A Single Rose (a Valentine's Story)

Chapter 17

I slowly scanned the cluster of students, trying to block out the boisterous chatter that bounced around the hall walls as I carefully thought. Surely one of them must be my so-called admirer, right?
I hoped that perhaps they would give myself away by watching me, but as I slowly worked my way mentally through the crowd, no one seemed to be paying me much attention, like usual. My eyes lingered for a moment on Kaylen, before reluctantly moving on. No, it couldn't be him, as much as a small part of me wished it was. He had a girlfriend, and besides, though he was clever, he was much more math orientated than bookish.

It must be someone who knows me, or is at least around me enough to see which books I read - for all the hints so far had been ones from my favourite books, ones that I had read multiple times at school across the years as I sat alone. Someone who... I halted as my eyes alighted on her. Kara. She knows, she knew me better than anyone else. Plus, a couple of the books were ones we both loved when we were younger. Could it be her? Not as genuine admiration of course, but as a trick? It... could be. She knew what a hopeless romantic I am, I used to be. Knew that I was never one to back down from a mystery. My heart tightened for a moment as I considered it. A joke. Could it be...?

My thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of the ever over-enthusiastic Miss Mulberry, five minutes late per usual.
"Alrighty everyone! Quiet coyote! Please form two lines and calmly enter the classroom!"

Quiet coyote? Two lines? Seriously?
Despite having been our teacher for a year and a bit now, she still somehow hadn't been able to fully grasp that we weren't in primary school anymore. Per the usual, for no one took it seriously after figuring out after the first couple of times that she never enforced it too much, the result was a skinny, skewed rectangle and people talking instead of shouting.

As everyone filed into our seats, the young teacher flounced over to the whiteboard, her ponytail bouncing in the same energetic fashion as the rest of her.

"Today we are going to be analysing poems about..." She flipped the board around dramatically, even though everyone knew what was coming, "Love!" She squeaked as the board came to a stop to show the word LOVE written in bright pink marker in curly font with little hearts all around it (it must have taken her at least ten minutes of her precious class prep time to do).

No surprise there.

As expected, the response was a mixed one, the class exploding in sounds of
"Ew",  from myself and fellow haters of the topic of love and/or valentine's day,
"Yay!" Said by Michelle and her gang of suck ups, and
"Oooh, looove." Mockingly moaned by Jonathan and his cronies.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I never had been a bit fan of Miss Mulberry. She strikes me as the kind of person who peaked in high school, and was trying desperately to hold on to her "Miss Popular" title by trying to be the "cool" teacher and fit in with her students whilst joking and laughing with Michelle, Viola, and Allison. In her eyes, their little clique could do no wrong. She adored them. Unlike Mrs Collins who saw right through them, all the more reason why she was my favourite teacher and Miss Mulberry decidedly wasn't.

"Now I want you all," she flicked her eyes in my direction, "to work in groups and chose one of the poems on the board."

I could see now that in tiny letters below the Giant, dreaded, four-lettered word.

She almost always forced group work. One day she forced me too hard. I may or may not have had a mental breakdown and said some choice words to her face. The only day I went to the principals office. Thankfully Mrs Collins stepped in on my behalf and explained my 'situation' to that stupid teacher. Sometimes if we absolutely have to do pair work (for assessments), then I'd work with Kaylen or else whoever got stuck with me. Kaylen was okay. We didn't talk much outside of work and that was fine with me. Plus, at least he actually did his part, unlike most group projects where I end up having to do all the work. The worst was when I got stuck with some random leech who couldn't be bothered to do all the work. I learnt just to treat those types of tasks as single tasks, I'd given up trying to get them to do their bit. Sometimes if I was lucky I'd end up with Sarah, but more often than not she'd be snatched up by someone else. Not that she ever seeked me out for group work. No one did. I think the only reason Kaylen put up with me was cause he knew I'd do my bit, unlike the other guys would would then just be completely parasites and get him to do most of the work whilst they goofed off with their friends.