Episode 5

Winter's breathing was heavy and her head was swimming as she completed the 43rd lap. "Woah she's really doing fifty laps?" "Who is that girl?" "That's Winter Knight\, the new girl." "She stood up to Coach Russo. She's awesome!" "Pretty hot. Look at her figure." Winter tuned out the onlookers and pushed herself to finish the final laps. *Did she have to be so excessive? Fifty?! Well... I did ask for it.* Winter finished six more laps before she tripped and scrapped her knee. Mandy and Layla rushed over to her from where they were watching. "Winter are you okay?" Layla held out a hand to her. "I'm fine. Let me just finish this last lap." Winter winced as she tried to get up and felt a hot pain shoot up her leg. *Oh wow that is extremely painful.* Winter smiled and hid the pain as she got up and started running again. She felt something warm moving down her leg underneath her dark gym pants\, but she ignored it as she finished the final lap. Coach Russo turned away at Winter's blatant display of defiance and yelled at the rest of the class\, "Alright wusses. Now that you've watched Knight have her fun\, it's your turn. Get to it. I want to see sweat\, blood\, and tears." Mandy glared at Coach Russo's back and muttered to them\, "See I told you guys that she was the worst." Layla giggled. Winter smiled at them and then said\, "I have to go to the bathroom. You girls go ahead." Layla watched her. "Are you sure you're okay?" Winter brushed off the concern smoothly\, "yes yes.. No need to worry." Winter watched Mandy tug on Layla's arm\, "Let's go throw the ball." Winter masked her pain as well as she could until she was out of the gym and in the hallway.

Winter only got a few steps towards the bathroom before she collapsed. She pulled herself by the wall in the hallway and rolled up her pant leg. Winter looked down and saw her knee bleeding. Hearing footsteps\, Winter looked up from her bloodied leg and stared into deep\, wine red eyes. Sam had not stopped walking back towards the gym and barely looked at Winter as he said in a voice that was smooth as honey\, "How pathetic." Winter couldn't hold her surprise\, "H-hey!" But Sam had already rounded the corner and reentered the gym. *What a jerk! He didn't even offer to help or anything.* Winter attempted to stand but found herself in too much pain. She heard more foot steps coming from the direction of the gym and considered the possibility that Sam had a change of heart. This time the eyes that met hers were blue\, a dark blue that rivaled an angry ocean. The boy looked at her\, eyes intent. "Might wanna get that checked out\," he said. His stare was piercing. "Winter\, right?" Winter nodded her head. "I'm Jax Ryan. From class eight." Winter watched him\, "From Star's potential?" Jax scoffed\, "Yeah that's a load of bull. Everyone should just call it 'Sam's class'\, because that's the only thing that matters. Hey but your leg seems pretty busted\, you should go to the nurse." Winter smiled slightly\, "yeah I mean I definitely would have if I could walk there." Jax sighed\, "You can't get up?" "Why would I just collapse here outside the gym if I could?" Jax rolled his eyes\, "Yeah yeah. Come on I'll help you." Winter narrowed her eyes\, "You're gonna help?" Jax huffed\, "If you don't want my help then fine I'll just be on my way." Jax turned and started to walk away before Winter grabbed his pants gently\, "Wait." Her pride got the better of her\, "Don't tell my friends you saw me." Jax kept on walking until he rounded the corner.

Winter tried to get up on her own. She fell and tried again. Winter was on her two feet before she was about to collapse again when someone caught her. "You should have admitted you needed my help," Jax smirked. Winter scowled, "I don't." "Oh really? If I didn't catch you just now you wouldn't been face down on the ground." Winter pushed him off and then wobbled, "I could've caught myself." "Okay Sparky. Whatever you say. Just hurry up and get on my back." Winter glowered at the nickname, "I don't need your help." Jax sighed, long and hard "Winter whatever. You don't have to admit it. And you don't have to need it but.." Jax picked Winter up. "I'm still going to help you." Winter looked at Jax's dark brown hair as Jax wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. "So what's the story Winter?" "What?" Jax kept her hoisted up on his back, "What do you know of this place? What do you think?" Winter furrowed her eyebrows, "What is there to know? Golden Academy High is an elite school for students with parents of power and influence. It's filled to the brim with luxuries I wouldn't find at any of my old schools." Jax chuckled, " I guess you haven't been here long enough." Winter stared ahead, "what do you mean?" Jax shook his head, "I guess you'll find out soon enough."

They arrived at the nurse's office but there was no one inside. "I guess the nurse is out right now\," Jax set Winter down gently on the bed. "I can help." Winter smirked\, "what do you know about patching someone up?"  "Funny you'd ask\," Jax scrambled around the nurse's office grabbing supplies\, "one time my friend Lucas got hurt real bad in Coach Russo's class. Someone knocked him down and he got scuffed up pretty bad on his arms. The nurse wasn't in so I got him all patched up and good as new." Winter laughed softly to conceal any trace of pain she was feeling\, "That's a good story but I meant where does your experience come from?" Jax's expression darkened a little\, "My parents have always been busy since I was little. Too busy to take care of a burden like me so they hired a nanny\, her name is Mariellen. I didn't know how to pronounce her name so I would call her Manny." Winter giggled\, "Manny? As in Mariellen and nanny?" "Yeah yeah laugh all you want. Anyway\, as a kid I was reckless\, always getting hurt. Manny would patch me up\, soon enough she got tired of it and decided to teach me how to tend to my own injuries." Winter smiled\, "Ah yes. So\, simply put\, your experience comes from inattentive parents and an annoyed nanny." Jax rolled his eyes and crouched down to get a better look at her knee. He dabbed her wound with a lightly dampened cloth and said "This is going to sting a little." Winter winced. *Ow.* "Sorry does it hurt?" Winter brushed off his concern then thought of something\, "Hey Jax?" "Hm?" "How long have you been going to school here?" Jax's focus remained on her injured knee\, "Since it opened." Winter tilted her head\, "How old were you when it opened?" After disinfecting her wound and applying ointment\, Jax got the bandages to cover it up\, "About five or six." Winter studied the look on his face\, but couldn't place it. "This school has kids that small?" Jax lowered his brows\, "Yes. They're in a different building from us though." Winter nodded\, "Ah so... what do you know about the headmaster?" Jax looked up at her cold\, fierce blue eyes "The headmaster? He's about as big a mystery as they come. No one has seen him or heard his voice since the school opened." Winter narrowed her eyes\, it seemed to her that Jax new more than he was letting on but she didn't push the subject. Jax finished bandaging her leg and Winter released a sigh. "How does it feel?" Winter bent her leg\, "Much better." "Can you stand?" Winter stood up straight and nodded. "Thank you\," she mumbled. "I heard that\," Jax chuckled. "The bell's about to ring\, I'll walk you to class. Class five right?"  "How did you-"  "We had joint P.E. together remember? Or did your stand to Coach Russo mixed with the fifty laps you did cause you to forget?" Winter laughed and Jax guided her back to class. They got there just as the bell rang. "See ya around\, Knight."

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