Just Remember

Chapter 1 The Blind Transfer Student

It was the second week of the new school year for the students of Pewaukee High School, and the school was filled with school spirit and pride as many thought of the up and coming tryouts for the school teams.

On that bright September morning nobody but the teachers noticed the Military jeep and the tall man in uniform that dropped off a single girl in the front office of the school kissing her cheek before leaving her to her first day at School. Grace Gwenivere Teller daughter of Sargent Lee Teller of the U.S. Army wasn't completely blind, but she still needed to use a cane to navigate around safely in places that she was unfamiliar about.

In the past this had led to being teased and bullied mercilessly by other students, that is when she was in one place long enough to attempt to make friends that was.

The school councilor gave her a quick tour of the school, showing her where everything that interested her or that had pertained to her classes and daily life at school. She took note of every twist and turn and mentally mapped out the quickest route to each of her classes in her mind as the counselor led her around. By the time that the tour was over she was led to her first class of the day, Science, and was led into the crowded classroom by the teacher who embarrassed her by calling out her existence to the class.

"Well class it seems as if we are being joined by a Transfer student. Please introduce yourself Miss teller," the Teacher said with a smile on her face.
Grace gulped and blushed crimson before taking a deep breath and speaking with a soft southern drawl to her voice trying not to take notice that every eye was now on her. "Hello, my name is Grace Gwenivere Teller. My family and friends call me G.G. or Gracie. My family moved here from Hawaii where my father was posted for the last three years at the army base there training cadets to do whatever it is that they do in the army. I haven't even gotten a chance to unpack my stuff, and I've yet to make any new friends. I hope to be friends with anyone who would like to have a loyal friend. May I sit down now, this is embarrassing," she asked the teacher.

"Certainly you may, G.G. You may take that seat in the front next to J.J. so that you may see the black board. Wendy, please move to the seat behind you," the Teacher said to the black haired girl who's jaw dropped before her eyes narrowed in rage at being moved farther away from her boyfriend.

Grace took the empty seat and quickly opened her textbook that took up most of her desk and then opened a laptop computer on her lap with one earbud in her ear prepared to get to work. "Alright class turn to the second chapter of your textbook and read until you get to the challenge questions. I expect to have the challenge questions from the entire chapter on my desk by end of class so get to work. Miss Teller, I'll give you a list of back lessons and homework assignments that you may do to catch up with the others after class," the teacher said.

Time passed and Grace was the first to complete her assignment. She shut her book softly and pulled a small rechargeable Bluetooth printer out of her laptop case inserted paper and printed out her assignment after saving the document to a folder named Science Lessons. Once the printer had stopped she put away the printer and her laptop in her case and quietly stepped to the teacher's desk to hand in her assignment.

"Mrs. Wilmington, may I please have the assignments and back homework so that I may get started on them now," she asked as she handed the stunned teacher what had to be the neatest work that she had ever seen in her entire career of teaching? Mrs. Wilmington pulled together a folder of back assignments and handed it over to the new girl as she looked over the work that had been handed to her.

As she returned to her desk the boy named J.J. looked up and smiled at her warmly as he got to his feet and moved to hand in his assignment for the day. She smiled back before taking her seat and looked through the folder of back assignments for something else to do. Her hair was pulled sharply from behind and she heard a girl's voice hissing into her ear angrily.

"Hay, I saw that," the voice said.
"Excuse me," Grace asked puzzled?
"You'd better leave my boyfriend alone if you know what's good for you knew girl," Wendy hissed before giving the new girl's hair another hard yank and getting to her feet swinging her hips like she thought that she owned the world.

Grace was then allowed to leave five minutes early so that she could get to her next class on time and could stop off at her locker if she desired to do so since her school books were so large and heavy. The rest of the day went on like this until

Lunch time. She entered the cafeteria and stood in the line to the salad bar after buying a cold soda from the machine. She looked around at the many full tables and listened for friendly voices of chatting students who could be potential friends. It didn't take long for her to hear girls talking about the newest fashions hair and makeup, and walked to that table noticing that there was an empty seat.

"Hello, girls, my name is Grace, Can I join you here," she asked politely?
"Whatever," came the answer of the nearest girl.
"Thank you, did any of you see the most recent Tommy Hillfigure fashion show," she asked with a smile on her face after she popped open her soda? The girls made a noise of exasperation before they all abruptly got to their feet and moved to the other end of the table so that they'd be far away from the new girl.

Across the room blue eyes watched the treatment of the new girl, and he frowned as he saw her hang her head and poke listlessly at her salad.
"That was just cold hearted," Justin said under his breath as he watched the new girl get to her feet drain her soda and toss her unfinished salad into the trash before leaving with her shoulders slumped.
"You say something Justin," his friend Braxton asked as he noticed the look on J. J.'s face?

"It's nothing that we can do anything about now. Hay, Brax, what do you think of the new girl Grace," Justin asked?
"Well she's nice so far, I guess. I'd like to have a third of her brain, though man, she is certainly smarter than most of the girls that I know," Brax smiled.
"Brax is right, man I'd like to get to know that girl, but my girlfriend definitely wouldn't like it if I went anywhere near her, Tony said as his girlfriend Alice and her best friend Wendy stepped up and took seats beside Tony and Justin.

Justin sighed with exasperation as Wendy clung to him tighter than plastic wrap and shook his head as he let her mindless prattle go into one ear and straight out the other. Make new friends aside he had the rest of his classes to worry about as well as tryouts for the school football team later that day.

After lunch he and his friends went to the school library so that most of them could get an early start upon their homework, and he was pleased when the girls decided to leave the instant that they saw Grace sitting alone at a table near the window working silently upon her missed work from the first classes of the day.

The day slid by slowly for Grace after that as she found that she was ignored by most of the student body. Since she couldn't see facial expressions of people unless she was nose to nose with the person, she didn't notice how some had looks of loathing upon their faces, while other's had weary looks of pity. She hated being pittied, and hated being ignored even more. It was the same in every school that she had ever attended, so why should she even bother to let it drive her from the things that she loved.

Upon the last class of the day an announcement was made that made her mood pick up drastically.
"Attention all students! If you are into sports or any other extracurricular activities, please proceed to the designated area upon the list that each of you were given in home room this morning for sign up and tryouts after the last bell of the day has rang, people," said the voice of the announcer just as many were about to leap to the doors of their class rooms making some teachers laugh and others give them cross looks.

Grace pulled out the list that the counselor had given to her and smiled upon realizing that the school had a gymnastic team. She hoped that she'd be able to get there before they closed registration, and decided to check into the pep squad, and the flag core just in case.