Richard and I had been on a few dates after the Vortech Wars. He\u2019s a really sweet guy, a bit of a romantic at heart. Even when we\u2019re at After Academy, he still plays the doting boyfriend. Of course, I play the doting girlfriend for him. We always enjoy each other\u2019s company. Right now, we were at After Academy, in our dorm, snoozing together in our bed. I always had my head on his chest. Listening to him breath helps me sleep soundly. He said he snores, but I\u2019m a deep sleeper, so it doesn\u2019t bother me. His chest rose and sank in a calming rhythm as a voice from what I thought was the radio came to life. \u201cHey, Good Morning, After Academy!\u201d it softly said. \u201cIt\u2019s now five after the hour of 6 AM in the school for both the living and dead. It\u2019s another day for another semester. Thank goodness for time differentials cause one semester here is less time for your native universe, ranging from one second to at least a week. Temperature\u2019s a balmy 18.3\u2070 Celsius, 65\u2070 Fahrenheit, perfect for those of reptilian origin and, hey, it looks like it\u2019s gonna be a perfect day to maybe lie in bed, sleep in, or…WORK OUT THE FLAB THAT\u2019S HANGING OVER THE BED!\u201d I started stirring with a \u201cmwhuh?\u201d \u201cGET UP, YOU TWO!\u201d The source of the voice then blasted an airhorn into our ears! We tumbled out of bed and Emily, the voice\u2019s source, grabbed us by the shoulders and shoved us into the closet. \u201cWorkout clothes! Come on, butterballs!\u201d called Emily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t recall ordering a wake-up call, thorny!\u201d snarled Richard as we got into our workout clothes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can\u2019t say I ordered such a thing!\u201d I snapped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLess talk, more getting dressed for working out!\u201d called an Australian voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re in on this too, Joshua?!\u201d protested Richard as we changed into a white tank top and black sweats. We left the closet and found Emily and Joshua in the same outfit as me and Richard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll right, pushup time!\u201d called Emily. I will say this; she and Josh DO join us whenever we work out. We started with our pushups. \u201cCome on, feel the burn!\u201d she encouraged. \u201cYou guys call yourselves veterans of the Vortech Wars?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOkay, Rider feet, Rider feet, Rider feet, SHOCKER MOOK!\u201d We stopped running in place and hid behind an imaginary barrier. \u201cOkay, Rider feet, Rider feet, Rider feet, MAIN BOSS!\u201d We threw a punch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMOOKS ON TWO LEVELS!\u201d called Emily as we kicked the appropriate places on the bags. \u201cOh, I thought I had you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOkay, mates, let\u2019s do it!\u201d called Joshua as he had a crudely drawn Shocker Combatman\u2019s face on a broom handle. As he swung the handle around, Richard and I swung wooden swords at the thing. \u201cHe\u2019s over here!\u201d called Josh. \u201cNo, he\u2019s over here! Don\u2019t let him touch you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know, but it\u2019s been said,\u201d sang Emily as we pushed our stuff around, \u201cI like scaring mooks in bed!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCome on, fight that plaque!\u201d encouraged Joshua as we brushed our teeth. \u201cFight that plaque! Real heroes don\u2019t have plaque!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c118,\u201d called Emily as we did pullups on the overhanging pipe. \u201cDo you have 119? Do I hear 120?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI DON\u2019T BELIEVE IT!\u201d called Josh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m not even breaking a sweat!\u201d replied Richard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot you, mate!\u201d argued Joshua. \u201cThe new advert\u2019s on!\u201d He switched on the t.v. and we all stopped to see the new commercial with all the Vortex Riders in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter Academy,\u201d began Death as a picture of the main campus castle appeared. \u201cWe prepare YOU for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, education can be tough,\u201d mentioned Batman as he appeared, \u201cbut the cost doesn\u2019t need to be. It\u2019s a free school that offers only the finest in courses. Besides, even if you DO have a degree already, it doesn\u2019t hurt to have a degree from After Academy under your belt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd only we of the faculty know about where you actually went,\u201d continued Lacey. \u201cYour degree will tell everyone else you went to the college or university of your choice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnother good thing about After Academy?\u201d asked Richard in the commercial. \u201cNo crushing student debt. I know it\u2019s a worry for a lot of you. Believe me, I\u2019ve been there. Thankfully, After Academy, its courses, and its services are free.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEmmanuel used that shot?\u201d asked the real Richard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter Academy,\u201d whispered Death in the commercial as we all gathered in our uniforms. \u201cWe will help you plan your future today!\u201d The commercial ended and a full, three gold star rating appeared at the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll three stars?\u201d Joshua asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll gold?\u201d quizzed Emily. \u201cWe HAVE to congratulate Emmanuel!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ll say we do!\u201d I agreed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We had breakfast, got into our uniforms, got our school hip bags, and headed out the door. \u201cTrust me,\u201d bragged Emily as she adjusted her hairpiece, \u201cwith Emmanuel, you\u2019re gonna be seeing my face on t.v. a lot!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think America\u2019s Most Wanted needs any new cameramen or new faces to watch out for,\u201d joked Richard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHar har, it is to laugh,\u201d said Emily in a dry voice. \u201cYou\u2019ve been jealous of my good looks since kindergarten.\u201d We then spotted a red car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll right, mates, in we go!\u201d called Joshua as he pulled out the keys and unlocked it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNope! Nuh uh!\u201d replied Richard. We started walking past the car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOi! OI! Where are you going?!\u201d protested Joshua.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGuys, the car\u2019s right here!\u201d called Emily<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJoshua, Emily,\u201d I explained, \u201cthere\u2019s a fuel shortage. We\u2019re walking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWALKING?!\u201d wailed Joshua. We then managed to pull them away from the car, just enough so Joshua could lock it electronically. \u201cOi, mates,\u201d he asked, \u201cyou lot wanna know why I bought the car?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot really,\u201d I muttered. Emily finished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo DRIVE it!\u201d she said. \u201cYou know? With the vroom vroom, and the honk honk and going out onto the street with no walking involved?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWah, wah, wah! Give it a rest, you two!\u201d I mocked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCome on,\u201d called Richard, \u201cyou two could use the exercise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI could use the exercise?!\u201d protested Emily. \u201cLook at YOU! You\u2019ve got your own gravity!\u201d We crossed the street and passed some first graders playing jump rope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMorning!\u201d called one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMorning, kids!\u201d replied Richard. The kid jumping the rope was distracted long enough to be entangled in the rope. We then approached a grocery store to see a tentacled Tarlaxian setting up the fruits and vegetables, humming to herself. A pair of her nineteen eyes moved their stalks when they detected us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOi! Tentallia!\u201d called Joshua.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHey, you guys!\u201d called the Tarlaxian, Tentallia, owner and manager of Tentallia\u2019s Grocery Store. We made various noises like \u201cbadda-bing!\u201d and \u201cpop pop POP!\u201d \u201cI hear one of your friends just got picked for the best commercial broadcast today!\u201d said Tentallia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe saw,\u201d I told her. \u201cEmmanuel\u2019s probably over the moon!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTell him Tentallia sends her congratulations,\u201d requested Tentallia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWill do!\u201d promised Joshua as we turned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHey! Wait!\u201d called Tentallia. She then tossed us some fruit from her home. \u201cOn the house!\u201d she called.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThanks!\u201d I replied. We happily ate the fruits. They\u2019re called Grabeldas, one of the most nutritious and delicious fruits on Tarlax 14. After we finished, we deposited the cores into a compost bin. We then approached a fifty foot lizard woman in her school uniform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHEY! ANGELA!\u201d called Richard. \u201cGOOD MORNING!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGood Morning!\u201d Angela called down to us. We waited at the crosswalk until the cars stopped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSee, guys?\u201d Richard pointed out to Emily and Joshua as we crossed. \u201cAngela\u2019s walking to school.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBig deal,\u201d countered Emily. \u201cGirl takes five steps and she\u2019s there.\u201d We approached the main Campus Castle and checked in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSee you guys later!\u201d I called as we split off for our classes. My mind wandered a bit towards my future. Once we BOTH have our degrees, Richard and I will be married and soon bring Kaede and Kaitlyn into existence. Future with Richard, here I come!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Richard and I had been on a few dates after the Vortech Wars. He\u2019s a really sweet guy, a bit of a romantic at heart. Even when we\u2019re at After Academy, he still plays the doting boyfriend. Of course, I play the doting girlfriend for him. We always enjoy each other\u2019s company. Right now, we […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":347,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[96,8],"tags":[117,224,69,202,12,221,52,225,222,223],"class_list":["post-346","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kamen-rider-vortex","category-kamen-rider-vortex-chapters","tag-after-academy","tag-city","tag-emily-saunders","tag-joshua-williams","tag-megumi-hishikawa","tag-richard-saunders","tag-school","tag-students","tag-wake-up-routine","tag-walk"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=346"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1120,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346\/revisions\/1120"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/347"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=346"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=346"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=346"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}