Barracuda Blue - An Online Webseries

Written by: Dallas Walsh

The sun is beating down on the patio of Café Tropical at the Barracuda Blue, which means most of the umbrellas are popped open, so the guests don't overheat from the sun. Under one of the blue umbrellas, Rachelle sits with a sparkling water in her hand. She sets the glass down as some waves from the Pacific Ocean crash into the beach that is a few feet away from her. She has a sly grin on her face as she learned that she has an A in her Art History class heading into her final term paper, which is due soon. The fact that she already has an A means that she would have to do very poorly on the essay for her not to finish at the top of her class. She looks up and sees Marco sitting in the lifeguard chair; she gives him a quick wave before she returns her focus to her education.

"All of my hard work is finally paying off," she tells herself as she feels a sense of pride of her accomplishments at the school. "I know it is crazy, but I am hoping that by being the valedictorian, mom will come home to celebrate. I know it's a long shot considering she's been away for years, but I am still hopeful."

"Good morning beautiful girl," a voice says from behind Rachelle, who turns and sees her Aunt standing behind her. "How was your breakfast?"

"It was lovely as always," Rachelle tells Orvilla, who sits across from her.

"I'm pleased," Orvilla purses her lips together. "I'll tell the Chef that he is doing a good job."

"Is it me, or is this place busier than it has been the last few weeks?" Rachelle asks her before she takes a sip of her water.

"You're so clever," Orvilla chuckles back to her niece. "I placed a couple of the rooms on a discounted price in hopes of getting bookings. You see, the resort hasn't been doing as well since that horrible launch with Rockwell Mining and Roboto."

"The press wasn't kind to us or the companies," Rachelle nods back to her. "I'm glad that people are slowly coming back; this place, it is too special to be empty."

"You and I agree on that," Orvilla chuckles back to her. "How are your studies going? You're almost done this term, aren't you?"

"I am in the final weeks," Rachelle smiles back to her. "I have straight A's, and the only class I'm really worried about is my Art History class; the final term essay is going to be difficult to write, I have to get to work on it actually."

Orvilla smiles back to her, wondering if this is a way she could prevent Rachelle from becoming the CEO of Meccanica; she has already ensured that Lyzz or Liam will not be able to apply, even though they noted that they weren't interested, but she still has to find a way to prevent Rachelle from being the next CEO.

"I have nothing but faith that you will get that A," Orvilla replies to her. "You're a brilliant young woman. Do you need me to call the car to drive you to the float plane terminal?"

"No, that won't be necessary, I'm going to use the library at the resort, if that's okay?"

"It is perfectly fine."

/\/\/\

A few moments later, Rachelle is about to move to the elevators at the Barracuda Blue, however, she notices her siblings, Lyzz and Liam, stepping out of Lyzz's white Mercedes SUV just outside the main entrance of the resort.

"Hey guys," Rachelle waves to her siblings as she steps outside. "What's going on?"

"I was running late today for my tennis lesson," Liam admits to her, as he thinks about the previous day when he and Leaf had sex with one another. The session left him exhausted and he crashed pretty hard the previous night. "Lyzz was coming here, so she agreed to drive me."

Lyzz doesn't remove her sunglasses, which are hiding her bloodshot, stoned eyes. She got stoned again this morning as she is still coping with the loss of her fiancé, Ash. For some reason, she feels completely out of it again, which is a different sensation for her as she normally can handle cocaine.

"Lyzz, you okay?" Rachelle asks her sister.

"Yea, I'm cool," she says as she lights a cigarette. "I'm late for work, but I'm sure Orvilla won't be too disappointed."

"For now," Racehlle chuckles back to her. "When I'm CEO, I might not be as forgiving."

"You still want the position, huh?" Liam asks her with a chuckle as Rachelle nods to him.

"Once I turn 18 and graduate, I think I will be the perfect candidate," Rachelle proudly announces. "You two are still okay with that, right?"

"We are good," they say in unison.

"Okay cool, I am heading to the library to work on my term paper; let's meet up later for food?"

/\/\/\

Rachelle moves back into the Barracuda Blue and heads towards the elevators. She is desperate to get to the library so she can work on her term paper before she has to leave for class in the afternoon. From the elevators, she has a clear view of the large pool that is just outside of Café Tropical. She arches her eyebrow when she sees someone familiar sun tanning on the deck.

She rushes to the deck and gasps when she sees Nate laying on a lounger in short red shorts. She can't help but notice his toned chest while he lays in the sun.

"Nate, what…what are you doing here?" she asks him as she moves up to him.

Nate looks over at her and flashes her a smile. "Hey Rachelle," he smiles at her as he lifts his sunglasses so he can look at her. "I was looking for you, actually."

"You're looking for me while you're laying in the sun?"

He chuckles back to her. "I knew I'd see you eventually," he winks back to her. "Your family owns this place, right?"

She nods back to him. "I'm still not sure what you're doing here?"

"I wanted to see if we had a deal? I'd help you chill out and relax if you help me with the term paper for our Art History class? What do you say?"

She shakes her head back to him in disgust. He came all this way to ask her for help, but instead of going to work, he decides to lounge by the pool? She doesn't understand the logic.

"Let me get this straight?" she asks him as she puts her hand on her hip. "You want me to help you, but instead of tracking me down, you're getting your tan on?"

"I found you and just asked you for help," he tells her as he grabs his white t-shirt and pulls it over his head. "Come on, how about it? It seems like we'd both benefit from this?"

"Fine," she groans back to him. "I'm heading to the library now to work on my paper, you can come with me if you want. But just remember, you are writing your own paper, I'm just going to give you pointers and tips."

He licks his lips back to her as he nods. "Yea, that's totally fine. Come on, let's hit the library."

/\/\/\

Orvilla stands in her office looking out of the expansive window. She is, once again, lost in the waves as she is deep in thought. She knows that she must think of a way to prevent Rachelle from potentially taking the CEO position of Meccanica when she turns 18; she has already found ways to neutralize Lyzz and Liam, but the youngest Thornton child is proving to be more difficult.

Her conversation with Rachelle earlier in the day keeps replaying in her head. And soon, she is getting a wicked idea.

"She has this term paper that she has to write," Orvilla whispers to herself. "I wonder…"

She turns around when she hears the office door opens and Arrow appears. "Justin, hello," Orvilla looks back at him. "I…I trust that you've cooled down?"

Arrow looks back at her and forces a smile on his face. He knows that he was rather upset with Orvilla for her plan to ensure Liam wouldn't get the CEO position of Meccanica because it meant that Leaf seduced him and slept with him. The thought of his partner being with Liam made him sick, and he told Orvilla that much. Still, at the end of the day, Arrow is happy that his lifestyle will not be impacted. He just hopes he and Leaf can overcome this obstacle.

"I'm fine," he tells her. "I won't apologize for what I said, because it needed to be said."

"I don't blame you for being upset," Orvilla admits to him. "The truth is, you are in love with Justin, and he slept with Liam. If I was in your shoes, I too, would be upset."

"Appreciate that," Arrow nods back to her. "So, what's going on? I am assuming you've tried to think of a way to prevent Rachelle from becoming the CEO of Meccanica?"

"I just had an idea," Orvilla admits to him. "But I will need your help. And don't worry, neither you or Justin will have to sleep with anyone."

Arrow finds himself uneasily chuckling back to her at her remark. "What can I do?"

"I need you to find out who Rachelle's Art History teacher is," Orvilla replies to him quickly. "And once you do, let me know. He might be the key to her undoing."

/\/\/\

On the third floor of the Barracuda Blue, there is an expansive library that guests have access too. There are books, magazines, and computers for use. When the resort first opened, Samuel thought of it as a business center, but they changed the name to the library to sound more elevated. One of the things Orvilla wants to do is reimagine the space as it is very underused by the guests as most people now have their own laptops and tablets to use.

In the middle of the library, Rachelle and Nate are sitting next to one another at a table, each with their laptops open. They are both typing furiously as they are working on their papers, which are due by the end of the week.

"How is it going?" Rachelle stops typing for a moment and looks over at Nate, who appears to be in a daze looking at his screen.

"I…I don't know," he admits to her. "I don't think I'm writing this paragraph as clearly as I could be. Can you read it and let me know?"

"Sure," she smiles back to him as he turns the screen to face her. They lock eyes for a moment, and they can both feel some sparks between them. She, then, turns her attention to the screen and reads the paragraph. "You have, like, three run-on sentences in this paragraph. If you re-write it, like this, it might sound better," she says as she types into his document.

Nate reads what she is writing and smiles back to her. "You're right, that does sound better," he tells her. "I can't thank you enough for helping me with this, Rachelle. You're a life saver."

"I don't mind at all," she admits to him. "If anything, I'm actually enjoying this. I…I don't know why we didn't become friends sooner."

He puts his hand on hers for a moment and squeezes it. "Me neither, but I am also glad that we are now friends."

/\/\/\

At Belview Academy, Malcolm Summers sits at his desk in his classroom looking over some upcoming class plans that he will teach to his students. He has been a teacher for 10 years, as he felt like it was the logical thing to do with his master's degree in art history. The has loved his job as he enjoys seeing the students learn about his passion.

He looks at a picture that rests on his desk and gets a smile on his face. The picture is of him, his wife, Natalie, and their two children, Rufus and Miranda. The children are his pride and joy, and he can't imagine his life without them. He knows that they don't share his same love and appreciation for art, but he still tries to encourage them as much as possible.

His gaze stops on his wife, Natalie, for a moment. She is a beautiful woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes. After having Miranda, however, her body changed and she started to get more shape to her, which is common in women once they've had multiple children. Malcolm, however, can't help but wish that she would take better care of herself; he misses the day that she was thinner. Not that he doesn't think she is beautiful, she has just changed.

This is a big part of the reason that he slipped up a few years back and had an affair. The woman he slept with was skinny, beautiful, and much younger than he was. They slept together three times, and he loved every minute of it. The final time, however, they were almost caught by Natalie, and that's when he realized that he had to end the affair. He couldn't risk Natalie, or his children, finding out about his indiscretion, so he ended things. Still, he thinks about her often and imagines her riding him again when he's alone with his hard-on in the shower.

He snaps back into reality when his phone rings. "Malcolm Summers," he says as he answers the call. "Yes, what is this about? Very well, I will be there tomorrow afternoon after my class ends."

He hangs up the phone with an arched eyebrow. "Orvilla Anderson wants to see me at the Barracuda Blue," he whispers to himself. "I wonder what this is all about? It must be something to do with Rachelle, but what?"

/\/\/\

The following morning, Rachelle steps out of the town car that has driven her from the float plane terminal to Belview Academy. She takes a deep breath of the fresh air as she tries to calm her nerves. She must hand in her Art History paper today, and she just hopes that she did enough to ensure she finishes the top of her class.

As she moves to the front door of the school, Nate rushes up next to her. "Hey Thornton," he says as he greets her. "Did you finish your paper?"

"Very funny," she winks back to him. "You know I did. How about you?"

"Yea, I stayed up late last night and finished it," he replies to her. "I hope it's good, I don't want to flunk this case, mostly because I can't imagine taking this class again."

Rachelle giggles back to him. "I can't imagine that you're in danger of failing. From what I read, you have a great paper."

"Thanks," he grins back to her. "I couldn't have done this without your help."

"It was nothing," she shrugs back to him.

"Now it's my turn," Nate looks back at her. "For me to help you relax and unwind. So, you name the time and place, I'm your guy."

"I'll keep that in mind," Rachelle chuckles back to him. "Come on, let's going on so we aren't late."

/\/\/\

Malcolm slowly moves towards Orvilla's office at the Barracuda Blue. He, still, has no idea why she requested to see him, but he hopes that it has nothing to do with Rachelle as she is one of his star students. Earlier in the morning, Rachelle, and the other students in his art history class, handed in their final term papers, and he is excited to read what they have presented, especially Rachelle.

He knocks on the office door and hears a faint, "Come in", so he opens the door and moves into the office.

"Ms. Anderson," he announces himself as Orvilla stands up from her desk. "I heard that you wanted to see me? What is this all about?"

"Please have a seat Mr. Summers," Orvilla gestures for Malcolm to sit in front of her desk, which he does. "I understand that you're teaching my niece, Rachelle, in Art History?"

"I am," Malcolm nods back to her. "She's a very bright, clever, young woman. She is at the top of class."

"Yes, yes, I am fully aware," Orvilla waves her hand back to him. "The thing is, Mr. Summers, Rachelle has the potential to take my job from me, and I certainly can't allow that to happen."

Malcolm gulps heavily as he can't believe what Orvilla is telling him. "I…I am not sure what this has to do with me?"

Orvilla chuckles back to him. "I thought you'd never ask, Mr. Summers. You see, I have some information about you that could be very destructive to your career, and your personal life if it gets out."

"What are you talking about?"

"Your affair with your student," Orvilla glares back at him as Malcolm looks back at her in shock. "Yes, I know that you slept with one of your students and that your wife, Natalie, I believe, almost caught you, and that's when you ended the affair. But how would Natalie, and the dean of Belview, feel if they knew this?"

"I…I…"

"You have been caught with your pants down, Mr. Summers," Orvilla grins back to him. "It's fine, I'll keep your secret, as long as you do exactly what I say."

"What do you want me to do?" he asks as he looks down, ashamed that he has put himself in this position.

"Rachelle's term paper," Orvilla gets a grin on her face. "You're going to fail her because of plagiarism. I don't care how you do that, but you will do this, or else your world is going to implode."

/\/\/\

The following morning, there are dark clouds in the sky as a thunderstorm is expected to hit Hawaii. While Rachelle is walking towards the front door of Belview Academy, she can't help but be grateful that is only a thunderstorm as being right on the ocean can, sometimes, lead to hurricanes. There's a loud clap of thunder and the clouds open as the rain starts to fall heavily from the sky.

Rachelle rushes to the door and moves inside the school. She feels her heart racing, not because of the rain, but because she is going to find out about her term paper in a few minutes. For some reason, her professor, Malcolm Summers, has requested to see her before the class began. She only hopes that there was nothing wrong with her paper because she is so close to, possibly, becoming the valedictorian.

She hears another loud clap of thunder before she moves closer to the office door. Once she gets there, she knocks and she hears the professor advise her to enter the office, which she does.

"Hi Professor Summers," she greets Malcolm, who gestures for her to come in and sit down. "I am curious as to why you wanted to see me before our class today? Is it about my term paper?"

"It is about your term paper," Malcolm nods back to her as he clasps his hands together. "I read all of the papers last night. And when I got to yours, I was rather startled."

Rachelle arches her eyebrow back to him. "Startled? By what, exactly?"

"The fact that your paper is almost a carbon copy of another student," Malcolm reveals to her as Rachelle feels the blood drain from her face.

"Whhattt?" she stutters back to him. "No, that's…that's impossible."

"I'm afraid it is," Malcolm tells her. "Both you and the other student have plagiarized, and I will not stand for it."

/\/\/\

Orvilla paces back and forth in her office as her mind races about how Malcolm is handling Rachelle's term paper. She knows that her plan has to work, or she will risk losing her place as the CEO of Meccanica, and she refuses to allow that to happen.

She moves to the bar and pours herself a vodka, hoping to calm her nerves. She quickly shoots it back just as Arrow emerges into the office. She turns to see her friend.

"Justin," she turns back to him. "Please tell me that you have good news for me?"

"The essay was replaced," he nods back to her, as Orvilla breathes a sigh of relief. "Malcolm will have proof that Rachelle copied another essay."

"Thank God," Orvilla smiles back to him. "That means that she will not be able to take over as CEO! Oh Justin, we've done, we've really done it! Each one of the Thornton children will not be able to replace me as CEO of Meccanica! Everything has fallen perfectly into place! We…we need to celebrate!"




	Written by: Dallas Walsh The sun is beating down on the patio of Café Tropical at the Barracuda Blue, which means most of the umbrellas are popped open, so the guests don't overheat from the sun. Under one of the blue umbrellas, Rachelle sits with a sparkling water in her hand. She sets the glass down as some waves from the Pacific Ocean crash into the beach that is a few feet away from her. She has a sly grin on her face as she learned that she has an A in her Art History class heading into her final term paper, which is due soon. The fact that she already has an A means that she would have to do very poorly on the essay for her not to finish at the top of her class. She looks up and sees Marco sitting in the lifeguard chair; she gives him a quick wave before she returns her focus to her education. "All of my hard work is finally paying off," she tells herself as she feels a sense of pride of her accomplishments at the school. "I know it is crazy, but I am hoping that by being the valedictorian, mom will come home to celebrate. I know it's a long shot considering she's been away for years, but I am still hopeful." "Good morning beautiful girl," a voice says from behind Rachelle, who turns and sees her Aunt standing behind her. "How was your breakfast?" "It was lovely as always," Rachelle tells Orvilla, who sits across from her. "I'm pleased," Orvilla purses her lips together. "I'll tell the Chef that he is doing a good job." "Is it me, or is this place busier than it has been the last few weeks?" Rachelle asks her before she takes a sip of her water. "You're so clever," Orvilla chuckles back to her niece. "I placed a couple of the rooms on a discounted price in hopes of getting bookings. You see, the resort hasn't been doing as well since that horrible launch with Rockwell Mining and Roboto." "The press wasn't kind to us or the companies," Rachelle nods back to her. "I'm glad that people are slowly coming back; this place, it is too special to be empty." "You and I agree on that," Orvilla chuckles back to her. "How are your studies going? You're almost done this term, aren't you?" "I am in the final weeks," Rachelle smiles back to her. "I have straight A's, and the only class I'm really worried about is my Art History class; the final term essay is going to be difficult to write, I have to get to work on it actually." Orvilla smiles back to her, wondering if this is a way she could prevent Rachelle from becoming the CEO of Meccanica; she has already ensured that Lyzz or Liam will not be able to apply, even though they noted that they weren't interested, but she still has to find a way to prevent Rachelle from being the next CEO. "I have nothing but faith that you will get that A," Orvilla replies to her. "You're a brilliant young woman. Do you need me to call the car to drive you to the float plane terminal?" "No, that won't be necessary, I'm going to use the library at the resort, if that's okay?" "It is perfectly fine." /\/\/\ A few moments later, Rachelle is about to move to the elevators at the Barracuda Blue, however, she notices her siblings, Lyzz and Liam, stepping out of Lyzz's white Mercedes SUV just outside the main entrance of the resort. "Hey guys," Rachelle waves to her siblings as she steps outside. "What's going on?" "I was running late today for my tennis lesson," Liam admits to her, as he thinks about the previous day when he and Leaf had sex with one another. The session left him exhausted and he crashed pretty hard the previous night. "Lyzz was coming here, so she agreed to drive me." Lyzz doesn't remove her sunglasses, which are hiding her bloodshot, stoned eyes. She got stoned again this morning as she is still coping with the loss of her fiancé, Ash. For some reason, she feels completely out of it again, which is a different sensation for her as she normally can handle cocaine. "Lyzz, you okay?" Rachelle asks her sister. "Yea, I'm cool," she says as she lights a cigarette. "I'm late for work, but I'm sure Orvilla won't be too disappointed." "For now," Racehlle chuckles back to her. "When I'm CEO, I might not be as forgiving." "You still want the position, huh?" Liam asks her with a chuckle as Rachelle nods to him. "Once I turn 18 and graduate, I think I will be the perfect candidate," Rachelle proudly announces. "You two are still okay with that, right?" "We are good," they say in unison. "Okay cool, I am heading to the library to work on my term paper; let's meet up later for food?" /\/\/\ Rachelle moves back into the Barracuda Blue and heads towards the elevators. She is desperate to get to the library so she can work on her term paper before she has to leave for class in the afternoon. From the elevators, she has a clear view of the large pool that is just outside of Café Tropical. She arches her eyebrow when she sees someone familiar sun tanning on the deck. She rushes to the deck and gasps when she sees Nate laying on a lounger in short red shorts. She can't help but notice his toned chest while he lays in the sun. "Nate, what…what are you doing here?" she asks him as she moves up to him. Nate looks over at her and flashes her a smile. "Hey Rachelle," he smiles at her as he lifts his sunglasses so he can look at her. "I was looking for you, actually." "You're looking for me while you're laying in the sun?" He chuckles back to her. "I knew I'd see you eventually," he winks back to her. "Your family owns this place, right?" She nods back to him. "I'm still not sure what you're doing here?" "I wanted to see if we had a deal? I'd help you chill out and relax if you help me with the term paper for our Art History class? What do you say?" She shakes her head back to him in disgust. He came all this way to ask her for help, but instead of going to work, he decides to lounge by the pool? She doesn't understand the logic. "Let me get this straight?" she asks him as she puts her hand on her hip. "You want me to help you, but instead of tracking me down, you're getting your tan on?" "I found you and just asked you for help," he tells her as he grabs his white t-shirt and pulls it over his head. "Come on, how about it? It seems like we'd both benefit from this?" "Fine," she groans back to him. "I'm heading to the library now to work on my paper, you can come with me if you want. But just remember, you are writing your own paper, I'm just going to give you pointers and tips." He licks his lips back to her as he nods. "Yea, that's totally fine. Come on, let's hit the library." /\/\/\ Orvilla stands in her office looking out of the expansive window. She is, once again, lost in the waves as she is deep in thought. She knows that she must think of a way to prevent Rachelle from potentially taking the CEO position of Meccanica when she turns 18; she has already found ways to neutralize Lyzz and Liam, but the youngest Thornton child is proving to be more difficult. Her conversation with Rachelle earlier in the day keeps replaying in her head. And soon, she is getting a wicked idea. "She has this term paper that she has to write," Orvilla whispers to herself. "I wonder…" She turns around when she hears the office door opens and Arrow appears. "Justin, hello," Orvilla looks back at him. "I…I trust that you've cooled down?" Arrow looks back at her and forces a smile on his face. He knows that he was rather upset with Orvilla for her plan to ensure Liam wouldn't get the CEO position of Meccanica because it meant that Leaf seduced him and slept with him. The thought of his partner being with Liam made him sick, and he told Orvilla that much. Still, at the end of the day, Arrow is happy that his lifestyle will not be impacted. He just hopes he and Leaf can overcome this obstacle. "I'm fine," he tells her. "I won't apologize for what I said, because it needed to be said." "I don't blame you for being upset," Orvilla admits to him. "The truth is, you are in love with Justin, and he slept with Liam. If I was in your shoes, I too, would be upset." "Appreciate that," Arrow nods back to her. "So, what's going on? I am assuming you've tried to think of a way to prevent Rachelle from becoming the CEO of Meccanica?" "I just had an idea," Orvilla admits to him. "But I will need your help. And don't worry, neither you or Justin will have to sleep with anyone." Arrow finds himself uneasily chuckling back to her at her remark. "What can I do?" "I need you to find out who Rachelle's Art History teacher is," Orvilla replies to him quickly. "And once you do, let me know. He might be the key to her undoing." /\/\/\ On the third floor of the Barracuda Blue, there is an expansive library that guests have access too. There are books, magazines, and computers for use. When the resort first opened, Samuel thought of it as a business center, but they changed the name to the library to sound more elevated. One of the things Orvilla wants to do is reimagine the space as it is very underused by the guests as most people now have their own laptops and tablets to use. In the middle of the library, Rachelle and Nate are sitting next to one another at a table, each with their laptops open. They are both typing furiously as they are working on their papers, which are due by the end of the week. "How is it going?" Rachelle stops typing for a moment and looks over at Nate, who appears to be in a daze looking at his screen. "I…I don't know," he admits to her. "I don't think I'm writing this paragraph as clearly as I could be. Can you read it and let me know?" "Sure," she smiles back to him as he turns the screen to face her. They lock eyes for a moment, and they can both feel some sparks between them. She, then, turns her attention to the screen and reads the paragraph. "You have, like, three run-on sentences in this paragraph. If you re-write it, like this, it might sound better," she says as she types into his document. Nate reads what she is writing and smiles back to her. "You're right, that does sound better," he tells her. "I can't thank you enough for helping me with this, Rachelle. You're a life saver." "I don't mind at all," she admits to him. "If anything, I'm actually enjoying this. I…I don't know why we didn't become friends sooner." He puts his hand on hers for a moment and squeezes it. "Me neither, but I am also glad that we are now friends." /\/\/\ At Belview Academy, Malcolm Summers sits at his desk in his classroom looking over some upcoming class plans that he will teach to his students. He has been a teacher for 10 years, as he felt like it was the logical thing to do with his master's degree in art history. The has loved his job as he enjoys seeing the students learn about his passion. He looks at a picture that rests on his desk and gets a smile on his face. The picture is of him, his wife, Natalie, and their two children, Rufus and Miranda. The children are his pride and joy, and he can't imagine his life without them. He knows that they don't share his same love and appreciation for art, but he still tries to encourage them as much as possible. His gaze stops on his wife, Natalie, for a moment. She is a beautiful woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes. After having Miranda, however, her body changed and she started to get more shape to her, which is common in women once they've had multiple children. Malcolm, however, can't help but wish that she would take better care of herself; he misses the day that she was thinner. Not that he doesn't think she is beautiful, she has just changed. This is a big part of the reason that he slipped up a few years back and had an affair. The woman he slept with was skinny, beautiful, and much younger than he was. They slept together three times, and he loved every minute of it. The final time, however, they were almost caught by Natalie, and that's when he realized that he had to end the affair. He couldn't risk Natalie, or his children, finding out about his indiscretion, so he ended things. Still, he thinks about her often and imagines her riding him again when he's alone with his hard-on in the shower. He snaps back into reality when his phone rings. "Malcolm Summers," he says as he answers the call. "Yes, what is this about? Very well, I will be there tomorrow afternoon after my class ends." He hangs up the phone with an arched eyebrow. "Orvilla Anderson wants to see me at the Barracuda Blue," he whispers to himself. "I wonder what this is all about? It must be something to do with Rachelle, but what?" /\/\/\ The following morning, Rachelle steps out of the town car that has driven her from the float plane terminal to Belview Academy. She takes a deep breath of the fresh air as she tries to calm her nerves. She must hand in her Art History paper today, and she just hopes that she did enough to ensure she finishes the top of her class. As she moves to the front door of the school, Nate rushes up next to her. "Hey Thornton," he says as he greets her. "Did you finish your paper?" "Very funny," she winks back to him. "You know I did. How about you?" "Yea, I stayed up late last night and finished it," he replies to her. "I hope it's good, I don't want to flunk this case, mostly because I can't imagine taking this class again." Rachelle giggles back to him. "I can't imagine that you're in danger of failing. From what I read, you have a great paper." "Thanks," he grins back to her. "I couldn't have done this without your help." "It was nothing," she shrugs back to him. "Now it's my turn," Nate looks back at her. "For me to help you relax and unwind. So, you name the time and place, I'm your guy." "I'll keep that in mind," Rachelle chuckles back to him. "Come on, let's going on so we aren't late." /\/\/\ Malcolm slowly moves towards Orvilla's office at the Barracuda Blue. He, still, has no idea why she requested to see him, but he hopes that it has nothing to do with Rachelle as she is one of his star students. Earlier in the morning, Rachelle, and the other students in his art history class, handed in their final term papers, and he is excited to read what they have presented, especially Rachelle. He knocks on the office door and hears a faint, "Come in", so he opens the door and moves into the office. "Ms. Anderson," he announces himself as Orvilla stands up from her desk. "I heard that you wanted to see me? What is this all about?" "Please have a seat Mr. Summers," Orvilla gestures for Malcolm to sit in front of her desk, which he does. "I understand that you're teaching my niece, Rachelle, in Art History?" "I am," Malcolm nods back to her. "She's a very bright, clever, young woman. She is at the top of class." "Yes, yes, I am fully aware," Orvilla waves her hand back to him. "The thing is, Mr. Summers, Rachelle has the potential to take my job from me, and I certainly can't allow that to happen." Malcolm gulps heavily as he can't believe what Orvilla is telling him. "I…I am not sure what this has to do with me?" Orvilla chuckles back to him. "I thought you'd never ask, Mr. Summers. You see, I have some information about you that could be very destructive to your career, and your personal life if it gets out." "What are you talking about?" "Your affair with your student," Orvilla glares back at him as Malcolm looks back at her in shock. "Yes, I know that you slept with one of your students and that your wife, Natalie, I believe, almost caught you, and that's when you ended the affair. But how would Natalie, and the dean of Belview, feel if they knew this?" "I…I…" "You have been caught with your pants down, Mr. Summers," Orvilla grins back to him. "It's fine, I'll keep your secret, as long as you do exactly what I say." "What do you want me to do?" he asks as he looks down, ashamed that he has put himself in this position. "Rachelle's term paper," Orvilla gets a grin on her face. "You're going to fail her because of plagiarism. I don't care how you do that, but you will do this, or else your world is going to implode." /\/\/\ The following morning, there are dark clouds in the sky as a thunderstorm is expected to hit Hawaii. While Rachelle is walking towards the front door of Belview Academy, she can't help but be grateful that is only a thunderstorm as being right on the ocean can, sometimes, lead to hurricanes. There's a loud clap of thunder and the clouds open as the rain starts to fall heavily from the sky. Rachelle rushes to the door and moves inside the school. She feels her heart racing, not because of the rain, but because she is going to find out about her term paper in a few minutes. For some reason, her professor, Malcolm Summers, has requested to see her before the class began. She only hopes that there was nothing wrong with her paper because she is so close to, possibly, becoming the valedictorian. She hears another loud clap of thunder before she moves closer to the office door. Once she gets there, she knocks and she hears the professor advise her to enter the office, which she does. "Hi Professor Summers," she greets Malcolm, who gestures for her to come in and sit down. "I am curious as to why you wanted to see me before our class today? Is it about my term paper?" "It is about your term paper," Malcolm nods back to her as he clasps his hands together. "I read all of the papers last night. And when I got to yours, I was rather startled." Rachelle arches her eyebrow back to him. "Startled? By what, exactly?" "The fact that your paper is almost a carbon copy of another student," Malcolm reveals to her as Rachelle feels the blood drain from her face. "Whhattt?" she stutters back to him. "No, that's…that's impossible." "I'm afraid it is," Malcolm tells her. "Both you and the other student have plagiarized, and I will not stand for it." /\/\/\ Orvilla paces back and forth in her office as her mind races about how Malcolm is handling Rachelle's term paper. She knows that her plan has to work, or she will risk losing her place as the CEO of Meccanica, and she refuses to allow that to happen. She moves to the bar and pours herself a vodka, hoping to calm her nerves. She quickly shoots it back just as Arrow emerges into the office. She turns to see her friend. "Justin," she turns back to him. "Please tell me that you have good news for me?" "The essay was replaced," he nods back to her, as Orvilla breathes a sigh of relief. "Malcolm will have proof that Rachelle copied another essay." "Thank God," Orvilla smiles back to him. "That means that she will not be able to take over as CEO! Oh Justin, we've done, we've really done it! Each one of the Thornton children will not be able to replace me as CEO of Meccanica! Everything has fallen perfectly into place! We…we need to celebrate!"