Excerpt Monday Round 2

 

Excerpt Monday is the fabulous brain child of Mel and Bria.  To catch all the action, zip over to their site and check out other authors’ posts.  You can get there by going HERE.  And stay tuned…at the end of this excerpt is a list of everyone participating.

Just a little warning – while the characters are in high school, they do use foul language.  So, Ye Be Warned! 

~Redd~

Chapter 2

 

            “Heaven Nelson?”

            My eyes flicker forward as I raise my arm.  My iPod slips undetected from  my hand into my backpack.  I flip open my textbook, refusing to acknowledge the snickers that accompany my name.  I’ve come to expect it.  Heaven is a torturous joke because in reality I’m so far from it.

           Mr. Roberts teaches first period Ecology.  As the only senior in the class, I sit in the back row.  The freshmen are curious.   I’m annoyed because I’m not allowed to take chemistry, like the rest of my senior classmates. 

           Last year’s little explosion in the chemistry lab had no less than three of Chattanooga’s full size fire engines screeching across Baylor’s campus.  My father donated a healthy portion of my trust fund to pay for the damages and keep me in school until the end of the spring semester.  All with the promise my parents would enroll me elsewhere my final year.  Baylor was fun.  Probably one of the few boarding schools I enjoyed.  I found it easy to latch onto a bunch of earthy, hippie type kids with too much money…little parental supervision, and extremely creative ideas…  Meth lab on campus my ass.  Someone had the bright idea to experiment with the color spectrum of various chemicals – to see what burned what color.  The freaky Campbell kid tweaked and started mixing liquids of every sort, even the dangerous ones.  Poor guy lost his eyebrows, and he was lucky.

           So, I’m stuck in Ecology with a bunch of freshmen.  They take turns whipping their heads around to stare at me.  Thank God, it’s a small class.

           Roberts continues to call roll, and I doodle on my notebook.  I glance at the clock, counting the minutes till this class is over.  Not that my day gets any better.  European History is followed by Advanced French.  Lunch period for the entire school is from noon to one, after that I have my elective – Acting class – then study hall, and last is Senior English. 

***

            Ah… the dreaded cafeteria of a boarding institution; a cesspool of cliques, loners, faculty and misfits swirl into one grey glob as they scrutinize  each other as they pass.  I figure if I keep my head low that will be a deterrent.  I can’t be much of a curiosity to them.  After all, this is a delinquent depository and new students pop up all the time.  I take my tray of mystery casserole that slowly seeps into my corn tinged Jell-o and search for closest empty spot I can find.   Thank God that my milk’s in a sealed carton.

            Deep, rich mahogany tables fill the matching dark paneled dining hall.  The sunlight is the brightest thing that penetrates the room.  It pours in through long casement windows that arch to a point near the ceiling.   I feel like I’m in church.    

            To my dismay, my first goal to avoid contact upends – like a tray of food during a school fight – a minute after my uniformed butt hits the wooden seat. 

            “Nice shoes.”  A brunette slides her tray across from mine, and scoots her chair closer.  I look up to find her studying me with curious brown eyes.

            “Thanks.” 

            “Jillian Carothers.  What are you in for?”

            I stifle a groan.  I prefer to keep my past to myself.

            “This and that.”

            “Right.”  She opens her milk carton, and shoves a straw in it.  “So, what’s your name?”

            Picking up my fork, I focus on pushing around the questionable yellow-green glob.  I avoid her gaze, hating to watch people react to my name.

            “Heaven Nelson.”

            I hear her choke on her milk, a cross between a snort and a cough.  Good, I hope the milk went up her nose.

            “Heaven?  What kind of name is that?  I mean, it’s pretty and unique.” 

~~~

Check out these other authors’ excerpts. Check the ratings some are rated extra steamy, and have mature content.  Happy reading!!!

Mel Berthier, Urban Fantasy (PG 13)
and
Bria Quinlan, Rom Com (PG)

Joining us this week:

Christina DeLorenzo, YA (PG 13)
Bryn Donovan, Paranormal  (PG)
MG Braden, Contemporary Romance (PG 13)
Babette James, Fantasy Romance (PG 13)
Cynthia Justlin, Contemporary Romance (PG 13)
Kaige, Historical Romance (PG  13)
Adelle Laundan, Contemporary Romance (PG 13)
Jeannie Lin, Historical Romance (PG 13)
RF Long, Paranormal (PG 13)
Crista McHugh, Paranormal  (PG 13)
Dara Sorensen, Paranormal (PG)

Evie Byrne, Historical Romance (R)
Grace Draven, Fantasy Romance (R)
Aithne Jarretta, Paranormal (R)
Inez Kelley, Contemporary Romantic Comedy (R)
Aislinn Kerry, Paranormal (R)
Kim Knox, Erotic-  Sci-fi Suspense (R)
Cherrie Lynn, Erotic-  Contemporary Romance (R)
Alina Morgan, Urban Fantasy (R)

Stephanie Adkins, Erotic-  Supsense (NC 17)
Ella Drake, Sci-Fi Romance (NC 17)
Annie Nicholas, Sci-Fi Romance (NC 17)
Kirsten Saell, Erotic – Fantasy (NC 17)