Broken

chapter one

"Seriously?" Emily asks, a little too loud.

"Emily, do you need a moment or can we start?"

When he turns his back to the class to write something on the board, the worksheets begin to circulate around the students.

"How is everyone this week?" Mr Fitz asks, still scribbling furiously.

The mumbles are indecipherable; I don't say anything and neither does Emily.

"Okay, so the first week was terrible. But you're all ready to do some Literature?"

The groans of disagreement ripple around the room and he laughs.

"I'll try to not take any offence to that. On that note...can you get out your copies of To Kill a Mockingbird and turn to the first page, please?"

"Excuse me, Mr Fitz? I don't have a copy. I'm new here," I call from the back, my hand half raised to indicate I'd spoken. A few people turn to look, of course.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realise we'd be having a new student in today. I think I have a copy around here somewhere..." He pulls a battered paperback from underneath a pile of books and does a double-take on it once he realises it's tattered. "You know what? Take my copy. I'll have this one. Alison can you give this to..."

"Aria," I reply.

"Aria." He smiles.

A blonde girl rises from her seat and grabs the book from his hands. She walks towards me, book in hand. I hold my own out to receive it, but instead she throws it to the floor.

"Go fetch," she snarls.

The comment earns some sniggers from her friends and from other people I didn't know or recognise in the middle rows. Mr Fitz ignores Alison, simply calling to her to take her seat. I awkwardly pick the book up and flick through the illegible annotations on a few of the yellowing pages.

As the bell echoes throughout the halls, I'm feeling completely indifferent to attending the rest of my classes. Emily tells me she'll meet me in the cafeteria for lunch, and rushes to swim practice. As I'm putting my things back into my bag, I notice Mr Fitz wiping away the notes on the chalkboard in preparation for the next class. The textbooks that won't fit into my bag, sit uncomfortably in my arms.

"You okay over there?"

"Yes, thank you." I smile, politely.

"I just noticed that you didn't engage much with the class. Is there anything wrong? Anything I can do to help you out?" He stands behind his desk now, leaning forward on his hands.

"Sorry, it's just my first day, that's all. It's a lot more intimidating than I thought it would be."

"I know Rosewood High isn't welcoming, but I want new students to feel comfort-"

"I am comfortable," I interrupt.

"I'm sorry for prying. I'll let you get to your next class, Aria."

I nod. Making it to the door before he starts speaking again.

"I'm sorry about Alison, I should have said something. That was wrong of me."

"Don't worry about it. I understand."

An uneasy look settles on his face.

"If you don't mind, could you tell me where my next class is, please?"

"Shouldn't you have a guide for that?" He asks.

"Emily's at swim practice."

"Well, how about I walk with you? That way you definitely won't get lost."