Ethan's POV
"Come on, Ethan! Wake up. It's already six-thirty!" My mom yells in my ear while shaking me hard.
"Ahhh...! Go away, Mom," I groan, yanking her hands away and burying my head deep into the pillow. I clamp my palms over my ears to block out her loud, high-pitched voice. Why the hell is she yelling in my ear? Stupid Mom.
"Ethan! It's six-thirty already. Even if you start from here right now, you will only reach there at nine. And the taxi has been waiting at the gate for five minutes."
"What!? Six-thirty?" I instantly jump up from the bed, suddenly becoming aware of why she is yelling. There's almost a two-and-a-half-hour journey to my school, and I need to reach there before nine, get my new room key, and place my luggage in my room before going to class.
"Yeah, six-thirty." My mom points at the alarm clock.
"Oh heck! Didn't I tell you to call me at six? Where were you, Mom?" I ask in exasperation while brushing my unruly hair backward.
My mom lets out a sigh of disdain. "Didn't you tell me you'd set the alarm for six and I didn't need to call you? I thought you were taking a shower," she says furiously. I look at the alarm clock. I had, in fact, set the alarm last night. Maybe I unconsciously turned it off.
My mom continues angrily. "Now, how are you going to reach school on time? You need to get your dorm key from the office first, right? Didn't I tell you to go yesterday? Now look what happened. Why are you so irresponsible, Ethan?"
"Ahh... okay, okay, stop. I will reach there on time. I just need to change." I rush to my wardrobe. "Don't worry, Mom. I will just place my luggage in the office or somewhere and go to the room this evening," I say while hurriedly taking out a shirt and jeans. My mom just rolls her eyes at me.
"Quick! It's your first day of senior year," she informs me before walking out of the room.
I quickly brush my teeth and change into the shirt and pants I took out. Good thing I had already taken a bath last night. Then I hastily pull my luggage out of my room and rush out, deciding to comb my hair in the taxi.
I look at the room near me. My little sister's room. How could I go without saying goodbye to her? But if I go to say bye now, I will be even later. I don't actually mind getting late to school as I haven't been so good at discipline from the beginning. Last year I usually went ten or fifteen minutes late to class. But now the thing is, the taxi is waiting for me downstairs.
Damn! Let him wait. I will pay him more if he insists. I quickly rush into Eveline's room. There's no way I am going without telling her. Otherwise, she is going to punch me hard when I come back this weekend. I don't really want to turn into her punching bag.
"Hey, Eve!" I yell, rushing into her room. She is lying peacefully asleep on her bed in a cute ball. She is just six.
Eve slowly flutters her eyes open as I shake her. I smile at her as she opens her eyes and smiles at me. "Good morning, Eve. Look, your big bro is late for school on the first day itself."
"Oh...!" she gasps, looking at the alarm clock near her. "Okay then rush! I don't wanna g...get you late," she says. I smile and kiss her on both cheeks. "Bye, Eve. Have a good day at school."
"Bye, Eddie," she says and kisses my cheeks.
"Oh... Ethan! Enough rushing!" My mom says from the doorway, holding a lunch box in her hands. I quickly turn and rush out of the room.
"Here... I made you a sandwich. Have this in the car," she says and hands me the lunch box. "Don't skip breakfast," she warns with a threatening gaze.
"Thanks, Mom." I smile, taking the lunch box from her hands and quickly planting a kiss on her cheek before rushing down the stairs, yelling, "Bye, Mom!" I don't have time to turn back or observe her reaction, but I bet she is standing there, smiling at me.
I get into the taxi after throwing my luggage inside the trunk. Soon enough, the driver turns the key in the ignition and starts the taxi, heaving a sigh as he pulls off from the side, driving in the direction of my school, Westview High in Texas.
The driver, Mr. John, is familiar as he is the one who takes me to school after weekends. I actually have a car, but I don't need a car at school since I am staying at the dorm. So my mom alternatively uses my car, and when I come back on weekends, I use it to go and meet old friends and also to take Eve to the park, shopping, and stuff.
My mom is a lawyer, one of the famous lawyers in our area. I don't like to talk about my dad. But let me tell you a bit. It's been three years since he left us and married another woman. He sometimes calls and texts me and visits me at school, once or twice in a year. So my mom and sister are all I have.
Currently, I'm studying at Westview with an athletic football scholarship. There are absolutely no fees. Tuition and dorm stay are all free. I got the scholarship while I was in my sophomore year, and I was certainly not a fool to miss the golden opportunity that came to me. Westview is such a prestigious school with excellent faculty and infrastructure. Also, we have a highly skilled football coach and we get excellent football training.
I lean back in the seat and close my eyes, deciding to take a nap as it takes almost two and a half hours to the university.
I wake up to Mr. John calling my name. I look out of the window and see we are almost near Westview. It will take only fifteen more minutes to reach there. Mr. John always calls me fifteen minutes before so that I can have my breakfast.
I quickly open the lunch box Mom gave me and have the sandwich. By the time I finish it, we are in front of my school. I look at my wristwatch and see the time: 9:05.
"Shoot! I am late," I say, taking my wallet out of my back pocket. I quickly pay Mr. John for the ride and then get my luggage out of the trunk.
After saying bye to Mr. John, I rush towards the dorm office where our secretary, Miss Rose, is sitting on her chair in front of the computer, reading a book. She looks up from the book and looks at me, probably having heard my fast footsteps.
"Oh, Ethan, you are late again," she states. She knows me very well as I am on the football team and I am popular in school and the dorm.
"Yeah," I nod with a grin. "Hey, can I leave my luggage here and go to class now? I will come and collect it along with my room key this evening."
Miss Rose lets out a sigh. "Okay," she nods. "Now rush to class."
"Thanks," I smile at her and quickly rush out of the office. My first class starts at 9:15 and it's already past 9:15. So I quickly run in search of my classroom, not wanting to be late on the first day.