Jane was having a pretty good day, which was rare for her. Typically, the girls in her school teased her at her locker in the morning, but it seemed they were a little too focused on the tournament recently, and gave Jane some leeway from bullying. Jane was in her senior year of high school, had black classes, light brown hair with wavy curls, and a gentle smile. She wasn’t quite sure why she was the target of such bullying, though it was probably due to her hobbies - she was passionate about manga and anime, and quite spectacular at English, and that made the other girls classify her as a nerd, and found her to be an easy target as she never defended herself.
Today, she had biology, art, lunch, gym then English. She was really dreading gym class, as Coach Isabela taught it, and seemed to dislike her more than any of the other teachers, probably because she was quite terrible at gym. By the end of lunch, where her mother had packed a peanut butter sandwich and a juice box, Jane began to feel slightly queasy. She had a few friends in school, but both were her junior, and weren’t in any of the same classes as her. She had met them at Chess club, and realized they all like similar anime and immediately hit it off. Honestly, having friends had changed her outlook on school life tremendously, and she looked forward to having lunch with them every day.
Her two friends had looked nervous for her, just as they did every Thursday before gym class. “They’re going to target you again,” Penny said as she poked her fork in her uneaten meatloaf. Penny had blonde hair in braids, and was almost shyer than Jane when she wasn’t around her two friends.
“They are… you should just skip the class,” Stephanie agreed, nodding eagerly. She was the smallest of the three of them, but had the most personality.
“I can’t skip class… no matter how much I want to,” Jane replied. “You know I have perfect attendance.”
“But is a perfect attendance worth something like this?” Penny sighed.
Jane shook her head, “you don’t know they’ll be terrible today. They’ve been so focused on the tournament it’s really not been bad all week.”
“I still think you should go to Mrs. Flowers about it.” Penny said as she picked up her lunch and tossed it in the trash.
“It’s just going to make things worse, I promise,” Jane said, “anyway, you two need to stop worrying about me. This is my problem to deal with, not yours.”
“But we’re worried about you!” Stephanie exclaimed, and grabbed onto Jane’s arms, refusing to let her go towards her lesson. Jane didn’t want her friends to know she was scared, especially since she was a year older than them, but her heart wouldn’t stop racing, and she just wanted to get out of there so she could fully express her emotions.
She eventually parted ways with them in the hallways, and entered the locker room, already hating what she would find. The good news was, she was one of the first to arrive, and it didn’t seem like either of her bullies were there yet. She quickly worked to change her clothes into her gym garments, though froze when she heard their usual laughter filter through the air.
Amber was a typical school queen, and was protected by many solely because she was the head of the volleyball team, one of the best in the country. She had long silky blonde hair, mesmerizing blue eyes, and a charming grin, which seemed to get her out of trouble quite often. Her best friend, Kate, had dark brown hair that curled perfectly around her shoulders, green eyes, and a curvier shape in contrast to Amber’s taller and skinnier form. Kate was the vice-captain of the volleyball team, and followed Amber almost constantly, and Jane couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen them apart from each other. Rumour was, the two had parents that worked in politics together, and had been raised as best friends since birth.
“Look who it is,” said Amber as she entered. She seemed to be able to spot Jane no matter where she was, and immediately begin making fun of her. Jane ignored her, and slipped her gym shirt on top of her sports bra.
“Hey, look at me when I’m talking to you!” The other girls in the room turned to face them, then looked away, not wanting to face Amber’s wrath as well. The truth was, before becoming the target of the two girls, Jane had frequent conversations with the girls in her year, but ever since Amber had decided she was the perfect target for her bullying, Jane had lost all contact with the other girls, because they were just way too frightened of Amber. It made school much more unbearable for her, though her lunches with her two friends made everything slightly better. She turned around to face Amber, who giggled. “Wow, you seem to turn more and more ugly every day. Doesn’t she, Kate?”
Kate nodded aggressively, “she does, it’s almost shocking.” Jane was used to insults like this, though still looked around, wondering if anyone would stand up for her for once. Again, there was not a peep.
She smiled a bit awkwardly and said, “hi, Amber.”
“Are you actually talking to me?” Amber grinned maliciously and flipped her hair, “that’s quite daring of you.”
“I don’t want any trouble… we can just be friends,” Jane said, attempting for what felt like the hundredth time.
“Friends?! With you? You’re kidding!” Amber burst out laughing, and Kate joined in. “Do you really think the daughter of a rich dad would lower herself to someone like you? What a joke.” She eyed Jane up one last time, and walked off, still giggling along with Kate.
Jane let out a sigh of relief that it wasn’t worse, and headed out the door before Amber paid any attention to her again. Slowly, the other girls began filtering out, with most trying to sit as far away from Jane as possible. They chatted about various topics, though mostly about the volleyball tournament coming up. It seemed to Jane like it was quite the focus of attention these days. As the conversation heightened though, the girls heard a clicking sound and a door creaking open, and a woman stepped in. It was Coach Isabela, who stared at all of them before calling for silence.
She was a stunning woman of Cuban origins in her lower thirties. She wore tight black yoga pants, a gym sweatshirt, and had a whistle around her neck and her usual black and white sneakers. She had silky brown hair tied up in a bun, slightly darker skin, and a figure that most of the girls in the school, including the teachers, were quite jealous of. She had a small waist, large breasts, wide hips that curved outwards into an ass that she seemed to work out constantly to perfect. It was round and perky, which was always accentuated by her preferred tight yoga pants, which she seemed to have endless amounts of. She had a clever smile, thin and trimmed eyebrows, and serious brown eyes that hid her thoughts quite well. She was quite the enigma for most of the staff, who had no indication of her personal life, or what she liked to do in her free time. She was a good coach, and always led the volleyball team to their success, so that was all that mattered to the principal.
The girls immediately hushed, and Isabella sat on top of the desk in front of them, looking at them all. Isabela seemed to be the only person, adult or student, that Amber and Kate had ever respected, mainly because Isabela adored them, and treated them like they were the queens of the school due to their success on the team. Amber and Kate sat as close as possible to the front, and everyone watched as the coach removed her sweater, showing off her white tank top underneath, which looked inappropriate for school solely because of the size of her breasts, which seemed to squeeze in between the tightness of the top. Amber and Kate seemed desperate to want to look like Isabela one day. Isabela seemed to be just as conceited as them, too, as she constantly talked about how amazing she was as a coach, and whenever someone complimented her looks, she would nod in agreement, like she knew she was beautiful.
“Gods it’s hot today,” Isabela said as she fanned herself, “now, I have a plan for today, and it’s due to the importance of the upcoming volleyball tournament.”
“Ooooh, are we playing volleyball today?” Kate said, looking excited. Jane’s heart stopped. No, this was her absolute nightmare. She hated playing volleyball in gym class.
“We are,” Isabela nodded, “and that is because you girls need as much practice as possible, and not just after class every day.” Jane looked around, and saw other people’s disappointed expressions as well. Like always, coach Isabela was focused on the success of her girls, and didn’t care about anyone else. No one dared to speak up, though. “From now on and until the rest of the season, we will only be playing volleyball in gym class.” Jane couldn’t help but gasp out loud, but thankfully no one else heard her, since everyone was sitting so far away.
“Now, I want you girls to focus on working together. Communicate with each other, don’t hog the ball, and constantly try to help one another. It’s important to learn how to work as a team. And don’t worry if you’re not as good as Amber and Kate here. They’re masters at the sport, and it’ll be hard for anyone to ever be able to surpass them.” Amber and Kate giggled, and looked around the room, showing off. “I want 120% from each and every one of you today, even if you aren’t on the team. Your grades for this semester will reflect that, and you want to get into good colleges, right? Now go play!” She picked up the whistle and blew on it loudly, and the girls all stood up, waiting for the teams to get divided. She looked at Jane, who was standing alone right next to her. “Jane, can you please try this time? I know you hate volleyball, but you should still try to hit the ball!”
Amber and Kate, who were clearly listening, began to snigger, and clearly agreed with what the coach was saying. Jane’s cheeks went bright red, and she wanted to find somewhere to hide.
“Amber, you’re the blue team captain, and you, Sam, you can be the orange team captain.” She pointed to a girl Jane had never spoken to, but she knew it wouldn’t matter. She could already tell she was going to be picked last. Of course, Amber went first, and picked her best friend before Sam went and picked someone for her team. On and on the girls picked, until Jane was the only person remaining. Amber and Kate sniggered as Sam finally picked Jane reluctantly, and Jane walked next to the rest of the orange team, feeling incredibly embarrassed.
Six players stood at either side, with Jane at the top right, and the coach blew her whistle, indicating the start of the game. Jane immediately felt super aware of everything, and tried desperately not to mess up. She was bad at all sports, and volleyball was so much worse for her since she knew how good Amber was. She was so distracted from those thoughts that she hadn’t even noticed when the ball flew towards her at lightning speed. She gasped right before it knocked her forehead, forcing her back a few steps. It wasn’t painful, but everyone in the room saw it happen. Amber and Kate burst out laughing, with Amber walking as close to Jane as possible as she gazed at her from the erected net, “what a disgrace… why don’t you go back to math class where you’re actually good at something?”
Jane was speechless, she turned to the coach, trying to see her reaction, but the coach was conveniently looking elsewhere, and didn’t ‘see’ the bullying happen at all. On and on this continued, with Amber and Kate clearly targeting Jane every time they hit the ball to the other side. They cheated a few times, getting extra hits they weren’t allowed to in a normal game. The girls even went as far as forcing one of their teammates to fake an injury so Kate could get the optimum position of the match, and by halfway through gym class, the blue team was way ahead of the orange. Coach Isabela didn’t comment on a thing, and only spoke up to scold Jane a few times, telling her she needed to focus more on the match, and stop trying to run away from the ball when it came towards her.
After another miss by Jane, it seemed the coach had had enough, and told her to step aside and let someone else play. Jane sighed, though was content to be out to the match. She was worried about her grades, and desperately didn’t want to repeat gym class again, but she was trying her best, and didn’t know what else to do. She walked to the side of the bench, and was shocked to find a girl in her grade that had been mainly absent all semester. “Melly! What are you doing here?”
Melissa had been absent all semester due to her illness, a respiratory disease that got worse the more she exerted herself, and had been the only person that had been willing to talk to Jane, since she was part of Amber and Kate’s ridicule as well. She was even nerdier than Jane was, with a pimply visage, thick frames, and always covered her body up, to the point where she stood out from the crowd in a negative way. The thing was, Jane wasn’t very close with Melissa, mainly because she seemed to only talk about one thing - the girls in the volleyball team and their coach. Jane was a little suspicious that Melissa was gay, though she didn’t seem to know it herself.
“I’m back for the rest of the semester! I still get asthma attacks from time to time, but the doctors said it’d be okay to come back. I can’t participate in gym class, though,” Melly’s attention was barely focused on Jane as she spoke. Instead, her gaze kept shifting to the coach, who was walking from side to side as she watched the girls play. Jane was immediately uncomfortable, but didn’t want to comment on it. In the silence, Melissa said, “I really did miss coach Isabela. She’s even more beautiful than before!”
“Don’t you think she’s a little unfair, though? Kate and Amber are clearly cheating!” Jane didn’t like to say negative things about anyone, but this was really too much.
“I think the coach is trying her best,” Melly shook her head, “do you think her butt’s gotten even more perfect than before? Is that even possible? She must work out every day…”
Jane couldn’t believe it. That was such an inappropriate thing to say about one’s gym teacher! “I’ve never paid attention to her butt…”
“Well, I think it’s the most beautiful one I’ve ever seen,” Melly said, “I wish I could go up and touch it.” Jane was speechless. She didn’t know what to say, so just continued to watch the game, not wanting to talk to Melissa anymore.
Isabela suddenly blew the whistle, and walked to the center of the game, shaking her head at Samantha, the other team’s captain. “No, you need to jump higher if you want to catch a ball like that.” She demonstrated by picking up the ball and jumping, and as she bent down, her ass pointed directly at the two girls on the bench.
“Look at Ms. Cheeks! How can you not obsess over something like that? I feel like I’ve had dreams about it…”
“Ms. Cheeks?” Jane was shocked, “did you really give the coach a nickname based on her butt?”
“You don’t like it?” Melly asked as the coach demonstrated the maneuver again.
“It’s a little weird to say that about your coach…”
“Don’t worry, I have other names too. I call Kate Melons and Amber Apple, for the term ‘apple bottom jeans’. Do you like it?” Melly looked at Jane expectantly, hoping she would agree the nicknames were clever.
Jane could only bite her lip and go back to watching the game, feeling betrayed by her only friend in the class. Even Melly, who was also the target of the bullying, couldn’t see past Kate and Amber’s beauty, and seemed to think they weren’t terrible people.
The coach now switched to teaching Samantha about how to move quickly across the field, and squatted down as low as she could before she jumped to the other position. Melly gasped again, and began fanning herself dramatically, “I feel absolutely faint looking at that. It’s definitely gotten bigger these few months!”
Thankfully, the class was finally over after an hour and a half, and the girls, who were now covered in sweat, walked to the locker room to change back to their school uniforms. Jane tried to avoid the girls’ attention as much as possible, but it seemed almost impossible. Amber stood right in front of her locker, grinning from ear to ear. “Aren’t you ashamed of yourself, Jane? Not only did you completely embarrass yourself out there, you’re back to being friends with the lowest of the low. I saw you talking to Melissa. How shameful,” she shook her head, pretending to be disappointed.
“I’m willing to be friends with anyone who wants my company,” Jane said, still trying to be kind.
“No, you’re only friends with her because she’s the only one that’s willing to talk to you,” Amber burst out laughing, and Kate joined in. “Probably because you’re just so terrible to look at.” She pretended to gag, which made Kate laugh even harder.
Jane’s cheeks were heating up, and she just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. She exited the room after changing, and was about to head to her last class of the day when she saw Coach standing right outside. “Mind if we have a chat?” Isabela asked.
“Sure, coach,” Jane replied, her heart already beating rapidly. She knew exactly what this conversation would be about. They entered the coach’s private room, which was covered in pictures of the coach in various photoshoots, like she was obsessed with how she looked and constantly wanted to see herself. There were also pictures of her years leading the girls to their championship ever since she started working at the school. It was clearly something she was very proud of. Jane sat down across from her, and waited patiently as Coach sat down at her desk.
“I’m sure you know why you’re here,” Isabela said.
Jane bit her lip and nodded, “because I did really bad today?”
“I saw your grades in all your other classes. Straight A’s across the board. Why can’t you give gym class just as much attention as you give everything else?” Isabela asked. “I really don’t want to fail you, but you’re not giving me any other choice…”
Jane couldn’t believe it, she had to try to figure something out, “you saw how Amber and Kate were today. If they would just leave me alone, I can try to get better, but they keep trying to attack me, and I don’t know what else to do…”
“Attack you?! That’s completely preposterous, Jane. I was there the entire time, and I didn’t see anything of the sorts. It doesn’t do well to make excuses, it just looks bad on your end. I expect you to do well for the rest of the semester. Much better, in fact, or you leave me no choice but to fail you.”
“Please don’t do that,” Jane said, feeling like she was about to cry, “I need to get into college, and I won’t be able to get in if I fail a class, any class.”
“You need to stop giving importance and wasting time on silly things like reading manga, watching anime, and reading all these books. Practice on improving your skills, do some lessons on the side, and learn how to properly play volleyball. Stop making excuses. Face Amber and Kate like a grown woman, instead of whining about it.”
Jane couldn’t believe it. The coach was way too obsessed with volleyball! This was a senior gym class, not some crazy tournament! It was so unfair. She was also planning on focusing on the magic tricks she’d prepare for the school talent show, and now she was going to have to spend time practicing a sport she didn’t even like?! She was still muttering to herself as she entered English class, and the usual excitement of the lesson was hindered by Jane’s flashbacks of what had just happened, and how she could remedy the situation.
By the end of the lesson, she had barely written anything down, and was feeling disappointed with herself. Not only was she failing gym, it was also affecting the rest of her studies. She was still packing up slowly when Mrs. Flowers approached, looking down at her with concerned eyes. Mrs. Flowers was Jane’s favorite teacher. She was in her forties, and one of the kindest people Jane had ever met. She was always elegantly dressed and composed, with amber hair, thick lips and round glasses.
“You don’t look so good today, Jane,” she said, and grabbed the chair right next to Jane to sit in. “Shakespeare is usually your favorite topic!”
“It is, you’re right,” Jane smiled, already feeling better from talking to Mrs. Flowers.
“Well? Do you want to talk about it? I don’t want to pry… so only speak if you’re comfortable with it.”
Jane sighed, and tried to figure out what she could say without sounding like she was complaining too much, “well, the thing is… I’m doing terribly at gym class, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
“Oh? You’re doing so well in all of your other subjects, though! The other teachers compliment your hard work all the time!”
“I just can’t seem to succeed in any sport. And Coach Isabela just told us we’d be doing volleyball for the rest of the semester, and I’m the worst at volleyball.”
Mrs. Flowers frowned, “quite unusual for the class to just be focusing on one sport… but I don’t really know much about how gym class is usually run, to be honest. What did Coach Isabela say about it?”
“She told me to stop watching anime all the time and stop reading books, and focus on getting better at volleyball,” Jane began fidgeting with her pencil, feeling ashamed of herself. She didn’t really want to complain, but she felt as if she didn’t have anyone else to talk to. Her parents would be so mad at her if they found out.
Mrs. Flowers looked shocked, and shook her head, “that’s the opposite advice I’d give you. I think you should always be unapologetically yourself, and always give importance to what you love. Of course, don’t watch too much anime that it’d impact your studies, but I don’t think you should give it up for volleyball!”
“I told the Coach Kate and Amber kept trying to distract me during class, and she said I was making excuses…”
“I urge you to not pay attention to others or worry about their opinions. I can see how much this is all affecting you, and it hurts me to see you like this, Jane,” Mrs. Flowers seemed sympathetic, and Jane felt as if there were unspoken words between them. Mrs. Flowers had no power to go against Amber and Kate due to their status at the school, and could only watch from afar and support Jane as much as possible. It just wasn’t right.
“Thank you for always being here for me,” Jane replied. She always felt better after talking to Mrs. Flowers, and almost wanted to stay here all evening and talk to her. Unfortunately, she knew she would have to catch the bus soon.
“I know you weren’t writing any notes today. Here are mine, and don’t do it again next time!” Jane felt tears well up again… Mrs. Flowers was really the kindest person she’d ever met.
As Jane entered the bus, she couldn’t help but think of tomorrow, and what it would bring. It seemed every day would be the same, and graduation seemed a million years away. She wanted to take Mrs. Flowers’ words to heart, but it was hard being the target of ridicule daily, and she didn’t know how much she would be able to take.
Thankfully, Jane wasn’t aware of how much everything was about to change for the better, as those that treat others with such disrespect usually received their comeuppance at the end.
Chapter 2
It was the weekend, which was generally a reprieve for Jane. She liked to walk around town, looking as inconspicuous as she could as she enjoyed the breeze. She had her headphones in her ear, and it made her feel at peace listening to her usual classical music. These two days of the week were her only chance to get away from Kate and Amber, and yet it still didn’t seem like enough.
She knew she had to talk to someone other than Mrs. Flowers, but she didn’t feel like she could trust anyone, and being told that she was overreacting by her parents would break her.
The park was around a half kilometer walk, and she eventually came out to a row of small boutiques along the street. She crossed the road, ending up in the face of one called, “Mel’s Belles”. Like many of the other stores, the boutique itself was ready for Halloween, with carved pumpkins behind the display glass and a few fake cobwebs dangling in the ceiling. Displayed in the front were two costumes, and Jane bit her lip as she looked at them. It seemed like something Amber and Kate would pull off, and completely unlike her. She had an internal debate with herself as she stood there. She wanted to try it on, to feel the soft fabric on her body, to see herself as someone that’s not just labeled as a ‘nerd’ by everyone around her. But she was also terrified. She knew people would laugh at her for trying to become something she wasn’t, and she knew no matter how hard she tried, the dress wouldn’t look nearly as good on her as it would her two bullies. She sighed as she pulled herself away from the display and began walking the other way down the street.
She paused when she saw the encounter in front of her between two women, with one of their voices getting higher and higher as she screamed at the other. A girl with a bun on top of her head and a store work uniform was pushing an old lady out of her store. The lady herself had a dark hood covering her head and had a witch-like appearance, with a pointed nose and plenty of wrinkles. She was short and curved, and seemed upset as she was being ushered out. “You get out of my store right now! I know you’re up to no good! You’re always loitering around, you really think I’m going to let someone like you into a store that sells expensive purses? I know you’re not actually planning on buying anything!” She pushed the lady one last time before slamming the glass door so hard it felt as if it would shatter. The old woman bowed over onto the floor in front of her, with her hands pressing against the asphalt path.
Jane immediately felt a kindness towards the woman, having faced ridicule and bullying based on her looks herself. She rushed towards the woman, benign down so she was on eye level with her. “Are you okay?” she asked hurriedly, trying to look the woman in the eyes. She noticed that the woman had gentle eyes with lots of wisdom in its depths.
The woman struggled for a second before nodding, “yes, m’dere. Thank you for coming to this poor woman’s rescue.”
Jane shook her head, “I didn’t do anything, no need to thank me. Now, do you think you can stand?” The lady thought for a second and nodded. Jane wrapped her hands around one of her arms, and together they slowly helped her up. Jane turned around to see the saleswoman was glaring at the two of them, shaking her head like it was ridiculous for Jane to want to help her. Jane just couldn’t believe there were people like this in the world, that felt so much satisfaction in unnecessary prejudices.
The lady patted Jane’s hands, which were still wrapped around her. Jane couldn’t let her go alone, and asked, “where do you live? I can bring you there. I don’t feel okay with just leaving you here on the road.”
The old woman chuckled, “it’s been a while since I’ve met someone so kind. My name is Olga, and my store is just a block down if you have the time to accompany me.” She spoke in a low and gravelly voice, which gave Jane goosebumps, like Olga was really a real witch. She nodded, and began walking down the street with the old woman.
“I’m Jane,” she said, and blurted out, “that sales woman was terrible. I can’t believe she just kicked you out because of how you looked.”
“I’m used to it,” Olga said. “I merely wanted to purchase a gift for my granddaughter, but it seems that will not be a possibility.”
“Do you want me to go in for you?” Jane asked.
Olga shook her head, “I do not believe she deserves my patronage, much like the other boutiques.” It was weird, Jane had never heard or seen this woman before, but she felt kindness towards her, like they’d known each other for years and this wasn’t their first time meeting.
She let Olga lead her, and they eventually turned the corner on the main road to a smaller side road, which was tight and had brick walls on either side. It was a little creepy, and not what Jane was used to, but she was still calm. She couldn’t believe the kind woman would have any ill will against her. They eventually stopped in front of a wooden door with a metal sign on top, indicating it was some sort of fortune telling store. Jane was a little confused, she’d walked by here at least once a week, and had never even heard of such a place. “This is where I work,” Olga explained as she fished a key out of her cloak. Her fingers shook as she opened the door, pushing it open to reveal a small space, which was jammed from bottom to top with all sorts of knick knacks.
It was spectacular, there were lots of crystals, tomes, antiques, and gadgets, most of which Jane had never seen before. In the center of the room was a round table with two armchairs on either side and a crystal ball sitting in the middle. The ceiling itself was covered in what looked to be stars, but must’ve been some sort of lighting system.
There seemed to be some sort of room in the back, maybe where Olga stayed when she wasn’t working. Olga removed her cloak and set it on the hook behind the door, and scooted her way slowly to the armchair furthest from Jane. She was wearing a simple black dress with floral patterns on top. It looked very old to Jane, like Olga had worn it for many years. She felt a little awkward as she stood there, wondering if she should leave the old woman alone. As Jane opened her mouth to excuse herself, Olga piped up first, “would you like a free fortune reading? Since you were so kind to assist me.”
Jane was never the type to take anything for free, but nodded just the same. The old woman intrigued her, and she wanted to see what she did for a living. “Okay,” she situated herself in the chair across from the woman, a soft and plush couch that had an antique feel just like the rest of the shop.
Olga brought a stack of cards seemingly out of nowhere, and put it on the table in front. The back of the cards all contained the same constellation with gold foil, and was one of the most beautiful deck Jane had ever seen. Olga shuffled it then told Jane to put her hand on the top card. Olga closed her eyes and Jane waited until she placed three cards gently onto the table in front of her. “I won't keep you here for too long, so I will do a simple reading,” she started to explain, “there are three cards here representing your past, present, and future.” Jane nodded, completely mesmerized by the display. “Please flip this card here, representing your past.”
Jane felt a little shaky as she flipped over the first card. On it was a picture of a man with a silly hat on his head as he spun around. “The Fool,” Olga said, shaking her head. She grasped onto Jane’s hand, looking somber. “I see you’ve been through a lot, young girl. You’ve been tormented in your life, dealt a bad hand that you don’t deserve.” Jane’s heart was beating, the woman seemed so real, like she knew exactly what had happened to her. She was eager to keep going, to see what the woman would say next. Olga nodded at her to flip the next card, indicating the present. On it was a cup being held by a large hand with two spurts of water flowing out of it.
“What does this mean?” Jane asked, eager to find out more.
Olga looked at it closely and nodded, “this is may be a good or bad sign. It means change, transformation. Your life may be changing for the better or worse, but you will have someone to help you with that, if you only accept the help.”
Jane thought about it, wondering who she had in her life that would be willing to help her. Mrs. Flowers, perhaps? “Can I flip the last card?” Jane asked.
Olga nodded, “whenever you’re ready.”
Jane flipped the last card, seeing a man standing in the center with a halo around him and a wicked grin on his face. It was unnerving, like the man himself was staring deep into Jane’s soul. “This is the magician,” Olga said slowly.
“I’ve always been interested in magic,” Jane said, “I can do a few magic tricks…”
Olga nodded solemnly. “I believe your life will be turned around. It means revenge to those who wronged you. The magician makes every wrong into a right, it means you’ll be taken care of.”
Jane felt a shiver down her spine, one of anticipation and delight. “This was amazing, Olga. You’re quite talented.” Olga smiled at the compliment, and sat back.
“I finish all of my sessions with a task for my clients, one that will push them towards the right path,” Olga explained. Jane was still intrigued, and trusted Olga completely at this point. She knew others would be scared of such a place, but it felt like she absolutely belonged here. She knew Olga felt the same just by her body language.
Olga walked back to her cloak, and Jane watched her pull a sheet of paper out of her cloak, like some sort of brochure. She made her way back slowly and sat back down, pushing the brochure towards Jane. “There is an abandoned house on the hill on top of the city where a contest will be held on Halloween night. It will be scary, but I can tell things will be in your favor that evening.”
Jane frowned, she wasn’t the type to want to join random contests, “I don’t know about that…”
Olga was insistent. “Trust me. Things are different from what you imagine, but you will come out on top. Besides, you’ll love the prize - it’s a wand made out of birch and a magical creature, which will be perfect for you to use for your magic tricks.”
“A wand? That’s such an unusual prize,” Jane said. The prize was perfect for her, which made her want to trust the woman more. She suddenly frowned, “I never go out for Halloween though. I don’t have anything to wear.”
“I think I can help with that,” before Jane could say anything, the woman turned away and walked towards the back room. She waited for a few minutes before Olga came back out with two pieces of folded clothing. “I think my granddaughter is around your size.”
Jane unwrapped it to find a witch’s cloak and hat, it glittered under her touch, and she knew it would be even more beautiful under moonlight. It felt expensive, like it was made for her. She looked up at Olga, completely speechless. “Do you like it?” Olga asked, smiling gently.
Jane shook her head, “I can’t accept this. It’s too much. I’ve barely done anything for you!”
“You remind me of what I was like when I was younger. You’ve given me hope that people can be kind,” Olga said, placing her old hands on Jane’s once more. “Don’t thank me, just do the contest on Halloween night, and trust that I won’t lead you astray.”
Jane was still spinning as she nodded at Olga, telling her she will return after she completed the contest, and shut the door behind her, holding the brochure and costume in her hand. She exited the narrow alleyway and emerged in the sunlight once more, smiling to herself at such a bewildering encounter. It almost felt like a dream, something her mind had conjured up out of nowhere.
From across the street though, her ears perked up to hear two familiar voices, and before Jane could do anything to run away, the two girls seemed to have spotted her as well. “Look who it is,” Amber said loudly.
Jane turned her back and began to walk, but they rushed up to her, crossing the street without looking at the light. Clearly, both girls had no awareness of people around them, and just did whatever they wanted at all times. “Why are you smiling so much, Jane? What do you have to be happy about?”
Jane shook her head, her smile already turned into a frown, “it’s nothing.”
Amber tapped her feet on the ground, clearly annoyed. “I don’t like it. It means we haven’t made fun of you enough. I’ll have to take you down a peg or two on Monday.”
“Can you just leave me alone, Amber?” Jane asked. She was incredibly put off. She had wanted a day without Amber and Kate, and now it seemed like she was going to have to deal with them on weekends as well.
“Ooooh, look who’s trying to stand up for herself. What do you think we should do, Kate? How do we show her who’s boss around here?” Amber turned to her friend, who didn’t seem like she heard her at all. Kate was staring at a poster on the window behind Jane, reading the description. “What’s that?” Amber asked, walking up next to her.
The two girls were silent for a second, until Amber took her phone out to take a picture of it. “We’ve got to do this.” Jane took their distraction as a chance to get away, and before the girls could notice, she ran off, carrying her new belongings closely as she let out a sigh of relief.
—---------
That same evening, during their weekend practice, the two girls were still going on about what they had seen on the poster. They stood on the side in the middle of their workout, talking to each other in hushed tones. Coach Isabela seemed to have enough of their distraction though, and appeared right behind them with her arms at her waist, tapping her feet on the floor as she cleared her throat. The Coach was just as beautiful as she’d always been, with her black tight yoga pants, hair up in a ponytail she had braided, and a sports bra that showed off her toned stomach. She raised an eyebrow and said, “and what’s got the two of you so distracted today, hmm?”
The two girls sheepishly turned back to look at her, but Amber’s eyes suddenly widened, “Coach! This is perfect! I think you should join our team for the Halloween haunted house contest!”
“Halloween haunted house contest? Are you two girls out of your minds? You should be focused on volleyball! Not silly games for kids!” Isabela shook her head, “you’ve disappointed me.”
Amber’s grin widened, “wait until you see the prize. Let me get my phone and show you.” Isabela shook her head, grumbling about her students as she went back to her workout. She sat down on the hip thrust, and put more weights on that seemed possible for someone her size. She began thrusting up and down using her hips and gluteus muscles, groaning with the strain of each movement. She always felt exhilarated when she worked out, and it made her want to do it every time she was with her students, just to feel the rush after.
Sweat was beading on her forehead and beading down her body as she worked up and down, her ass on full display as she moved up and down, though none of the girls really noticed it, having been used to seeing it every day. As she continued to move, she felt Amber appear behind her. “Look Coach,” she shoved her phone in front of Isabel’s face, and Isabela stopped her workout to grab it.
She read the screen for a few seconds, then looked up with her eyes wide, “there’s no way the prize money is this much…”
“Right?! I couldn’t believe it myself! That’s why I took a picture,” Amber exclaimed. “I can finally buy that car I’ve always wanted. My stinkin’ dad keeps saying I’m too young to own my own car, completely ridiculous!”
“Who’s even holding the event? Why haven’t I heard about it?” Isabela furrowed her eyebrows, trying to zoom in as much as possible on the image.
“We’re not sure,” Kate said, “but we didn’t want to tell anyone so we have less competition.”
Isabela nodded like it made sense, “so why are you telling me?”
“Well, you’re clearly the most athletic person we know!” Amber exclaimed, and indicated the large amount of weights Isabela was currently using. “If any of the three of us win, we can agree to split the money three ways.”
Isabela barely had to think before she said, “okay. But after this no more distractions. Now go back to your work!”
Amber and Kate gave each other wide grins before they went back to their treadmills. Isabela finished her set then moved onto the stationary bike. As she leaned her body downwards, with her breasts on full display to anyone walking by, she thought about the prize money, with her heart not only racing from the workout, but from the prospects of what she could do with such a large sum. Yes, she would be doing anything she possibly could to win it.
—-------
It was the next Friday, and after a week of trying to avoid Amber and Kate as much as possible, Jane finally had her chance to listen to Olga, and take part in the competition. She had gone home to change into her outfit, which was even sure was a perfect fit for her. She wondered if Olga somehow lied, and if she had picked out the outfit specifically for her. She hadn’t planned on doing anything else that evening, but as she headed out of her house and walked down the street, she came across Mrs. Flowers to her surprise. Mrs. Flowers was wearing a floral dress with a sunflower hat around her head, and was just as adorable as she usually looked.
“Mrs. Flowers! What are you doing here?” Jane asked. It was weird, she’d never seen Mrs. Flowers outside of school before. “I love your costume!”
Mrs. Flowers gave her her usual big smile and said, “oh, I’m going by the town park to join the party tonight, are you going as well?” She looked Jane up and down, “I love your costume! You make a really great witch.”
Jane wasn’t used to getting any compliments, and blushed immediately. She shook her head, “I don’t think I’ll go… Jane and Kate will be there…” Jane said, frowning. “I’ve already avoided them all week, this won’t end well for me.”
Mrs. Flowers only gave Jane a frown, “you’re letting them win if you let them dictate what you do with your life, Jane. You need to learn how to let them go, to not let them control you.”
Jane thought about this, wondering if she would attend the party if Amber and Kate weren’t there. She nodded her head at Mrs. Flowers, and gave her a wide smile. “You’re right, I’ll go tonight. But I do have something else to do first, so is it okay if I meet you there? I’m not sure how long it’ll take, but maybe an hour or so.” Olga had never specified how long the competition was, but she hoped it wouldn’t take up too much of her night, especially since she was excited to spend some time with Mrs. Flowers now. She wondered if anyone else would compliment her witch costume.
“I’ll see you soon, then!” Mrs. Flowers said, and proceeded to go in the opposite direction.
Jane proceeded to walk down the street, though was stopped when she came across another set of familiar people. She was in her own thoughts when she heard the familiar annoying voices of Amber and Kate again as they walked on by. Kate turned to her and pointed, and the two girls began laughing. “Look who’s alone again.” Amber was wearing a pirate costume, with a corset around a fluffy white short and long striped black and white pants with frilly ends. She wore black boots and a red headband around her hair, which she flipped as she walked towards Jane.
Kate, on the other hand, was a cowgirl, complete with a cowgirl hat, bandana around her neck, brown leather pants with cowboy chaps on top and a white dress shirt with a cowhide patterned jacket on top. “Of course she’s alone, Jane doesn’t have any friends. Well, other than Mrs. Flowers!” They burst out laughing, and Jane crossed her legs, looking away with heated cheeks. She was trying hard to not let the teasing affect her, but how could she not, when the girls seemed to know exactly how to make her upset?
“I’m meeting a friend, actually,” Jane lied, wondering to herself how to make the two girls go away.
“Oh? Maybe we should go meet her with you then,” Amber said, moving even closer to Jane.
“Please just go away,” Jane said, and felt bad for being so mean. She had just had enough of this.
“Go away?” Amber faked being shocked, “I thought you wanted to be friends with us!” Kate laughed, “I’m sooo hurt!” The girls continued to laugh together at Jane’s expense, until Kate stopped for a second and whispered, “hey, should we get going and find Isabela for the contest?”
Amber said, “I think we still have some time.”
Jane couldn’t help it, she stopped her walking and looked at them, “wait, you two are also doing the Haunted House contest?”
The two girls turned at the same time, staring at her. Then, Amber’s smile widened once more, “you’re joining? Are you joking? You know you don’t stand a chance, right?”
“I…” Jane started to explain.
Amber fished her phone out of her pocket, and showed her the photo of the poster. “This one? This is the contest?” Jane stared at it, absolutely confused. Her brochure clearly indicated that the prize was a magic wand, but Amber’s phone indicated it was a huge amount of cash. That made no sense.
Jane stopped walking all at once, with her heart racing fast. As the girls walked ahead, she began breathing heavily, not able to control her anxiety. She pulled the brochure out for what felt like the hundredth time and stared at it once more. It clearly said magic wand…
She didn’t know what to do. It felt as if the old woman had deceived her, like she was setting her up for some sort of trap. Maybe the girls were in on some huge joke at her expense… maybe the woman wasn’t real at all, and all set up. Her mind flashed back to what Olga had said, to trust her no matter what, to expect the unexpected. She let out a long sigh and shook her head aggressively, trying to get all of her negative thoughts out. She felt deep in her gut this was something that was meant for her to do, and she would try her hardest no matter what. Maybe she would be able to beat the other girls, and prove to them that she was a better person. Besides, if there was any mental task as part of the challenge, she was sure to best them.
She hurried ahead, trying to avoid the two girls as she followed closely behind them. Her heart stopped once more. Amber and Kate were welcoming Coach Isabela, who strutted towards them in the sexiest outfit she had ever worn. She was dressed in a red she-devil spandex costume, snug enough so that all of her curves were very accentuated, but still completely covered, up to her ankles and wrists. A fake devil’s tail reached up to the haunch of her thighs, and she was definitely the focus of many people’s attention as she walked by. She stopped in front of Amber and Kate and grinned, “so, when are we getting started, girls?”
Jane’s heart dropped. She had a small chance in being able to face Amber and Kate, but the Coach too? One of the strongest women she’d ever met? There was no way. Amber and Kate seemed to be telling Coach about Jane’s participation, because about a second later, Isabela’s face snapped up and stared at Jane. A wicked grin was now plastered across her face. Her ass swayed as she walked over to Jane, who was now figuring out how to run away again.
“Well, well, well. I hear you’re also participating, Jane,” Coach said as she stepped in front of her with her hip cocked. Jane didn’t know what to say, and merely looked down at her feet. “I thought I told you to focus on getting better at volleyball… not taking part in contests.”
“I…” Jane stuttered. She had no excuses. She couldn’t tell Coach about the strange woman she had seen. She would never believe her. “I thought it would be fun…”
“Well, I can’t tell you what you can and can’t do outside of school, but you and I both know it’d be better for you to give up now. There’s no way you can win against the three of us. No, you wouldn’t be able to win against just me,” Coach was sneering now, and looked far more viscous than Jane had ever seen.
“It’s okay,” Jane shrugged. “I’m fine with just having fun.” She wasn’t sure if the prizes were even real at this point, anyway. She wanted to do something for herself for once. Something that made her feel brave.
“Well, good luck then. I won’t be going easy on you,” she turned her back on Jane, and began walking away, with the outline of her ass fully visible with her tight costume. Melissa appeared next to Jane seemingly out of nowhere, making Jane jump. She was wearing a ghost costume, with a white sheet and eye holes cut out.
“Did you see that beautiful butt? She definitely knows how to show it off,” Melissa said, still staring after the Coach.
“This again?” Jane said, flabbergasted. How did Melissa even find them? Was she stalking the Coach?
“There’s no way that’s appropriate for a teacher to wear! But no one cares, because Isabela always gets her way… I’m a hundred percent sure it’s because of that butt. No one can say no to that,” she turned to Jane. “So, are you going to invite me to join you in this contest?”
Jane frowned, “how do you know about it?”
“I heard the entire conversation,” Melissa shrugged. “I’m interested in doing anything to get close to Coach. C’mon, invite me to help you!”
Jane thought about it for a second, and reluctantly shrugged, knowing it would always be nice to have a partner, since three against one was not fair in the slightest. “Fine, you can join me in the contest.”
“Yes!” Melissa whooped, pushing her fist up high in the air. And so, the two of them followed the three girls closely, with Jane keeping quiet and trying to make sense of the situation, and Melissa still going on about the Coach’s ass.