String of Fate

Chapter Nine

Starting a new school year was always terrifying even if you knew all the people in your year, all the teachers and your friends going back with you. Starting your last year in school was worse, especially since you knew you would never do it again. You would never be in the same class again. That was tough. It was even tougher when your sixteenth birthday was only a month after term starts.

Obviously, my future boyfriend would either have his birthday very early in the school year or be a graduate. I didn't know how old I wanted him to be. It didn't really matter. Whether he was sixteen or twenty-six, he would be perfect for me. I was excited. I really wanted to meet him. Hopefully, there would only be a month until my string appeared.

I headed to my usual tutorial classroom, where Alana and Sammy would be meeting me. I didn't know if they were here yet. They probably wouldn't be. Those two liked to make it just before the bell. I heard the students in the room before I saw them. A group of about six boys were crowded around a table – Calvin standing out the most. They were all laughing and none of them noticed me as I slid into a seat at the back table. "Happy birthday, old man! Any sign of a string yet?"

"No, not yet. Not an older woman then." Calvin replied. Was his birthday really this early in the year? Unlucky sod. He may have to wait ages to get his string. I also realised that if my string did appear on my birthday – he would be very likely to be at the other end of it. For some reason, I didn't want him to be.

"Hey. We just made it!" Sammy said, walking into the room as the bell went.

"Damn. I was hoping to break that habit this year." Alana added as the two girls sat down.

"Not likely. You've had the same habit since you started Comprehensive school." I said, putting my phone away. "I mean, it would be good if you could."

A month later, I was used to my class schedule and had gotten used to my classes. There was just one thing that seemed to annoy me. Calvin was in all of my classes! Not only that, but I always caught sight of his stupid grinning face wherever I went for dinner. I didn't even know what annoyed me about him, but he just seemed to annoy me. The worst was the day before my sixteenth birthday. During our art lesson, we were put in the same group to sketch each other's faces.

"This is great, isn't it? We can now get to know each other while we work. I've actually wanted to get to know you since I moved here. I can't believe that was a year ago now." He rambled on while I was trying to sketch him. I didn't even know why I was trying. He couldn't keep still. He looked at me, his eyes intense. "Are you even listening?"

"It's hard to sketch you when you keep moving." I said, not knowing what else to say. Thankfully, he understood what I meant and he stayed quiet. Calvin sat still for me as I sketched him. His pencil moved for about twenty minutes and then he sat still, gazing at me. I had to sketch those eyes perfectly. I did the best I could and set my pencil aside when I was done. "Did you finish the sketch or did you give up?"

"I finished it." He replied, handing his sketchbook over to me even though I didn't ask for it. I looked at the sketch. Did I really look like that? Did those big eyes really belong to me? Was that really my hairstyle today? The way that he had sketched me actually made me look good. I was surprised. I handed his sketchbook back to him. "Well, do I get to see how I look?"

"No." I answered, closing my sketchbook as the bell went. After seeing his sketch, I didn't really have much confidence in my own sketch. I quickly packed my stuff away and headed from the classroom as the bell went.

Finally, my birthday came. I woke up on the Saturday morning, reaching my hand up in front of me and noticing the red string wrapped around my finger. I had a feeling that it would be Calvin at the other end of it. I didn't want to find out. I rubbed my eyes, getting up and heading downstairs. Dad was working at the restaurant and mam was out doing the shopping. We were going out for a meal to celebrate my sixteenth in the evening. They were hoping that I would have a boyfriend for that. I didn't think that that was going to happen. Then my doorbell went. I went to open it.