Nowhere Girl

An Invite

Author's Note: I have changed my main character's name from Syra to Nora, and this is what she will be referred to throughout the story now. Sorry for the confusion!

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"Now, for your homework I've set you some assigned reading." Mr. Browning, Nora's history teacher, muttered absentmindedly. "Make sure you know the material, because I'll test you on it next lesson."

There was a collective groan from the entire class. Mr. Browning dismissed them, and everyone began shuffling away papers in their bags, but not before jotting down the new assignment in their homework diaries. Nora could not help but feel smug as she watched them do so. She had read that chapter days in advance.

She slung her backpack over her shoulder and headed out of the classroom. History was one of her favourite lessons that year, though none of her friends took it. She hardly shared any lessons with any of them, really.

Her phone chimed; it was a message from Ash. Her friend had asked her to meet her in front of her Spanish class- and that was exactly where Nora was heading, when a curious sight caught her eye.

Her step brother stood in the middle of the school hallway, leaning against the lockers with a feline grace that came with a lifetime of self adulation. Around him stood a myriad of the school's most popular students-Michelle Yeoh amongst them, of course- but also others: Flavio Ricci, the school's star swimmer, Arianna Pence, a petite artsy girl, Laura Lee, another athlete, and countless others. Jonas talked to them with an ease that spoke of years of familiarity- though he could hardly have known for a few hours. It was remarkable how the lot of them could make the drab school uniform look like haute couture. Jem must have noticed her stare, because he risked a glance at her from the corner of his eye, and she raised her eyebrows in a silent question.

What's up with them?

Jem shrugged, almost imperceptibly. Nora laughed to herself despite it all. What more could she expect from him? Her goodwill dissipated quite quickly when she noticed Laura Lee break away from the rest of the group and walk towards her. Thinking it was a mistake, Nora turned heel, heading towards the library. That was enough social observation for a day, and now it was time to bolt.

She had only made it a few steps when Laura Lee, for whatever reason, caught up to her. The other girl grabbed her arm, forcing her backwards with such force she almost lost her balance. Nora turned to the girl in incredulous confusion, but before she could ask her question, Laura blurted out her apology.

"I'm terribly sorry about that." she said, her face rather embarrassed. "I just didn't want you to run away."

Silence.

"That's what you were doing, wasn't it?"

More silence.

"For God's sake, I'm not going to eat you." Laura said with such exasperation that Nora broke into a grin. The other girl smiled, too, and Nora put herself at ease. Laura had a kindly face, and something in her voice told Nora she was not cut from the same cloth as her other friends.

"So- you know me and my brother, right?" Laura began, and Nora wondered where she was going with this. At ease she was, but that didn't make interacting with an almost stranger any less difficult.

"Your twin, Elliot?" Nora mused.

"Yeah, that's him." Laura confirmed. "Well, our birthday is coming up in a few days, and I'm inviting everyone in this year group to our party this weekend- you and your friends included."

Nora blinked. In all her years of school, she had never been invited to a party by the likes of someone like Laura Lee- the birthdays she had celebrated with her friends had always been small, intimate affairs, and she was pretty sure Laura's party would be nothing of the sort. Aside from that -she could not entirely dismiss the notion that this was some elaborate prank being played on her by the school's more popular kids. For all she knew, Laura's friends could be laughing at her naïvety from where they stood just meters away- Jem amongst them. But Jem wouldn't do that to her.