Divided.

Divided. (Part 19)

Daisy was feeling on edge. What if Jack had been trying to call her? What if those nasty boys answer the call and then found out Jack and Daisy was friends? All of these questions were dancing around in her little 11 year old head; she was 11 years old and experiencing anxiety flips of that of an adult. Ms Bowen wasn't in school today and Daisy couldn't help but feel partially to blame for that. She could just be sick ...or she could be in a mountain of trouble.

Today they had a teacher called Mr Cripps; funny looking with grey hair sticking out of his nose ears. He looked as if he wanted to be there less than his class did; he sat slouched in his chair asking simple mathematical questions at the room as if his class were a team on the world's dullest quiz show.

"Do you think he's even awake?" Charlotte whispered in Daisy's ear. She'd hitched her chair and desk closed to Daisy's so they could talk. They'd have never gotten away with that if Ms Bowen was in today.

"Of course he is," Daisy said the logical thinker that she is, "he's talking isn't he?"

"I know that dingbat but he could be sleep talking ... he could have turned his brain off?"

"Then how could he be asking maths questions. You need your brain for maths?"

"A 7 year old could tell you the answer to these stupid questions."

Charlotte was right, as well as being particularly good at maths Charlotte had a point, his questions were effortless.

"Do you think Ben is good-looking?" She asked pointing over at Ben Jacob, the most praised and fancied boy in the un-advanced year.

"Errr" Daisy attention was lost because she saw Jack walk past her classroom window. It was defiantly him. It was him. She knew it.

Her heart began to pound harder and she knew it was now or never. She might not get another chance, and she had an idea which route he might take from there, perhaps she could catch him. She had to find a way to tell him about her phone.

But how? She didn't know his address so she couldn't send a letter to his house; she didn't have time to write a note to pass to him now. She only had one choice and she was taking it.

"Sir I really need the toilet" she said with her hand raised in the air.

"Can you hold it till break time?"

"No!"

"Go on then," he said submissively.

Daisy practically ran down the corridor and pushed her way through the double doors then took a right through another door to the fire escape stairs. She ran down them two at a time her little lungs gasping for much needed oxygen in all the excitement and sheer panic.

She knew she was breaking all rules/laws/regulations and punishment could quite possibly be death or disappearance but she didn't care, what would be the point in living with Jack in her life? In all honestly she'd never ever been as happy as she was when Jack was around. At 11 years old she was willing to give everything up for one exchange with an advanced boy, either she was old before her years or she was naïve and incapable of comprehending the consequences of her actions.

BANG ... Daisy's body fell smack-bang on to the cold metal floor. She'd been running so fast shed neglected to look where she was going and slammed straight in to the back of a black school jumper. She froze still on the ground whilst pain rippled down the lines on her back. She daren't look up; she didn't want to get in to trouble. What would she say? Where would she say she was going?

She waited like a hidden ghost hoping the body before her would walk away. The figure was much bigger than her and she was positive it was advanced and daren't risk looking up. Instead she curled her skinny frame slowly in to a ball on the floor and squeezed her eyes shut listening for the body to get bored and to disappear.

When she opened her eyes she was horrified. She gasped and closed her eyes tightly shut again. Black shinny tied up shoes were standing right next to her ponytail, toes facing towards her nearly treading on the end of her cold nose.

Nothings been said so she's none the wiser as to who she's faced with dealing with. The child made an "Umph" noise when she collided with them but now laying on the floor she couldn't be certain of whether or not the shoes belonged to a girl or a boy; and how old?

"Are you going to apologise?" A male voice bellowed down at her after an eternity of silence; at one point Daisy had to stop breathing because it was all she could hear and she was afraid she was going to explode with oxygen in her lungs.

She couldn't look up now. The shinny shoes were evidence in themselves that it was against the law for Daisy to talk back to.

She didn't say anything. She just lay still.

"I said ..." the boys shoe was resting on Daisy's head and pressing down lightly, "Are you going to apologise?"

'No Daisy you mustn't' her brain kept on throbbing, 'stay quiet!'

The shoe felt heavier now and she was trapped. She should have run; in hindsight she should have gotten up off the floor and ran.

"If you don't apologise ill have to go to the head. It's rude not to apologise."

Daisy was a lot of things but she wasn't rude.

"I'm sorry" she whispered.

"I didn't hear you?"

"I'M SORRY!"

The shoe on her head released its pressure and then lifted off altogether, but only to swing backwards gaining force and then it struck her head with raw power.

"You idiot. Do you know how much trouble you're in now? Do you know what they'll do to you? You stupid little girl."

Daisy's heart sunk. Why did she apologise? Why did she have to open her mouth?

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

"What am I not going to do more like it?" He turned around to face another boy who'd come walking down the stairs, "Look Jack, look what this girl has done. I say we march her straight to the head now? Or better yet the government ... let them decided what she's good for."