Broken Faith ✓

Chapter 5: Books

I was one of the first people to arrive to English. As a trickle of people walked in and Ryder was nowhere in sight I was silently hoping he would not be in. Wouldn't that be a treat! Although I tried to stop it, the hope in me built up.

As the last of my classmates walked into the class none of them were Ryder.

Thank you, God!

Miss Cameron walked over and closed the door and I smiled to myself. I would get peace today. I exhaled a deep breath and felt the serenity around me.

But just as she shut the door and turned around someone opened it and as I saw who it was my smile rushed off my face.

Okay I take my thank you back.

"Sorry I'm late Miss, my last teacher took too long signing my attendance card" he announced not only to Miss but to the whole class as we all stared in silence between Miss Cameron and Ryder.

"Attendance card Ryder? Which means you have been caught trying to skip one of your classes?" Miss Cameron clicked her tongue and shook her head.

As Ryder made his way over to our desk he ran his hand through his hair "Regretfully so, Miss"

How typical of the alpha male of the popular boys wanting to skip class. But what would it lead to? Getting caught and then having to work harder to catch up on the missed work? Didn't they get that they needed to attend classes to do well in exams so they could secure their future?

He sat down and I felt the despair emanate from me. He was shuffling in his seat to take out his things and settle but I had turned my face in the opposite direction to prohibit even my peripheral vision from detecting even an ounce of Ryder.

"Would anyone like to do me a favour? I need someone to go grab something from another class from me" I shot my hand up.

"Faith, okay come here" I smiled and made my way to Miss Cameron without so much as a glance in Ryder's direction.

We had slipped up in front of each other last time and although I had duly accepted that, I wasn't going to let it happen again. So, no glancing, no conversations. Nothing. That would just make life so much easier instead of these tangled, conflicted emotions of hate and slipping up.

"Can you please go downstairs to Mr Miller's class and grab a box of books for me? He should know exactly which one it is, but he's a bit forgetful so if he isn't sure it has my name on it."

"Okay sure" I smiled and walked towards the door and swung it open to my momentary freedom open and closed it behind me.

I walked to the end of the corridor basking in the relative silence of the corridors to when it would be bustling with students in between classes as only teachers' voices could be heard echoing loudly with what they were trying to drill into their student's heads. A mix of techniques to dramatic prose vibrating through the English corridor.

I walked through the swing doors, down the steps and walked into the corridor downstairs until I arrived at Mr Miller's class. All that could be heard was him trying to teach a few techniques of writing to his students. I knocked three times on the open door.

"Yes?" the old man smiled at me over the ridge of his glasses as I cut him mid-sentence. I stepped into the class.

"Miss Cameron was asking if she could have the box of her books back?"

"Oh yes! Follow me young lady" he ushered for me to follow him to the black to the classroom as a classroom full of my juniors watched me weave in between the tables.