HALO, Lorraine C [the giving tree read aloud txt] 📗

adopted, she decided she would cross that bridge when the time came.

 

‘Lynn your breakfast is ready!’ Sarah called through her closed door. ‘OK I’ll be there in 10’

‘Good wouldn’t want you to miss your first day darling.’ Lynn rolled her eyes, and pulled out the outfit she’d laid out the day before. She smiled knowing that she had someone, well two someones who cared for her. Sarah and Michael Smyth were the best thing that had happened to her so far. She still couldn’t believe it; everyone knew that once you passed the age of being cute and malleable and you still hadn’t been adopted then the chances of pigs flying were more likely. What was even more unlikely was a couple adopting a kid who wasn’t the same colour, who would want to explain that choice over Christmas dinner anyway?

At that she remembered Sophie’s harsh words on her last day at the home. She had been packing up the last of her things and looking at the small little box she had called her room for the past five years, for the last time. On the walls, there were various sizes of squares and rectangles of blank white clean places where her artwork and poetry had been tacked on. Most of it was now stacked neatly in her precious ideas box. Her mattress was stripped bare, and in the middle it dipped slightly in the shape of her body. Remembering her last night that had been her last in that bed. She had known that soon it would belong to another unwanted kid. A sad sense of loss had shot through her as she lightly brushed her hands in the dip and remembered all the times she’d lain at night wishing for this moment. The moment that’s she’d be saying goodbye to her tear soaked friend.

 

And when it had come she had dreaded what the future held. For all she knew at the time, she might have been back again if things didn’t work out like all the other times hadn’t. As if on cue, she had remembered Sophie sticking her head around the door and stepping in when she saw her target. Sophie was beautiful, with an aristocratic air around her that was so obviously out of place in the home. Her lovely eyebrows were arched in a sneer and her cold blue eyes chilled Lynn to the bone, with the hatred and jealousy that shot through them. Lynn braced herself; she wasn’t expecting any loving parting words from what most would describe as an arch enemy, just barbs. ‘You think you’re better than us I guess…snagging that rich couple by using the racial card. Damn Brangelina. Well guess what don’t get too comfortable because something called the real world is going to shatter yours and their stupid illusion. I would say good luck, but we all know there isn’t such a thing is there?’ Sophie looked like she had wanted to say more but the moment was diffused when the other kids came to say goodbye to her. Still all she could remember of her last day at the home was Sophie’s words and burning eyes. Lynn shook herself and tried to ignore the memories as she made her way out.

 

It was stupid and that had been three years ago, and she was still with Michael and Sarah. Although she was no longer going to Russell she wasn’t complaining, HALO was ten times better.

 

Since it was the first day, and she was a transfer student, she had decided to head for HALO early so she could compose herself on the way, and in case she had to go through the usual time consuming admin process. She backed the car into a free space and was self-conscious of the eyes trying to penetrate her tinted car windows. She had wanted to be inconspicuous but in this car it was impossible. It wasn’t her choice, but Michael and Sarah had insisted, on the grounds of making it up to her for moving house again. Which Lynn thought was a feeble excuse, if for every time she moved house and got a car she could have started her own car dealership by now.

She wondered why this time they were being extra cautious. Michael had never been like this before. She somehow thought if she humoured him somehow he’d back off and not go overboard and so she’d given in to their request. She checked her reflection in the mirror of the car and took a deep breath.

 

Popping a mint into her mouth like ammunition, she scoped the car park and found a space. She gathered her bag and hitched it onto one shoulder and swung the door open without looking as she stepped out of the car. Before she’d even got her other foot out of the car; “Hey watch out!” someone exclaimed. Lynn jumped a little in surprise and bumped her head on the door frame and got out. She slammed the door and jabbed the lock button angrily before she looked up and noticed the white Escalade next to her car. She also noticed the boy standing in front of the car and of course she also noticed his vivid green eyes. His iridescent brown-green eyes absorbed and expressed life. Faith. Spirit. Strength. Hope. His raven blue hair was haloed with the dim light from the sun. She moaned inwardly as the intense orbs burned through her as he brushed past her and she registered the throbbing pain where her head head connected with the car roof.

She whispered sorry to his retreating back and mentally kicked herself, now she’d probably be known as the new kid who went swinging her car door into people. Extremely hot people.

He turned around and she took that as a cue, she cleared her throat and stammered a bit louder “I’m sorry really.” He looked down at her with a scowl. His face softened- just a tiny bit- when he noticed the fear and sincerity in her eyes.

He smiled crookedly to himself and responded with, “You’re new here aren’t you” she couldn’t bring herself to speak and just nodded at his statement.

“Well you’ll soon learn how things work around here” with that he turned around and strode away towards the building.

 

You know that feeling you get, when you walk into school and you immediately just know….

Just know who the crazy ones are, the geeks, the posers, the wannabes, and the most coveted of all, ‘The Popular group’. Well he wasn’t in any of those categories. Just looking at him slinking away towards the building she got a picture of this alpha male in the wilderness, ready to rip apart all who came in his way. Even now when he was walking, people moved and parted out of his way…even the staff.

Lynn followed meekly in contrast like a lowly subject trailing behind him as he went towards the main Academy entrance. Trying to avoid the curious glares and stares but failing miserably. She arrived at the academy’s main desk and registered her name. The kind old lady’s tag read Janine. She smiled at her with that old wise infuriating thing that old ladies did, as if she knew something she didn’t. By the time she’d explained the map to her, and kept on insisting Lynn get a buddy to lead her around, the corridors were empty. It suited her fine; she didn’t want to be in a sea of speculators as she tried to navigate her way through the modern sleek corridors.

Lynn made her way to her form room which appeared to be on the second floor according to the map. Taking a deep breath, she braced herself and opened the door. It was a science lab. You could hear a pin drop as she stepped in and went up to the form tutor’s desk. “Hello! You must be Lynn Smyth right?” she nodded as she tried ignoring the curious gazes that she could feel burning on the back of her neck. “Well welcome to tutor group NM ...I am Mr Mann your form tutor. Would you like to introduce yourself to the class?”  What was this high school all over again? She thought this was a university, albeit an unusual one.

He noticed the panicked look in her eyes, she had prepared herself to walk into a new school as a transfer student…not give a speech. “It’s okay just go take a seat, but I’m telling you they don’t bite…you’ll warm up to them soon”

She smiled in a non-committal way…what was the point?  Getting to attached and expecting too much never helped. Mr Mann smiled back a warm smile that contrasted the cold chill she was feeling.

Lynn turned around and scanned the class as she walked down the centre isle without tripping over. All of the faces assessed her, she could literally see the wheels in their brains spinning; was she their type, could she fit neatly into their already neatly formed cliques? Most of all, why was she here and how the hell had she managed to get herself into HALO Academy, one did not simply waltz into the academy. Most of the kids here, their parents worked for HALO and from birth were probably trained to carry on the family name and the prestige that came with being an employee of HALO.

 

All of them smiled at her in what seemed a hopeful way. Lynn just took it as courtesy and looked at the floor until she got to her designated seat, and plonked herself down. She concentrated on the swirls and patterns of the table in front of her. A few people ventured over and came to introduce themselves to her, she smiled and answered their questions like she was expected to and let them make their judgements.

 

It was suddenly quiet.

Then he walked in. “Good morning Sir, sorry I am late” he didn’t sound like he was sorry in the least bit as he strode past the teacher’s desk towards his seat, which of course with all her cliché luck happened to be the seat next to her. Bloody great.

Everybody held their breath as he sized her up, sitting in the only empty seat in the class. Obviously, it was some kind of unspoken taboo rule, since it was the only empty seat in the room. He sighed in an unimpressionable way as if it was something inevitable, which he’d been waiting for. As soon as he sat down without saying a word, the conversations started again as if they’d never stopped. Strange considering she had just met him in the car park.

She was still studying the swirls on the desk. With the way the conversation was so flowing between her and him was going, she’d know each swirl and pattern by the end of the year… if she stuck around that long. She sat wondering if she would find or make any friends. Did she need to? Since most likely they might have to move again soon, she didn’t know why but she wanted to move, something about being here made her feel like her life was slowly spiralling out of control, and there was nothing she could do to change the upcoming events fate had dealt her. Lynn tried to fill her head with what every normal teenager would feel like about being in a new school. Well at least the place was filled with cuties…except….

How long was this form time before the beginning of each day meant to last?

Lynn could literally see the eternity of her mornings of the year stretching out before her in a montage.

 

He sighed and she looked at him… he opened his mouth as if to say something and then hesitated. Lynn went back to studying her schedule.

Then he whispered “Don’t worry you’ll be fine”. She looked up in surprise as if she might’ve imagined his voice. It was so musically beautiful, it made her want to… mentally slap herself for being such a walking