Welcome to Natalia's high school manual! Yup, she's just your average normie student. And nope, this is definitely not a fairytale. It's not your typical girl meets boy and they fell in love with each other story, then all of the sudden, BOOM! A happy ending that will satisfy the whole humanity. Her story was a bit different, –nope. Scratch that. It was a disaster, to be exact. A roller coaster ride to the top. Witness how Natalia (without H) face her high school journey with the help of her manual, a set of rules that she invented for herself. Rules that will help her survive high school. Along with her family, friends, and even enemies, will she be able to follow all the rules on her manual, or not? Read and find out.
NATALIA CARTER –that's my name.
First of all, I want to clarify some things. This is not a diary. You can call it a journal or whatever it is that you want, just please... Spare me the word "diary." That kind of name was for the girly girls, like some of my classmates. They talk and write to their diaries like it's their secret keeper or like their life depends on it.
Second, as I've told earlier, my name is Natalia, not Nathalia. Remove the H, please. I'm not your typical student, though I can't also say that I'm unique. I'm just a normie teenager, and believe it or not, my story wasn't just like the others. I'm not a nerd that falls in love with the bad boys. And here's the reason why.
My bestfriend, Nathan, is the nerd. Not me. Our parents are best of friends that's why they named us very likely to each other. Another reason why, bad boys in our school are definitely not hot. Like, gosh. They often went to school without taking a shower, wearing the same clothes every other day, and ruin our school properties.
Those bad boys... Their different from Tyler Smith's group, our classmate since middle school. And yep, believe me, he's the type of bad boy that you often read on different love stories. But I swear, I'll never fall in love with that guy. His eyes were like the vampires. It does nothing but glare at people.
Nathan is the only friend I have. And I'm the only friend that he have, as well. Basically, we've known each other ever since we were a kid because of our parents. After a week from now, our summer break will be ended and classes will start to begin again.
Nathan and I will finally be a high school students! Yay! But please note the sarcasm. Being a high school student wasn't easy, that's what they say. But I wanted to correct them. Being a high school student is a disaster, I just didn't know why everybody is excited... Oh well, except me of course.
"Nat! We need to buy you some new shoes!" I heard my Mom calling from outside of my room.
"I don't need a new one, Mom!"
"I don't care. I'm still gonna buy you a pair. Jessica told me that she's gonna buy Nathan, that's why I wanted you to have something new too," she stated, knocking on my door.
I just sighed before opening my bedroom door. There she is, standing in my way looking at me like I was some kind of a freak.
"What now, Mom?" I asked.
"Come on, Nat. You're old enough to fix yourself. Look at you! You look like a mess. Would you mind combing your hair?"
"Fine, fine. But, do we really need to buy a new shoes for school? I mean, I thought we are on a tight budget right now."
"That's not your concern anymore. Just fix yourself so that we can go now."
"Alright..." I answered, bored.
She motioned me to get inside of my room and start fixing myself. I just nodded before closing the doors again. The reason why I don't want to spend some money on a new stuffs because that was against the rule number one of my manual, stating, "Don't show off. Stay low key."
If you're wondering what is that manual, it's a compilation of some rules that I'd created myself. Those rules keep me safe all these years. I survived middle school because of that manual and I'm hoping that my high school life would be as peaceful as possible with the help of it, of course.
Nathan often wondering why do I need to follow all those rules and restrain myself from all the fun. But my answer was very simple. I don't want to be like him. If his own definition of fun is being dragged on by the bullies at school hallways because he didn't let them copy his assignments, then I rather enjoy myself at home than join in that kind of fun.
Through the many years of studying, I already came up of almost a hundred rules on my manual. And now that we are going to be a high school students, I'm planning to create another one. A manual containing new and fresh rules for me. Everyday during after my classes, I'll try to come up with one rule to be added on my manual. In that way, I can summarized what I've learned in school that day.
"Nat! Where are you? We need to go now!" I heard my Mom shouted from downstairs.
I quickly grabbed my comb before trying to fix my messy hair. It didn't do. So, to make the long story short, I picked up a scrunchies and tied it in my hair. I looked at the mirror, not bothering to put a powder on my face or anything. I'm fine with my looks. I'm contented and happy for who I am, and I believe that that's already enough. And that is what makes my manual's rule number two: "Be yourself. Love your looks."
I ran downstairs, surprised to see my bestfriend and Aunt Jessica sitting on the couch in our living room. Nathan waved at me, and of course I did the same.
"Hey, Nat!" I greeted him.
"Hello, Nat."
"Your nicknames are so cute! I'm glad we named you two after each other."
My Mom laugh at Aunts Jessica's remark. Now I know why she's rushing me earlier. That it's because Nathan and his Mom were already waiting for us here.
"Come on, kids. Hop in," Aunt Jessica told us as soon as we got outside of the house.
She opened the door before Nathan and I got inside. Mom sat in the passenger seat, next to Aunt Jessica. They are blabbering about some random stuffs the whole trip while Nathan and I are just sitting quietly besides each other on the backseat.
"Hey..." Thankfully, he finally opened his mouth.
"What?"
"I think Mom and Dad are going to have a divorce soon," he whispered melancholically.
"What?!" I nearly gasped in disbelief.
"Shhh. Please lower your voice. I can feel it. Even if they didn't told me about it, I know that it will happen someday."
I just stare at him, scrutinizing his emotions through his eyes.
"Are you okay?" I worriedly asked.
"Yeah. Don't mind me. Though I'm a bit sad, but I know you wouldn't leave me like what my Dad's going to do soon."
"Of course I won't," I promised, before I offer my pinky finger. He accepted it, and we sealed our promises.
My third rule was, "Never state a promise to anyone." I neglected it, for I knew in my heart that I'm going to rephrase it later as soon as I got home. Rule number three is gonna be, "Learn to keep your promises."
[HIS SERIES BOOK #3] “You’re my light, my love, and my shelter.” –Gabriel Elizar. He chose to chase her. From the moment he laid his eyes on her, he began to fall deeper. But not all love story deserves a happy ending. Things ended up so bad, resulting into a multiple heartbreaks. As Gabriel finally realized that the woman he loves wasn’t destined to him, he decided to give up. He came back to his unselfish shelter, the woman he never thought of as his love. The woman who is willing to provide a home for his wrecked heart.
[HIS SERIES BOOK #2] “His amending touch will stay forever in my heart.” –Kate Frias. Kate had been broken before. Not just once, but twice. Her first heartbreak happened way back in high school, where the man she loves for a long time had fallen for her bestfriend. Second, it was with the most successful businessman in their country. And who would have thought that for the second time around, it was all because of Claire, her old bestfriend. Being broken twice made her realized one thing... And that is to never get herself too attached to anyone. Specially with his father treating her as an asset to gain partnership from different famous companies. But when a man made her feel his rectifying graze, will she be able to resist it, or will she surrender her heart again?
[HIS SERIES BOOK #1] “You will always be my epitome of beauty.” –Darren Herrera. Darren Herrera is one of the best businessman in his country. He’s a billionaire, has a pair of two mesmerizing blue eyes and face of a ravishing model. The epitome of the word perfection. Herrera Corp. will soon to be his, but only in one condition. He needs to get married and have a child to Kate Frias, the daughter of his father’s bestfriend. For him, having a wife and a child was a huge disaster. And no woman can pass his epitome of the word “beauty,” even Kate. That’s why he hired someone, someone that he can trust to play along as his wife. And that’s when he met Claire, a women that will make him change his own epitome of beauty.
“You need a bride, I need a groom. Why don’t we get married?” Both abandoned at the altar, Elyse decided to tie the knot with the disabled stranger from the venue next door. Pitying his state, she vowed to spoil him once they were married. Little did she know that he was actually a powerful tycoon. Jayden thought Elyse only married him for his money, and planned to divorce her when she was no longer of use to him. But after becoming her husband, he was faced with a new dilemma. “She keeps asking for a divorce, but I don’t want that! What should I do?”
After three secretive years of marriage, Eliana never met her enigmatic husband until she was served with divorce papers and learned of his extravagant pursuit of another. She snapped back to reality and secured a divorce. Thereafter, Eliana unveiled her various personas: an esteemed doctor, legendary secret agent, master hacker, celebrated designer, adept race car driver, and distinguished scientist. As her diverse talents became known, her ex-husband was consumed by remorse. Desperately, he pleaded, "Eliana, give me another chance! All my properties, even my life, are yours."
After being kicked out of her home, Harlee learned she wasn't the biological daughter of her family. Rumors had it that her impoverished biological family favored sons and planned to profit from her return. Unexpectedly, her real father was a zillionaire, catapulting her into immense wealth and making her the most cherished member of the family. While they anticipated her disgrace, Harlee secretly held design patents worth billions. Celebrated for her brilliance, she was invited to mentor in a national astronomy group, drew interest from wealthy suitors, and caught the eye of a mysterious figure, ascending to legendary status.
There was only one man in Raegan's heart, and it was Mitchel. In the second year of her marriage to him, she got pregnant. Raegan's joy knew no bounds. But before she could break the news to her husband, he served her divorce papers because he wanted to marry his first love. After an accident, Raegan lay in the pool of her own blood and called out to Mitchel for help. Unfortunately, he left with his first love in his arms. Raegan escaped death by the whiskers. Afterward, she decided to get her life back on track. Her name was everywhere years later. Mitchel became very uncomfortable. For some reason, he began to miss her. His heart ached when he saw her all smiles with another man. He crashed her wedding and fell to his knees while she was at the altar. With bloodshot eyes, he queried, "I thought you said your love for me is unbreakable? How come you are getting married to someone else? Come back to me!"
Madisyn was stunned to discover that she was not her parents' biological child. Due to the real daughter's scheming, she was kicked out and became a laughingstock. Thought to be born to peasants, Madisyn was shocked to find that her real father was the richest man in the city, and her brothers were renowned figures in their respective fields. They showered her with love, only to learn that Madisyn had a thriving business of her own. "Stop pestering me!" said her ex-boyfriend. "My heart only belongs to Jenna." "How dare you think that my woman has feelings for you?" claimed a mysterious bigwig.
"You're mine, little puppy," Kylan growled against my neck. A soft gasp escaped my lips as his lips brushed my skin. My mind screamed at me to push him away-the Lycan Prince who had humiliated me again and again, but my body betrayed me, leaning into him before I could stop myself. He pressed his lips against mine, and his kiss grew more aggressive, more possessive as I felt my legs weaken. What was I doing? In a split-second, I pulled away and slapped him hard across the face. Kylan's eyes darkened, but the smirk on his lips exposed his amusement. "You and I both know we can't fight this, Violet," he said, gripping my wrist. "You're my mate." "And yet you don't want me," I replied. "You told me you were ashamed of me, that l'd never be your queen, that you'd never love me. So please, accept my rejection and let me go." "Never," he whispered, his grip tightening as he pulled me closer. "Soon enough, you'll be begging for me. and when you do-I'll use you as I see fit and then I'll reject you."