Starting Off..
Tulla arrived at school much later than the rest. Everyone had been settled in, their uniforms already given to them and classes had already started. After ensuring everything was okay, her mother left her alone in this new place, one she was so sure she would never fit into. The bell rang signalling lessons’ end and girls started pouring out of the classes quickly following the teachers who walked briskly to the staffroom. Tulla watched them as some passed her as they rushed after the teachers to ask questions but not without casting curious and weird glances at her. She understood the looks considering she was in a painfully mismatched uniform, bright red with a checked dress. Her hair made it all worse, as it was an uneven afro with some parts flattened when she had slept on her way there.
She was so focused on watching the girls that she did not hear her name being called by the matron who was asking her to follow her for her uniform fitting. She awkwardly followed her to the store. The uniform size she was given was two times her size but she could not complain as it really wasn’t her place. Next was being shown her room. Her roommates were her own classmates, all of who had gotten into school earlier than her. They were four in each room, each had her bed in a corner with wardrobes put in between the beds. Tulla unpacked her shopping quietly as she listened to the rest as they bragged about where they were from. Once she was done unpacking, the girls all became silent all eyes focused on her cabinet.
“That’s all you have?” one of them asked after a very awkward silence.
Tulla was confused for a while but nodded nonetheless.
She heard someone stifle her laugh only becoming more confused. She was in boarding school and her mother had made sure she bought her all the personal effects she needed so what was the big deal...
“She clearly does not understand what was wrong,” another girl said, she was light-skinned and the prettiest.
The girl stood from her bed and walked to open her cabinet. That was when it hit Tulla. If you compared the two cabinets, Tulla’s looked like she wasn’t supposed to be there. She looked around at the other girls as they looked at her humour in their eyes.
Her mother’s words as she brought her to school rang in her head, “Tulla, don’t forget where you are going and where you are from. You are under sponsorship and the girls there are not from the same level as you. You will see the difference once you get there,” and boy was she seeing it finally.
All cabinets were completely full of things she could not even dream of ever owning. Her background was humble and her cabinet was proof of that. Few things that could help her survive until the mid-term break.
“How are you in this school if you cannot afford to fill your cabinet?” the girl from across her bed asked, ” I thought this was a posh school.”
Tulla wanted to tell them about her being sponsored but chose against it.
“She might be lost. Just look at her hair...”
“And her uniform...” another added laughing loudly,” the matron knew that she couldn’t afford to replace it that was why she gave her a size just enough to last her the four years she’ll be here.” More laughter.
Tulla stood there as they jeered at her making fun of every detail of her. Her heart broke with every comment that was made but she was careful not to show it on her face. She waited for them to have their fun until they got bored and moved to another subject. That was when her feet got the energy to move and she slowly walked to the washroom. Once the lock clicked, she finally broke down. Her first day was not as fun as she would have hoped it would be.
