An Imperial Affliction

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

School was the same as always. Different classes, same homeroom, two free periods.

Christine was busy with her school president stuff, you know whatever school presidents do.

Claire and Jake had gotten together over the holidays and they were now laughing and giggling. Couples.

Mr Hathaway -No relation to Anne Hathaway- teaches English, which I am taking now.

"English!" Mr Hathaway says. "Is not just a language, but it grammar and words,"

I put a lot of effort into my work, but Mr Hathaway bores me sometimes. How can he be so devoted to English?

As the bell rings for the last time of the day at 3:15pm, I walk out and waited at the curb with my Chuck Taylors, light blue T-shirt and denim jeans -Our school didn't have a uniform- for mum. Who was sitting in her car waving at me the moment she saw my face.

"So, how was school Anna?" she asked.

"Good, good," I replied. "How was planting the tulips?"

"Great. Those tulips I got from that dutchman are amazing," she smiled as she started to drive back to our house.

"You see a little overjoyed today, are you okay?"

"It's the tulips, they're like I said, amazing," she smiled again.

Mum has this thing with tulips. Ask her if she likes tulips and she'll reply with: "I don't like tulips. I love tulips,"

I never really understand her "obsession" with tulips but I can live with it, it's not like tulips are bad for you, right?

The "dutchman" Mum was talking about was this well, dutchman who trades tulips. He has a stall near school that he's had there for a year I suppose. Mum likes his tulips, maybe even him.

Occasionally I would pop in and say hello to the dutchman and buy Mum her tulips when she was busy. She would plant tulips daily but if she couldn't, she would ask me.

But normally I stay inside, spend my time reading or watching tv. I'm not interested with using laptops and logging on Facebook. It isn't that awesome to me. Just a social network really.