Birdy Read Online Free

on. ‘The Franceses I mean. To tell them apart. I can’t remember them all now though …’ She frowned as she thought about it.
    ‘Well, anyway, shall we –’ Mr Hurst said, starting to turn back towards the main school building.
    ‘Criceto!’ Bert said suddenly, her frown clearing and her smile back, brighter than ever. ‘That was one of them. Criceto. It means hamster, in Portuguese. He was little, that one.
Ginormous
teeth though. Perfect name for him, really.’
    Bert laughed, poking her own front teeth over her bottom lip and scrunching up her nose.
    I just stared at her. I wasn’t really sure what to make of it all, of this tall, tanned, slightly posh girl I’d only just met, standing in reception in a shirt and tie, doing an impression of a Brazilian hamster.
    I think Mr Hurst could tell he was going to have to be more decisive if he was going to move things on. ‘Right, yes,’ he said briskly. ‘Very good. Let’s get to our tutor room now though, shall we? So there’s time for you to meet everyone before lessons begin.’
    ‘Oh yes,’ Bert said, nodding. ‘Terrific. Let’s.’
    Bert followed us back to registration, the whole time gazing around with her mouth slightly open, as if we were leading her through a mythical land. On the way we passed the girls’ toilets and I wondered if I should point them out to Bert, but I chickened out. I felt self-conscious starting my tour with Mr Hurst there. I decided to wait till I had Bert to myself.
    Mr Hurst was a geography teacher so our tutor room was in the humanities area of the school – Green Block. All the areas of the school were named in this way – Blue Block for science, Red Block for arts and so on. The school wasn’t really divided into blocks at all though, it was just a spiral of corridors arranged around the main hall so who knows why they decided to call everything a block. I always thought it made the place sound like a prison. Maybe that was the idea.
    When we got to the classroom, most of the rest of our tutor group were already there, slouching across the chairs, their feet up on the desks.
    Gary Chester and Jac Dubois were tossing a mini rugby ball between them. As we came in, it bounced off the wall and hit Megan Brebner on the back of the head just as she was applying her lip gloss. The stick shot off to the side, painting a bright pink line across her cheek. Megan’s mouth hung open, and she blinked a few times. Then she got up and thumped Gary on the arm.
    ‘You’re such a
dick
,’ she said. She bent down to use the bottom of Gary’s shirt to wipe her cheek clean and the whole class laughed.
    I didn’t join in the laughing though. It wasn’t because I didn’t find it funny so much, just because it wasn’t my place. It’s like when you’re on the bus and some people behind you are sharing a funny story. You don’t join in, do you? You don’t sit there giggling. You just accept that you’re not part of it and mind your own business.
    ‘That’s enough!’ Mr Hurst called, clapping his hands. ‘Gary, Jac, sit down now. Put your toys away. Megan, you know the rules about make-up. If you’re going to break them at least be subtle about it. Everybody, quiet please.’
    I took my own seat at the front of the class and there was the sound of shuffling and scraping chairs as people settled into their places. A few people were looking at Bert now, noticing her for the first time.
    ‘Everyone,’ Mr Hurst called. ‘I’d like to introduce Alberta. She’s joining this tutor group today. I’m sure you’ll all make her very welcome.’ He sat down at his desk and turned to Bert. ‘Uh, Alberta? Would you like to … say a few words, introduce yourself?’
    God, I thought, what an awful thing to make her do – surely no new person wants to stand at the front and introduce themselves. Bert seemed unfazed though.
    She smiled around at everyone. ‘Hello!’ she said, in her loud, clear voice. ‘I’m named after the place,