Chapter Three
"Patrice, will you please inform Grace Walters that I have finally found her niece? Thank you." I could feel the irritation radiating off her as she opened the door to her office. I couldn't stop shaking. So this is what it feels like to be sent to the principal's office... The look she gave me as she sat down at her desk was enough, there's no way I'm getting this job. "I..." She cut me off before I even tried to explain myself. "Miss Rajata, I honestly have no time for whatever excuse you were going to bore me with so I'm just going to cut to the chase." She tilted her head towards the chair that was opposite her. Unfortunately for me, my encounter with the school's floor slipped my mind. As soon as I sat down, there was a sharp pain in my lower back that lasted a couple of seconds and I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from crying out. I kept my head down, focusing on her desk, hoping she wouldn't notice. My eyes landed on her name plaque. Natalie Martin.
"We have had many individuals come in for this job, Miss Rajata. And though it pains me to say this, your resume was the least disappointing. I'm not disregarding the fact that you showed up 30 minutes late looking like you crawled out of a rat's nest but I am going to level with you." I wasn't sure whether I should be offended or not but I finally looked up at her. She continued. "We don't have the best track record when it comes to hiring for this position, our previous employee was a homicidal maniac who killed teenagers during her lunch break. So I need you to be honest with me, are you a homicidal maniac Miss Rajata?" Judging by the serious expression she had on her face, she was not kidding. I shook my head quickly not trusting what was going to come out of my mouth. She gave me a thin smile.
"You know, after dealing with a situation like that, I had to learn how to listen to my gut about the energy that people give off. You emanate innocence and compliancy..." she said thoughtfully, "Its just unfortunate that those are the ones we have to protect ourselves from..." Natalie Martin just watched me and I tried my hardest not to accidentally pull a face. It was like she was waiting for me to do something unexpected; like maybe grow another head or breathe fire out of my mouth. Finally, she broke the silence. "Welcome to Beacon Hills High, Miss Rajata. Your first appointment is in an hour, I highly recommend you fix that mess you call hair. You don't want to scare the students on your first day now, do you?" I looked at her utterly dumbfounded. She held out her hand and I shook it awkwardly, still in a state of shock. "Patrice will show you to your office, you'll find your schedule there." She stood up and walked to the door, my legs trembling as I followed her. "Um, thank you, Ms. Martin." I was about to leave when she pulled my arm gently. "You have her smile." She gave me a sympathetic look and quickly closed her office door.
I could feel every single wheel in my brain spinning out of control as I tried to process the fact that Ms. Martin knew my mother and I just got the job. Its only been like three hours into my first full day at Beacon Hills and I already feel like I'm about to jump off the edge. As I made my way towards the front desk, I accidentally knocked my shoulder into someone. "HEY! WATCH IT! Don't you have eyes?", a female voice shrieked. I mumbled a sincere apology and looked up. I came face to face with a red haired girl who seemed to be about my age and resembled a young Natalie Martin, her eyes holding the same intensity as her mother. She gave me a look that I couldn't quite decipher but it felt like she was trying to figure out something and was waiting for me to give her answers. I suddenly felt extremely light headed. Even my body was starting give out... Was it possible to get a concussion from a hard fall to the butt? "Maybe the impact travelled up my spine and reached my head..." I realized that I had said it out loud when she looked at me confused. She was about to say something but a waving Patrice caught my attention. I quickly apologized again and ran towards the door trying not faint on my way there.
For someone with short legs, Patrice was a pretty fast walker. The light headedness had passed but I still struggled to keep up with her- I blame my injuries and lack of sleep. "Here we are!" she said happily. She took the key out of the keyring, unlocked the door and handed it to me. "Better keep that one safe. We haven't had a chance to replicate it since the janitor lost the spare after they changed the locks." She pushed the door opened and I stepped in. Everything clearly had been stripped down and rebuilt, even the walls looked like they had a fresh coat of paint. But honestly, who could blame them?
"Everything you need is in that box next to your desk Miss Rajata, you have half an hour before the first student comes to see you. Feel free to set up the office how you see fit but keeping it appropriate at the same time. You young folks take freedom of expression to another level! Wasn't like that back in my day, that's for sure!" She laughed and I turned to face her and smiled. "I'm not to chuffed with us young folk either." I say laughing along with her. "Thank you so much for everything Patrice! And please call me Zel." I tell her. She smiled and pointed to the phone that was on the desk. "If you need anything at all, my extension line is 523, I left a sticky note with the number on it next to the phone." She patted my shoulder affectionately and left.
I closed the door, pulled my phone out of my pocket and sat down at my desk. How my phone survived that fall with me was beyond my comprehension but I was so grateful. 17 missed calls and 12 messages from Gracie. I just stared at the screen trying not think about everything that had happened in the past few hours. I couldn't cry, at least not right now. I took a deep breathe in and let it out. "Everything is going to be okay" I told myself over and over again. I finally mustered up the courage to open one of Gracie's messages when I froze at the sound of someone knocking at my door. Trying not to let my anxiety get the best of me, I quickly checked the schedule Patrice had printed for me and I went to open it. "H- hi, are you Miss Rajata?" The boy looked just as anxious as I was. I nodded my head. "You must be Liam Dunbar, it's lovely to meet you. Come on in."