He takes a deep breath and tries again. “So over there is Kellylynch Hall. That’s where your classes will be. If you have your schedule on you, I can show you where all your classes are.”
“I’m not an idiot,” I say. “I’ll figure it out tomorrow.”
“Right,” he says. “So the dining hall is over there, and they have pretty good food. Dinner starts around six p.m. Oh, and phones are allowed. That’s a fairly new rule.”
“Thank God,” I say, touching my pocket where my phone is. “I don’t think I could survive without it.”
“Most people can’t. Also, they’re addicted to Knight Watch.”
“Knight Watch?”
“It’s the school’s own social media app.”
I roll my eyes. “Lame.”
I can tell my constant complaints are bugging him, and I kind of like it. It’s almost fun to say something sarcastic after everything he tells me. Deep down I know I must be a terrible person, but I’m so angry any my parents for making me go here that I just don’t care right now.
Declan shows me around more of the school and tells me about their stupid rules. Curfew is at nine on weekdays and ten on weekends. Um, what? That’s so lame.
“Don’t worry,” he says, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jumpsuit. “The popular kids tend to disregard the curfew and get away with it.”
I grin. “You think I’m popular?”
His hair falls in his eyes and he shakes it away as he looks at me. “You’re exactly the type of girl who gets popular at a place like this.”
My lips press together as I look him over. “I like you, Declan the janitor.”
“Gardener,” he corrects.
I roll my eyes. “Same thing.”
Declan nods. “Yep,” he says, exhaling a sarcastic sigh. “They are exactly the same thing.”
He stops at the large building in front of us. “This is Stratford Hall. It’s the student dorms. Each grade has its own floor, so you’ll be up on the fourth floor. I can take you there now if you know your room number.”
“No, I’m actually staying in the staff dorms,” I say. He gives me another look, like he just can’t quite figure me out.
“I’m sharing a room with my cousin,” I explain. That doesn’t take away any of his confusion.
“I’ll show you Stratford Hall anyway, because there’s also the student common area so you’ll probably spend a lot of time in here. The ground level is the common area. There are study rooms, and couches and televisions and stuff. It’s where we spend our time when we’re sick of our roommates.”
“Roommates?” I say. “You have more than one?”
“There’s three of us in our dorm.”
I make a gagging sound. “Oh my God, I would drop out if I had to share a tiny room with two other people.”
He doesn’t say anything. He just holds open the door to Stratford Hall. Inside, I see the common areas in all their glory, and I am not a fan. There aren’t too many students in here, but they all look at me like I’m something they scraped off the bottom of their shoe. What the crap is that? I’m Sophia Brass.
“These people could show some respect,” I say after the tour of the dorm building is over.
“What do you mean by that?” Declan asks.
I shrug. “Everyone was looking at me.”
“You’re the new girl. They’re going to look.”
I shake my head. “No. Not like that. They were looking at me like—like…”
