That night I fell asleep crying. I kept it to a minimum so Evey wouldn't hear, but I was overwhelmed because I wasn't fitting in. When I woke up the next day, with tear-stained cheeks and stuffed nose, I was proposed with another place I knew I wasn't going to like.
"But I don't want to go to school," I sighed to Evey.
She placed a plate of two eggs and bacon in front of me. The pan on the stove sizzled with the wonderful smell of bacon, and the entire kitchen top was covered with eggs. She found a mouse this morning running around, and the last thing I expected her to do was throw eggs at it. She was the more intelligent person in our relationship. I told her I'd help her clean up the mess and set up traps around the house.
"Al, you have to go to school. It's against the law to not go," she told me with her mouth full.
I poked at my egg, making the yolk spill over and touch the bacon. "I don't care, I'd rather take online classes and stay here than go."
"Alaina, that's not healthy. You can't just stay in one place for that long. Plus, you need to socialize with other kids your age," she pointed her fork at me.
"Seth is around my age. I talked to him yesterday," I bit back. I pushed my plate away from me and slouched in my chair.
"Yes but..." she paused tying to think of a good excuse. I raised an eyebrow as she tried to make a good comeback. I smirked, leaning back over my chair to stretch. Catching a glimpse of the news on TV, there was a killing in Seattle. I shivered and retreated back to the chair, receiving from Evey, "You will go to school, no matter what."
I groaned and placed my head on the table in front of me. I knew I wasn't going to win this argument, so I'll just have to endure it. "I set up a meeting with the headmaster for Forks High School later today," she said as she turned on the sink.
"Why can't I go to school on the res?" I spoke to the table. Silence and tension resided after my question and I already knew the answer. Last thing I need is to be discriminated and teased again because of my skin color. Awesome, well at least I won't be the only white girl in school then. I let out a deep sigh and sat up, taking my plate over to help clean up. "What time is my meeting?" I asked her while I rinsed.
"Twelve. It's set in the middle of the day so you'll have a little tour afterwards so you don't get lost," she started scrubbing down the counter. I noticed a smirk on her face and I bumped her shoulder with mine.
"Stop making fun of my sense of direction!" I told her and she laughed. I've always had trouble with directions, even if it was a simple walk to somebody's house. I scraped the eggshells into the trash can and Evey walked off to her room. Glancing at the clock, I yelled to Evey, "What time are we leaving?"
"The school is just under a mile away, so we'll be leaving at twenty till," she shouted back. I was pretty sure we were going to end up late, but I didn't want to question it. I retreated back upstairs to get ready.
The high school was probably the most generic school I've ever seen. The buildings all clustered together, each numbered, and the bricks stood out against the green surroundings. As I followed Evey up to the main building, I took a glance at a sign saying: Forks High School – Home of the Spartans. Typical. I caught a glance at a few students hanging in the parking lot, all seeming to be around my age. They gave me a look like they were disgusted at the fact I was going to be the new girl. I turned my head to watch my steps as we entered the building. I couldn't help but glance up.
There were several kids my age in the hall, some pushing each other as they entered a door into a large room. It must be lunch or something. I followed Evey to a small office, the secretary's office. The lady's name was Shelly Cope, and she motioned to us to sit in the folding chairs nearby her. I was kind of afraid they would break when I sat; they looked old. I slowly sat and crossed my legs. I cracked my knuckles and Evey flinched. I smirked and did it right in her face. "Alaina, stop," she closed her eyes while batting my hands away. She always hates that sound. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see people pass in front of the office, glass panels encasing us inside.
"Alaina and Evelisa Ennis?" an older man stepped towards us. I looked up to see the headmaster smiling at us and holding out a hand to shake. "I'm Harold Greene, headmaster of Forks High School." I shook his hand and Evey did as well.
"Nice to meet you Mr. Greene," Evey said and jabbed my arm. I sent her a look and said, "Nice to meet you" as well.
"Let's step into my office," we followed him into his large office. We both sat in individual chairs on the other side of his desk. "I am glad you have considered to join Forks High Alaina. What made your decision to go here?"
I didn't really have an answer for that. I didn't choose the school, mostly because I just wanted to avoid school, but I had to think of something… and fast. "I uh… well…" I glanced at Evey. "We just recently moved here and I had to go to school so…"
"We decided this would be the best place for her," Evey jumped in. There is no need to discuss my hatred for school; that will set up a bad rep for me.
"Oh, where did you move from?" he asked, lacing his fingers together and setting them on his desk.
"Mexico," Evey said for me. "We wanted a change in scenery, and I have some cousins who live here, so we came here."
"That's good, do your cousins live nearby?"
"On the res. That's where we're staying."
I let them continue on their conversation about the res and how the headmaster had a friend who lived there and whatnot. It was quite boring actually. Some interview, I thought as I couldn't suppress a yawn.
"So Alaina," his voice drew me back to the matter at hand. "What's your passion? I was talking with your aunt here about the college process. We do have a college counselor here if you have questions."
I looked at him, then at Evey. When did they get on that topic? I must have zoned out for a long time then. I cleared my throat and replied, "I um… I like making music…"
"Wonderful! We have a very good music department here. When you go on tour, I'll make sure your guide gives you a full view of the recording room. What instrument do you play?"
"Guitar, I've played ever since I was little," I blushed in response. "I don't have a guitar though… I couldn't take mine on the plane or it would've gotten banged up." Speaking of, I need to save up more money to get a new one.
"We can provide you a guitar for the time you're here, if you want," he proposed. As much as I wanted to do so, I was afraid I would bang it up. I shrugged and silence followed. The silence sat for a long time, until Mr. Greene spoke up. "Well then, you ready for the tour?"
I couldn't help but smile on our way home. The girl who offered to give me a tour of the school (despite she had classes) was so nice to me that I was kind of frightened. She wasn't bored while showing me around, and we actually got talking about similarities between us. Problem was, I couldn't remember her name. I was always bad at names. The day ended with her giving me a soft hug and running off to get picked up by her parents. "Hope to see you in one of my classes!" she shouted to me as she jogged away, her bronze hair bouncing behind her.
Evey must've seen my happiness and chuckled. She wasn't with me for the tour because she had a job interview at a local supermarket. "What? The girl who gave the tour was really nice," I bit back at her.
"Well that's good," she replied while pulling onto the res. I was hoping that I would have at least one class with the girl, mostly because she was so nice to me, but I also heavily doubted it. Like that's going to happen, I told myself while I walked upstairs to plan out things to bring to school tomorrow. Whatever I wished for, it never happened. Once, I wished to see my mother and father again, when the clock struck 11:11. Evey overheard my wish and sat down and gave me a long talk about what happened to them.
I slipped into some sweats and a camisole and laid on my bed, staring at the wolf painting on the wall. I closed my eyes and attempted to conjure up pictures of what my parents may have looked like. Evey told me that I have the same hair as my mom, but the curliness came from my dad. I had the same eyes as my dad too. She said that my mom died giving birth to me, and that my father gave me up because he was distraught about my mom's death. I assumed because he blamed me, an innocent baby, for killing her. Tears welled in my eyes and I tried to bat them away. I pulled out the drawer from the nightstand next to me and searched for something.
With a sketchpad and pen in hand, I did a rough outline of what my parents may be. I gave my mom an hourglass shape, just like me, and drew my dad off to the side with curly-ass hair. I looked at the black, random lines on the paper and frowned. Then I raked my uneven nails across the page, slashing out the horribly drawn picture of my dad and throwing the notebook across the room. It landed in the trashcan and I grabbed my phone and plugged my headphones in. I turned up the music real loud and closed my eyes, not wanting to deal with anything now. Just the thought of my parents made me sick.
I tried to take deep breaths to calm my anger down, but it wasn't really helping. I took the pen from earlier and easily snapped it in my hand. Looking down at the broken shards in my hand, it didn't make me any less angry. Even though I wished I could see my parents again, I also wanted to beat up my dad for leaving me in the first place. If he hadn't left, I would've been happy to know I wasn't alone in the world for how freaky I am.