I meet up with Alex and Lydia right in the front of the classroom along with Kamryn from my LA class and two other girls I don’t recognize.
“You’re Becca, right?” one of them asks.
“Yeah,” I nod.
“I’m Addison,” she smiles.
“I’m Bria,” says the other.
“You guys, let’s go,” Alex suggests. “I’m starving.”
We start to head out as Mr. Halloran pulls me behind. “I hope you’re understanding everything we’ve been going over. If you need any help, Teagan will most definitely help you. You can always come to me during tutorial or after school. And you’ll need to learn how to light a Bunsen burner. It’s part of our curriculum. It’s the only grade you’ll have to make up. When would be a good time for you to come in and learn it? It’ll only take a couple minutes.”
“Would now be a good time?” I ask.
“Yeah. That’s fine.” My teacher leads me to a lab table in the back of the classroom. A Bunsen burner conveniently sits on the table. I’m given a metal thing called a striker and he demonstrates how to get it to spark. (You have to press the rod down and to the right, if you wanted to know). It took me a few tries, but I got it. Then he shows how to turn on the gas valves and how to light the burner. I hold the striker above the gas coming from the top and push. There were sparks, but they didn’t embrace the gas. The second time, a small firework erupted from the machine. I scream and jump back. A six inch blue flame hovers above the Bunsen burner.
“Great job! You did it!” Mr. Halloran applauds me. I smile. I just lit a Bunsen burner. I made a fire. And I did it correctly. “You can go down to lunch now. Don’t worry about being tardy. You can’t get a tardy for lunch.”
“Thank you!” I say and leave the classroom. Walking down the hall, I sigh. Mr.
Halloran said I couldn’t be late to lunch. He was wrong. The bell signaling the start of the lunch period doesn’t mean anything. I might be new to actual school, but I’ve read enough books to know seats fill up quickly. All I can do is hope that I won't get there too late.
YOU ARE READING
What We Lost In The Winter
Teen FictionBecca Kingser almost died when she was eight years old. Ever since then, she's been homeschooled with her sisters. One of them is a bouncy, energetic little girl, the other is a closed-off mystery. But when Becca's mom finds a new job in Michigan, t...
