Everhearst

The trees rushed past the window as my father drove, listening to the CD I made him for his last birthday. I could hear his fingers tapping on the steering wheel as I shuffled, knocking my coat off from over my lap.

“Feeling more awake now?” He asked, as he glanced at me in the rear-view mirror. I stretched, hearing the faint popping from my shoulders as they released from their cramped position. 

“Yes. How long ‘til we get there?” My voice was croaky, and I shuffled, knocking my duffle onto the floor.

“Not long, squirt. Are you sure about this? We can always turn around.” His voice seemed tired, and I knew that he was exhausted from driving. 

“Mum needs you, dad. And I will call as often as possible.” He nodded as he slowed down at a traffic light. I thought of mum as the car fell silent. How her usually so lively body now flinched in main whenever she moved. About the ramp they had installed in the garden because she couldn’t climb the stairs. 

Ever since the accident, the air in the house had become tense. The sound of her laughter turned to hisses of pain. The scent of freshly baked cakes became the smell of menthol from her pain gel. 

I had volunteered to go to a boarding school so that my dad could care for her, and my grandma agreed to fund it, as long as she got to choose which one it was. Naturally, she chose one in the countryside, miles away from home. Said something about how the ‘clean air’ would aid my health. According to her, living in London was ruining my lungs.

So here I am, in the back of my dad’s car, making my way to ‘Everhearst boarding school’.

The trees become dense again and the car goes dark momentarily. But just as my eyes were adjusting, we entered a clearing and slowed down before the car slowly turned left.

I could see a building in front of us, and my jaw dropped. 

I was expecting some kind of prison, but in front of me was a gorgeous 3 story building, with ivy climbing up the front. There were girls and boys on the grass to the sides of the entrance, and a woman emerged from the building as my dad parked the car.

“Ready, Pumpkin?” He asked, and I let out a quiet ‘yes’, before undoing my seatbelt, and grabbing my coat and bag. I climbed out, and stretched my legs, whilst my dad went around the back to grab my suitcase.

The lady approached us, her blonde hair blowing in the wind, like she was in a shampoo advert. Her lips were a coral pink colour, and her eyes were lined with neatly winged makeup. She was wearing a flowery dress, with a white cardigan over the top, and her flats made a rustling against the pebbles. I smiled to her as I attempted to smooth down my own hair, wanting to make a good first impression.

“Hello, you must be Alice.” She held out her hand for me to shake, and I nodded. I had opened my mouth to speak, but no sound came out. “My name is miss James, and I’m the English teacher here. The headteacher is unfortunately called away on family business today, so I will be showing you around. I hope that’s okay.”

“Of course. Oh, this is my dad.” I gestured to him as he made his way around to me, suitcase in hand. I took it from him, and he began to talk to Miss James.

I focused my sights on the people on the grass. Everyone seemed so happy, and I immediately found myself smiling with them, even though I hadn’t even been here for 5 minutes. 

~~

Once we reached the room Miss James was called away to help one of the girls and me and my dad were left on our own. I have a roommate, but she had been one of the girls outside on the grass, so she wouldn’t be in for a while, giving me time to say goodbye and unpack my things.

“I guess it’s time for me to go.” My dad’s voice cracked as he spoke, and a tear came to my eye. I walked over to him, and he pulled me into his chest for a hug. I felt the tears fall onto my head as he started crying.

“Call as soon as you get back. Okay?” I whimpered as I spoke, and he sniffed, trying to stop himself from crying any more. Wanting to be strong.

“Okay. I love you, Ally.”  

“I love you too.” He left the room and closed the door behind him. I sat down on the edge of my bed, still sniffling. The room had a gorgeous view of the nearby fields, and from the tour we had been given, I knew that the coast was just around the corner, visible from some of the other dorm windows.

I stood up and opened the suitcase that was sat on my bed. I looked through the window and saw my dad’s car driving off into the trees. I began to put my clothes away, and line my shoes up under my bed, so they were accessible, but out of the way.

Me and my roommate had a desk and wardrobe each, and the bathroom was just across the hall. It reminded me of a school residential I had gone on in year 3, where we stayed in a ‘leisure manor’ which was basically a manor house with some fields around it. And a few sheep. I placed my laptop onto the desk and set up my stationary pot. It’s shaped like a typewriter and has my collection of pens and pencils from museums and other tourist locations that I’d visited with my parents. 

I’m a big collector, especially with things from my childhood. I still have a trinket box of shells in my bedroom at home. I would collect one shell every time we went to the beach and take it home for my box. I was convinced that there were fairies that lived in the shells as a child, and that they would grant me good luck. As I got older, though, they just became one of my comfort items.

The door opened just as I shoved my suitcase under the bed and put my books onto the bedside table. I turned and saw a girl smiling at me from the doorway.

Her tanned skin shone in the daylight streaming through the window, and she reached a hand out to me. 

“Hi, I’m Sammy, well, Samantha, but no one calls me that.” Her cheeks flushed red as she spoke, and a crease formed across her forehead. I chuckled lightly.

“I’m Alice.” I shook her hand, and she chuckled with me. A few of her friends were waiting outside the door, and she grabbed her bag, and apologised before leaving once her friends became rowdy in the halls.

I laid back on my bed, staring at the ceiling as the birds chirped outside.

I hope this goes well.