A Day In The Life Of Ronan Brown Part 1

Miles (POV) The Start Of The Morning

"Miles! Ronan! Wake up! It's time for school!" Mum's voice rang from downstairs, pulling me out of my dream. I groaned, my body still heavy with sleep.

Why did mornings have to be so early? The next thing I knew, the mattress beside me dipped as something—or rather someone—began jumping up and down.

"Miles! Miles! Wake up!" Ronan's giggles filled the room as he bounced on my bed like a kangaroo. I rolled over, my face buried in the pillow, wishing.

I could stay in that warm cocoon forever.

"Get off me, you little monkey," I grumbled, trying to shove him away.

It was useless; Ronan was a ball of energy, and once he got started, there was no stopping him.

With a sigh, I sat up, rubbing my eyes. "Alright, alright! I'm up." Ronan giggled again and darted out of the room, yelling something about beating me to the bathroom. I trudged after him, my feet dragging against the floorboards.

In the bathroom. I turned on the tap and splashed cold water on my face.

The reflection in the mirror showed two very different brothers: me, a walking zombie with half-lidded eyes and a damaging case of bedhead; and Ronan, his face glowing with excitement, bouncing from side to side as he splashed water everywhere.

"You're getting water all over the place," I muttered, but he didn't hear me. Or maybe he did and just didn't care. Typical.

Downstairs, the smell of toast and eggs filled the air. Mum was already at the stove, moving back and forth as she prepared breakfast. Ronan was spinning around in circles, pretending to be some superhero.

"Ronan, come eat!" Mum called her back and turned to us. She glanced over her shoulder, and her eyes zeroed in on Ronan's uniform. "Your shirt is half-tucked, and your tie is crooked. Honestly, Ronan—"

Too late.

Ronan was already face-first in his cereal bowl, munching away happily. I took the seat next to him, glancing sideways. His uniform was a mess. With a sigh, I reached over and started fixing his tie.

"Why are you so dumb?" I muttered under my breath, straightening his collar.

Ronan paused, his spoon halfway to his mouth, looking up at me with wide eyes. Then, as soon as I finished, he beamed, his smile so bright it could've powered the entire house. "Thanks, Miles! You're the best!" he said with an over-the-top enthusiasm, humming some random tune as if nothing had happened.

I sighed and shook my head. "Can we watch Action Time!?" he asked, his eyes already darting toward the living room TV.

"Nope," Mum and I said in unison.

"But it's time for school!" Mum added, pointing her spatula at him.

Ronan pouted but didn't argue. Instead, he shoved the rest of his cereal into his mouth, milk dribbling down his chin. I got up to brush my teeth, Ronan hot on my heels.

As we brushed, he started singing the shark song. His voice echoed in the bathroom, and I tapped the back of his head lightly. "Stop singing your baby songs and just brush your teeth."

He made a face at me. "Is not for babies!" he protested, still pouting, before continuing his song, now quieter but still determined.

I spat out the toothpaste and shook my head. "Hopeless," I muttered.

Back downstairs, I grabbed my bag and headed for the door. "I'm off to catch the bus," I called out.

"Do you have everything?" Mum's voice was immediately on me, listing off everything like it was a military drill. "Lunch? Water bottle? Homework? Coat—"

"Mum! I've got it, don't worry so much." I cut her off, exasperated.

She shot me a look. "I wouldn't have to if you weren't so absent-minded," she said, her face clouded with worry.

I frowned, feeling a bit annoyed. "I'm off," I grumbled, pushing open the front door and stepping out into the cool morning air. As I walked to the bus stop, I could still hear Mum telling Ronan to get his stuff together.

"After this episode!" Ronan shouted back, probably glued to the TV again.

I turned the corner, out of earshot, shaking my head. That kid never changes.

Ronan (POV) The Second Half of His Morning

I watched as Miles left the house, his back disappearing down the road. Now, it was my turn. I looked at Mum with my most serious face. "Alright, I'm ready for action!" I declared, putting my hands on my hips like a superhero.

Mum gave me that look. You know, the one that says, "You better be serious this time." She crossed her arms. "Ronan, make sure you have everything. We're leaving soon."

"Yeah, yeah! I got it all," I said, waving my hand dismissively. But I wasn't paying attention; Action Time! was on, and it was getting to the good part. The hero was about to face the Goblin Lord, and I needed to see how he'd do it.

"Ronan!" Mum called from the hallway. I jumped, glancing toward the TV and back at the door. "Five more minutes, pleeeease?" I asked, my eyes glued to the screen.

"Nope!" She marched into the room without warning and turned off the TV. Just as Action Man was about to win. I gasped, my mouth hanging open.

"Muuuum! You turned it off right when it was getting good!"

"We don't have time for this. Put on your shoes!", mum said, pointing to the hallway.

I stomped my feet, but there was no use arguing. Not when she had that look on her face.

"Fine," I muttered, dragging my feet toward the door. I grabbed my Action Time! Backpack, slung it over my shoulders, and headed for the car.

The drive to school felt like a secret mission. I sat in the back seat, imagining myself as a hero on a top-secret operation. Mum glanced at me through the rear-view mirror.

"Remember to behave today, and pay attention to what your teacher says."

I crossed my arms. "But it's so boring sometimes!" I whined. "My teacher drones on like one of the bad guys in Action Time! I think that's his superpower: boring talk attack!"

Mum tried to hide a smile, shaking her head.

"You shouldn't talk about your teacher like that," she said, but I could tell she thought it was funny.

When we finally pulled up to Broomfield Primary School, I looked up at the building, feeling a strange flutter in my stomach. It was... huge. But I wasn't scared.

Nope! Not me! I was the hero, and heroes weren't scared of anything. Then I heard a familiar voice calling out.

"Ronan!" It was Max. I forgot all about my nerves and ran toward him. We met halfway, slapping hands in our super-secret handshake.

"Did you watch Action Time! this morning?" Max asked, his eyes sparkling.

I smirked and wiped my nose with the back of my hand.

"Of course I did! Who do you take me for?"

Max grinned.

"Did you see when Action Man saved Princess Diana from the Goblin Lord? It was so cool! He's such a hero, and Princess Diana is so pretty. Kinda wish it was me who saved her." He kept talking, his eyes all dreamy.

I gave him a disgusted look. "Who cares about that? Did you see when Action Man punched the Goblin Lord in the face? BAM! WHAM! HYAAH!" I threw punches in the air, pretending to be Action Man.

"Wow, you're so cool, Ronan! You could probably be the next Action Man!" Max said, his eyes wide.

"Forget that!" I said, puffing out my chest. "I'm gonna be the strongest hero in the world and sit on a throne, collecting all my trophies! HAHAHA!"

"Ronan! Max!" a teacher's voice snapped us out of our action-packed daydream. We turned to see Mrs. Mary-Allen marching toward us. "Get to assembly now!"

I glanced at Max and whispered, "Ugh, it's Mrs. Goblin... Goblin Lord's ugly wife. I heard her breath is so stinky it can melt your skin off!"

Max snickered, covering his mouth, and we both darted inside, making a beeline for the assembly hall.

We slid in on our knees, catching the attention of the entire room. I didn't care. I was unstoppable. The headteacher, Mrs. Heather, stared at us with her stern eyes. Max shrank a little beside me, but I stared back. I wasn't gonna let her win the stare-down.

I watched Mrs. Heather stand at the front of the assembly, clearing her throat. "Good morning, students," she began, her voice, echoing through the hall. "Today, I want to remind the year sixes to start preparing for your SATs. It's a crucial time, and I expect everyone to focus."

I stifled a yawn. Boring! She continued, shifting her gaze toward the younger kids. "Now, I've received complaints about the year four students being unfair to the year two and three pupils when it comes to playing football on the field."

I put my hand up. Mrs. Mary-Allen glared at me from the side, hissing, "Put your hand down, Ronan!" I ignored her.

Mrs. Heather raised an eyebrow but nodded at me to speak.

"The year twos and threes are trash at football!" I said confidently.

The whole room gasped. Max tried to hide his laughter, but it bubbled out in little bursts. A few other kids chuckled too.

Mrs. Heather's eyes narrowed. "Ronan Brown, you'll be in my office this afternoon."

I shrugged. "Okay, Mrs. Feather."

The entire room exploded with laughter. I smirked, "Hehehe, I just took down the biggest villain of them all." Ronan thought.

Assembly ended ages ago, and now we're back in class. Year 4 is, like, the most boring class ever 'cause we have Mr. Simon. Seriously, he's got this voice that just makes you wanna fall asleep. It's like he's got a superpower or something – "Evil Sleep Spell!"

I slumped in my seat. Stuck in break-time detention, thanks to Mrs. Heather. Ugh, what a villain.

Flashback.

"Ronan Brown, that was unacceptable behaviour in assembly today," Mrs. Heather said, glaring at me from behind her desk. "If this keeps up, I'll have to tell your mum and dad. You wouldn't want that, would you?" She raised her eyebrow like she was all tough.

I stared at her. This villain sure loves to yap, doesn't she? I thought. Better give her the old robot answer. Works every time.

I sat up straight and said, "I'm super sorry, miss. What I did was really, really bad, and I'll never do it again." I said it all robot-like, eyes as wide as I could make them.

She smirked. "Good," she said like she'd just beaten me in some game. "But you're still getting break-time detention. You'll write lines about not interrupting assembly."

"Yes, miss," I said, acting all serious as I walked out. Pfft, like writing lines will teach me anything.

Flashback ends.

"Charlie, what's 7 times 8?" Mr. Simon droned on, snapping me out of my daydreams.

Charlie scratched his head. "Uh… 49?"

Mr. Simon sighed. "Anyone else? Maddi?"

Maddi's hand shot up. She's the best student in class. "56, sir!" she said, grinning like she was some math queen.

"Correct. Well done, Maddi."

Mr. Simon glanced to the back, where I was with Max. On the other side was Elliott and his gang – Arthur, Archie, and Callum. Mr. Simon frowned at us.

"You lot at the back need to stop hiding and start paying attention," he said. "Or I'll start picking on you to answer questions, and if you don't know, then it's lunchtime explanations."

I leaned over to Max. "Ughhh... What's with these villains? They're so evil.

If I could just grow up and punch them in the face, that'd be awesome," I whispered.

Max snickered, trying not to laugh out loud.

"Sir, why don't you ask Ronan? I bet he doesn't know," Elliott sneered, looking right at me.

Elliott... my arch-nemesis. Sure, the villains are bad, but he's the worst. I shot him a glare, then smirked. Too bad for him, I always win.

"Ronan, what's 11 times 12?" Mr. Simon asked eyes on me now.

I jumped up, striking a hero pose. "Advanced Brain Secret Hero Technique! Calculative Mind!!!" I shouted, closing my eyes as I imagined myself, a super smart hero solving all the world's problems. Yeah, this is my shining moment!

"Ronan… Ronan Brown!" Mr. Simon's voice snapped me back.

"Wha—? Oh! The answer is 132, villain!" I declared.

Everyone stared, mouths hanging open. Mr. Simon blinked. "Uh, yep, correct," he said, sounding surprised.

Heheh, these clueless fools. They have no idea about my powers. I thought, crossing my arms smugly.

"Sir! Ronan is cheating!" Elliott yelled, all whiny.

"THAT'S ENOUGH, ELIOTT! BREAK-TIME DETENTION FOR YOU!" Mr. Simon snapped, which made the whole class freeze. Mr. Simon? Showing emotion? That's new. He's usually, like, totally monotone. Seeing him yell felt... weird.

"Sorry for raising my voice. It's been a long day..." Mr. Simon muttered, rubbing his neck. "Let's, uh, keep going. There are lots of ways to multiply. One of them is…"

He droned on, and I slumped back in my seat, grinning. Nice try, Elliott. But I'm the king.