Speak Up! Please

Chapter 2

A week has passed, which means Dominic and I are starting school today. Yuck, I hate high school and I'm definitly ready to be done with this chapter in my life. I'm also nervous about my appointment on Friday afternoon for the hearing aides. After waking up at 6 a.m. and going through my morning routine and having breakfast that Oma made for us; dad drops Dom and I off at the high school on his way to work.

Walking toward my locker as does Dominic, I'm hyper-aware of the stares and whispers of the other people in the hallways. Yes, there are two new kids at school; keuchen! Let's move on people, seriously, it's not that big of a deal. Unfortunetly I know that Dominic will be recieving these same stares and quiet whispers when he starts talking and our thick German accents will be reviled. Unfortunetly, I'll recieve those same things but I'm afraid that these will be worse when people realize that I'm loosing my hearing.

Finding my locker, I toss my bag inside after opening it with a sigh before grabbing my first two classes of the day books; chemistry and calculus. Closing the door with a small sigh, I jump when I see a female and two males standing next to me causing me to jump and let out an unmanly squeak.

"Scheisse!" I grunt out clamping a hand over my mouth with embarressment. Great way to give a bad impression.

The three others stare at me with open mouths. "Bist du Deutscher?" then dark haired, blue eyed, pale, tallest boy of the two asks.

Now it is my turn to gape at him in surprise. Nodding at him, I tell them but mainly him, "Ja bin ich. Woher kennst du deutsch? Wie ist dein Name?"

All three laugh causing me to blush, thinking that they're laughing at my rapid line of questions. Tall boys replies, "Mein Name ist Andre, das sind Courtney und Gavin. Deutschunterrict fur die letzten drei jahre."

Deciding that I probably should speak in English so Courtney and Gavin can understand since I don't want to start off on the wrong foot with people that I have to spend the next nine months with.

"Hello, sorry, my name is Niklas Wolf, nice to meet you both," I hold out my hand for them to shake, dad made sure to teach Dom and I manners.

Gavin shakes my hand first, "Gavin Greene, nice to meet you Niklas."

Courtney smiles at me as she bypasses my hand to give me a tight hug, which I respond to after a moment of shock. Gavin and Andre laugh at my reaction to her forwardness.

"Sorry Niklas, should have warned you that she's a hugger," Andre chuckles out as he peels Courtney off me.

Courtney pouts at Andre, who just smiles at her before placing a gentle kiss on her lips making me turn my attention to Gavin. "They're dating," he informs me as he nods slightly at the couple who are pulling apart.

Nodding since I read his lips since he spoke to quietly for me. "Cool," is my lame-ass answer to him.

"How come your English is so good," Courtney asks as she takes my schedule paper from my hand scanning it.

"My dad is American and we spoke both German and English, mostly German," I tell them as she hands my paper back with a grin.

"All four of us have the same schedule," she says bouncing as she takes slips her arm into the crook of my elbow in one hand as she grasps Andre's hand in her other one, leading us to our first hour with a skip in her step and a dorky grin on her lips.

Entering the calculus classroom, everyone that is already in the room, including the teacher, turn their attention to the four of us. As my cheeks turn pink from their stares, I hand the teacher, a tall woman, who is probably in her fifties with short black hair and striking blue eyes, a sheet of paper to sign acknowledging my exsistance as a new student. All of my teachers have to sign it before I turn it into the office at the end of the day.