One Broken Legacy

Chapter 3: The New Kid and The Outcast

School came too early the next morning. The large bell tower chimed at six, forcing me out of the few, relaxing hours of sleep my body still craved.

Inside the coed bathroom's, I spent the morning being watched as I tried to tame my hair, the wild volumes never giving up easily. The hairpin I pulled out garnered more strange looks. The long black spike with a rose accent was a family heirloom, conveniently hiding a small needle dagger. I hadn't used it yet, but I awaited the day it would come in handy for more than style.

After a long breakfast with more awkward exchanges, it was finally time for class. The commuters piled in, filling their lockers while I was allowed a singular bag. Comparative History came first, and I geared up for a boring lecture.

The class was set up with four rows of six desks and I took a seat in the back, watching the faces of everyone who entered until Nick appeared.

He looked just like his photo, with glasses and wild hair that lay flat in the middle. Unlike the photo, he wasn't smiling. His eyes were trained on the ground as he took a seat in front of me to the left.

"Hey, boy with the glasses," Nick didn't notice me, so I nudged his seat. "Can you hear me?"

His head whipped around, eyes wide and mouth open. He looked like he had seen a ghost. "Me?"

"Yeah, is this class interesting? I'm new."

"Sucks to be you. I'm Nick." He offered me a sweaty hand which I took. "What brought you here."

"Exchange program. I'm the lucky student who was chosen to leave." I pulled down my skirt which was riding up on the plastic seats. "Figures I'd get transferred mid-semester to a place with a dress code."

"This teacher is pretty chill. She's only here for a few months until they can find a more permanent replacement. If you wear pants she won't care, just change back before the next hour."

"That's too much work."

"Yeah well, don't say I didn't tell you," Nick turned around, slouching back into the chair. He was too tall for it and his legs stretched under the seat in front of him. He looked almost as uncomfortable as I felt.

I needed to get close to him. Outwardly, he looked like he could be a wolf: tall, muscular with dark eyes. But it would take more than that to determine if he was a genetic werewolf or he just took after his father.

"Hello class." A red-headed woman entered the class from the back room and leaned on the desk with a friendly smile. "Today will be a group project day so our new student has a chance to meet some new people."

I felt the eyes of two dozen students turn to me and my jaw tightened. I hated people's attention, it never ended well.

"We're going to partner up and present on a historical event and how it affected the world today. Use background knowledge from your course so Alexandra can see what we've been working on." A PowerPoint flickered to life behind her. "Fill out space with your name and topic and I'll save it to the final review page."

The class broke into groups and a few kids approached me, but my hooded look had most of them passing by. Eventually, Nick was the only kid left.

"Looks like we're partners," I observed, a small smile growing on my face. "Any idea's what to do?"

"I don't care. You choose." It slightly disturbed me how little he seemed to care. If he was unwilling to work with me, I would have to manipulate him.