Butterflies

Chapter One

It's the first day of school and I'm late.

Come on, Hazel, I tell myself, This is your last year here. Get a life and stop worrying about being on time.

Great. I'm already talking to myself and I'm not even inside the classroom yet.

Taking a deep breath, I step forward and push open the door.

"Hazel Black!" A prim voice assaults me before I even get the chance to sit down. I never understood why Mrs Carter became a teacher when she so obviously hates children.

"You're late!"

"Um, I know."

Shut up, Hazel!

"I mean - sorry."

I grin sheepishly and duck into the locker room, exhaling. As soon as I'm out of sight, tears prick behind my eyes and I choke back a sob. If only they knew why...

I plaster on a fake smile and walk back in, trying to look confident. Searching to find that mop of blonde hair, I plop down next to my best friend. To my surprise, she's sitting in the front row, staring intently at the teacher.

"Cori," I tap her on the shoulder and hiss, "Why are you paying attention?"

She whirls around and stares at me in earnest, her big blue eyes open wide. It's almost like her face never matured. She still looks about twelve, with chubby cheeks, a dusting of freckles and enviably clear skin. She's actually adorable, but if I told her that she'd probably punch me.

"Hazel, it's our last year here. It's our job to be role models and set and example for the other students. It's high time we assumed some responsibility."

Who stole my best friend? I'm about to say something when she bursts into laughter.

"Hazel, I'm joking! I only got here a few minutes before you did and these were the only seats left."

Her smile almost overrides the lump in my throat. Almost.

Mrs Carter tries to call the roll, but no one's listening. Eventually she sighs and gives up, scanning the desks and nodding.

I look down at the schedule in my hands and nearly drop it. Double calc? On the first day?!

A harsh rap on the classroom door snaps me out of my intense teacher torturing fantasies. It's a woman with bright blonde hair and kind eyes. The sort of person who would knock.

Mrs. Carter lets her in and I can almost see the abuse brewing behind her eyes. No one interrupts Mrs. Carter's class, even when there's nothing to interrupt.

That is, until she notices the boy standing behind the woman, hiding behind a mop of tousled hair. A transfer? Who transfers schools for their last year? And more pressingly, who brings their mom with them? My thoughts are screaming 'weirdo' and I haven't even seen his face.

The woman says something to Mrs. Carter and then whispers in her ear. For a moment, the old bag seems horrified, but then she turns to the boy with a warm smile on her face. Whatever the woman said, it must have been pretty convincing. I haven't seen Mrs. Carter smile at a pupil that fully is when she's handing out detentions.

"Could everyone please welcome Ashton Irwin to our school, he's a new transfer from Green Park High. Please help him find his way around these next few days."

For the first time since he walked in, he turns around. As soon as I see his face I get a sudden urge to pull my phone out of my pocket and take a picture.

There's no denying the fact he's good looking. His eyes are a rich hazel and his hair sits in a whirlwind around his face. He pulls a smile so sweet and awkward it makes me want to cry. A boy this beautiful should be swaggering like a jock, he should be louder, more confident. But there is something behind his eyes that is so raw and intense it makes me want to look away. I get the feeling this isn't someone I'll be talking to. He looks like he's built almost as many walls as I have.

Just as he moves to find a seat, I notice the tiny braided bracelets snaking all the way up his arms. They make him look like a ten year old girl with too many friends, and yet the longer I stare at them, the more unnerving I find them.

"What a weirdo," Cori whispers in my ear, and I agree though my mind is somewhere else.

The bell rings and reluctantly I prepare myself for two hours of graphs and curvy lines.

Hey guys! So this is a bit different to anything I've written in the past, but I wanted to have a go at writing fanfic. Please vote or comment to let me know if it's any good, and I'll update if it gets 20 reads by next week. Thanks so much for reading this far!

XXAW