Taming The Bad Boys

New School, New Friend

I entered a classroom of loads of people. Still, it somehow managed to look extremely dull. Every student had similar outfits due to the school's very strict dress code, nobody wore something bright or colourful, everything seemed so, well, boring. It was as if there was a black and white filter layering the room.

The teacher was a tall, relatively young man with dark hair and blue eyes. 'Hey', he greeted. 'I'm Mr Donavan.' Well, he was friendlier than the principal anyway, whether he was extra friendly or not I didn't know. 'Hi, I'm Faye', I replied shyly, gazing around the classroom in search of one pop of colour. Nope, it was truly colourless.

'Why don't you tell us a little about yourself?' asked Mr Donavan. Oh, no! I had dreaded this moment for every second of the day. The previous night I'd stayed up past midnight preparing for this, yet it was as if somebody had taken a large eraser and carefully erased every word I'd thought of. I looked at my shoes, and quietly said 'sure.'

'Well', I began nervously. 'My name is Faye. I'm thirteen years old, fourteen in only a month. I like... singing.' I had a mini shyness attack before continuing. 'I also like music, fun, computers, flowers and creating DIY stuff. Plus, I enjoy Math, English, Irish, PE, Art and Drama. I find it hard to pick a favourite school subject, I love them all!' It seemed to be coming together now, and I was remembering some of what I'd prepared.

'Thank you, Faye. How about you sit down there', said Mr Donavan, gesturing towards a table which consisted of five people. 'Of course', I said quietly, walking over to the table. I took an empty seat next to somebody I hadn't paid any attention to.

I turned around and saw a pretty girl with long, silky brunette hair, skinny jeans, a white tank top and a flowy cardigan. She waved at me cheerfully. 'Hi!' she said, extending her hand which showed off her perfectly manicured nails. They were turquoise, coated in silver glitter and traces of white. I shook it and replied with a much quieter "hi."

Looking desperate to make conversation, I caught her glancing around the room for a conversation topic. Her eyes landed on a display of outfits, all drawn in black and white. 'That's what we do in art', she said with fake enthusiasm. I decided to return her fake enthusiasm by replying with more than just a nod. 'That's cool. In my old school we were once given a variety of eighty fabrics and instructed to make a picture. There were so many options, I loved how freestyle it was! I still have that picture, and it's actually a prized possession', I said, before realising I'd just been thinking out loud. Luckily, the girl didn't give me the you're so weird stare. She just nodded, smiling.

'Cool', she said, sounding like she really meant it. I smiled gratefully, but our small conversation was interrupted by Mr Donavan announcing the first lesson.

I whizzed through my Math sums, and also decorated the page with my Crayola pencils, putting detail into making cute borders around each sum, adding extra Math facts as well as tips and tricks. 'Well done, Faye', complimented Mr Donavan. 'This looks so great! I love the colourfulness, as well as the fact boxes. And you know your sums so well! Not a single one wrong. Everyone else struggles massively with this, even the smartest ones in the class. If I graded each piece of work you did this would be A++!' 'Thank you so much', I said with a small smile.

I did the same for each lesson. The lessons were a breeze. The hard part was having the New Girl role. People started at me, most stares seemed harsh and judging. Was I looking weird? Had my mascara smudged? Was my hair all knotty? Or was everyone at this school just plain mean?

At lunchtime I sat alone in the corner of the cafeteria. I tried to cheer myself up by treating myself to an eight square Cadbury Dairy Milk and a packet of Haribo Starmix jellies, but even when the flavour of smooth milky chocolate and sweet flavoured jellies filled my mouth I barely cheered up.

The food in this cafeteria was amazing, and there was a huge variety. My old school only served homemade pancakes, sparkly water, water, fruit salads and cookies. Nonetheless, they always tasted perfect.

When I was biting into the first square of my Dairy Milk, the girl who sat next to me in class came and sat next to me. Without asking, she placed her tray down on my table. Her tray consisted of two small slivers of Chocolate Swiss Roll and two thick, fluffy pancakes with extra whipped cream on top.

'Here, I brought you something', she said, handing me one plate of Chocolate Swiss Roll and one pancake. I took the, gratefully, smiling at her. So maybe I wouldn't eat lunch alone after all...

*** ***

We chatted all break about, well, everything! Our favourite songs, foods, outfits, books, movies, colours, styles, trends, magazines, hobbies, celebrities and much, much more! It was a very enjoyable conversation, and by the end of it I had a friend in this new school. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all?

Famous last words...