The Silence of Silence

Chapter 1

Lauren Jauregui pulled her bag up higher on her shoulder. Her pace was brisk. It was her first day, and she really didn't want to be late.

There were two cars that paused in their forward progression as she walked through the crosswalk. She waved politely at them, thankful that they had stopped so she didn't have to.

She entered the dark red double doors of the building and made her way to the office. It was the same office where she had first interviewed for the job position. They had loved everything about her – from her pristine university grade point and her perfectly styled raven locks to her kind smile and her comprehensive knowledge of sign language.

Lauren Jauregui was the perfect addition to the faculty of the Haverbrook School for the Deaf.

"Good morning," the secretary spoke as well as signed to Lauren.

With her lips lilting upward into a friendly smile, Lauren returned the greeting with her words and with her hands. "Good morning!"

There was something about the quietness as Lauren turned and headed towards her new classroom. Her sensible heels clicked methodically against the cool, hard tile underneath her feet and there was a slight rustle as her bag rubbed against the fabric of her skirt. And as she rounded the corner from the office and into one of the main hallways, there were also the sounds of a few of the students who had arrived to school early. But the noise they created consisted of scuffling shoes and closing lockers and not much else.

There most definitely was something about the quietness. But Lauren couldn't tell if it was eerie or comforting.

She stopped in front of the door with the plaque that read "Room 107" and took a deep breath in through her nose before turning the handle and walking inside. The smile that crossed her face was entirely involuntary, though welcome. Her classroom - which she had spent the previous afternoon in, putting up posters and finalizing lesson plans - felt homey enough to appease a handful of the nerves that were tugging violently at the insides of her stomach.

Lauren stepped smartly across the room to her desk where she deposited her bag. She pulled out her desk chair and took a seat, turning her computer on for the day. Opening the top right drawer of her desk, she pulled out her personal copy of the book, Tuesdays with Morrie. Reverently, her fingers skimmed over the cover.

She glanced at the clock. Her first class would begin in less than fifteen minutes. Lauren quickly stood and approached her bookshelf, picking up a stack of copies of the same book that was now stowed carefully back in her desk drawer. She had just begun placing a book on the surface of each desk in the U-shaped configuration in the center of her room when the door swung open.

"Good morning, Mrs. Jauregui!"

Lauren turned her body towards the newcomer, and she immediately recognized Mr. Rumba, the choir director and history teacher from down the hall. They had run into each other the day previous, both preparing for the first day of school of the semester at Haverbrook.

"Good morning, Mr. Rumba. And actually, it's just 'Miss', not 'Missus'." The words left Lauren's lips with a smile.

"Ahh, of course. I must not have heard you properly yesterday! Scarlet fever when I was a child, you know. Completely deaf in this ear!" he yelled, pointing towards his left ear.

Lauren nodded. "Yes," she politely replied, her tone even and her smile kind. "I do remember that."

"Well," Mr. Rumba continued to speak quite loudly. "I just wanted to come by and wish you good luck with your first classes here at Haverbrook!"

Lauren smiled and thanked him before he turned and walked back out into the hallway. "More like my first classes ever," Lauren mumbled to herself under her breath when he was gone. She had student-taught for her last semester at Ohio State, sure. But this was different. This wasn't a test run or a trial with do-overs. This was the real deal. No turning back.