Evaelle stood outside the Counseling Office, staring down at her schedule. 1st hour, French X. 2nd hour, English II. 3rd hour, Physics. Lunch period. 4th hour, French History. 5th hour, Geometry. And 6th hour, gym.

She wasn't sure how she felt about having gym, considering she didn't bring any extra clothing today. But she was wearing running shoes so that was one thing that had gone right.

The warning bell emitted a short ring. Eva flipped out the map of the school and found her French class upstairs. She tentatively walked up to the teacher's desk as the other students filed in, taking their seats. She tried to ignore the burning sensation of eyes looking at her back.

Eva cleared her throat, pressing her notebook to her chest. "Um, excuse me, Mademoiselle Bustier?" She said softly, hoping that only the teacher could hear her voice.

Mademoiselle Bustier looked up from her paper work, brushing a few stray, dark red hairs behind her ear as she offered Evaelle a kind smile. "Hello. You must be my new student. Evaelle Trompeur, correct?"

Eva nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

"Excellent. Stay here, and I'll introduce you to the class." She said, smacking the bottom of her papers on the desk before she laid them down.

Eva felt her heart beat quicken and her throat tighten. "Oh, that's not necessary. I can just take a seat."

"Oh, nonsense, my dear. I introduce all my new students. That way, we all get to know you." She smiled, standing up as the bell rang. Eva turned to the class, her breath hitching in her lungs as she saw the amount of eyes staring right at her. She swallowed nervously, clenching her jaw. The only thing keeping her from grinding her teeth was the gum in her mouth.

"Good morning class!" Mademoiselle Bustier greeted, walking to the front of her desk and leaning against it. "Today, we're welcoming a new student into our midst. Evaelle Trompeur." She explained, beckoning to me. Eva could only blink at the sound of her name, not sure whether she should say hello to the mass of students or not.

A blonde girl with sparkling blue eyeshadow sitting in the front of the class leaned over to her desk mate. "Did her parents forget to buy the home when they moved? She looks like she came off the streets!" She whispered into the ginger's ear, making her snicker. Eva shuffled uncomfortably at the comment as Mademoiselle Bustier continued.

"Evaelle, where are you moving from?" She asked, turning her head to the teen.

"Brussels." Eva answered in a slightly shaky voice.

"Ah, so you speak Dutch?" She inquired.

Eva nodded. "Ja, ik spreek Nederlands, Frans en een beetje Duits. Maar ik ben niet vloeiend in het Duits."

"Ha, that wasn't a language. That was gibberish!" Eva heard the blonde whisper. Eva's lips instantly sealed.

"Wow, that's quite interesting, Evaelle, thank you for sharing. Now, please, take a seat. There's empty desk in the back." Mademoiselle Bustier directed. Eva let out a short breath of relief, walking quickly to the back row. She kept her eyes down as she reached for the seat, pulling it out and sitting down carefully, so not to interrupt the class. All she could hear in her ears was her blood pulsing in her head, her heart still pumping rapidly in her chest. She tried to tune into the teacher's lecture on their first classic English literature, Hamlet. She tried to distract herself from her surroundings by taking notes on Shakespeare, but Eva swore she could see a pair of bright blue eyes glaring back at her periodically.

Evaelle let out a defeated breath, her fist clenching around her pencil. So much for going unnoticed.

Suddenly, the PA clicked on in the classroom, letting out a quick melody of bell-like chimes, before a voice spoke through the speaker. "Mademoiselle Bustier, may I see you in the office for a brief moment, concerning the upcoming book sale?" A gruff, male voice broke through the slight static.

"Ah, of course, Monsieur Damocles." Mademoiselle Bustier answered, before turning t0 the class. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Please, behave." She warned, before exiting the class, shutting the door behind her.

Almost immediately, the class erupted with noise. A few students got up to mingle, but for the most part, they stayed in their seats, talking to their neighbor. Eva stared at her desk; she had no partner to talk to.

"Hey there- Evaelle, right?" A high-pitched voice asked, and Eva glanced up to see a girl with tan skin, striking green eyes, and long, straight auburn hair. She offered a kind smile, the corners of her eyes creasing. "I'm Lila Rossi. I just wanted to personally welcome to you to our amazing school."

"Oh- thank you. That's very nice 0f you." Eva returned her smile.

"Of course! I was a new student not too long ago. It's very important to me to make sure you feel as welcomed as possible. I only wish I had had someone to do that for me." She stated, her smile falling as her placed a clutched hand to her chest.

Eva raised a hesitant brow. Something felt really off here, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Before she could respond to Lila's statement, the blonde girl who had been whispering about Eva appeared at Lila's side, her finger friend not far behind. "Well well, if it isn't our two favorite foreign exchange students." She laughed, before waving Lila away with her hand. "I don't know what you're doing here, Rossi, but you can go."

"Oh, hi Chloé. Gee, you look so pretty today." Lila complimented, causing Chloé to smile and pump the end of her ponytail. "I was just getting to know Evaelle. She seemed so... interesting when Mademoiselle Bustier was introducing her." Eva frowned slightly at the tone of her voice when she said "interesting".

"Ha! Interesting is not the word I would use. Tell me, Sabrina, what's the first thing you notice that's out of place here?"

Sabrina covered her mouth as she giggled. "That hair. It's looks like her landscaper forgot to do his job!" She laughed in a nasally voice, which made Eva's skin crawl as she placed her hand on her frizzy curls. She wanted to explain her current situation to the girls, but the words got stuck, creating a painful lump in her throat. Besides, something told Eva that these girls weren't very interested in what she had to say.

Chloé laughed snidely at Sabrina's insult. "And can we look at those clothes? Oh, for the love of all things fashionable, why are you wearing a jean jacket?" She cackled, flipping her blonde hair back over her shoulder. Eva grabbed the jacket, pulling it closer together as her palms began to sweat, and her eyes began to prick with tears.

"And those sweatpants, Chloé?" Sabrina pressured, as if begging her to continue her malicious ridicule.

"Oh, those sweatpants are a nightmare. Not only are they tattered and dirty, but they're definitely not flattering your figure. Do they not have diets in Belgium?" She asked, flashing a snide smile.

Eva's entire body went ridge as she bit the inside of her cheek. Lila let a out a short chuckle as she walked over and placed her hand on Eva's shoulders. "Come on, girls. I'm sure there's a perfectly good explanation as to why Evaelle came to school dressed like a homeless person, right Evaelle?"

Before either Evaelle could respond or the girls could continue, the door opened and Mademoiselle Bustier entered. "My apologizes for the interruption, everyone. Chloé, Sabrina, Lila, let's take our seats and continue with the lesson, shall we?"

"Yes, ma'am." Lila, skipping swiftly over to her seat with a snide smile. Chloé and Sabrina went back to snickering between themselves as they walked over to take their seats. As Eva wiped tears from her cheeks, she slowly realized that every pair of eyes in the room were laid on her. Instantly, a wave of nausea washed over her as she realized all the other students had been listening to the two girls pick out every one of Eva's flaws. She buried her face in her hands, ready to disappear, wishing to melt into the shadows.