I walk forward, my knees feeling a little weak. The classroom is ridiculously beautiful, with smartboards and individual tablets at every desk. It’s a far cry from the… well, I don’t remember what my old school was like, but it probably wasn’t this.
“Class, we have a new addition to our homeroom,” Ms. Davina announces. “This is…” She pauses, looking down at a paper on her desk, and her eyebrows lift in surprise. “Oh. My.” She looks back at me, her smile widening. “Well, this is exciting. Why don’t you introduce yourself to everyone?”
I clear my throat, my mouth suddenly getting dry. ‘Just get it over with. A small voice yelled at the back of my mind.
“Hi,” I say, my voice sounding small in the quiet room. “I’m… I’m Aria.”
A girl in the front row with perfect blonde curls gives me a once–over look, frowning. “Just Aria?” she asks, her tone lightly mocking.
Don’t tell me there are some stupid Karen here. I straighten my shoulders and look directly at her.
“No,” I say, my voice stronger now as I folded my arms across my chest. “Not just Aria. I’m Aria Morales.”
The silence that follows is an absolute surprise. It was not noisy before but now, you could hear a pin drop. Jaws are literally hanging open. The blonde girl’s smirk has completely vanished, replaced by wide–eyed shock as she stared at me.
Damn, who exactly are the Morales. That word apparently carries more weight than I ever imagined.
Ms. Davina beams, breaking the silence. “Welcome to Crestmont Academy, Aria Morales. We’re thrilled to have you. There’s an empty seat right there, next to Liam.”
She points to a desk near the window. The boy sitting beside it, Liam, has floppy brown hair and glasses, probably a nerd. He gives me a shy, friendly smile and quickly moves his backpack off the empty chair.
As I walk to my seat, the whispers and buzzing starts flying around me like agitated bees.
“Morales? As in… the Morales?”
“Is she Asher’s cousin or something?”
“I heard they adopted some random girl… is that her?”
“Oh my god, she’s the one! The mystery girl!”
I keep my head high, sliding into the seat next to Liam. He leans over slightly.
“Hey,” he whispers. “Don’t mind them. They’re just shocked. I’m Liam.”
“Aria,” I whisper back, grateful for a friendly face.
“I know,” he says with a small grin. “The whole school’s gonna know in about five minutes.”
He’s not wrong. The rest of homeroom is a long episode of whispered speculation and not–so–subtle stares. I try to focus on Ms. Davina’s announcements, but my mind is racing. “This is my life now. I’m Aria Morales. And apparently, that’s a really, really big deal.
The staring and whispering follow me all the way to my first period, History. Liam is in this class too, thank goodness and he saves me a seat, which I’m immensely grateful for too.
172
ICT JO
The teacher, Mr. Henderson, is a balding man with a passion for Roman emperors that borders on obsessive. He’s in the middle of a dramatic monologue about the reign of Caligula when the classroom door opens.
Damn, somebody should please pick up my jaw. A brown skin boy with weaved hair walks in. His shirt pressed hardly against his firm body, his lips pink.
He doesn’t slink in or look apologetic. He just… enters, with a lazy confidence or is it his beauty? that makes everyone, including Mr. Henderson, pause. Oh, he’s holding a late slip.
“Mr. Jamal. So glad you could join us,” Mr. Henderson said with a frown.
“Traffic,” The boy says smoothly, not sounding sorry at all. His eyes scan the room, and for a heart–stopping second, they land on me. I gasped as his gray eyes darkened before he looked away and went on to take the only empty seat, which is directly on the next row from mine.
‘Great. Just perfect.‘ I muttered under my breath.
By lunchtime, the news had fully circulated that I am Aria Morales, the adopted daughter and sister of the Morales as I was always pointed at everywhere I go.
“Sup tiny,” Asher smiled as he found me at my locker. “Heard you caused quite the stir in homeroom,” he says, leaning against the locker next to mine.
“You could have warned me that our last name was basically a celebrity headline,” I grumble, shoving my history book inside.
“Where’s the fun in that?” he grins. “Come on, you’re sitting with us.”
“With who?”
“Me. Nolan and my guys.”
My stomach clenches. “Oh, no. That’s okay. I’ll just sit with Liam. He’s nice.” I muttered pointing towards Liam who was waiting for me.at a corner.
“Liam? The kid with the glasses over there? Absolutely not. I’m not letting you sit with some ugly nerd that I don’t even know. You sit at our table.”
I frown. “Liam is not ugly, you don’t have to know him before he becomes my
friend.”
“Aria, I don’t want you trusting just anyone. You’re a Morale, you can’t easily know who wants to be your friend for real or for your name. Please have lunch at my table until you’re sure of the people you want as your friends.”
‘I take a deep breath and nod.
He leads me to a large table in the center of the cafeteria, occupied by lots of boys around Asher’s age. Nolan is already there.
They all stop talking as we approach.
“Guys,” Asher announces, slinging an arm around my shoulders. This is my sister, Aria. Aria, these are my friends and team mates. This is Kai, he said pointing at a friendly looking guy who winked at me, that is Mason.”
Mason gives me a small smile. “Welcome, Aria.”
“You’ve already been… erm acquainted… with Nolan. That’s Tony, that’s Maxwell…” he continued with introducing the others while they all gave me a small wave, welcoming me.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
