My footsteps echoed in the eerily quiet hallway. I had arrived just a few minutes after the bell and all was silent but the buzz of voices from the occupied classrooms. I checked the map I had been given the previous day when I had signed up for the school. My class should be just about... Here. I stopped, mustering the courage to knock on the door. My normal, easygoing and confident personality seemed to have evaporated. I was fine with people I knew and people older than me, as I had grown up in an orphanage and going to a school for the children there. The staff were generally caring for the little ones or keeping the older ones out of trouble, rarely giving me a second glance. I often tried to cheer up the younger kids, playing the fool so much it became normal. I could cope with pretty much anything, laughing it off. But not this. Not kids my age, with their slang and high standards. True, I was excited. But nervous. Excivous. I smiled at the creation of the word and knocked on the door, pushing it open.
As I stepped into the room, I could feel every head turn to me. The teacher, a middle aged woman, smiled. "Hello," she said kindly, "you must be Cameron." I nodded, words catching in my throat before I could form them. "You just missed the register." she informed me, before glancing around the class. Her eyes settled on a small girl with jet black hair. "Lizzie, could you take Cameron the the office to sign in?" The girl, supposedly Lizzie, nodded. She stood up, not speaking.
As soon as we were out in the hallway, she finally opened her mouth. "Don't call me Lizzie." She insisted flatly, "its Ender." I smiled slightly. "As in minecraft?" A grin spread over her face. "Yeah! Do you play PC?" We chatted all the way to the office. I could tell I would have at least one friend at this school.
I take back what I said about school before. Luckily, it can be described in one single word. Boredom. I resisted the strong urge to bang my head on the desk as the teacher droned on about pie charts. I felt something hit me on the back of the head. So now I'm being attacked by student's stationary as well as teacher's extensive knowledge on how to bore kids? Another thing hit me on the back of the head. Really? Turned around to give them a piece of my mind when I noticed it was a paper aeroplane. I unfolded it to see a note.
You looked like you had fallen asleep.
Ender.
I smiled, scrawling my reply on the back.
I want to.
Cameron.
I refolded it, throwing it back to her. The second paper plane landed on my desk.
Me too. I know this already!
Ender.
It was a miracle the teacher hadn't noticed.
I did this months ago.
Cameron.
Spoke to soon. "Cameron, Elizabeth!" The teacher yelled, "do you have anything on those notes you wish to share with the class?" Great. Just great. My first day and I'm already in trouble.
What do you think? I took a while on this chapter, so I hopefully won't have to rewrite it.
-Panda
