It wasn’t see through. It wasn’t low cut. It was a regular blouse.
“I just wouldn’t,” Bella urged her, not really offering any kind of explanation for her advice. “Just put on something white.”
“White?”
“Mhm,” Bella approached the wardrobe, and got out a plain, white t-shirt, “something like this.”
“Well, okay…” Eva took the offered blouse.
She didn’t want to argue. She was too confused and tired, and she was too eager to find out what the heck was going on.
Chapter 4
Upon leaving her dorm building, Eva realized that she really was on school grounds. It resembled any other school she had seen before, even the one she had attended, but there was something different about this one. It had perfectly manicured lawns and bushes, the park was neatly arranged, with paths that led from the main building, to several dorms. Guys and girls about her age all seemed to be relaxing on campus. It was obviously a day off. No one was wearing anything resembling a school uniform and they were all engaging in a fun outdoor activity.
A few people were seated on a little blanket underneath a weeping willow tree by a small brook. They were all reading books and talking to each other. They laughed, then all heads bowed down, buried into their books again. A little further away, several barefoot guys were throwing a Frisbee. One of them wasn’t wearing a shirt and his six-pack was obviously there for show. Eva rolled her eyes. They seemed to be those popular kids, who probably wouldn’t be caught dead talking to her. Not that she cared anyway. Hopefully, she wouldn’t even be staying here long enough to get to know anybody.
There were several small fountains and both guys and girls were perched around them like pigeons. It seemed like a normal afternoon after school. Then, all of a sudden, a horn sounded. One long whiny sound and everyone immediately stopped what they were doing, as if on cue. Eva had never seen anything like that. They all packed up their stuff, then all headed in the same direction, like soldiers following some silent order.
Eva wondered where they were all going. For a second, she thought of following them, but then opted against it. Bella had explained to her where the main building was and it was the opposite of where everyone was headed. If she followed them, she would be late for her meeting with the principal. But then again, she didn’t have a clear time scheduled. Bella said she was supposed to go there at her own convenience. Couldn’t she go take a peek at what was happening right now? It was obviously something big and important, seeing that everyone was in attendance. She would just take a quick look, then rush back to the main building, before anyone saw her.
So, she finally decided to do some snooping around, figuring that no one would notice her in that vast sea of student faces. No one knew who she was, so she was safe… or, so she thought.
“Hey! You new?”
Eva heard a voice, but at first, she wasn’t sure whether that someone was addressing her or not. Still, she turned around anyway, being the new kid and all.
“Yes?”
She turned and faced a woman who appeared to be in her 40s, but she still looked great, much younger than she was. However, the lines on her face revealed that she wasn’t really that young. She was wearing a wide-brimmed hat, thin-looking gardening gloves and in her left hand, she had long, sharp pruning shears. She was barely visible in the rose bushes, which she was busily trimming.
“You must be new,” the gardener continued. “I’m proud to say I know all the kids, and almost all the names, and I could swear I’ve never seen you before.”
She watched her from underneath that hat, with deep, piercing blue eyes, waiting for an answer. But, Eva felt like this lady already knew the answer. She just wanted Eva to stop by.
“Yeah, I’m new,” Eva replied, not really sure how to feel about this sudden conversation.
“You heading to meet the principal?” the gardener aimed those scissors at her, as she spoke.
“Yeah,” Eva didn’t take her eyes off of them.
“Oh, sorry,” the gardener laughed, ”I use these so much, they’ve become an extension of my own body!”
She turned a little to cut the rose that she was holding with her other hand, but she cut a little too close, and right into her own skin, through the gloves she was wearing. Despite Eva’s shock, she didn’t even flinch.
“Are you okay?” Eva’s eyes widened, eyeing the g
ash, which seemed deep, and yet, there was not a single drop of blood coming out.
“Well, would ya look at that!”
The gardener eyed her hand, then took off the glove. The skin was red, there was obviously a cut, and a deep one, but nothing else was happening. She didn’t seem like it hurt her at all.
“I’ve cut my hands so many times in this work, that I barely bleed there anymore!” she laughed, taking out some gauze from her pocket, wrapping her hand quickly and skillfully in less than a second, then putting the glove back on as if nothing had happened.
“You’d best be on your way then,” she continued their conversation.
Eva realized that now, she couldn’t follow the rest of the students anymore. It would look too suspicious. She had to go to the main building.