Trust And Hope

Chapter 5

I dropped my head and weaved in and out of the many kids. Way too many kids. The fact that my best friend Jazmine had abandoned me that day didn't help. I don't care if you have a sinus infection, you are not leaving me alone.

Jazmine was pretty much my only close friend at that time. Everyone else was either popular, manipulative, or my parents would kill me for hanging out with them.

I weaved my way around the people crowding the hallways and worked my way to my locker.

I sped up my pace as I passed Allison Jensen, and the six or seven worshippers she liked to consider 'friends.' Man, Ally Jensen was popular. She could easily be the most popular in our grade. Maybe even the school.

She was perfect. Her hair was perfect, her makeup was perfect, her body type was perfect, her voice was perfect, and most people even thought her personality, sweet and passive, was perfect too.

Ally swept a strand of golden blonde hair behind her ear and turned her crystal clear blue eyes to the girl on her left. She was shorter than most of the people around her, and skinnier too.

Our grade was divided into people who were in Ally's inner circle, people who weren't, and people whom Ally didn't know were on the same planet as her, let alone the same school.

I fall into that last category. You know, those geeky, nerdy, dorky, and whatever else you can think of kids who are super quiet and usually only have one or two friends hanging around them? Yeah, that's me. And I'm perfectly fine with that.

I stood by my first-period Science, waiting for the bell to ring. It wasn't ringing. All my books were shoved in my backpack, because, even though we all lockers, no one ever had time to go and grab anything from it in between classes. Great thinking, school. And the money for lockers could've been used for something useful- like the art program.

Ring!

Finally. I slipped into the classroom, taking my place in the third seat on the second to last row. It's not in the back, so I can still see, but it's not up front, so the teacher doesn't call on me too often.

Students began filing in one by one.

Mrs. Adkinson started calling roll. I mentally prepared myself to say 'here' because one just needs to practice that.

Then Mrs. Adkinson smiled and pointed to the board. Written in huge, blocky letters were NEW GROUP PROJECT. Mrs. Adkinson is probably the prettiest teacher in our school. She's young and has caramel-colored hair that cascades down her back and these pretty blue eyes that bore into when you're caught talking during class.

"The school year is almost finished, class," Mrs. Adkinson said. "You must find a question that you don't know the answer to. A question that relates to the human mind or body. I suggest you write this down. This project is due in three weeks. Three weeks, people. If it's not turned in by then, you will be marked down." She surveyed the class quickly, her eyes passing over each of us. "We're going to be doing groups of four." She pursed her lips and consulted the paper on her desk.

She tapped her pencil on the desk as she rattled off names.

Finally, Sierra, Ally, and I were the only ones left.

"Girls, I'm going to put you in a group," Mrs. Adkinson said. "It looks like Miss Jazmine is out sick today, so bear in mind that she'll be in your group tomorrow."

"Yes ma'am," I said automatically.

"Is there anything else?" Sierra asked.

"No, Miss Sierra, I don't think so," Mrs. Adkinson said. She once told us that she couldn't expect us to respect her and the rest of our class unless she respected us as well. I loved Mrs. Adkinson so much.