I thought Iwasin D block. As if reading my mind, Alexander shook his head and stepped forward to pull me by my school bag.
“Hey! What are you doing?!” I asked in alarm.
“Taking you to D3, duh,” he answered, shooting me an amused grin.
All I could manage was a quiet ‘oh’ as I followed him through the main yard and into D block.
“All the smart kids are in D3,” Alexander said. “We had to take a test on our first day. When did you take yours?”
“Um…a week before I started,” I answered, a little breathless from the quick pace he set. “Sent in the mail, I think.”
“Cool. What did you get?”
“Huh?”
“In the test…what mark did you get?”
“Oh…um…forty-seven out of fifty.”
Alexander paused in front of a classroom, green eyes wide as he turned to look at me. “Shit. Really?”
I nodded.
“You…beat me by two,” he said slowly.
I stared at him, not really knowing if he was congratulating me or waiting for an apology.
The door to the classroom opened and Mr Singh glanced in between us with an unimpressed expression, handing each of us a booklet on the day’s topic.
I dumped myself into a lone chair at the back of the classroom and avoided Alexander’s gaze as he sat near the front, his jaw clenched and familiar smile gone.
In a classroom of high performing students, it wasn’t difficult to determine who my academic competitors were. Every time Mr Singh asked a question, Alexander and the chewing gum girl from my form room raised their hands, fighting to be the first to answer. I knew the answers too, but I kept my hand down, not wanting to draw attention to myself.
At recess, my intention was to study in the library. I was five weeks behind my peers, and if I wanted to please Aunt Vera, I needed to be at the very top of all my classes.
To get to the library, however, I had to cross a battlefield of students in the main yard.
Drawing in a deep breath, bracing myself for battle, I took a step forward and walked as fast as I could with my head down.
A ball flew past my head, a sandwich crunched beneath my feet, a group of girls nearly collided into me and as I neared safety, Alexander crossed my path, a sinister smile contorting his once friendly face.
“Where are you going, new boy?”
I paused, weighing my route to the library.
“Have you forgotten how to talk?” he asked, head tilted to the side as his eyes roamed up and down my body.
I said nothing, my lips pursed as Alexander shifted from one leg to the other.
Good boy, the Devil praised me.Do not say a word. Look at how uncomfortable your silence makes him. He is unravelling, and you don’t even have to lift a finger.
Alexander watched me, fingers running through his hair before risking a step closer. “Why won’t you answer me, Saint? Do you think you’re better than me?”
I shook my head.
“Yes, you do.”
I shook my head again, longing for the quiet of the library I was yet to reach.
