Chapter Nine

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A few days after that day in the skatepark, I thought about Cayla's accusations. I seriously highly doubted that Kyle or Danny liked me, but I started to pay more attention to how they acted towards me. It didn't seem like they liked me, but something was different.

I actually started to watch TV. Since I'd have to live in this house alone, I couldn't let it be silent. I was on Netflix watching The Fosters. Stef and Callie's mother-daughter relationship melted my heart. Even though my mom had acted more like Lena, I liked Stef better.

There were knocks at my front door, so I paused The Fosters and went to open the door.

"Who're you?" I asked the women in front of me.

"I'm your counselor, Gina Hamilton. And this is your teen leadership teacher, Ms. Ames," Ms. Hamilton said.

"School doesn't start till next week. And I already registered online," I said.

"We know, but we want to talk to you before school starts. We heard about your loss. We're really sorry," Ms. Hamilton said.

"Uh... Fine. Come in," I said letting them in. "Make yourselves at home. Do y'all want some water or something?"

"No, thank you," they said.

I sat across from them on the coffee table.

"I love this show," Ms. Ames said, referring to The Fosters still on pause.

"Me too," I said. "So, I didn't realize counselors and teachers made house calls anymore."

"On occasion," Ms. Hamilton said. "So, Abigail, senior year is kind of a big deal. It's prom, joining clubs, applying for colleges and scholarships, and it's my job to make sure you achieve those things."

"And my job is to just be there for you. That's why I teach teen leadership," Ms. Ames said.

I looked at Ms. Hamilton. "What if I don't want to do any of those things you just listed?"

That's fine, but that's what I'm here for. Okay, Ms. Ames, I have to go to the next house. Coming?" She asked.

Ms. Ames looked at me and shook her head. "I think Abigail and I should chat for a bit."

"Okay, bye," Ms. Hamilton left.

"She always that hyper?" I asked.

She nodded.

"So, what'd you wanna talk about?" I asked.

"I know how lots of people portray teen leadership classes, but I promise, it's not so bad. I won't try and shrink you, I won't make you say anything you don't want to. It's just a place you can vent about your life if you want. And if you don't, that's fine. It also about learning how to cope with hardships and help other people. I know how cheesy it sounds, but it really does help lots of people," she said.

I nodded. "Thanks."

"So tell me about you," she said.

I shrugged. "There's not much to me. Only child. I skate, hang out with friends. That's about it. What about you, hmm?"

"Alright," she laughed. "I have a brother, I play almost every sport there is, and that's about it."

I grabbed my blanket from the couch and threw it around me like it was a robe. I was freezing and was too lazy to turn off the fan.

"So when's your mom coming home?" She asked.

I bit my lip and fiddled with my charm bracelet. "She's not."

"So you live alone?" She asked.

I nodded. "But my friends visit me, like, 24/7, so."

Silence hung in the air and I was afraid to look Ms. Ames in the face. All I'd see was pity right? That was usually the reaction in most cases when it came to people you didn't know.

"Is this the episode where Stef's dad dies?" Ms. Ames asked.

I looked behind me and nodded.

"Do you mind if I hang out and watch it?" She asked.

"Really?" I asked.

"I know it seems weird, since I'll be your teacher and all--"

"No, I wasn't..." I shook my head. "You'd really suffer sitting here and watching this with me? Don't you have other students to visit?"

"Nope. You were the only one," she said. "And I love this show."

"Alright then," I said, pressing play and sitting on the couch.

It felt, for a moment, like I had a mom. Even though I just met the teacher, she didn't treat me like Ms. Hamilton did. She treated me like a normal person who just needed some company. It was nice to have someone who wasn't gonna continuously treat me like I was a fragile flower in school. Because that had been my greatest fear about teen leadership. Everyone treating me like I'd break at any moment. But something in me just knew that wouldn't be the way it was gonna go.
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So while I decide who Abigail ends up with, I decided to give her a motherly figure. And when she refers to how Ms. Hamilton treated her, she means about how flaky she appeared to be and how the spotlight had to always be on her. But what do y'all think of Ms. Ames?! She's based off a teacher I have and she's like a mother to me, so this is it! Sorry for rambling! Lemme know your thoughts in the comments and thank y'all so much for the support!!!

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