Violet

Chapter 27: Reckless Ryan

 I slung my backpack over my shoulder and picked up my schedule, determined to find the cafeteria without any help. Big football players raced past me in an effort to get their breakfast first. I walked into the lunchroom alone, looking desperately for an empty table. This whole school thing wasn't easy.

I finally found an empty table near the wall. I sat my backpack on the seat then swung my feet onto the railings below me. The floor wasn't so clean and I did not want to step in someone's leftover mashed potatoes. I guess I was nervous because I forgot to get my breakfast.

I walked into the line and saw that eggs, sausage, and mini pancakes were being served. 8116, I said over and over in my head. It was my lunch code. I told the lunch lady and she let me pass.

Some kids had bunched around my table. I nervously grabbed my bag and some of them looked at me as I did. I tried so hard no to do anything embarrassing. With my tray, bookbag, and map, I looked for a place to sit. Someone tapped my shoulder. "You look lonely." She smiled at me, a bright smile that made my day a thousand times better. "Would you like to eat with me?"

"Sure," I almost said too loud. I let out a sigh of relief and followed the girl. She had red hair and a face full of freckles. Her eyes were light brown and she had one lazy eye. I followed her to a table where two other girls sat. One girl had colorful long hair. She wore many bracelets that almost reached her elbow, and everything she wore was black or purple. The other girl was short and wore glasses. She was dressed in bright colors. Like her hair, her skin had a beautiful amber tone to it. She smiled and waved at us as we sat down.

"Hey, Liz," she said, scooting over. All three of us sat across from the girl with all the bracelets.

"New friends, be happy," Liz said. She looked at me. "I'm Liz, and that's Desiree." She pointed to the brown-skinned girl. She then pointed to the one with bracelets. "That's Mariel."

"Hey," Mariel said, waving to me. "As you can see, we're the most popular girls in school."

Desiree laughed. "Please don't, Mariel." She faced me. "What's your name? Are you new?"

I nodded. "Yes, and my name is Violet."

"Pretty name," Liz said, smiling with a mouth full of eggs. "I hope you're in our class."

"You're all in the same class?" I asked.

"We have almost every period together." Mariel waved her fork around. "And we're in homeroom together. The only thing we don't do as a group is gym."

"Mariel just wants to pound us in the face with dodgeballs," Desiree said.

"Damn right," Mariel laughed. Liz and I laughed as well.

"So Violet, tell us about you," Liz said. "It's a little late now to attend school. Why didn't you come sooner? Are you a transfer?"

I swallowed my pancake before I spoke. "No, I was home-schooled. We just moved here from the countryside. My mom and I thought it would be a good idea to start at a public school."

"The countryside, huh?" Mariel said, leaning in closer to the table. "Did anyone hear about the twelve people that went missing all in the same week?"

"Over in Clarkston by that field?" Liz asked. "I've heard about it. Some are saying it's haunted."

Desiree nodded. "Actually guys, two teenagers went missing there yesterday. It was on the news."

I never had an accurate address. My father made ours up because no one knew of the mansion and how to get to us. He would have to meet them somewhere for anyone to know. We were sort of hidden from the world. I was familiar with the field because we lived by one with tall grass that stretched out for miles. "I hadn't heard about it," I said.

Desire looked at me. "Missing people are on the news every day, especially by the fields. I'm glad you moved away."

So am I, I thought.

The bell rung, indicating that our time was up. I quickly drunk my orange juice then emptied my tray in a nearby garbage can. I looked at my schedule. Mrs. Zechy.

"All right, Mrs. Zechy. You're with us!" Liz said, holding up her hand for a high-five. Everyone held up their hands but when I got to Mariel, I noticed something. When her bracelets slid down her arm, I was able to make out several slashes on her wrist. Almost as if someone cut her with something.

All of us grabbed our bags and made our way toward the exit. A few guys pushed past us, laughing and making jokes that we were slower than slugs. Liz flipped them off.

"Can you stop giving people the finger?" Desiree said. "You're going to get sent to time out again."

"Time out?" I asked.

"It's like a detention room. They call it time out," Mariel said.

As we entered the hallways, there was some sort of commotion going on by the lockers. I saw this boy slam another boy against the locker. My mouth dropped. It was Ryan. Ryan balled up a paper and threw it at the other guy's face. He laughed and walked off into class with a few other kids.

"Wow," I whispered.

Desiree nodded. "Yeah, he's a real jerk."

"The school bully," Liz said.

"Reckless Ryan is what they call him."

I couldn't believe it. This wasn't the Ryan I knew. It couldn't be, but I would soon come to realize that it was.