This Is Not My Life by Astrid Elizabeth Dare (ap literature book list .TXT) 📕

him carefully. He was a little taller than me and had light brown hair made stylishly messy. He was holding a big case. By the looks of it he had an instrument in it. He was wearing a green and white striped sweater and blue jeans. His expression was one of surprise but only briefly before turning friendly.
“You don’t remember anything? Did you hit your head or something?” He asked me. I shrugged. “I don’t know. I just woke up and didn’t know a thing.”
He nodded as if he discussed amnesia every day. “Well don’t worry about it. We will tell you anything you need to know. Did your mom already tell you what classes you have?”
“No I was going to go to the front office and ask for a copy of my schedule.” I said.
“You don’t need to do that. Your first class is geometry with me.” He said.
A curious ringing filled the air and students immediately stampeded towards the doors. I supposed that was our cue to go to our first block. How crude. We followed the crowd into the building Russel grabbing a hold of my wrist so as not to lose me. I soon lost sight of Cassie as she dove between bodies in another direction.
I was beginning to feel claustrophobic walking through these overcrowded halls. Someone’s shoulder was always jostling mine, or my elbow was bumping into the wall, or I was tripping over someone’s feet. There were people everywhere. I don’t think I had ever seen so many people all in one place. I felt like they were closing in on me.
Then, mercifully we were in an almost deserted room. Russel let go off my wrist immediately. He went to sit at a desk in the back of the room and I followed him sitting in the one next to him. He shook his head at me and pointed to the desk on his other side. I had sat at the wrong desk. Once I was situated I looked around the room, trying not to be too obvious about it.
There were only a handful of students in the classroom. The teacher wasn’t here yet. Perhaps she or he was in the restroom.
“Mrs. Cypher usually gets here at least fifteen minutes after class is supposed to start.” Russel informed me having been watching me study the room. I raised my eyebrows.
“Is she allowed to do that?” I said. He shrugged. “No one has complained yet.”
A shadow fell over us and Russel scowled at the person behind me. I felt a heavy hand land on my shoulder and give it a rough squeeze.
“Hey geek where you been hiding? We missed you.” A loud voice says to several loud snickers. I turn around slowly. Three guys were standing over me. The one who I think had spoken was in the middle. He was wearing a football jacket and had long pale blond hair up to his shoulders with bangs almost covering his hate filled green eyes. At least they looked hate filled to me. “Well geek?” He said.
“Where have you been hiding.” I corrected.
“What?” He looked so confused and surprised by this answer I had to bite my tong to keep from laughing.
“You said ‘Hey geek where you been hiding?’ when you should have said where have you been hiding.” I answered.
“Why the hell are you correcting my grammar?” He sputtered. I shrugged.
“Well……shut up!” He said angrily. His face was turning red.
“I wasn’t saying anything.” I pointed out.
“Oh yeah well-“ He cut himself off when the teacher walked into the classroom. After giving me a resentful glare he stalked off to a desk on the other side of the room.
I walked over to the teacher’s desk and asked her for my makeup work. She gave me a folder with my assignments and told me that I needed to have them all done before the semester ended. “You’re welcome to come to my classroom after school if you need any help. I usually stay until around five.” She informed me. After thanking her and I went back to my seat, uncomfortably aware of all the eyes on me as I walked across the room. I pretended not to notice, though.
A note was thrown onto my desk as I sat down. Russel’s name was written on it in a messy hand. I glanced over at him. He was miming opening a note and raising his eyebrows at me. The note said:
were the hell did that come from?
I looked at him. He mimed writing with his pencil. So I responded.

Where did what come from?
I passed the note to him he read it and wrote a response. Then he gave it back to me.

Youve never stood up to brad like that before!

I raised my eyebrows at him. It would seem that Nathan had himself a bully.

I just corrected his grammar.

He read the note and shook his head.

Yeah what was up with that since when do u care about peoples gramer?

It had just bothered me. And reading Russel’s notes I had to resist the urge to tell him he had misspelled grammar. He made a lot of mistakes that I wanted to fix. Instead I wrote back.
I don’t know.

The teacher started the lesson so Russel put the note under his folder without reading it.
She started talking about the declaration of independence. Everything she said I already knew. I thought the purpose of school was to learn? Maybe I was academically ahead of the students here? After a while I tuned her out.
I wonder if I should try to look myself up on the internet. Maybe I could find an article about a boy named Daniel who has gone missing. Is anyone even looking for me? Am I worrying someone right now by not being where I was supposed to be? I had a feeling I wasn’t. I don’t think I have an aunt or a girlfriend or best friend to care if I just don’t show up for weeks.
Nathan was lucky to have a family. I hope he isn’t missing against his will. But maybe that would be better than him abandoning these people on purpose.


Chapter four Daniel


Cassie stared at me as I ate my pizza. It was starting to get unnerving. I pretended not to notice as I chewed my food. We ate our lunch in silence. I was looking at my food and trying to think of something appropriate to say. Finally Russel broke the awkward silence.
“So you like pepperonis now?” Russel asked. It took me a moment to realize that he was addressing me.
“Yes?” I said it like a question. I didn’t know if I liked pepperonis or not, but I didn’t see anything wrong with eating them. So I ate them. Nathan evidently hated pepperonis though. If the look on their faces was anything to go by. That was why Cassie had been staring at me. Nathan never ate pepperonis. Having realized this I removed the ones that remained on my half eaten pizza.
“You don’t have to do that. If you like pepperonis then eat them.” Russel said. I ignored him and left the pepperonis on my plate. If I was going to pretend to be Nathan I would have to learn to act like him. Cassie looked relived.
“Can I have them?” She asked me tentatively.
“Yes.” I answered.
Russel sighed. “Would you like to come to my house after school with me and Cassie? We could help you catch up with all your work.” Russel said after a moment.
“Sure.” I had already finished the work Mrs. Jackson had given me for World History. And I was almost done with the assignments Mr. Garcia had given me for Spanish. Still I needed to learn more about these two and their relationship with Nathan.
“What’s it like.” Cassie asked me suddenly.
“What’s what like?”
“Not knowing anything.” She clarified. I thought about it for a second.
“It’s hard to describe.”
“Try.” She looked so little and curios. Like a child looking to her parents for guidance. So fragile and small looking. She was adorable. I was surprised by the jealousy I felt at that moment. Nathan had a beautiful girlfriend. He really did.
“It’s like…..it’s very confusing……you know certain things, but you don’t know how you know them. You just...” That was the best I could do to describe it.
“You just what?”
“I don’t know.” I sighed.
“You sound different.” Russel said.
“Different how?” I asked.
“Your voice, your vocabulary it’s just…different than the way you used to sound.” Maybe this was because I had been schooled differently than Nathan had. It had become aparent that my intellect was slightly above that of the students at this school.
“Your right he does sound different. More…..experienced.” Cassie agreed. She frowned. “What did you do out there? Where did you go? You don’t remember anything from before you got back? When exactly did you lose your memory?” I explained to them how I had woken up in the church.
“It must have been so bizarre waking up without even knowing your own mother.” Russel commented. I shrugged. I got up and threw my tray in the nearest trash can with Cassie and Russel following on my heals.
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Publication Date: 12-23-2010

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