Maddox Academy: Grievous Beginnings - Wattys 2022 Shortlister

Chapter Eleven - An Unexpected Assembly

Victoria appeared to get tired of me rather quickly.

Two weeks after the pool incident, she had resorted to sending daggers into my back rather than talking to me. Whatever her reason may have been for it, I welcomed the chance. It felt nice to be able to go about my day without the potential threat of being pushed into a swimming pool or dragged out of bed in the middle of the night. It felt as though I had a sense of normalcy back in my life.

I got into the flow of attending my lessons and spending my free time working on my project. I still struggled to narrow down my topic choice and my notes were still pilling high, much to my own annoyance. Although I tended to live in chaos, this was something that needed to be consolidated if I stood any chance of doing well.

My free time was spent with Katie and Jo, the two of them still exchanging looks and muttering between them, but neither of them would tell me what it was about. I didn't like being left out of things and hated not knowing what they were whispering about; I had the sneaking suspicion it was about me due to the side-ways glances they had sent my way on occasion.

My stomach still fluttered when I was with Katie.

February arrived in a cold chill accompanied by several storms. My early morning running sessions felt more like lessons in learning how-to run-on mud, but they were fun. Mrs Leverton had tried to get me to join in the Lacrosse practice, but that would never happen. Coordination had never been my strong suit and I had a habit of getting injured whenever I did anything that involved it. I was content with running up and down the side of the pitch like a yo-yo.

"You'll take part one of these days, I'm telling you now," Katie said as we walked back to the school.

"No, I won't. Trust me," I said.

"What about when your class moves away from swimming once the weather brightens up? You'll have to do Lacrosse then," Jo added.

"I'll burn that bridge when I get to it.

"Isn't it cross the bridge?"

"Probably."

I shrugged and Katie snorted.

"Did you hear anything from Mrs Maddox yet? About what we told her?"

I shook my head and said nothing. Mrs Maddox seemed to be taking her time. Katie swung her Lacrosse stick over her shoulder, almost hitting Jo in the back of the head with it. Over the past few weeks, I had grown closer to the pair of them and it felt as though I was finally starting to settle into Maddox after several weeks of uncertainty. If Victoria kept her distance until the end of the year, I would have to reconsider the stance on returning.

To my surprise, once things settled with Victoria, I found I didn't hate Maddox nearly as much as I thought I would. The lessons were a little more challenging, it was easier to focus, and their Library contained everything I had dreamed of. Without Victoria getting under my skin, I had started to see Maddox in a new light. Boarding school may not have been as bad as I thought it would be. Still, I had several weeks to go, and anything could happen.

We went our separate ways at the top of the staircase with Katie and Jo continuing upwards whilst I walked down the hall and up the stairs to the dormitory. I had washed, changed and packed my bag all before Miss Jones arrived to wake the rest of the girls up.

"Girls! Wake up!" she said. "Mrs Maddox will be holding an assembly this morning. She expects you all to be in the meeting hall when the bell rings for first lesson."

"Why? We never have assembly," Dorothy said, stifling a yawn.

"It's not my place to say. Get dressed and get yourselves down to the dining hall in good time or you'll be late."