all eyes zeroed in upon them. Jacqui strutted her way out front looking pleased with the reaction they were getting. Holly strode along next to her.

Once they picked up a drink of punch each and arrived at the chairs, all eyes moved from Jacqui to Chelsea and there they remained, staring. Not one of the boys seemed to be able to shake their gaze. It was as if they were dumbfounded at her miraculous transformation, unable to believe she was once the rather plain Chelsea Brown.

'I don't believe it.' Sheep stared agog. 'Is that really you, Chelsea? You look fantastic!'

Chelsea smiled.

Even Jacqui smiled broadly at their reaction. 'She has me to thank for that. They don't call me a miracle worker for nothing, you know.'

Holly didn't bother to correct her and say it was a team effort.

'What did you do with your glasses?' Pete asked.

Jacqui let out a sigh of irritation. 'You can be a real butthead sometimes. Any fool would realise she's wearing contacts.'

Sheep smirked. 'Yeah, but Cook's not even worthy of being considered a fool.'

'So, Sheep,' Jacqui said, giving Chelsea a funny look that Holly wasn't sure how to interpret. 'Seeing as Rex isn't here yet, how about you do the honours?' She extended her hand to him.

'I'd love to.' Sheep brushed right past her. 'Chelsea?' He held out his hand.

Holly snickered, especially at the horrified look on Jacqui's face. Oh, what a slap in the face it had to be for her that Sheep preferred to dance with Chelsea rather than Jacqui. It made Holly feel good that she had a hand in it. That would teach Jacqui for trying to take all the credit.

Chelsea ignored Jacqui's look, smiled at Sheep and took his hand. Sheep led her out to the dancefloor.

Jacqui huffed. 'Well... Of all the cheek.'

Holly laughed. 'Hey, you created the monster, remember? It was _all_ your doing.'

'He was supposed to dance with me not her.'

'Err no. He was always supposed to dance with Chelsea. Remember that's why we - you know - did the makeover on her so Sheep would notice her. Or did you forget that?'

Jacqui scowled. She grabbed her handbag and opened it up. 'I need a drink. I've got something in here. Want some in your punch?' She showed Holly the contents of her handbag. There were two hip flasks of liquor in there.

Holly let out a deep sigh. 'Sure. Let me take that.' She reached out and took the entire handbag from her. 'I'm going to the toilets.'

'What for?'

Holly stood. 'To tip this out. You're not drinking it.'

Her best friend gasped and her eyes bugged. 'You are so not tipping that out!'

'I am so.' Holly marched for the toilets, determined once and for all to sort her friend's drinking out completely.

'You just come back here!' Jacqui rushed after her.

Holly quickened her pace and entered the girl's toilet. There she went into one of the cubicles and pulled out one of the bottles.

'You just stop that right now. Don't you dare tip that out.'

Holly ignored her demand and emptied one of the bottles straight down the toilet.

'I can't believe you just did that! What the hell do you think you're doing?'

'Shut up, Jacqui, I've had enough. You are going to get yourself AND us into so much trouble.'

'Oh, just don't be so stupid. What are you, a squ—? Don't you dare tip that other bottle out!'

'Ooops. There it goes.'

Down the gurgler it went and once the bottle was empty, she flushed the toilet.

'How dare you? I oughta—'

Holly turned around. 'What? Slap me? Go right ahead. If that's what it's gonna take to sort you out then fine, I'll take the slap because I'm a friend and friends make sacrifices for each other. I don't care what you call me. You can call me a square and you can even compare me to Chelsea. That's great because Chelsea is cool and freaking hot, probably hotter than you and me but I'm not gonna stand by any longer and let you destroy your life by guzzling down alcohol. You're not even 16 years old.'

Jacqui fumed and her cheeks flushed but then she calmed down a little. 'I just can't believe you tipped it all out.'

'Believe it. And if I see you with any more of that shit, I'll do the same thing again.' Holly let out a sigh and looked upon her friend with sympathy. 'I care about you, Jacqui and I don't like seeing you do this to yourself.'

'I'm not doing anything to myself.'

'You may not think so but this is just gonna get worse. Jacqs, I nearly drowned at the beach because of this stuff. I mean I'm not blaming you for that but that alcohol severely messed with my mind. I would never have been so stupid as to enter that water if it wasn't for that piss. I would have stopped myself. If it wasn't for Mav, who knows what might have happened. I might not be here right now. The drinking has to stop. I mean it.' She eyed Jacqui with the staunchest expression she could muster.

For the first time, Jacqui's expression softened and she even flinched. 'It was my fault, wasn't it? Really.... The fact I gave you alcohol.'

'I should have just said no.'

'But... but I put pressure on you.'

'Well, now I'm putting pressure on you.'

'You really care that much?'

Holly touched her arm and smiled. 'Of course, I do, Jacqs. We're old friends and I hope we'll always be friends. And friends stick together and they don't just stand by and let each other make big mistakes.' She walked over to one of the bins and threw the two empty bottles in there. She handed the handbag back to Jacqui. 'Don't be angry.'

Jacqui nodded. 'It's okay. I'm not. Well not anymore. Thanks for caring. I mean it.'

The two exchanged smiles and they were about to leave the toilets when Mandy Evans rushed in. 'Jacqui, Holly! Rexy is here. And Geez he looks freaking hot!'

'Rex is here?' Jacqui gasped. 'About bloody time. Girls, it's time to make "Donaldson vs Cassidy" official.'

They went back out and Holly marvelled when she saw him. He looked spectacular in some of the most expensive gear any of them had seen: firm fitting, brand-new denim jeans, handmade leather shoes and over his T-shirt, a flash leather jacket.

A group of the girls surrounded Rex admiring his jacket but Holly could see by the look in their eyes it was just a ploy to get closer to him and perhaps score his attention. Holly moved closer to get a better look.

'Pure leather,' said Mandy. 'Gadzooks, your family must be ultra-rich.'

'We do okay.'

Jacqui smiled. 'Rex, I hope you're going to save me the first dance.'

'Actually...' Rex glanced around. At first, his eyes went by Holly and on to Chelsea who now sat alongside Sheep. Then to Holly's delight, his gaze returned to her. 'I was hoping you would do me the honour, Holly.'

Holly had to hide her excitement, unable to believe Rex had chosen her first, even if she hadn't been his desired first choice. 'Sweet!' She barely noticed the ire in the face of Jacqui as she took Rex's hand and accompanied him out to the dancefloor. She would no doubt suffer the consequences later but right now she intended to enjoy the fact Rex picked her first.

On the dancefloor, she found Rex to be an okay dancer and he wasn't afraid to get in close and dance a little raunchy. She welcomed it, as he was just so darn sexy. She just didn't want to break eye contact with him but whenever he spun her around she noticed the envious looks she got from the other girls and couldn't help but smile.

After the quick dance, a slow piece came on. She expected him to take her back to her seat but instead, he drew her in close and put his arms around her. Her heart began to flutter and her knees went weak. She could hardly believe he held her so close and all she could do was stare up into his brilliant blue eyes, dumbstruck.

'I thought you were dating Mav tonight,' Rex said.

She came to her senses and replied, 'I was supposed to be. But he hasn't turned up yet.'

'He'd be an eejit not to. Not when he has you here waiting for him.'

Holly blushed and felt stumped for words. Rex ran his hand down her back and she felt aroused. She felt like grabbing him and kissing him but she held back. She couldn't allow herself to get carried away, especially not if Mav arrived at that moment. 'I... I guess you want to dance with Chels?'

Rex grinned. 'I thought she would be available but I see that other guy got to her first.'

'That's Sheep. If you're – you know - worried about him being her date, he's not.'

'I would hate to cut in on them.'

Holly would have loved to dance with him all night if she could but knew she couldn't hog him, especially knowing Mav was arriving soon and he was her official date. 'I don't think she would mind.'

'He might.'

'I don't think a guy like you would be afraid of Rog Shepherd.'

'I'm not, but I do have principles.'

Holly gazed into his eyes, still drawn heavily towards him. 'You are such a mystery to us, Rex. I keep asking myself, are you a good guy or are you a bad guy?'

Rex grinned. 'Which would you prefer I was?'

'Mmmmm.' She smiled. 'I'm not sure. Perhaps a good guy with a bit of a rebellious streak.'

Rex chuckled. 'Perhaps that's what I am?'

'I hope so anyway.'

'I guess time will tell you for sure.'

### CHAPTER 25:  
Decisions, Decisions

The dance was already well underway when Mav arrived. He'd been in major trouble when his parents found out about the tuckshop incident. They nearly forbade him to go to the dance. Mr Reaper had given them a call. Apparently, Wal had admitted to the theft and that Mav had been an unwilling participant. If it wasn't for that, Mav probably would have had to stay home that night but, fortunately for him, his parents went easy on him.

'You should have reported it right away,' his mother had said. 'Not kept it quiet. It meant you were an accessory.'

Mav still had no idea who had reported them but his chief suspects were still Ben and Rex.

His father had been late back from work and Mav had relied on him for a ride. He breathed easy when he finally arrived but anxiety still churned within him. Would Wal be there at the dance? Would Pete be there? Both of them may not be pleased to see him. For all Mav knew, Wal may have implicated Pete too, which would give his friend even more reason to be angry with him.

His first concern though was Craig McLeod. On arrival, he scanned the car park and buildings but saw no sign of him. With a bit of luck - maybe finding that Mav had not yet arrived - Craig had already left. That's if he'd even turned up in the first place. Perhaps he had been hot air all along?

Mav found his fellow classmates and for a fleeting moment was a little concerned to see Holly dancing with Rex but then it occurred to him it might be best this way. At least he wouldn't have to worry about juggling two dates in one evening. Now he could fully focus on Samantha.

As for Wal, he could see no sign of him, however, Pete sat with some of the other boys. When he saw Mav, he turned his eyes away. It made Mav sad to think that a guy he'd hoped would be a good friend of his now had only contempt for him.

He immediately felt better when Sam advanced from the other side of the hall. 'It's about time you arrived.'

Mav pushed Wal and Pete from his mind and delivered her a big smile. 'I'm touched. Most people can't wait to see me leave.'

'I thought I might end up having to sit out the entire evening.'

'Surely you'd have guys queuing up to dance with you?'

'No, I think everyone still thinks I'm with Craig. Either that or they're afraid he might get upset with them, which is silly really because he's not here.'

'Are you sure?'

'Well, I haven't seen him. If he did turn up, he'd soon be sent home because he's been banned from coming.'

Mav hoped that would be the case but didn't hold up too much hope. Craig would be smart enough to evade the teachers. He wanted to mention Wal too, another guy who would no doubt be out for him if he turned up. 'You must be itching to get onto the dancefloor huh? That's assuming you didn't bring insect repellent.'

'If you'd like a drink, I'm happy to sit for a little longer.'

'Wouldn't mind actually.'

They had only just sat when Rex and Holly came in from the dancefloor and made a beeline to where Mav sat. 'Ah, Mav.' Rex smiled. 'We were wondering when you'd turn up. She's all yours. Thanks for the dance, Holly.'

'You're welcome!' She sat next to Mav as Rex departed and looked Samantha's way with curiosity. Mav's body tensed up and his chest tightened. There was an uneasy silence and nobody seemed to know what to say.

'So, Holly,' Mav said, getting increasingly uncomfortable with the silence. 'You and Rex seem to be getting along just fine.'

'He's a really nice guy. A real honey.' She regularly glanced at Sam with concerned curiosity in her eyes.

'Ummmm,' Mav said. 'Have you two met?'

'Not really,' Sam said.

He quickly made introductions and although both girls greeted each other without coldness, there was a definite air of tension.

Sam spoke up, 'Look, Mav, if I'm not wanted here, I'll head back over to the other side of the hall. It's okay, I don't mind.'

He didn't want that but he dared not come out and say it. 'No, don't go.'

Holly frowned. 'Well, you'd better dance with one of us. Who will it be?'

'I...' Confused thoughts rushed through Mav's mind. Choosing one would undoubtedly send a message to the other over whom he most preferred. Things would be over before they started. He wished he could alternate between the two but obviously, that would not be acceptable to either girl. It might work for a guy like Rex, but not him.

'You and Holly dance.' Sam said. 'I'll be fine.'

'Are you sure?'

'Sure,' she said but didn't smile. 'I'll be fine.' She rose to her feet and meandered back across the hall leaving Mav staring after her. He felt like she was walking out of his life and he could do nothing about it.

'Mav?'

He turned back to Holly who gazed at him with pain in her eyes. He had to be strong and act as if nothing was wrong, that it was no big deal. 'Shall we dance?' He smiled. 'Seems like a rather silly thing to do at a school dance but I'm game if you are.'

'Sure.' A glimmer of a smile crossed her face. 'Why not?'

They advanced onto the dancefloor. At first, all was fine and Holly was all smiles, but Mav noticed Sam sitting with her classmates looking despondent. Guilt overwhelmed him. She had probably hoped to form a relationship but now it wasn't going to happen and it was his fault, all because he couldn't make up his mind as to whom he liked best.

Holly stopped dancing. She delivered a frustrated sigh and ran her hand through her hair. Her eyes looked as though they were about to tear up. 'There really is something going on between you two, isn't there?'

'Me and Sam?' He paused. 'No, there isn't.'

'Don't lie to me. I can see by the way you're looking at her you want to be with her rather than me.'

'That's not true.'

A deep frown came over her face. 'If she's the one you want why don't you just go and spend the evening with her instead?' Holly turned and stormed off the dancefloor. All Mav could do was stand there and gawp as she disappeared out the main exit.

* * *

Chelsea danced with Sheep but she wasn't particularly enjoying it. He kept moving in too close and his breath smelt of cigarettes. Nevertheless, she didn't want to just fob him off and she didn't want to appear snobby just because of her new look, so remained on the dancefloor with him. His hands began to roam and they ran down her back to her butt and caressed her.

She grabbed his hands and pulled them away. 'No, Sheep.'

'Oh, come on, it's all harmless fun.'

'I said no.' She stopped dancing.

'I'm sorry,' Sheep said. 'I didn't mean to piss you off. It's just that, man, Chels, I can't believe how amazing you look. You should have had this makeover ages ago. I mean you really are swelteringly hot.'

His words irked her even more and she eyed him with distaste. 'Is that all that matters to you? Whether a girl is hot?'

'No, of course not, it's just that I can't get over you, that's all.'

The more he spoke, the less his words impressed her. 'Sheep. I am the same person I was yesterday. I'm the same person I was a year ago. You never took an interest in me until this year.'

He flinched. 'Hey, I 've always liked you, it's just that we're older now, you know? It's only now I've started to see you in that light.'

Chelsea studied his expression. She didn't buy his sincerity. 'Come on, I know what you're like. You've been chasing girls since you became a teenager. If you really had any interest in me that wasn't more than just sexual, you would have shown it well before now.'

Sheep stared at her, at a loss for words. 'I...'

'Save it, Sheep. That time at the cemetery told me all I needed to know. I just wish I'd listened to my instincts back then. You don't want me for me, you just want sex and I'm telling you now, you're not going to get it. When I give myself to someone, it's gonna be someone who treats me with respect and dignity...' Her eyes moved to Rex on the dancefloor with one of the other girls in her class. 'Like him for instance.'

'Cassidy?' Sheep said. 'Are you for real? He's been flirting with almost every hot chick in our class. I've heard rumours he's already got it on with a couple. You think he respects you?'

Chelsea knew Rex was a bit of a player but at the same time, he also seemed like a sweet and caring guy. He had noticed her right from the beginning. Even with the glasses, he had seen the real her. If only she didn't have so much tough competition. Girls like Jacqui, Holly and their other friends were just too darn beautiful, so it was quite logical he would seek them out first. 'Sheep, you just don't get it. I'm sorry you don't.'

'Yeah, well, of course, I don't. You think that guy would ever be loyal to you? Don't be daft. But I would.'

She'd had enough so turned and headed back to her chair.

Once she sat, Sheep dropped down beside her. 'Oh, come on, Chelsea. I'm sorry. Maybe you're right and I haven't been that respectful to you. I'm a bozo and I should have treated you better but I really do like you, honestly.'

Chelsea still didn't buy it. 'What, because I had this makeover? Would you be even sitting with me right now if I was still wearing my dorky glasses? I doubt it.'

'Come on, don't be like that.'

She was about to say something else when Rex appeared in front of them.

'Sheep,' Rex said in a friendly tone. 'Would you be offended if I asked the lovely Chelsea here for a dance?'

Sheep at first didn't look pleased but then he nodded 'Sure. Go for it.'

Chelsea was speechless and stared in awe at Rex as he extended his hand. For a moment, she was so dumbfounded she didn't know what to do. Rex didn't seem to mind though and remained in the same position, an alluring smile on his face.

She pulled herself together and rose to her feet, placing her hand in his. Wow! Here she was being led to the dancefloor by Rex Cassidy. Then she realised there was a slow piece of music playing. This was a dream come true.

He pulled her close and they danced the slow dance. He was good. She felt like an amateur compared to him.

Best of all his breath was fresh. 'Your new look rocks, Chels.'

'Thanks.' Her heart beat so fast, she thought she might faint.

He stared into her eyes with a kind of faraway look.

Chelsea wondered what was going through his mind as he stared at her like that. 'Is everything okay?'

He blinked. 'Sorry. It's just your eyes... err... never mind.'

'What?'

'You don't want to know.'

'I do!'

'No, I shouldn't say anything. I should just shut up.'

Chelsea was intrigued and couldn't possibly let it go. The curiosity was just too great. 'No, please. Tell me.'

Rex paused for a moment and then sighed, 'Well... They remind me of someone's... someone who was very special to me.'

'A girlfriend?'

Rex smiled. 'She was so much more than that.'

Curiosity overwhelmed her. 'What happened? Did you have to leave her behind when you came here?'

Rex shook his head. 'She left before then.' His eyes saddened.

Chelsea felt goosebumps. She so much wanted to know more details but didn't want to pry. 'What was her name?' That seemed like a harmless enough question to her.

Rex paused for a few seconds, back to his far away state but, finally, he smiled. 'I saw the way you left the dancefloor after your dance with Sheep. You looked kind of pissed. Figured it was the right time to ask you to dance. I hope that's okay. Holly said he wasn't your date.'

For him to divert the subject like that told Chelsea the memories of his former love were much too painful for him to talk about. She was mystified and more curious than before but she didn't push it. 'He kind of annoyed with his attitude towards me.'

'So, he's not your boyfriend then?'

'No way!' Chelsea laughed. 'Sheep's okay. But I don't think he's for me.'

'And what sort of guy are you looking for?'

She felt embarrassed but couldn't resist saying it. 'Someone like you.' She turned her eyes away, unable to believe she had been so bold. Maybe something in the punch was doing it. Or was it the fact she felt like an entirely new person done up the way she was?

Rex replied, 'You shouldn't be looking for a guy like me.'

'Why?'

He smiled. 'You just shouldn't. It's... it's too soon for me. You know what I'm saying?'

She gazed into his face, a hint of disappointment coming upon her. 'Because of her?' She could see it now. The pain of losing that girl was something that still left a scar on his heart.

Rex smiled. 'I like you, Chelsea, I really do. There's something different about you... something I like and I'm not just talking about your eyes. I just don't want you to expect too much. I don't want you to be disappointed.'

Chelsea was smart enough to know what he was saying. He was telling her he wasn't ready for any serious relationship like his last one and he was making her no promises. She respected that, even though it disappointed her a little. However, she was happy just to see where things led. She was just so happy to be the one he chose to dance.

Chelsea smiled. 'I'm glad you asked me to dance. I kind of figured Jacqui might be your first choice.'

'Jacqui?' Rex chuckled. 'No way. Very hot but way too conceited. You outshine her, personality-wise, any day.'

She felt warm inside. 'You really mean that?'

'You bet I do. Any guy in this school that can't see you are something special is an eejit.'

'Well... in all fairness to those other guys, I don't normally look this good. The girls gave me a makeover.'

'And you look amazing,' Rex said. 'But if they couldn't see how beautiful you were before the makeover, they're still a bunch of assclowns.'

She gazed at him, loving him even more for saying that. She could see in his eyes he was sincere and it wasn't just a line to seduce her. She wanted to say something but she was at a loss for words.

Rex veered away from that subject to another. 'I hear you had trouble making it here tonight though.'

She found her tongue once more, grateful that she no longer had to gaze at him like a stunned mullet. 'Yes, sort of.'

'Your parents, I understand.'

'You heard?'

'Jacqui was filling us in on the details. What are you going to say to them when you go home?'

'To tell you the truth, I don't have a clue. I'm still working on that one.' She felt so at ease talking to him now. She felt as if she had known him for years.

'I hope you don't get into too much trouble.'

They continued to dance right into the next song - a rock song and Chelsea enjoying being swung around and pulled backwards and forwards as they danced. Ginge and Jacqui came onto the dancefloor and occasionally Chelsea and Jacqui exchanged glances. Jacqui narrowed her eyes each time their eyes met.

It felt good to be the successful one for a change. Not that Jacqui had anything to complain about - Ginge was a top-notch guy.

After a few more dances, they collected a drink each and Rex invited her to go outside for a short walk. No way would she decline that opportunity and even if he asked her to walk to the cemetery, she intended to let it happen.

They wandered around the grounds for a while until they came to the teacher on patrol who happened to be Mr Harris. There were rules against leaving the hall during a school dance and if anyone wanted to go outside they had to stay near the main entrance. Chelsea hadn't given the rules a second thought when she left with Rex, as she was too busy walking on air.

'Mr H,' Rex greeted him.

Chelsea had heard all about Sergeant Major Harris from some of the boys so became nervous, expecting him to blow his stack, but he didn't.

'Rex, my boy. Taking an evening stroll, are we?'

'Good to get away from the loud music for a while.'

'Especially when you're with a beautiful young lady, right?'

'Damn straight, Mr H.'

Gee, Chelsea could hardly believe Mr Harris was being so blasé. Perhaps he wasn't as mean as the boys made out.

'That's what I like to see.' Mr Harris began to move off. 'Don't let me interrupt you now.' He hadn't gone but a few steps when another couple arrived on the scene. When Chelsea saw who they were, she froze in horror.

It was her parents.

Her first instinct was to hide but it was too late. They spotted her and advanced towards them.

### CHAPTER 26:  
The Party turns Sour

Mav sat on his own, away from his main group of classmates deep in troubled thoughts. He didn't want to go back to where the others were because he didn't know what he would say to them. He peered across to where Sam sat earlier. She was still there but had a drink in her hand.

Their eyes met.

They quickly departed.

Did he go and find Holly and try to sort things out with her or did he leave things as they were and learn from his mistakes?

Their eyes met again and this time remained locked.

Mav couldn't just sit there any longer. He rose to his feet and at the exact time so did she. They smiled as they advanced towards one another.

'I saw what happened,' Sam said. 'She didn't look too happy. I hope I haven't mucked anything up for you.'

'No, it's not your fault. If anyone's to blame, it's me. I'm afraid I've screwed up a bit in the communication department. Perhaps I should get myself a decent cell phone.'

'Perhaps you should go out and talk to her?'

'I'm not sure what I would say.'

'Since when were you ever short of something to say?'

Mav grinned. 'When I'm not in control of the conversation.'

'Well, perhaps you'd better get back in control?'

'Maybe.'

She drank from her glass. 'It's nothing serious, is it? I mean, she hasn't got the wrong idea about you and I, has she? Actually, I thought you were available, I didn't realise you had a girlfriend.'

'I don't. She's not my girlfriend.'

'You could have fooled me.'

'It's not like we've really discussed it.'

She placed her glass on the chair beside her. 'Look, you need to have a serious think about this. Go and get some fresh air. After you've had a few moments to decide, come back in. If you want me, I'll be here waiting. Otherwise, go and find Holly and sort things out, okay?'

'Are you sure?'

'Yes. If you're not back in fifteen minutes, I'll find another dance partner.' She smiled. 'And I promise I won't hold a grudge. You've done me a huge favour, Mav. You've given me the nudge I needed to give Craig the boot and I'm thankful for that. Being single for a while will be fine. If you come back alone, fine. I'll be available. You know you're the first guy who has ever proposed to me.'

Mav chuckled. 'And you're the first girl who's ever turned me down.'

They both laughed.

'You'd better get out there.'

'Yeah, I'd better.'

Mav wasted no more time. He made for the main entrance. Keeping an eye open for teachers, he walked out into the cool night air. Nobody was about. Enough time to think, to try to make up his mind. He wondered where Holly was. He wondered whether he should go and find her or return to the hall to be with Sam. He wondered how Rex dealt with his myriad of female admirers. He must have had to deal with problems like this on numerous occasions. He would probably know what to do but for Mav it was a new experience.

He was about to walk around the back of the hall when a sharp whistle emitted from the trees near the school boundary. He stopped and spun around, expecting to see Mr Harris or someone like that standing there but he couldn't see anyone. There came another whistle. It came from the trees all right but he couldn't see who it was – Nobody appeared.

His first thought was it might be Holly, hiding, trying to attract his attention. But what if it _was_ Wal or perhaps even Craig McLeod? He advanced closer to the trees, trying to get a glimpse of any clue that might give away who it was. Who was to say it was anyone he knew? For all he knew some thug awaited him, ready to pounce out at him and attack him.

Something stirred behind one of the smaller trees. Mav moved forward cautiously but another complication came in the form of an adult \- a teacher walking through the main gates of the school. He had to move quickly if he didn't want to be seen. He darted into the trees and around behind the bushes, only metres away from where the movement had taken place and waited until the teacher had gone.

There was no secret now as to who hid in the trees because he stood directly ahead of him in full view. It was one of the guys Mav had been dreading running into that evening: Craig McLeod.

* * *

Pete Cook was trying to avoid Tucker Pyles and it was for good reason. He hadn't been able to resist tipping a drink over the big moron and claiming it was an accident. Tucker wasn't too bright but he was smart enough to know it wasn't an accident.

Pete had shot out the front entrance to get away from the homicidal bully and had since made his way around to the back of the building. He had to remain inconspicuous in case the duty teacher saw him. He particularly didn't want Mr Harris to catch him AWOL.

He was going to slip in through the back entrance, where he could sit near a teacher or parent helper. That way Tucker wouldn't be able to do anything to him. He halted at the bottom when he found Holly Robinson sitting alone on the stairwell leading up to the back entrance. She cradled her head in her hands but on Pete's arrival peered up at him in a cold manner. Her eyes were red like she had been crying.

'You okay?' Pete asked.

'Sweet,' she said in a monotone voice.

Pete sat on the stairs next to her, not waiting for an invitation. It was not like him to be so bold but this was an excellent opportunity to talk to her without the interfering Jacqui about. Besides, he hated seeing someone looking so sad, especially not the girl he was in love with. He felt he had an obligation to try to cheer her up. Perhaps it would even have the added bonus of getting in her good books.

Holly humphed. 'Look, everything's sweet, alright? I'd just like to be alone.'

'Hey, I saw what happened. I hope Mav didn't upset you too much.' When he thought about Rick Maverick, his blood boiled a little. He didn't quite know why he was so embittered towards him, after all, he had not got into trouble over the tuckshop robbery. Mav and Wal had clearly not revealed he was part of it and it certainly wasn't Mav's fault Holly liked Mav more than him.

Holly spoke coldly, 'Whether he upset me is no concern of yours, is it?'

'Well, you know, I hate to see anyone depressed. I'm pretty good at cheering people up. I think Mav's slime, treating you like this. Fancy two-timing you like that. That's typical of Mav. He doesn't give a shit about anyone but himself.'

Holly turned to face Pete with a look of hostility. 'And what the hell do you know about Mav? How long have you known him... a few weeks?'

Pete froze. He realised he might have made an error in judgement. He was so keen on getting back at Mav he didn't think about the words he said. He forgot Holly probably knew him better than anyone.

'You don't know him,' she said in a gentler tone. 'He's a really nice, caring guy. What do you know about him?'

'Sorry, I-'

'Aren't you supposed to be his friend?' The hostility that was there before returned.

'Well-'

' _Some_ friend, backstabbing him like that.'

'But why are you defending him? He's probably in there with Sam, dancing right now.'

Her voice softened a little and her eyes saddened. 'Is he?'

'They were talking when I came out here.'

'Oh...' She turned her head away and lowered her gaze.

'He shouldn't be allowed to get away with this you know. Look, I mightn't have known the guy for long but I know he's bad news. We were friends but not anymore. I don't like the way he treats people and I don't think he can be trusted. I'm not surprised he has no friends.'

Holly turned towards him with a frown. 'What do you mean by that?'

'Well, you know. I've spoken to a lot of guys from Akato in the last few weeks. Guys like Ryan Ellis. It's common knowledge nobody liked him at Akato.'

'Yeah but that wasn't his fault.'

'What do you mean?'

'Didn't he tell you?'

'Tell me what?'

'He's only fourteen-years-old.'

The news hit him like a brick and he dropped his jaw. 'Fourteen? He never told me that. But why would that make any difference?'

'He skipped year nine. He's a bright guy you know and they put him straight into year ten. A lot of people didn't like that. The kids his age because they were jealous and the kids older than him because they felt threatened. Guys like Ryan Ellis and others used to try and make his life a misery. They were always hassling him.'

Pete fell silent for a moment and stared at Holly as the news sunk in. It dawned on him he had made a big mistake. 'But... but you know sometimes I get the impression he can't be trusted. His riddles and jokes and everything.'

'That's just Mav. He's always been like that. He's the... he's the most honest guy I know...' Her voice trailed off and she gazed away into the distance.

Pete felt small. All this time, he'd believed Mav was a schemer. He'd been foolish enough to take what guys like Ryan Ellis and others had said seriously. Poor Mav. He had probably come to Te Arawa College hoping he could finally make some quality friends. When he finally thought he'd achieved that, Pete had made those accusations about him. How could he have been so closed-minded? He had been so obsessed wit'h his own self he had taken offence at all Mav had done. Mav had only been trying to help him but just because he happened to be having success with the girl Pete was after, Pete got all defensive.

'I'm sorry. I might have been mistaken about Mav.'

'He's often misunderstood.'

'Some friend I've been.'

Holly turned back to him. 'You're a nice guy, Pete. No matter what girls like Jacqui say, even if you are a little infantile at times. You'll sort things out with him.'

That meant a lot to Pete, an awful lot. For a moment, he felt that maybe he was back up to the 'possible date' stage with Holly again. However, that's where it would stay - A possible date. He had to put things right with Mav and if it meant giving in and accepting Mav and Holly as a couple, then so be it.

He rose to his feet with a new purpose, a purpose to track down Mav and apologise for the way he had treated him in the last couple of weeks, however, a voice boomed from down one end of the building, putting an immediate halt to that plan.

'Cook! You are dead meat, ubbhead! I'll teach you for spilling your drink on me.'

Pete spun his head to the left. Tucker strode along the path with a homicidal glare. Pete's first instinct was to run but when he turned to the right, Jo was there and advanced swiftly in his direction. Pete spun around to dart back the way he came but ran smack bang into Colin.

Colin grabbed him roughly by the shirt and pushed him past Holly onto the path beyond. Pete was trapped. There was nowhere to run.

* * *

Mav faced Craig McLeod. His first instinct was to walk right back out again but he didn't. He didn't want to look like a coward and it didn't look as though he was in any real danger.

'Maverick!' Craig bowled towards him and halted in front of him, a killer expression on his face. 'I told you to stay away from the dance. I told you to stay away from Samantha. But did you listen? No, of course, you didn't. Now you're going to pay.' He whistled and something rustled in the trees.

Mav spun around and came face to face with an unknown man of around eighteen or nineteen years old, tall, greasy, with shadows under his eyes. He had Mav's retreat blocked off and there was nowhere for him to go.

'Meet my buddy, Fred.'

Mav considered running but he doubted he'd get far. He turned back to Craig, trying to push aside the fear he felt. 'So... you can't do the job yourself so you get a goon to do your dirty work, huh?'

Craig's face darkened. 'I don't need to hire anyone! But why make work for myself?' He smirked.

'Easy enough to say but you were scared, weren't you? You're a coward, McLeod.'

'Take care of him, Fred.'

'Wait!' Mav held his hand up at Fred, 'Just one moment.' Fred stopped his advance, a gleam in his piercing green grey and he folded his arms. 'What's in this for you, Fred? Money? What's he paying you?'

' _I'm not paying him anything!'_

'You don't really trust this guy do you?'

Fred snickered. 'Why shouldn't I?'

'Is he paying you in advance or after the job's done?'

'Shut up, Maverick!' Craig snarled. 'You don't know what you're talking about.'

'Now come on, I just want to make sure he's getting his money's worth. Before or after the job's done?'

'After,' said Fred. 'Why?'

A sense of satisfaction came over Mav, having drawn out the truth. He knew he had something solid he could work with. 'And you reckon he'll pay you?'

'He wouldn't risk not paying me.' Fred's arms remained folded.

'Do you realise what a sleazeball you're dealing with here, Fred? Do you know this guy?'

'I know he has money and that's all I want.'

'Then you don't really know the guy?'

Craig huffed and clenched his fists open and closed. 'What is all this? Fred, will you just hurry up and get on with the job?'

'Just a minute.' Fred smirked. 'I'm willing to humour him for a bit. Let him bide his time, it won't make any difference will it, McClay?'

'The name's McLeod!'

'Right. McLeod. Sorry, mate.'

'So, you don't know him?' Mav said. 'Do you realise what a stuck up, selfish, egotistical cretin this guy is? He thinks he can splash his money all over the place and everyone will jump whenever he speaks.'

'Go on Year 11er, keep on talking!' Craig scowled.

'Do you even know why he's paying you to beat me up?'

'Because you stole his girl.'

'That's what he told you? This guy's had it in for me ever since we first met. Just because I talked to her once, he decided he didn't like me. Now she's realised what a sleazeball he really is she's dumped him. Now he's trying to take it out on—'

'He's lying!' Craig said.

'Look at him, Fred, the guy's a user. He doesn't have any real friends. People only pretend to like him because he's loaded. Has he told you how he treated his girlfriend Sam? He used to treat her like dirt.'

'Give it a rest, Maverick!' Craig glared. 'Just get on with the job, Fred.'

Mav continued, hoping maybe Fred might have some honour in him, especially considering he was prepared to listen. 'It was her 16th birthday. He took her out to New Plymouth to McDonald's. The only thing was he invited all his mates too and ignored her the whole evening.'

Fred's eyebrow rose.

Craig snarled, 'Look, I treated her fine. Even bought her expensive gifts.'

'What, like the ring you brought her and then gave to another girl after an argument? Yeah, that's really generous, that is.'

Fred shook his head and glanced at his employer. 'That's low, McLeod.'

'So, what? What business is that of anyone? I've paid you to do a job, why don't you just do it?'

'Shut up, McLeod!' Fred snapped.

Mav continued to expose Craig's past actions. 'He bosses her around, he goes off with his mates and leaves her without a date, he puts her down in front of his friends, and he two times her. Some of the dances they've been to, he never even danced with her once. Some of them he even danced with other girls instead. He's the lowest of the low. Is this the type of guy you want to work for?'

Fred studied Mav with a grim look on his face.

'Come on, man!' McLeod whined. 'Do him!'

Mav appealed to Fred one final time, 'I'm telling you the truth, Fred. Craig McLeod is the biggest sleazeball in Te Arawa College. I didn't steal his girl. I just helped her get the courage she needed to dump his sorry ass.'

'He's right, Fred.'

Sam stepped into the bush and glared directly at Craig. Mav didn't know whether to be relieved that an ally had come to aid him or be even more worried that Sam was in danger too.

Sam continued, 'What are you doing here, Craig? You're not supposed to be here.'

Craig scowled. 'Stay out of this.'

'No! You just don't get the message do you? I don't want you anymore; it's as simple as that. As for any relationship with anyone else, there is none, so taking your frustrations out on Rick isn't going to do any good.' She strode up to her ex-boyfriend. 'Face it, Craig, it's over. I don't know why I didn't come to my senses earlier. You're a jerk, a complete and utter jerk. I've heard enough. It's typical of you to think you can buy people to do your dirty work for you. You may be rich but you're worthless as far as I'm concerned.'

'Shut up, Samantha, just shut up!'

'No! You're not telling me what to do anymore. You're not going to bully me anymore. YOU shut up.'

Craig jerked his head towards his goon. 'Fred! I'm paying you money here. Deal with him, will you?'

'No.'

Craig reeled and stared at him in disbelief. 'What?'

Even Mav could hardly believe it. Fred stood there in a staunch manner and made no move of aggression.

Fred sneered. 'Keep your money. I don't want it.'

'But we had a deal!'

'Look, I only beat people up who deserve to be beaten up. This guy doesn't. If anyone deserves to be beaten up it's you, McLeod.' He delivered one last dirty look towards Craig and without another word departed.

All Craig could do was stand there dumbfounded staring off in the direction Fred had gone.

When he turned back to Mav and Sam, his face appeared pale but then his scowl returned. 'Fine! If that's the way you want it, FINE!'

'Yes, I do,' said Sam.

'You two can have each other. I don't care!' He too turned and strode away.

For a few moments, silence reigned as Sam and Mav stood there, Mav breathing easy again, feeling relief. 'How did you know that I came here?'

'Some guy at the main entrance saw you come out here. I just wanted to tell you I've made a decision. I think I should stay unattached.' She paused for a moment to let her words sink in and then continued, 'I mean, don't get me wrong, I really like you but I've been with Craig for so long, I figure it's time I just focussed on myself for a while. Do what I want, you know?'

Mav nodded and forced a smile. It was a sensible decision, he knew that, and it certainly made his decision a lot easier. Nevertheless, he felt a little disappointed as well.

'I hope I haven't hurt your feelings.'

'No. You're probably right. I guess I have to find Holly and talk to her. I just hope she still likes me after this.'

'I'm sure she will. How could she not?' She leant forward and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips. 'There. For luck. And because I figure it's the only chance I'll ever get.'

'Thanks. I should head over to the Lotto shop right away. I hope it lasts me till I do.'

'In that case, just one more then,' she kissed him again and then pulled well away. 'I'd better stop before I get too carried away.'

They laughed and made their exit from the trees. Once out in the clearing again, something caught Mav's eye at the rear of the school hall. Students congregated there and it looked like trouble was brewing.

'Hey, isn't that Holly over there?' Sam asked.

'Come on, we'd better get over there.'

'You're right. Let's go.'

### CHAPTER 27:  
The Grand Showdown

'Chelsea Brown, you are in deep trouble, young lady! We figured you would be here all along.' Her mother's eyes seemed close to bursting. Her father looked equally as displeased, his brow furrowed.

Chelsea could only stand frozen, not knowing what to say.

Rex stepped forward to meet her parents and spoke, 'Man, are we glad you're here. Mr and Mrs Brown, right?'

'That's right,' her father said giving him a strange look. 'Who on Earth are you?'

'My name's Rex Cassidy, a good friend of Chelsea's. Mr Harris and I were just about to take her home now, right Mr Harris?' He turned to their teacher with a matter of fact look on his face. Chelsea had no idea what was going on but remained quiet. It seemed ridiculous to her that Rex could in any way rely on Mr Harris to help bail her out of trouble.

'Err...' Mr Harris hesitated only briefly. 'Yes, that's right. I'm Dean Harris, Head of the Physical Education department. We were just about to bring her home now.'

'I'm afraid there's been a bit of trouble,' Rex said. 'Chelsea here has been having problems with this girl, Roberta Fleming, have you heard of her?'

Both Chelsea's parents shook their heads and continued to wait on Rex for a further explanation.

'Roberta Fleming,' Mr Harris shook his head. 'I have heard rumours and she's a real problem all right.'

Chelsea had never heard of this Roberta Fleming before but her parent's anger turned to concern. 'Roberta Fleming?' Her mother asked, looking directly at Mr Harris. 'Who is she?'

'I'll let Rex continue. He can give you more accurate details than what I can.'

Chelsea marvelled. Mr Harris was smooth. A fast thinker, just like Rex.

'Jacqui Donaldson rang us earlier,' Her mother said, staring a Chelsea. 'She mentioned you had gone into New Plymouth with a young lady.'

'That's her,' Rex said before Chelsea could reply. 'I was worried when I found out what was happening. The thought of Chelsea being bullied into going to New Plymouth by that cow, had me upset. Be damned if I was going to stand around and let it happen...'

'Bullied?' Her mother looked alarmed. 'What do you mean by bullied? Has this young lady been bullying you, Chelsea?'

Chelsea knew there was no going back. She had to continue with this charade for Rex and Mr Harris's sake. She hoped Rex knew what he was doing. 'Yes.' She dared not say any more.

Rex continued, 'I brought her back here because she was too afraid to go back home. I brought her straight here to Mr Harris because I didn't want her getting in further trouble, in case you guys came here looking for her.'

'She was pretty shaken up,' Mr Harris said. 'It was a good thing Rex was looking out for her. She could have been halfway between here and New Plymouth by now.' He smiled and there was something in his eyes that made Chelsea think he was really enjoying this charade.

'He's not the only one who's been concerned.' Her mother turned her eyes back to Chelsea. 'As I said before, your friend Jacqui rang us telling us all about it. All though she didn't mention anything about you being coerced into going. To tell you the truth, after I spoke to your father, we began to think maybe it was just some kind of a trick to stop us from turning up here to look for you. Now it seems it was the truth all along.'

'She's been worried sick,' Rex continued. 'It took us a lot to convince her we should take her home. She was worried about what your reactions would be, especially considering she was supposed to be staying in tonight.'

'You ought to be proud of her,' Mr Harris said. 'She obviously respects you both a lot. The breaking of house rules seems to be something she does her best to avoid doing. Obviously, this whole escapade has been something she's been dreading for quite some time.'

'But what about this Roberta Fleming girl?' Chelsea's father asked. 'Bullying our daughter? How is it she could get away with that? Why on Earth would she want you to go to New Plymouth with her? Why didn't you tell us about her?'

'Maybe I can explain,' Mr Harris said and proceeded to rattle off a whole pile of very believable BS. 'This girl Roberta likes to pick on younger women. She uses force to get them to do what she wants. She threatens to beat them up if they refuse to do as she says, or for that matter threaten to report her. Fortunately, Chelsea has a guy like Rex here sticking up for her. I don't think we'll have any trouble with the likes of Roberta Fleming again.'

'Surely the school should be doing something about this Roberta girl?' Chelsea's mother asked.

'There's not a lot we can do,' Mr Harris said. 'It's not like she targets school girls. Chelsea just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I wouldn't worry about her anymore. I hear it through a reliable source she's leaving Te Arawa very soon.'

'I certainly hope so. Rex, you didn't threaten this girl Roberta, did you?'

'Of course not,' Rex smiled. 'I just told her to leave Chelsea alone.'

Chelsea felt grateful for what Rex and Mr Harris were doing for her. She hated to lie to her parents yet again but they seemed to be buying it. 'You should have seen him.' She wanted to build up Rex even more in their eyes. 'He was firm but non-threatening. She was shaking in her boots afterwards though.'

'A real hero, eh?' Her mother smiled at Rex.

'Nah,' Rex said. 'I just care about Chelsea, that's all. I didn't want to see her get into more trouble.'

'It's good to see she has good friends like you and Jacqui. You will have to come around sometime to our house.'

'I'd love to,' Rex smiled.

'Any lad who's looking out for our daughter is welcome any time,' her father said with a smile. 'We're thankful for what you've done. And you too, Mr Harris.'

Mr Harris replied, 'It was nothing. And I really mean that too.' He smiled a devious smile, fortunately, one that was not interpreted by her parents.

'I'm sorry, Mum and Dad,' Chelsea said. 'I really am.'

'Just as long as you're safe, darling,' her mother said, 'That's the main thing.'

'I guess I have to come home now, huh?'

Both her parent's eyes met and for a moment they remained silent. Finally, her father nodded. They turned back to Chelsea. 'You can stay here at the dance,' her mother said. 'But just tonight. You're not exempt for the rest of your imposition.'

Chelsea's beamed and breathed deep, allowing her every joint to stretch. Happiness, great relaxing happiness, coursed through her body. She almost shouted out for joy but held it back. 'Thanks, Mum! Thanks, Dad!'

Her mother smiled. 'By the way, I like what you've done with your hair. It really looks nice. When did you do that?'

'Err... in Roberta's car, just before we were about to leave...' and couldn't resist adding one last fact, 'just before Rex turned up to rescue me.'

'I see. Oh well, you have a good time. Try to forget about the unfortunate incident. One of us will pick you up and eleven, alright?'

'Yes, Mum.'

Once her parents had gone, Chelsea turned and smiled broadly at Rex. 'I can't believe we got away with that. You were brilliant. And Mr Harris too.'

Mr Harris delivered her a friendly wink.

'Thanks, Mr H for going along with the charade.' Rex smiled. 'Things worked out better than what I had expected.'

'Glad to help. Who the hell is Roberta Fleming anyway?'

'I've absolutely no idea.'

* * *

Tucker stood glaring at Pete while his two henchmen, Jo and Colin, stood either side of him. Mav approached cautiously with Sam at the rear. He didn't know what he would be able to do to help but he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

'I didn't mean to spill that drink on you,' Pete pleaded.

'That's not the only thing,' Tucker snarled. 'It was you that vandalised my bike this morning. You let down the tires then you threw mud all over it. It's a total mess now. I looked a right royal ubbhead riding that home. Don't try to tell me you didn't do it because I saw you standing right next to it with a bucket in your hand.'

'I was just checking it out. I was wondering who the darn sod was that did that to your bike. I could hardly believe it myself.'

'Then why did you run away as soon as you saw me? And that bucket you left behind had mud in it.'

'I know it did. I picked it up because I was wondering what it was doing there.'

Holly spoke up, her eyes aflame, 'Why don't you just leave him alone?' When she saw Mav coming, her eyes lit up but as soon as she looked beyond him, to Sam, her eyes saddened.

'Just shut up!' Tucker growled, giving her an evil glare. He turned back to Pete. 'You're lying to me. Why did you run away?'

'I was scared. I thought you might blame me for it. There's no way I would vandalise your bike, Tucks. Why would I want to risk riling up one of the toughest guys in school?'

'The toughest guy in the school!'

'Of course, you da man. Only a moron would do something to upset you. It would be like a death wish. I was trying to figure out who the Neanderthal was that did it. I was going to report him... or her to you.'

If it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation, Mav might have laughed at the garbage Pete fed Tucker. Pete had bragged about what he had done to Tucker's bike at school earlier that day. Now he was trying to boost Tucker's ego to get out of trouble. While it might have worked if Tucker was alone, it wasn't going to fly with Jo and Colin around.

Colin rolled his eyes. 'Come on, Tucker. You aren't buying that load of crock, are you? You know he's only trying to weasel his way out of a hiding. Un-bloody-believable'

'I reckon,' Jo added. 'You know what he really thinks of you. He vandalised your bike alright.'

Tucker's expression soured again and he glared at Pete. 'You lying little ubbhead! Don't you think you're going to get away with that.' He peered back over at Mav and Sam. 'What the hell do you two want, anyway? Can't you see I'm dealing with business here?'

Mav replied, 'Hey, Tucker, I'm just concerned about my friends.' He glanced at Holly but she refused to make eye contact.

'You know, Maverick; you deserve a good ubbering too. Don't think I don't know what you say behind my back.' Tucker advanced towards Mav, his fists clenched. Both Jo and Colin moved in towards him.

Mav was about to take a step back when Holly darted out in front of Tucker and stood between the two of them. 'Don't you dare lay a finger on him, you creep!'

'Get out of my way!' Tucker snarled and with a sweep of his arm, shoved her aside, causing her to tumble to the ground.

A bomb went off in Mav's head. He lunged at Tucker, swinging wildly at his head. His fist connected with Tucker's jaw, which caused the bully to reel. Before Mav could do anything else, Jo and Colin leapt upon him, pulverising him with vicious body blows.

'Stop!' screamed Holly sending a foot out at Jo, catching him in the back of the leg but having absolutely no effect.

'Leave him alone, you guys!' Sam shouted, staying well clear.

Mav's legs buckled underneath him and down he went. Pete tried to intervene but Jo and Colin turned on him instead. They would have laid into him some more if it wasn't for the timely intervention of Rex Cassidy.

Rex lunged in and shoved both Jo and Colin off Pete. Both boys hurtled back onto the ground but leapt quickly to their feet again.

They hesitated.

Tucker snarled, 'Stay out of this, ubbhead! This is between me and him.'

'What's going on?' Rex glanced from one person to the next.

'He pushed me!' Holly pointed an accusing finger at Tucker. 'Mav and Pete were trying to stick up for me.'

'Lies!' Tucker snarled. 'It's all lies, right guys?' He glanced at his two companions who still stood there, looking grimly at Rex.

'You're the one who's lying!' Holly snapped.

Mav wanted to voice his agreement but he could hardly breathe, still suffering from the assault he had endured. The best he could do was rise to a sitting position.

'Okay, let's chill out for a moment,' Rex said and turned his head back to Tucker. 'What's happening?'

'That little ubbhead vandalised my bike.' Tucker pointed at Pete

'How?'

'He let down the tires. Then he covered it all in cow shit.'

'Cow shit?' Pete said with indignation. 'It wasn't cow shit. Besides, I didn't do it, I told you.'

'You did that to his bike?' Rex turned to Pete, an eyebrow raised.

'Yes!' Tucker replied for him, red with fury.

'Not nice, not nice.' Rex scratched his chin.

'You're telling me.' Tucker sneered. 'Now stay out of this or I'll smack you one. This is between Cook and us and I'm going to teach him a lesson, got it?'

What Rex said next chilled Mav to the bone.

'Sure, sure. Far be it from me to stand in the way of justice, Tucks.'

Mav flinched. He couldn't believe what he heard but, then again, maybe it wasn't all that surprising. Mav had serious doubts about him. Perhaps his Mr Nice-Guy image was a front and he was no better than Tucker himself? Perhaps he was even afraid of Tucker and his two goons? It made Mav even more convinced it was Rex who dobbed him in to Mr Reaper.

An evil smile crossed Tucker's face. He let out a cackle of laughter, looking like a comic book villain who had received a super weapon to annihilate his foes.

'But it wasn't me,' Pete pleaded. 'I didn't put it there, I'm telling you.'

'Don't lie to me, Cook!'

Rex spoke again and it made all their heads turn back to him...

'He's not lying.'

Mav held his breath in anticipation. What _was_ Rex's game?

Tucker turned and stared at Rex. 'What?'

'He's not lying,' Rex said casually with a twinkle in his eye. 'Pete didn't vandalise your bike.'

Mav would have scratched his head if it wasn't still throbbing from the beating he'd just took. Of course, it was Pete who'd vandalised the bike. So, what was Rex playing at?

Jo piped up with a glare on his face, 'Then who did?'

'Yeah, ubbhead, who?'

Rex smirked. 'I did.'

A hush fell once again. Mav shook his head, gazing up at the bemused expressions on everyone's faces, Pete's in particular.

Tucker stared at him in equal disbelief. 'You? You vandalised my bike?'

'Damn straight.'

'But why?'

'You really want to know why?'

'Yes!'

'Because you're a douchebag.'

Mav nearly smiled. Perhaps he had been too quick to judge Rex.

Tucker's eyes bugged. 'You did it? I could report you to the police for that, you know?' His bold, surly self, returned. 'You'll be in big trouble, ubbhead.'

'It'll be worth it.'

'But that's nothing. Because what my mates... what I'm going to do to you now is far worse than what the police would do to you!'

Jo and Colin stood staunchly. Their faces darkened and their fists clenched open and shut.

Rex continued to remain nonchalant. 'You're an eejit, Pyles.'

'What did you call me?'

'I called you an eejit. I figure it's about time we had it out.'

Mav's eyes widened and a sense of amazement coursed through him. So, Rex was going to stand up to Tucker after all?

Rex scowled. 'I hear you've been making a lot of peoples' lives a misery here at this school. It's time for me to put things right.'

'You and whose army?'

'You and your army if you like.'

'We'll see about that. Colin, Jo. Get him!'

Colin and Jo converged on Rex from both sides. Pete and the two girls shuffled over to where Mav sat, so they were right out of harm's way.

Things moved so fast it was difficult for Mav to keep up with everything. Both Colin and Jo made a lunge at the same time and were immediately met with offence. Rex blocked one blow from Colin and sent Jo staggering with a side snipe to his face. He ducked and swept Colin off his feet. He scrambled back up, taking a defensive stance.

Colin and Jo moved in again and this time Rex couldn't fend them off so easily. Colin grabbed his arm while Jo nailed him with a solid blow to the jaw. Both boys got stuck in with blow after blow like they had with Mav earlier. Mav wanted to jump up and help but only managed to climb to his feet and even then, needed Pete's support to remain standing.

When it looked as though Rex was done for, he threw both attackers off himself with an incredible burst of strength and a loud shout. They both went flailing sideways to the ground. For a moment they were stunned, surprised at the show of brute strength, but Rex motioned them both to get back up. His nose bled and he had taken quite a few blows but he seemed to want more.

'Get him, boys!' Tucker thrust his fist into the air.

They both converged on Rex again.

Rex launched out at Jo with a high-flying karate kick. He connected with his head sending him hurtling back to the ground. Colin dove in and Rex attempted a flip but Colin reversed it, bringing him to the ground. He attempted a downward thrust to Rex's head but Rex, in an amazing move of agility, sprang back up and twisted Colin's arm behind his back. He sent a karate chop to the back of the neck, sending Colin staggering.

Jo clambered back up and sent a wild blow to Rex's head. Rex ducked and clotheslined him off his feet like a pro wrestler, sending him crashing back to the ground. He spun around to meet Colin, blocking several karate chops and attempting some of his own. Both attempted kicks and sweeps - neither connecting. Jo came in from behind Rex and nailed him with a knee to the kidney.

Jo grabbed him, pinning his arms behind his back and Colin moved in to deliver move blows.

Mav couldn't stand it anymore. He pushed the pain aside and rushed in on Jo from behind, clobbering him over the back of the head. Pete followed his lead and charged at Colin but the burly hood met him with a fist to the jaw. Pete went crashing to the ground.

Mav's assault on Jo was also futile as he found himself doubling up in agony from a blow to the midsection. Looking up, breathing heavily he knew at least he'd given Rex a few seconds to recover.

Rex stood, dripping blood but ready for more.

'Stop mucking around!' Tucker urged his two boys on. 'Finish him off!'

Both boys moved in again, fuming. What happened next was one of the most brilliant displays of martial arts, boxing and wrestling Mav had ever seen. Rex moved in faster and harder than before. He sent Colin staggering with a bevvy of fast karate chops and delivered two jabs to Jo. A windmill kick sent Colin flying and a savate kick almost took Jo's head off.

Both boys hit the ground, writhing in agony.

'You win,' Colin gasped.

'You're too good, Bro,' Jo winced.

For a moment, all was silent as Rex wiped blood from his nose. He turned to Tucker whose face turned pale. Mav could only imagine the horror Tucker must be feeling, right now, having seen his two tough bodyguards so severely pulverised.

'Now.' Rex's expression grew dark. 'Give me one good reason why I shouldn't do to you what I just did to your pals, Fats.'

'I... I... I...' he stammered. 'I... I... I-'

Rex grabbed him by the shirt and continued to peer at him with fire in his eyes while Tucker whimpered like a scolded puppy dog. Finally, Rex let out a growl and shoved Tucker hard, causing him to stagger back a few steps. 'You're not worth it, Pyles. You're nothing.'

In ways, it disappointed Mav that Rex wasn't going to pound the stuffing out of Tucker as he deserved. On the other hand, he breathed easy, relieved the violence was over.

Rex pointed his finger at Tucker, still with a business-like expression. 'But let me tell you this, asswipe. No more! Got it? No more! If I hear you've been picking on anybody in this school ever again then you'll have me to deal with, got it?'

'Y... Y... Y... Yes!'

'Yes, what?'

'Yes, sir!'

'Now get the hell out of my face.'

Tucker lumbered away as quickly as he could, leaving his two goons still lying on the grass.

Holly bent down beside Mav. 'You okay?'

Mav groaned and finally noticed the aches and pains in his body but managed to find the words to reply. 'Yeah... I'm okay.'

Chelsea appeared on the scene. Mav hadn't noticed her there hiding and watching. She rushed over to Rex. 'Rex, you're hurt.'

'What on Earth is going on here?'

Mav flinched. Yet someone else had arrived and this time it was Mr Harris. Bad timing as usual.

Rex wiped blood from his nose and replied to him in a friendly tone, 'Sorry about this, Mr H. I've just been sorting out a few problems.'

'Looking at the state of you, I'd say they were quite big problems.' Mr Harris paused to gaze down at Jo and Colin. 'Hmm...' He nodded then turned and grinned at Rex. 'Keep up the good work, Rex, my boy. You others had better get back inside, alright?'

Mav breathed easy once more as Mr Harris strolled away. Relief was coming in all packages and he still found it hard to believe. Whatever friendship their PE teacher and Rex had going, Mav was just happy it existed.

Once Mr Harris had gone from sight, Pete spoke up, 'Rex, it _was_ me, you know. I did those things to Tucker's bike.'

Rex smiled. 'I thought as much. Don't worry about it, Cooks.'

'Rex, look out!' Chelsea gasped.

Colin and Joseph rose to their feet and they both advanced towards Rex but this time all animosity had gone from their faces.

Colin extended his hand. 'You beat us fair and square, mate.'

Rex eyed his hand for a moment, then slowly extended his own and shook. To Mav's relief, Colin made no aggressive move.

'You're good,' Jo said. 'You're one strong dude.'

They shook too.

Rex examined them both closely. 'You both seem like good guys. Why do you hang out with such a loser like Pyles?'

'You know how it is.' Colin grimaced. 'Wherever Tucker is, there's trouble. We love a good fight.'

Rex nodded. 'I can identify with that.'

Colin and Jo said no more and departed through the back door to the hall.

Chelsea touched Rex's shoulder. 'You were great, Rex. It's about time someone taught that creep a lesson. But we've gotta see about cleaning you up.'

'Good idea.' Rex acknowledged the rest of them with a grin and a wave of his hand and they two departed.

Mav stood there with Pete, Sam and Holly.

For a few moments, they remained silent and then Sam spoke, 'Look. I gotta go. I'll see you all later, okay?'

'Sure,' Mav replied.

She turned to Holly before she departed. 'You two have fun.' She smiled and walked away.

Mav shifted his eyes from Pete to Holly. He didn't quite know what to say to either of them.

Fortunately, for him, Pete made the first move. 'Hey, Mav. I won't hold you up, I just wanted to apologise for the way I've been acting these last few weeks. I'm sorry I blamed you for all that stuff... about Mr Reaper and Wal... and the other stuff too. None of it was your fault. You know, I'll understand if you tell me to get lost. I realise now I've been a total jerk. It was talking to Holly here who made me realise it. You're a good guy, Mav and I hope we can be friends again.'

Mav could see in his eyes Pete was genuine. If he and Holly had talked, it must have been a good one. He smiled at Pete. 'You're a real twit sometimes, Pete. You know that?'

Pete grinned. 'Yeah, I know. I'm a total twit. I admit it.'

'Hey, don't worry about it. Us twits have to stick together, right?'

Pete chuckled. 'Yeah, I guess we do. I'll see you inside. I guess you and Holly have some talking to do.'

### CHAPTER 28:  
Justice Prevails

Pete walked back up the stairs and back into the hall. Things were still going strong and couples covered the dancefloor.

His classmates hit Pete with a barrage of questions once he arrived.

'What the hell happened to Joseph Ashley and Colin Hewes?'

'Have they been in a fight? They looked a mess!'

'They look like they'd been hit by a truck!'

Pete smiled at them all. 'You really want to know?'

'Spit it out,' Sheep ordered. 'And don't tell us you did it.'

'You guys just missed the greatest fight in the history of schoolyard fights.' Pete felt pleased he had witnessed what the others hadn't. He was the centre of attention and it was positive attention. 'You all just missed Rex pound the stuffing out of Joseph Ashley and Colin Hewes.'

Gasps of disbelief came from all around.

'Rex did _that_?' Sheep stared. 'On his own?'

'He pounded them into oblivion! You should have seen him. Incredible karate moves, wrestling moves, you name it, he did it.'

'What about Tucker, did he get Tucker?'

'He didn't have to. Rex had Tucker quaking in his boots. You should have seen him grovel.'

Sheep groaned. 'You mean to say, we just missed Rex humiliate Tucker and his two goons?'

'You sure did. It was beautiful. Pure poetry in motion.'

'Is Rex all right?' Laura Stott asked.

'He's fine. Okay, they did put up a fight but, in the end, it was Rex who did the butt kicking.'

'I can't believe we missed it.'

'It's so unfair.'

'Where's Rex now?' Jacqui asked.

'With Chelsea out in the trees somewhere.'

'That little cow,' Jacqui snarled. 'I've created a monster. Rex was supposed to be my date for this dance. Now he's just gone off somewhere alone with her. How dare she steal him?'

'You should have seen her after the fight,' Pete said, looking to rub salt into Jacqui's wounds. 'She was all over him like a rash.'

Jacqui's face turned red and her eyes narrowed. Oh, the humiliation of being turned down for Chelsea. Pete knew it was something she'd never live down. 'I bet they're in the trees now, in a passionate embrace. Holding each other, staring into each other's eyes. Their lips locked, sucking passionately on each other, her hands running along his chest, desperately wanting...'

'Shut up, Cook, you butthead!' Jacqui snarled.

'Yeah, shut up,' Sheep growled. 'You're an imbecile, that's what you are.'

Pete chuckled hysterically. 'And proud of it, Shepherd. Proud of it.'

* * *

Holly sat with Mav outside the hall and felt so happy. She clasped his hand and gazed into his eyes, elated at how things turned out. 'I'm sorry for being such a jealous cow. I had no right to be pissed off when we weren't even a couple.'

'It's okay,' Mav said. 'I don't blame you for being pissed. I shouldn't have been so wishy-washy and should have done the right thing before this dance. I didn't want to hurt either of you or Sam but because I couldn't make a tough decision it ended up making things worse. Fortunately, Sam made me see sense and I realised it was you I wanted to be with.'

Holly felt warm inside. 'It's been difficult for both of us trying to get our heads around this. I never would have thought I would have ever fallen for you but when you stood up against Tucker for me and Jacqui it all became so clear to me. I really did have feelings for you. I guess I was stupid because it took one act by you to make me see it. I should have seen how great you were long before then.'

'Me great?' Mav grinned. 'I think you might have a case of mistaken identity there.'

'Don't be silly.' Holly laughed. 'You may not be the greatest athlete in the school, in fact you suck at sports, but you're a wonderful guy. Any girl would be happy to have you on their arm and write their name vs Maverick on toilet walls.'

'Yeah, well maybe toilet walls are the best place for a name like mine.' He winked.

Just then, another harsh voice spoke and immediately Holly tensed up. 'What are you two doing out here?'

When she saw who it was, she rolled her eyes. It was Ben Tamati. 'Oh, Ben, will you just leave us alone?'

Mav rose to his feet and Holly could see venom in his eyes. She stood too and hoped desperately there was not going to be another fight, not when things had turned out so sweet. 'Give us a break, Ben. We've already had enough drama for one night.'

'Tell me about it,' Holly said. 'What do you want?'

Ben smirked. 'Looks like you're hanging out with my girl there. Can't have that.'

'I'm not your freaking girl, Ben!' Holly said defiantly. 'And I never will be. I'm with Rick now.'

Ben smirked. 'Oh really? Maverick vs Robinson? Can't see it.'

'Well, it's true,' Holly said. 'So why don't you just rack off?'

Ben snickered. 'I'm surprised to even see you here, Maverick. I would have thought they would have banned you from the dance for robbing the tuckshop.'

Holly reeled. 'What?'

'Yeah,' Ben said. 'Didn't you know? He's the culprit.'

'No way. You're lying.' She just simply couldn't believe Mav would do something like that.

Mav intervened, 'So it _was_ you who reported me?'

Holly flinched. It _was_ Mav who robbed the tuckshop? Surely it couldn't be true?

Ben smirked. 'Yeah, Maverick it was. I reported you. Ha ha ha ha ha ha.'

Holly could see fire burning in Mav's eyes and she worried. She knew Mav would not be able to handle Ben if it came to a fight.

'Well your plan backfired,' Mav said. 'They know it wasn't me.'

Holly felt relief at that revelation. His innocence was all that mattered to her.

Ben screwed up his face. 'And how did you wangle your way out of that one? I saw all that stuff in your bag. I can't believe you got away with it.'

Immediately doubts returned and Holly peered at Mav with concern. 'What's he talking about, Mav? Did you really rob the tuckshop?'

'Of course, he did,' Ben snarled. 'Like I said, I saw the loot in his bag. Looks like it's gonna have to be me that deals a little justice then, isn't it?' He stepped forward in an aggressive manner.

'Hold it right there, Tamati!'

Yet another person arrived on the scene and this time it was Wal. Holly didn't know whether to be relieved or more worried. She also wondered where he'd come from because she had not seen him so far that evening.

Their burly classmate strode up towards them, reached Ben and shoved him sideways. 'So, it was you who dobbed us in, huh? You, Tamati?'

'What?' Ben said taking another step back. 'No! I reported Maverick, that's all. I don't have a problem with you, Ullman.'

'Yeah? Well, I have a problem with you.' Wal drove his fist into the jaw of Ben Tamati. Ben sprawled back and crashed to the ground violently. He quickly leapt to his feet, holding his jaw and with wide eyes, rushed away with his tail between his legs.

Wal seemed content with that and smirked. 'Little punk. That will teach him.'

Holly turned her eyes to Mav who stared at Wal with clear anxiety in his eyes. Holly couldn't understand why he would be so nervous when Ben had been sent packing. She was also still completely confused about the whole thing involving the school tuckshop. 'What's going on? Ben reported you guys? Were you guys really responsible for the tuckshop robbery?'

Wal looked through narrow eyes at Mav. 'I'm lucky to be here. Thought I was gonna be banned from coming but instead I'm gonna be working after school for my dad for the next month, paying for what I took. No thanks to you and your big mouth.'

'Sorry,' Mav said in a rather uneasy tone of voice. 'I never meant to give you away. The Reaper figured it out.'

Holly ran her fingers through her hair, unable to believe what she heard. She feared for him again because Wal didn't seem like the type to go easy on someone who gave him up to the teachers, even if it was unintentional.

Wal released a burst of air from his lungs. 'Don't worry about it, newbie. I should never have forced you and Pete into carrying that loot for me anyway. I was a bloody moron for relying on you twerps. Not your fault either that scumbag Tamati reported you to the Reaper. And not your fault the Reaper is way smarter than you are.' A wry smile appeared on his face.

Mav let out a sigh of relief. 'I'm glad you're not pissed. I was dreading running into you tonight. Thought you were gonna kill me.'

'Yeah, well count yourself lucky this time. It's a good thing I'm a merciful guy. So, what's this? Maverick vs Robinson?'

'Yes,' said Holly, glad the unpleasantness was over and Mav was not guilty of the tuck-shop robbery.

'Way to go, Mav.' Wal slapped him heavily across the back causing him to grimace in pain. 'So apart from you two hooking up, anything else been going on I should know about?'

Holly laughed. 'Oh yeah. You missed out on some real drama.'

'Why, what happened? Hell, Maverick, don't tell me you got into a fight? Wondered what those red marks were all over your face. Clearly isn't lipstick. Did Tamati do that?'

Mav chuckled. 'No, but you're never gonna believe what happened.'

They told Wal what had gone down between Rex and Tucker and all Wal could do was stare in amazement with a huge smile.

'Whoa! Cassidy is the man! Geez, I wish I'd been there earlier to see it but I only just got here. Damn, I can't believe I missed it,'

Holly looped her arm through Mav's and the three of them re-entered the hall where the music still played and the dancefloor was full. When they reached their fellow classmates, the questions started flying.

'Mav, Holly, did you see the fight?'

'Did Rex really beat up Jo and Colin on his own?'

'Hey, what is this, are you two going around together? Maverick vs Robinson?'

'Robinson vs Maverick,' Holly corrected them. 'Let it be known, let it be written on every toilet wall.'

Jacqui huffed. 'Who cares about that? Did you see the fight? Did it really happen?'

'It sure did.' Mav smiled. 'Old Rex made mincemeat of Jo and Colin. Prepare for a feast of pies later.'

'Where are Rex and Chelsea?'

'Last we saw of them, they were heading for the trees. Let's hope there's no monkey business.' He winked.

'There had better not be!' Jacqui said coldly.

'Don't worry about it,' Pete said. 'I'll be there for a shoulder to cry on it you need it.'

Jacqui glared at him with venom in his eyes. 'Rack off, Cook!'

Pete grinned in the direction of Mav and Holly. He winked.

'Oh, boy,' Holly said to Mav. 'That Pete never learns, does he?'

'Nope. He sure doesn't.'

### Epilogue

Doug Andrews arrived at his new school. It still seemed hard to believe that only a few weeks earlier he had started out as principal of Taukauri College but had already been removed from the hallowed position. It was all because of one bad decision he made that the school board didn't like. ONE bad decision and he still didn't think it was so bad.

So, he had expelled a boy. The boy deserved to be expelled. He'd been getting away with his nonsense for way too long. Surely, it was what any self-respecting principal would do to set a standard?

Now here he was in a new town, about to take on an emergency role as principal in another school. He should at least be grateful he was given a second chance but, then again, what choice did Education New Zealand have? They couldn't very well strike him off the register because what he had done was not illegal. It was just that he had upset the people the wrong people and Education New Zealand had to find some way to appease all parties. So, what better way than just to sweep everything under the carpet and give him a new principal's job at a school miles away?

'Glad they got a replacement in so fast,' said the deputy principal of his new school as they finished a tour of the grounds. 'When our principal was taken ill I thought I might have to take on the role myself, so I'm glad I don't have to. I'm happy being the deputy. I definitely don't want to have the responsibility that comes with the big job.'

Andrews nodded as they made their way down the hallway to his new office. 'I have to admit, it's not a task most people would envy. It comes with a lot of responsibility and if you make the wrong decision you can upset a lot of people.'

'Speaking from experience?'

'Indeed. It's a very fickle and volatile world when you have to deal with students, parents and school boards.'

'I'm sure it is.'

They entered his new office and made themselves comfortable. 'I must say, I'm impressed with the place. You've certainly added in a lot of new technology and recently too by the looks of it. Where are all the funds coming from?'

'We have a very generous benefactor.'

Bad memories flooded Mr Andrews' mind as he thought of Rex Cassidy and the money his parents had been donating Taukauri College. In hindsight, he should have realised that expelling the boy and losing those funds would cause a big stink but to him, the principles of the matter far outweighed the financial gains. Had he been so completely wrong? Really?

He sighed. 'Ahh yes, generous benefactors. I've had bad experiences with them. But still, I guess we need them sometimes, don't we?'

'I hate to say it but we couldn't do without this one now we've got them. They've made things so much easier for us... at least when it comes to running the school. Just wish it could help with the behaviour of some of our students, especially...' His words trailed off and he chuckled. 'A double-edged sword, that's for sure.'

'What?' Andrews frowned.

The deputy chuckled again. 'Never mind. I guess you will miss your old school, huh?'

'Ha! I never got much of a chance to gain any attachment to it. I was only there for just over a month.'

'Only a month?'

'I'll be frank with you. I'm afraid I got off to a bad start there. Don't get me wrong, I know my job, it's just that I made one little decision a lot of people didn't like. Caused me no end of grief and in the end, it was decided I would be better off moving to a different school. So here I am. Now I trust what I have just divulged will remain between the two of us?'

'Of course, my god, it must have been some decision.'

'I expelled a boy.'

The deputy gasped. 'And people didn't like it?'

'First week of school.'

'Surely you had good reason?'

'I did. He deserved to be expelled. He had broken every school rule in the book and seemed to be proud of it. I was glad to be rid of him.'

'Why did people make such a big deal of his expulsion?'

'Funny you should ask that. His parents were big benefactors. The silly thing was, these same people had been continually complaining about this student and the so-called bribe that his parents were paying...they wanted something done but when I finally did take action, they made a fuss. There's no pleasing some people.'

'I see. Unfortunately, people are like that sometimes. Some people aren't happy unless they're complaining about something.'

'To be honest, the biggest issue I had with this lad was his constant humiliation of one of the staff members. He had targeted one particular teacher and made his life miserable. It became so bad the teacher handed in his resignation.'

'Then he deserved to be expelled for sure.'

'So I thought so at the time but then I learnt the reason for the persecution was because the teacher concerned had molested one of his female students. The thing is nothing was ever proven and so the man was never arrested. He remained on as a teacher.'

The deputy principal recoiled. 'God... that's terrible.' Then he sighed. 'But the law is the law and if he was never prosecuted it would be wrong for anyone to continue to torment him, let alone a student.'

'According to other sources I spoke to after expelling the lad, his guilt was not in doubt. Fellow staff were well aware of the situation and the reason he wasn't prosecuted came down to incompetence during the police investigation. It was a terrible miscarriage of justice that the man was not charged and was allowed to continue on teaching.'

'So, this boy you expelled knew all about that and was trying to execute his own form of justice by making the guy's life as tough as possible.'

'That's right. In the end, the teacher couldn't handle it and he quit teaching.'

'I must admit, that does seem to indicate guilt on his part.'

Andrews nodded. 'So, this lad was seen as a type of crusader by many, just trying to protect his fellow female classmates.'

'I can understand that.'

'After the expulsion, I also learnt that he was a crusader in other ways. The reason why he was always in fights with other students was simply because the majority of times he was standing up to bullies on behalf of others.'

'A real crusader it seems.'

'Indeed.'

The deputy principal leaned back in his chair and gazed over Mr Andrew's head thoughtfully. 'Who was this student anyway? Sounds like a kid we have here at this school.'

'He was some piece of work. Big lad too. Tall and well built. His name was Rex Cassidy.'

'Rex Cassidy?' The deputy jerked his head down and stared at Mr Andrews as if he'd just said the unthinkable.

Andrews paused and examined him with intrigue. A bad feeling came across him. 'That's right. You act as though you know the boy.'

'Err... Nah, can't be the same boy. Too much of a coincidence.'

'What are you saying, are you saying-?'

'I just realised... I have urgent work I need to do.' The deputy stood. 'I have reports to do and—'

'Are you telling me Rex Cassid—?'

'I really must get to it.'

'Wait, did you—?'

'I'm sure you'll like our school, Principal Andrews.'

'But wait a minute—'

'Welcome to Te Arawa College.'

145

