Even the Sun Sets in Paradise

I was nervous as hell when Julie dropped me off at the front gates of my new school the next day. It was a big school with lots of people, but I wasn’t at all good at making friends. I went to the main reception as I had been told and waited in the queue for what seemed like an age. When I finally got to the front, I was given a map, a timetable and a school prospectus booklet. The hallways were crowded by now which made it difficult, but I eventually found my form room.
“You must be Miss Sullivan,” a soft voice called as I entered the room. I nodded. The entire room went silent and I felt all eyes on me, making me feel even more self-conscious.
“Hi, I’m Miss Jonas, I’m your form teacher,” she smiled warmly, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is our new student, Jenna Sullivan. Brogan, could you please move to the front so Jenna can sit next to Mel?” Brogan sighed, rolling his eyes as he picked up his bag and sauntered to the front.
“Thank you Brogan. Mel, I’m relying on you to look after Miss Sullivan and make sure she gets to all her classes on time,” Miss Jonas explained.
I turned to look at Mel. She was a fairly tall and slim girl, with long blondish brown wavy hair. Her eyes were shining, her smile was warm and her tanned complexion was incredibly even. She was gorgeous, and I instantly felt intimidated by her absolute perfection.
“Let me see your timetable,” she said expressionlessly, and I handed it to her without question. For a few seconds, she examined it silently.
“We’re in the same class for art and for P.E, and for child development.”
“Okay great,” I forced a smile.
“Shit, you’re in the top class for everything,” she muttered, still keeping the same flat expressionless tone.
“Yeah, I’m…” I blushed as I started to explain, but she cut me off.
“Brad!” she called across the room.
“Yeah,” a carefree voice replied from by the window.
“You’re in the top class for English right?”
“Yeah.” She nodded, turning back to face me.
“Follow him to first lesson, you’re in the same class,” she instructed.
“Okay, thanks,” I forced a smile.
“Anytime hun, I’ll come to your class and meet you at the start of lunch, you can sit with me,” she decided, and I felt relieved that I wouldn’t have to suffer the embarrassment of sitting all alone.

The lessons dragged on. A few people said hi and we made conversation for a bit, but as usual, I felt completely out of place. A part of me was of course grateful people were making an effort to talk to me, but I felt so much pressure when people focused all their attention on me. When the bell for lunch finally rang, I was so relieved. Mel was already outside the classroom waiting.
“You sitting with me?” she asked casually. I hesitated, unsure whether it was a good idea or not. I didn’t like hanging out in a big group, and I could only imagine Mel had a lot of pretty, popular friends that were just as confident as her.
“Yeah,” I decided, figuring it wouldn’t hurt for just one day. Mel smiled in satisfaction as she led me through the crowded hallways and out onto the field.
“Aren’t we getting lunch from the cafeteria?” I asked worriedly, hoping she wasn’t one of those girls that refused to eat anything with any sort of fat in.
“No, the cafeteria food sucks. Follow me,” she ordered. I did as I was told, following her along the path that led to the back of the field.
“Where are we going?” I asked nervously.
“Subway.” I panicked, knowing we weren’t meant to leave the school site during the day. The last thing I wanted was to get in trouble on my first day and have the school ringing Julie, especially after everything she had done for me.
“Don’t worry,” she laughed, noticing my worried expression, “I do this all the time. We’ll be back before the end of lunch and no one will notice we’re gone.” I shrugged, still not certain…but what choice did I have?

Subway was delicious, definitely worth the fifteen minute walk, and we got back in time for last lesson as promised. Mel actually turned out to be easier to talk to than I thought, although I was confused as to why it was only her and I that went to Subway. From the looks of things, Mel was really popular and always surrounded by a group of people, particularly guys.
“Hey, why did you move here?” Mel asked, as we sat doodling in Art. I blushed red, wondering what she knew.
“I just…er…fancied a change of scenery, that’s all.” She gave me a suspicious look.
“Sullivan, right? You’re living with your cousin, Ellis?”
“How do you know that?” She laughed, although it was more of a smirk than a laugh. The thing I’d noticed about Mel was that all of her actions and movements and facial expressions were rather subtle and slow. When she frowned, it was simply a single crease in her forehead. When she walked, it was more of a glide. She was very elegant and beautiful and I couldn’t help feeling slightly envious of her.
“Ellis and his band - they’re local celebrities I guess. I heard his cousin moved from London to live with him and his parents, so I figured that must be you.”
“Well yeah,” I blushed, staring down at the ground, praying she wouldn’t ask any more questions.
“Why don’t you live with your parents then?” she asked simply.
“It’s complicated.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she frowned, biting softly on her lip.
“No, it’s fine,” I said quickly, “Like I said, I just fancied a change of scenery so I came down here to live with my auntie and uncle.”
She nodded gently, but I could tell she suspected something. I felt bad not telling her the whole truth, but I couldn’t bear for anyone to find out. I was trying to move on from the past, and the last thing I wanted was to relive each painful memory.