The first day of middle school was tough since the moment I stepped foot on the bus.

Bonnie, unfortunately, was sick, so I was alone. Technically, I was thirteen at the time, so it wasn't my very first day of middle school... but I got kicked out of my old middle school last year, so it was my first day at a new school, to start a new reputation, with a new group of friends.

Eyeing the other teenagers on the bus, I made my way to the back row of empty seats and quickly sat down, avoiding the stares and meeting the whispers with glares. I crossed my legs and arms, setting my backpack down at my feet and looked at the floor. That is, until a gruff voice said in front of me,

"Hey, kid. Move."

My head snapped up to meet the challenger, who was a tall boy in a brown leather jacket - probably just trying to look cool. I, wearing a black leather jacket, was not impressed.

"Did you hear me, kid?" He repeated, taking a threatening step forward. "I said move."

All the kids in nearby seats scooted away from us. I simply rolled my eyes. "There are plenty of open seats along the sides that you can sit in. You might not be next to your buddies, but at least you won't be standing, get thrown out of the window, and be run over by a passing car. That would be a shame."

A boy nearby laughed nervously.

It took the challenger a little while to process what I said, but once he wrapped his head around the fact that I wasn't going to move, he took a few more steps forward, rubbing his fist. "We've got ourselves a funny one, don't we, Drew?"

"Looks like it, Parker." His friend grunted, trying to rub his fist and look as threatening as Parker, along with miserably failing. It wasn't his fist that scared me to death, it was his eyes that glared the the air of a prying soul - or a bad boy. Since he had grunted the words I couldn't tell if he was a bass. But both of them were fatal.

"Who're we dealing with?" The first one, Parker, tilted his head at me. "Huh?"

"Arrow." I told him calmly, though on the inside I was freaking out. "Scarlet Arrow."

"Well, Scarlet Arrow," he told me, sticking his face right in front of mine, "move."

Technically, I did what he asked.

Quick as the flash, I grabbed my backpack and threw it at Drew, who stumbled under the sudden weight of heavy textbooks and whatever other who-knows-what I put in there. Before Parker could register what happened, I punched him in the face.

The boy flailed backwards, clutching his nose. When he pulled away his hand, it had blood on it, from his nose. Drew had grabbed my backpack, and now tossed it back to me, and I am proud to say I caught it with ease.

"So, as I was saying," I shrugged as if nothing had happened, "plenty of empty seats to choose from."

As Parker shot me a hate-filled glare - and Drew copied him, which sent shivers up and down my spine - I shot him a sweet smile, a fake one that disappeared as soon as he sat down. However, the boy that had laughed nervously stood up and came closer. He walked funny - I'd know that all anywhere. Here, of all places, was Bonnie's and therefore my adopted boy cousin.

"Henry!" I said. "Hello!"

"Hello," he responded dryly, his lips curving into a grin of recognition as he slid into the only seat left that my backpack wasn't occupying. "It looks like you've made a reputation for yourself here at Linden."

"Eh, I just wanted to sit down." I shrugged it off. "Besides, he's a bully. Bullies should be stepped on, right?"

"Or punched in the face," he pointed out with a smirk.

I furrowed my eyebrows before I felt a soft elbow in my ribs. With a short laugh, I realized that he was teasing me and shook my head in disbelief.

"You're the only person who would tease me for punching someone." I sighed out with another shake of my head.

"Hey, you love me." He spread his arms out wide and raised his eyebrows. I rolled my eyes and laughed a bit.

"Don't get used to it."