First Valentine - Kit & Tully Book 2

2 - Break Up

Returning to school is the same as always. Excitable girls race in and out, squealing and comparing suntans and holiday homes in the South of France, Costa Del Sol or the Algarve. Usually, I feel envious, because my parents' idea of a family holiday is a week in the West of Ireland. This year we didn't even do that, but it was the best summer of my life. 

Between my friends, Tully, and soon-to-be-famous band, Black Death, it was everything a teenager could dream of. I have to remind myself it's not all over, not really. Even though I won't be seeing as much of them now I'm back at school, they are still part of my life. If there's one thing I've learned over the summer, it's that change is not always a bad thing.

"There you are Kit," Liz Quinn shouts over at me. "Good news, we're all in the same dorm again."

Felice, because she was a new girl last year, was never actually in my dorm. We tried to change that, but they don't let you swap around during term, so we'd begged to be together this year. When Felice decided not to board I wasn't sure where I'd end up and it's a mixed blessing to find myself back in my old dorm.

I follow Liz into the six-bed room, pretending I don't notice the shiny badge, pinned prominently to the lapel of her jacket. It isn't a surprise Liz is a prefect. With her boundless enthusiasm and the way she always gets involved in everything, she's an obvious choice. To be fair, if our parents hadn't tried so hard to foist us together down through the years, I might even have liked her myself.

At lunch time on Monday, I finally find Felice in the canteen and we immediately start comparing timetables. My subjects are the same as last year. English, Irish, maths and French are more or less compulsory. Then I've picked history because I like it, biology because you need a science subject for most university courses, and art. As I thought, the only class Felice and I have together is art, which is why I chose it.

"Enough of this," she shoves the timetable in her bag. "I'm meeting Len tonight."

"Lucky you!"

If only I could meet Tully as easily, but I'll be trapped in prep tonight. Even though we have hardly any homework yet, the staff don't care about that. Homework or not, prep is mandatory in boarding school.

The three hours of supervised study after the evening meal seem interminable, and all I can think about is Felice on a hot date with her Black Death drummer boyfriend. This is why my parents didn't want me to share a house with her, but it doesn't make it any easier.

With a text book open purely for show, I twiddle my pen and frown at the blank page in front of me. The summer memories feel fragile, like they could fade away and be forgotten. I'm terrified of losing them so I spend the rest of prep writing them down. And as the words pour out of me, it all comes back to me vividly.

The first time I met Tully, the only thing on my mind was choosing the right video to welcome Felice home. I barely even noticed the new guy trying too hard to be helpful, and his enthusiasm grated on my nerves. Now I find myself missing that energy and eagerness so much.

On Tuesday, I've art first thing. The art room is in a separate building, along with the music rooms and it feels different, like it's not really part of school, with its smell of creativity, a unique concoction of paint, clay and white spirits. Even the windows have a different view, facing away from the main buildings and out over a private part of the grounds.

But there's no sign of Felice as I look around, across the wide worktables, towards the shelves at the back, stacked with reams of paper and portfolios, past the big cupboard full of fresh supplies of paint, pastels and printing inks. The new teacher comes in and my heart drops. I know what's happened. Felice has been kept on by the regular art teacher, who loves her and thinks she's brilliant, while I've been sent to the newbie, a young woman straight out of college. Her enthusiastic smile is a dead give-away.