Lucinda : Chapter Three
Cover
Cheryl had to be at her job a half hour before Lucinda had to be at school. So when the alarm rang in the morning, Cheryl turned it off, got herself ready for the day, and woke Lucinda, before heading out. Lucinda rolled out of bed, performed her morning necessary, took another sponge bath, brushed her hair, pulling it back into her usual ponytail, got dressed in her out of style, but still comfortable, clothes. Packing up her books in her bag, Lucinda headed off to meet the bus. Lucinda wasn't in the mood for breakfast. She was never in the mood for breakfast. She waited patiently at her stop for the bus to arrive, still unaware of the ministrations that Libby's clique had been up to. On the ride to school, once more, Lucinda sat by herself, as no other student wanted to be near her. This didn't bother Lucinda. She liked living in anonymity.
The journey to school was uneventful. Entering the building, however, was a completely different story. Inside the school, a sea of students flooded the halls slamming lockers here, shouting conversations there. It was so busy and loud that it was impossible for teachers, who were monitoring the halls, to determine who was causing trouble and who was simply trying to get to class.
Lucinda, having collected all the books she needed for her morning classes, weaved her way into the stream students hustling to make it to class on time. Over the din, someone decided to be daring by shouting a swear word. Lucinda, curious, turned to look who it was when the hands of a teacher grabbed her starting to drag her down the hall toward the principal's office.
"Have you lost your mind?! Don't you know you aren't supposed to say those types of words in school?!" Shouted the teacher at a perplexed Lucinda, while Libby and her clique walked past, giggling and pointing at Lucinda.
Lucinda, despite being completely confused, was still respectful to the teacher. "What do you mean? I didn't say anything, ma'am. I was just trying to get to class."
Realizing she had made a mistake, the teacher let Lucinda go. No apologies, simply released her grip on Lucinda's arm, allowing Lucinda to continue to her classroom without further incident. Lucinda shrugged her shoulders, putting any other thoughts of the matter out of her mind. Rushing, Lucinda was able to make it to her seat seconds before the bell rang. Taking out her notebook and folder, Lucinda turned in her homework, then prepared to take notes. The rest of the morning went very smoothly and quietly. Just the way Lucinda liked it, until just before lunch.
Just before lunch, Lucinda received a note that she was to report to the guidance counselor. Worried that either she did something wrong or that there was a problem with her mother, Lucinda quickly packed her things and made her way to the guidance counselor's office.
When students received a summons to speak with the school counselor, a little blue slip was handed to the teacher of the class where the student would be during the time the school counselor wished to see that student. The teacher would hang onto the blue slip, until the time came for the student to go to their appointment. Then the student would be handed the piece of paper, and allowed to leave. The blue paper requesting a visit to the school counselor acted as a hall pass, allowing the student to go to the therapist's office, without getting into trouble. With pass in hand, students required to see the social worker, were to proceed directly to the Counselor's office, and nowhere else. The Counselor had a master list of scheduled appointments, so if a student was supposed to see her, didn't show at the appointed time, the child could be tracked down and forcibly brought to her. The Counselor's office was tucked away in a little, out of the way, alcove, across from the school's infirmary. Chairs were line up outside the social worker's office. Students meeting with the therapist were required to sit in the chairs and wait until they were called into the guidance counselor's office, by the lady herself.
Lucinda wandered the halls of the school, desperately seeking the place she needed to be. Still being new, she didn't know the lay of the school, yet. She was to embarrassed, at receiving the summons, the she forgot to ask the teacher of the class she was in for directions on how to get to the School Counselor's office. She was scared, however, after consulting a school map, she soon found the office, she required. Lucinda sat, fidgeting, feeling nervous. She was still clueless as to why she was in the school counselor's office. In her obliviousness, her mind was turning over all the things in her mind that had happened, recently. In her own opinion, nothing seemed too bad. However, perhaps there was something that she missed. Some tiny slight that she did that was deemed a terrible offense. Whatever it was that Lucinda did to land herself in Miss Bowen's office, Lucinda vowed the make amends and take the necessary steps to never perform the heinous act, again.
Michelle Bowen had the illustrious job of school counselor. Her job was to deal with problematic students before their behavior escalated to the point where disciplinary action was required. Her office was a little larger than a broom closet. She had a small, rectangular, table that served as her desk. Upon the table was a phone that was only capable of dialing emergency and school extension numbers. Chairs, that were designed to seat an average pre-teenaged person, were placed in front of the desk for students or other people to sit while Miss Bowen discussed problematic issues with them. The walls on the sides of the room had built in shelving, fully lined with books and texts on child development and psychology. Behind Miss Bowen's desk, against a back wall, decorated with a framed diploma and a calendar, was a small file cabinet and a bucket of soft toys. Michelle was usually seated behind her desk when students came in Miss Bowen's demeanor had to be a mixture of sternness and kindness. Her primary objective was to help the children that appeared in her office while at the same time maintaining an air of control, so the kids didn't overwhelm her, treating her like a door mat.
Michelle didn't know what type of reaction to expect out of Lucinda when she was confronted about her poor behavior. She decided she would keep a cool attitude, when she went to retrieve the girl from the hallway. Upon seeing the jittery girl enter her office, Miss Bowen instructed Lucinda to take a seat, deciding to give off the illusion of strictness, in the hopes that Lucinda will be frightened into seeing the error of her ways to make a change for the better.
Michelle looked Lucinda over carefully, not seeing anything too out of the ordinary about her. "Miss Rayne, it has come to our attention that not only are your manners atrocious during the lunch period as well as the fact that your behavior is out of control. Other students have been complaining about you. Are you aware of how you eat?"
Lucinda shook her head. "No, ma'am. But if it was a problem, why didn't someone simply tell me? I'm not trying to be a trouble maker. If someone had told me that something that I was doing was wrong, I would have known, and not done it anymore. What am I doing that is so bad?"
Miss Bowen gave Lucinda a look of great unamusement. "Apparently, you chew with your mouth open and leave a messy area when you leave the lunchroom. Your mother is not with you at school, Miss Rayne, you are expected to clean up after yourself."
Lucinda thinks she is in some serious trouble, so she amps up her level of respectfulness. "Yes, ma'am. I'll try to be more careful in the future, ma'am. Is that all?"
Michelle, still looking unhappy about something. "No. Starting today, you are to sit at a table in full view of the lunchroom monitor, so that someone can keep an eye on you and your behavior. If I hear anymore complaints about you, you will take your lunch period in the office. Are we clear?"
Lucinda nods. "Yes, ma'am. I'll try to behave better in the future."
"See that you do, Miss Rayne." Michelle waves to Lucinda indicating that she can go.
Lucinda, relieved to be done meeting with the counselor, scurries away to her locker to put away her books and head to lunch. She retrieves her food. Smiling and nodding to Mr. Carter, Lucinda picks a nice quiet space at a table right in front of the teacher. She takes care, when eating, to chew with her mouth closed, this time. Mr. Carter takes note of Lucinda, keeping special watch on her while he paces the cafeteria floor making sure that there are no problems.
Libby, Rachel, and Rebecca are at their usual spot at the lunch table. Libby was glaring daggers at Lucinda. "We've done well to try to get that new girl into trouble, so far, but it's not enough. I want her miserable. I want her to wish she never came to this school. How do we do that?"
Rachel and Rebecca looked at each other at a loss for how to answer.
Libby frowns at her friends. "Well? I'm waiting."
Rachel ventures a timid guess. "How about we spread rumors that she smells?"
Libby smiles at the suggestion. "I like it. She'll be even more of a pariah. What else?"
Rebecca tries. "How about we get some of the boys involved?"
Libby thinks this plan over. "What could the boys do?"
Rebecca continues. "I don't know."
Libby rolls her eyes. "If the boys can be helpful, we'll use them. For now, we'll go with Rachel's plan." Libby returns her gaze to Lucinda. "Ugh, she is so stupid and disgusting. I hate her." Something occurs to Libby and it makes her grin, wickedly. "Rebecca, you have a couple classes with her, don't you?"
Rebecca gulps. "Yeah… what about it?"
Libby continues to smirk. "Watch her. See if there's anything personal about her that we can use against her. If it's personal, it'll make her suffer all the more."
Rebecca nods slowly. "Okay, I'll see what I can find."
The three girls feeling satisfied in their plotting, ate their meal. Libby will keep escalating the torment inflicted upon Lucinda. Soon Lucinda will either break or be thrown out of school. Only when Lucinda's pain becomes boring, then will Libby move on to her next victim.
All the while Libby was staring, Lucinda mindfully had her meal in silence. When she was done, she bused her trash, and returned her tray to the window, as Mr. Carter closely observed. The lunchroom monitor shook his head, thinking to himself. /This girl is nothing like she was described. I'm going to have no trouble out of her./
Lucinda's next class, after lunch was History. Lucinda liked History. The different places, the allure of simpler times, the way ideas and ideals buzzed around, changing as time progressed. Lucinda loved History Class. Lucinda entered the classroom, took her seat, and opened her book, excited for class to begin.
The teachers and other students, including Rebecca filed into the room. Rebecca took a seat next to Lucinda, her recognizance beginning. Rebecca was feeling uneasy about picking on someone she didn't know. But to stay in Libby's clique, Rebecca was willing to do it. So she would follow orders, watching Lucinda for anything that might be used against her.
Mr. Lewis was the History teacher and he had a special assignment planned for the class. He stood at the front of the room with a Cheshire Cat grin on his face. Waiting, patiently, for the students to settle themselves. He announced it. "Ladies and gentlemen, you will be pleased to know that we will be doing a group project about the American Revolutionary War. You are going to pick one of the original 13 colonies of the United States. You must create a replica of the individual flag used by that colony and give a five minute presentation and speech about the colony that you picked. Your presentations must include information about the colony before and after the war, as well as any information regarding any role the colony might have had during the war. You will be working in pairs. Feel free to pick your partners. If you are unable to find your partner, one will be chosen for you by me. Get to it. You have one week to complete the project"
Lucinda, upon hearing about the project, groans internally. While she loved history and had no problem doing large assignments for class, she hated dealing with people. She had issues talking, getting along with, and when it came to projects, she usually found that her partners didn't do the work required, leaving Lucinda to do everything by herself in order to get a decent grade on the project. She sighed, resigning herself to the task at hand. Lucinda looked around, trying to find a partner for the project, but being shy and new, she wasn't sure who to ask. Floundering and feeling tongue tied, Lucinda was surprised when someone tapped her on the shoulder. So startled, was she, that Lucinda jumped a little. She looked up to see Rebecca's face smiling at her.
"Hi, do you want to be my partner for the project?" Rebecca asked politely.
Lucinda bit her lower lip, feeling nervous. "Sure. I'm Lucinda." She gets up, turning her desk to face Rebecca's.
Rebecca doing the same. "I'm Rebecca. What do you want to do with our project?"
"I'm good with anything. Which colony did you want to do?" Lucinda was already outlining and making mental notes about what to do in her mind.
Rebecca replied. "I have an aunt that lives in Pennsylvania. How about we do that Colony? I could ride home with you after school. We could go to the library, check out the stuff we need, then hang out at your place, while we work on the flag together. I can call my parents from your home phone to let them know where I am."
Lucinda was thrilled because for once, it seemed like she wouldn't be the one saddled with all the work on a group project. The only part of the plan Rebecca suggested that bothered Lucinda, was the end part, about Rebecca coming to Lucinda's apartment. What if she found out about Lucinda's home and told someone. "Fine. Sorry, I can't invite you to my place after school. My mom's strict about having people over without letting her know, first." Lucinda lied to keep her power situation secret. She hated lying, but it was the only way she had without revealing her private shame. "Besides, we don't have a phone."
"That's okay. If you want, you can come over to my house. My parents won't care." Rebecca responded, trying to be friendly.
Lucinda smiled, happy to have dodged one bullet. The smirk fades a little, as she realizes that she has a chance to make a friend. Lucinda blinks slowly, coming to the conclusion that she would have to reject that friendship. It'd be too hard to say goodbye at the end of the year, when Lucinda's mother decided to uproot the family and move away. "Thanks, but my mom would freak. Not only is she strict, but she's also over protective. I'm not allowed to have people over that she doesn't know nor am I to go to any place where she doesn't know the people there. Sorry."
Rebecca nodded, not noticing the slight pained expression on Lucinda's face. "That's cool. We just have to do as much as we can in class over the next week and be satisfied with that. We can use our book and the school library if we need research material."
Lucinda did her best to look hopeful. "Yeah."
Over the next week, the girls put their heads together, coming up with the best project they could. Rebecca got to know Lucinda really well, coming to the conclusion that Lucinda was not the disgusting, terrible person that Libby had imagined her to be. Rebecca discovered that Lucinda was extremely nice. Despite being quiet, shy, and standoffish in Rebecca's opinion, Rebecca liked hanging out with Lucinda, even if it was only during school hours. Rebecca had lost interest in finding out things that could be used against Lucinda. There really wasn't anything to report back to Libby about. Other than not having a phone and having a difficult mother, there was nothing at all strange about her. Parents were crazy. Rebecca understood that fact because, to her, her own parents seemed insane. The one sad thing regarding Rebecca getting closer to Lucinda, was that the two could never be real good friends. Rebecca was afraid of repercussions from Libby to offer.
Libby still hated Lucinda, for no other reason than to hate her. If Rebecca hoped to remain among the elite that was Libby's circle of friends, Rebecca had to make difficult choices about who she could and could not like. Rebecca liked Lucinda, but because the leader of her clique didn't like Lucinda, Rebecca couldn't offer friendship to Lucinda. Not that it mattered. Rebecca wasn't sure that Lucinda would accept. She kept to herself so much. Rebecca imagined that Lucinda was probably scared to ask for a companion as she was. Lucinda was still considered the new girl. Being new to a school couldn't have been easy. The best option Rebecca had, regarding Lucinda, was to be neutral to her. Neither befriending nor attacking. Hopefully, that would be enough in order for Rebecca to stay in Libby's good graces.
Lucinda's and Rebecca's teamwork on their History project paid off. Their group received the highest grade in the class. Since it was a requirement that both girls speak during the oral part of the presentation. Neither girl liked public speaking, but since it was part of the project, they had to do it for their grade. It was decided among the girls that Rebecca would talk first, then hand the paper to Lucinda to finish up the report. Rebecca stood tall and proud delivering her part as best she could and when it came time for Lucinda's portion of the task, while Lucinda mimicked Rebecca's posture, her shyness along with her nerves got the better of her voice. Lucinda stuttered and stammered her way through to the end of the report. Despite Lucinda's mess-ups, she and Rebecca got the highest grade in the class on their assignment. Which was a good thing. The day following the project, Lucinda's seat in class was empty.