Free Fearless (The Swift Series) by Hayley Nelson Page B

by a year? She had to move, too, but she
didn’t pass the Vroncourt scholarship exam so she’s going to Moores Mill. Lucky
bitch) had to sit through adult conversation for an hour until the
embarrassing, uncomfortable questions and answers started coming up.
                    The couples have been extremely kind to Sue and me;
offering to bring us and pick us up from school, offering to take us shopping,
etc. I’ve been very particular about not taking advantage of the fact that both
couples loved children (the Randolfs unfortunately couldn’t have any and the
Andolinis were a little too old to have more), but I couldn’t say anything
about Sue. The move was a lot harder on her since she actually had a large
social circle back in Orainville. She planned to milk the benefits as much as
she could.
                    The whole rest of the day I didn’t see Abigail,
which would have been fine except that nobody made an effort to talk to me. If
anything, they tried to avoid me as much as possible.
                    Then, at the end of the day, just as I exited the
main doors I was attacked by foam and black tapioca pearls to the face. I
couldn’t see my assailants because some of the liquid got into my eyes, but I
knew they were girls because I could hear them giggling as they walked away.
                    I gave them a little credit; at least they chose to
do it after school instead of during. It saved me a lot of trouble, except that
I had to walk home a little chilled. They wasted money to humiliate me. I guess
I was special. Glass half full.
                    “What happened to you?” Sue asked when she saw me.
She was sitting on the front porch steps of our home.
                    I just shrugged. “What about you? You look upset.” I
sat down beside her and wiped my face with my blazer.
                    “You know how I finally get to go to prom this
year,” she began. “Well, I wanted to join the prom committee but they said I
couldn’t because I was the new kid.”
                    “Oh,” I said simply. Not sympathetically, nor
empathetically. Just matter-of-fact. “Why do you want to be on the prom
committee?”
                    “I thought it would be a good way to make friends,”
she shrugged.
                    “Nobody talked to you either, huh?” I put my arm
around her.
                    “Yeah… It’s really different here.”
                    “Yeah,” I agreed. “But you’ll be okay.” I patted her
on the back and then stood up. “So excuse me while I take a shower.”
                    “Have a bad first day?”
                    “Not so.”
                    “So they’re as mean to the scholarship students as
Mrs Randolf said, huh?”
                    “Exactly.”
                   When our father came home and brought us dinner that
night we both lied and told him that we were really happy.
                    The next day Abigail approached me again.
                    “Hey,” she greeted.
                    “I didn’t see you the whole of yesterday,” I
commented.
                    “I guess we don’t have any classes together.”
                    “In a school of only 300 students?” I raised an
eyebrow.
                    “It could happen,” she shrugged. “Why, were you
looking forward to seeing me?”
                    “You’re the only one who’s willing to talk to me
around here,” I admitted. “Everyone else avoids me or throws milk tea and
coffee in my face.”
                    “I hope it wasn’t hot coffee.”
                    “No, it wasn’t, thanks,” I pressed my lips