So, here goes...

I hate early morning alarms! Especially the 5 O'clock ones I set for myself so I can wake up on time for school. They always ring every time I'm just getting very snuggly under my bedcovers and enjoying the second round of tranquil sleep.

It doesn't help that I always read a book when I'm supposed to be in bed. Yeah, I'm a nerd and I know it. I bet you are too, ha ha.

Anyways, I tell myself “Just one more chapter” repeatedly while turning the pages until I end up reading the whole book then go to bed late at night. Well it isn't my fault that these books have to be sooo good, you know!

I could go on and on about my addictions to novels but I seriously have to get up and prepare for school now,or I'll have my mum banging on my door very soon. She's not the most patient person on mornings and my dad isn't any better.

Oops

I forgot to tell you who I am! I'm usually not this forgetful actually, it's just that I'm really not a morning person.

My name is Leila Adams, I'm sixteen and a fifth year student at Brixden academy. I'm Percusian, or more accurately, half-Percusian and half-Nigerian.

Yeah, I know what you must be thinking, but don't worry I'll explain. My paternal grandparents are both Nigerians; grandpa is of the Yoruba tribe and grandma is Edo, while my maternal grandparents are both Nigerian and Percusian. Maiye is Nigerian from the Yoruba tribe and Paiye is Percusian, from the amazing N'badia tribe.

Well, I guess that makes you think I'm more of a Nigerian since I have a Nigerian father, three Nigerian grandparents and just one from Percuse but I've lived my whole life here in Percuse and I've only been to Nigeria once to see my grandparents (not to worry though, it's not like we don't communicate or something, they fly down here to see us for Christmas every year and I totally adore them).

How does it feel to be mixed? Apart from the explanations I have to provide to some genuinely inquisitive people, it's quite pleasant. Though people still stare at me on the street, and many women approach me to inquire about how I get my hair to be so black and flawlessly curled. The hack? get some mixed parents, ha ha.

I should certainly make a YouTube channel to show off my uniqueness; I'm sure I'll gain a large following within a short period of time.

The average Percusian is very tall and slim, just like the Fulanis of Nigeria, although we're usually light-skinned. Most of us have brilliant golden hair that is straight and natural, similar to peroxide blondes, but mine is jet black and develops bouncy curls when I don't wrap it. This, coupled with my caramel skin makes me stand out, but not in a bad way. Almost everyone I come across thinks I'm very beautiful and distinctive, except the glam girls, of course. I'll tell you about them later, don't worry.

Anyways, that's that about me, I really have to get that preparation going now, I don't want to be late.

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News flash! I got to school exactly in time for the last bell and didn't get yelled at by my mum. It's been months since I first walked into this school and I still haven't gotten used to how wide the corridors are.

My previous school was a small building with no hall lockers and we had to take our bags in for classes daily and have them arranged into the assigned compartments in the shelf at the back of the class, but here at Brixden, each student have full length lockers to store books and whatever they deem fit. A look into a person's locker would immediately tell you which kind of person they are (Alexa and her glam minions have theirs decorated with pink glitters, fairy lights and cut out pictures of their favourite BTS singer) Too fake if you ask me, but then no one really cares here.

I haven't gotten the courage to decorate mine yet; I want to take my time deciding which aspect of myself I want people to see when they peek into my locker, as well as getting someone else's perspective once I'm finished. I've only made one friend here...adjusting to a new school in your fifth year is difficult. Almost all student began in primary school, so they are all familiar with one another and have formed a sort of heirarchy, with each having their own small group of pals and cliques. Not many are willing to take on a newbie and disrupt the status quo.

Though Brixden is one of the most expensive schools in the country and arguably the best, left to me, I would have chosen to stay back at Sweet valley high school, but dad lost his job and my elder brother, David, moved to Nigeria to stay with my grandparents and get a job while I had no choice but to change school.

You're probably wondering how my family is able to afford a more expensive school when my father just lost his job. Well, Brixden, being the premier institution it is, has a slew of wealthy, influential, and well-known alumni whose children now hold the reins of power at school. Once every four years, they fund a scholarship to enroll extraordinary pupils, and I got lucky.

Or, more like, I worked my tail off to qualify for the scholarship, took the tests, went to the interview, and was ultimately accepted.

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It was at the interview that I met Ella, my only friend at the moment. We were seated next to each other at the anteroom waiting to hear our names called out over the broadcaster with other candidates, and I was really nervous, I needed to get that scholarship or I would have to attend one of those substandard schools scattered around town and I didn't want that at all, I probably wouldn't even survive a year there if I went.

I was trying to control my breathing and calm myself down like I saw in TV once when she turned to me and smiled. I smiled back and then without warning, the flood of words came!

“You must be really scared” she said “I can already tell from how irregular your breathing sounds. You should calm down, you know”

“I'm trying to” I replied her, wondering why she was talking to me instead of minding her business.

“Well, try harder because your confidence is one of the criteria the panel would grade, you know”

I noticed that she used ‘you know’ in both sentences, it felt like she was trying to show off how much she knew about the board we were about to face and make me feel less confident, something like the reverse psychology thing. I nodded and didn't turn to look at her, instead focusing on the school broadcast speaker willing it to announce my name already.

She kept on talking nevertheless "Anyways, I used to have these anxiety before interviews, too," she continued, "but I recently did some study on how to handle it, and I got some fantastic tips. I'm Ella by the way, and this is my fourth time of applying for a scholarship with no luck, I really hope I get this one”.

I nodded my head again feeling a twinge of pity in my heart, she sounded kind of frustrated and seemed to really need the scholarship, it's a good thing that there are ten available slots for applicants though, because I still wanted to win badly.

She was still staring at me, obviously expecting me to say something

“Sorry about that” I eventually opted for “I hope we both get two of those slots” and as an afterthought added “I'm Leila Adams”

She laughed quietly “Yeah, I hope so too” “I like you” she added “You're quiet straightforward, you say what's on your mind the way you think it, it's nice”

“Thank you” I replied. The next candidate was called into the conference room as the one previously inside came out, she was instantly surrounded by others asking “What was is like?” “Which questions were asked?” “Did you do well?” “Were you told if you passed?” and other questions.

I and Ella remained seated, the girl seemed drained and obviously wanted to get out of their clutches and have some fresh air but she answered their questions regardless. I wouldn't have if I were in her shoes.

“Wanna hear some tips?” Ella asked, giving me a nudge. I almost asked what she was talking about before remembering our previous conversation.

“Oh yeah, of course. I'll appreciate it” I said, offering a small smile.

“Alright! Therapist Ella to the rescue” she said, rubbing her hands together. I realized at that point that I liked her.

“So, first things first, stop questioning your confidence” she continued “it's completely normal to feel nervous in times like this, sincerely, I actually am too. But remember that we were picked out of thousands of applicants, just fifty of us. That counts for something, at least”

“Also, you can try practicing positive self-talk, motivate yourself and assure your inner mind that you are capable of getting this scholarship and that you will...I've tried it and it really helps.

Hope you read the handbook that came with the invitation for the interview?” she quizzed, and before I could reply continued “I'm sure you must have. Questions will definitely be asked about those articles featured in it. I would have suggested that we revise but we most probably don't have the time” I nodded along to show her that she had my attention, her tips were pretty good and I could even feel myself relaxing already.

“That being said, the most practical way that helps me overcome anxiety is listening to music. Music is like a great mood changer, no cap. I prepared a playlist already, you'll love this particular song, wanna share?” Awwwn, I thought, she really is nice and isn't playing a trick on me, I mentally chided myself for thinking that in the first place. She moved closer to me and handed me one of her airpods which I sticked into my ear and listened to the soothing music playing, it was a song by a Nigerian singer, Johnny Drille.

Ella sighed, relaxing against the chair and closed her eyes “We're going to kill this interview Leila” she said and finally went quiet. I looked around, it was almost three O'clock and we were only six candidates left in the anteroom.

After some minutes my name boomed out of the speaker and I and Ella sat up, she smiled at me wishing me good luck as I went in. She was called in after me and I prayed we both made the final list as I boarded a cab back home.

She was someone I wanted to be friends with.

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My phone beeped and a message appeared as I opened my locker to get my books for the first class. It was from Ella (talk about the devil!) and was to inform me that she wouldn't be able to make it to school in time for the first class because she had to go for her dentist appointment first.

Oh crap, I have to go to class by myself now. I hate to admit it, but I still feel strange around our other students. that I still feel weird around our other classmates, but I actually do. Especially when the ‘glam girls’ are in the mood to taunt me as usual.

While it doesn't really bother me because I know I'm gorgeous and do not need anyone to tell me that or otherwise, it is exhausting to stand about and listen to five nitwits whose brains are filled with nothing but the hottest guys in town and high fashion in Vogue spout insults and play tricks on me.

I once considered calling them out on their bullshit or even giving one of them a black eye at some point but Ella beat me to it. She's not exactly the most patient person when it comes to dealing with people and she's pretty tough. As the only scholarship students in our year, it's quite easy to identify us as we're required to wear a ‘pride brooch’ as it's called. It's supposed to make us proud as those who came out successful among thousands of others but it's more of a curse than a blessing to us as it singles us out for bullies. Ella and I have this notion that the alumni actually came up with the idea to distinguish us from their precious kids and not to make us feel special.

It was during recess, Ella and I were eating a lunch of boiled rice and stew in the cafeteria while watching a movie on her laptop when Alexa and her minions, Asha, Bridget, Isabella, and Monica, sauntered by with their lunch trays. The standard Brixden uniform was a black pleated skirt just above knee-length, a white short-sleeved shirt, and wine plaid jacket. All students were expected to wear white socks and black leather shoes, but some students, such as the glam girls, always wore their own version of the uniform, which included very short skirts and short stiletto heels. They came to school wearing light makeup too and always applied nail polish to their nails.

They're never placed on detention or penalized for this though, which is not unexpected given that they are the children of the society's cream de la creme.

Ella hated their guts much more than I did.

Alexa clicked her fingers to try to grab our attention when they came to a halt at our table.

When we looked up, she smirked and said, "We're taking this table."

"And it's obviously taken Alexa, find another table," Ella responded, resuming the movie she paused to respond.

Alexa snapped, "Uh, I'm not blind, Ella dear, I expect you to vacate it immediately" using her usual condescending tone. Her minions stood, watching the exchange and awaiting their turn to speak.

I replied her this time “You guys can just get another table. The time you've spent standing here aimlessly could have been utilized to do something meaningful”

At this, they all let out their usual fake, high-pitched laughter.

“Oh, Lei darling, you should be smart enough to know what we're capable of by now and if I were you, I would get another table ASAP” Monica replied

“And, like you said, smartie, the time you guys are spending being stubborn could actually have been utilized to get a new table” Isabella added.

Everyone's attention was already on us and few people had their phones out recording the exchange.

Ella turned to me “Leila, can we please just ignore these nitwits, they aren't worth our time”.

What followed was a blur, but all I could feel was oil from the stew running down my face before hearing the sound of a palm striking a face. The pepper in the stew was stinging my eyes, and all I could think of was getting some water to wash it away.

Ella and I were summoned to the principal's office, along with few witnesses, to recount what happened after we changed our uniforms. The glam girls eventually received warning letters and were required to write an apology letter to us; Ella received a warning letter for physically assaulting a fellow student, and that was the end of it.

We were incensed by the principal's decision because we had expected him to have them on detention at the very least. We felt better the next day though when we saw Alexa's face, she had a purple swollen eye that no amount of makeup could conceal.

Way to go, Ella!

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Anyway, I made it through the class and it was actually unremarkable; Alexa and her minions were preoccupied with the new BTS song that was released over the weekend, while the boys who occasionally played pranks on me seemed to not notice me at all. I met Ella at her locker after biology class, and she had a lot to say, as usual, but not before asking if anyone had any problems with me during class. She's a typical mother hen.

We had chemistry class after that, so we walked to the lab together as she gave me an earful of everything that had transpired in the dentist's office. There was still about five minutes before the class started, so we got seated at our assigned seats just as the tutor came in.

“And there are my star students” she called out on seeing us.

“Hey, Ms. Annabeth” we replied her, smiling. She was our favourite teacher and we were dubbed her ‘star students’ by her.

I and Ella were straight-A students and easily led our class in all subjects. We always read together and even had the same GPAs in the last term. We were required to take another set of exams to prove that we didn't cheat off of each other, and seeing the incredulous looks on the examiners’ faces when our results were out was really funny.

Ella had stopped talking while she set her books on the table since the lab was nearly full. As the vanity crew (Ella nicknamed them this a week after we resumed) entered, the fragrance of strong cologne filled the room. I looked up just in time to see Ackleth Manor latch the door behind him; it was a regulation that the person who entered the lab last had to close it. He glanced back at the room, his lab coat thrown across one arm and his books in the other, caught my gaze and held it for a few seconds before proceeding after his friends to his seat.

I let out a breath that I didn't realize I had been holding.

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