Heart in A Cage

On Monday morning, I was woken up by gentle taps on the door to the guestroom. As I lay there, trying to gather my thoughts and wondering where I was, the knocks stopped and a voice waded in instead: “Connor? Connor, you awake?”

I rubbed at my eyes and managed a quiet “Yeah” that turned into a yawn. “I’ll be out in a bit, Aunt Karen.”

After taking a long hot shower and getting dressed, I walked over to where I had put the school supplies Aunt Karen had bought for me. I didn’t really need much except for a few pens and pencils, and a small notebook to take notes in. Aunt Karen had already enrolled me in the same high school as Nelson – the one Deon had told me about, Creston Hope High School – and I’d also chosen the courses I wanted to take. As it was only four weeks into September, the school year had barely begun, so, hopefully, I didn’t have much to catch up on.

At around 7:15 I came downstairs to find everyone sitting at the dining table in the kitchen, eating breakfast. This was a bit of a surprise, as Dad and I had barely ever got the chance to see each other in the morning, let alone eat together.

“Good morning, Connor,” Aunt Karen said as soon as I took a seat beside Deon. I mumbled something incoherent back and poured myself a bowl of Cheerios cereal. The table was silent except for the rustling of Uncle Jeff’s newspaper, and Kelvin’s protests against drinking the glass of milk that sat in front of him.

Creston Hope High School wasn’t too far from the Walter home – maybe a ten minute walk – so Aunt Karen told me to walk with Nelson, who only shrugged his shoulders at the suggestion. The morning was chilly, with a clear, blue sky and no clouds. The street had come alive again overnight, with parents yelling at their kids to hurry up, and cars roaring by. Once or twice, I thought of starting up a conversation, but I blocked the idea before it even had the chance to fully form.

The school was a big, cream colored two-story building that was surrounded by a low fence. The parking lot was huge, and held all varieties of cars. Some students stood in groups outside the school, and others quickly got inside the building. I turned to Nelson to ask where he was supposed to be going, but he’d already started walking away before I could. I didn’t mind.

Trying not to look around too much, I walked up to the front doors and got inside. The air was thick with warmth. A long hallway, lined with lockers, went straight ahead, while another one went left, and the remaining right. Both were filled up with students leaning against the walls or sitting. A small TV hung on a wall, where a silent football match was playing. I gripped my notebook tightly, bending the fragile edges, and shuffled behind a group of girls who, apparently, found something really funny, and giggled non-stop.

As I turned right into another hallway, I saw a door that led to a library and – right across from it – an office with glass window panels where students were lined up. I walked inside the door and a small, old lady smiled at me. “Hello, can I help you?”

“Uhm,” I started, looking around, “I’m supposed to be picking up my schedule. I’m new here.”

“Name?” she asked, looking at her computer screen.

“Connor Stiver.”

She nodded, tapped a few keys, and then went over to a printer that whirred and spit out a piece of paper. She handed it to me and nodded. “That should be it. I hope you enjoy your first day.”

“Oh, I’m sure I will,” I mumbled, walking out, the paper still warm in my hands.

*

By the time lunch came around, I was both relieved and fed up. My first period class had been Biology, followed by metal workshop and then Algebra. Needless to say, I was bored and tired. The only good thing that had come out of this school so far was that they didn’t really care about new students. None of the teachers made me introduce myself, or made a big deal of anything. They asked me if I needed someone to show me around the school, but I lied and told them I already knew everything. They didn’t argue, or care. And I was happy about that.

Even so, the students stared, but I didn’t mind them – they, too, would stop in a few days.

As I tried to dodge people in the crowded hallways and also steal glances at the paper I held in my hand, I walked towards my locker. On my third try I got the damn thing open and threw everything inside. Aunt Karen had tried very hard to give me some money for lunch, but I’d refused and told her there was no way I was taking it. Finally, when she’d started forcing the money into my hands, I’d told her that I had some cash that I’d earned from working some summer jobs. She’d made me show her the money before she let me go.

With my hands in my pockets, I started for the front door. At first I didn’t notice him, but as I was letting my eyes slip to the side, I saw Lukas. He was walking with two other guys on his side, laughing at something. He held nothing in his hands, and had his hands in his pocket – just like me – and was smiling at everyone. One of the guys beside him was large and beefy with dark hair, while the other was short and not as well-built, with hair the color of corn.

Before he could notice me, I walked faster and got out of the front doors in a rush. Taking in a deep breath, I got off school grounds and started walking to a 7-Eleven Deon had told me about. He’d said that it was the closest to the school – besides some gas station called “Petro” but that one was apparently too full because everyone went there. In a few minutes, I saw the small, square building and, after crossing the street, I entered with a small smile.

After buying a small chicken sub and a can of Coke, I walked outside and to the side of the building. A few chairs were set up there, so I sat down and began in on the food, feeling satisfied.

The rest of the school day passed by quickly. After lunch, I had English, History and PE, the latter of which I ended up skipping, just because I thought it was too nice of a day to be running. I came back to the 7-Eleven and bought myself some candy, then walked around until it was time to go home. I didn’t know if I was supposed to walk home with Nelson, but I was too happy to care.

Finally, the first day was over.