Josephine Jesus
March 2, 1914
Newcastle's School for Wayward Children
I made my way up the cobblestone walkway towards the big estate. The school was covered in vines yet its lawn was cut to perfection. Students in uniform littered the campus along with a few teachers and staff who watched them under scrutinizing eyes. I kept my head down, not wanting any attention.
Soon I was inside the school. I followed the signs to the Headmaster's office. I couldn't help but notice that the student body was predominantly white, the fact unnerved me slightly. I can't be myself here, the littlest misunderstanding could have dire consequences. The plaque outside of the office read 'Mrs. Cliffe Headmaster'. I knocked on the antique door gently and entered when told to.
Behind the door was a short, plump woman dressed in a long grey dress. She sat behind a big wooden desk filled with papers. She looked up at me and pulled off her cat-eye glasses.
"Ah. You must be Ms. Josephine Jesus. Please, take a seat," she said a slight smile on her face. I sat my two cases on the floor and followed her instructions. "Welcome to Newcastle's School for Wayward Children," she welcomed me.
"Thank you for allowing me to attend your school, ma'am," I nodded, respectfully. Mrs. Cliffe went through the papers on her desk, looking for something while cursing under her breath. She finally found what she was looking for.
"This is your schedule for the year. Along with your chores, dorm room number, and the official NSWC handbook. Your chores are expected to be done every day and your grades are expected to never drop below a seventy percent. If it comes to our attention that you have not met our expectations or have broken any rule inside your handbook, the punishment will be severe and you will refer to me as madam headmaster," Mrs. Cliffe's voice had taken a drastic change. Her voice reminded me of Polly's when she lectured the Shelby boys and I whenever we were caught doing something bad.
"Yes, ma'am. I understand ma'am. I mean madam headmistress," I corrected myself when she gave me a disapproving look. A knock was heard from the door behind us.
"You may enter," Mrs. Cliffe shouted. A slender brown-skinned girl entered the room, cautiously. The girl had shoulder-length hair and was dressed in a uniform.
"You summoned me, madam headmistress," the girl said in a voice that was only slightly above a whisper. She kept her eyes trained to the floor.
"Yes, you will be showing our new student around and taking her to her dorm," Mrs. Cliffe informed the girl and held the papers up. The girl shuffled towards her desk and retrieved the papers. She looked over the papers and then looked up at me.
"We have the same dorm," the girl said to me.
"Of course, you do. That's why I assigned you to be her tour guide," Mrs. Cliffe rolled her eyes and then placed her glasses back onto her stoic face. "Off you go," Mrs. Cliffe shooed us. I gathered my luggage and the girl and I exited her office without another word. We walked for about two minutes before she spoke to me.
"My name's Rosy Gardiner," she stated.
"I'm Josephine Jesus," I replied.
"So, what'd you do to end up here?" Rosy asked me. I shrugged my shoulders.
"The usual. Father got tired of me drinking and partying. Sent me here to get some 'structure'," I summarized my father's reasons for sending to boarding school. Rosy just nodded.
"Yeah that's the usual. Well, welcome to hell," Rosy gestured to the school. I stifled a chuckle. "So, I'm going to show you our dorm in the colored girl building and then I can show you the route to all of your classes. It just so happens that we have five out of seven classes together," Rosy stated our agenda. I only nodded. We neared the colored girl building which was a six-minute walk from the main building.
"Are the classes segregated also?" I asked. Rosy shook her head.
"No, only the living quarters," Rosy informed me. We enter the building and make our way up to the second floor. I noticed that some of the girls in the building gave Rosy disgusted looks. I decided against questioning it. Rosy puts a key into room '207' and unlocks it. She pushes the door open and walks into the room. The room was divided into two.
On one side the wall was painted black, had a twin-size bed, a wardrobe, and a small desk. The other side was almost identical except for it was painted beige. I placed my luggage on the bed and began unpacking.
"If you don't mind me asking, how'd you end up here?" I asked, cautiously, while folding my clothes and placing them inside the wardrobe.
"I don't really disclose that part of my life with people. Let's just say that my mother will never forgive me," Rosy answered. I raised my eyebrows, the feeling of curiosity rising in my body but I suppressed it due to the fact that Rosy didn't look comfortable. "Tell me about your home," Rosy prodded.
"I grew up in a small town in Birmingham, my father's a street preacher and my mother died a little after my brother was born. I was devastated by my mother's death but I had Polly," I stated. Rosy sat on her bed and waited for more.
"Who's Polly?" Rosy questioned.
"She's my best friend's aunt. She's had it rough but she's one of the strongest people I know," I explained Polly's importance to me. Rosy waved her hand, impatiently.
"Keep going, girl," Rosy stated. I chuckled.
"You want to know everything?" I asked. Rosy nodded eagerly.
"My best friend is John Shelby. Him, his brothers, and their aunt are my family as well. They always made sure I was safe and that my brother didn't get into the wrong crowd," I answered.
"All that time with boys. Something must have happened," Rosy infers. I placed the good luck charms from the Shelbys on my nightstand. A smirk found its way onto my face. I turned towards Rosy and sat on my new bed.
"John and I tried to see if we could be something more but we agreed it would just be weird. His brother, Thomas, had the biggest crush on me, but nothing came from that either. I doubt he even knows that I know he had a crush on me," I explained. Rosy just listened to me ramble, her eyes wide. She looked like a child being told the best bedtime story.
"Your life sounds like a picture film or a book," Rosy jokes. I laugh. She rose from her bed and stated that it was time to do a walkthrough of the school. They shared stories as they walked through the many halls of the school. A group of white people come down the hall and Rosy guides me out of their way. I look at her confused and then I look at the group that consisted of two girls and two boys. My eyes connected with the boy with grey eyes. He smirks at me and continues walking with his friends.
"Who's that?" I asked Rosy, still looking at the boy's back until he disappeared behind a corner. Rosy snapped her fingers in my face.
"That was the devil and her demons," Rosy says. "The blonde twins were Lily and Milly Bradford, the brunette boy was Kaden Forester, and the boy you were staring down was the infamous James Potter. They're tighter than a pack of hyenas, incredibly horrid hyenas," Rosy concluded. I ignored her insults. The only thing I could think about was that smile and those sparkly grey orbs.
"Are those all the classes we have?" I asked Rosy. She nodded.
"It's time for dinner. We have all our meals in the cafeteria, come on," Rosy grabbed my hand and led me to the cafeteria. We got our food and settled into one of the tables in the back of the cafeteria. We laughed and ate the questionable food that the staff served. Once we were done, Rosy and I headed back to our dorm and talked until she fell asleep.
I pulled out a pen and some paper and began to write a letter to my family back home.
Dear Dad,
I've arrived in Newcastle safely. The school seems very polished and strict. They have about 1000 rules and chores for me to do, but I guess it's for the best. I do not blame you for shipping me off. Perhaps I did become a bit too rebellious. Anyways, I've made a friend here. Her name's Rosy and she's my roommate. The school is year-long and we only take breaks for holidays. Tell the Shelbys to stay out of trouble, little Josie won't be there to cover their asses. Love you dad and keep me in your prayers.
-Sincerely,
Josephine Jesus
word count: 1513
edited.