The Soul Queen -Discovering the hidden.......

CHAPTER 9 - FIRST FRIEND

Miss Ruby continues with her class and I try my best not to sleep. Language is not my cup of tea, they are pretty boring. I stare around the class and find Mr. Henry Armaros sleeping in the first bench. What kind of an idiot sleeps in the first bench, in front of the teacher? I look sideways and find a girl looking intensely at Armaros. She has dark brown eyes, pale light brown skin and light brown long hair which is tied into two low pigtails. She doesn't stop looking at him. Does she hate him too? No. Her eyes speak different. She has a strange look on her eyes. Something, I've never seen in a while. It's definitely not hate.

Suddenly, she catches me staring and glares at me. I avert my eyes awkwardly and pretend to listen to class. I look at her from the corner of my eyes and find her still staring at me intensely. I just ignore it and look into the book.

"Mr. Armaros!" Ms. Ruby slams her hand on Armaros' bench, making him stand up suddenly while his mouth is still drooling.

"Is it lunch time?" he asks yawning still half asleep.

"No, it's still the first class in the morning. Tell me which dialogue are we discussing here?" she demands Armaros.

Armaros just stands silently, trying to understand what is happening.

Ms. Ruby sighs and looks at the class expecting an answer but everyone sits silent, all of them half-asleep.

"Well, Ms. Frost, would you try answering it?" she asks and I get up, avoiding eye contact with the pigtails girl, who frowns at my name.

I take the book in my hand and read out the dialogue written by Shakespeare.

"The band that seems to their friendship together will be the very strangler of their amity."

"Good. And what does these lines mean?" Ms. Ruby asks.

"It means that though the friendship between Antony and Cleopatra is made from peace, it might soon turn into enmity." I say and thank myself for reading all the lessons before hand and keeping an eye on what Ms. Ruby was teaching.

"Very good. Please sit down, Ms. Frost. Mr. Armaros, I expect to see you in my office once the class is done." she says strictly and I sit down.

Armaros yawns and sits down again drowsily. 

Classes continue and I try my best to avoid the stares of the students in the class. I am used to stares, but they always contained hate and anger in them. The stares I am getting here is different, they contain various expressions that I don't understand.

It's lunch time and I find my way to the dining hall with great difficulty. It's hard not to get lost in this huge school. 

I take my tray and start walking towards a bench. Suddenly, someone bumps into me knocking me over. The tray falls and the food spills on me, staining my shirt. I look up and find the pigtails girl looking at me worriedly with her friends.

"I am so sorry! I didn't meant to. I will give you a change of clothes. I guess, I have a spare shirt." she says kneeling beside me.

"It's fine." I say blankly and get up.

"No, no. Please. I am extremely sorry. It's entirely my fault." she says and takes out her handkerchief and wipes it across my shirt. It is when I am close to her, I see how ridiculously cute she looks. 

"It's fine, I don't mind." I say.

"No, it's not fine." she says and takes my hand dragging me along.

We both walk a long distance and finally reach to what looks like a locker. She takes out a shirt and hands it over to me.

"Here, use mine, please." she says. Her eyes are kind, and her face looks innocent. 

"I thought you hated me." I say.

"What? no, no. I don't. I was just looking to see how the new student is. I am sorry." she says again. I am not used to such kindness. It's my first time seeing someone looking at me with such kind eyes.

I nod and go to the bathroom to change my shirt. The shirt is little bit tight near the chest, but it's fine.

I come out of the bathroom and thank her.

"I will wash it and return it tomorrow." she says taking my shirt. Not knowing how to respond, I just smile awkwardly.

"You are really gorgeous, y'know" she says smiling sweetly.

"Oh" I say.

"All the boys in our class are talking about you." she says laughing.

"Oh" I say again awkwardly.

We walk out to the dining hall and I take another tray.

"By the way, I haven't introduced myself, Have I? I am Cana Smith." she says walking along with me.

"Oh......nice name." I say.

"Let's sit together, shall we?" she says and drags me along with her to her friends.

Soon, I find myself surrounded by a lot of people. This is the first time, I am in such a crowd. She introduces me to all her friends and all of them talk to me enthusiastically. We all eat together amidst laughs and jokes. This is the first time I am having lunch without being alone. Cana looks at me eagerly, trying to get me to talk. But I stay silent. I never had friends, nor, did I speak much with people without any business.

For the first time, I eat my lunch for a long time and start walking back to my class with Cana and her friends.

"Hey.....I forgot to ask you." she says as her friends walk past us.

"How did you know Henry?" she asks. She takes his name casually, as if they are really close.

"I just met him. I do not know much about him. He was the one who bought me here." I say and explain my meeting with Armaros. Moments later, I feel surprised at myself. I usually don't reveal anything and keep everything a secret. Why did I reveal it to Cana?

"Oh" she says looking down.

"Why did you ask? Are you both friends?"  I ask her.

"Yes, since kids." she says, her cheeks flush bright red and she smiles a lot.

"Oh" I say. I never thought that someone would even like that idiot.

"By the way! I forgot to give this to you." she says and takes out a red band.

"What is it?" I ask her.

"I give this to everyone who is my friend." she says and ties it around my left wrist.

I feel a mix of emotions at once. She called me her "friend".

"I am your friend?" I look at her doubtfully.

"Of course! You are so sweet and friendly. I like you." she says smiling sweetly.

I stand surprised at her words. This is the first time, someone called me their friend and said they liked me. Automatically, a small smile forms on my face. 

"Come on! Let's go to the class!" she says and we both run to our class together, as I admire the red band around my wrist.......given by my first ever friend..........