I sat against the hard brick wall of my school, silently reading the book I had picked out yesterday. It was the first day of school, and everything seemed fresh and new. My teacher, Mrs. Katy, seemed nice when I had met her at the Open House. I looked around excitedly. I hadn't met my class yet, because it was the morning and we still had to wait to be let into the school. 'I wonder who's in my class!' I thought with curiosity. All around me swirled the cheerful conversation of the other kids. "Hey, pass me that ball!" I looked up. Looming over me was a girl I knew I didn't want to get mixed up with. Everything she wore was bubblegum pink, and her earrings and hair were polished to a shine. Her hands were on her hips and she didn't look happy. 'Uh oh,' I thought. 'Why me?!' "Uh, hi..." I said awkwardly. "Who are you...?" She looked shocked that I had asked, as if I was supposed to already know! She flipped her long blond hair over her shoulder as another girl came up behind her. This girl was the absolute clone of the blond girl, except her hair was shoulder length and a deep black. Setting her hand on Blond Girl's shoulder, she answered the question herself. "Uh, this is obviously Anna. And I'm Hanna! We have matching names!" In unison, the two girls looked at each other and then back at me. "What's your name?" Anna asked in a mean voice. I looked at my shoes, not pink like theirs, but a normal black Converse. "Uh... well..." For some reason, whenever Anna or Hanna's questions were directed at me, I just couldn't answer them. There was something about her, as if she gave off a simply MEAN glow. Hanna stared at me and tapped her foot. Looking at her pink plastic Hello Kitty watch, she tapped harder. I knew she meant for me to hurry up, but not in a nice way. "My name's Ashley. I'm in Mrs. Katy's class. She's nice." I silently prayed that these girls weren't in my class. To my surprise the two girls looked at me accusingly. Hanna stepped forward as if she was going to say something harsh to me, but Anna held her back. When Hanna stepped behind her, Anna looked at me and released her anger. On me. "Did you ASK Mrs. Katy?" She said. Her face was so red that I wouldn't be surprised if smoke started pouring from her ears. My fingers trembled, so I held them behind my back where Anna and Hanna wouldn't see. I gulped. Looking at Anna with a worried expression, I stumbled through my words. "Asked her what?" Looking at my shoes, I realized that if I stand up, maybe I will have a better effect on them. Jumping up, I can see the girls even better without the sun in my eyes. Anna looked smug, as if she knew how scared I was. She was clearly the more important of the two. Hanna seemed to have more sympathy, as if Anna had started this mean spree and Hanna had just happened so be her friend before she changed. I felt sad for her. I mean, her only friend was Anna, because nobody liked her being mean to them and decided to not be her friend. Anna didn't seem to care for her 'best friends' feelings at all, and I wouldn't be surprised if Anna dumped her entirely. I think that Hanna is nice, just trapped in a world with Anna that she doesn't want to be in. Anna opened her mouth to answer my question. Her tone of voice clearly stated that she didn't want to be here. "Asked to be in her class! Duh! What else? I got into her class because my family knew her personally." Crossing her arms, she raised her eyebrows as if to challenge me. I stared at her for a second, considering my options. But suddenly, as if to save me, the bell rang. Hanna jumped, and Anna glanced sharply at her. Noticing that sudden distraction, I turned, clutched my book tightly, and ran towards the playground doors with Anna and Hanna's eyes on my back.
You could tell that the school had been cleaned and shined perfectly for our arrival. After all, it was the first day of school. But even worse, it was the first day of fifth grade, and so far it hadn't turned out they way I had hoped. The meet with Anna and Hanna had only been a few minutes, but it had seemed like forever and had ruined my morning. 'Or maybe not,' I thought silently. I decided to make the best of it. I held my head high and headed for my locker. I was so thankful I knew where it was! We had been given our locker numbers and their combination during the Open House. I swiftly opened my locker, set my backpack inside, and kept my book. I might as well, right? When I closed my locker and turned the dial to 0, I turned and came face-to-face with the exact people I didn't want to see. Anna and Hanna seemed to be everywhere! Without a word, Hanna walked to the locker next to mine and began to put in her combination. I breathed a sigh of relief. Hanna isn't SO bad... It would be worse if it was Anna. Almost as if she had heard my thoughts, Anna turned and stared meanly at me. Then, she sharply turned around and headed for the classroom. I turned to Hanna, risking my chance to talk to her alone.
"Hey, how long have you known Anna?" Hanna didn't answer for a minute, and I almost thought she hadn't heard me. But then she looked up at the ceiling. In a quiet voice, she answered me, every so often taking a look down the hallway to check if Anna was mysteriously watching.
"I've, um, known her since kindergarten. I'm really sorry if she was mean to you today. Ever since this summer, she kinda been... like that." Before I could even get out a word, Hanna closed her locker, nodded at me, and rushed down the hallway to catch up with Anna. I stood in shock. Turning around, I watched Hanna disappear into Mrs. Katy's room. When I first saw Hanna, she seemed so mean and fake. But now, I almost felt like her friend.
I sat in front of Mrs. Katy. Her caramel hair brushed her desk when she leaned down to pick up a fallen paper. I sat in the large painted chair in front of the desk, feeling very, very small. When she looked at me and told me to tell her what I needed, I shivered inside. I had known that I had needed to come to her about Anna and Hanna. I had lived with their teasing for a week, but now that it was Monday again and I was getting sick of it. Hanna always seemed to tease with more of a half-hearted banter, while Anna still persisted full on. Whenever Hanna stopped or forgave me for their bullying, Anna kicked her and told her to take it back. In a way, it felt like Hanna and I were being bullied by Anna, not just me. It made me feel good to know I had a friend in Hanna.
Mrs. Katy suddenly woke me from my daydream.
"Ashley, what was it that you needed?"
I looked up at her. She seemed so open and caring that I almost wanted to tell her everything. And I almost did. But then I decided to try a more questioning approach.
"Mrs. Katy, have you ever been bullied?" Looking up at her, I saw her happy smile change to a look of sadness. She seemed to be very, very upset. When she looked at me, she tilted her head and asked directed my question right back at me.
"Ashley, is that why you are here?" Almost like a puppet, I nodded slowly.
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