Chapter 3: A New School
After receiving my violin, my mother signed me up for lessons and shortly thereafter school started. My new school did in fact challenge me. I had separate classes for each subject, and I actually made a friend in my geography class. Her name was Samantha, and she was actually clever, even if not as clever as me. Samantha was two years my senior and she too was taking violin classes. We would practice together after school, oftentimes visiting each other at our houses. My mother was quite pleased that I had finally found a friend, and truth be told I was as well.
One fateful October day while at school , Samantha and I went into the library. "I want to show you something I've never shown anyone before. And it's a secret." I told her looking into her eyes. I wasn't 100% sure that she could keep a secret, but I couldn't keep it to myself any longer. I logged onto a computer and googled the name Sherlock Holmes. I clicked on John's Blog and on the picture he had of my father on the side column in his funny hat. "That's my dad." I whispered. It wasn't the first time I said this out loud, but it was the first time I had ever said it where someone could hear me. I glanced around the library cautiously then looked into my friend's eyes again.
"No way." She said, her eyes emitting excited disbelief. "Are you sure?" I nodded. "That is so awesome!" She said loudly. The librarian and I both shushed her.
"Remember", I said "It's a secret." She nodded her head and we explored through the website, I showed her some of my favorite cases and we giggled about what it would be like to meet my father.
"Have you ever e-mailed him?" Sam asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"What?" I asked. The thought had never crossed my mind. I wasn't supposed to know that he existed. It was a secret.
"E-mail? You know. He has a website too. You could e-mail him. Or John. Get to know him?" She asked me.
Before I could respond sniveling Jake Castern came over and looked at the computer screen. "Why would you want to e-mail him?" He asked sneering down his long pointy nose. "He's not even real!" He pushed up his glasses and sniffed, loud and long.
"He is too!" Sammy shouted at him. She received a glare from the librarian and myself. Before I could stop her she went on "In fact, he's Lexie's dad!" She flashed a bright smile at him until he started laughing so hard that he snorted.
"That is not her dad!" He yelled still laughing. Just then the librarian walked over and kicked all three of us out of the library. As soon as we had left the library the bell rang and we walked into our Geography class that we all three had together.
In the 10 minutes before our class ended, Mr. Shetland was called out into the hallway by a parent. Jake used this time to further his making fun of me. "Hey, guess what guys!" He called out to the class. "Lexie thinks her dad is Sherlock Holmes!" I saw my classmates mouths drop open in surprise. Some of them looked as if they might believe it, but most of them looked on in disbelief and joined in with Jake's snorting laughter.
"He is!" Sammy yelled glaring at him.
I felt my face heat up as I started to blush, however the embarrassment turned to anger when Jake glared and said, "Yeah right Sammy! Sherlock Holmes isn't real. And Lexie doesn't even have a dad! She's illegitimate." He said with disgust in his voice.
Before I could stop myself my words bubbled out of my mouth, just as Mr. Shetland and the parent entered the room. "Oh yeah? Well at least my dad isn't sleeping with my nanny behind my mom's back!"
I heard two very distinct gasps coming from the front of the room amid the other noise which my retort produced. One was Mr. Shetland, and the other Mrs. Castern, Jake's mother. I instantly realized that I had made a mistake, and hoped that this didn't get me expelled. This was the best school I had been to yet. However after seeing the look of embarrassment on sniveling Jake's face, I knew that no matter what happened, it was worth it.
After an hour in the principal's office and an hour bus ride home, I got off with only a week of suspension and the requirement of writing Mrs. Castern an apology letter. I was brimming with satisfaction when I got home. That was, until I had to tell my mother the whole story.