Please, Miss (GirlxGirl) ✔️

1 | welcome to hell

"It stinks of shit."

I could feel my father rolling his eyes beside me as we sat in the back of the taxi-cab, driving through the english countryside beneath the August sunshine. Admittedly, I'd been surprised that it wasn't pouring with rain when we'd first arrived, as England seemed to be famous for its awful weather, but as the driver soon informed me, "This nice weather won't stay long darlin', you just wait and see."

To my right, my dad turned to face me. He'd accompanied me to England, whilst my other father, Christopher, stayed behind to look after Owen. They didn't think it was a good idea to bring him along; Owen was a very clingy child, and I often found him latched around my ankles like a puppy. It was hard on him, having to say goodbye, and truthfully, it was hard for me too, though that wasn't something I was delighted to admit.

"That'll be the cows, probably," my dad said with yet another roll of his eyes. "Listen, we're almost here, but I just wanted you to know how proud of you me and your father are for going through with this. I know this is going to be hard on you, especially for the first few weeks. Just remember that we're always a phone call away, alright kiddo?"

I smiled half-heartedly as he tousled my hair and planted a kiss on my forehead. My smile faded as I turned back to the window, anxiety rising within me. I was determined not to seem too bothered; I knew it would only upset him. Tommy and I had always been close; I loved my other dad too, of course, but he'd always been preoccupied with work or Owen. Tommy was there for me whenever I needed him, and I knew how much it pained him to have to send me away. He was my best friend, and aside from him, I didn't have any others.

I was snapped from my train of thought as we rounded a corner and came to a halt outside a huge, ancient-looking building. I hated it already. Outside were a handful of groups of girls, standing in white shirts tucked into black and white tartan knee-length skirts. My mouth fell open in disgust as I eyed the uniform. The driver opened the door for me before heading round to the trunk to grab my luggage, which he placed beside the car. I turned to my dad, who was looking at me with a pleading glint in his eye.

"Don't judge it just yet, Evie. You never know, you might just love it here, kid." He opened his door and stepped out, walking round the back of the car to my side. He held out his hand and I took it reluctantly, stepping onto the gravel pathway.

A tall woman, seemingly in her mid-fifties, approached us with a smile. She had dark hair, aside from the silver strands that struck through it, and she held out her hand to my father, shaking it. "You must be Mr. Luis."

My father nodded. "Please, call me Tommy. Thank you so much for giving our daughter this opportunity. We really are grateful."

"Of course," she replied with another smile, as her eyes slid over to me. Holding out her hand to me this time, she said, "Evelyn, what a pleasure. I'm Mrs. Finchley." I shook her hand, but didn't return the smile, instead avoiding eye contact and looking about the grounds of the school. "I'll leave you to say goodbye to your father. Nice to meet you, Mr. Luis." With that, she turned and walked slowly away.

I faced my dad, blinking and biting the inners of my cheeks to stop myself from crying. He opened his mouth to speak, but I threw my arms around his neck, embracing him tightly. I breathed in his familiar scent one last time and squeezed my eyes shut momentarily, before pulling away.

"See you soon, kiddo," he nodded, a tear in his eye as he kissed me cheek and turned, getting into the back of the car.

"Bye dad," I whispered as he closed the door and the driver started the engine. I watched as the car did a U-turn and headed back down the winding country lane until they were out of sight. I felt a sudden feeling of profound loneliness dominate me as I stood with all my belongings in bags on the floor before my eyes.