Julia Lelieveld and the fifth element
~3~

Today was my first day of school. I walked down the stairs and saw through the front door window that Dad's car wasn't in the driveway.

He had already gone to work. He had told me last night that an important piece of evidence had surfaced in a major case he had been assigned to.

He had already warned me that he will probably have to work a lot in the coming time.

He had left a note in the kitchen wishing me luck for my first day of school.

Outside the wind felt icy cold, I shivered for a moment, luckily it wasn't raining anymore.

I rode my bike to school. Last week I had already cycled there a few times, so I wouldn't be late on my first day. I had gotten out of bed earlier on purpose so that I could easily find my classroom at school.

The school was centrally located in the city. It was a beautiful old building with a large lawn with trees as an entrance. My old school was a new modern building, this was the opposite. I put my bike in the garage for the juniors and walked to the main entrance. I saw the children looking at me curiously. Fortunately, they didn't know me here, so neither did the drama that happened last spring.

I reported to the reception. A little woman with big glasses was looking for something in a filing cabinet. The glasses made her eyes look very large. She was wearing bright red lipstick that clashed with her pink suit. She looked at me and smiled.

"What can I help you with, honey?"

"Goodmorning, I'm Julia Lelieveld, today is my first day here at school."

"Yes that's right." The little woman went to another cupboard and took out a folder that was already there.

"Your papers are ready. Look, this is a map of the school, here we are now." She pointed with her red painted nails at the arrow on the map. At a glance I saw that the school was very large.

“Here's your schedule. Junior year, is that correct?'

"Yes that's right."

“Okay, your first class is math, in room 304. That means it's on the third floor in the fourth room, do you understand? There are also some forms that you need to fill out. It all speaks for itself. Your student card is also included and here is your locker number with code. You can pick up your books at the library."

"Thanks, I get it."

"Good luck, honey, on your first day."

"Thank you, bye."

While I looked up the library on the map, I walked towards the stairwell. The library was on the first floor.

The library was in a beautiful old room, just like in a movie. I was sitting at a table waiting for my books when I looked for my locker number on the map. My locker was on the second floor. That worked out well, I could drop off my books before I went to math.

The librarian was a middle-aged man, with wavy black hair and glasses. You would expect a man close to retirement, but this man looked fit and well-groomed. He came walking from a back room with a large stack of books. “Look Julia, your books for this semester. There are quite a few."

"Thank you sir. Could I maybe leave half the books here and pick them up this afternoon to put in my locker?"

"Yes, of course, and call me Rob."

"Oh okay. Thanks Rob. Till this afternoon."

I grabbed half of the books that included the math book and walked to the second floor. It was already getting busier at school. I quickly found my locker. It was a somewhat faded locker.

I put my books in it and locked it. The corridors were high and long.

I walked up the stairs to the third floor. It was already busy. I looked at my watch and saw that it was almost time for my first lesson. I looked at the signs and there I saw room 304. The room had the same look as the library. I walked to the teacher. It was an older man in a brown checked suit. He had red hair.

"Hello, I'm Julia Lelieveld, today is my first day."

"Hello, Mrs. Lelieveld. I see you have your book. There's an empty seat by the window in the middle. Take a seat."

"Thank you."

Gosh, that wasn't the nicest teacher. I walked to the spot he had pointed out. It was a nice spot. The room was at the front of the building so I had a view over the pretty garden.

When I was seated, the class was already full. The students looked curiously in my direction.

"Good morning students, as you can see we have a new student in our midst today, Mrs. Julia Lelieveld. I am Professor de Wit. That's how I want to be addressed. There is no eating or drinking in the classroom and no trips to the toilet. There is no speaking unless you are asked to. Clear?"

He looked my way with his gray, cold eyes. What a fun way to start the lesson, I thought to myself. Gosh, if every teacher was like that, it would be no fun here at school. He still looked at me with his stern, serious look.

I felt the eyes of the other students burning on me. I think he was waiting for an answer, apparently he had asked me personally.

"Yes, that's obvious."

"Yes, who?"

"Yes, Professor de Wit?" I looked at him questioningly, he didn't really mean this, did he?

"Yes, what?" he continued in a cold tone.

Oh, he meant it. Geez, that was really one of the old stamps. I didn't feel like being put on the spot like that on my first day by such an old bastard of a math teacher.

"Sorry, but what do you want to hear from me now?" I looked at him a little defiantly.

"Mrs. Lelieveld, let me be clear. I want you to give clear and correct answers to the questions I ask here in my class and that you always address me as Professor de Wit. I don't tolerate this kind of behavior here in my class. Is that clear Mrs. Lelieveld?", he said it almost threateningly. His face had turned red and a vein was throbbing near his temple. I'd better just answer. I think I screwed up quite a bit on my first day and it had only started for 10 minutes.

"Yes, Professor de Wit, it is clear," I said with a somewhat compelling tone in my voice.

He nodded, turned and sat down at his desk.

“Open your books to chapter 4. Go through the material and make the formulas at the end of the chapter. We will then discuss them in the next lesson."

Well that was easy teaching, if you could call it teaching. But everyone obeyed, opened their book, and began the assignment our sociable professor had imposed.

I saw the chapter and realized that I had already covered this material in my old school. I immediately started browsing the formulas to start making them. I grabbed my notebook and calculator and got to work.

"Mrs. Lelieveld, may I ask what you are doing?"

I looked up. The other students looked at me too. What would I have done now? I don't think he really liked me.

"What do you mean sir?"

"If you speak to me again without saying my name and don't answer the question directly, then you can go to detention."

This was a joke, it just had to be.

I smiled and said to him, "Well, I'm making the formulas at the end of the chapter, Professor de Wit." I looked at him triumphantly.

"I don't like your attitude at all, Mrs. Lelieveld. If you behave like this again, I'll send you out of class." He turned his head with satisfaction and stopped looking at me.

Well, what an asshole. Was this some sort of test for the new students? I looked around the class to check the reaction of the other students, but they all looked serious and if I'm not mistaken I even saw pity in some eyes. Well I didn't need pity from anyone, I already had my share at my previous school. Frustrated, I continued with my formulas. I was already done with this day.

Five minutes later I suddenly felt my neighbor behind me kicking my chair. Softly at first, but then harder and harder. I had already looked back once and she looked at me with a very innocent smile. She was a tall, slender girl with blond hair. She had a narrow face that ended in a square chin. She had thin lips and unfriendly eyes. Maybe it was just me, because I wasn't in a good mood anyway. I looked at her questioningly, but she still smiled innocently, as if she was doing nothing.

Five minutes later it had become more ticking. She tapped the legs of my chair in her white lacquered shoes. How annoying, I couldn't take it anymore. I turned and looked at her annoying, hypocritical face.

"Would you please stop doing that?" I asked questionably, but also a little forcefully. I was fed up with everything.

She looked at me questioningly, her eyes wide with innocence.

"It's enough now, Mrs. Lelieveld, I'll write a note and you can report to the headmaster."

"What? Surely you don't mean that?", I said horrified.

"Right now!" he said forcefully. He was really angry. Well me too!

I grabbed my bag and put my things in it. I looked at my neighbor behind me. "Are you happy now?" I asked her.

All she did was smile hypocritically. Without even looking at our professor, I picked up the note on the corner of his desk and walked out of the classroom. I slammed the door behind me and stormed down the stairs.

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