Two Meters Apart

Chapter One -- A New Girl

Who knew the most surprising, strangest thing ever all started with a game of tag.

"Tag you're it!" I yell, exhilarated. My best
friend, Tilly, chases me across the damp grass of the senior yard. I duck down under our well worn circular yellow-chipped monkey bars and dash across the concrete. I can hear her breathing behind me, but I don't slow down. My only concentration is the thump-thump, thump-thump of my feet on the dewy concrete, now changing to grass. She's panting now and slowing down.  I vault over the little stage-like structure thingy. I touch the monkey bars, the checkpoint, and win! I'm too out of breath to yell it though. A moment later Tilly comes up behind me.We both stand there, panting.  "Now I know to expect to lose when playing tag with Sunny Mae!" Tilly laughs. I grin. Then I suddenly see my hat across the schoolyard, it must have dropped in our game! I quickly tell Tilly I'll be back, that I'm just going to get my hat. She nods.

I race over, only to see Livia. Oh SIGH. "Hey, you friendless person, get out of here, only people with friends are allowed here, not fake ones" she leers. I feel tears start to form in my eyes, but I don't let them. "So, in that case, I suppose only bullies are allowed in this area?!" I retort. She's not used to me standing up for myself, so she's surprised. Ha! I take my hat. Livia practically pounces on me and takes it out of my hands. "Give it back" I growl indignantly. She waves it over her head, and then tosses it over the fence. OVER THE FENCE!!!! THE STUPID FACE!!! I look over to the area where Tilly was, but I don't see her. I grit my teeth. I guess I'm alone. No surprise there.

Without warning, Tilly jumps out from nowhere. "We have better things to do than bully people, so how about we just make sure it won't happen again?! MISS ANNABETH!!!!!!" Tilly half says, half yells. When Miss Annabeth comes, we explain the story. She opens the fence gate and takes my hat, giving it back to me. I nod gratefully. "Thanks!" Tilly and I chorus, and giggle together as we hear Miss Annabeth get Miss Jacqueline, Livia's teacher, and they start screaming at her together. Ha!

Suddenly, the bright blue, sunny sky turns to a grey, stormy sky and the sudden stormy sky turns BLACK. Like, as if it was MIDNIGHT, even though it's only 9:00am. The drastic change in the sky surprises me. Clouds roll in. Even the teachers are,...bouche bée. It's,....incredible. Unheard of.

"Kids! Hurry up! Inside! Kya, come on! Theo, get your cardigan and get inside! Tilly! Sunny! You'll have plenty of time to stare at the sky inside! Lia, in! Line up and get inside everyone! Livia, get over here, perfect time to serve detention!" Miss Jacqueline yells. I overhear Miss Annabeth, Mr. Zak and Miss Grace talking in low voices. I hear mutters like "We can't tell the students,...." "But Zak, look at this" "It's unheard of" "Yes, I know Grace, but,....look,....weather network,.....can you believe,....of course we,.....students!" "I know Zak but,....supposed to do?! Look at,..."

I freeze on my way to line up. The TEACHERS have never seen or heard of anything like it????!

As we're all going in, the sky lightens. The teachers stare, open mouthed, at the sky. The principal, Madame Céline, comes out with a bullhorn. "Kids, ten minutes left of recess!!!!" This is,...wow. Incredible.

We, surprised and puzzled, go back to playing. Hmmm,......
                                          ~_^
The bell rings. Already???! Recess felt short, but it was actually 20 minutes, wow!!!! Well, ten if you count the sky thing.

Then we have to go back inside, or else coocoo/yelling Mrs. Angeles will come to hunt us down and give us a red ticket or something. (That means you got into trouble and your parents need to sign it). We line up, and a few minutes later we're in class. Our other friends, twins called Jee-Enn and Jee-Ann are sitting next to us. Jee-Enn, the boy, is the mischievous one who takes pencils and makes them disappear and reappear. Jee-Ann is the girl, the kind of person who'd sharpen everyone's pencils for them but then cheekily make them levitate.