Thankfully, Alyssa reached her English class just on time. But the seats, to her dismay, were all packed, except for one at the very front row. She hated sitting in the first row, but unfortunately, she had no other option. She dropped down on the seat. The one her friends would always call a seat for the "teacher's favourite pet".
Alyssa felt a poke on her ribs. Frowning, she turned back. "Yes?" she politely asked. She wasn't smiling. So unlike her old self.
A red haired girl, with cute fringes shadowing her forehead, a chubby face, and golden eyes like a pool of shimmering, molten gold, was there smiling at her excitedly. "Hey, I'm Amiya Parker."
"Alyssa Taylor," she replied blankly, hesitating only for a second. Alyssa may not want them then, but she knew she needed at least one acquaintance in Mel's Town. And Amiya seemed nice enough to be one.
"You were amazing today, Alyssa. I have never seen anyone stand up to Jason like that in my five years in this school. You new here?" she asked, after congratulating her.
Alyssa wondered exactly what kind of bully Jason was... Nobody seemed to like him, yet no one had seemed inclined to stop him. In fact, the crowd had seemed to be supporting him, waiting for him to win. Win something that hadn't even been a fair war in the first place.
"Yes, I'm new," she murmured.
"Great! You can be friends with us."
Alyssa looked at her. She seemed incredibly friendly. Alyssa wondered whether she would be betraying her old friends by making new ones so soon. But she wanted to give happiness a try. She had promised Catherine she would.
Even if she didn't succeed in achieving it.
Moreover, her friends hadn't contacted her in the five days that she'd been in Mel's Town... had they totally forgotten her? Fanny, Jennifer, Brodey...
Before Alyssa could dwell on that sad fact any longer, the teacher was at the door. She heaved a sigh. At least she would be kept busy long enough for her to forget mulling over her friends... She said a quick, "Thanks, I'd love to be your friend" and then turned away.
***
"So you're telling me that everyone pretends to love him when they don't even like him? That's so two-faced..." Alyssa said, shaking her head at the thought, as they exited the English class.
"Not exactly everybody, but almost 90% you can say. The other guys in his group are pretty good. Well, except Parker Davis. He's too childish, without a serious bone in his body. Jaden and John are great, but Jason is more of an introvert, except when he's fighting, of course. He never talks to anyone except his friends... Anyway, let's not talk about them. Where are you staying again?"
Alyssa shrugged, as they came to the Physics class. "Currently, I have no idea. I've been staying in a hotel so far I'll probably try to get a dorm."
"Oh, that's awesome. You can stay with us!" Amiya said loudly, waving her hands happily. "Me and Tarlos have a room. We can talk to the manager after school."
Alyssa smiled gratefully at her new friend. She couldn't have asked for someone better. Amiya was so much like the old Alyssa herself, always looking happy.
"Thanks, so I'll see you later then."
"Okay, I have Drama practice now, so I'll go." Amiya skipped away as Alyssa entered the Physics class. Only a few students were there, so Alyssa chose the second-last window seat. Physics was one of the few classes she actually enjoyed. She hoped the teacher wouldn't make it too boring.
She propped her chin up on her elbows, staring outside. From her seat, the field was fully visible. She could see the red and green jersey-clad boys having some practice. Before Alyssa could enter her dream world, though, she was interrupted.
"Hey," she heard someone beside her. Turning her head, she say Jaden taking a seat.
"Hi. I hope you weren't late?" Alyssa asked, as he kept playing with his skull-band, as if wishing to say something but hesitating.
"Eh, don't worry. It was okay," he said, somewhat awkwardly.
"Okay... how was Devon?"
"Doc says he'll be fine."
"So, do I need to worry about getting in trouble?" Alyssa asked, hoping beyond hope that the answer would be negative.It was disgraceful of her to have gotten into trouble on her very first day. The most Alyssa had ever gotten into trouble for was her non-stop talking in the middle of the class.
Jaden sighed, scratching his chin in a thoughtful manner. "No, I got it all covered."
Now this was getting too unusual for Alyssa. How would Jaden be able to cover to the Principal? Unless of course, the Principal was partial to him, so he did his friend a favour by sparing him.
But Alyssa still asked. She hoped the Principal wasn't partial, because that would only make her hate him. "How did you do it?" she asked.
Jaden sighed. He said in a whisper, "Look, I really don't want to talk about it, but since you've already been involved, and since I can see that you have some sense of morality, I'll tell you. But you have to promise me not to reveal this to anyone. If you do, I won't be responsible for the consequences, and let me tell you, the consequences will be severe."
"I won't reveal, I promise," Alyssa said, even more curious.
Jaden looked around the classroom cautiously, to see everyone fooling around and playing with their friends, since the teacher was still not there. No one was paying any attention to them. He bent down to bring himself closer to Alyssa.
He said, "The principal, as you know, is Everard Smith. He also happens to be... my father. Then, Jason's father – and you must not reveal this to anyone, let me remind you – is Danver Rios. He's best friends with dad. I know it's kind of corrupted but... what to do? Dad honours their friendship so he always spares Jason. When I told him the whole story, he knew you weren't at fault."
That was rather shocking to Alyssa. This school had Danver Rios' son. It was partially corrupted if it allowed Jason's shit. And yet, it was one of the best study centres.
But what actually shocked Alyssa more than anything else, was that Jason was Danver Rios' son. He was a well-known businessman, and ... he was a good man. Just last month, he had donated 2 million to a New York school which taught penniless orphans. But Jason... she couldn't imagine him doing anything like that.
Thankfully, at that moment, the bell rang and Mrs. Guerevans entered, saving her from replying.