The insistent sound of an alarm going off roused Serenah from her sleep. She didn't feel rested at all. She covered her face with her hands. This was not how she wanted her first day at school to start.
"Get up. You have to get moving," she muttered to herself as she forced herself upright and to the closet to get dressed.
She put on the lavender halter-style dress that reached to her knees and slid on the low-heel black dress shoes. She had just finished when Lael arrived to do her hair. Serenah checked the time. She was running a little early and that was good.
"Do you want your hair up, in a braid, or down, My Lady?"
"I'll let you pick. I am not good with fashion."
"Very well." Lael went to work on her hair, humming softly as she quickly put it into a French braid. Next, she moved on to the makeup. She kept it light and natural.
"There. Have a look."
Serenah glanced up and gasped at her reflection. Her violet eyes were framed with a light lavender eye shadow and mascara on her eyelashes making them look longer than usual. Her lips shimmered with a light gloss that made their pink color pop. She looked so different than her normal self that she was rendered speechless.
"Well, My Lady?"
"Lael, is this really me?" She gently touched her face, still awed by her transformation.
Lael laughed and stroked her hair. "Yes, My Lady, it's really you."
Serenah opened and closed her mouth. Words failed her. For so long her father and sister had told her that she was ugly and useless. That was all she saw when she looked in the mirror. She hated her reflection. Today, however, was different. She didn't hate the young woman looking back at her. A shy smile covered her face as she turned away from the mirror and stood.
"Beautiful."
She glanced over at Alastar who had entered the room at some point. She blushed at his compliment.
He shook himself and bowed. "Are you ready, Sera?"
She blinked and remembered that was her human name. "Yes, Al." She grabbed her backpack from the table and followed him to the car.
"What about my sister?"
"She has her own car and will go separately," he informed her.
"Oh." Secretly she was relieved. She didn't want to ride with Amanah on her first day of school. Who knew what her twin had in store for her? Better to be safe and prolong whatever her twin had concocted to put her in her place.
Serenah slid into the passenger seat and buckled her seat belt. She lowered the window when Lael tapped on it.
"Have fun, My Lady. Don't worry about your sister. Be yourself. I'm sure the results will be worthwhile."
Serenah took Lael's hand and squeezed it gently. "I will." She waved by as Lael stepped back and Alastar pulled out of the garage.
She fidgeted in her seat as the radio played some pop song she didn't know. Not that it mattered. Her mind was roiling in anticipation of her first day at school. The school they were attending was called Coeburn High School. It was named after the town it was located in. Something interesting about the town is that it was named after the two men who had discovered it.
The naming of places in this human world was similar to the way they did it in the old world. Nice to know that explorers were honored here as well.
"Thoughts, Sera?"
"Too many to voice," she admitted to Alastar.
"You'll be fine," he promised as they drove up the hill to the school. The parking lot was busy with cars and buses.
"Wow," she murmured, her eyes large in surprise at the orderly chaos.
Alastar drove to the student parking lot and pulled into a space. "Alright, Sera. Deep breath."
She did as he asked and let it out slowly. Her nerves calmed and she felt more alert.
"Ready?"
"Yes, Al. Let's go to school."
Together they left the car and headed for the front office.
~***~
Though the building was old, Serenah liked the cozy feel it gave off. It reminded her a little of the great temple in Poten. She felt welcomed which surprised her. She hadn't expected to feel that way. Maybe it was because the kind front office receptionist, Nadine Swain, was friendly and very welcoming.
They only had to wait five minutes before being introduced to the principal, Mark Greenwood. The principal welcomed them and reminded them of the school policies. He then called for their guidance counselor to finish their orientation.
Serenah liked her immediately. The lady was called Samantha Owens. She was about four inches taller than Serenah and had a lovely smile and personality. Ms. Owens explained that she was in charge of the seniors and that if they needed anything to let her know.
She also encouraged them to participate in clubs and sports if they were interested. At this point, Serenah felt a little overwhelmed and tried to maintain her façade of calm. She flinched when Alastar took her hand and squeezed it. She kept forgetting that she wasn't alone.
Once Ms. Owens finished orientation it was transition time from first to second period, which was Language Arts.
Serenah was excited about this class. She had taken a liking to the literature of this world and read avidly every chance she got. Alastar's warm presence beside her kept her from embarrassing herself. Level head, Sera, she admonished herself.
She brought her attention back to the guidance counselor who had entered the room and was talking to their teacher.
Ms. Owens turned to them, gesturing for them to come inside. "This is your teacher, Mr. Perry Hall. I'll leave you in his capable hands."
Serenah walked in and froze when her fated mark throbbed. Her eyes widened. Her mate was her!
"Sera?"
She flinched and moved to the teacher; her hand outstretched. "Hello, sir, my name is Sera Holland."
"And, I'm Al Marks." He shook hands with the teacher.
"Welcome, both of you. Your seats are in the middle." He pointed toward the center rows of seats.
"Thank you," she said and went toward her seat. Her mark throbbed gently, reminding her that one of the fifteen boys in the class was her mate. She had no way of knowing which one. It was so frustrating.
Soon she forgot about her dilemma as she focused on the class being presented. The first day was about the rules and expectations as well as a get to know each other. She was happy when the bell rang, and she didn't have to talk. She was grateful that her turn would be tomorrow. She was able to eliminate at least three of the boys as not the one. Her mark did not react when they had gone to the front of the room during the get-to-know-you round. That still left twelve.
"Miss Holland, Mr. Marks, please come here a moment."
Serenah stood and walked toward Mr. Hall. She saw a tall boy with blond hair and gray eyes next to him. That wasn't what caught her attention. It was her fated mark which had gone from throbbing to a fierce warmth. This boy must be her mate! She gasped and Alastar grabbed her hand and squeezed.
She felt her face heat. "Sorry, I just remembered that I forgot to charge my cell phone."
Mr. Hall smiled, and the boy frowned. She glanced at his face and dropped her gaze. She didn't want him to think she was a weirdo.
"This is Romeo Lancaster. He will be your guide for today. Since you have the same schedule and lunch as him, I thought it'd be a good idea for you to shadow him. Also, Romeo is president of our National Honor Society and a model student. You can't do better than him," bragged Mr. Hall.
"Hello," Romeo said and held out his hand.
Serenah nervously shook it and flinched when the warmth of the mark increased. She was right! He was the one.
His hand lingered in hers a moment longer than necessary, but she didn't mind. She felt bereft when he moved to shake hands with Alastar.
"Well, let's go," he told them with a grin as he led the way to their third-period class.
Serenah didn't say anything as Romeo and Alastar chatted away. She was more comfortable this way. Blending in with the background was one of her strengths. She took the time to study Romeo. She liked this human's energy. It was warm, infectious, and engaging. She could stay around him all day and be perfectly happy doing so.
Romeo took them on a tour of the school. He asked questions but Serenah was too shy to answer them. She let Alastar handle it. Finally, the tour ended, and they went back to third period.
"I'll stick next to you for the first week until you get acclimated," Romeo promised. He knocked on the door and went inside.
Serenah and Alastar entered and waited for Romeo to talk to the teacher.
The teacher was nice to them when Romeo explained to her that they were new, and he had taken them on a tour. She pointed out their seats and the three of them sat down.
Serenah tried to pay attention, but her mind was on her mate and how she was going to get to know him better.