~Serena

  About twenty-five minutes later, everyone was settled down at their role call lines. Serena confidently pushed through the clusters of confused, horrified students. Some where already whispering about the incident and the outcome of it. Some people even questioned the truth about such event occurring. She didn't care; she smiled proudly to herself and sat herself on the line next to Cindy's.

  I've tricked them, and I've tricked them well. No one will know it was me; at the same time,  I've made sure Gabriella and her friends earned what they deserved! Maybe I really AM one of the smartest people there has ever been!

  The approaching footsteps of her friend Cindy disrupted her thoughts; Serena looked up and saw Cindy with an ice pack on the side of her cheek. She grew concerned for the blonde.

  "Cindy, it hurt that much?" She questioned.

  Cindy let out a laugh. She smiled kindly at Serena, the smile Serena always loved from people, especially her friends.

  "Didn't you see that massive movement she made? Of course it hurt that much! I'm surprised I didn't actually cry!"  Cindy remarked. She crouched down beside Serena and gave her a hug. "Oh, and thanks for standing your ground for me. I really appreciate it. Are you okay, though?" She asked. At that point, Serena and Cindy seemed to have swapped expressions.

  "Oh, don't be so concerned. I'm Serena, one of the smartest girls out there! I don't let anyone nor anything get in my way on for long! Despite what's happened, I feel amazing!" Serena widened her warm smile, thus earning a smile from Cindy. "And it was no problem. I'm sorry I wasn't there before-"

  "No, Serena. I should have listened to you," Cindy cut her off. She released a soft sigh. "You put yourself in great risk, you know. I was there to see at least what you did after having her pinned against the dent-or what was the dent. Do you think they'll know the truth sooner or later?" She queried.

  This made Serena ponder for a few moments. Then, she looked up at her friend and said, "No. Not unless the boys gather the courage to say the truth to the coaches. But then again, I have a good reputation, don't I? They'll most likely stick with what I've said," Serena said, almost one hundred percent sure.

  Cindy giggled. "And you had always denied that, no matter how many times I would yell you. Looks like my advice wasn't all too bad," she said with a small smirk. "You definitely left quite a conclusion to things; I don't think even Gabriella or her silly friends would even try to bother us again!"

  They both laughed for quite a couple if seconds. At that some point furi bg their fit of laughter, Serena's mind traveled back to when she was explaining what 'truly' lead her to that moment.  .  .

 
"I'm telling you all what truly happened! Yes, Gabriella, who you all think of 'sweet' and 'pretty,' along with her friends Noura and Maysilee, are not who you think they are. They are cruel to the people who never did a thing to them; they push people to the ground, like they did with Cindy. Just look at her! She's restraining tears right now so she won't look weak, but the red print on her cheek was definitely Gabriella,  for those who know her, and the cause of her tears are the laughter and snickers of her friends! Alfonso is a witness. Isn't that what happened, Alfonso? Don't try to lie to me! I know you saw, and it all started just because you refused the help of a girl whose grudge you still hold against! Shame and silly, isn't it?"

   She saw Cindy nod along with her words, and she began to  shout out her own point of view.

   "Serena is no liar! She is speaking the truth! All of you have been too ignorant of those three girls that are you before you right now! I'm tired of being quiet! And mistreated, especially Serena," Cindy protested.

   The entire gym class was quiet, listening eagerly to what the girls were saying, yet confused as to why they were acting as if they were having a trial over whether Gabby is innocent, or not, which wasn't the ENTIRE point of her speech. Nevertheless, Serena smiled a bit slyly, but it wasn't as if they were paying attention enough to notice that.

  Serena continued, "She tried to beat me up too, with words, in which she succeeded in, but I didn't let her get far. She tried to trip me up while we ran, and she accomplished that for only a little bit, until she veered in the wrong direction and made a decision that I'm sure impacted her a whole lot! I say its karma for what she's done; she definitely deserves it, whether the coaches agree or not," she said, leaving the coaches shocked at the power behind said words.

  Serena moved her head and looked intensely at Alfonso once she met eyes with him. "She could've stopped herself, you know; it wasn't my fault I was already ahead of her. I couldn't do anything to help her, you saw that for sure. Besides, you were there to witness the whole thing, alongside Christian and Edwin, and did you help? Did Noura and Maysilee help her? No! No, y'all didn't, y'all just kept jogging; y'all gasped, y'all stopped, y'all stared, y'all did everything except helping your friend out! Some pathetic best friends you all are," Serena accused with narrow eyes. Before Alfonso could retort something, Christian spoke up.

  "It's true what she says; they just stared, no one helped, and Gabriella could have avoided this if," he trailed off. "You guys know the rest..." he grumbled before whirling around.

   He sighed and shook his head before walking off to his role call line. His buddies called after him, but he didn't turn back to look or talk back to anyone.

  He didn't even look at Serena.

   . . .

"CINDY! SERENA! Get yourselves together! Cindy, in your role call line, unless you're too hurt!" The coach called out. Cindy gave Serena a sly look and left without a word to join the coach at the bleachers. Serena huffed utterly amused.

  I suppose she took this as a free ticket to skip out! Fair enough; she deserves the rest.

  Serena took some breaths before initiating with the daily routine: Stretching across your feet, stretching with legs far apart, hurdle stretches, crutches, push ups, planks, mountain climbers, and lunges. It was still very hard to get used to; she had a surgery two years ago on her back due to a spinal problem, so the metal rod would cause her to get tired due to the weight and the unease it gave her. Yet again, she was no quitter, so she always gave it her all.

  After they were done, they reunited at the front of the bleachers where the coach had a notebook filled with drills for the day. As Serena scooted herself to her designated position, she heard someone call her name.

  "Serena! Wait!" A male voice called out.

  Serena, perplexed, turned around and saw Christian catching up to her. Not sure of what he wanted, she stayed silent and raised an eyebrow, as if to ask what was his purpose in calling her. Was it to distract her and get her in trouble for getting his friends in trouble? Or was it something else he felt like he needed to tell her?

  But then, why would anyone, especially Christian, want to talk to a girl like her, a girl who basically humiliated another girl and her friends and quite possibly Alfonso? Her mind buzzed around with many questions, but all that came out was a perplexed "Yes?"

   "I just came to say that I'm not mad, and neither should Alfonso be. Of course, he's not okay with what you have done, but even he had to admit he was being a little brat," Christian said; Serena was almost sure she saw a tiny smile flash on his lips for a second or so. Serena laughed a soft, awkward laugh. She knew she shouldn't be laughing, for she knew he was being serious with her.

  "They're not wrong, however, that Cindy can be quite a pest at times. All the same, I thought Gabriella was being extremely rude to you. I would've said something, but I was afraid she might have come after me next..." he trailed off as he bowed his head down. It was clear he was ashamed of himself. Serena couldn't help but feel surprise and a bit of pity.

  "Oh, Christian, you're her friend, and, although I'm not quite sure why, I understand. You guys might not approve of me being friends with Cindy, and if I'm being very sincere-" Serena then dropped her voice to a whisper, "-she can be a bit annoying. But, like you, I'm loyal to my friends and ONLY my friends," she finished off. Christian nodded.

  "I'm sorry I couldn't understand that sooner, and I apologize for Edwin and Alfonso as well. As for Gabriella, let's just say I wasn't expecting you to handle it like that, violent and with all that fury," Christian softly spoke, making sure no one could hear their conversation. After looking side to side, he gave Serena a concerned look. 

  "You're not like that; did her words really affect you that much?"

  She didn't know why, but the words 'affect you that much' stung like a honeybee in a fit. She tried so hard not to let Gabriella's taunting get the best of her, but even Christian took notice of the reason behind her actions. She felt all hollow and melancholic all of a sudden, as if she failed an extremely important paper that cost her the place in her dream college, as if she had been defeated for the first time- and indeed, she was-  but should that really matter? She did teach Gabriella a lesson, hasn't she? Besides, was that really Christian's business?

  Serena huffed sharply and curtly said, "That's none of your concern."

  She started to scoot back into her position before Christian could reply, and especially before the coaches noticed and got on to her. When they  started talking,Christian surprised her by sitting himself beside the pale Colombiana.

  "Look, maybe you don't want to admit it, or maybe you just don't want to think about that again; I understand, but know that I'm worried for you. You weren't being the Serena I know the most, the kind, sweet, resilient Serena. But maybe you're right... maybe it is none of my concern. Maybe I'm being silly like always and I'm just fretting over nothing. Besides, you have better friends that can fret over you if news gets spread," Christian them paused. In a low whisper, low but loud enough for Serena to hear, he said, "I won't tell anyone, and I'll try to convince my buddies to do the same, but maybe try another solution next time? Something that doesn't stir up trouble and doesn't involve you lying like you did?" With that, he scampered secretly to his spot, leaving Serena alone with one, sole question.

  What other solution?

  The coach went over the drills of some passing for soccer. It was basically another tunnel drill, where the line will be broken into two, and the first people from each line will practice passing until everyone has had their turn. Easy enough.

  At least that's what she thought until ten minutes later.

  She had to pass the ball straight to Alfonso.

  Ugh, why can't I make eye contact with anyone BUT Alfonso?

  Again, she was no quitter. She ran straight to the ball and with inside of her right foot, she angled the ball towards Alfonso's feet and forcefully kicked the ball from the bottom. Serena smiled as the ball landed perfectly at Alfonso's feet.

  Alfonso looked up with a shocked expression on his face, but he didn't smile or give her a sign that he was okay with her.

  She wasn't expecting it anyway.

  She walked solemnly back to the end of the line, wishing for things to be back to normal. She saw Maysilee and and Noura on the line behind her shooting her quick glances; not necessarily dirty, but they were rather warnings.  Serena shrugged it off. It's not like they can do much in front of the coaches anyway. She did notice that they were rather lonely, and they didn't gossip much as they used to. They were probably missing Gabriella, who was most likely sent to the nurse-

   PUNT!

The sound of a ball being punted scrambled her completely out of her mind.  Her dark chocolate eyes darted where the ball flew. The ball rolled into the hole where Gabriella crashed earlier during the class. Edwin grimaced, looking a bit sheepish as the coach came over.

  "Ehehe...sorry coach. I'll get that!"
 
  "Not before I get there!" Challenged Alfonso. The two students ran excitedly to retrieve the soccer ball. She couldn't help but giggle in amusement as they two shoved and pushed each other around for the ball.

  In the end, it was Alfonso who ended up entering the hole where the soccer ball rolled into.  Edwin, after minutes of recovering from a tickle attack, got up and waited patiently for his best friend.

  Thirty seconds passed.
 

  Alfonso didn't return with the ball.

  A minute passed.

 
 
   Still no Alfonso.

 
   "Alfonso! 'Fonzie! Where are you?" He called out in a loud voice.

  Where else would he be? Inside the hole, of course!

  She started to doubt her thought as soon as another minute passed without a sign from Alfonso. From the looks of the hole, there was a lot of dust. Could he be having trouble breathing, and that's why he is having trouble getting out?

  Without thinking twice, she ran to Edwin and asked if he heard Alfonso wriggling or coughing anywhere. When Edein shook his head in dismay, Serena began to get confused.

  "But Alfonso only entered to bring back the soccer ball! Does the hole go further down the bleachers, you think?" She questioned half to herself.
Edwin only shrugged at her question,  but after a couple of seconds, he decided to take that risk. He was only what seemed like halfway into the hole until she heard two heads collide, followed by a groan of pain from Alfonso.

  "Alfonso?! But where did you-"

  "Edwin! I'm so sorry! I don't know what happened; it's like I teleported into another section of the bleachers somehow!" When both Serena and Edwin gave him a perplexed expression, he continued. "The ball was escaping me, so I kept crawling, until I realized I was nowhere near the exit of the hole. I was trying to find my way back until you bumped into me," Alfonso explained with a glint of worry.

  "Really? B-But I couldn't see you!" Edduin frantically exclaimed back.

  "Huh, for reals? Explains why you kept crawling ahead. I would've exclaimed for you to stop, but you were going at a fast pace," Alfonso reasoned, but a scared look was painted vividly on his soft tan face; Serena couldn't figure out why.

  Serena stepped closer to the two friends. "What do you mean, you teleported to another section of the bleachers? Maybe you knocked your head on something, or you had a small vision of some sort?"

  Because teleportation isn't something that occurs in every day life... that's only found in superhero comics and television films.

  Alfonso shook his head. "I was following the ball the whole time without stopping or bumping into anything! I just...appeared," he frowned. He looked at Serena and huffed sharply, turning his gaze away immediately. "Well, let's just be grateful that I'm here, I'm alive, and I got the ball."

  The three ran back to their lines until another soccer ball came rolling in their direction. Alfonso and Edwin were able to swerve past it, but Serena wasn't so lucky; she was running too fast to be able to stop.

  Her foot stepped on top of the soccer ball and slid to the other side, yet the soccer ball kept on rolling until it got caught between that foot and her other foot. When she made a move foward, she tripped over and fell hardly to the ground.

  Or, she thought she fell to the ground.

  It took only a couple of seconds before she opened her eyes and realized she wasn't exactly on the ground, but floating inches above the ball, her body arching over the ball. Serena exclaimed for help and tried squirming and bouncing about, but she just seemed to keep on floating. What was even scarier and rather peculiar was that no one even noticed. After a minute or so, she felt herself become heavy again, and just like that, gravity took control over her and showed who was boss. She groaned in pain, becoming a little dizzy.

  "Serena! Are you alright?" Christian and Edwin called out when they heard the short Colombiana plummet onto the ground.

  Serena briskly nodded and gave them the thumbs up, but a swirl of questions and images of possibilities intruded her mind at once, causing her to stop breathing at once.

  What just happened?

 
Why didn't anyone notice until now?

 
Why are elements of the supernatural occurring to me and Alfonso?

 
  Why am I fretting right now and not going back to my tunnel line?

  Why am I not breathing?

  
  WHAT IS EVEN GOING ON?!

Hey, everyone! I'm glad you all took some time to read over this chapter! What did you think about it? You hate it? Like it? Love it? Drop a vote and some feedback below, and constructive criticism is ALWAYS welcome !

Based on the past two chapters, do you think Christian and Serena would make a good couple? Maybe, maybe not? What makes you think so? PM me about it; loved hearing from you guys, or simply comment below! Are you on Serena's side based on the whole incident, or would you take Christian's side?

  That's all! Bye bye!<3