Forsaken Love

Chapter 4

    Jim woke to the smell of bacon and eggs, his first reminder that it was Monday. He crawled out of bed and dressed into his school clothes. Then he rushed to the bathroom, acting through a typical morning routine before walking down the stairs and gathering around the table with his family. He took a seat next to his father, across from his mother and sister. 

    “Are you excited for your first day of school son?” His father asked. His second reminder that it was a Monday. 

    “Not really. It’s probably not going to be any different than any other day of school.”

    “But you’ll be in third grade now. A new set of teachers, a chance to make new friends. That sounds pretty exciting,” his father continued.  

    Jim shrugged. “If you say so.” 

    “I just hope he does better this year,” his mother joined in. “I hear they have a really good english teacher for 3rd graders.”

    “I’ll be fine, Mom. I promise.” 

    Then the front door opened. Jim immediately noticed Evelyn’s hair cut shorter than the day before, when it had reached her shoulders. Now it didn’t even hang below her neck. “You decided to stop letting your hair grow, I see,” Jim joked.

    “It was time.” 

    “Hello, Evelyn. You’re here early,” Mrs. Hughes said. “We won’t be leaving for another 20 minutes.”

    “Yes,” Evelyn nodded and smiled at Mrs. Hughes. “But I didn’t want to have you wait for me at all. So I showed up early. This way we can leave whenever you are ready and we won’t be late.”

    “That’s very sweet.” Mrs. Hughes pointed a hand toward a chair.. “Hungry at all?”

    She shook her head. “Not really.” She sat down next to Jim. “I can’t wait to meet my classmates.”

    Mrs. Hughes smiled at her eagerness. “See, Jim? At least one of you is excited for school. If you applied yourself like Evelyn does, you could be a really bright kid someday.”

    “Oh, don’t worry you about him, Mrs. Hughes. I’ll watch over him.” Evelyn chuckled. Jim’s cheeks went red. His family laughed. “Seriously, I’m sure he’ll be fine. Jim is smart in his own way.”

    Jim checked his watch. 7:35. Running out of time, he chowed down the rest of his breakfast, then dashed back upstairs to brush his teeth. He returned to the dining room minutes later. Evelyn and his mother already waited for him at the front door, Evelyn’s backpack in hand. “Hurry up slowpoke.” She joked. 

    “I’m coming. I’m coming.”

    The three hopped into the seven seat minivan. Evelyn and Jim sat in the back. Though the drive would only last 10 minutes, that still left plenty of time for the trio to engage in Jim and Evelyn’s favorite car ride pastime, Karaoke. Mrs. Hughes immediately put in the CD, and Lion King’s “I Just Can’t Wait to be King” blasted throughout the van. In unison, its three passengers sang along. Only their arrival could put an end to their singing. 

    Jim and Evelyn exited the vehicle and waved goodbye to Mrs. Hughes. They glanced at each other, then simultaneously at the school, before heading inside. But shortly after, they split up, having been assigned different home room teachers. Jim walked into Mr. Moretti’s classroom. Evelyn, Mrs. Fischer’s. The tables, organized in a 4x5 grid, all had already predetermined seating arrangements displayed through name tags. Jim found his seat in the middle of the room. 

    When the alarm sounded, Mr. Moretti walked up to the front of the classroom and wrote his name on the whiteboard. “Good morning class. My name is Mr. Moretti. I look forward to meeting you all. I’ll be your teacher this year.” He paced back and forth, addressing the whole class. “I’d like to begin by playing a little game to help us introduce each other.” 

    Jim sighed. This better at least be a little fun this time. 

    “I’d like each other of you to look at the person sitting next to you. If you are in the middle rows look at the person sitting in the outer row. If you already know them, find someone else. This will be your partner for this game.” Students shifted in their seats to better position themselves in relation to their new partners. “You will take turns to ask a few questions to your partner.

    “You will first ask your partner for his or her name. Then you will ask them some personal questions, like what is their favorite book or movie? I want you to ask at least 4 questions in total. Everyone in this room right now will be in all of your classes this year, so it’s important you get to know them.” 

    Jim looked to his right. A brunette, short-haired girl smiled back at him, already answering the first question. “I’m Madison.” 

    Despite having little interest in gaining a new friend, caused by a discomfort of talking to someone he did not know, he played along with the game to avoid further pressure from the teacher and possibly other students. “Jim.” He offered his hand. 

    Madison accepted it. “Alright Jim. What’s your favorite animal?” 

    “Kangaroo,” he lied. That title belonged to the tiger, thanks to Winnie the Pooh’s Tigger. 

    Madison chuckled. “Kangaroo? Really? That’s different. Any particular reason?”

    “It’s a fun word to say.”

    Madison smiled. “Fair enough. What are your favorite hobbies?”

    Jim shrugged. He liked to do plenty with Evelyn. But the list of activities the two have participated in together was extensive. At least, too long to decide on a favorite. So he generalized his answer. “Spending time with friends.”

    Madison nodded her head in understanding. “I see. And how about favorite book?”

    Jim only half paid attention to her questions, the other half unintentionally distracted by his own thoughts. He hadn’t entirely processed her question, thinking it over before answering.  “I don’t really read. My mom reads to me sometimes, but I don’t really have a favorite.”

    Madison stared intently at him, waiting several moments before replying. “Your mother reads to you?” She laughed, hard. “Still?”

    Her words stabbed Jim in the chest. He looked away from her, turning his head down toward his desk. This is why I don’t talk to people I don’t know. He suddenly didn’t feel like playing the game anymore. So he lazily and quickly asked his questions, repeating Madison’s. “What is your favorite animal?”

    Madison smiled. “That’s easy. Cat. Cats are amazing. They’re cute, fluffy, funny. They make really nice company. They love to sleep alot, but sometimes they sleep with me and it’s the best feeling in the world. I have 3 cats. Whiskers, Snowball, and Cinnamon. Whiskers is a Burmese Cat, Snowball is a Persian Cat, and Cinnamon is a Siberian.” 

    Jim sighed, staring at her as she answered. Is she going to be talking this much all year? “Okay. Favorite book?”

    “Charlotte’s Web. There are so many lovely animals in it. All the characters are interesting. It also takes place on a farm, and I want to own a farm someday, so naturally I really appreciated its setting.”

    Jim struggled to keep up with her talking speed, though admittedly, he had little interest in the conversation. He just wanted to get through the last question and move on. “Favorite hobby?” 

    Cheerful as ever, Madison answered, “Reading.” She proceeded to list off numerous books that interested her beyond Charlotte’s Web. Jim lost count but felt certain that she had listed more books than he knew the names of. 

    After Madison’s rude remark, Jim found it difficult to enjoy the rest of his class. The only thing that kept him going was the fact that he would reunite with Evelyn in just a few short hours, or perhaps they’d actually be long, during the lunch break. He quickly found her near the back of the cafeteria, but grabbed his food before walking over to her. By the time he had arrived, others had already joined the table. 

    “Hi, Jim! I’d like you to meet some people! They are all in my homeroom.” Evelyn pointed toward a short redhead. “This is Amelia.” 

    Jim smiled. “Pleasure.” Evelyn continued the introductions with a Mary, Sydney, and Sera. Jim never considered the possibility that he’d be seeing these girls frequently, he and Evelyn spent too much time together as is and had little time available to spend with others. So he never bothered trying to memorize their names with their faces. “How was class, Evelyn?”

    “Oh, it was fantastic! I have such a cool teacher, and the students are nice too! I’m looking forward to the rest of the year!” 

    Jim never spoke to Evelyn directly again for the duration of the lunch break. In general, that was the last time Jim spoke. Evelyn’s classmates dominated the rest of the conversation. He instead sat back, relaxing with his sandwich in hand, only occasionally listening in. He groaned. He had hoped to tell Evelyn about his class, and about Madison, but as he paid less and less attention to the discussion, he never found the chance.