"Mummy! I'm going already" Zarah shouted across to her mom whom she naturally assumed was outside seeing as she was not inside. Her younger sister who was sleeping peacefully on the bed stirred, a frown marring her seraphic face. Zarah flinched, she hadn't meant to startle her younger sister like that.

"She can't hear you, she's in the bathroom" Justin supplied from outside.

"Okay, when she's done, tell her I've gone to school already."

"Ah! So soon?" Surprise laced his tone "You're early today oh, what happened?"

"Nothing, plus it's already seven anyways. It's not like I'm as early as you make it sound." Zarah responded breezily, putting finishing touches to her already perfect tie.

She stood up from the bed she sat, her face lit with a grin. Smoothening imaginary wrinkles from her uniform, she preoccupied herself with stacking her bag with her books whilst humming a merry tune.

When she was done and sure she forgot nothing, she trod her way carefully out of the tightly packed room and shoved the room door open.

Hustling herself unto the porch, she closed her eyes, exhaled a whispery sigh basking in the warmth of the early morning sunlight.

Justin stared at his younger sister suspiciously. "What happened?"  He questioned quizzically.

Zarah's eyes snapped open. "I don't understand"

"I mean why are you happy?"

"Eh eh!" She clapped "See me see question oh! Why wouldn't I be happy?"

"Sorry Aunty, don't beat me abeg, I was just asking" He said immediately, throwing up his hands in mock surrender.

Zarah responded with a playful glare earning a hearty chuckle from him as he resumed what he was doing before. He was separating the melon seeds in a metal tray on his lap from their husks.

"Have you carried your TP from mummy's purse?" He asked after some seconds without looking up from the seeds on his lap.

"Nah, someone paid my transport fare yesterday so I'll use the money for today although I have a feeling they'd still pay my TP again today"

"Hia! This one that people are just paying your transport , hope they are not all boys?" Justin asked, although you could tell he already knew the answer due to the smile in his voice.

"What if they are?". She threw back playfully.

His head snapped up and his eyes narrowed slightly. " You don't mean it!"

"I do" She said with a smug look on her face.

Her brother started to say something but she didn't get what he was saying because she zoned out staring mindlessly at the room directly opposite theirs.

"Jessica, good morning!" She called out to a dark teenage girl that looked just her age.

Jessica's head whipped up from the dishes she was washing and her mouth dropped open voluntarily in shock.

Zarah could literally hear the questions running through her head and she smiled.

"Em... Good morning" She answered unsurely. She wasn't sure why on earth Zarah was talking to her but she saw it as a golden opportunity and seized it with both hands.

"Uh... Abeg una get washing soap?"

(Please do you have washing soap?)

"Yes I think we do but its only remaining small, Do you want it like that?" Jessica nodded slowly, still dazed.

"Justin please help me give it to her, I'm already late for school."  Justin opened his mouth probably to protest against the fact that his younger sister was sending him but before he could get a word out, Zarah had swept out of the compound, without as much as a backward glance.

Jessica turned to stare at Zarah in awe as she called out and waved gaily at every single soul in the compound as she left.

Her behaviour was quite shocking because almost every teenager in that compound thought her a snub seeing as she never joined in their group discussions and was always shut up in her room with her books. Most girls were jealous of her because she was undoubtedly the most beautiful girl in the compound, all their parents just loved her for absolutely no just reason. It was even evident in the way their eyes lighted up on seeing her as she greeted them that particular morning. Plus she was the only teenager in that compound that didn't hawk , her mother made sure of that. She had never seen anyone work as hard as Zarah to make sure her children never lacked any basic necessity.

The same sadly couldn't be said for the rest of the other kids as their parents were either jobless, drunkards or plainly useless.

"Do you want the soap or not?" Justin asked, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Sorry, thank you!"

***

Fireboy's  Peru blasted from her classmates Mp3 players as she walked into her class. No one seemed to notice her walk in as they were either belting out the lyrics of the song at the top of their voices,  laughing while vibing to the song,  chatting/arguing about their opinions of the songs or dancing to the song.

So this is what the class looks like before the class officially starts!

She mused, her eyes darting across the classroom.

She looked at the faces of her classmates, classmates she barely even knew their names apart from Abel of course. Their faces were alight with a certain glow and then and there, she decided she had seen them this... Alive!

They looked like one huge family, a family she wasn't welcomed, where she didn't fit in. This was one of the times she wished she wasn't so ostracized. She glanced around the room as she noiselessly took her seat. Adaora wasn't yet in school which felt weird seeing as she always met her in school.

Although the students didn't  know that she was a scholarship student, because... Well, it didn't even come up. The students steered clear of her because she move with Adaora and she didn't mind that until now, now, all she felt was crushing loneliness.

A tall, dark skinned girl dropped into the seat in front of her and she frowned trying to recall what her name was. A teacher had called her name sometime ago, was it Chanessa or Chanelle? Zarah couldn't quite place it but it had to be either of the two.

What she did next shocked Zarah thoroughly, she turned and smiled at her which sure was strange. She had thought she'd ignore like she did normally.

"Uh... Hey!" She smiled sweetly.

"G- g- good morning" She stuttered out a reply, she was still surprised as to why she was suddenly so friendly.

"Morning dear, uh... Em, Zarah?"

"Huh?"

"Did you by any chance..." Before she could complete her statement, Adaora walked into the class and Cha-whatever rolled her eyes and muttered something along the lines of here she comes again.

Doing a three hundred and sixty degree turn. She quickly threw her a talk-to-you-later kind of look before settling down in her seat.

"Good morning" Adaora greeted as soon as she got to her seat.

"Good morning" Zarah greeted cheerfully, scooting her chair over so as to make room for Adaora to seat.

Adaora threw her a puzzled look as she watched Zarah's excited face carefully. The Zarah she knew was never this happy. Slowly, she dropped her bag on her desk and plopped down in her chair beside her.

"What's with the happy face?" She couldn't stop herself from asking.

"I dunno, I'm just happy today" She replied grinning toothily.

"Okay..." Adaora drawled out, deciding to forget it. She then glanced at the girl in front of them and back at Zarah with raised brows. She immediately understood her unasked questions.

Zarah shrugged in reply, indicating she had no idea as well why the Cha-girl was talking to her.

"Take out your book" Adaora whispered urgently even though her voice couldn't possibly be heard by any one else because of the earsplitting noise in the class.

Zarah obeyed anyway. Flipping through her biology note, she asked Adaora why.

Adaora gestured to the front of the class still pretending to read her book "Senior Dupe, the Assembly prefect"

And true to her words, Zarah found a short, dumpy dark skinned girl who looked to be around eighteen standing in front of their class, unnoticed by the rest.

"What's going on here?"

_______________________________________________

A/N

I'm so so sorry for the late update  😖💔

I can't believe I forgot about this book.

I've been a lot busy lately and I'm hardly ever on Wattpad. Until a friend reminded me that it's been about a month I updated last and I screamed like... 😣 I didn't realise it's been that long.

I was having problems with my phone and I had to take it for repairs but I couldn't get the money quickly so I had to manage it like that.

How was the chapter.

I know it was short 😂😂😂💔

Plus I forgot. I'm now seventeen 😣❤ I forgot to post birthday. T'was this month sha.

Please tap that little star below, it won't take you two seconds plus you would make me very happy.

Don't forget to comment sha

How about chocolates guys?
🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫
😂😂😂 They are so small because I've finished half of it.

Hugs and kisses 😘💖💖💖💖💗💗💗💗💗💝💝💝💝💕💕

Signing out

Love
😇
Favvy_Jay