Mornings at Evermore Secondary School was always a blur and chaotic. Without the teachers' vision, there were students talking and enjoying everywhere you looked- in the school halls leaning against their lockers, in the cafeteria, in classrooms and sprawled on couches in the student lounge. Besides the talking students, latecomers' heads bobbed up and down in the air as they walked across the school hall and into their separate classrooms.
In all the chaos, a peaceful sight was finally spotted in a classroom- a brunette wearing a white shirt and jeans had her head downwards, only an inch apart from the desk. She was scribbling notes into her notebook from the algebra textbook that laid opened on her lap like a model student would.
This particular brunette was Evelyn Ambrose-a brown eyed fourteen-year-old student. As Evelyn finished copying the last of her notes, she pushed aside her seat and stood up to retrieve her pencil box. Just then, the bell rang, signaling the start of lessons. Evelyn sighed and forced herself to sit back down- she would never be excused if she went to get her stuff and came back to her class late.
From her pocket, she whipped out a tiny box containing a combination of a pen, pencil and a literal knife- something her brother had whipped up for her birthday last year when he forgot to buy her gift. He had told her it was a penknife, but Evelyn argued it wasn't. However, she was grateful he had given her this because it came in handy during emergencies. Since it was held together by an elastic rubber band, she pulled the pencil and the pen out and placed them neatly on the top right of the table and she tucked the algebra books back into her desk's drawer, replacing them with her history books and her laptop.
Just then, a figure entered the room and plunked the thick books he was holding onto the teacher's desk. "Good morning, class."
The class fumbled to get to their feet to bow, and when they finally did, a chorus of "Good morning, Mr. Khepp."s greeted him. Mr. Harrington flourished a hand at the students, signaling for them to take their seats. He flipped open the history textbook and gave a sigh. "Class, please open your textbooks to page 192 and read it silentl-"
A snore and giggles interrupted him. Mr Harrington glared at the boy fast asleep on his desk and at the two oblivious giggling girls exchanging gossip. He massaged his temples and muttered, "It's way too early to be doing this." After another sigh, he sent the boy and the girls to the principal's office for 'disrupting the class' and continued on what he was saying.
"As I was saying before I got interrupted, please open your textbooks to page 192 and silently read the passage to yourself.
After suffering through the bitter school hours, the bell rang, signaling the end of school. As usual, students rushed out of the classroom before the teacher could even dismiss them, eager to get back to their separate matters. Talking and laughter filled the air once again and Evelyn made a dash for her locker. After shoving her stuff inside the locker, she grabbed her backpack and slipped it on. She took slow, steady steps towards the exit-and entrance-of the school and sat on the steps leading up to the school doors.
While waiting for her mom to arrive, she dug through her backpack and pulled out a book- reading had always been a close hobby for her ever since she got her first book from her mom when she was six. She flipped through the pages and stopped at a folded page. Evelyn started reading where she left off, too engrossed to care about anything. As she continued devouring the words hungrily, she started sinking into her own world.
"HEY!"
A shout startled Evelyn and she looked up to find herself face-to-face with her red-face mother, Delaney Ambrose. "Good heavens, I don't know what it is with you and your books. Couldn't you hear me talking to you?!"
"Sorry..." Evelyn managed to mumble. She tucked the book into her backpack and stood up, brushing the dirt from the stairs off her skirt. Delaney grabbed her daughter by her arm and pulled her towards the car. After they both settled down in the car, with doors shut and everything, Delaney finally managed to ask Evelyn about her day.
"It.....was okay, I guess." Evelyn replied, sinking into the comfortable back seat. "That's what you tell me everyday." Delaney sighed and started the engine. After a few moments, the engine reared up and the pair drove home in silent.
"We," Delaney announced. "Are trying a new recipe of mine- you guys are gonna love it. And now, I present, pizza with peas and carrots!"
It was dinnertime and Delaney set down plates containing pizza slices with peas and carrots. The whole family- Evelyn's dad, Bently Ambrose, her younger brother and sister, Rick Ambrose and Talia Ambrose and her older brother, Brian Ambrose-groaned.
"Seriously, Mom? Pizza with peas and carrots? Lameeeee." Brain commented. "Yeah! Why do you have to make something so delicious like pizza into something so disgusting like pizza with peas and carrots?!" Rick added.
"I don't care if you don't like my food. Swallow it if you need to, or else." Delaney glared at both her sons. "Remember, if the mom's not happy, NOBODY is happy. It's my way or the highway."
"You heard her, boys. Let's get choking on this disgusting pizza." Bently stated. Delaney shot him a glare so sharp it would have broke a thousand glasses in one tiny poke. Evelyn pinched her nose to avoid the smell of the once-delicious-but-now-disgusting-pizza and took a bite. She gagged and swallowed it as fast as she could to avoid tasting it any longer. She guzzled down a gallon of water to get rid of the taste still lingering in her mouth and her stomach hunched at the sight of the pizza.
"I'm just gonna study for a test in my room. See you guys later." she excused herself from the table and raced to her room. After locking herself in, she pulled the algebra textbook out of her backpack and plopped it onto the table, flipping to the page her algebra teacher had left off. She did make the 'test' excuse to get out of the disgusting dinner, but that didn't mean she couldn't study a little more. She wasn't an A student- but she tried her best at school. After an hour, she changed into her sleeping wear and covered herself with the heavy blankets, falling into a deep sleep.
---------------------------------------------Delaney-------------------------------------------------------
The dusty books made Delaney sneeze as she rearranged them, stacking them up in neat piles. She was in the attic, cleaning up and rearranging things. As she placed a book on another pile of books, the book slipped from her hands and landed on the ground with a slight thump, opening to the pages in the middle.
Delaney picked up the book, examining the pages. On the first page, there was a picture of Evelyn and Brian when they were young. The second page contained a not-very-perfect family photo. Delaney's lips curled into a smile and she flipped through more pages, reliving the life in the past. Eventually, she came to a page and stopped flipping through it- in it contained a baby wrapped in a mud-and-leaves covered blanket.
Delaney dropped to her knees and clutched the book- assumingly a photobook-tighter. Her eyes welled up with tears and her smile vanished.
"Delaney?"
Delaney turned back to see Bently standing at the doorway of the attic. "Are...you okay?" he gently walked over to her, getting on his knees next to her. "Oh..." he frowned when he saw the picture, but there was a hint of sadness in his voice.
"Delaney, I think it's time..... She's old enough to know now. I think...it's time to tell, don't you?" he stared at Delaney with glossy, hopeful eyes.
Delaney sighed. "I.....I've thought about it a few times to tell her, and I know she's ready, but... I don't think I'm ready."
Bently shook his head. "It's your choice. We'll tell her when you're ready, okay?" he assured Delaney. "But...I hope we can tell her by this year, because better now than later."
He left Delaney with her thoughts, and she continued staring at the photo.