Beyond the surface Chapter 2

At first, it was a lot, butover time it became really fun.

Mrs.

Cortes's office wasn't as big as I used to think it was.

Just a small wooden desk sitting in the middle of an old red carpet.

Behind her were shelves filled with books, magazine clippings, and awards she'd won.

I never had much time to take a good look at the awards. Helping her remove her books from her desk, I swept my gaze over Mrs.Cortes' frame again, noting the constant movement and glowing aura surrounding her. "You look excited today, Mrs.

Cortes," I began tentatively, wiping the desk with a stray napkin. Mrs.

Cortes beamed.

"Yes! You see, my older brother is coming from his town to pick me up tospend the weekend with him," she said, bouncing on her desk. She has a brother...she has a family... I wanted to cry on the inside, but I didn't.

Instead, Iplastered a fake smile on my lips and nodded. "Oh? Does he look like you?""Kind of?" She laughed gently.

"We often joke that he got my father's genes, which is both ablessing and a curse." She paused suddenly, a dark shadow passing over her face, and I decidednot to ask about that certain joke."Can I see a picture of him?" I asked cautiously. Immediately, Mrs.

Cortes perked up.She reached behind her desk and pulled a dusty old photofrom her drawer, handing it carefully to me.

The picture looked fairly new, which was why I wasskeptical as to why it was so dirty.

Probably just the frame. I could immediately recognize Mrs.

Cortes in the picture.

She wore her blonde hair down and had on a beautiful, if not, revealing sundress.

She had an arm wrapped around a large man nextto her, her smile wide and playful. Speaking of said man... I averted my brown orbs from Mrs.

Cortes to the tall man.

He was handsome, incredibly so.

Hisshirt pulled taut on his chest, and I could only assume he was muscular.

His arms certainly showed something to look at. A dark, wavy tattoo swam its way down his arm and snaked around his wrist.He had a smallcrescent and star tattoo on his cheek, right above a neatly trimmed beard.

His hair was just like Mrs.

Cortes's, only much shorter and unruly, probably to look stylish.

It was brown, fading toblonde with a light neon blue stripe down one of his bangs, just like Mrs.

Cortes's bangs. I don't know why, but looking at her tall, obviously handsome brother who was most likely wayolder than I was, sent a shot of heat coiling through my heart.

Butterflies erupted in my stomachfrom looking at him and I handed the picture quickly back to Mrs.

Cortes. Unfortunately, I've been told that I wear my emotions on my sleeve, and when my cheeks feltwarm, I knew I was blushing overtly. She smirked.

"Handsome, isn't he?" She asked. I faltered for a moment, debating what I should say.

My breath left me in a harsh panic before I managed a short nod of my head, reluctant to disagree with her. Mrs.

Cortes laughed.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, I know he's good looking.

Everyone says that." She then sighed and traced her fingers gently over the figure.

"I've missed my brother." "You'll see him today though, right? I'm sure he's missed you just as much. "She smiled.

"Yes, him and my husband.""Oh...nice...I guess," I mumbled.

I looked down at my hands, then back up at Mrs.

Cortes, whowas still tracing over her brother's picture.

"Mrs.

Cortes?""Yes?""Um... I'm sorry if this is an invasive question but...how old are you?" Mrs.

Cortes smiled.

"Not as old as you think I am," she replied, winking at me.

"I'm twenty.""Twenty?!" I gasped.

"But...wait...how are you even the principal? Shouldn't you still be incollege?""Well -!"Unfortunately, the bell chose to ring at that moment-a minute before it was supposed to ringand startling the stack of papers from my grasp. Mrs.

Cortes shook her head in amusement as I shoved the stack back into the copy machine andprinter, slamming the latch shut.

I grabbed my backpack hastily, neglecting to zip up the remaining portion of the biggest compartment.If the bell rang early to start class, then surely, itwould end early too. "Bye, Mrs.

Cortes! See you later!" I called, walking as swiftly as my little legs would carry meout of the room so that they wouldn't give out and I would take a tumble in the hallway.

I heard her chuckle and wish me goodbye as well before I had managed to shove my way out of the office doors and into the hallway. Pushing my way through the couples making out and students chatting about their weekend plans, I walked towards my locker, which was all the way by the girls changing room for the gym.Logan was already there, kissing Drew goodbye. For the love of cheese...why now? I groaned. I coughed to make my presence known, smirking at the way Logan and Drew jumped away from each other."Raleigh!" They exclaimed, relieved. I snickered.

"You'd better watch out for Ms.

South.She doesn't take to making-out couples as lightly as Mrs.

Cortes," I warned. Logan glared, opening her mouth to retort and Drew dashed off to the gym before I could scoldhim too.I snickered again and leaned down to twirl my padlock. Logan held some of her books tightly to her chest, looking down at the book she had dropped tohide her glare."Nice to see you too, Raleigh," she muttered.

She scooped her book from the ground and slammed her pink locker shut.One thing I'll never understand is if Logan liked black so much, then why the hell was her locker pink? I thought she would keep with the black aesthetic, butwhen I'd asked her once, all I got was a shrug in return."How was your night?" I asked. Logan shrugged.