String of Fate

Chapter Eight

I was scared. Anyone in this situation would be. Going to a new school when you were eleven and trying to make new friends was hard enough. Transferring just after Christmas in your last year of comprehensive school was impossible. Friendships had already been made and groups already formed. Students were already labelled as 'cool girls', 'geeks', 'those hot guys', 'the smart kids', 'the weird ones' and even 'the bullies'. They were in every school no matter where you studied.

"Hey, guys, this is Ashley Thompson. She's transferred here and will be with us until the end of the year, which will also be your graduation." The teacher said, introducing me to my registration class. I glanced around, knowing that I was already labelled as 'the new girl' and nothing else. I would be surprised if I even made any friends in this school. Even my old school friends had stopped talking to me. I didn't even get a text. "It looks like the seat next to Damien is free. You can sit there."

Lucky for me, Damien sat at the back, in the corner near the window. I nodded to the teacher and headed to that table. Away from the stares that I felt standing by the board. It was the part of the room that was meant to attract attention after all. I heard some members of the class muttering to each other, whispering behind their hands. I heard one girl clearly as I passed. "Poor girl. She has to sit next to the school bully."

"He's feared by the whole school." Another said.

"Even the teachers are scared of him." A guy added.

Yikes! I glanced around. There were no other seats. I would be sitting that until the end of the year unless there was an absent student. I might be able to move for the day that way. I made it to the desk and smiled to him as I sat down. He was leaning on his hand and his black hair was a little shabby, the bangs falling in his eyes. I also noticed that he was snoozing a little. Best not to wake him. He seemed like a scary guy – there was even a little scowl in his sleep! Instead, I pulled out my new time table. Where was room 207? Where were the maths classrooms, anyway? I was engrossed about wondering where the classroom was when the teacher called. "The bell's going to go soon, so, off you go."

I turned to Damien. He was still sleeping! He would be late to lesson if he continued. I poked him in the arm. His eyes opened and they focused on me. They were blue – an icy colour that sent a chill down my spine. I shouldn't have woken him! "What?"

"Um. The bell is about to go and the teacher just dismissed us. I'm Ashley, the new student here." I answered, giving him my best smile. He continued scowling. Without saying a word, he took the time table from my hands and looked at it for a long moment.

"You're in my classes so you can just follow me around until you get the hang of it." He said to me. His voice was quite deep, and it seemed to match him. He got up and pulled his bag on. He walked behind me and headed to the door. I didn't actually follow. He turned back to me. "Are you coming or not? You don't want to be late for your first lesson, do you?"

"I'm coming." I replied, quickly grabbing my bag and getting up. Automatically, I tucked the chair under the desk and then I followed him through the maze that was the school. I was lost but I followed him anyway. For all I knew, he could be leading me in the wrong direction. I noticed that he was given a wide berth, the students showing a little fear in their eyes when they looked at him and whispering behind their hands. They were all petrified of him. Had he done something in the past to make them all scare? If he had, I kind of wanted to know what it was.

We made it to the maths classroom as the bell went and we waited until the rest of the class had gone in before I followed Damien into the room. All the tables were full except the one at the back corner in front of us. I guessed that it was the seat that Damien normally occupied. I knew that I had guessed correctly when he sat there. The only free seat was next to him, again. Obviously, I sat there.