The Class Reject: A Damsel in Disguise (Featured Story)

Chapter 14

Miren stopped running after a while, feeling dread and panic paralyze her legs. She shook her head, forcing herself to move. She couldn't afford to waste any more time.

Finally, she found the door leading to the outside and burst through it. But the sight before her did little for her nerves; the campus was practically empty.

That meant that almost all the students were in their respective hallways, their respective classes, not about to face the punishments of being late. Like she would if she didn't get a move on!

Twirling around in circles like a drunken ballerina, she tried to see if she could get some sense of where she supposed to go. Realizing this was a foolish tactic, like connecting her headphones to her alarm clock, she gave up trying to make sense and resumed sprinting.

Her shoes shuffled against the pavement at a rapid pace as she ran. After a little while she could see a building forming in the horizon. Plastered along the brick wall of the building, dull gray lettering confirmed that maybe she was going the right way. Covington Hall. It sounded familiar.

Prying the door open, she couldn't stop her pace. She tried to remember the classroom number. There was no time to dive into her folder to search. Slamming her eyes shut, she tried to force the crucial number to come to her. But it didn't come.

So she stopped.

Taking in her surroundings, she saw two cherry colored doors opposite of each other. They both had glass windows aligning the sides of them so that she could see students. The two doors cracked open, but not everyone was in her seats. She exhaled. That meant class hadn't started. But based on the emptiness of the hallways, she had maybe thirty seconds until the bell rang.

And I thought I was making progress. She immediately turned her head to the right. On the glass window, the class hours that the teacher taught were written on paper. First Period-Honors World History.

She shook her head. That wasn't it. Turning to the next classroom, the teacher had done the same thing. Scanning the paper desperately, her eyes relaxed. This was it.

Opening the door wider for entry, the moment Miren set one foot in, the bell rang. Her head fell. Fail.

"You're late." She heard a female voice state. Miren raised her head up, cocking a brow. A female teacher? This fact wouldn't have bothered her—it could have calmed her, actually—except she could hear annoyance on the instructor's voice. Double fail.

"I'm sorry," Miren said in a low voice. Part of her was annoyed too. Technically, she made it to the classroom on time. Any laid back teacher would have let it slide. Especially since she was a new student.

This wasn't the welcoming committee she was expecting.

"No excuses. Be sure that it doesn't happen again," she said, her dark blue eyes boring into Miren's. "Name?"

Miren gulped, making sure to get it right on the first try, "Miles Ellison."

The instructor, a rather young, slender woman who had honey-brown hair, led her to the front of the classroom. Miren tried not to stumble over her oversized loafers. 

"Class, we have a new student," she said, authority ringing through her voice. Although Miren wasn't looking at anyone in particular, she could tell that the whole class was being attentive. Staring at her.

Fuck.

"His name is Miles Ellison," she said, "Please make him feel welcome." Her request came out like a demand.