One phrase says it all: a daughter is a father's "little padded jacket"—a warm comfort.
Locke was absolutely certain that if he and Gwen had a daughter, she would be breathtakingly beautiful. It was simple logic: both of their genetic profiles were top. Two positives don't just make a positive; they yield something even better. If that weren't the case, the idiom "the blue comes from the indigo but is even bluer" would lose its meaning.
By noon, the surprise of Carrie attending Midtown High had settled into a minor buzz. Locke had wanted her here anyway. While the "Peerless Assassin" had many ways to circumvent rules, the student "Locke" was still somewhat limited by bureaucracy.
Carrie being here was a good thing. At the very least, she wouldn't be bullied. If anyone was going to mess with his people, only he was allowed to do it. But even that was unlikely; while old Carrie had a "victim" vibe from constantly looking down, the new Carrie was an ice queen. When she wasn't smiling, she looked like an untouchable glacier.
By lunchtime, her name was already trending on the school's digital forums.
"Incredible," Kim said, scrolling through her phone. Since she was a natural social butterfly, she had invited herself to the table where Gwen had sat Carrie down. "On your first day, you've already made the top ten candidates for the New Student Goddess list. The last person to get that treatment was Gwen."
Carrie looked at Kem, her voice cool and crisp following the vocal surgery. "What top ten...?"
Gwen brushed her hair back, sitting beside them. "Ignore her. It's just a bunch of bored people doing bored things."
Kim rolled her eyes with an expression of "the wealthy don't understand the plight of the poor." "You're on the list, so of course you find it boring. Those who aren't on it are dying of envy."
Gwen countered, "Aren't you on it, too?"
Kim put her phone down, deflated. "Being at the bottom of the list hardly counts. Now that Carrie's here, I'll probably be kicked off entirely."
Gwen shook her head, choosing not to engage with Kim's drama. At that moment, Cindy and Kahn arrived with their lunch trays.
"Sorry we're late," Kahn apologized.
Kim looked at Cindy and winked. "I saw you two going to the parking lot."
Kahn's face went blank for a second. Cindy, however, sat down gracefully and looked at Kem. "Next time, feel free to get closer."
Kim: 0. Cindy: 1.
Gwen cleared her throat and looked at the group. "Locke is planning to run for Student Council President this semester."
"Really?"
"I'm in! Where's the signature sheet?"
Locke blinked. "Signature sheet?"
Back in Texas, he'd never paid attention to such things. Gwen reached into her bag and pulled out a clipboard and a pen. "Right here."
Kahn stood up to take the clipboard. Reading the header—Support for Sophomore Locke Broughton for President of the Student Management Committee—he scribbled his name with a flourish. Cindy and Kem followed suit.
"Here." Cindy handed the clipboard to Carrie.
Carrie took it, looking hesitant. "Am I allowed to sign, too?"
Kem laughed. "Of course! Why not? You're a student here now, and you're one of us. Unless... you want to support someone else?"
Carrie shook her head quickly. "No, definitely not."
Locke chuckled and looked at Gwen. "I thought I just had to tell the faculty advisor."
"You need 150 student signatures just to qualify as a candidate," Gwen explained. "But getting 150 signatures won't be a problem for us."
"Is that so?"
"Absolutely," Kahn interjected. He stood up from his seat, grabbed the clipboard from Cindy, and let out a sharp, loud whistle that cut through the noise of the cafeteria.
The cafeteria fell silent instantly. Heads turned from every corner, eyes fixing on Kahn and his group.
Locke remained composed. He noticed Carrie looking a bit overwhelmed by the sudden attention and gave her an encouraging smile. Personality might be rooted in nature, but it could be reshaped by nurture. Carrie was only seventeen; she had time to leave her old shell behind. In fact, she already had—the old Carrie would have been staring at the floor, trying to be invisible.
Kahn scanned the room, holding the clipboard high. "Locke Broughton is running for Student Council President! Anyone who wants to sign in support, come over now!"
Locke's brow throbbed. He felt Kahn was being a bit too aggressive. It felt a bit like the "Who's for it, who's against it?" vibe from a mob movie.
'Is this really going to work?' Locke had only been at Midtown for half a year. His social circle was almost an exact overlap of Gwen's. He hadn't bothered to make many of his own friends.
But he had underestimated himself.
As soon as Kahn finished speaking, cheers erupted from various corners of the cafeteria, followed by a wave of frantic whispering.
"Locke Broughton?"
"The freshman—wait, sophomore—who topped the heartthrob list on his first day?"
"If he becomes President, does that mean we get to see him every day?"
"Isn't he the one who brought back the Chemistry Decathlon trophy from Maine last year? I heard he absolutely dominated the finals."
"One of the 'Brainiacs'?"
"Isn't his girlfriend Gwen Stacy? I heard they fell in love at first sight."
"I'm so jealous. I want a romance like that."
Locke's heightened senses picked up the chatter. Suddenly, he realized his chances were actually quite high.
The "Looks" party was in.
The "Brainiac" party was in.
Even the "Hopeless Romantic" party was in.
In less than ten minutes, the clipboard was full. They had far exceeded the 150-signature requirement. Students swarmed Locke to offer congratulations, telling him to save them a campaign badge when they were ready.
In those ten minutes, Locke's mental database expanded by over two hundred names. He had thought he'd memorized most of the sophomore class last year, but apparently, he was wrong.
Gwen looked at the clipboard and smiled at him. "See? You have a huge campaign advantage."
Locke felt a momentary daze. Don't say that. Usually, in the movies, the moment someone says "we have the advantage," they end up losing in some bizarre way.
Gwen tucked the signatures away. "It's February now. The election is in April. We have two months, but we're technically behind."
Cindy, who had stepped away for a moment during the signing frenzy, returned to the table. "I checked. There are two other main candidates for President."
Kim looked at her. "How did you find out so fast?"
"I'm the President of the Midtown High Sorority," Cindy said matter-of-factly. "I just had to ask around."
Kim turned to Locke with a serious face. "You should kick Cindy out of your team. That way, you can appeal to the students she's bullied."
Cindy looked offended. "Hey! The Sorority is a mutual-aid club. At worst, we do some pranks, and they're all harmless."
"Kim, don't derail us," Gwen said, shaking her head. "Cindy, who are they?"
Cindy gave Kim a sharp look—likely planning a prank—before turning to Gwen. "One is Sam Malik, the quarterback for the football team. The other is Nina Bell, the current Vice President. She's been in the council since she was an assistant and wants the top spot."
Gwen went into deep thought.
Carrie, listening intently, asked curiously, "Are they more popular than Locke?"
Gwen shook her head. "Before Locke arrived, Sam Malik was the undisputed school heartthrob. In his first semester, he led the football team to the league finals. Nina Bell is a veteran; she's worked her way up from the bottom."
Cindy added, "It's not about how strong they are. It's about the timeline. Locke is joining the race late."
Though the election was two months away, campaign posters and banners would likely go up as early as next week.
Gwen looked at Locke, then at Cindy and Kim, her eyes filled with determination. "We need to pick up the pace. Don't worry about the 'school honor' aspect. As long as Locke runs, the next two months of high school league competitions—nearly a dozen of them—will be ours. With Locke and me on the team, those trophies are coming home."
***
Bonus for 200 stones
Next one at 300, we're already halfway through y'all. Thanks for support.
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Read 30 Chapters early on P-atreon.com/Redestro666