Barely An Angel (Completed)

24~ The New Teacher

Dad threw his hands in the air in defeat. "Well, he was nice," he scoffed.

I shot to my feet. "He just wants to help, and he's mad that we're telling him he can't, okay? I would be upset too." I took a deep breath. "You know what, maybe I should go to school today. What could go wrong?" I joked sarcastically. I rushed up to my room to grab my backpack and my school supplies, and before I left my room I applied some sangyris lotion. When I went back downstairs, my mom had emerged from her room and was standing next to my dad.

"Hey, your father told me you feel like going to school after all," she grinned.

I nodded. "Yeah, besides, Nathan needs me there. Unless he magically became friends with the werewolves," I laughed. I gave both of my parents a hug before I was out the door. The school day ahead would not be easy, but I would at least try to tough it out, for him.

When I arrived, second period had already started, so I quickly unloaded my books into my locker and grabbed what I needed. I tentatively approached the classroom door; I hated having all attention directed at me, and since I was arriving late, that was exactly what was going to happen. I paused right in front of the door, slowly reaching my hand towards the doorknob.

Come on, Ramona. Get it together. The sooner you open the door, the quicker it's over with. I inhaled deeply, holding my breath while I turned the knob and almost threw the door open. Sure enough, all eyes landed on me. I hurriedly scanned the classroom for an empty seat, and I silently thanked the Chancellors when I saw an open spot next to Nathan.

"So glad you could join us, Ms. Marlo," Mrs. Bradley gurgled sarcastically. "How lucky we are to be graced by your presence. Now, may I continue the lesson?" I wasn't willing to argue with her, so I merely nodded my head as I rushed to sit down. A few nymphs in the front of the classroom snickered at my expense, but I did my best to ignore them.

I waited until Mrs. Bradley was well into her lecture again before I leaned over towards Nathan. "Hey," I whispered. He glanced sideways at me, but said nothing. I didn't let that stop me. "Let's talk at lunch, please," I begged.

Nathan sighed. "I'm going to that meeting, remember?"

"I'll go to the meeting with you. Who knows, maybe I'll actually want to join drama class," I attempted to joke, but it fell flat when he didn't react. I exhaled sharply. "Look, you can't be mad at me for wanting to keep you safe. That's all I'm trying to do. I'm going to that meeting with you, and we'll talk then." With that, I turned my attention back to Mrs. Bradley before she could notice that I had been talking.

***

"Alright, what a good turnout," the new drama teacher clapped her hands together as she surveyed the group of students who had shown up for the drama class meeting. Her dark brown hair was pulled back into a tight, sleek ponytail in a sort of "I mean business" fashion. Great, I thought to myself. Another strict teacher, as if we had a shortage of those.

I sat next to Nathan in one of the blue plastic school chairs the new teacher had arranged in rows. Nathan and I sat in the middle row; a few mermaids in front of us, elves behind us, and a few demigods next to me. The seats on Nathan's other side were empty.

Once everyone had found a spot, the teacher clapped her hands together again. "Wow, I'm honored so many of you showed up. If there wasn't enough interest in a drama class here, Hamiel said I would be out of a job before I even started," she laughed nervously; everyone else's silence lead to a stifling awkward atmosphere. "Okay...so I figured we could start with introductions. I'm Mrs. Arche, and I'll be your drama teacher this year. Since it is the middle of the school year, it'll be more of a club than a class, which means you won't be graded as harshly, so woo-hoo!" She cheered, pumping her fists in the air. The students remained silent, save for a demigod next to me, who cheered along with her.

"Oh yeah!" she cried, pointing at the demigod. "He's excited! Okay, why don't you start with introductions?"

"Yeah, sure. So," he stood up. "Hey, fellow drama enthusiasts. Um, my name is Zando, and I'm distantly related to Apollo, god of the sun. So I guess you could say I'm pretty hot," he smirked, running a hand through his curly golden locks. His remark earned laughter from the mermaids, who seemed to be in a competition for his attention. I just rolled my eyes.

"Thank you for that, Zando," Mrs. Arche giggled. "You can sit down now. Um, is there anyone who'd like to go next?" When no one volunteered, she let her gaze travel over all the students until it landed on me. "How about you?"

I gulped. "Sure, I guess. Um," I awkwardly stood up from my chair, clearing my throat. "Hello, everyone. My name is Ramona, Ramona Marlo. To be honest, I'm not that into acting, but I thought I'd give it a try and see how it goes." I looked down at Nathan. "My friend here loves acting, so I figured it couldn't be all that terrible, right?"

Mrs. Arche smiled. "Your friend sounds very smart," she chimed. "It's nice to meet you, Ramona. I sincerely hope you find yourself enjoying our drama club." She grinned widely, a genuine smile that only came around once in a while.

I smiled back. "I'm sure I will," I assured her, letting my gaze fall on Nathan. His irritated facade crumbled just a bit, happiness shining through the cracks. I grasped his hand, and he didn't pull away for the rest of the meeting.

When the meeting did end, everyone stood up and stretched, before filtering out through the door.

"Excuse me, Ramona, is it?" Mrs. Arche called. "Could you stay a bit longer? I'm not going to keep you long, there's just something I need to talk to you about." 

~

As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts ☺️ leave a comment + vote ⭒ if you enjoyed, and I'll see you in the next one,

~R.J. ♡