We went into the first building, in front of us there was a room separated by glass windows with a door at the side. Above the door was a small sign that read FRONT OFFICE. There wasn't anyone besides school faculty in there, I'm sure it was off limits to most students save for a few trouble makers. I was hesitantly following Ren, who had turned around a corner and had begun to go up a stair case. I inwardly groaned to myself, I hated stairs. I was lazy at heart despite everything that I did before I came to move with Ren, and stairs became my number one enemy. Thankfully though, we only went up one flight of stairs and entered into a brightly lit hallway. It was a bit smaller than I thought it was, and it was warmer than I liked. Along each side there was a stretch of classrooms, each lined with a number.
We stopped at the number 121.
I entered the room unwillingly, there were plants growing out of small plastic pots everywhere, along with desks that looked like they had flat screen desk tops built in to the table. In the front of the room there was a large blond haired woman. She was wearing a floral blouse and black pants, which immediately made me feel under dressed. She glanced in our direction.
"Mr. Carter, you're late. And who is this?" She asked sternly; her voice a heavy southern drawl to it. Ren flashed a sheepish smile, the same smile he used to get himself out of trouble. I rolled my eyes at him.
"Sorry ma'am. This is my cousin, Hannah. She's just moved into the area and was looking for a college to join so I thought I would bring her here to check out the scene." It was a simple lie, one that seemed possible. She seemed to buy it, she motioned for us to sit with one hand and turned her attention back her screen as she resumed whatever she was doing. My guess it was roll call because she was just calling out students names. Judging by her annoyed facial expression and her reaction just now it became painfully obvious that I wasn't expected to join in the classroom.
"Just for future reference, if any of you are going to bring a guest into class or to school in general it is a common courtesy to e-mail your teachers before you do so." She breathed out.
"Sorry." Ren apologized again, this time sincerely. Now that I sat down I was able to actually take in the classroom. It was small, the people in front of my had a few drinks on their desks and a small bag of McDonald's next to their computer.
They could eat in here?
"For those of you who are new to the class, welcome. I am Ms. Bates and I will be teaching you Literature 101." She introduced. My attention perked back to her. She turned to the white board behind her and began to write on it with a black dry–erase marker.
" 'It is hard to forgive, and to look at those eyes, and feel those wasted hands. Kiss me again; and don't let me see your eyes! I forgive what you have done to me. I love my murderer–but yours! How can I?' This is a passage of Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights. It is spoken from Heathcliff to Cathy. Can anyone tell me what he means by this?"
I remained quiet, waiting to see if anyone else knew the book like I did. It wouldn't hurt to make friends. "No? I assigned it last night."
"Ren, raise your hand," I nudged him with my elbow. He shook his head.
"I didn't read that chapter last night. Because I was out on business I wasn't able to do the homework." He explained in a hushed tone. Apparently he wasn't quiet enough, because Ms. Bates had her eyes on us.
"Mr. Carter, is there something you and your cousin want to share with us?"
Ren's face fell, he was in trouble because of me.
"We were discussing the passage." I lied, her attention shifted to me and her irritated features softened slightly and she flashed me a look of suspicion.
"What was your conclusion?" She challenged.
"What Heathcliff is talking about is how it's hard to forgive himself. In this moment he is staring down at a dying Catherine and he is seeing that their fighting has truly injured her. He feels guilty for this. So when he says 'I love my murderer—but yours! How can I?' He's talking about himself. He's blaming himself for her dying. He references Cathy to being his murderer because for him, she was his entire life. They were one. So when she chose Edgar over him it killed him on the inside, while his actions and coldness towards her killed her physically." I explained, leaving the teacher gawking at me. Yeah, okay, I read some.
"Right, well try not to talk during my class." She cleared her throats and moved on. Ren covered his mouth and let out a soft breathy laugh. I bit my lip to keep from laughing as well.
The rest of the class went by somewhat quickly with me giving out answers left and right. What can I say? Wuthering Heights was kind of my forte. When the teacher had dismissed the class her face was flushed pure red and I wasn't sure if she was pissed or if she was ecstatic. We exited the room, Ren's laughter finally broke out.
"Oh my god, did you see her face? That's probably the most anyone has ever participated in her class!" He exclaimed. I smiled up at him, blushing slightly. "You were amazing in there." He said, turning to me. He stopped walking and turned to me. Butterflies started up in my stomach, I could feel my cheeks flushing. His face drew closer, his body closing the gap between us. My breath hitched. He was warm and I could smell the cologne he had on.
Wait, what am I doing? He has a girlfriend! I tried to reason with myself. His face was now inches away from mine.
"Code Red! Code Red! Take shelter immediately!" A loud voice rang overhead, coming from the intercom. Ren straightened up, noticing that chaos was about to ensue. Without much more hesitation he gripped my hand crushingly and pulled me with him into a nearby class room. The teacher slammed and locked the door behind us, turning the light off and ushered us into the far left hand corner. We were out of sight. I did my best to control my shaking, fear gripped me.
"Is this a test?" I whispered to him. Ren's face was pale and he didn't answer. My heart dropped and I buried my face in my knees.
There was no comfort, no peace of mind right now. I could hear everyone's gasp as the door handle began to jiggle violently. I winced as a harsh pounding on the thick wooden door ensued. Someone was desperately trying to get in, and I was desperately hoping that whoever it was would give up soon.
YOU ARE READING
Interwined
Teen Fiction"Do you trust me?" He asked me, extending his hand towards me. I stared hard into his dark eyes which were now glossed over with tears. This had been the first time that I had ever seen him cry. I could tell he was scared, not just for himself but f...
