The teacher's mate

Iris pov. "Iris! You have to hurry up! You'll be late!" My mother yells at the bottom of the stairs. "Yeah, yeah. I'm coming. Take it easy. It's not like we're actually going to do anything on the first day." I say, annoyed, as I walk downstairs. I already know exactly how it goes. Everyone must gather at the sports field so the headmaster can give a welcome speech. It's the same boring talk every year. The only thing that might be different now is that I'm on the couch as a senior. After the endless speech, the dull day begins. Every lesson is pretty much the same. The teacher tells us what awaits us this year and why that subject is so important. The only bright spot is that I have almost every lesson with 1 of my best friends. Hopefully, they don't tear us apart every class. I sit down at the kitchen table, and my mother hands me a plate of pancakes. "Thank you, mom." I say and start eating. It's become a tradition that my mom makes pancakes for breakfast every special day. Actually, I should say adoptive mother. She took me in when I became an orphan at age 2. Unfortunately, I know little about my parents. All I know is that my parents died in a tragic accident. All I have of them are a few pictures. Fortunately, Alice and Earl are the best adoptive parents I could wish for, and I love them as if they were my birth parents. I'd venture to say that we have a better relationship than most teenagers with their parents if my girlfriends are to be believed. Every week, I have to hear why they hate their parents again. Of course, we do have struggles, but not as much as others. Good thing, too. I can hear a car honking when I eat the last piece of Pancake. That will be Stacy—my best friend. We've known each other since kindergarten and have been inseparable ever since. She turned 18 over the holidays and is only a few weeks older than me. I pack my things and kiss my parents goodbye. "See you later!." I yell as I walk out the door. They shout something after me, but I don't hear what they say. Stacy waves from her new Convertible. She got it for her birthday. She is lucky that her parents both have well-paid jobs at an expensive law firm. She is always spoiled with expensive gifts. She won't say it out loud, but I know she finds it annoying sometimes. Her parents undoubtedly love her but are away from home often because of their work, so they don't see her much. She once said that she would much rather spend more time with her parents and less expensive gifts. I wave happily to her. "Good morning." I say as I get in and hug her. "Ready for our last first day?" She says enthusiastically. "As ready as I can be." I answer. The drive to school takes little time. When we arrive, I see all the boys looking at us with envy. Or actually to the car. Stacy pretends not to see the boys when we get out, but I know she enjoys the attention. We walk towards the sports field and meet Nora and Lola on the way. My other best friends. We've been inseparable since our first year. Lola looks a bit more like Stacy, loves the attention of boys, and makes good use of her slim figure and long blonde hair. Nora, on the other hand, is a bit insecure. She's a bit chubbier than the rest of us, but definitely not fat. She has beautiful black curls, although she hates them herself. Like me, she doesn't like being in the spotlight and avoids contact with boys. Neither of us really know how to behave then. With Nora, it's because she's pretty insecure; I find it difficult because I never know if they have a double agenda. I never know if they are doing it for me or because they want the attention of Stacy or Lola. "Aaaah, I've missed you so much!" Lola screams when she sees us and runs towards us with Nora. We jump for joy and are looked at a bit strangely by the people around us. But we don't care. Laughing, the 4 of us walk further to the field. It's already quite busy, but luckily, our regular spot is still empty. We are still discussing the holidays when the headmaster walks onto the field. He tries to silence everyone, but like other years, it is useless, and everyone keeps chatting without giving him any attention. He looks slightly annoyed at the teachers and starts talking. The chatter slows down a bit but doesn't stop. As predicted, he welcomes everyone back, welcomes all new students, and wishes all final years success. Everyone assumes this was it, and many people want to get up. "I know you think I'm done, but I'm not." He says, and everyone who had stood up, myself included, sits back down in surprise. "As you know, Mrs. Thompson, the history teacher, is enjoying her well-earned retirement. I am pleased to introduce you to her successor. I know it is hard to match her; she was a great teacher, and I know she was a favorite of many of you. I hope you give her successor a fair chance." He begins to tell. "Jeez, don't you think it's a bit dramatic?" I whisper in Stacy's ear. She tries to contain her laughter. "I want to introduce you to Mr. Adams." He says, and someone walks forward. I can only see his backside, but he looks young. "Holy s**t, he's hot!" Lola says as he turns around. She is not wrong; he is very handsome indeed. He has short, ash blonde hair. Seeing through his shirt, his body is well-trained. You can clearly see his muscles. I wonder how old he is; he looks pretty young for a teacher. "I think I need tutoring for history," Stacy says, and we all laugh. I wouldn't be surprised if she asks for it, even though she did more than oke in history last year, so she doesn't need it. The headmaster hands the microphone to Mr. Adams. "Um, hello, everyone." He says and holds up his hand. "My name is Elliot Adams. I can hear my predecessor set the bar very high, but I will try to match it. I look forward to teaching you the great art of history." He says and smiles. What a smile, so cute. Looking around, I'm not the only one who melts away from his smile. He returns the microphone to the headmaster and returns to where he came from. Everyone stares at him. Well, everyone, by all the girls, that is, and a few gay guys. "We have at least 1 lesson to look forward to this year." I say with a chuckle. "At least I know where I will always be on time.. or not, and then I have to stay for detention." jokes Stacy. "You are the worst." Nora says, laughing. "Oh, come on, you've seen what he looks like. You can't tell me you don't think he's handsome." Stacy defends herself. Nora begins to blush. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. I think every girl thinks he's hot, myself included." I say laughing. "Okay, everyone, that's all. You can go to your first class in peace." Says the headmaster, and everyone gets up at the same time. Fortunately, we are close to the exit of our row, so we are quickly out of the crowd. Before we go in, we compare our class schedules. Stacy and I have almost all but two classes together. History and English, I have those together with Nora. Unfortunately, the only class the 4 of us have together is PE. We agreed to wait at our lockers, which are next to each other, during the break and go to our class. As predicted, each lesson explains what is expected in the coming year and which things count extra for the exam. Options are given for extra points. During the mentor hour, it will be explained what you need to do to apply for the Universities and how you can apply for various scholarships. I pay little attention. Because I still need to choose what I want to do after I graduate, I decided to take a gap year with my parents and travel. My parents initially disagreed, but when it became clear that my choice had been made, they changed their minds. I don't want to get into something if I'm not sure I like it. I better take a year to think carefully and see something of the world. Once I start studying, that won't happen anymore. When the bell rings, it's finally time for lunch. I'm starving. I don't know what it is, but since last week, I've been hungry all day. My mom thought it might be a growth spurt at first, but I'm turning 18 next week, so I don't think so. "Well, where are they? I'm hungry." I say impatiently as Stacy and I wait by our lockers. "Calm down, they'll be here soon." Says Stacy. When they arrive, I gesture for them to continue walking. "What's the matter with her?" Lola asks Stacy in surprise. "Nothing, she's hangry." Stacy responds with a laugh. Nora looks at her questioningly. "Hangry? Is that something new?" "You know, hangry... When you're so hungry you get grumpy." Lola explains. When we arrive at the canteen, there is a long queue. I growl in frustration, and I hear the others chuckle. I actually have to laugh about it myself. When I finally have some food in my stomach, I feel a lot better. "Didn't you have breakfast?" Nora asks. "Yes, I don't know why. The last few days, I've felt like a bottomless pit; I'm so hungry." I say. The others have to laugh about it. We spent the rest of our break chatting about our vacation. When it's time for the next lesson, we'll go our separate ways again. I walk with Nora to the history classroom. When we arrive, the girls are clamoring to get in. I chuckle, and we quietly wait for the group to go inside. We both don't feel like joining the group of pushing girls. When we finally get in, Mr. Adams is already at his desk. He looks up when we walk in but immediately looks away. Am I imagining it, or did I see his eyes turning black?