Free Lucy Zeezou's Goal by Liz Deep-Jones

never easy, and I knew that today, my first day at my new school, would be no different.
    On arrival, Mama and I were greeted by the school captain and another student, who turned out to be Bella, the girl Mama told me about. On the way to the principal’s office, Bella pulled me aside.
    â€˜Lucy, get ready to be humiliated on stage. The principal loves to show off her latest famous additions to the school … just grin and bear it.’ We may have just met but we shared an instant connection.
    â€˜Thanks for the warning.’
    After a brief meeting with the principal, Mrs Zambocelli, we were whisked off to the large assembly hall full of students, teachers and parents.
    We were seated on the stage and then introduced gushily by Mrs Zambocelli. ‘Girls, please welcome our new student, Lucia Zoffi. She’s come all the way from Milan, Italy, and will be attending our fine school during her indefinite stay in Australia. Please do your bestto make her feel welcome and a part of our wonderful school community.’
    Mrs Zambocelli continued on her rant. ‘This school prides itself on educating the girls from Australia’s most respected and successful families. And it’s today enriched by another distinguished family, revered in both the sporting and fashion worlds …’
    Blah, blah, blah! How embarrassing. She knew all about my family’s history and made a big deal out of it as she continued her introduction. I wondered if Mama had something to do with this show? This was right up her alley. We were just missing the string quartet to complete the occasion.
    Would the principal also like to give them my shoe size? I was horrified by the disclosure of my personal details. I felt as if I was being paraded like a horse at the yearling sales. A crowd of unfamiliar faces stared and smirked at me, inspecting the new recruit.
    Mama, however, was in her element, gleaming in the limelight, looking more like Posh Spice all dolled up for a photoshoot than a mother at a school assembly. I was missing Papa more than ever. I wished he was here. He would make light of this whole crazy scene. He knew how to make me laugh, and boy, did I need that right now.
    And I knew that disaster lay ahead. The girls would either want to be my friend because of my parents’ fameor hate me just because I’m a Zoffi. I could imagine what they were saying about me now:
    â€˜Who does she think she is?’
    â€˜Lucy or Lucia, who cares?’
    â€˜She’s an amazon, but what’s all the fuss about?’
    â€˜I love her mum’s outfit, but too much make-up!’
    I looked out for Bella, the only familiar face in a sea of strangers. I caught her signalling me at a side entrance. I couldn’t wait to leave this nightmare and join her, but it wasn’t over yet. Mama and I were special guests at the parents’ morning tea. It was the first time I’d ever wished to be in class.
    I thought things couldn’t get any worse … but they did after morning tea. I’d completed a placement test last week and the results had secured me a spot in the class for gifted students, more commonly known as the nerd’s class. Great, so now I was also a nerd .
    The bell rang and Bella and I headed off to the nerds’ class. Thank goodness I had Bella to explain the ins and outs of the school to me – what was cool, what wasn’t. We’d make great team mates. I wondered if she played football. That would be perfect, but she didn’t seem to be the sporty type. I still had a feeling we were going to become good friends. She’d already proved to be funny and easy to be around, just like Pino. Perhaps starting school here wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
    Looking around, I had to say that we were the coolestof the nerds, sitting at the back of the room and chatting away.
    â€˜I felt so sorry for you at the school assembly,’ she said. ‘I had the same