Colours of the dark

4

It was getting really hard for me to ignore the loud banging on my door and the shouts that followed. I'd been sitting on my bed for a lonh time, pretending I couldn't hear a thing, but my head had started to ache.

I sighed as I dragged myself off the bed and went to open the door.

On opening it, I saw my stepmother's confused look but I paid no attention to it. She gave a weak smile before she cleared her throat

"I need you to get a few things from the grocery store for me."

"Okay. Give me a few minutes to change." I yawned and went to search my wardrobe

"It's no problem." She said making me look up sharply. No problem? This was so not my stepmother. I'd expected her to ask me to hurry up or say something mean but she didn't.

I put on the first thing I touched which was a simple green dress with purple flower patterns. It looked more like something I'd wear to sit at home but it was still early in the morning and I didn't care.

I took the list and the money from her and rushed out of the house.

I came back only to realise with shock that it was Monday and the time was seven forty five. She knew. She knew I'd woken up late and decided to use it to her advantage.

I'd wondered why I saw a school bus when I was crossing the road but didn't pay much attention to it. Or why I wasn't hearing Hailey and Laney's voices. They'd gone to school that's why.

I would have stayed back at home if I didn't remember my English assignment that was sitting on my table. It was to be submitted today and not later. I sighed and rushed into the bathroom, consoling myself with the saying : better late than never.

Well, I was very late. It was eight fifty seven and I was standing outside my class, I could already hear our maths teacher talking about equations. Three minutes more and the class would be over. Missing the class wasn't my fear. My fear was not getting a seat for the next class.

We didn't have assigned seats here at center score, everyone could sit where they liked. Or on any available seat. That was the reason I always tried to go early to class; so I could sit by the window.

I was still walking about when the door opened and she rushed out. I walked into the class and scanned the seats from the door. Sure, there were available seats but none of them were by the window.  There was one beside a girl with purple hair who had earpiece on, there was one beside the boy who'd made me trip on the first day of school and there was one right at the back of the class. Beside the short girl who'd been rude to me on Friday.

I loved sitting at the back but I chose to sit beside the girl with the earpiece because I was sure she'd ignore me.

Just as I dropped my bag on the table, Mr Roger, our biology teacher walked in.

"Good morning class."

Everyone muttered something. Some said good morning, some said some things that sounded like a foreign language. He nodded at them all and brought out a blue marker from his pockets and wrote on the board.

                         TEST 

This of course, caused a lot of commotion amongst the students. But Mr Roger was already distributing papers round the class.

"I've noticed that you people normally copy each others work so I've decided to do something different." He dropped a sheet on my table. "This time around, all of you get just one question. One question, but none of you have the same question."

As he said this, I looked down at my paper. Truly, it was just one question. One question I didn't know the answer too.

State the fundamental principles of heredity.

I knew it had something to do with a guy named Mendel but that's where it ended. I didn't know any further.

I began playing with my bracelet as I chewed the cover of my pen. It was a habit. Chewing the cover of my pen or the top of my pencil whenever I was thinking deeply.

"I wish I had a question I knew the answer to." I sighed. "Not this." What did I know about Gregor Mendel? He planted peas, I think. What had heredity got to do with peas.

I was think about writing the principle of heredity is that peas and other plants inherit their characteristics from the parent plant, when my paper flew out of my grasp. I noticed that other people's paper were flying too.

"Close the windows!" Mr Roger was shouting as everyone scrambled to find their paper.

The windows were finally closed but the damage had already been done. The whole floor was full of scattered papers and leaves that came in with the wind.

"I don't think anyone has started writing so just pick any paper nearest to you and started writing." He commanded and everyone bent down to pick.

As luck will have it, I didn't get the heredity paper. The new paper I picked had a better question.

Explain the colour change in chameleons.

For the first time ever, I was happy to write a test. Just two days ago, I'd read all I could about colour changes because of my bracelet and colour change in chameleons had popped up more that thrice during my search. I'd even read my textbook so I knew this answer by heart.

With a wide smile on my face, I quickly wrote all I could remember and submitted it just as he said pens up.

I turned around to see how well the others had done and I didn't see a smiling face. Someone two seats away from mine was arguing that the law of independent assortment was Mendel's second law and not the first. I didn't even know what the first law was or what independent assortment even meant so I was happy that wind had come just in time.

As I stood up to pack up my books and head to English class, someone bumped into me.

"Sorry." I immediately said and continued packing my books.

"Hey." A familiar voice said. I turned around to look at the person I'd bumped into.  Shiny black hair, brown eyes with those long lashes that I bet the mascara caused a fortune.

"Hi" I greeted back and hung my bag.

"Wait! She held my arm. I'm Aurora "

"Lance." I helped her out. "I know you."

"Oh. Well, this is the part where you tell me your name."

"Barbara parker."

"Barbie!"

"Barbara." I repeated. "Call me Barbara."

"Well, I'll like to call you barbie. I call my friends nicknames."

Friends? Aurora Lance wanted to be my friend. Aurora wasn't just any student here at center score. Her dad was a very rich businessman who owned Lance Inc. A company that dealt in leather products from furniture to clothing. Everyone in school who watched TV knew the company. They had a show where they talked about their latest products.

Aurora was a new student at our school but everyone already knew her. She sometimes walked with the big girls but she wasn't mean like them. And that's what I liked about her.

"You can call me Rory if you want." She was saying. But it sounded a lot like Dory. And that's just what I said.

"Dory?"

She laughed. "I've never been called that in my life. But you can. If you let me call you barbie."

I nodded. She talked a lot so the nickname Dory suited her.

"Wait! Did someone set you up for this?" I didn't mean to think out loud but I'd already said it. "I'm sorry. I just"

"It's okay for you to think that way. I've heard a lot about you and I've seen stuff. But I think you're nice."

"Nice?" I laughed. "You've only been here a week. What if I did something really terrible last year and that's why everyone hates me now?"

"Did you?" She seemed shocked.

"Kinda."

"I believe everyone deserves a chance though. So I forgive you." She smiled. "I hope you have your English assignment done."

"Yeah" I nodded. Was she only here for the assignment?

"Cool. Me too. Come on." She dragged me by the arm." We're getting late."