The Girl Who Doesn't Speak!

" It is the unknown that draws people."

    -- E.A. Bucchianeri

                             °°°°°

After a torturous ride, Airi finally made it!

She reached the school. 

Yay!

(~‾▿‾)~

The words ' MIDDLETON HIGH 'were engraved on the huge gate at the front of the main entrance. 

She sauntered inside through the gate passing by the huge assembly of students, flocking all around her. 

Ignoring their penetrating gazes that fell upon her and those whispered comments they made about her, the newbie, she made her way to the administrative building. 

Airi soon found it by following up on the directions she memorized this morning. 

Her father might have guessed that she perhaps would need it that he got one in advance for her from the school's principal himself. 

This morning, Airi had found an unnamed folder placed open for her to see, just right beside her shoe cabinet. Unintentionally, she had taken a glimpse of the contents inside and almost immediately knew the purpose of the folder and in the passing memorizing them. 

Surely, it came in handy and Airi was satisfied with the outcome.

She went inside the office to retrieve her required schedule and other necessary documents. 

A lady with round black-rimmed glasses was whom she spotted inside, sitting behind a computer typing in profusely, or perhaps that was what Airi had thought of from afar. 

Upon closer inspection, the lady was scrolling through various shopping websites randomly taking in her picks that got her attention.

ಠಿ_ಠಿ

Airi approached her, slowly yet silently. She was surprised by Airi's stealthy presence when she looked up from her supposed work. 

Airi gave the office lady her name or rather wrote it without much delay, leaving out the unnecessary ceremonial greetings and mandated polite smiles! 

The lady took in Airi's appearance, staring at her as she typed in her name and printed out her schedule, a paper to get signatures on from all the teachers mentioned on it, and an unneeded campus map, and a permit ID along with her locker number and its key.

Airi found her smiling up at her, wishing her good luck in a rather flattering manner to which she had just nodded in response, awkwardly. 

Airi had then left the room soon after, clearly understanding the knowing look the lady gave her along with that fawning smile gracing her face. 

That look, she knew it all too well! 

She might have found out about her identity when checking out her registered information while printing out her schedule or was perhaps already informed about her arrival in advance, and so was waiting for her at the office. 

Shaking her head helplessly, Airi went about, seeking out her locker and the scheduled rooms for her classes.

Instinctively, Airi had the gut feeling that perhaps school won't be peaceful for her in days to come. 

She didn't want to participate in any High School dramas but just wanted to peacefully acquire the mandatory Certificate of Graduation and then be done with school, all the while keeping up a low profile!

If Airi had thought so then that was what was going to be the case, shortly. Her days would be numbered to be called peaceful! 

She took out the required books and left the rest inside the locker, which luckily was at the far end of its rows. 

Airi was not at all happy with the unwanted attention thrown at her every once in a while and so she pulled onto her hoodie, hiding her face as she walked on, uneasily. 

She strolled into one of her designated rooms for the class and sat in one of the few available front seats. 

The bell rang and the class started soon after. 

The teacher, Mr. Morris taught mathematics which was sure to be Airi's cup of tea. 

Mathematics is supposedly a good subject! 

' Don't give me the ' Are you kidding me?' look! '

Soon, the class ended with just an introduction to a few trigonometric formulas which Airi was already well informed of. She had been home tutored and was already done with the portions. It was nothing new to her. By 'home tutored', it was safe to say mostly, 'Self-taught'. 

Since childhood, she had been under the tutelage of many renowned intellectuals who had gradually lost her before her wisdom. They had claimed that she didn't need to be taught further for she already was adequately well-versed. They were relatively surprised yet delighted having found a rare gem. They just helped to polish the gemstone with proper care and guidance. They were fond of their emotionless and cold-faced pupil and so promised to keep her a secret existence, shielded from any harm.

Airi happened to love the feeling of learning and so had sucked out any form of knowledge ever known to her. Thanks to her faculty of caregivers, she remained up-to-date.

In times when she was left alone at home, books were everything to her. She acquired every kind of bookish knowledge published or drafted, available to date. Her memory worked differently in comparison to her peers. She could memorize, see-through anything even in the dark with just a single glance, smell anything that was a mile or more further, her acute hearing could pick up any word whispered at a distance of three to four residences away from her. 

She was an oddball born different from her peers.

She could perhaps be regarded as a walking and talking encyclopedia in the theoretical sense. That is even though she may have all the information at hand, she didn't possess any practical experience. 

She had helped her masters in writing up the thesis regarding experiments but was never allowed to conduct practice herself. 

Her masters' had advised her to get the Graduation Certificate, after which she could be involved in the practice herself and gain the on-field license.

…..

She walked towards the teacher's desk, placed a paper in front of him. He looked up at her then at the paper, understood what she had meant. He smiled and put down his signature and passed on the paper to her. She nodded her head in response. 

"What is your name kid? " he inquired. 

Airi did the same thing that she had previously done with that glass lady. Scribbled her name onto a piece of paper with a nod! 

He looked at her as if trying to figure her out. 

This fellow might not know who she was, which was comforting but the way he kept on staring up at her made her feel awkwardly uncomfortable. 

He didn't possess the fawning look like that of the glass lady but rather had a calculating one!

'Well, can you stop staring at my face!'

'You are giving me the creeps!!!'

" Airi Adelaide? I see... ", Mr. Morris mumbled with a nod. 

She nodded again and left for the next class, speculating the reason behind his stare.

The constant stares from the crowd continued, kept on burning holes into her from every direction, as she walked through the corridors, sat inside the classroom, and so on...

They tried to get close to her to have a better look at her face. 

'What is so good about my face, huh?!', She grumbled in frustration.

Good thing that she had opted for a hoodie on the first day! 

'Or I guess opting for a hoodie might have been the problem?', Airi thought. 

During lunch, Airi didn't feel like going to the cafeteria and had spent her time in the library checking out the books on the shelves. 

'Well, who are the ones to be blamed?'

She took a bar of chocolate out of her bag. 

'Guess that's going to be my lunch for today!'

Sighing, she started munching on it.