The blaring sound of my alarm wakes me up with a jolt. I look at me alarm clock.
6am? Why am I waking up so early? Then I remember it's the first day back at school. I quickly get ready without eating and go to school. I'm only leaving at 7:15. I walk as usual and get there at about 7:30.
I sat down in the benches near the quad outside. Megan walked up five minutes later. "Hey Dakota, yeah so umm bad news. I'm going up to the Mountains for some funeral of a random person that my mom knows so won't be here next week?" She says it like a question.
"Okay, at least you'll be here this week right?"
She smiles. "Maybe half the week." we sit for the next five minutes and talk about what she's gonna do up in the mountains. The bell rings shortly after.
The whole school lines up in the hall for the first assembly. Our headmaster says that everyone must line up in their houses so that the teachers can put us into our register classes for the year. Megan and I are put into the same class. Our register is a new teacher who came this year.
"Good morning, my name is Miss Lory, I hope you all had a good holiday. That's actually what I wanted to start with. I want everyone here to tell me, and the rest of the class, what they did this holiday. I know it's a bit weird, but it's a system that helps with social growth." whispers went racing through the classroom, but no one argued. Mostly because most people, know to not get on a new teachers bad side.
"We will start with..." she ran her finger down the class list, "... Kelly Palmer." A girl with blond hair stood up and started telling everyone about her holiday at the beach. After about six other names she landed on me. "Dakota Maine." She said
"No thanks," I replied. And I wasn't trying to be rude by saying that. I honestly didn't want to tell everyone about doing nothing this holiday.
"Excuse me?" she asked.
"Well ma'am, I'd rather not say what I did. But thanks."
"My dear," she said like she was fifty years older than me, "it wasn't an option. Why would you, rather not do it?"
"Ma'am, I don't see the point. First of all, we are in high school, not preschool. And second, why would I want to tell anybody in this room what I did this holiday? Why would they care? They're not my friends, they don't know me very well. If I knew them, they would already know what I'd done this holiday. But, most of us in this room aren't all friends. We've got our own friends. So why would they want to know what I did? I certainly don't want to know what they did! And I'm sure, other will agree, it's just a waste of time." I sit down. Miss Lory is staring at me like I've just ordered my death wish. "And I am just being honest, I'm not trying to offend you ma'am, or your teaching method."
She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "Okay Miss.." she looks on the class list, her eyes go big and quickly looks at me. But then she comes back to earth, "meet me after class please."
I smile, "It would be my pleasure to do so ma'am." The rest of the class say what happened in their holiday but there seems to be a tension that no one can dismiss. The bell finally rings. I sit by my table and wait for everyone to leave, when the last person is going out the door, I walk over to Miss Lory's desk. She leans against her desk and folds her arms.
"Maine. Is Andy Maine your brother?" I swallow. I never like talking about Andy. But I nod anyway. "How is he?"
I squint at her, "You don't know?" It comes out almost as a whisper.
"Know what?" She really doesn't know.
"Ma'am, if you want to talk to me, don't talk about my brother, please?" Miss Lory didn't seem to hear the pleading in my voice.
"Okay. I just want to say, that I hope we don't have that trouble all year, yes?"
"We won't ma'am," I reply and walk out fast before she asks more about my brother. Megan is waiting for me by the door. I think she was eavesdropping because when I look at her, she just nods understandingly.
On Wednesday night, Megan tells me that she won't be coming to school the next day because of the funeral. So, the next day at school, when it is break, I take my book and sit down at an empty table. I look up and scan my eyes around the lunch room. There are a group of friends next to me talking about what universities they are going to apply to. Another group of boys are pushing each other and acting like fifth graders. I concentrate on my book again. Someone comes and sits across from me. I'm not sure who it is, but I don't check, I carry on reading.
"Hello," says a mans voice, but I ignore him. He waits for a while and realizes I'm not answering so tries again, "what's your name?" I don't know him so? "Okay mystery girl," he tilts his head to look at my book. "Is it a good book?" I still don't answer and keep my eyes fixed on my book. "Whats it about?"
I gently slam my book closed, "Why are you talking to me?"
"Why can't I? He replies. I sigh. "So, mystery girl? What's your name?"
"You can't to talk To me because I'm in the middle of a book" I open the book and start reading it again.
"What's your name?" He asks again
I stop reading and look at him, "Dakota."
He smiles then puts out his hand, "Hi Dakota, I'm Daniel," I slowly put my hand in his and shake it, "wHat you reading?"
"You ask too many questions."
"You haven't smiled the whole time I've been here you know," he states.
I glare at him, "Well no I haven't because I was in the middle of a book when you came and started talking to me. I don't know you, so I don't have to talk to you, but you still carried on talking, which is actually very irritating. So no, I didn't smile, and I have no reason to smile."
He stares at me, a disbelieving smile stuck on his face, then it breaks into a grin, "Wow."
The bell rings and everyone start getting up. I stand up, "Wait," says Daniel, "where do you go now?"
"English so, bye," I start to walk away, but then he stops me.
"See you in Reg," I look at him.
"What?"
"We're in the same Reg class."
"So you saw the other day?" I ask slowly.
"Yeah. It was pretty cool. Why do you think I came and talked to you. I've never talked to you before, but what you did the other day, man it was awesome," I turned around and started walking off, a small smile curled around my lips as I walked.
