Chapter 25—Raine

Jade was gorgeous last night. I wanted to kiss those soft pink lips. I never got a chance to do that. But I was more than happy to stand next to her and see how excited she was to watch those people appreciate her artwork. Her pieces were amazing. I knew that they would do well. I was so proud of my girl. I acted as though I wasn’t worried about the photo. But I really was. I started looking online this morning for pictures from last night. I found a couple of really nice articles that I printed up to show Jade. The reporters were very kind. She looks gorgeous in the pictures. She was glowing. Her smile as bright as the sun. There was nothing online of me thankfully.

Tomorrow I start school. For the first time ever. I am totally nervous. I'm 18 years old and I have never been to public school. I can do this. Jade will be with me. She will buffer any uncomfortable or intrusive questions. She can talk her way out of anything. That is an amazing asset. I know she is very protective of me. I can’t thank her enough for that. I decided Jade can help me find some clothes. She takes me all over the place to consignment shops and thrift stores. I love it. I have never done anything like that before. I really know nothing about style. I just want to be comfortable. Some jeans, t shirts and flannels are perfect for me. After a few hours of shopping, she hooks me up with some cool and inexpensive stuff. A grey v neck lamb’s wool sweater, a couple zip up cardigans, a couple light weight Henley’s, corduroy pants, a few cool scarves, Red Wing boots, a vest, some jeans and vintage t shirts, and a few hoodies. Thankfully the weather here is never really very cold. No snow at all. So, my outfits won’t need to change too much over the school year. Jade’s excited to dress me up. She finds blue shirts that she says make my eyes “pop”. She’s adorable. I realize everything she picked are comfortable and something I would wear. I guess she knows me pretty well.

The next day I’m bursting with energy. I got up early and ran for a while. That helped a little. Jade picks me up for school. She says to bring my guitar. She looks perfect as always. She makes the Jeep smell like her and strawberries. I hold her hand on the way to school. We decide to play it cool with our relationship at school. Not putting it in everyone’s faces right away. We don’t want any chatter to get back to our parents. But I don’t think I can spend the whole day with her every day and not hold her hand or touch her in some way. We will just have to see how this thing plays out. When we arrive, I realize I recognize quite a few of these people from the coffee shop and beach. We meet up with Skye and her boyfriend. There are not very many students in this school. It’s a charter school specializing in art and music.

All seniors meet in one classroom on the first day. There are about 30 of us total. I notice a couple other guitars in the group. A few teachers are here and introduce themselves. There are only 2 new students. Me and a blond guy. We have to introduce ourselves. I tell them I'm from Canada and my name and I leave it at that. He tells the group all about himself. He’s an exchange student from England, an artist, his parents are artist. Some awards he has won. A few of the girls are swooning. That’s good. I want them all to ignore me. The majority of these students have known each other since kindergarten. I feel like an outsider. But Jade includes me in all of her conversations and makes sure I meet everyone.

The principal arrives and tells me I need to take some tests to see how much I know. I can do that. I'm much more comfortable sitting at a desk taking tests than in the middle of a room of strangers. I spend most of the morning taking math, science, and English tests. I do well on everything. But tomorrow I need to do history, social studies, and government. These are subjects I am less familiar with. Mom and I spent a lot of time online when we got out of the compound studying these things. But I’m still not totally comfortable with my knowledge.

I eat lunch with Jade and her friends. They all seem really nice. I listen more than I talk, as usual. Just taking everything in. Observing how they all interact. I haven’t had a lot of experience hanging out with people who are my peers. I need to learn how to communicate with them and not seem awkward. Jade guides me through it without putting me on the spot. The rest of the school day is spent in class discussing electives. That is the awesome part. They have so many cool classes. Creative writing, art, art, art, photography, dance, music, music, music, drama. Lots of options. I want every music class they teach. But first I have to make sure all of my prerequisites are taken care of. We will see tomorrow after I finish my testing. Jade only has to take a history class, and English. The rest of her day is electives. I hope we have some classes together.

The next day of test are a little harder, but I still did really well. Then they have me take something called an exit exam which is a test on almost everything you need to know in order to graduate. I pass that as well. So, the only core class requirement I need to complete is one in history. Thankfully I will be in that one with Jade. Then I get to choose electives. I take one art class that Jade has. Then I take three music classes. One is on how to pursue a career in the music business. It will teach you about recording, how to handle contracts, managers, and budgets. Even though I have no intention of becoming famous, I still would like to know this stuff just in case. The other is just guitar. This one I am really excited about. I will learn new techniques and tricks. The third is a music history class.

The first week of school passes quickly. I'm enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. I love learning. Seeing Jade with her friends and doing her art is great. I get to ride with her every day, and we have three classes together and lunch. We took Friday to go to lunch together alone. It was really nice to spend time alone with her again. Neither of us have any homework to speak of, but Jade has been very tired. So, we haven’t spent any time together outside of school.

We decided that small displays of affection are acceptable at school. None of the kids think much of it. Everyone pretty much minds their own business when it comes to Jade and me. I think she warned them the subject wasn’t up for discussion. A few of them knew already anyway.

Every morning I checked for any photos of us on the internet. Mom always kept track of the posts Ezekiel would make looking for us. No one was replying to them yet with anything real. There were a couple of posts that we know were not about us thankfully. So, we weren’t too worried. I was really getting comfortable here. He doesn’t seem to be on our trail yet. It’s such a relief. I know I don’t want to ever leave Jade. Mom and Jonah are also doing really well. After our confessions, we all seem to be getting closer and closer. That barrier we used to put up is down and we are letting them fully into our lives. It feels great. Its freeing.