Really? Halfway through unloading her bag, Olivia looked up in surprise. This school seemed so divided, it was a pleasure to hear someone talking nicely about another group.
Then she glanced at Finn and realised he wasn’t even looking at his friends. Instead, he was gazing over their heads at . . .
Amelia. The grim Goth-Queen stood surrounded by a group of other goth-girls who might as well have called themselves an Amelia tribute band. Every one of them was dressed like an Amelia-clone in identical black leather jackets and matching earrings, and they clustered around her with adoring expressions.
Amelia wasn’t looking at any of them, though. She was looking straight at Finn . . . and for just a moment, Olivia glimpsed a slight smile playing at Amelia’s black-painted lips.
I wonder if it hurts her face? Olivia thought. It has to be rare that anything cracks that grim expression!
A moment later, Amelia had converted the smile into a scowl . . . but it wasn’t entirely convincing. She might have been trying to look hostile towards Finn, but instead she just looked uncomfortable . . . like there was a stone in her shoe. Or a boy she can’t make herself dislike!
Whoa. Olivia felt as if her own eyeballs were bouncing back and forth like tennis balls over a net as she looked from one to the other and back again. Even now that Amelia had managed to force a scowl, she and Finn were still staring at each other. It was as if they couldn’t look away.
There is some serious crushing going on, Olivia thought. Between the leaders of the two groups who seem to hate each other the most!
Finally, Finn’s glance dropped to the floor, and his shoulders sagged. He laughed, obviously trying to fit back in to his friends’ conversation. ‘Funny,’ he said.
But Olivia was pretty sure none of his friends had actually made a joke.
As the crowd of skater-boys filed down the hall on their way to class, the goth-girls all pointedly looked away . . . except for Amelia. She’d angled her head so that her fringe fell over her eyes, but she was surreptitiously watching Finn through the veil of hair.
And when he didn’t return her gaze, the look of disappointment on Amelia’s face made Olivia’s heart hurt.
Brrrrring!
The school bell sounded, and Olivia jumped. She’d spent so much time watching the action around her, she’d barely even started preparing for class! Hastily, she tipped her notebooks for that afternoon’s classes into her locker, scooped up her bag and her school map, and slammed her locker door shut. I’ll have to wait until later to add some pictures and colour to the inside of the door!
As she hurried towards her homeroom, though, she felt a fizz of excitement in her stomach, replacing all the nerves that she’d felt earlier.
I love a romance, she thought happily.
Her own romance might have to stay long-distance, at least for now . . . but she couldn’t imagine anything more fun than helping another couple get together while she waited to see Jackson again. Matchmaking was one of her favourite activities – and that was lucky for Finn and Amelia, because they obviously needed help! This school was so divided between goth and mainstream, how could Finn and Amelia ever openly declare their feelings for each other without a helpful nudge?
Even as she thought that, she heard Ivy’s exasperated voice in her head: ‘You can’t tell how they really feel just from watching them for less than two minutes.’
‘Oh, yes, I can!’ Olivia blurted out.
A pair of goths nearby gave her startled looks.
Oops. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud!
‘Is Ivy’s twin talking to herself ?’ one of the goths whispered loudly.
The other shook his head sadly. ‘I guess not everyone in her family is cool.’
Whatever. Olivia ignored them. She had bigger things to worry about . . . like figuring out how to bring down the social barriers of Franklin Grove High!
Matchmaking Amelia and Finn wouldn’t just make the two of them happy – it would bring all the school’s barriers crashing down.
And I’m just the person to make it happen. Olivia gave a decisive nod as she stepped into her classroom.
If she’d needed any more proof of how much this school needed help, it was right here in homeroom, where the social groups were so clearly laid out, they might as well have put up signs and gateposts by each set of desks.
The goth-crowd owned the ‘primo’ tables, sitting by the window towards the back of the class. Meanwhile, the bunnies were stuck all the way in front, completely unable to join any of the ‘cool’ conversations because they would have to turn around in their desks.
Olivia shook her head, sighing, and looked for Ivy. I might have known.
Ivy was boxed in right in the far corner of the room, besieged by goths. As they pressed around her, Olivia saw her eyes fill with more and more panic and frustration until she looked like a trapped tiger.
‘. . . But is that show really cool, Ivy? I mean, I know everyone says it is, but what do you think? If you tell me, I’ll know what’s right.’
‘Do you think the Pall Bearers sold out with their latest album? I mean, they used keyboards – that’s the opposite of goth! Isn’t it?’
Uh-oh, Olivia thought. She could see an ultimate death-squint ready to form on her sister’s face. No one trash-talked the Pall Bearers in front of Ivy and survived!
‘Hey, Olivia.’ It was Sophia, sitting in the exact centre of the classroom in a spot neither popular nor outcast. She smiled ruefully and patted the empty desk beside her. ‘There’s no point trying to fight your way through Ivy’s flock of bats.’
Olivia sank down into her seat, still watching her twin. ‘Do you think we should intervene?’
Sophia sighed. ‘There’s nothing we can do. Trust me – I’ve tried.’
The goths’ voices grew louder and louder as they all competed for Ivy’s attention. ‘But Ivy –’
‘Ivy –’
‘Ivy –’
‘Hey!’ Ivy suddenly surged out of her seat. ‘I need some thinking time!’
‘Thinking time?’ The closest goth-girl shook her head while all the others gasped. ‘What’s that?’
‘I just . . .’ Ivy sank back down into her seat, looking defeated. ‘I want to . . . meditate,’ she mumbled. ‘I need to . . . find my chin.’
‘Um . . .?’ One of the other girls hesitantly pointed to Ivy’s face. ‘Isn’t it right there?’