Bitten (Once Bitten, Twice Shy #1)(55)
Katherine reached for the passenger side door handle, readying herself to exit the vehicle, when Bastian finally spoke to her. He grabbed a red folder she hadn’t even noticed had been laying on the dash and shoved the stapled papers inside of it into her face. “Here.”
Startled, Katherine took the papers. She looked down at them. The piece of paper on top appeared to be her class schedule.
Werewolf History8:00AM – 9:00AMRoom 112
Algebra9:00AM – 10:00AMRoom 204
Free Study10:00AM – 11:00AMLibrary
Lunch11:00AM – 12:00PMCafeteria
Pack Dynamics12:00PM – 1:00PMRoom 210
Mating Rituals1:00PM – 2:00PMRoom 106
Physical Education2:00PM – 4:00PMGymnasium
Katherine gapped for a solid minute. Pack Dynamics? Mating Rituals? How sick was it that the only classes similar to those she’d been taking at Middletown were Algebra and P.E. – her two least favorite subjects. And apparently, P.E. was two hours long here.
If only Katherine was narcissistic enough, she’d almost believe the universe was conspiring against her.
She forced her eyes to abandon the schedule Bastian had handed her and turned toward the man. She must have looked really pathetic because he actually attempted what she suspected was supposed to be a reassuring smile. Even if it did come across as more of a grimace.
“You’ll be okay.”
Katherine couldn’t help but cling to those words and repeat them in her head in an encouraging mantra. You’ll be okay. You’ll be okay. You’ll be okay.
“Just to the right of the entrance is an office. Go there. The school’s secretary – her name’s Juliana – has arranged for another student to give you a tour of sorts.”
Katherine waited a few more seconds to see if Bastian had anything else to tell her. Sensing the dark-haired man was done talking, Katherine nodded jerkily and shoved the schedule and other papers into the her bag. “Thanks,” she said, finally opening the car door and stepping out of the SUV.
Before she could fully shut the door behind her, however, Bastian leaned over the passenger seat and stopped the heavy metal from closing. “Markus will drive you home at four,” he informed her gruffly.
Katherine froze, her mouth half-way open and her eyes wide in a wonderful impression of a deer caught in headlights. Or, at least, she assumed it was a wonderful impression based on the way Bastian’s lips quirked in amusement before he finished shutting the door, revved the engine, and took off.
Katherine’s incredulous expression slowly transformed into a glowering frown.
Well, wasn’t that just grand?
Forcing herself to concentrate on more pressing matters than Markus, she hesitantly trudged up the walkway – actual concrete – to the school’s double doors and proceeded to follow Bastian’s instructions.
To Katherine’s shock, the inside of the school looked like… well, a school. Linoleum floors, narrow hallways crammed with pale blue lockers, and open doors that led to classrooms full of desks. The smell of Lysol, chalk, and teenage hormones permeated the air.
A few kids secreting said hormones – they looked a bit younger than her, maybe thirteen or fourteen – blatantly stared as she entered the building and made her way to what was apparently the school’s main office.
A tall redhead with severe eyebrows greeted her as she entered the room’s glass doors. “You must be Katherine.”
“And you must be…” Katherine frantically tried to remember the name Bastian had given her,”…Juliana!”
The woman smiled, but it looked painful – forced. “I prefer Mrs. Wright actually.”
Katherine felt the blood rush to her face, and she cursed Bastian in her head. Before she could apologize or embarrass herself any further, however, she heard another person shuffle rather hurriedly into the small office. Mrs. Wright tore her eyes from her form as she shifted to welcome the newcomer. Her smile, though, remained just as ingenuine.
“Melanie, there you are. I was just about to send out a search party.”
Katherine turned to face this Melanie person. The first thing she noticed – to her utter delight – was that she actually appeared to be normal-sized. She was lithe and Katherine’s height – maybe even a bit shorter, though it was hard to say for sure. Katherine was wearing heeled boots in a desperate attempt to boost her meager stature.
“Sorry I’m late,” the girl immediately apologized before her eyes drifted to Katherine. “Hi,” she offered, her lips stretched into a friendly smile.
“Hey,” Katherine responded, still taking in the girl before her. She was pretty in an understated way. Her dark hair was parted in the middle and cut into a chin length bob. The style suited her thin face, out of which her equally dark eyes shone intelligently.
“Melanie,” Mrs. Wright addressed the girl, “this is Katherine. Katherine, Melanie. She’s going to show you around the school today.”
“Come on,” Melanie insisted as soon as the woman finished introductions, grabbing Katherine’s elbow and dragging her into the hall, “I’ll show you to your first class before the bell rings.”
Before Katherine could ask the girl how she even knew what her first class was, Melanie was rolling her eyes and gesturing towards the office with her free hand. “Evil, old witch,” she muttered.