Enigma

I woke up the next morning happy and looking forward to the day ahead. Something new to me, especially considering that it was a school day. I swung my legs out of bed and shuffled across the carpet to grab my towel from the back of the door. The bathroom was across the hall from my room which was convenient when I wanted to grab the first shower in the mornings. The warm water felt good on my skin as I stood there momentarily before washing my hair.

Courtney walked out of her room and towards the shower as I walked back to my room. She glanced at me absently and mumbled good-morning.

I chewed my lip as I pulled on the knee length skirt that was part of our uniform. It wasn’t bad as far as uniforms went. The girls had to wear a navy-check knee length woollen skirt with black stockings, white blouse and navy tie. There was also a black woollen blazer and navy pullover. When worn correctly, it looked neat and presentable, which of course was the desire of the headmaster.

I quickly ran a brush through my hair and pushed a black headband into place. I grabbed my bag and walked down to the kitchen. Mum was brewing coffee and she smiled at me as I walked in.

“Would you like some?” she asked.

“No, but I’ll have some tea if the kettle is still hot.” I smiled back and wandered over to the cupboard to get out a bowl and some cereal.

Mum poured me a cup of tea and set it down at the table. I made myself breakfast and then sat down to eat.

“Anything exciting happening today sweetie?” Mum sat down across from me and spread out the newspaper infront of her.

“The usual,” I laughed quietly to myself.

Courtney, Sarah and Anne bubbled away in conversation as usual. Dad was silent as he drove through the fine, misty rain. I watched the other cars drive past us as we slowed down to pull into the school.

“See you this afternoon kids!” Dad called as we all climbed out of the car and walked to our lockers.

The people who stood in the hallway ignored me as I walked to my locker. They were all talking and laughing with their friends. I pushed my bag into my locker, grabbed some books that I needed to return to the library, shut my locker and headed off.

The library was filled with students huddled in tight groups around the heaters. I smiled slightly to myself because I didn’t need a heater.

The day passed quickly and I was eager to get back home so that I could talk to Strider. So much for not needing him. I grinned and shook my head as I walked towards the car-park. I could see the car waiting beside the curb and I quickened my pace.

For once, Courtney, Sarah and Anne were in the car before I was. Dad smiled at me as I slid into the front seat and we drove home.

I raced up the stairs to my room and turned on the computer. Whilst it loaded, I changed from my uniform into grey jeans and a blue long sleeved top.

I smiled to myself as I logged onto msn. Funny how I thought I wouldn’t need to talk to Strider now that I had a friend in the ‘real world’. But if anything, I wanted to talk to him more than ever. Especially now that we were friends again. I drummed my fingers on my desktop and sighed heavily. Would it always be this way? Would I always need to talk to Strider even when I had friends here?

If I did need to talk to him, then why? Why would I need him when I had friends here? I chewed my lip and grabbed a couple of school books from my bag. Maybe it was because he was one of the few people that I could talk to consistently without them thinking I was some kind of freak. But that is only because he doesn’t know that I am a freak. I looked up at the screen and saw the he was talking to me. I wonder how he would react if I told him.