"You can call in sick, you know."
I looked at Dad. He looked a little more worn out than usual. There was more gray in his hair and his smile never quite reached his eyes anymore.
"I'm fine," I told him. "You heard Ms. Kim's announcement as well. There's going to be extra guards so, everyone is going to be safe."
"Let's hope the rioters don't break into the school or anything," he muttered.
Every since the Vampire Equal Education Law passed, there had been massive riots and protests everywhere. Many parents had moved their kids out of school. My parents almost moved me too but Violet personally asked to let me stay. She assured them that the vampire kids weren't going to harm anyone. They just wanted to learn. I doubted anyone else got a special visit from her but it seemed to do the trick.
It was strange really. I wasn't scared of going to school with vampires. I was more worried about what humans would do.
"It's probably the reason why we've been homeschooled for that last few weeks," I said. "Those in charge wanted everyone to take some time away and comes to terms with the inevitable. It's also why they made transferring so much easier."
"Well, just you know," Dad said. "if anything happens, tell your teachers."
"Don't worry Dad," I assured him. "If something happens, I'm not going to keep quiet about it."
"That's my girl."
Before we got any closer to the school, we saw the protestors. Police lights flashed us to one lane and ushered us forward. Neon-colored posters flashed everywhere. I could hear yells from inside the car.
"I wonder where all these people came from," I muttered. "Do you think they're from the neighborhood?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Dad replied, "but today's your first day of school after such a long time. How do you feel?"
"It hasn't been that long," I reminded him.
"You haven't answered my question though."
I shrugged. "I'm not sure," I said honestly. "I mean, it'll be nice going back to school but, I don't know. I don't know how to feel. So much has changed."
"You have Sonia and Carlos, right?"
I couldn't help but grimace. We still weren't in such a great place. I doubt we would ever return to the way we were before but I had made peace with that. Honestly, I wouldn't know what to say if I bumped into them in the hall. Ms. Kim's announcement mentioned that our schedules and classes were going to change. It made sense. We were getting fifty or so vampires as new students. Things were bound to change.
"I guess," I muttered.
I hadn't exactly told my parents that Sonia and I weren't on speaking terms anymore. She had yet to give me an apology and until then, well, I couldn't bring myself to act like nothing had happened between us.
"Well, here we are."
Dad pulled in behind another vehicle. Unlike before, there weren't any of my classmates waiting outside on the lawn. Instead, there were policemen and security guards at every door and across the lawn. I grabbed my backpack from the floor and leaned over to kiss goodbye to my dad.
"Have a good day at school."
I waved. "I'll try."
As I walked towards the school, a security guard met me at the door. He had a scanner on one hand and the other on the door.
"ID please."
I grabbed my student ID from my backpack and showed it to him. He scanned it and it beeped.
"Alright, come inside. You're to go to the gymnasium."
"Right. Thank you."
When I arrived, Mr. Flora was at the door. Unlike before, he looked decent. He wore an actual suit as opposed to his regular slacks. Maybe he wanted to leave an impression upon the new students.
"Miss Borek, it's nice of you to join us," he said in greeting. He looked down at the clipboard in his hand. "You're in group B. Mrs. Ramirez has a sign."
"What's all this about, sir?" I asked.
"Ms. Kim wants to talk to everyone," he told me. "Now, go take a seat."
"Okay."
Group B was in the middle of the bleachers. It was easy to spot my English teacher, Mrs. Ramirez, and her sign. With a glance at the bleachers, I spotted a familiar bald head and Sonia's curls. I refused to meet their gaze. Instead, I focused on finding an empty spot.
Twenty minutes later, when the last of the student body decided to show up, the Principal, Ms. Kim, walked into the gymnasium. The buzz of conversations instantly stopped. All gazes followed her to the center where there was a microphone.
"Good morning, students," she said in greeting. "As you all know, there has been a lot of changes recently with the new law coming into effect. I like to thank each of you personally for continuing your education here. Our school has been chosen to house a new group of students. We are one of many locations that will be monitored to make sure that the transition happens smoothly.
"We have security officers and policemen placed on standby around campus to ensure everyone's safety. As you know, we do have protestors outside and I would advise everyone to continue with their day and not get involved.
"Now, the way we are going to integrate our new student body is very unique. Like before, we are choosing our top students to accompany these students. They will act as mentors so to speak. These students will go to class like everybody else. To accommodate the changes, some of your class schedules have changed and you can all download your new schedules from the school website.
"Our new students are currently in the classrooms, once we dismiss you, you may begin regular classes. For those who are assigned mentors for our new students, we have information packets for you.
"Now, when your group leaders give the signal, you can head to class. Have a nice and educational day everyone. I hope I don't need to remind you to treat everyone with respect."
It took almost an hour before we were dismissed. During that time, I downloaded my class schedule and scrolled through it. Nothing had stayed the same. All my afternoon classes were now in the morning and vice versa. I guess I should have finished up my history reading last night.
"You think the Prince is going to show up again?" I heard someone behind me ask.
"After everything he pulled off? Of course not."
"But wasn't he framed though?"
"He still pulled off a lot of crap."
I looked down at my phone. Other than seeing Alexander on tv, we hadn't spoken much, if at all. He sent me text messages now and again but I wouldn't consider that a conversation. All he sent were apologies. 'Sorry. I have stuff to take care of.' Or 'let's take a rain check. Sorry. I'll make it up to you.'
It made sense, I guess. He was still royalty and he still had responsibilities to take care of. The only reason why he had stuck around so much before was that he'd been disowned. Now that everything was back to the way things were before, well, his priorities had changed.
"Group B," Mrs. Ramirez called out. "Head to class."
Sighing, I followed the crowd out of the gymnasium. I had a class with Mr. Flora first. The classes had to be cut short due to the announcement but that didn't mean that we couldn't learn anything during that time. I dragged myself down the hall.
The only thing I had going for me was that I wasn't a mentor. Maybe they had learned their lesson from when I got paired up with Alexander. That hadn't exactly turned out for the best. Sure, everything had been taken care of but it wasn't something so easily forgotten.
Having a normal school routine for once would be ideal. That would be amazing.
When I reached Mr. Flora's class, I saw a few students standing outside. I recognized a few from my other classes but none from my afternoon class.
"Hey," I said approaching. "What's wrong? Is the door locked?"
One of the girls with pigtails looked at me. "N-not really," she replied. "It's just -" She gestured to the room. "They're in there."
Oh. I sighed and walked past them. Standing outside wasn't going to do anything. We still had to go to class. I opened the door and walked in. Five vampires stared at me. There were two females and three males. Their desks had pairs, while the others didn't.
On the board was a sitting arrangement. I wasn't a mentor for anybody. My seat was behind the brunette vampire. I took a seat behind her and pulled out my book. If I could get the reading done before class started, I might not be completely lost.
In the next few minutes, I heard more people walk in and sit down. No one said anything. Someone sat next to the brunette but I didn't look up from the pages. I was almost done.
A shadow suddenly fell over me and stayed there. Frowning, I looked up and froze.
"Morning," Alexander said with a grin. "Fancy seeing you here."
I opened my mouth and closed it like a dying fish.
"Apparently," he continued. "I still have to go to school. Looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other from now on."
My lungs felt like they were caving in. I cleared my throat, trying to dislodge the lump in my throat. How long had it been since I had lost saw him in person? He could have at least told me.
"I-I guess," I muttered and looked away.
"Rin -" he began.
"Good morning class," Mr. Flora said. "Everyone take a seat and we can get started."
To my surprise, Alexander placed his desk right next to mine and sat. His hadn't been on the board. Was he coming back to school? Why hadn't he told me? And why was he acting like we were close?
I didn't expect the cold shoulder from my girlfriend.
I glared at him. "Don't give me that," I hissed softly. "What did you expect?"
The brunette in front of me caught my attention. Ugh. Right. Vampires. They could hear anything.
"You didn't hear anything, Cassidy," I whispered. "And that goes for everyone who can hear me right now."
The other vampires might have sat up straighter but I wasn't too sure.
Wow. You sure know how to make friends.
I glared at Alexander again. "Oh shut up your Majesty."
So much for my normal school routine.