BONUS CHAPTERS! - The Greenhouse On Melancholy Road

Who's Rowan?

September 5th, 2011

Willow and Forrest were inseparable.

They were best friends, and their bond became stronger when Forrest moved to the same school that Willow's in. But prior to that, they had also discovered that they lived in the same neighborhood, so over the Summer, they saw each other almost every day.

Most days they would go to the lake in search of shells, and if one of them got sick, the other would bring a shell.

But it was the first day of school, and the kids were thrilled. It was Forrest's second year at the school, so he was no longer brand new. It's not like being new was hard for the boy, Willow was always right by his side.

Willow got out of her car, immediately running to her and Forrest's meeting spot– which was an oak tree in the center of the playground –to see Forrest already there.

"Willow!" The boy shouted running to hug his best friend.

"Hi!" Willow greeted, dragging out the "I."

The two spun around in the hug before pulling away.

When they did pull away, they heard a woman's voice calling something out.

"Rowan! Be careful, honey!"

Willow and Forrest gave each other a puzzled look. "Who's Rowan?" Willow asked, her face twisted up in confusion. The girl had finally managed to pronounce her R's correctly a few months ago.

Forrest shrugged. "I don't know. He's probably new."

Willow nodded.

-

When Forrest and Willow entered their new classroom together, they immediately sat next to each other.

When the bell rang, there were two empty seats next to Willow, since everyone sat with their friends, and the seat next to Willow– that Forrest wasn't in –was at the end of the row.

They were around five minutes into class, and the teacher had just finished introducing herself as Miss Pine.

Willow was actually a big fan of her new teacher's name, so she automatically liked her.

But just as the teacher was about to speak, the door opened, and a boy came in, the principal behind him.

The boy had curly red hair that fell just below his ears, red freckles scattered around his face, and blue eyes. He wore a white button down with a bow tie, and brown pants with suspenders, trying his best to look good for his first day.

Willow could hear whispers from behind her as the boy stood there, seeming lost.

Miss Pine approached the boy, crouching down and shaking his hand with a kind smile as she spoke to him, too quietly for Forrest or Willow to hear.

Willow looked to Forrest. "Who's that?" She whispered. Forrest looked back to her. "I don't know," he whispered back.

The principal left the room, and the boy approached the front of the room with the teacher, who started speaking. "Okay, class. This is Rowan. He's new, and he was having a bit of trouble finding our class, but let's make him feel welcomed, okay? Remember how you all felt on your first days." She lowered her voice, now addressing the boy– Rowan. "There's an empty seat right over there that you can take."

As Rowan timidly made his way to his seat, someone shouted from the back of the class. "Why are you dressed like that?" A girl's voice called, and the room– with the exception of Willow, Forrest, Rowan, and the teacher –erupted with giggles.

"Okay, now, let's be nice to Rowan," the teacher said.

Rowan stood silently for a moment before sitting down next to Willow.

Then, another voice called from behind, a boy this time. "What's wrong with your hair?" He said, reaching out and wrapping his finger around one of the boy's curls.

That was when Willow had enough. She slapped the boy's hand away. "Don't touch him! There's nothing wrong with his hair, it's just red."

"Jeez, Willow, you probably hate having to sit next to him," the boy added.

"As a matter of fact, I don't hate it, because I'm not a jerk," Willow retorted, loud enough that the teacher could hear.

"Enough, class!" The teacher exclaimed, not very loudly.

Willow turned back to the front of the class before looking to Rowan. "I like your hair."

Rowan looked back at her. "Really?"

Willow nodded. "Mhm! I'm Willow. This is Forrest, he's my best friend," she introduced with a smile. Forrest leaned over and smiled. "They're mean, just ignore them. I like your outfit, it's fancy."

Rowan smiled. "Thanks," he said with a bit of a giggle.

The three sat together at lunch that day, and Forrest and Willow's duo became a trio.

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