What The Family Don't Know

Standing in front of her window, Georgina looked out at the streets of Atlanta. It was a new day at a new school and she felt overwhelmed by the prospect of meeting new people, or should she say, being the new bee. “What choice do I have?” she thought to herself.

“Good morning, princess,” a voice called, drawing her back to reality.

“Dad, you mind knocking before entering?” she said, closing the distance between them.

“I did but didn't receive any response from you. I thought you were trying to play one of your old tricks on me again just to skip school. But thank goodness you are all dressed,” he said, scanning her from top to bottom.

“Why were you given pants again, Georgina? I thought it was supposed to be a skirt.”

“It’s George, Dad, and we’ve talked about this already. I don’t know why it keeps coming up.”

Her father looked at her, not wanting to say much more.

“I’ll get going now, Dad,” she said, as she started packing her things into her bag.

“George, remember what we talked about? You know you really need to finish high school, and your mom...”

“Dad, it's too early for emotional blackmail, please,” she interrupted.

“Here, this is for you; your mom wanted you to have it,” he said, placing a small box on her table before standing up to leave.

“I just wish you could behave like every other normal 19-year-old girl should,” he said before shutting the door.

“Not again! I didn’t choose to be different; it chose me,” she murmured to herself.

She picked up the box and opened it. Inside was a silver necklace with her name on it. “I wish I had more memories of you,” she said but she wasn’t surprised who would remember someone who died when she was only two? She fastened the necklace around her neck and made her way out of the room.

As she walked through the living room, it was quiet as usual—not that she was expecting anything to change. She made her way straight to the front door, where Mike, her personal chauffeur, was already waiting for her.

“Good morning, Miss Georgina,” he said, helping her open the door. She turned and gave him a killing look.

“Sorry, George,” he said quickly.

She entered the car, and it roared to life as they set off.

“We're here,” Mike said, drawing her back to reality. She opened her eyes to find themselves in front of a tall fence and a gate with the words “Brookside High” inscribed boldly on it.

“Why aren’t you going in?” she asked.

“Cars are not allowed inside,” he replied.

“Thought as much. So much for the best school in Atlanta,” she said, stepping out of the car and making her way to the gate.

There, she was asked for her ID card, which she showed before being let in. Entering Brookside, the school was impressively large—not necessarily bigger than her previous schools, but the building seemed to emanate prestige. The surrounding area was beautifully landscaped, with various flowers blooming everywhere. “No wonder,” she thought to herself as she made her way down the hallway.

She could see students looking at her, some even pointing. It really didn't surprise her that much; people always stared at her for two reasons: either because she was too pretty or because of the way she dressed, or so she thought.

“Hey,” she said to some girls standing by the hallway.

“Can you please tell me where the admission block is?” she asked a girl

“Over there,” she said, pointing to a building not too far away.

“Thanks!” Georgina said before walking away.

************************************

“Sit down, everybody,” a commanding yet calm voice said. Harriet looked up and sure enough, it was Mr. Rogers, their form master. He was a tall, athletic guy with a handsome face.

“Damn, he looks even cuter!”

Harriet rolled her eyes as she heard some girls whisper. She didn’t even need to look back to guess who said that,there was only one person who was head over heels for Mr. Rogers and that was Claria.

“We have a new student joining us,” Mr. Rogers announced.

“Another shy one,” Harriet thought as she looked up. There stood a student with a buzz cut, well-ironed uniform and face bent down.

“Now, please introduce yourself to the class,” Mr. Rogers prompted.

As the student looked up, Harriet's heart skipped a beat. It felt as if time stood still for a moment, and echoes of gasps filled the classroom. The most beautiful gray eyes Harriet had ever seen were staring blankly at her; the face was delicate and fair, like that of a porcelain doll.

“I’m George Langston,” the person finally said in a sweet, feminine voice.

“Isn’t your name Georgina?” Mr. Rogers asked while thumbing through the file in his hands before looking back at her.

“I prefer to be called George,” she replied confidently.

“Oh, okay,” he said. “Sit beside Miss Harriet there,” he pointed to the seat next to Harriet.

As George walked to her seat, all eyes were on her.

“Come on, guys. Why are you all looking like you just saw an alien?” Mr. Rogers said, breaking the tension.

“Alright, back to class,” he added, and began teaching. The morning classes flew by and soon it was already time for break.

“Hi, I’m Claria, and this is my friend Isabella,” a girl introduced herself.

“Right, Claria’s at it again,” Harriet thought to herself.

“Mind joining us for lunch? We can show you around the school,” Claria said, smiling at George.

“It’s fine; no thanks,” George replied politely.

“Just leave the newbie alone! Don’t tell me you’re already falling for her,” Alex joked, walking past them and playfully nudging Claria.

“Hey, you punk! Learn to mind your business!” she yelled, storming out of the classroom.

“Don’t mind her; she’s just a pest,” Alex said, turning to George, who gave him a small smile in return.

“You sure know how to get on her nerves,” Harriet remarked to Alex.

“With great pleasure,” he said, grinning.

“Close the book, Harriet!” Alex exclaimed as he nudged her playfully.

“Come on, let’s go for lunch already! I’m starving!” he added, his eyes wide with hunger.

“You go alone. I have to finish up this work,” Harriet replied, not looking up from her laptop.

“Come on! You know I can’t go alone!” he pleaded, his tone dramatically exaggerated.

Harriet tried to snatch the book from him, but he was too quick.

“Alright, fine,” she finally conceded.

Alex returned her book, and she stuffed it into her bag before standing up to leave.

“Hey, George ! Wanna tag along?” he called, intentionally loud since she was the only one left in the classroom.

“I’m not hungry, but I won’t mind seeing around the school,” she replied with a shy smile.

“Perfect! Let’s get going!” Alex said enthusiastically. Georgina stood up and followed them.

“By the way, this is my best friend, Harriet,” he introduced them.

“Hi!” Georgina said, and Harriet returned the greeting.

“Alright, quick advice for you, Georgina. In Brookside, you can never survive alone. Otherwise, you’ll become prey to all those spoiled rich kids. The quiet ones don’t survive here,” he said, chuckling to himself.

“What kind of advice is that?” Harriet replied, playfully hitting him on the back of the head as they walked through the hallway.