Chapter 0001

Being the new student has never been easy for anyone, especially me, given that I am socially awkward and shy at first. But being the new student for the second time I'd say is way worse, that is, according to my own opinion. I bet you are probably wondering how it is that, you can be the new student a second time, well let me clear up that confusion for you by first introducing myself.

My name is Brielle Sunders or Bri for short, and this is my second time being somewhat new at Brixton Crest Academy which for short is just BCA. The first time I was a new student was a year ago and I was here for a few months just before the biggest disaster of my life happened and I had to take some time to recover, which ended up being a year plus.

BCA is a boarding school for the rich and privileged, some of whom you wouldn't even believe who their parents are. I am not saying that my family is badly off, not by any means, all I am saying is, some of the students here are children to very influential people, think along the lines of ministers, ambassadors and billionaires, in other words the country's biggest sharks, and right now the school's parking lot is filled with expensive cars, students, parents and a whole lot of suitcases.

To say I am scared will be the biggest understatement of the century, I am freaking out so much, that I am yet to open the door and get out of the car. My parents couldn't come since they are on a business trip and I understand that, but right now I kinda wish they were here to give me an encouraging push.

I am a mess of nerves and I just don't know how to calm myself down. All I am seeing as I stare out through the tinted windows is a lot of unfamiliar faces, but I guess that is given since I have been gone for quite some time.

The other thing that is making me nervous is my classes, since I missed out on an year of school it means I will have to go back to the same grade while my peers go to the next level, meaning I will be in a class with completely new faces and worse of all I am not even sure if the few friends I managed to make before the accident are still students here.

"Bri?" My thoughts and panic session is rudely interrupted, which makes me feel a tiny bit annoyed since I am trying to come up with a battle plan for this war I am about to dive into.

I look at the source of the voice and my annoyance melts away at the look of concern openly showing on his face, a face that belongs to none other than Peter or Pete as my cousin and I fondly like to call him.

He is our family's chauffeur and bodyguard and he has been with us since I can remember, he is one of those men who are tough as nails and can snap your neck with just a thought but he is also the biggest teddy bear I know.

"You okay?" He ask me,

"Yeah, I just need some time to put myself together"

I tell him while trying to school my features into a calm one so as to ease his concern.

A year has already gone by and I can't afford to lose any more school time and that is exactly what will happen if Pete senses my discomfort and calls my parents, I will be back home quicker than my brain can form a thought.

I take a deep breath then unlock the door and quickly get out before I can think of changing my mind. Pete follows my lead and also gets out and goes straight to the boot to unload my luggage while I stand still , frozen, waiting for him to finish.

When he is done he comes and stands by my side and we do that in silence as we just observe the others around the parking lot.

"Are you ready kiddo?" He asks after a while

"Yes, let's get this over with."

He laughs at my false bravado and somehow that calms me down just a little bit.

We start walking towards the administration block and I am thankful no one is paying me any attention since they are busy with their parents or whoever it is that brought them to school.

The short walk to the administration block is filled with tension on my part, that is, waiting for someone to recognize me which would undoubtedly start the whisperings about me being back and that alone is making my skin crawl.

We reach our destination and Pete waits for me outside as I rush in to see the headmistress as she had requested for me to do on our way here. Since her secretary is nowhere to be seen and the waiting room is empty, I go ahead and knock on her office door and wait for her to invite me in.

"Come in" a soft but firm voice answers from the other side of the door and that is all the invitation I need to twist the door's handle and enter.

Madam Jenifer as she prefers to be called ( though the students nicknamed her Jenny) sits behind her desk sorting some papers on her desk. She immediately looks up and I am still struck by her beauty just like I had been the first time I saw her, her beauty is something you can never really get used to seeing.

She has beautiful long auburn hair that kind of reminds you of the yellow red-ish glow of the sun as it sets, it's flows in bouncy ringlets down her back and it's so shiny and glossy that it almost looks unreal, she then has the most beautiful green eyes I have ever seen, eyes that when directed at you, makes you feel like she is staring directly at your soul. She has a heart shaped face and full lips that a lot of women would die to have.

One thing I came to realize about our headmistress is that despite her being beautiful she is also quite intelligent, so she has the whole beauty and brains thing going on for her. She is also the youngest headmistress to ever be appointed by the school.

At 35 years old she looks like she is in her late twenties plus she has that sexy librarian look with her big glasses and goddess body fitted with a white dress that hugs her curves like a second skin and let's not forget what my cousin likes to call "fuck me heels".

I am a hundred percent straight but damn, this woman will have you questioning your own sexuality.

"Brielle, glad to see you're here, I was beginning to think you parents wouldn't let you come back."

She says with a smile once she finishes with the papers on her desk and then motions for me to sit, which I gladly do.

"It took a lot of convincing, bribing and bargaining but they finally caved in" with a smile I give her my full attention.

"Well I for one I am thankful to have one of my top students back, I trust that you're fully recovered?" Worry crosses her beautiful face.

She may be the headmistress and she can be tough but one thing I love about her is her kindness and big heart, she is not as cold as some of the teachers are, I guess that's why she is liked even by parents.

"I have some pain medication that I still take" I try to push away the memories of what happened

"but I promise that I am good and healthy."

"Okay then, that's good to hear" she puts on her serious face and I immediately know that we are getting down to business.

"I asked you to come to my office first because I have a proposition for you, since you've been gone for an year, you've missed out on a lot and you will have to go back to the same year as your peers go to the next level" she takes a breath, and I feel the need to tell her I already knew all this but I shut my mouth.

"So this is where my proposal comes in, I will give you this term to catch up and at the end of the term you will take a test, if you pass it then I will allow you to fully join your peers coming term but if you fail then you will remain in grade eleven till the end of the year" she pauses, then continues

"But for the meantime you will have your classes divided, Monday to Wednesday you will be in your 11th grade class and Thursday and Friday you will attend your 12th grade classes." She gives me time to process what she said and I can't help the excitement that is threatening to erupt.

"The reason I am giving you this chance is because your performance before the accident happened was exemplary, and given you're among the top students, all your teachers agreed that you should be given a chance to earn your spot with your rightful class, are you ready for the challenge?" She asks and I can't help the smile that breaks from me.

"Yes madam, I am definitely ready"

Excitement and happiness zings through my body.

"Okay then, best of luck.. That's all for today, I do hope you will settle well and if you have any problem you know where my office is."

She dismisses me and I leave her office feeling better and lighter.

I meet up with Pete and he helps me carry my luggage to my doom room. After making sure that I am all settled, he leaves and I can't help but feel lonely once he is gone.

According to my reporting sheet, I have two roommates but unfortunately it doesn't say what their names are and all I am hoping for is that they are one of the nice ones cause just like every school in the world, this one also has its share of queen bees and trust me when I say the one's from this school makes the others look like clowns.

Right now I am in my room trying to just organize my things. The dorms here are somehow similar to the upscale dorms of universities. You share a common space with two other roommates, the common space includes the bathroom and toilet, the living area which has a couch, coffee table, stereo and a flat screen TV, it also includes kind of like a kitchen space but without a cooker, so it just has a sink, fridge, microwave and some cupboards.

Each of us has their own room fitted with a queen sized bed, a closet and study area, so even though we share the common area, you still get to have your own space.

I finish unpacking my clothes and I am about to wear my school uniform, since the only time we are allowed to wear normal clothes is during the weekend, when I hear a knock on my door, I go and open it, knowing that it's probably one of my roommates. I am assaulted by a curtain of red hair and since I was not expecting it we fall and land on the thankfully soft carpet.

"Oh my goodness! Yassssss!! I can't believe it's you, do you have any idea just how much I've missed you?? I honestly thought I would never see you again after what happened" she freezes as if now realiziy she just tackled me to the floor.

"Shit, Bri, I am so sorry"

She gets off me and it's then that I can see her clearly and I realize who she is, I had not recognized her voice since I had been distracted so I didn't know it's her, but there she is my best friend Cassey and my day becomes a whole lot brighter.

"Hello to you too" I tell her smiling since she is my answered prayer.

We stare at each for a moment before we burst out laughing for no apparent reason with tears running down our faces. I had missed her so much, she was my best friend, still is but when the accident happened and I kind of shut off from everyone else except my family and eventually she stopped trying to reach out to me.

I still feel guilty for doing that to her but I just couldn't deal with everyone else at that time and in pushing everyone away I also pushed her away. I didn't want their pity, I just wanted to be left alone.

"Please tell me you are my roommate" I ask her after some time.

"Yes, I am..well, at least one of them, I don't know who the other one is" then as if remembering something,

"I'm still mad at you, you know"

"I know" my guilt is weighing down on me and I smile sadly "but I'll make it up to you, I promise"

I wrap my hand around her and hug her, getting the comfort I've been wanting the whole day.

"You better, I deserve a truck load full of ice cream for putting up with your sorry ass" I can hear the playfulness in her tone and I am happy that at least I have her.

"Are you two having one of those intimate moments? Should I come back later?"

We are startled and we look up only to find grey eyes staring at us in confusion.

"Cause if you need a moment to work out the energy out of your systems I can give you some privacy and come back later."

It is then that we realize that we are still on the floor, faces flushed and still holding on to each other for dear life. Anyone would think we couldn't get to the bed on time.

We end up laughing again and the girl just stares at us in more confusion. We finally stand and introduce ourselves and explain that we really aren't lesbians just long lost friends.

We end up talking, all three of us just getting to know each other, so the girl's name is Rebecca but she prefers to be called Becca, she is a year younger than we are and this is her first time at BCA. She turned out to be really nice and I can't help but thank God that I got the nice ones as roommates.

By the time we are done it's already evening and we decide to go get dinner, I wait for them to change into their uniforms and once they are done we head for the cafeteria.

The school's cafeteria is really just a huge hall filled with tables and seats...each table has eight seats, so it's kind of like a big restaurant or something.

The moment we step into the cafeteria the chattering stops and soon the murmurs and whispers begin and it's then I wish I had just stayed in the dorm and asked her to bring me dinner instead. This is what I was afraid of and now I can't back out and leave because I would just look like a coward.

Cassey notices my discomfort so she takes my hand and leads me through the cafeteria like a lamb being led to the slaughter house. As we walk by the throngs of seated students all I hear is their whispers of how I am back after an year, how my accident was horrible, and how I have changed, how they didn't expect me to ever come back after the incident, and questions of why it took me an year to come back.

We finally reach our destination and we sit at a table at the back of the cafeteria. Cass says something to me but I hardly hear since my ears are buzzing from the murmurs and whisperings.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath, when I have my panic under control and can breathe normally and I am more calm, I finally lift my head and open my eyes, only to be met by the bluest eyes staring at me and the only thing running through my mind is SHIT!. I had totally forgotten about Him.

[ message from the author]

Hi😊it's so nice to have you here, and thank you so much for giving my book a try, I hope to see more of you and that you will enjoy reading. please remember to vote, comment and leave a gem if you can😅... looking forward to seeing you in the next chapter, bye.