CHAPTER 8
*PAST*
“First day of school”
Aaron
I decided to focus my time and energy on getting myself ready for my first school experience. I watched movies and TV shows and read pretty much everything that I could find to prepare me for this moment. I had my lucky jacket on, and I did my summer homework that the teachers of the new school wanted in less than a week.
It was hard for me to sleep. I kept thinking back to when everything went wrong. My parents sat me down after I asked them about Maya; they told me that her parents and her were mad at us.
I should be the one mad. My book was missing, and my new best friend kicked me to the curb. I thought she’d grabbed it and would read it and return it, but instead, she was no longer speaking to me. When one of my siblings got mad at me, in a couple of days they’d stop getting angry. But they were around me, and I’d ask forgiveness.
This time, she didn’t want me around her. I tried calling her, but she didn’t pick up. I was thinking of riding my bike to her house, but I wasn’t sure where the trailer camp was.
I imagined what I would say to her. I imagined us being friends again and trying to discover where my book ended up, like an adventure. Maybe I could talk with her at school and make her join me. She was very nice and smart. I was sure it was just a misunderstanding.
Dad had always told me that misunderstandings could damage love and friendships, and that we should talk about our feelings to our loved ones so they could know how we felt about them.
When Cassie got mad because I didn’t want to play princesses, she and I talked, and she was happy again.
I just needed to see her, and everything would be back to how it was before. I checked myself in the mirror again. My hair was difficult to tame, but after some effort, I was able to get it in place.
Going to school was new for all my siblings. Evelyn was nervous, Carlo didn’t want to go, and Cassie jumped as happily as she could. She was the extrovert of all of us. I was sure she would do more than fine in school. But me? I didn’t know if I was good at making friends.
It was easy with Maya, but in less than two weeks, she was already mad at me.
We got into the car with our bags, and Mom and Dad took us to school. They both wanted to go with us for our first day at school.
The ride on the car was more silent than usual. We were all in our heads, Cassie and our parents being the only ones wanting to talk. Niko was sulking, keeping to himself, Evelyn looked out the window, and Carlo focused on his new shoes.
I sat straight and tried to look and focus on everything.
From where I was sitting, I could hear Niko’s heavy music. He needed to lower the volume; it could harm his ears. I was going to tell him so when something caught my attention from the window: a big building with letters that read The Darlington Academy.
This part of the Academy was where Niko was going, and soon I would follow. It didn’t look like the ones in the movies. This one seemed smaller, but also older and imposing. I swallowed. I checked Niko’s face to see if he was thinking the same as I was. He didn’t give anything away.
Niko was the toughest of my family, a little harsh, and the tallest person I had ever seen, but he was kind to my siblings and me during our few interactions with him. Sometimes, he felt more like an uncle or a cousin than my older brother. But I knew I could count on him if I had any problems.
Niko got out of the car with a goodbye while Mom and Dad tried to cheer him up. Niko had a car, but our parents insisted that he shouldn’t go alone to his first day of high school. I checked his back; he was tense.
I was going to come here alone soon if I didn’t make any friends. In the movies that I watched, some were rude and bullied people just because they were mean.
Was I going to be bullied today? Maya hadn’t told me anything about our classmates.
I was going to see Maya for the first time since the “fight.”
Maybe she was over it, and her telephone was broken.
Either way, I was going to talk with her.
We got to our part of the Academy sooner than I wanted. Cassie exited the car like someone was running after her.
As the elder, I grabbed my bag and tried to pretend that everything was going to be okay. So, after saying bye to my parents, I started to walk towards the school, my sisters and brother following me.
The walls were a boring gray. Kids were entering the school, some of them looking at us curiously, but no one was getting closer to us.
I heard some whispers.
My sister didn’t seem fazed by it until a kid got close to us, looked us up and down, and ignored her hello.
Her face fell, and I wanted to tell the kid to have better manners, but I felt it could make it worse for my sister. So, I didn’t say anything but touched her shoulder three times. It was something my mom did to make us realize that she was always there for us. I hoped that helped.
I got sidetracked when I saw a high ponytail the same color as Maya’s. But one moment it was there, and the next, I couldn’t find it. One teacher got in front of me before I could see her.
“Hello, hello.”
A woman in her late forties with blonde hair appeared before us. She had a big smile and colorful clothes.
Cassie was smiling big; she loved colorful garments.
“You must be the Willows. I’m Sandra, the Headmistress of The Darlington Academy. I’ll first show you how the school works and give you a little tour. That sound good?”
We nodded and came along. I kept looking to see if I could get a look at Maya. The teacher stopped, and I paid attention to her.
“You must be Aaron.”
I nodded; my siblings had already said their names. “Are you worried about your first day at school? That’s totally normal. Even kids who have been going to school do. The first day is always nerve-wracking, but don’t worry. I’m sure you will make friends very easily.”
I nodded. My tongue felt heavy in my mouth, and my palms were sweating. I was nervous alright.
She continued to show us the rest of the school, ending with the cafeteria and the gym, both with less-than-impressive smells. Then, we went to her office, where she printed our schedules and asked us about our hobbies. She showed us the different clubs and sports teams that the school had. I asked to join the chess one; I knew Maya wanted to be on it.
I got sad for a bit; we never got to play chess at home.
I thought of asking Sandra about Maya, but Cassie seemed to get along with her very well. She looked more relaxed and her talkative self again. I didn’t know how to ask, either.
Did she know all the kids by name, or was that not normal?
“Well, the first day is usually more relaxed regarding classes. They ask kids about their summer, if they want to join any club, and all of that. They are in the auditorium, a place I haven’t shown you yet, where they explain some rules and what I already had to tell you about safety procedures. I thought it would be better to not push you to join the masses just as you entered.”
Maya must have been there, too. “The classes are about to start, and one kid from your class will come and show you your classes and how things work in each of your courses. Does that sound good?”
“What’s the name of mine?”
I spoke for the first time since I met her. She was surprised by it.
“Let me check. I have it here somewhere.”
She started to open and close some folders. “Here it is. Cassie, you’re with Armando. I think you two would get along pretty well; you both have a great sense of fashion. Carlo, you’re with Spencer. He’s on the robotics team that I told you about.”
My palms were sweating. I needed to know. Maya knew that I was new to the school, and I needed to know if she signed up for this for me. She kept talking about the robotics team, and Carlo only nodded along. She stopped talking when she saw my leg bouncing. I stopped it.
“And Aaron, you’re with Maya. She’s a very smart lady.”
She kept going, but I was too focused on the part where Maya was going to come and meet me here. I didn’t have to search for her or pray that we were both in the same class. My shoulders relaxed, and I smiled. The teacher looked at me, confused.
“We know Maya,”
said Cassie. Carlo nodded. “She came to our house and played princesses with us. She’s our new best friend.”
Her eyebrows raised a little.
“That’s wonderful—so you know each other, and Aaron, your best friend is in your class; there’s nothing to worry about.”
I was not making the very best first impression with her as I should have. We heard a knock on the door. I rose from the chair and checked to see if I could see Maya, but another teacher opened the door and said that the kids were out, waiting for us to take them to our classes. I was going out of the door when Sandra stopped me.
“Why don’t you wait here while I tell them everything you need to know?”
She closed the door behind herself, and I started to pace the room.
“Aaron, you’re acting very weird. You said you weren’t nervous,”
Cassie said, tilting her head and looking at me up and down.
“He’s nervous because Maya is mad at him,”
Carlo replied.
“Why is she mad? Were you rude to her?”
She had her arms on her hips and was looking at me with her eyes in slits.
“I wasn’t.”
I raised my hands. “I asked if she knew where the book was. She thought that I thought she stole it. I just want to talk with her.”
“You better make her forgive you.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“She’s going to be my new sister; don’t mess it up.”
I muttered under my breath.
“What was that?”
Cassie asked, being bossy. The door opened, and Sandra entered.
“Great, let’s go, kids. The classes are starting up. Remember, if you need anything, just come here.”
I didn’t even nod while trying to get a look at Maya. “I’m leaving you in good hands.”
She opened another door, and I hit someone who was coming in too fast.
Someone gasped.
“Sorry, I was getting out too fast. I—”
“Don’t worry; I wasn’t paying attention either.”
The girl who was talking had black hair and brown eyes. She was smiling at me with curious eyes. “I’m Christine.”
I forced a smile. “You’re Aaron, right?”
“Yes.”
I looked around, but there were only two boys and two girls next to Sandra; neither were Maya.
Where is she?
“Nice to meet you. We’re going to be in the same class, I’m going to—”
“Where’s Maya?”
“She’s … busy. She needed to do something,”
Sandra said, flinching.
“Yes,”
said, too happily.
“I thought classes were going to start now.”
Sandra nodded. “Has something happened to her?”
Sandra shook her head.
“She’s okay. She couldn’t come, but Christine will help you with everything,”
she said while pushing me closer to not-Maya.
She started talking about what was good. I knew I wasn’t being nice, but I couldn’t fake my smile any longer. We started to walk toward our classes, my siblings disappearing down the hall.
“Do you know Maya or something?”
the girl asked me.
“I do. I met her at the park some weeks ago. We became friends.”
She nodded.
“But you’re not anymore.”
I turned, surprised, towards her.
“Why would you say that?”
I inquired. She swallowed.
“I shouldn’t say this, but she didn’t want to come. She said that she didn’t want to show you the school; she was angry.”
“She was?”
I whispered.
“Very.”
“I wanted to talk with her before starting school, but she didn’t answer her telephone,”
I said, rocking my feet. “It’s a misunderstanding.”
“Are you sure?”
“I think so.”
“Maya is sometimes rude and gets angry when she doesn’t get what she wants.”
That didn’t sound like the Maya that I’d met. “She’s smart, but most people aren’t friends with her because she treats people poorly. She always wants to win.”
“She was very nice to me.”
“Until she wasn’t. I don’t want to talk badly about her, but you shouldn’t feel bad about her being mad. That’s a very Amery thing.”
“What?”
I turned towards her, not understanding why she was saying all of this.
“Maya might have said that you’re not nice to some people, but don’t worry, they know how Maya is. And if not, then they don’t deserve to be your friends. It’s sad you have to learn how the Amerys are this way. People don’t love the family; they’re always being rude and—”
“And?”
I inquired.
“This is a secret,”
she whispered, and I got closer, “but they’re known for stealing things.”
I looked at her in shock. I couldn’t believe it. “I don’t want to talk badly about anyone, but I feel sorry for Maya. They’re poor and they think they can get whatever they want.”
She turned around and smiled at me, her whole demeanor changing. “This is our class.”
She smiled at me and opened the door. I entered, and the class got silent.
My eyes found Maya’s, and my heart started beating very fast.
“Class, this is Aaron Willow. He was home-schooled, and his siblings are also new.”
Maya rolled her eyes and looked at the wall in front of her. Her jawline was stiff, and she was furious.
“That’s good, Chris. Say hi to Aaron, class.”
They said hello, and I looked at them for the first time. There were more than twenty kids in this class, and they looked at me with different types of smiles.
I gulped.
“We have saved you those two seats.”
They were in the first row, one being right next to Maya.
I sat next to Maya, even though I started to get mad.
My class didn’t look at me particularly bad, but did she bad-mouth me in front of them?
She remained silent for the rest of the class. As much as she didn’t speak or look at me, I started to boil. I had always wanted to go to school, even though I also loved home-schooling, and I’d told her how scared I was about starting. She didn’t seem to care about all my fears.
Even Cristina was nice to me, even though she didn’t know me. She also told me about what Maya was doing behind my back.
Did I make a mistake in making friends with Maya?
But then I remembered how much fun we had those three days. They weren’t in my head. My family liked her, too.
Was she bad-mouthing my siblings, too?
That I couldn’t forgive, if she was. I needed to talk with her, but I also wanted to give her the same silent treatment she was giving me. I had reasons to be mad, and sad.
My favorite book was lost, and on my first day at school, the only person I knew apart from my siblings was acting like I’d burned all her books.
The class finished. I looked at Maya, who was talking with two people, a guy and a girl. The boy laughed at something that Maya said, and it unnerved me.
What did she say that was so funny?
A teacher entered the room. He introduced himself as our English teacher. He asked who had read all the books that he had assigned, and someone groaned. He smiled.
“I’m going to mention the names of the books that I put on the list, and you raise your hands if you have read them. It was not mandatory, so don’t lie. I won’t be mad if you haven’t read them.”
When he mentioned the books, people raised their hands or lowered them. I kept mine raised. I had read all of them; Maya had, too. I didn’t pay attention to the rest of the class.
“I see. You guys have read more books than last year, and Maya—and I suppose you’re Aaron—have read all of them. Nice to meet—”
“I did, too,”
said the girl next to me.
“Sorry, Christine, you too have read all of them. What was your favorite?”
“I need to think about it.”
“Okay, then someone wants to answer?”
Maya raised her hand. The teacher nodded towards her.
“My favorite one was The Siren’s Sea Rover,”
she replied.
“I have heard great things about it, Maya.”
She was more relaxed and smiled a little. I raised my hand. The teacher nodded toward my direction.
“It was okay, but not my favorite.”
“I see. Then what was your favorite?”
the teacher asked.
“The Spider’s Loot.”
“Mine too,”
said Christina. I saw Maya roll her eyes, and the teacher raised her eyebrows.
“What was your favorite part, Christine?”
Maya asked in a saccharine voice, looking at her with a fake smile.
“Well, everything. It’s my new favorite book.”
Maya nodded along, a little sparkle in her eyes.
“My favorite part was when they had to fight with the big spider. I also loved when they had to dance on the ball.”
I frowned. Maya was looking at her, but I felt Christina's eyes on my back. I looked at the teacher. He had a little smile that he couldn’t keep in.
“I love those as well; the whole book was amazing. I really recommend it.”
Maya looked at me with sparks in her eyes. We both knew the book didn’t have those scenes. The teacher knew, too, but neither said anything about it. She’d lied about reading the book.
“Okay, class. Does anyone want to tell us their favorite book this summer? It doesn’t have to be on the list.”
People started talking one at a time, and I caught the teacher giving Maya a look. Her shoulders rose and fell, then she looked down.
The teacher finished the class, and the rest of the next class was more boring. Then, it was time for the cafeteria. I was going to see my siblings and could talk with Maya, who was putting her things in her bag.
“Come on, Aaron, or we won’t have food left in the cafeteria or seats,”
Christina said. I left with her and some of my classmates. I wasn’t hungry, but I wanted to check on my siblings.
When we came to the cafeteria, I checked to see if I could see my siblings. We got the food and sat, and I sat looking at the door. They were talking and laughing, but I wasn’t paying much attention.
The minutes kept passing, and neither my siblings nor Maya were entering. There was a lot of noise in the room, and it was starting to get on my nerves. Carlo hated loud, busy places; he was going to hate this place.
I was about to leave when I recognized the guy who was going to show my brother the school. My brother was nowhere to be seen, so I went to him.
“Where’s my brother?”
“He stayed back.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be with him?”
I asked, raising my voice.
“Relax; he’s not alone. He’s with a girl. He’s in good hands.”
Maybe he’d already made a friend.
I felt some hands on my shoulder, and I turned to see Cassie. She was happy to be surrounded by many people, including the guy from this morning.
“Hi,”
she said, smiling big. “How’s your day going?”
I raised and lowered my shoulders.
“Oh, sorry. He’s my brother, Aaron. Aaron, these are my friends.”
She started saying names and pointing to people. “We have to get some food; I’m hungry. Bye.”
She left as fast as she appeared. At least she was having a great first day.
I searched the room, but Carlo was still nowhere to be seen. Maya, too.
I left the cafeteria and walked through the halls, but I couldn’t find him. I entered the bathrooms and called his name, but nothing.
Is he okay?
He should have been eating something. I gave up and came back to my table. They looked at me weirdly. I was making a horrible first impression. I wasn’t rude, but today I was acting not the best. But I was so tired, and I just wanted to go home already, and we still had many hours left.
We got back to class, and Maya appeared after the class started with rosy cheeks and heavy breathing, as if she had come running. She looked at me and opened her mouth to say something. But then she looked to my left, closed her mouth, changed her mind, and kept walking to a place next to the teacher.
What was she going to say?
The class was arts and crafts and was not the same as before. She told us that today was free; we could draw or make whatever we wanted. She wanted to see what things we were interested in so she could level the class to that. I looked at Maya, but she was too busy drawing something on her paper.
I got up and grabbed another big piece of paper. She got up to grab something, and I did the same. We were playing cat and mouse. I got close to her, and she looked at me; I was speechless. Now that she was here, I couldn’t just have a conversation in the middle of the class, so I just smiled at her. A soft, tiny smile. She relaxed her shoulders. Then someone passed, and Maya lost her balance, the paints in her hands and her vase with water falling onto me.
I heard an, “Oh, crap.”
Maya rose from her knees and looked at me with sorry eyes.
“She did it on purpose,”
I heard someone say.
The teacher got close.
“Is everyone okay?”
I nodded.
“Oh, no, Aaron, your jacket,”
said Cristina. “It’s ruined.”
Maya flinched.
“I didn’t—I wanted to—”
Maya tried to say while she kept looking at my chest. “I’m sorry,”
she whispered, but I heard it. I tried to tell her that it was okay. I knew it wasn’t on purpose.
“Let’s go, Aaron. Let’s try to get the paint out of the jacket.”
I followed Christina while Maya started to clean the floor. I wanted to help her clean it, but Christina was already pulling me away.
She talked with someone who was cleaning the halls. He grabbed my jacket and put some cleaning solution on it. He was a middle-aged man with a kind smile. He told me to come back when the classes finished. He offered me a shirt that was in the lost box, but I declined. My shirt was ruined, but I could get it dry.
The shirt was still slightly damp in the middle, but I returned to class. I passed by Maya, and she glared at me. I was shocked by this but kept walking to my seat. I kept drawing, raising my head to check on Maya. She was clearly mad. What made her angry?
I was the one who should be, not her, even though I knew it was an accident.
I didn’t do anything to deserve the hate. I heard some murmurs, and I saw some classmates looking between Maya and me. They were whispering, and I had the feeling it was about us.
I kept my head low like Maya and tried to reach the end of the day quickly and with as few incidents as possible. I felt so tired, and the classmates didn’t help; they kept whispering.
When the bell rang at the end of the day, I felt like I had spent a week inside these four walls. I kept sitting, so tired of packing my things, but I needed to get out and make sure that my brother was okay.
I was getting out of the door when someone grabbed my bag. I turned to see who it was, and Maya was looking at me furiously.
“What’s your problem, Willow?”
“My problem? You’re the one who’s mad at me after ruining my shirt.”
That was clearly the wrong answer.
“It was an accident, and you know it. You said it.”
“I know; that still doesn’t solve why you’re mad at me.”
“Stop playing the victim. You’re a double-faced liar.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You think I stole the book!”
she screamed.
“No, I—”
“Don’t lie; you think we’re liars and thieves.”
“Christine said that your family is…”
“Is what?”
I kept quiet. “So, you trust her instead of me? What an amazing best friend.”
“That’s not it. If you need the money, you could have asked for it. My parents would have—”
“Shut up!”
she screamed. “I hate you; I wish I’d never met you—you and your stupid family, thinking that you guys are way better because you live in a mansion.”
“Don’t talk like that about my family; they were only kind to you.”
“You’re the one that started with mine. Just because my parents aren’t rich doesn’t mean that we’re the trash of town. You’re the one who wants to ruin my family with your nonsense. I wish I’d stolen the book to burn it before you and see your sad face.”
“It’s right, what she said about you. You’re mean and harsh”—a pause—“and petty.”
“Oh, is that right? Because you’re so much better? You only care about you. You don’t even remember the name of your dear friend who has been kissing your ass all day.”
She had a crazy look on. “What’s her name?”
I kept quiet. “Cat got your tongue, Willow?”
She kept defying me. “Do you even remember the names of any of our classmates?”
I turn to leave. “Any of our teachers, at least? If only to kiss—”
“What horrible manners that you have.”
She laughed. “Not remembering the names of your commoners is not the greatest manners, either.”
“Stop. I’m not like that.”
“You are. You’re a conceited rich kid who acts like he’s kind and sweet just to stab you in the back.”
“I’m the one stabbing in the back? You’re the one that has treated me like I don’t exist, only to act like I’m the worst person alive.”
“Because you are. I hate you so much.”
“I don’t.”
I paused. “I feel sorry for you, Maya.”
It was like a slap for her. I was trying to be the better person, but she acted like I had just walked over her.
“What’s going on here?”
A teacher came and saw us. When we looked at the door, a crowd of students and a couple of teachers were outside.
Did they all hear us?
I felt embarrassed. I didn’t realize they were there.
“Nothing,”
Maya said.
“What have you done this time, Maya?”
the teacher asked. Maya closed her fist with strength. “We already talked about your temper, didn’t we, young lady? It’s Aaron’s first day, and he has to face it.”
She turned to me and looked at me up and down. “What happened to your shirt, sweetheart?”
I didn’t reply.
“It was Maya; she splashed paint on his shirt,”
said someone from the door. “Yes, we all saw it. It was in art class,”
someone else chimed in.
“Maya, what do you have to say about it?”
“It was—”
I started.
“It needed some color,”
Maya said. Someone laughed, others gasped, and I looked at her in disbelief. She was talking back to the teacher.
“You think you’re being funny, Maya Amery?”
Another teacher entered the room. It was Sandra. Her shoulders fell when she saw me.
“Let’s have this talk tomorrow morning in my office. Everyone go home; your parents are worried, wondering why you’re still here.”
A beat passed.
“Maya, Aaron, tomorrow in my office.”
I nodded. Maya did, too. We started to get out of the class and into the halls. When I looked again, Maya was nowhere to be found.
“I’m sorry that you had such a horrible day, but don’t worry. I will explain tomorrow what happened, and you will not have any problems because of her.”
Cristina kept talking. Or was that not her name?
“Your name is Cristina or…?”
She was surprised and hurt.
“Christine,”
she said with a little awkward laugh.
When I left school, I heard a voice calling my name. I looked, and Cassie was waving her hands, calling my name over and over. I waved my hand and smiled towards her. My parents were next to my siblings.
I got close to my family and looked at Carlo up and down; he seemed fine.
“Hey,”
I said. “Everything okay?”
I asked Carlo. He looked at me for a while.
“Why?” he asked.
“I couldn’t find you at the cafeteria,” I said.
“I didn’t go.”
“Why?”
“Wait, you didn’t eat?”
my dad asked.
“I did. A friend gave me part of her lunch,”
Carlo replied.
“That’s very kind of her, but you could have bought something and shared it with her, too.”
“We didn’t want to go.”
“You didn’t miss anything,”
said Cassie.
“Cassandra,” Mom said.
“It’s true. The food is not the tastiest, Mom.”
“And it smells weird,”
Evie added.
“You’ll bring your lunch from now on, if that’s what you guys want.”
We entered the car and we started the drive to get to our house.
“Oh, did you talk with Maya?”
my mom asked.
“I did. I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Give it time, my darling. Things will settle, but at least you will make other friends, right?”
I nodded, even if I didn’t consider anyone my friend so far.
“No time; Maya has to be our friend again now,”
said Cassie. My rage grew. Maya had said she hated our family. I looked at my sister’s na?ve face with her big, soft eyes, and I was so mad that I could say to Maya that I hated her, too.
“Don’t get close to her, neither of you.”
“Aaron, what’s that behavior?”
my dad asked. I saw the look my parents gave each other.
“Why would you say that?”
asked Cassie between tears. “She’s my sister.”
“She doesn’t—”
“Aaron,”
my mom advised, sending me a look of don’t make your sister cry more.
The car was silent, if not for my sister’s sobs. I closed my eyes and sat comfortably in my seat, counting my breaths.
Evelyn broke the silence.
“Where’s your jacket?”
I opened my eyes and felt the rage again.
“And what happened to your shirt?”
added Carlo.
“It needed some color.”