Fallen Love

Its not easy leaving one life to start anew. It was harder leaving my home town with my family in. mum needed a new start after dad left. This time it was different and I cant explain how exactly. As we pulled into the driveway of the new house it overwhelmed the surroundings. It was an old looking house. It had a steps leading up to an open porch; French double doors and a spire on top. It had a Victorian look about it. But in a sort of eerily way. We had lived in a new house back in Carmarthenshire but here it was old fashioned. Old fashioned looking houses and streets. It was in a little village where everyone knew everyone. Quite off putting in a sense.

‘ Well I think you best be off the bed. Nice and fresh for your new school tomorrow Rhianedd’ commented Mum as we finished unpacking. She acted as if it was no big deal and that it was a normal thing that I did every week. It was so daunting that in fact I couldn’t sleep and was the opposite or refreshed as possible. When my alarm clock showed that it was 5:00 I decided that it was a decent enough time to get up and shower to wake me up. I got dressed into the uniform that the school had. It must have been the worst, old fashioned uniform around. There was a burgundy tie, white shirt, burgundy woolly jumper and black trousers. The uniform even specified that you had to were black socks and school shoes no trainers. I could just tell that it was going to be awful. As I arrived at the school’s main entrance there was a swarm of kids ogling at me trying to get a better look at the ’new ’ kid. I always hated being centre of attention even when I was little. I rather sit in a corner a have done. There was no escaping this mob though. Mum and I waited patiently in the lobby of the reception for the headmaster to come greet us and introduce himself and the head of my year. The seats were quite comfy. Green covered form seats without being to low to the ground. That was about all that I could see which was positive. The school looked like it was held up by cardboard and chewing gum. Some tiles from the ceiling were missing and the ones that were still in place and brown stains from where the rain had leaked in. To the left of the seats was a glass display cabinet where there seemed to be an African tribal hat with a note stating it was a gift to the school from a Lesotho school. Behind on a big wooden notice board in gold letters were pupils who had won an award and we commemorated on it and who had represented the school in some way or other. The receptionist showed my Mum and I to the headmasters office as he was in off morning duty. I was thankful just to get away from the crowd which had formed to just up the corridor.
He was a short man the headmaster. Barely taller than me. He had a shiny bald head which had looked as if it had been buffed to shine.
‘Hello you must be Rhianedd, I’m Mr Cole. This is Mrs Lewis who is your head off year. If there is any problems don’t be afraid to come to either me or Mrs Lewis. We’ll be more than happy to help’ he said with a big grin and if to welcome me but just made me more nervous. Mr Cole and Mrs Lewis began talking about how things worked here. Different heads of each year. What set I would be in and what classed were on my timetable. It just mashed into one and went in one year and out the other. I just nodded and smiled in the right places. Mrs Lewis took me to English which was always my favourite subject in my last school. She introduced me to my teacher, Miss Jones. She was an average height, middle aged women with a pointed nose and bird like eyes. Her hair was straggly and dyed blonde as her roots were showing badly. The had a sort of pregnant stomach though it looked as if it had been there a while. She had her glasses perched on top of her head pushing her hair out to give her horns. She introduced me to the class and sat me in between two girls called Quinn and Hannah. Quinn had the obvious beauty. Blonde hair blue eye doe type girl. Hannah on the other hand wasn’t outstandingly beautiful but it was there. She had hazel brown eyes. Mousey brown, shoulder length hair. But there was something there.
‘Right. Today we will be looking at personification and looking at the poem - Dulce et decorum est and lets see how many on this list you can find. There will be lots of onomatopoeias’ and that was as far as I got. Her voice just droned on and on enough to put you to sleep it was so boring and monotone. I could just tell the my favourite subject was soon going to be my worst. The girl to my right seemed to be in the same frame of mind as me as she had her back to the board talking to the girl on her right.
’Not the best teacher in the world hey. I’m Hannah by the way’
’Rhianedd. No, not really. Bit boring.’
’Where you from? You have a strong accent.’
’Carmarthen. West Wales. We do have a strong accent compared to you in the south.’
’Something you would like to share with the class Rhianedd, Hannah. I do hope it is a thrilling discovery in the poem other wise I see not reason for you to be talk. That goes for you too Quinn, Rachael’
With a audible groan from who I could only guess was Quinn all four of us carried on working through the poem. It must have been the most boring thing I had read. The lesson just seemed to drag and when the buzzer finally went Miss Jones held us back.
’I expected better from you Hannah. Not so much you Quinn. And I don’t see what your smirking at Rachael! And you Rhianedd, I thought you would have wanted to make a better impression than talking through the lesson. I will see all four of you here at lunch for detention’
We all trudged out of the class with sour faces. It turned out me and Hannah both had History so she walked with me. It was nice to walk with her, she was chatty so I just had to listen. She gave me all the gossip on which teacher to avoid and which were lovely. When we reached our class the lesson had already starts. Hannah walking straight in and took her seat while I walked in rather sheepishly.
‘Hello I’m Mrs James. I will be teaching half of you history lesson. And you are?’
‘I-I-I’m Rhianedd’ I stuttered
‘Well Rhianedd. You’ll have to sit next to Shemar. He wont bite, honest’
Towards the back of the room was a good looking boy. Tanned skin with deep brown eyes almost black which you could lose yourself in if you stared long enough. I started walking slowly towards the back of the class wondering how this lesson would turn out after the disaster of English. I took my seat and looked sheepishly toward the front of the class.
‘Rhianedd is it? Ah don’t worry bout miss she’s alright aye.’
‘Uh-ha’ was all I could manage. Besides I wasn’t going to risk having another detention on my first day there.
‘So..Where your from?’
‘Carmarthen. West Wales.’
‘Not much of a talker are you?’
‘Sorry.’ I said sympathetically. ‘I was talking in English and earned a detention. Not the best impression I could have made. Mind the teacher doesn’t seem all that nice.’
’Let me guess you have Mrs Jones? Yeah she is the worst teacher. Kicked me out of the class and refuses to teach me. Not that I mind free lesson for me. But nah miss is sound never shouts and never gives detention either. Anyway’ He raised his hand and asked to leave. And with that he packed up his things and left.
I was left there confused and wondering how and why he just left a third of the way through a lesson. It made no sense. He gave no reason why to the teacher it was as if he told her that he was leaving and she agreed to let him. Unless there was a reason behind it that the teacher knew about. The only way to find out is to ask Hannah at break or lunch depends when I see her.
The buzzer went and to my surprise Hannah was waiting for me outside the class with no other than Quinn and Rachael.
’I thought if you wanted to you could hang out with us. Until you make your own friends at least so your not on your own. But its completely up to you.’ Hannah said shyly and if she didn’t want to impose on me.
’That actually would be nice’
I was so grateful to her as I would be on my own all break. Either that or swarmed by kids asking me the same questions over and over again. I don’t like being the centre of attention at the best of times especially when I know hardly anyone. The next two lessons dragged. I had double biology. Not my best subject but then not my worst after the English fiasco first lesson. But seeing as I had detention looming in comparison biology didn’t seem so bad.
‘Oi you the new girl yeah’
A group of girls on the table next to me were waiting for my reply. But I just chuckled. The fact that I clearly was the new girl as they new everyone else wasn’t even the funny part. They all had straight hair with matching bow hair bands. All with orange faces with a white tied lines just above their chins. Apart from the different ranges of hair colour they all looked the same.
‘Oi she asked you a question love. Answer her is it’
‘With all due respect ‘love’ do you see anyone else here that you don’t recognise? Clearly I am as the teacher introduced me as the new girl.’
‘Oi don’t get sarky with me love you wanna watch out like!’
‘Ignore them their not worth it their always like it’ sighed Hannah
I guess she was right two detentions in one day would be pushing it. The buzzer went so Hannah and I made our way to English where we found the door lock.
‘She does realise she gave us detention right? Then why isn’t she here?’
‘She goes and get her lunch first and a cup of coffee. You just have to wait until she comes back.’
‘Where is Quinn and Rachael?’
‘Oh they never come to detention. Its just you me and it’ she laughed
We stood in silence for about ten minutes then I brought up the subject of Shemar.
‘Shemar is complicated. He moved here about two years back with no real background information to him. He tends to keep people at arms length you know. Not really letting any one in apart from the odd on here and there. As far as I’m aware he likes it that way. As for his leaving mid lesson its usual but not for any apparent reason but just because he was bored or something but what I don’t understand is how the teacher just let him. But I’ve never been on friendly terms with him so I wouldn’t know I’m sorry’
That left me wondering more. Why did he have permission to leave any lesson at anytime without being questioned why? How did he have no background information yet be allowed to study here with no questions asked? And most of all why did he keep everyone at arms length? But what confused me about him even more is that he seemed quite friendly and chatty towards me. At that exact moment Mrs James comes tottering up the corridor arms laden with food and folders and without my realising half the lunch hour was over. I couldn’t blame Quinn and Rachael for ditching detention. When she finally reached us she dismissed us from detention. At this point in time I couldn’t wait until I could go home and think about everything that has happened.
‘You seem a bit distant? You alright?’ commented Hannah.
‘Sorry, was in my own little world for a moment’
‘ Umm Rhianedd I was just wondering, well if you had anyone to walk home with or if you had a lift? If you want you could walk with me. Quinn and Rachael go home on the bus.’
‘ Hmm. Yeah sound great. Where shall I wait for you?’
‘Outside the sports hall. You know where that is right?’
‘Yeah see you there then’ as we parted ways I couldn’t help my mind wondering to what was said at lunch. Before I knew it I had sat through an hour of maths and it was time to meet up with Hannah. She was there like she said and started talking as soon as I reached her. She had had welsh and had had to read out a paragraph which she didn’t understand and consequently she muddled the words up and ended up blushing like a tomato. We managed to talk about everything that happened today. Well mostly everything. I kept the fact that I was wondering what Shemar was all about. That would have to wait a while until I didn’t sound crazy. Or maybe I was but again that wouldn’t be said for a while just to be on the safe side.
I reach my front door and decided I would crack on with unpacking my boxes and arranging my room. It wasn’t too long until I was drawn back to Shemar and wondering about him. Problem was, if what Hannah said was true then there is only a handful of people that are close to him. How on earth would I be able to find out everything I wanted to know about him with out people becoming suspicious especially considering I was the new kid and I couldn’t exactly ask him all of it to his face as he only trust a couple of people. In the end I decided to go for a shower and a early night to think on it end everything else that happened.