The New Girl

Chapter Twenty Two

What Avalanna did was become so pleased that she treated herself with some extra make up. She applied lip gloss as if preparing for a hopeful kiss that she thought Brooklyn would give her. Caybe and Mimi seemed happy for their best friend that they kept giggling and whispering something in her ears. That proved they all knew what was in that fake love letter that Avalanna was merrily clutching close to her heart.

The bell had already rung and we were all in our English class waiting for Professor Maya. Only people who weren't present in the class were a girl called Rita, Lovina, David, Brooklyn and Arvon. Avalanna stored away her make ups in her bag when Professor Maya walked in the class, and I stopped peeking at her.

Professor Maya started the lesson without taking our attendance first, which was something she had never done before. I think she must be under the pressure to finish the current chapter we were studying. It was the longest one in the book but she had been teaching it in a slow pace.

Five minutes passed since Professor Maya came into the class. Where was Arvon? I began worrying about him and kept glancing at the door hoping to see him there. I relaxed when he finally turned up. But he didn't look okay. He was wiping what looked like sweat from his face with a handkerchief.

Professor Maya didn't let him sit in her class easily. With a stern look on her face, she made him rub the marker board and then only granted him the permission to sit.

"You okay?" I asked him.

Arvon nodded. When he was seated, he leaned toward me from back and whispered, "I locked him up in the Basketball Court."

Professor Maya narrated the lesson again, and we had to focus our attention on her. Two minutes hadn't gone when Avalanna raised her hand and interrupted the professor.

"Yes, Ms Gilbert?"

"I'm having this terrible headache. Can I be excused to visit the Sick Room and get some medics, professor?"

I knew that was a lie told so convincingly. Professor Maya believed her, and she was excused from her class. Once she was gone, I imagined her going to the bank of Blue River and feeling hugely disappointed for having to meet Lovina instead of Brooklyn. I didn't like to think what two of them would tell to each other on this meeting, though; because I was sure anything they said to one another won't be related to pleasant conversation from any angle.

Professor Maya was interfered with several beeping tones of cellphones some minutes later. I knew what many phones beeping together at once meant. It meant only one thing which was so obvious: party at Gilbert mansion.

Professor Maya looked stern once more.

"What's happening in this class? Why everyone is so interested to disturb my teaching?"

At that moment, Brooklyn appeared in the doorway looking irritated. His presence didn't soften the expression on Professor Maya at all. To say in other words, she had never looked sterner than at that minute.

***

When I beheld Avalanna next time in Science class, her face was set in a blank expression, and without anyone telling me, I knew Lovina had mesmerized her. She probably had made her forget about the fake letter because she didn't seem much interested into Brooklyn when she saw him in the same class, which puzzled Caybe and Mimi greatly. And also I knew that the idea of partying at Gilbert mansion tonight was Lovina's. Why did she want Avalanna to throw a party? How would this contribute to our plan? She hadn't included this party stuff in her plan when she told us about it last night.

I received a text from Lovina in the short recess, and it said:

Meet me at Disco Light in Bucket at 5 today. Bring Arvon along. Lovina.