“Ugh, I feel like crap,” I didn’t remember much of last night after the topic of school and my grades came up. The nerves and anxiety started to catch up making my thoughts spiral. I couldn’t even remember how I had gotten to bed.

Wow, I sound like I was drunk…

You might be thinking ‘it’s only middle school; what could be bad about that?’ yet let me remind you my first time was not a good experience and to top that, I felt like I had to get excellent grades or I would disappoint the people around me.

I know I shouldn’t worry about that… Easier said than done.

I needed to exercise and clear my head. It was a little after six thirty, earlier than I had woken up since all of this started, so I had time to get a good run in and some training.

Alex was already gone, though there wasn’t a note or breakfast. He was probably working on the house and didn’t expect me to be up yet so I left him a message of my own, not wanting him to worry if he didn’t see me leave.

There was a game trail that went behind the house into the hills of the Black Forest that sounded appealing right about now. It had some rough terrain that was challenging enough that I would have to push myself.

Getting back about an hour later, Alex was outside going through forms so I joined him. He smiled and nodded as we fell into rhythm, giving me space to work out my thoughts.

After a while, Alex silently walked inside and returned with a couple of towels and water. “You’re worried.”

“Not really…” I replied, still working through the forms at a slow pace.

“Sasha.”

“…”

“Sasha.”

“Okay, okay…” I stopped moving and stared at the ground, not knowing how or what to say.

“What we talked about last night, right?”

“…”

Sigh… “For some reason, you act just like me at times. You became silent and barely ate, so I could tell something was up.” Right on point Alex. What should I do though?

Alex put his large hand on my head. “We put too much pressure on you and I’m sorry about that. You don’t have to be perfect you know. We know you have a lot on your plate right now, and you don’t have to take it all on alone. All we ask is that you are happy and healthy. Be yourself little princess, and it will all work out.”

I knocked his hand away, blushing and a little flustered. “Don’t call me princess! I’m too old for that…”

“You used to love it when I called you that,” He quipped with a chuckle.

“…” I did… I can remember him calling me ‘little one’ or ‘little princess’. Zeke would also call me ‘His little princess’, which always made “me” happy… Ugh, my head hurts again. What is going on?!

“Alright, alright,” Alex put his hands up. “I’ll lay off the princess stuff for a bit. Go take a shower and I will get breakfast started, then we can work on organizing the new house while we wait for your school counselor to show up.”

“Right… That.”

“Don’t be so down, everything will work out so just have a little faith,” Alex patted my back and gave me a gentle push toward the R.V.

I took a longer shower than usual, taking extra care of my hair. Why? No clue, though for some reason it did ease my mind a little. I put it in a loose ponytail after drying it and got dressed in a cute (I just said “cute” didn’t I?) light pink t-shirt, a white ankle-length skirt, and white shoes with about a two-inch heel. They were the highest-heeled shoes I had tried so far, and I wanted to get used to them after Natalie had shown me her old shoes from middle school that were the same height.

Seriously, why were middle schoolers supposed to wear shoes like that?! At least they had a fairly large heel, making them somewhat easier to walk in.

“I’m glad my sense of balance is back. I think it’s way better than it used to be, too,” I muttered to myself before walking into the kitchen.

Breakfast was on the lighter side today, and even after this morning’s exercise, it was welcomed. A bowl of mixed berries in cream and toast with apple butter was precisely what the doctor ordered to lighten my mood even further.

Alex was already loading boxes of kitchen and bathroom items to take to the house, so I washed the dishes and started packing my room. Not that there was much to pack.

We worked quickly and by about ten had nearly everything except bedding and a few small items moved. With that taken care of, I started organizing the kitchen. I washed all the stuff that had been in storage before putting it away while Alex brought in what little furniture we had from the shop.

There was a small, round, two seat antique table with chairs that I refurbished for the breakfast nook in the kitchen and a large eight seat square table I had made in woods class during my junior and senior years.

That thing was massive and heavy being made out of solid mahogany and based on the long tables you would see in medieval fantasy.

Don’t judge; you know you want one too.

I finished the kitchen and started on Alex’s bathroom while he assembled the monstrosity (I seriously can’t reiterate enough how much overkill that table is…) I had made.

We stopped for lunch after Alex finished, eating a light salad with grilled chicken. I know I’ve said it before, but I feel like a rabbit when I eat now. I can understand not having a large appetite considering how small I am, yet I felt like I barely eat anything these days.

Should I be worried?

“Sasha, I think they’re here,” Alex called from downstairs.

“Okay,” I replied after looking at my phone. It was only one thirty, which made me panic a little. Was there something wrong? “It’s fine,” I said as I checked myself in the mirror. Wait… When did I start doing that?

Alex was already outside talking to two women when I stepped through the door.

“Ms. White? I didn’t know you were coming.”

“Hi, Sasha, nice to see you. Wow, you’re even cuter in person,” She was taller than I expected at around five ten, with long blond hair and beautiful blue eyes. She was also more endowed than it looked on video chat. Her smile and pearly white teeth were almost too bright to look at.

I looked down at myself, thinking about how flat I was in comp……

NOPE! Why am I thinking about that?! I don’t want to be that big! It’s bad enough that it feels like I’ve already grown a bit because my training bras felt a little tighter and it was getting more uncomfortable to not wear one when I was moving around.

It hasn’t even been a week!

“Hello Alex, Sasha. I’m Maryam Coldwell, the guidance counselor for Plumb Valley and the state,” Maryam shook hands with Alex. “Sorry for showing up so early.”

“It’s fine,” Alex replied. “We were only organizing while we waited for the rest of the furniture to be delivered. Would you like some coffee or I could make some tea if you prefer.”

“Coffee sounds good.”

“Water for me please,” Ms. White said in a quiet voice when Alex glanced her way. Are you okay? You’re fidgeting. Alex isn’t scary, I promise!

“Okay, water for Ms. White and coffee for Mrs. Coldwell. Did you want coffee as well Alex?”

“Yes, thanks, Sasha. Would you ladies like to come inside? We can relax at the table to talk,” Alex motioned toward the house. “I should apologize…” He started to say but was cut off by a car pulling into the drive.

“I think that’s Natalie’s WRX, I wonder what she’s doing here?” The bigger question in my opinion though, was why they bought her that. At first, I had thought it was one of her brothers but was floored when she told me it was hers. She didn’t even realize what she was driving.

“I don’t know,” Alex shook his head. “They didn’t say anything about coming today.”

We watched as the car parked next to the Camaro and Natalie popped out of the driver’s side just as bubbly and energetic as usual.

“Sashaaaa! We came to give you a hand with moving!” She excitedly shouted as she hurried towards me acting like a cat mid-pounce.

“STOP! STOP!” I held up my hands and she skidded to a stop, somehow looking guilty and dejected at the same time. ‘Wow, that’s cute’ I thought.

Oh no! No no no no! I did NOT just think that!

‘Ah, I can’t. She looks so much like a sad little puppy right now.’ With that thought, I slowly walked up and gave her a light hug. “Thanks, Natalie, we have most of it done, but we appreciate you coming.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“See what I mean Natalie?” Rebecca said as she placed her hand on Natalie’s shoulder. “We wanted to get here earlier, but Natalie’s class didn’t get out until after noon,” She continued, looking at Alex and me with a smile.

“Hello, Rebecca,” Mrs. Coldwell said, crossing her arms. “I didn’t know that you were acquainted with Mr. Athervon and Sasha.”

“Hi, Maryam. Alex worked for my husband and has become like family to us, so we are helping him take care of Sasha.”

“I see, so that’s how it is,” The look on Mrs. Coldwell’s face didn’t seem like she was happy with this development. I had the feeling she didn’t like the idea of a single man without experience raising kids taking care of a young girl on his own.

To be honest? I could see where she was coming from, though that didn’t mean I agreed with her.

“Oh, you haven’t changed Maryam, still so serious all the time,” Why were you teasing her Rebecca?

“We were on our way inside when you showed up Rebecca. Would you care to join us for some coffee?” Alex interjected to break the tension.

“Right, coffee and water. Do you want me to make you some tea Rebecca?”

“Coffee works for me as well Sasha, Thanks,” Rebecca said with a soft smile.

I grabbed Natalie’s hand and started for the house. “Come on Natalie, I’ll show you the house while they talk.”

“Okay, I’ll give you a hand with the drinks, then you can give me a tour!”

The Cheshire grin she had as I pulled her inside worried me a little, and yet I was more worried about how I was acting. ‘It seems like I’m acting more and more like a ten-year-old girl… I still feel like myself though, or is it more a case of becoming my new self? Ugh, what does that even mean?’

Crap… My head hurts again.

“Could you please grab two glasses and three coffee cups from that cabinet? Oh, and whatever cup you want as well.”

“Hmm, what do you have?”

“I can make some iced tea, we have milk and a few different juices, or coffee and some herbal teas,” I said as I filled an old-school coffee boiler with water. “The teas are in the cabinet to the right of the cups.” No, I wasn’t going to use the boiler to make coffee. Alex’s sister had given him a coffee press for his birthday and I wanted to try it.

“Is this peppermint tea any good?”

“I like it, it’s pretty refreshing for a hot tea,” I lit the stove and carefully placed the pot on the burner. I probably should have had Natalie do that for me because I could hear Mrs. Coldwell asking Alex if he thought letting me be around a stove was alright.

Crap…

“Maryam quit acting so high and mighty. You and I were helping in the kitchen at that age and I find it hard to believe your daughter wasn’t the same way,” Dang Rebecca, going for the throat already. I bet there’s a bit of history between them.

“Sasha knows what she’s doing. Her mother started teaching her how to cook and bake a couple of years ago,” Alex added. “Her cookies are delicious by the way. She used to bake them whenever I visited.

“I would hope it was under supervision by her mother,” Mrs. Coldwell was determined to find fault. This was going to be a pain…

“Ms. White, would you like ice?” I asked, trying to disrupt the conversation.

“Yes please.”

“Ok, here you go,” I set down the glass of water on a coaster along with the three coffee cups I had brought. “The coffee should be ready soon. Do you think I should open a couple of doors, Alex? This is the first time the stove’s been used.”

“That might be a good idea and it is a beautiful day.”

“If you’re worried about carbon monoxide, why did you install that kind of appliance?” Yep, Mrs. Coldwell really doesn’t like the idea of Alex taking care of me.

“It’s not about carbon monoxide and we have multiple detectors installed as well. The coating on the stove might smell a bit when it gets hot until it’s been used for a while.” Calm down Alex, your eye is starting to twitch.

“Maryam, you have pushed hard enough. It’s time to drop the act I think.” Wow, even Rebecca is starting to lose it. I think I will sneak back to the kitchen.

Mrs. Coldwell raised her eyebrows at Rebecca’s rebuke. “Yes, I think you are right. Sorry Alex, Sasha. While I am still skeptical about Sasha living with Alex, from what I’ve seen already they know each other quite well and trust one another. I’ve read the reports and testimonies of those that knew Sasha’s family and all of them mentioned Alex and Sasha being close, so I wanted to gauge your reactions when I pushed a little.”

As they continued to talk, (and the conversation took a weird turn) I asked Natalie to pour the boiling water into the press and her cup, not wanting to give Mrs. Coldwell more ammo. Grabbing my orange juice and the coffee, Natalie and I joined the others at the table after Rebecca pointed to the chair next to her. Guess I won't be able to disappear and give Natalie that tour yet...

I placed my juice on a coaster and pressed the coffee, offering it to Rebecca and Mrs. Coldwell. “Here you go Rebecca, Mrs. Coldwell.”

“Thanks, Sasha,” Mrs. Coldwell took the coffee offered from Rebecca and actually smiled. Was that cold scorn really all an act? I could see Alex was still confused as well. “Is she always like this Rebecca?”

“Hm? Yes, I would say she is. It took me a while to get her to stop calling me Mrs. Rebecca.”

“That’s because I didn’t know your last name,” I puffed my cheeks out making the others laugh.

Ugh, please no. I’m not some light novel protagonist and kids don’t really do that, do they?

“You still won’t call me Becca though,” she replied, still laughing.

“I see. Is there a reason you still call Alyssa Ms. White and me Mrs. Coldwell?”

“Well, I would say that’s her mother’s influence,” Alex said.

“I understand that, what I was wondering is, how did she know I was married and Alyssa wasn’t.”

Why was she bringing this up? I don’t understand, did I offend her somehow?

Dang it Alex, quit laughing like that.

“Umm, when I talked to Ms. White to take the online entrance exam I noticed she didn’t have a wedding ring.”

“Oh? You could see that through the webcam?”

“Well… Ms. White seems to be left-handed.”

“I don’t follow.”

“I could see that her pens were on the left side of her desk and she had a dark spot on the edge of her left hand as well.”

“That could have been someone else’s desk. Alyssa is doing her internship for school counseling.”

“Yes, though she used her left hand to adjust the webcam, and when she waved goodbye she used her left arm. Most people wave with their dominant hand. Ms. White, did you go to beauty pageants?”

“Ho… How do you know that, and where did that come from? I haven’t told anyone here about that… It’s too embarrassing,” Ms. White said as she blushed.

“You twisted your wrist instead of moving your hand side to side. They teach that to people who have to wave for long periods.”

“Interesting. So why did you call me Mrs. without knowing I was married?”

“You have a habit of playing with your rings, which made them easy to spot. After you crossed your arms, I could see three of them; one is probably your engagement ring, one your wedding, and the other is probably a milestone or renewal of vows based on the placement and combination of gems.”

Alex burst into laughter again while the others looked at me with their jaws on the floor. “I see you kept playing that game when I wasn’t around. I didn’t know you were interested in pageants though.”

“Your sister tried to get me to go with them that time we stopped by your parent’s house. She and Hailey tried to teach me about them, but I wasn’t interested.”

“Ah, I remember that. Your mom was freaking out, worried that you would want to.”

“If you don’t mind my asking, why would she be worried about that?” Ms. White interjected. “I realize I said I was embarrassed about it now, though it was a lot of fun.”

"Valeria didn’t have anything against the concept or the majority of people involved with pageants, though she believed that those kinds of events over-sexualized children.”

“So she would have thought poorly of me for participating in pageants?”

“No. From what I have seen so far, you two would have gotten along really well. Valeria was raised in a very strict family, well… her mother was anyway. While she was a little more lax with Sasha and was way more open-minded than her mother, Valeria still had the mindset of how a ‘proper’ lady should be. I know that’s confusing, but it’s hard to explain without you knowing her.”

“Hmm, I think I get it,” Mrs. Coldwell said. “She sounds a lot like my grandmother. She used to harp on me constantly about my clothes, how I talked, and even how I sat, but while she had her opinions about certain things, she never held that against most people. Sound about right?”

“Sounds similar,” Alex said with a sad smile.

I was so confused right now. Looking down at my hands that were folded in my lap, I frowned in thought. I could remember all of that. Meeting Alex’s sister and niece at his parent’s house, them trying to get me to join them at a pageant and excitedly teaching me about them...

Truthfully, I knew so much about them because my sister Tess wanted to be a model, so being the youngest I had to go with her and mom to many pageants growing up. Hailey was the same and enjoyed participating as well.

So, why did I have those memories of Tess and Hailey?!

I really need some answers…

“Sorry Sasha,” Rebecca said as she rubbed my back. They must have taken my frown and silence as sadness. “Are you alright?”

“I-I’m fine…” I’m not fine. In no way whatsoever am I fine, though I can’t tell them that, or why for that matter. I need to talk to Jacobus and figure this out.

“Hmm,” Rebecca didn’t look convinced. She’s too freaking perceptive!

“I promise, I’m alright.”

After a long pause, Mrs. Coldwell looked at Alex. “So…… What’s this game you mentioned?”

“Hmm? Oh, that. It’s a game my martial arts Sensei taught me to build situational awareness. The quick explanation is, it’s people watching with a purpose. There is a lot more to it than that though,” Alex looked like he was going to leave it at that, but the quizzical glances from the others and Rebecca’s glare urged him to continue.

It was probably Rebecca’s glare more than anything… Have I mentioned she could be incredibly scary?

“So, the point of it is to watch people, animals, objects, and so on to learn to notice the small details. At first, it’s easier to have another person to compare what you see with. That’s why I told Sasha it was a game.”

“What do you mean by ‘the small’ details?" Mrs. Coldwell looked interested.

“Well, as an example, what Sasha pointed out about your rings, or the way Alyssa waves, whether someone is right or left dominant, that sort of detail. It’s easier said than done because you don’t want to stare at people so you train to notice things at a glance.”

“How would you know if someone was right or left-handed just by looking at them? I can understand Sasha figuring that out by looking at my desk and when I waved because we talked for a while over chat…” Ms. White trailed off and I could understand her confusion. It was extremely difficult to take in very much info in a short glance.

“Well, everyone has ‘tells’, though I’m not going to say you can be a hundred percent all the time, you can usually get enough information to make an educated guess. The hardest part about it is having the knowledge to put that information to use.”

“How so?” Mrs. Coldwell asked.

“The easiest example would be how Alissa waves. With that, you could assume she was either left-handed or ambidextrous, but if you didn’t know anything about why people are taught to wave in that way, it wouldn’t mean anything else. If you do know about it, it can become another tell. Using that and other observations, Sasha guessed that you went to pageants.”

“There are other places she could have learned that thought, right?” Natalie asked. And here I thought she wasn’t paying attention.

“Well… There is more to it, but……”

“And that would be?” Alyssa glared at Alex, making him fidget and look away. Kinda funny really. “Aaannnddd?!”

“Umm…”

Oh, this is good. I had never seen myself when I get flustered and fidget like this. (Well, duh, that’s obvious…) Now I know why my few friends and my family always tried to get me. It was hilarious and I couldn’t help giggling.

Clearing my throat to hide my giggles, I gave Alex a reprieve. “What He’s trying not to say to be polite is; It’s in the way you move, how you stand and sit, and you are very beautiful.”

“Ho… How… What?”

Dang, that blush makes her even more beautiful. Rebecca and Natalie were trying not to laugh while Mrs. Coldwell rolled her eyes and coughed.

“I think you might need to explain a little more Sasha. I don’t quite follow.”

“Hmm, so Ms. White…”

“Please, just call me Alyssa,” She said, cutting me off.

“Ahh… Right. Well, the way you walk, putting one foot in front of the other, back straight, and chin up is typical of models and pageant contestants. You also stand with your knees and feet together while placing one hand over the other or holding one wrist with the other hand. You sit with your back straight, barely touching the backrest, with your hands folded in your lap and your knees together with your feet on the side of the chair. That’s what Tess and Hailey were trying to teach me anyway.” I threw that last bit in just in case they wanted to know how I knew so much about that. I remember Tess constantly complaining about that particular practice at the pageants she went to. I don’t know if all of them are like that though.

“PFFT…. Hahaha,” Natalie almost spit her tea out before laughing. “Hey, Sasha…”

“What?”

“That’s exactly what you do too!”

Crap…