Elena smacked her desk in frustration. The internet was out again, and she had a paper due! It was her own fault, she supposed, for putting it off, but she had been certain she could complete it quickly- she'd done all the research already.
Being too young to get a job herself, she'd had to rely on the cheap internet her older brother paid for. It was just the two of them now; her parents had divorced when she was young, and she hadn't seen her Mom in years. Apparently she'd run off with some rich foreign guy.
Dad had tried his best, but he'd been in his late 40's when he married Mom, and had developed medical problems later in life. So her brother Chris was her legal guardian now. Even though he had a good job, and Dad had done his best to leave them with a good amount of money, he was pretty frugal- not that this was a bad thing, but it meant that he'd gone with cheap internet, and now Elena was paying the price for that.
With a sigh, she stuffed her laptop into her backpack. She'd have to walk to the Library and use their Wifi. She couldn't wait to be able to drive, but it couldn't be helped. She texted Chris so he'd know where she was, grabbed a sweatshirt (one of Chris's old ones, which was quite big on her, but it was warm and comfortable) and headed out the door.
It was a few blocks to the Library, and she had short legs, so she had her work cut out for her. It didn't help that she was averse to anything more than light exercise (whatever was required of her in P.E., and her free weights). Her Dad and Brother had been blessed with tall, athletic builds, but she could only assume her Mother was a petite woman herself.
As she walked along, she heard a car honk. Looking to her left, she sighed at the sight of a pink convertible. It was Bethany and her "minions". One of the problems of being a senior at 15, everyone else in your grade can drive, were more developed, and tended to be massive jerks about it. Elena didn't get bullied that much, but she still hated most of her clasmates.
"HEY, 'Lena, want a ride?" Bethany called out. Her friends giggled.
"No thanks, I can use the exercise." Elena called back.
"Oh listen to her! The baby is too good for us!"
"She's probably jealous she doesn't have a boyfriend. Or any friends!"
"Yeah and no tits to speak of!"
Elena was suddenly distracted by a shiny object at her feet, she bent over, just in time for a half full cup of flat soda to sail over her head. Not bothering to see if they'd scored a direct hit, Bethany hit the gas and sped away.
"Ugh, what bitch." She picked up the object. It was a man's ring, and it looked quite old. It's smooth surface bore scores of tiny scratches, and it was set with a dark garnet. There was no inscription, and she wondered who had lost such a thing. Though it was much too big for her fingers, she slid it on her thumb. To her surprise, it fit snugly, though she was certain it wouldn't have.
"Huh, strange." She shook her head. "I'll have to check online to see who this belongs to." She continued on her way, but after a few minutes, she saw a pink convertible heading her way. Wonderful, they were back for a second pass.
She idly wished for something to happen to Bethany and her cronies.