The Alphonso Heir
She stifled a yawn as she closed the book she had just finished reading and stretched a little. She stood and returned the book to it’s rightful place and smiled at the librarian, who smiled back at her, before she walked out and closed the door behind her.
“Get ready for a long day girl” she thought to herself as she loosely clutched the math textbook required for the first class against her chest.
She walked into the hallway her mid-back length dark brown hair swaying lightly with her movements with murmurs following her like bees were attracted to honey.
Students stood in their groups and spoke in not-so-hushed voices,
“It’s her…the Alphonso heir”
“Didn’t they go bankrupt a few years ago?”
“They did but now they’ve gone into a new business and that’s flourishing”
“You’re saying it’s good to keep in her good books?”
“But I think it won’t be that rewarding. I mean they could go out of business any day again right?”
Jillian Alphonso walked past them quite used to hearing all the rumors about her family.
“If you want to spread rumors about us at least spread the right information” she thought to herself keeping a straight face clutching her math text book tightly to her chest till her knuckles turned white.
“JILLI!” a voice shouted effectively shutting the surrounding students and in turn the gossips.
Jillian sighed, her grip on the textbook loosening considerably, as her nerves calmed down from hearing the familiar voice.
“There comes ‘The Dan’ ” she said under her breath, her eyebrow raised in slight amusement.
Said guy immediately overwhelmed her in a tight hug before wrapping an arm around her shoulders and grinning at her, his blond hair looking like he had just woken up.
“Hey Jilli” Dan said his contagious smile quickly appearing on her lips too.
“Hey Dan. Didn’t care to tame you hair today, did you?” Jillian said smiling her voice having a teasing touch to it, her earlier discomfort disappearing quickly.
“Psh. Who has time for that? Besides I don’t see Den or Lisa with you. Where are they?” he questioned raising an eyebrow, easily running a hand through his hair.
“Her name is Denise Dan, you might as well just call her that” Jillian said knowing just how much her best friend hated that nickname while lightly jabbing his abdomen with her elbow.
“But it’s such a long name” he whined.
“Denise is not such a long name Dan” Jillian said rolling her eyes, knowing his love of making nicknames for people.
“Hey come on cut me some slack, what else can I call her?” Dan said a fake pout lighting his lips, feigning pain as he rubbed his abdomen.
“You can call me Denise” said girl said walking towards the two teenagers with Annalise next to her.
“Den! Lisa!” Dan said his soft blue eyes quickly lighting up.
“It’s Denise Dan! Denise!” Denise said her face scrunching up in annoyance.
“Calm down Den” Nathan said walking into view a grin evident on his face.
“Oh come on now Nathan, just call me Denise like you usually do” Denise said in reply to sarcastic greeting.
“Alright I’m sorry Denise, but you know he isn’t going to call you anything but Den right? Just get used to it” he said a sly smile playing on his lips.
“She doesn’t have to” Jillian said, rolling her eyes, with Annalise nodding next to her.
“Thanks girls” Denise huffing out in relief that at least the two girls were on her side.
The five stood in the hallway at their usual meeting place where they had their small talk before heading to class. The chattering around them seemed to be a bit more than usual and to Jillian’s surprise most of them weren’t badmouthing her or her family which piqued her curiosity.
“I wonder why the chattering is so much more than usual today” she said speaking her thoughts out loud.
“Well apparently some big shot aristo is gonna join our class today” Dan answered slinging an arm over Nathan’s shoulder completely ignoring Denise’s complaints.
“Ah...so that’s why” she thought to herself.
“You mean a big shot aristocrat?” Denise said rolling her eyes huffing her cheeks a tired sigh escaping her lips.
A sly smirk appeared on Jillian’s lips,
“Come on Denise you should be used to him by now, shouldn’t you?” Jillian said unable to keep her lips twitching from the teasing smile as she wrapped an arm around Denise’s waist.
“Not you too Brutus” Denise said an exasperated sigh leaving her lips.
Annalise started giggling unable to keep it in anymore with Jillian and the others quickly following suit. Denise let out a groan and threw her arms in the air and stomped ahead to class crossing her arms over her chest.
The two girls quickly followed her and walked on either side linking their arm through hers. Denise looked at each girl in turn and sighed as she caved in for their smiles.
A lively conversation caught the attention of the boys and they stood listening in to the three girls talking excitedly,
“I bet he looks hot” one girl said her voice shrill with excitement.
“Of course he will be! I heard he is really rich too!” another gushed.
Both boys sighed when they decided they had heard enough,
“It will never be a girl, will it?” Dan sighed with a look of mock dejection on his face.
“Not interested buddy” Nathan said shaking his head at Dan’s statement.
“Come on the girls already left us behind” he called out walking ahead.
“Damn it’s always the same” Dan said.
“Cause you’re slow buddy” Nathan replied chuckling as the two finally caught sight of the girls.
Nathan and Dan quickly caught up to them. Nathan walked on Jillian’s side with Dan’s arm around his neck.
“Hey Jilli” Nathan said smiling at her.
“Don’t get into trouble today too Nathan” Jillian said her voice thick with a tease.
Nathan groaned,
“Come on, not you too” he said mocking horror to which Jillian laughed heartily and Dan punched his abdomen lightly as the five walked ahead to class.
The five teenagers walked into class and settled into their respective seats which weren’t too far away from each other. Nathan and Dan were neighbors, with Denise and Annalise a seat away from them. Jillian’s seat was in the end with an empty seat on her side. The only other empty seat in the class was next to Laura Fenn.
The usual chattering was present in all vitality and the two girls looked over their shoulders and grinned at Jillian who grinned back. Annalise saw Jillian pull out a new handkerchief and wipe her hands.
“I wonder what happened to her old one...” she thought thinking when a certain memory returned to her.
Annalise reached into her bag and realized she still had Jillian’s old handkerchief. She walked towards Jillian’s seat to return it.
A scornful look was present in the eyes of the girl sitting a few seats behind Annalise and Denise sighed knowing trouble was brewing. She walked to Jillian’s seat and reminded Annalise that Clayton would enter anytime soon since the loud chattering had softened down to hushed whispers. Annalise nodded and went back towards her seat with Denise following close behind.
A look of disgust appeared on the girl’s face as she looked at Jillian and Annalise noticed the look a slight frown appearing on her face as she walked towards the girl’s seat.
“It’s pitiful that even Annalise Darwin Is talking to that lo-”
“If you complete that sentence in my presence again I will make sure you pay for the pain you make my best friend go through” Denise said her voice low and venomous as she glared down at the girl before walking past her.
Annalise gave Denise’s back a soft pat, making her look back. Annalise shook her head vehemently from side to side. Denise sighed,
“I know I shouldn’t bother with her Annalise, let’s get a move to our seats. Besides Clayton is definitely not worth the trouble” Denise said grinning.
“True” Annalise said giggling as she looked ahead.
“But you know...it sounds like something Dan would say. Denise you make a perfect match with him you know?” Annalise said trying her first hand at teasing her.
“Oh please” Denise said rolling her eyes.
“Den you wanna eat? Den you wanna watch a movie? Den this! Den that!” Denise imitated Dan, shaking her head her voice dripping with sarcasm not realizing Nathan had overheard their conversation.
“But I second the idea” Nathan said grinning as he winked at Annalise.
A soft blush graced Annalise’s cheeks as she giggled.
“And I third the idea” Dan said raising his hand quickly not even glancing at the three.
Annalise and Nathan was pretty surprised at his declaration and stared at him their lips forming a perfect ‘o’.
Denise and Dan were always at each other’s throats and the two of them didn’t think Annalise’s teasing comment would bring about such a twist.
Denise looked mortified with embarrassment,
“You WHAT?” she said her cheeks dusted pink her mouth open wide in shock.
“Lisa just had an idea to get out of Clayton’s class right?” Dan said finally looking at the three, completely missing Annalise’s comment.
Denise, Annalise and Nathan smacked their foreheads in sync groaning.
“What?” Dan said, raising an eyebrow, stepping back in mock denial.
Neither of the three had realized that the class had become dead silent as Clayton had entered the classroom and was listening on the conversation. Jillian groaned silently,
“Those four will never learn” she thought to herself.
Before either one of them could reply to Dan, Clayton cleared his throat,
“Miss Darwin has an idea to leave my class, is it?” Edward Clayton said placing the math textbook he had carried with him on the table.
A shudder ran down Annalise’s back as the hair on the back her neck stood in fear. Denise and Nathan had turned into stone hoping for a chance to slip into their seats unnoticed.
“Eh? What are you saying Sir? Li- I mean Annalise loves your classes Sir. I was merely teasing her” Dan said quickly stepping forward and turning the attention to him making sure the ‘loves’ he said had extra emphasis.
The other three quickly slipped into their seats using up Dan’s self-sacrifice as their chance.
Edward’s gaze shifted from Annalise to Dan and he narrowed his eyes as he looked at him.
“Is that so Mr Duncan?” Edward said his tone clearly indicating he didn’t believe Dan’s earlier statement.
Jillian sighed and shook her head before she stood at her seat, the screeching of the chair shifting the attention to her.
“Sir I have a doubt regarding the calculus problem we had solved yesterday” she said smoothly earning a wide smile from the said mathematics teacher.
“Of course, what is it my child?” Edward said his smile widening with Dan completely forgotten.
Dan quietly slipped into his seat and winked at the girls showing a thumbs up sign. The girls rolled their eyes and turned back to snicker at Jillian’s current state of panic.
“Just the perfect time for me to draw a blank as to what questions he solved in class yesterday” Jillian thought to herself trying to keep a straight face and trying to mask her panic as much as she could as she looked at Edward.
“Ah Sir, it was in the -”
Jillian didn’t get to complete her sentence as three sharp knocks on the classroom door interrupted the class.
“Ah I’m saved” Jillian thought to herself as she sat down before looking at who had saved her in the nick of time.
Four more subtle synchronized sighs were softly heard in the background as Edward turned to the door absolute irritation on his face on being interrupted.
The second he saw the face of the new student waiting outside the door his irritation melted away to be replaced by a look of forced courtesy.
“Welcome Sir Thomas Ernest Albert. I was informed I shall be seeing you in my class today” Edward said in a flourish bowing slightly.
As soon as he had said the name squeaks erupted in the class and the said teenager walked into class an arrogant smile on his lips.
“Thank you…”
He lengthened his sentence as he held out his hand not knowing the teacher’s name.
“Edward Clayton” the teacher replied back shaking his hand with a firm grasp.
Though he had saved her from a crisis, Jillian couldn’t help but notice the aura of superiority around him. His uniform fit him perfectly and suited him very well. His brilliant blue eyes caught her attention and his slightly messy platinum blond hair complimented his slightly pale skin making him look attractive. She knew why the girls were already swooning. She’d bet everything down to her last penny that he would have at least a few declarations of unchanging and undying love within the next few days but in the corner of her mind she was hoping he’d be different from the snobby aristocrats she knew.
“Please let him not be as snobby as he seems” Jillian thought to herself, hoping that he wouldn’t choose the seat next to her if he was as snobby as she feared.
Thomas nodded curtly and turned to the class bowing once, standing straight with his platinum blond hair falling perfectly back in place and his brilliant blue eyes slightly dull when he noticed the usual looks of greed and lust from most of the students. He recovered quickly knowing that this was the most possible scenario that would have happened due to his father’s status.
He looked straight ahead not particularly looking at anything deciding that his usual facade of arrogance was the best way to keep the greedy ones at bay,
“I am Thomas Ernest Albert and I will be continuing my studies here. I hope to be looked after properly” he said a subtle smirk on his lips.
“And another one” Jillian thought to herself rolling her eyes.
