The New Girl Read Online Free Page B

Even Polly’s company couldn’t change that. She hadn’t seen Ollie again all day.
    Josh had sat a couple of tables away with an apple and a well-thumbed book. He didn’t look in her direction once. Not even to ask if she was OK after her fall in the corridor.
    Clearly he didn’t actually want to be friends , she thought crossly. Ollie’s description of Josh as a pompous idiot was right.
    A pair of goggles had hidden Eve’s steel-grey eyes for most of science that afternoon, but Lila had still felt her cold gaze boring through her shoulder blades. IT hadn’t been much better. She now had a blinding headache and her new school shoes were rubbing her heels. And on top of everything else, she dreaded what she would find when she turned on her phone again after school. She couldn’t wait to get out of here and hide in her bedroom for a while.
    She gloomily spun the combination lock on her locker. Part of her was bracing herself for a box of eggs or something to come tumbling out. Even someone as all-powerful as Eve Somerstown can’t open locked doors, she reminded herself. Still, she flinched as something fluttered out and drifted to her feet.
    Bending down, she picked up the piece of paper and smoothed it out. Someone had stuffed it through the vent on the front of her locker. She stared at the words.
    Take heart. First impressions are misleading.
You’re a cool person with a clever head. Things will get better.
    She studied the writing curiously, then turned the note over. There was no signature.
    A funny warm feeling spread through her belly. Someone had bothered to write this for her. Someone knew how she was feeling. How was that possible?
    She looked up and down the corridor. Other Year Tens were moving around the lockers, talking and joking. None of them were looking at her, or at the note in her hand.
    She stared again at the writing. It was the nicest thing that had happened all day. In one swoop, she didn’t feel alone any more.
    â€œReady to go?”
    Polly was standing by her locker, clutching her bag to her chest. Lila saw that she’d put her zigzag earrings back on.
    â€œDid you write this?” She waved the note. It seemed like something Polly might do.
    â€œNothing to do with me.” Polly took the note from Lila’s fingers and read it. “That’s really cute!” she said with pleasure. “He’s right, you know. Things will get better.”
    Lila snatched the note back. “How do you know it’s a he?”
    â€œI don’t,” said Polly gleefully. “But it’s a safe guess. After the day you just had, it looks like you’ve got a secret admirer!”
    Lila studied the note again. A secret admirer? Was this some sort of practical joke?
    She gripped Polly’s arm. “Swear to me that this isn’t a wind-up.”
    â€œI swear!”
    â€œThen it’s some kind of weird Heartside Valentine’s Day tradition,” Lila said suspiciously. “You take Valentine’s Day pretty seriously in this town.”
    â€œWe do parades, not mystery notes. Stop looking so worried. It’s exciting! Maybe it’s a really hot guy who saw you in the canteen and couldn’t bring himself to talk to you.”
    Lila felt a little thrill at the thought of this mystery guy.
    Her mood was abruptly punctured by the sight of Eve heading towards the lockers, flanked by Rhi and two other girls.
    â€œLet’s get out of here before the queen bee ruins your buzz,” said Polly. “Do you want a tour of your new town?”
    Lila thought of her half-unpacked bedroom. Heartside Bay was her home now – it would be good to explore it a little. And with Polly for company, a tour could be nice.
    â€œSure,” she said with a grateful smile.
    They headed out into weak sunlight and a stiff breeze blowing in from the sea. Kids withdrew as Lila and Polly walked down the steps, and whispered