Was that wood?
The slam shook me just like it did some of the students, but it seemed from their reactions that it wasn't too out of place.
I honestly felt like I was going to be attacked because of the intensity of the slam as it was right behind me.
All the students turned around, and so did I, hoping I wouldn't turn around for an attack to come straight for me.
That was how I honestly felt, but I realized none of my concerns were necessary, for I turned to see that the young teacher had slammed his hand on the desk of the girl right behind me, whoever she was. She didn't even flinch, but only blinked lazily like a cat.
When he lifted his hand, the last card I had seen on the table earlier was there on her desk, upturned, so I couldn't see the number on the other side. The teacher looked at her and shook his head.
"You're one heck of a wonderful person, aren't you?" he said rather sarcastically and turned around, walking around the class as he explained further.
She had been staring straight ahead at a blind spot the whole time, not even giving the teacher any face, and not caring at all about the whispers that weaved through the class again.
I found myself looking at her again, but learned my lesson not to stare at her too long, but just as I was about to look back, her eyes moved over to mine, and we made eye contact only for the briefest of moments before I broke eye contact.
Her eyes did scare me with their coldness, but I couldn't deny their beauty. They were frightening to look at, but they had to be the most beautiful eyes I had ever laid my eyes on. And it wasn't because of the color, but because they seemed to hold so much.
I forced my mind to stop thinking of the strange girl and listen to what the teacher was talking about.
"...you and your partner will come to me after you've settled, and then I will give you your task to be accomplished by the end of this week. And also, until I choose to, you will have that same person as your partner next time. Don't even think of deceiving me, for I have known more tricks than any of you will probably ever know. You may proceed to..."
What tricks? I couldn't think of it, for right after he'd finished his speech, the whole class at that moment was thrown into complete disarray. The uproar confused me, and I understood it was something he had permitted, for he didn't act out.
Students moved around in the classroom, looking for their partners. They used different methods to find whoever had their matching numbers. Some stood at one point and called out their number, others went round searching and comparing, and I caught a group gathering around to switch their cards so they could be teams with their friends.
So those are the tricks he was referring to...
Too bad for them, the teacher was more experienced, just as he had bragged about, and caught them.
He immediately scolded them, appearing right behind them like a ghost in a horror movie, making sure their plans failed.
They could only swallow their pains with sullen faces and go on with whoever they were paired up with.
A few nice ones approached me to find out if they were my match, mostly the polite girls of the class, but I could clearly see that all they wanted was to start small talk with me. Too bad I sucked at that, so I used all my courtesy to send them off disappointed. My past in the previous school taught me better about people's ulterior motives in all they did, and it made it difficult for me to trust them.
It took only a few minutes before everyone quieted down, and the class was back to being calm again. It was as if the whole place wasn't in a complete uproar some minutes ago.
For some reason, it was a disappointment to me that even though people came to ask, I found no one with my matching number.
I was also in some way relieved since I knew no one in this place, for even though I could get someone to partner up with, the trouble of getting to know the person, and the other party getting to know me wouldn't make it easy for us to get along so well.
The next session was for each group to go for their assigned assignments. I waited patiently for my turn, again being the last one to go for his task.
When my turn finally arrived, I didn't hesitate to get up, learning from past experience.
My number was seven, but for some reason, I had to be the last one again. I received the sheet and came back to sit down, but then...I was getting to my seat when I saw the girl get up and approach me.
She came to stand before me with a blank expression that betrayed no emotions, and I wondered why she was now approaching me.
I couldn't help but stare at her beauty.
She had the average height of most girls, and even though it was something I never cared about, I couldn't help but notice everything.
She was difficult to forget.
The beauty she had seemed effortless. This was the kind of beauty people paid for in models and carved in statues, except she looked bored with it, like it meant nothing to her at all.
She looked like the kind of girl all guys her age would be dying to get to, but that's what always made me not appreciate the beauty of girls.
Girls like her were the reason I had learned not to care anymore. Beauty was always bait.
There was always a lie wrapped in something pretty, and I'd learned the hard way not to reach for it again.
I could already tell she was a famous figure from the looks that were directed at me being right in front of her, and from her demeanor, I should have hated her, knowing that she had to be some rich and pampered girl who wouldn't stop to give a second thought before stepping over you, but for some reason I felt she might be different from all my assumptions.
I felt that maybe we might have met before, but that was only a lingering thought. Who would meet this gorgeous lady and not remember her clearly?
My eyes moved over to her blood-red lips. They moved a little, but she held back her words.
Without caring about the numerous eyes focused on us, she raised her hand with something in it to my face, and I saw the number seven.
"Oh," was the first thing I blurted out, thinking if I was lucky to have her or it spelled my doom.
I just decided instantly to be a kind person to the first person I would be interacting with for quite a while.
"Hi, I'm C-"
PAH!!
The crisp sound of the slap was loud and clear. I was now certain, with the silence that followed, that all eyes were on us—me.
She didn't give a second's thought before looking me straight in the eye and saying the words that confused me more.
"Don't even try talking to me," She looked cold, but I saw something flash behind those eyes.
I was about to hold her hand and ask what she meant, but I allowed it to slip right through my grasp as she rushed past me without letting me respond, leaving the class as fast as she could move.
"Stop! Lily!..." I heard the teacher shout after her and chase after her as well. I stood there for a while more, then moved back to my seat.
I was just as confused as the class that I could guess was trying to figure out what it was that I did to rouse her anger.
Nobody dared to ask me, and nobody dared to approach me to console me. I would have even hated it if that were to happen.
I didn't even touch my cheek as other people would. I didn't feel the pain, only numbness, as I looked down at my table.
They were probably thinking of me as a weak person, one who couldn't even fight back when a girl attacked me, but I didn't care at all.
It never bothered me that they were clearly gossiping about me. I was only thinking, thinking of what just happened.
"Don't even try talking to me."
The words she said to me echoed in my head.
What was that supposed to mean?
This had to be the most perfect first day at a new school. It was quite funny to me the more I thought about it, but I had no idea what had just happened had dropped my chances of making friends from 200% to 2%. Maybe even less.
It never crossed my mind that this little interaction would be such a heavy thing for me. I only thought of her at the moment.
Had we met before?
Looking back now, I wish we hadn't, and I wish we never interacted.
Because that would have saved us a lot of trouble.