When Ivan got back inside his father was already there. "Where have you been?" his father asked at the sound of the front door opening, he didn't look up from the documents he was reading.
"I went to look around the neighbourhood" Ivan replied,
"You are supposed to ask my permission, I am your father" his father's cold eyes snapped a glace towards Ivan, "Did you talk to anyone?"
"Nyet" Ivan lied; it probably wasn't a good idea to tell his father he had befriended an American boy
"Good. I don't want you mixing in with the wrong sort, understand me?" Ivan nodded, he supposed what his father meant by 'wrong sort' was the type of boy Alfred was. The tall teen decided it was just best to get out of his father's way; he went into his bedroom and lay down on his bed. He didn't have a television or computer, or anything in there, so instead he just reflected on his day, and then began to think of what his first day at an American high school would be like…hoping it was nothing like his previous dream.
The following Monday Ivan awoke from a good night's sleep. He got dressed in his usual clothes, a thick sweater and some brown pants; he topped off his outfit with his treasured scarf that he always wore. He couldn't deny the fact that he was nervous about going to school, and he knew he would get little support from his father on the matter.
"Ivan!" he heard his father call from the kitchen.
"Da, I'm coming papa" Ivan replied, walking to the kitchen
"My driver Eduard will take you to school; this will be the case every day." His father spoke, "He will also pick you up when school finishes" Ivan nodded, was it really necessary for the driver to escort him to and from school? Probably not, but Ivan didn't bother questioning his father.
Ivan left the apartment and went down the elevator; the same black car that had driven him from the airport waited outside, the blond man with glasses stood by the door.
"Morning" Eduard nodded, and opened the door for Ivan to get into the back.
"Good morning" Ivan stepped in, anticipating the journey to the school. It didn't take too long to get there; there was no reason for him to be chauffeured around like this. He could have easily walked; it would have taken no more than fifteen minutes or so.
Ivan got out of the car and approached the large building; he tightened the scarf around his neck and walked in. The Russian was instantly overwhelmed at the crowds of students, it was loud, very loud. He walked through the hallway, people glancing and staring at him, some whispered things as he passed by. He noticed how he was taller than everyone here, making him stand out even more. He suddenly felt very lonely; did everyone really have to stare at him like that? As if he was some kind of alien. Ivan decided to ignore them; he took out his map of the school and tried to navigate his way to his first class.
Suddenly he felt a harsh pat on the shoulder; he turned around wondering who he was going to come face to face with, a wide smile spread across his face when he recognised the boy as Alfred.
"Hey! Ivan! I didn't know you went here" Alfred beamed
"It is my first day today" Ivan explained
"That's awesome, where's your first class?" Alfred questioned
Ivan looked down at his timetable "It is history in room 202" Ivan looked around to see if that room was anywhere nearby,
"Ooh cool we share the same class! Just follow me dude" Ivan nodded, and followed the blond.
Ivan took a seat beside his lively friend in the classroom, waiting for it to begin. Of course the teacher had to announce there was a new student among them; Ivan didn't really feel like talking in front of everyone but didn't have much choice
"Today class we have a new student, would you like to introduce yourself, Ivan?" she spoke
Ivan nodded, remaining polite like his mother had taught him to be, and would have wanted. "My name is Ivan Braginski, I come from Russia" Ivan explained in a thick accent, the class began to whisper and turned to face the tall teen with curiosity.
After the class settled down the teacher began to get on topic; she stated the subject for the next few weeks was going to be on the 'Cold War'. Many people turned to look at Ivan again at the mention of the Cold war, and he began to feel awkward and out of place.
"I want you to do your research on this class; you will work with your partner and create a presentation to give to the class"
"YES! We get to learn about nuclear bombs and shit" Alfred exclaimed excitedly
"Alfred, watch your language please. And I think you will find that the Cold War was not just about bombs"
Alfred pouted, as far as he was concerned that was all he cared about.
After class had finished Alfred addressed Ivan, "Hey, so you wanna come back to my house to work on this presentation?"
Ivan knew this was going to be a problem; he highly doubted that his father would allow him to go back to Alfred's home… "Alfred I do not know if I can" he said, as he gathered up his books
"What? Why not?!" Alfred was confused
"It is my father" Ivan said,
"But we're gonna fail otherwise!" Alfred huffed, this was crazy…why didn't his dad let him do anything?
"We could work in the library?" Ivan questioned
"No way, we wouldn't be allowed to talk…how about I come back to yours?" Alfred raised an eyebrow in expectation
Ivan thought about it, he didn't know what to do. Finally, he nodded slowly "Da…I suppose…"
"Yay, awesome! Well catch you later!" with that, the young American ran off to his next class, Ivan was left to stare at the empty space where the blond had once stood. He mentally cursed. This wasn't going to end well.
