A Little Fighter - The Story of Khalieah

KayeStar

After I read Mighty Dan's story, Frenemies, I got inspired to create my own story from Sims 4. I might put it on a blog later on, but for now, I'm keeping it on the forum. I can't say there'll be a set schedule for updates, but I'll try to post at least once a week.

After losing her mother and her infant sister to an unknown death, Khalieah was forced into state care. Eventually, she is moved to Newcrest and enrolled into Newcrest Ginger Elementary, a school that's ordinary for the most part, but doubles as a home for certain students who are without a guardian. Being very shy and still mourning the loss of her family, Khalieah's not exactly happy to be where she is and keeps hoping that everything so far is somehow little more than a bad dream she's yet to wake up from. What Khalieah has yet to learn is what starts as a nightmare can end as the very opposite.

(Note: In case anyone has some trouble with it, her name is pronounced "Kha-lee-ah".)

KayeStar

Chapter 1: Welcome to School

"Ms. Pancakes, where are we going?"

"You'll see. You will love this place, Khalieah. Trust me."

Khalieah held tightly to the social worker's hand as she was led along, wondering just what kind of this place Ms. Pancakes could be talking about. Every time someone told her she'd love something, she either hated it or it wasn't as exciting as it sounded. She hoped Ms. Pancakes was truly right, as she didn't love anything in this new town. It was nothing like the city she'd grown up in before. Although, she did like there was so much more nature around.

"Is that it?" She had spotted and was pointing to what appeared to be a playground.

"No, that's not it, but we're almost there. Just a little further and...look! Now, we're here. And look who's coming out to greet us!"

Timid, the young girl clutched the social worker's hand even more tightly and looked at the ground. Ms. Pancakes hadn't told her anything about meeting new people. She hated meeting new people. It took two months for her to start being less shy around Ms. Pancakes.



"Hello there, Eliza! This must be Khalieah. I've been expecting you."

"Khalieah, this is Ms. Lee. Say hello."

Khalieah didn't respond. She only continued looking at the ground, as if there was something intriguing at her feet.



"I'm sorry. She was talking just a few minutes ago. Looks like you won't be getting much out of her today."

"Oh, no worries. She can talk when she's ready. Maybe we can pull a little smile out of her sometime."

"Alright. Khalieah, I'm going to leave you with Ms. Lee. She'll explain things to you. I have to go."

As far as Khalieah was concerned, she may as well have been told she was being left alone in the pit of a dragon. She let Ms. Pancakes have a hug and watched as the social worker walked away until she couldn't see her anymore.





After Ms. Pancakes was gone, Khalieah slowly walked toward Ms. Lee and followed her along, gazing up at the huge brick building. There was nothing extraordinary about it, but it somehow intimidated her. The inside of the building seemed scarier, despite its brightness. Already, she was aching to return outside.

"I'm going to show you to your bedroom. Ms. Pancakes gave us some special things of yours to put in your room for a nice little touch. The rooms are right up on the second floor."



"Ah, here we are. This first door leads to your room."



"You certainly are a shy one, aren't you? Ms. Pancakes wasn't kidding when she said you can be quieter than a mouse! Here you go. This is where you sleep."

She couldn't believe it, but Khaeliah was pleasantly surprised, if only for a few moments. The room was small, but she liked small, and it still had plenty of space from her point of view. There was a pretty bed and a pretty little bookshelf. Strangely enough, her backpack and teddy bear were also in the room. How'd they get here?



Ms. Lee answered her question before she could ask. "You seem to like it. We set your room up for you just last night and Ms. Pancakes said you'd misplaced your bear and bookbag, so she gave them to us for your new room after she found them. She thought it'd be a nice surprise for you. Was she right?"

Khalieah managed to respond with a nod and a small smile, but nothing more.

"Why don't you try to settle yourself in? There's one more person you need to meet. I'll be right back."

Those words were not music to the young girl's ears. With that, Ms. Lee left Khalieah alone. She pressed her ear against the door to hear for when Ms. Lee's footsteps went down the stairs. Once she was sure Ms. Lee was out of earshot, Khalieah ran to her bed and cried.



She didn't want to be here. She wanted to go back home, back to her city. Back to where she grew up, where everything was familiar. How did this happen to her? Why did it have to happen? Everything changed that dreadful day she had...

Remembering that day forced Khalieah's crying to become stronger and she buried herself under her bed comforter, hoping it'd smother her sounds.



"It's a bad dream! It's a bad dream! I want to go home! I miss my mommy! Take me home!"

It was the same thing she recited to herself every time she thought back. When she had nightmares and woke up scared, her mother would tell her to repeat "It's only a bad dream" to herself until she calmed down. It was only after her mom and sister had...gone to sleep...that the advice stopped working.

It felt like a long time before Khalieah stopped crying. Or maybe it'd only been five minutes. She couldn't tell. Her room didn't have a clock. But when she did stop, she came out from under her cover and sat on top of it, unsure of what to think or if she should be thinking about anything.



The young girl remained motionless until a voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Khalieah? It's me, Ms. Lee. I have someone here who wants to meet you. We're coming in."



Entering with Ms. Lee was a woman dressed in white. Her outfit reminded Khaliah of Ms. Pancakes, although her hair was dark like Khaliah's own instead of red.

"This is Ms. Sullivan, our school's counselor. Her job is to help some students who need a little guidance. Or just someone to speak to."



"That's right, and you're my newest student today, Khaliah. It's so nice to meet you."

Khalieah couldn't say the same. She hoped Ms. Sullivan was the last new person for her to meet. She was tired of meeting people.

"I'm going to grab a chair, so you and Ms. Sullivan can talk for a while. She's a very nice woman. You can speak to her about anything."

Ms. Lee fetched the chair and again left the room, for good this time. Understanding she was nervous, Ms. Sullivan sat the chair at the wall instead of next to Khalieah. While Khaliah couldn't force another smile, she did appreciate the consideration.

"So, dear, let's start small. It seems no one told you ahead of time you were coming here. I'm sure you'd like that answered, but is there something you want to discuss first? Anything you want."



Khalieah did want to talk about a few things, but for now, she only cared about knowing what was going on, so she shook her head.

"Very well. First, as Ms. Lee told you, my name's Ms. Sullivan and I'm the school's counselor. Our school is called Newcrest Ginger Elementary Boarding School, although it's only a boarding school for some students. Not all of them. Most of our students go home at 3:00, but some live here like you will be doing. So, this will be your home from now on."

For the first time since Ms. Pancakes had left, Khalieah spoke, and it wasn't cheerful. "No!"

"Pardon, dear?"

"No! I don't want to live here!"

"Yes, I know it's sudden and it's upsetting. I'm sorry you don't want to be here right now, but this is where you must live for a while. Ms. Pancakes will come around every weekend to check on you. Does that make you feel a little better?"

"...Okay."

"Your records show you have attended school prior to coming here, so tomorrow, we're going to give you a few tests to see where you stand. We'll have a special teacher for that and I'll be over-seeing those tests."

"How many more people do I have to meet?"

"Your other teachers and your classmates, but not for another day. Is something the matter?"

"I don't like new people."

"Yes, I can see that and Ms. Lee mentioned to me you hadn't spoken to her. I imagine being thrust into the situation you have wouldn't leave you feeling very friendly. You're free to take your time. However, you are going to have to take the tests tomorrow. I'm afraid nothing can be done about that."

"...You're nice."

"Thank you. Is there anything else on your mind?"

"No."

"Alright. I'll leave you alone for now. Today's your free day, so you don't have to do any work, but we'll come by every so often throughout. If you want to go outside, you must tell one of us. Do you understand?"

Khalieah nodded her head, not wanting to speak anymore. Ms. Sullivan left and Khalieah was finally on her own again. She still felt anxious in this place and wanted to go home, but at the least, she did like her new bedroom, especially the bookshelf. She searched through it and found her favorite story, The First Unicorn.



Meanwhile, as Khalieah was upstairs in her new room...

Brianna: "Hey, did anyone see that new girl coming in today?"

Alexander: "New girl? Who? I didn't know we had a new girl."



Max: "You didn't see her? She had those giant pom-pom things on her head! She looked like the Minnie Mouse on her shirt!"

Brianna: "Shut up! I like Minnie Mouse too!"

Max: "But you don't look like Minnie Mouse!"

Olivia: "I think she looks weird. I bet she's from some weird school or something."

Max: "So, she's a reject!"

Brianna: "Hey, y'all stop that! What's wrong with you? You're making fun of her and you don't know her!"

Max: "Whatever. I just hope she doesn't try to play with us. I bet she's real dumb."

Elsa: "She look like she's quiet. My mom says quiet people are really smart. Why are we having French toast for lunch again?"

Kimberly: "Because the teachers made too much breakfast."

Max: "Hurry up and eat, everybody! We're going to the playland after for recess!"

Lucas: "We always go to the playland for recess."

Max: "I don't care! Hurry up!"

After they've all finished lunch...

Max: "Come on! Last one there's a rotten tuna fish!"

Brianna: "You can't run in school! The teachers will scold you!"

Max: "Fine! We'll race outside! Walk fast!"



Back upstairs...

"So, that's how it is, Kali. I'm going to live here and go to school here. I didn't know people could do that. Do you think the tests will be hard? I wonder how many kids live here. I wish I could home at 3:00 too. Huh? I guess so. I hope they don't have bedtime. I hate going to bed early. Yeah, maybe tonight, I will. I'm kind of tired. No, I won't lose you again, Kali. I promise. I'll watch you better this time. You think the kids here might be nice? When I went to school before, they were mean. They didn't like me. I still want to go home. Yeah, I know that lady said this is my home now, but I don't think it is. It doesn't feel like home."



"Hmm? Oh, of course you'll always be my best friend, Kali. I love you more than anyone. Don't tell the other bears I said that!"

KayeStar

Chapter 2: Off to a Bad Start

Khalieah eventually got bored up in her room, so she thought wandering around for a while might help. Plus, she was curious about the rest of the school. She'd never been to a boarding school before.

"Hey, you!"



Khalieah was startled by the shout and a little more frightened when she saw a mean-looking boy staring her direction.

"You! Come here!"

Khalieah should've just ignored him, but he scared her, so she listened.



"Hmph! So Brianna was right. You must be that new girl she was talking about."

"....."

"What? Don't you talk? Well, I guess if I was as ugly as you, I wouldn't talk either!"



"....."

"What are those giant things on your head? You look more like a mouse than Minnie! I bet you live with mice too! Your hair comes from mice fur!"



"Is your mama a mouse too? Huh, mousey-mouse? I bet she is! I bet---"

"Shut up, you dumb kid! Don't talk about my mommy! Shut up or I'll punch you!"

"Khalieah?"



"Ms. Lee, this girl is being mean to me! She's saying bad stuff about my mom!"

"Liar! I did not!"

"That's enough, children. Max, go back to your class. Khalieah, we need to talk for a minute."

The boy slunk off to class with a smug grin while Khalieah was angry and on the verge of tears. Before Ms. Lee could speak, Khalieah exploded.



"He's lying! He started it! I didn't do anything to him!"

"I will be glad to hear your side of the story, Khalieah, but you must calm down. Please stop yelling."

"But why am I in trouble? He's a dumb---"

"Khalieah, you're not in trouble, but I can't speak to you if you won't stop yelling and there's no need to call names, dear."

"HE CALLED ME NAMES FIRST! IT'S HIS FAULT!"

"Khalieah, go to your room and rest. You need a time-out. You're too angry to speak right now. I'll send Ms. Sullivan up to speak with you in a short while."

"But that's not fair!"

"Khalieah---"

The angry girl stormed off before Ms. Lee could say any more, slamming her door behind her. She plopped herself onto the floor and vented to her teddy bear.

"I didn't do anything to that boy, Kali! He started with me! He called me names! I didn't say anything until he said bad stuff about my mom! I didn't talk about his mom! He's just like all the other kids at my old school! The one thing I was hoping is the kids at this new school wouldn't be so mean. I guess that's how all schools are. And I have to live here too! I hope he doesn't live here! I hate him! I'm going to punch if talks about my mom again! Or I'll talk about his mom!"



"I hope something bad happens to him! Like he wakes up with chicken pox! Or he falls down the stairs and breaks his neck! Or---"

"---you realize two wrongs don't make a right."

Khalieah looked toward her door to see Ms. Sullivan had entered her room. She was a little surprised, as she hadn't heard the door open or close. She pulled herself up onto her bed, only because her bottom was getting sore from the floor.



She wasn't exactly happy about her "conversation" being interrupted, however.

"Ms. Lee tells me you've run into a little trouble with someone."

"She said I wasn't in trouble."

"You're not, but it's hard to speak to someone when they're yelling at you. She asked you to calm down and you couldn't."

"Why? Why do I have to calm down? That kid was saying all kinds of mean stuff! He was mad at me and I didn't do anything to him!"



"It's okay to be mad. I said you have to calm down. Tell you what? Why don't we talk a walk? You've been inside for a few hours now. Do you like the outdoors?"

"Yes. Yeah, I do."

"Then, come on. Follow me."

"What if I see that mean boy again?"

"He won't bother you."

Not fully trusting, but wanting to get out for a while, Khalieah hesitantly agreed to go along. She didn't hold Ms. Sullivan's hand, but did stick close by her. The two walked in silence until they were outside, leaving the school property.



"So, where are we going? Around the block?"

"No. Just a little place next door I think you'll like."

Ms. Sullivan led Khalieah to a small picnic area, where the woman and girl seated themselves at a table. Khalieah did like it. They were under a tree's shade and no one else was around, making it peaceful. However, the peace still was not enough to simmer down Khalieah's anger.

"You seem a little calmer, Khalieah. Now, can you tell me what happened without yelling?"

"Hmph!"



"Khalieah, do you like to be yelled at?"

"No!"

"Exactly, and neither do I or Ms. Lee."

"Then, why'd that kid yell at me?"

"Ms. Lee will handle him, but I'm here to get your side of the story. Just as you don't like to be yelled at, neither do I. Do you know how it feels to be yelled at when you've done nothing wrong?"

"Yes! That's what happened!"

"I understand, but that's also what you did to Ms. Lee when she was trying to get your side of the story. You yelled at her when she did nothing wrong to you."

"Oh..."

"So, can I hear your side now?"

"What if I yell at again?"

"This problem won't be resolved and you'll sit here by yourself for a while until I think you're calm enough to speak."

"I like being by myself. But okay."

"So, what happened?"

Khalieah told Ms. Sullivan how things really went, explaining she only wanted to leave her room for a while, but the boy had called her over and started to make fun of her. She repeated the things he'd said to her, growing angry again as she recounted them, but truly trying not to yell.



"And I didn't say anything to him until he said something about my mom. Then, I got mad and said I'll punch him. Then, Ms. Lee came and she saw us and she stopped us."

"And you didn't know this boy was there?"

"Not until he called me."

"I see. That's what I will tell Ms. Lee when we return to school."

"What now?"

"Since we're out here, why don't you play for a while?"

"I can play?"

"Yes, you can play for a while. We have some time. Then, I'll take you back to your room."

"Okay!"

Khalieah darted up and made a beeline for the monkey bars. She preferred swingsets, but there were none. None that she'd seen in Newcrest anyway, so she enjoyed the monkey bar sets instead. Ms. Sullivan watched her enjoy herself and soon, Khalieah burned off all her anger on the monkey bars.



When it was time to return to school, Ms. Sullivan called Khalieah off the monkey bars and let her know it was time to leave. She was disappointed it was time to go when she was still having fun, but she listened nonetheless and let herself off.

"My, my, Khalieah. Isn't that a lovely a smile you have?"



"Can we come again?"

"You probably will. The students regularly go to the playland on the other side, but if you ask, someone will probably bring you here. But you can never come alone. Someone must always be with you."

"Okay."



Later on, as she promised, Ms. Sullivan repeated Khalieah's side of the story to Ms. Lee. They also expressed some concerns about Khalieah.

"What's your opinion, Destiny?"

"For now, I can only say she will need a lot of attention. From what Eliza described to me, she's rather troubled, to say the least. I don't think she'll become problematic, however."

"So, you don't suspect any or much misbehavior from her in the future?"

"As of now, no. That may change as I spend more time with her, but right now, I don't believe it needs to be a concern."



Upstairs, Khalieah had taken to sleeping. Her time on the monkey bars had tired her out, so she wanted to lay down and ended up falling asleep before she realized it.



"Mwah! I love you, baby."



"My sister's in there? How is she going to come out?"



"Hi, Brianne! I'm Khalieah, your sister! Tickle, tickle, tickle! Mommy, she's ticklish!"

WhilteringAway

Like the story so far. Can't wait to see more. Will be following this for sure.

KayeStar

Chapter 3: Testing

"Good morning, Khalieah! Did you sleep well?"

"Mmph."

Khalieah would've answered if not for the stranger occupying her room. She was still a little bitter about her first day not going well and, of course, she still didn't like having to meet new people.



"This is Mr. Roland. Do you remember I told you there'd be tests for you to take? Mr. Roland will give you those tests and I will be accompanying him."

Khalieah only nodded, but she clearly wasn't confident. She didn't do well with tests, whether or not they'd truly count for anything important. But after yesterday, she only wanted to make this a good day, so she followed Ms. Sullivan and Mr. Roland. They led her to the cafeteria to begin her first test.

Mr. Roland handed her a pencil and a workbook. "Now, Khalieah, this first test is a writing exercise. You must answer the questions with, at least, one full paragraph. Do you know how many sentences are in a full paragraph?"

She did, but she felt too shy to answer the question, so she only shook her head.

"Five. You need five at minimum. You can start."

Khalieah worked quietly, but diligently. Being watched made her feel anxious, but the test truly wasn't so hard, so she was able to put it out of her mind for the time being.



Once Khalieah finished the first test, she handed it to Mr. Roland and he scanned over it. "Oh, my. You have very neat penmanship, young lady."

"Thank you." Her shyness caused the words to come out more softly than she intended.

He then put her written test away and handed her a book. "Here is your next test. This is to see how well you're able to read. I need you to read the book out loud to us."

Khalieah liked reading, so it wasn't a bad request. However, she liked reading to herself, as she always felt awkward when she read out loud. Her voice sounded funny to her. For a few moments, she could only stare at the book in her hand.

"I see you're rather shy. It's part of your test, I'm afraid. You don't have to read all of it. I only need to judge your reading comprehension. The first chapter will be enough."

"It's alright, Khalieah. Our job is to help you. It's only the three of us around."

Khalieah took a deep breath, opened the book, and slowly began reading. She tried to be as clear as she could manage, in spite of her nervousness.



As she read further, Khalieah began to read more quickly. Her flow of reading was flawless. Not a single word stumped her or made her pause. Ms. Sullivan and Mr. Roland were both impressed with how well she was reading. It almost seemed as if Khalieah somehow had the book memorized.

After she finished the first chapter, Mr. Roland couldn't help asking if she'd read that story before. Indeed, Khalieah had, but she didn't like it. She only read it because it was given to her at her old school.

For her next test, Khalieah got to work in the art room. This test, as Mr. Roland explained, was to see Khalieah's artistic performance, which Ms. Sullivan clarified in layman's terms for the confused the girl. They only need to see how well she does with art.

"Why art?"

"Because some of our students do very well with their artwork while others struggle, so we give them different assignments."

"This is essentially a free test. Draw to the best of your ability, but in whatever way you like."



Khalieah used all of the art tools on her desk. In the end, her picture was a plain blue sky with clouds, the sun, and grassy hills beneath. It wasn't brilliant, but she liked it and she was happy when Mr. Roland told her she could keep it with her for now.

The next test was for typing, a skill Khalieah would need for some of her future school assignments, though not heavily.

"This is more of a test done by the computer. Follow the instructions you're given on the screen and you should understand it."



Khalieah didn't understand why tapping keyboard buttons needed a test, but she wasn't going to ask any questions. She only wanted all of these tests to be done. She was feeling tired and still a little anxious.

After she completed the typing test, Mr. Roland announced she only had one more test left, which was music to young girl's ears He and Ms. Sullivan led Khalieah to the small play area Ms. Sullivan had brought her to the day before.

"Hey, I've been here! You brought me here, Ms. Sullivan! Oh!" She covered her mouth when she realized she'd spoken out loud.

"Oh, my! That was certainly a surprise!" Ms. Sullivan laughed a little.

"Did you really bring her here before?"

"Yes. Yesterday, we came here to allow Khalieah to relax because she had a little trouble."

"I see. Then, you'll probably excel on this final test. It's a test of your physical fitness. You have to go across the money bars and back without falling or pausing in the middle."

Khalieah climbed the monkey bar set. She was a little nervous, but only from being watched. She gripped the first bar and proceeded to almost effortlessly carry herself to the other side.



Once she reached the other side, she stood proudly for a few moments to let Ms. Sullivan and Mr. Roland see she'd easily made it across.



"Very good, Khalieah! Now, come on back."

Carrying herself back to the other side was no harder, but she was happy to make it to the end because that meant the tests were over. Sure enough, once her feet were on the ground again, Mr. Roland assured her that was the end. All of her tests were finished for the day.

"Ms. Sullivan, can we stay longer?"

"Not today. I need to take you to one more place. Mr. Roland is going to head back to the school."

Khalieah walked ahead of the teacher and counselor, leaving them able to speak quietly between each other.



"I'll give you her total tests results at the end of the day. However, I can already tell she may benefit from some advanced classes."

"Let me guess. Reading?"

"Yes. She reads very skillfully beyond her age level. I feel were she not so shy, she would've read the entire book to us. Her typing test also scored her at proficiency, which is unusual for someone who hasn't taken such a test before. She was quiet the entire time, but didn't at all seem to struggle beyond remembering where the keys were without looking. Will you be over-seeing her any further?"

"Only for tomorrow, her first day of taking classes. Which is what I'm going to speak to her about before I take her to have lunch."

"She's a pleasant young girl. Excitable, to say the least. She seems to have taken a liking to you already. Is she more talkative when it's only you and her?"

"Today is only her second day, so I'm not sure I can give a sincere answer to that yet. I've simply had the opportunity to spend more time around her."

When they arrived back at the school, Mr. Roland went inside, saying goodbye to Ms. Sullivan and Khalieah, while the two continued onward. After Mr. Roland left, Khalieah slowed down, walking next to Ms. Sullivan instead of ahead of her.

"Are we going somewhere?"

"Yes. I need to speak with you about something important, but I have one more place to show you."

"Is it there?" Khalieah pointed to the playground she'd passed when Ms. Pancakes first brought her to the school.

"Yes, it is. This is the Dollhouse Playland. Our students regularly come here for recess."

"Ooh! Nobody else is here! Do I get to play here?"

"Yes, but after---"

Khalieah darted off before Ms. Sullivan could finish her statement. Already, Khaeliah was beginning to seem like a different girl than the one who came in yesterday. It was a good sign, however.

Ms. Sullivan caught up to Khalieah and led her inside of the life-size dollhouse's rooms to speak with her.

"Look! There's a dollhouse inside the dollhouse! This place is cool!" Khalieah was about to make a beeline for the toy dollhouse, but Ms. Sullivan stopped her.

"Goodness, dear! Please sit for a moment!"

"Can't I play? Please? I don't have to take another test, do I?"

"No, and you can play in a few minutes, but we need to speak first. Come, sit down."

Khalieah did as she was told, but not so happily.



"I see being outside has an effect on you. You become so active."

"My old town had lots of playgrounds. Swingsets and slides and spinning wheels and all that stuff! How come Newcrest doesn't have those?"

"Child safety laws. Those things were banned after too many children got hurt on them, although a small slide was allowed on one of the jungle gyms."

"So, you can't have them here? Never? Whose idea was that?"

"Some overprotective parents rallied for it and the mayor gave in. Anyway, tomorrow, you'll begin taking your classes."

"Oh..."

"I'm going to be with you for the first day, but no more after that."

"Wait, you said classes."

"Yes, I did."

"At my old school, I only took one class for everything. Except for gym and music, and we didn't have those everyday."

"I see. Our system works differently. You take each class everyday, although there is one class that covers the majority of your subjects. That's your computer class. Where you took your typing test is where most of your subjects are studied."

"What else is there?"

"There's your art class. There's gym, which is held in a special area. You also have music and science classes, which are on the second floor."

"Okay. What time do classes start?"

"9:00 and they end at 3."

Khalieah counted on her fingers. "That's six hours. Wow. That's not like my old school. We had nine hours!"

"Nine hours?"

"Uh-huh. School started at 7:30 and we went home at 4:00. If you wanted to eat breakfast, you had to be there by 7:00 instead. But...I don't go home. So, what do I do?"

"Whatever you want. You need an adult to accompany you off of school property, but otherwise, you have freedom."

"What if I leave without an adult?"

"That's the final thing I need to discuss with you. We do have rules, dear, and consequences if you don't follow them."

"Like time-out when I yelled at Ms. Lee?"

"Yes, although that was more just to let to you cool down than to punish you. If you misbehave in class, however, you will be placed in time-out for a few minutes."

"They did that in my old school in kindergarten. When I got time-out, I'd go to sleep. The teacher had to wake me up. Hehe. She said one time, I fell out of the chair and she didn't see and she almost stepped on me! What happens if I leave by myself?"

"If you go off school property without an adult, you're not allowed outside the next day. You can go outside by yourself, but not off the property. Understand?"

"Okay. Umm...what's the worst punishment?"

"Expulsion, which means you're forbidden from coming back. You'd have to get into a lot of trouble for that, and repeatedly."

"Do we see you if we get in trouble? At my old school, sometimes, they sent you to the counselor if you got in trouble instead of the office."

"If you keep misbehaving, yes, to find out why you're doing it and how to change that. If I can't help you, you go to the office. Also, you're a resident of our school. Occasionally, we do send students home early if they are being very troublesome, but for students who live here, your classes end early and you get sent to your room."

"That's not a punishment! That's cool!"

Ms. Sullivan shook her head. "No, because you temporarily fail the day's assignments until you make them up and you're not allowed to leave your room alone."

"Oh. That's not cool. So...what happens if I get put in time-out tomorrow with you there?"

"Since it's your first day, we'll leave the classroom to speak. After that, you're treated the same as everyone else."

"Do you ever get mad at the students?"

"I don't get angry very often, so no. I think that covers everything, so how about lunch? Are you hungry?"

A growl from Khalieah's stomach answered the question before her mouth could.

"I guess that's a yes. Looks like our talk took up your playtime, however."

"It's okay. I'm hungry!"

Ms. Sullivan escorted Khalieah back to the cafeteria for her lunch, which was chili for today. Khalieah was delighted, as she liked chili.



"This is good! Can I have more of it?"

"We have plenty left over, so yes, but not unless you finish that one."

"Oh! I had one more question."

"What is it?"

"What about that boy? What if he bothers me again?"

"We can discuss that later. Ms. Lee will want to see you after the day's end."

"She will? For what?"

"You'll see."

Khalieah didn't like her curiosity having to wait, but she was more hungry than curious, so she ate her lunch without another word. Ms. Sullivan got her another bowl when she finished the first.

After lunch was over, Khalieah went up to her room to tell her teddy bear about her day.



"I hate tests, Kali. I was so happy when they ended. I got to spend time with Ms. Sullivan. She's really nice. She said I have to start classes tomorrow. I hope I passed all the tests. I'm really worried about that mean boy. What if he gets me in trouble? Bullies never get in trouble."

As Khalieah told Kali more and more about her worries, she began to feel sad. She decided to back outside to try to feel better. She was having a good day. She didn't want to feel sad.

"Hi, Khalieah. You shouldn't leave your door open, dear. Is something the matter? You look sad."

Ms. Lee had caught Khalieah before she could leave her room.



"I'm fine. I was talking to Kali."

"Kali?"

"My bear."

"Okay. I need you to come with me for a minute. We're going to go to my office."

"D-Did I do something?"

"No, you're not in trouble, but someone needs to speak to you. It won't take long."

Khalieah followed Ms. Lee downstairs and to her office, silently the whole way.



When they arrived at the office, Khaliah found a pleasant surprise.

"Ms. Sullivan! You want to talk to me? But you just come to my room."



"That's right, but it's not me. Go take a seat and you'll see."

Khalieah did so...and immediately became uncomfortable. Sitting next to her was the boy who'd bothered her yesterday. Khalieah did not feel this would be fun.

Ms. Lee seated herself at her desk. She could see Khalieah's discomfort for herself. "Khalieah, this is Max. He's one out of our students here. He has something he needs to tell you."



Khalieah faced Max, not sure what to expect. Max returned her stare with a silent, cold glance.

"Max, let's not take up Khalieah's time."

Khalieah couldn't help noticing Ms. Sullivan sounded a little sharper than when she spoke to her. Not angry. Just sharp.

Max finally relented. "I-I-I'm sorry, Kayla."

Ms. Lee corrected him. "Khalieah. Her name is Khalieah."

"I'm sorry, Khalieah."

"Tell her what you are sorry for."

"I'm sorry I hurt your feelings and I lied about what happened."

"It-it's okay."

"No, dear. You don't say that." She looked up at Ms. Sullivan. "If you forgive him, you say you accept his apology because it's not okay."

"I accept your apology, Max. But what did I do to you anyway?"

"I was bored. I just wanted to have fun. You didn't do anything."

"Ms. Sullivan, will you please escort Max out?"

"Certainly. Come on, Max."

Ms. Sullivan escorted Max out by the hand, leaving Ms. Lee and Khalieah alone.

"Why did I have to apologize? It's her fault!"

"Now, how is it Khalieah's fault you decided to bully her?"

"Because she's ugly! She shouldn't have been ugly!"

"Max, you need to keep those mean-spirited thoughts to yourself. You're on thin ice, young man. Khalieah is not the first student you've given trouble."

"What does thin ice mean?"

"It means if you keep this up, having to give an apology will be the least of your problems."

In Ms. Lee's office...



"How did you and Ms. Sullivan know he was lying?"

"I can't go into detail about that, but let's just say some of his classmates overheard from their classroom. Plus, I heard his voice as I was coming up the stairs. You began yelling at him before I could interfere."

"Will he bother me again?"

"Hopefully, he won't, but if he does, please tell one of your teachers. You're not in trouble because he was trying to pick a fight with you, but if you fought back, you could've been."

"What if he beats me up?"

"That's extremely serious. If that happens, we'll take care of you and he'll be forced to leave, possibly permanently."

"Is that expulsion? Ms. Sullivan told me about that. She was telling me about the classes and the consequences and things like that. She said I don't get to see her after tomorrow."

"You mean she'll be with you in your classes for only tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Am I still going to see her?"

"You're allowed to see Ms. Sullivan whenever you like. You're getting a lot of attention from her now because you're new, but all students are permitted to see her whenever they like. Since she's the counselor, most don't go unless they're sent or upset about something."

"Okay."

"Is there anything else you want to talk about?"

"I'm sorry I yelled at you too."

"Thank you. I accept your apology, dear."

"Umm...that's it. I've got nothing else."

"Alright. Then, why don't you head back up to your room and relax for the rest of the day? You're going to have a busy day tomorrow."

"I'm nervous."

"I'm sure you'll do well."

With that, Khalieah headed back up to her bedroom. Despite her worries about tomorrow, she was somehow feeling better and a little less scared. If nothing else, she did like Ms. Sullivan and the playgrounds excited her. She couldn't wait to go back to the playland. Even the thought of having to meet the other kids and teachers didn't upset her at the moment.

Nobody was around to see it, but Khalieah showed her biggest smile yet.

CathyTea

I really like this story!

Julyvee94

Khalieah is cute and I really like the way you are telling this story

KayeStar

Thank you for the kind comments! They mean a lot!

Charliimai

Great story, Very well written. I'm really enjoying reading about Khalieah.

kayt45

I like this story! Can't wait to read more.

XSimMimX

This story is so adorable! Looking forward to reading more!

KayeStar

Chapter 4: Brianna (Part 1)

(mentally) "Today's the day! Mommy's taking me to water park! I've got to get dressed!"



"Is Mommy up? I hope she's up!" (out loud) "Mommy! Mommy, come on! Wake up! We're going to the water park!"



"Mommy! Mo--!" *gasp*



"Mommy! Mommy, wake up! Mommy, what happened? Wake up, wake up! MAMA, WAKE UP!"



(mentally) "Why...why won't Mommy wake up? Wha...what happened?" (out loud) "Brianne!"

"Brianne? Brianne, what happened to you?! BRIANNE!"



"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Khalieah sat up in terror, breathing heavily. That nightmare hadn't come to her for a long time now. She wasn't a stranger to nightmares - they'd been a regular visitor ever since she had to leave home - but that one...that one hadn't happened in so long, she forgot the last time it did.

"It's only a bad dream. It's only a bad dream...I can't sleep."

Khalieah decided to get out of bed. Her head was hurting a bit.



"Maybe I'll walk around a bit or---"

"Oh, my goodness! Are you okay? Is everything alright in here? Hello?"



"Yikes! A ghost!"



"What? I'm not a ghost. That'd be really cool, but I'm not a ghost. I look like a ghost? Am I ghostly?"

"Oh. No. Sorry."



"I guess I scared you. I didn't mean to. Someone screamed and woke me up, so I got worried. I thought someone was in trouble or something."

"That was me. I'm fine. I had a--"

"Hey, wait! I know you! You're that new girl, aren't you? Your name is, uh, Khalieah! Wow! You look exactly like Max said! How do you sleep with those pigtails? Don't they hurt?"

"No. I've had them for--"

"Can we sit on your bed and talk? Unless you don't want me on your bed. I get it if you don't want me on your bed. My sister was really uptight about people on her bed. She never liked anyone on her bed except her. I think she kept stuff in there. Oh, you probably want to go back to sleep. I bet I'm keeping you up. I'm sorry. I'll go away. You're okay, right? Or no? I can get you something. I know where the snacks are. We can sneak down to the kitchen. We just have to be really quiet and we won't get caught. We can get juice and--"

"Excuse me? Can I please say something?"

"Sure! Oh, no! I interrupted you, didn't I? I'm sorry. I do that a lot. It's an accident. I talk a lot. Lots and lots and lots! My sister would call me a chatterbox because I'd never be quiet, and I'd always say I wasn't because--" *notices Khalieah's semi-frustrated face* "--I'm doing it again, aren't I? I'll just be quiet! Okay, talk! Say what you want!"

"Thank you. Umm, yes, we can talk on my bed if you want. And I wanted to say thanks for checking on me."

"Oh, you're welcome! Wow! Your bed is comfy! Like my bed! Oh, did I tell you my name? It's Brianna. Brianna Beau."

Brianna. The name reminded Khalieah of her sister's name, Brianne.



"Whoa. What's wrong? Why so sad? Did I say something?"

"Thoughts. I screamed from a nightmare. That's all."

"Ooh, I hate those! What was it about? Was it scary? Is that why you thought I was a ghost? Did you dream about ghosts? Did they eat you?"

(mumbling) "Not eat me..."

"I know a trick to make you feel better. I have three sisters and when one of us had a nightmare, we'd get together in a circle and say the silliest things we could think of. Like reindeer on the moon eating marshmallows! We'd do that and we would all start laughing and whoever had the nightmare would forget about it because we'd all be laughing so much. It always worked."



"That sounds fun. Wait, I have a question."

"Okay. Yes? What is it?"

"You said I look like how Max said. Is your Max your friend?"

"No way! I don't like Max! Nobody likes Max! He's so mean! He picks on us all the time! Hold on. You're not the one he was bullying, are you? The one who said you'd punch him?"

"Y-yes. That was me. You heard that?"

"My whole class heard it, but we heard Max too. Don't worry about him. Max isn't scary. He's just bossy and stuff. He always bothers the new kids for a while, but he'll leave you alone after a while."

"Are there any other mean kids?"

"There's Olivia, but she's not really mean. She does say mean things sometimes, but they don't sound mean to her, so she doesn't know they're mean. You just have to tell her it's mean and she'll stop."

"Ms. Lee told me one of the classes overheard what he said. Did somebody tell?"

"Yep! That was me."

"You told on Max?"

"Yeah. Ms. Lee came into the classroom after Max and some of the kids asked Max what he was doing since we heard. I told him I heard he was teasing someone and Ms. Lee had me in her office later to talk about it. I told her what I heard and that's it. But she didn't tell me who he was picking on."

"Thanks, Brianna, but why'd you do that? You didn't even know me."

"Because Max is a bully. He should get in trouble. And my mom and dad always said it's important to do the right thing, even if you're not sure. They always told me and my sisters to stick up for each other and other people. It doesn't matter if we don't know them. But don't worry about it? So, when do you go to class for the first time? Which one do you have first?"

"Tomorrow. I don't know which one."

Brianna yawns. "Well, I hope I see you tomorrow. I'm going to go back to bed. I'm so sleepy. I'm bad at staying up late. Good night, Khalieah! See you tomorrow! I'll introduce you to my friends too! They're nice. They'll like you. I promise! Okay, good night!"

Without another word, lest her "chatterbox" keep her awake all night, Brianna raced out and back to her own bedroom. Khalieah also felt tired, more so than she did when she first woke up after talking with the chatty girl. Khalieah had never met someone who could talk so much at once. And she couldn't stop thinking about how Brianna's name reminded her of her sister, despite the two looking nothing alike.

Still, Brianna was nice and after what happened with Max, Khalieah was glad to meet someone nice like her. Plus, Brianna said there was only one other mean kid. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe she wouldn't have the same problems she did at her last school after all.

Khalieah slept soundly for the rest of the night.



After morning arrives...

"Good morning, Khalieah! My, you look lovely. Are you ready for your first class?"



"I guess so. Where do these clothes come from?"

"Your social worker, Ms. Pancakes, sent them for you before you came. She's going to drop by this weekend."

"She is? When?"

"Saturday at 12:00 noon. Come on. Let's get you down to breakfast."

"Do I have to? I'm not hungry."

"You don't have to, but it's best you do. It'll give you some more energy for the morning. They're serving pancakes."

"Oh! I like pancakes! Not because of Ms. Pancakes, though."

"Hehe. She's heard that joke a lot. Come along then."

Khalieah and Ms. Sullivan headed downstairs to the cafeteria. It was already nearly full, but the last table was empty, so Khalieah wanted to sit there. She grabbed a plate of pancakes (which were strawberry-flavored; her favorite) from the counter and made her way to the empty table, trying not to feel intimated by the crowd of chattering kids. She caught a glimpse of Max, but quickly looked away.

"Aren't you going to eat breakfast, Ms. Sullivan?" Khalieah asked once they were seated.

"I ate breakfast before I came to your room. I'm good. How was your night?"

"It wasn't so---" *cough* *cough*

"Dear, are you alright?!" Khalieah managed to swallow the food and rubbed her throat. "Don't talk with your mouth full. You'll hurt yourself."

"I'm okay. Sorry. I was going to say it wasn't so good."

"Why is that?"

"I had a really bad dream about..." Khalieah suddenly stopped. She couldn't bring herself to talk about it. She liked Ms. Sullivan, but she simply didn't comfortable enough yet. "Nothing. I forgot."

"Are you sure?" Ms, Sullivan asked suspiciously. "We can speak in private if you like."

"I'm sure. But I did meet this girl. I woke her up when I screamed and she thought someone was in trouble, so she ran into my room. She's really chatty. Her name is..."

"Khalieah!"

Right then, Brianna came running up with a plate of pancakes in her hands, and joined the girl and the counselor at their table.

"I overslept! I can't believe I almost missed breakfast! Khalieah, you're here! So, did you get back to sleep? Any more nightmares?"



"No, Brianna. I slept fine."

"Ah, you met Brianna."

"Hi, Ms. Sullivan! Yeah, I met Khalieah last night! She let me sit and talk on her bed, and I told her about lots of stuff! We talked about my sisters and I told her how we used to have bad dreams and what we'd do! Khalieah has cute pajamas! She's got footies and she sleeps in her pigtails! So, do you know which class you have, Khalieah? I have art class after breakfast. I love art class! We get to color and draw lots of fun stuff and--"

Ms. Sullivan raised her hand up. "Brianna, dear..."

"Yes? Oh. Oops! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt. I was so happy to see Khalieah again. I knocked on her door and she didn't answer."

"I was telling Ms. Sullivan about you. How come our doors don't lock?"

"Hmm. Why don't they lock? Why is that? Why can't we lock the doors?"

"Because we had problems with students purposefully locking themselves in. We had to remove the locks for safety reasons."

"Brianna, who teaches art class?"

"The teacher's name is Ms. Patel. She's a little goofy, but she's nice and shows us lots of neat stuff."

"And she's the first teacher you have to meet."

"She is? So, I have art class?"

"With me! Yes! We're going to be in the same class! My friends are in the class too, but I'll introduce you during recess. It'll be more fun that way."

"Okay, girls, if you want to get to class on time, you should finish your breakfast. The more you talk, the less time you'll have."

The girls took Ms. Sullivan's advice and finished up their plates. Brianna showed Khalieah where put her plate away and Ms. Sullivan walked with both girls to the art class, which was right next door.

"Brianna, please go sit. I need to speak with Ms. Patel about Khalieah for a moment."

"Okay!" Brianna went to her seat as Ms. Patel over to see the two.

"Hello, Ms. Sullivan. Nice to see you. Is this Khalieah?"



"...Mmph."

"Oh? Are you shy, Khalieah?"

Khalieah slowly nodded, trying hard to keep a smile pasted on her face.

"Yes, she's uneasy meeting others for the first time. She'll come around soon."

"That's no problem. She's certainly not the first shy student I've had. Go ahead and take a seat, Khalieah. You can sit wherever you like."

Khalieah went off to find a seat, which didn't take long because Brianna excitedly urged Khalieah to sit next to her. Brianna told her about the assignments they got and what art class was like.

"I see. Yes, I'm aware of Max's, err, reputation when it comes to new students. I assure you I'll keep a close eye on him to make sure he doesn't bother Khalieah."

"Thank you, Ms. Patel."

Ms. Sullivan took a seat in the empty chair near the entrance while Ms. Patel finally let the class begin.

"Alright, students, listen! Please take your seats. I see some of you haven't sat yet."



At Ms. Patel's voice, the students scrambled to their desks. The class settled down and was quiet.

"We have someone new with us today. Her name's Khalieah and she's going to be in our class from now on. I want you to treat her kindly. Everyone, say hi. She's sitting to Brianna."

Whole class: (loudly) Hi, Khalieah!

Khalieah forced a wave and a tiny "hi". She was rather embarrassed at being made the center of attention.

After class has ended...

"Did you enjoy art class?"

"Yes, Ms. Sullivan, I did. I wish I didn't get so much paint on my hands, though. I spent ten minutes washing it off!"

"Try washing it out of your hair! It'll take you forever! I once got three different colors all over my arms! Ms. Patel said I'm wild with paint! It comes off skin better than clothes. If you get it on your clothes, it never comes off unless it's watercolor paint. You can get it off in the laundry when you wash them. I once tried painting my skin, but there wasn't enough paint!"



"It's very nice of you to tell Khalieah about school, Brianna. I'm afraid you girls won't be together next class. Khalieah has music."

"Awww. I have science. But I'll be right next door, so that's good! Try not to lose your mind! Music class will drive you nutty!"

"Why? Is the teacher mean?"

"No. Violins. You'll see when you get there." Brianna gave her a wink. "I've got to use the bathroom. Bye bye!"

Ms. Sullivan led Khalieah upstairs and showed her the way to the music room. "Ms. Sullivan, did you go with Brianna to her classes too when she was new? You spent a lot of time with her too?"

"Yes, I did. Why do you ask?"

"Was she always so...well...?"

"Chatty? Yes, Brianna has always been so energetic and lively. She means well."

"I like her, but it's a little annoying. I don't want to be mean to her because she's nice to me, but I think she talks too much. Is that bad?"

"No, it's not bad you feel that way. If she interrupts you, don't be afraid to say "excuse me" and say what you want. Brianna tries to be good about it."

"I know. She was like that last night. I wish I could be like that. Outgoing all the time and stuff."

"You are fine the way you are, Khalieah. It's okay to be reserved. You do come around sooner or later. You're talking to me."

"I like you. Do you like me?"

"Yes. I care about all of my students."

They entered the music room among other students who were coming in at the same time.

"Ah, good day, Ms. Sullivan. Is this young lady my newest student?"

"Yes, Mr. Huntington. This is Khalieah."



"Khalieah. Such a sweet name. Have you ever played an instrument, young one?"

Khalieah shook her head.

"A complete beginner. I am so glad I'll be able to teach you, mi amor. Go on and grab a violin. Whichever once you want. There are plenty."

While she went off, Ms. Sullivan explained she would be sitting in class while Khalieah attended. Mr. Huntington jokingly asked if she was certain since this was a beginner class. Ms. Sullivan assured him she'd manage. She wasn't exactly new to the students' lessons.

Once all the students had chosen a violin, Mr. Huntington allowed class to begin. He started off as Ms. Patel did by introducing Khalieah as their newest classmate. It felt just as embarrassing for Khalieah, but she was alright with Ms. Sullivan there.

"Alright, class. First, let me hear your best tunes. Let's see who's been practicing. Khalieah, you go ahead and try too. I want to hear everyone. Now...play!"



Khalieah almost immediately understood what Brianna meant when she said music class would drive her nutty. She loved music, but never had she heard something so loud and grating. It felt like someone was shredding her nerves with a cheese grater!

Nevertheless, she tried to concentrate on playing her own violin. It was much easier said than done, as even her own unskilled playing frayed her nerves.

(To be continued...)

Note: This chapter got very long, so I decided to break it in two to avoid an overly large post. Part two will be up as soon as possible!

XSimMimX

Brianna seems like a good kid! Looking forward to the next chapter/part

Julyvee94

It's so fun to see the premades as teachers and social workers. such a cute story

KayeStar

Chapter 4: Brianna (Part 2)

Khalieah's next class was science with Ms. Fyres, who, like the others, was happy to have a new student in her class.



Ms. Fyres assigned Khalieah to a science station and started her class as normal. Everything on the station was labelled, so Khalieah knew what everything was. She listened carefully to the directions as she heard him, fearful to make a mess.



Somehow, the classroom seemed quieter than the previous ones. Perhaps because science was so serious. For the first 30 minutes, things went smoothly and Khalieah even began to feel a little less nervous. She was genuinely enjoying her first day. Sure, being made the center of attention as the new student was a little embarrassing, but the friendliness of her teachers put her at ease. And of course, Having Ms. Sullivan there the whole time made her feel good too. Maybe this school wasn't that bad...

Khalieah: "AHHH! FIRE! HELP!"

Ms. Fyres: "Dear, get away from it!"



Almost as soon as Khalieah was out of the way, the sprinkler system came on to extinguish the flames, preventing the fire from spreading further.



Fortunately, Khalieah hadn't been singed, but that didn't mean she wasn't upset. And after she'd just started to think things weren't so bad.

Khalieah: "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I don't know what I did! I'm sorry!"



Ms. Fyres: "It's alright, dear. I know you didn't mean it. That's why we have the sprinklers in here. It'd be strange if something didn't catch fire once in a while. As long as you didn't get burned, everything is alright."

Khalieah: *sobbing inconsolably*

Ms. Sullivan: "I think I'd better take her to her room for now. She's too upset."

Ms. Fyres: "That's probably best. I'll mark her as present in the attendance list since she was here. When she calms down, try telling her how many times you've gotten wet from the sprinklers. Hehe. That always makes the students laugh."

Ms. Sullivan: "Does it ever!"

Ms. Sullivan took Khalieah's hand and walked her out of the class to her bedroom just across the hall. She got Khalieah to sit on her bed and waited patiently for her to calm down.

In a few more minutes, Khalieah started to calm herself. She stopped sobbing, though she still sniffled for a short while. She felt awful. Of all the ways to ruin things, only she could start a fire. It had to be her.

"Are you alright now?"

"No. I messed up everything!"



"Khalieah, it was an accident and like Ms. Fyres said, it'd be strange if that didn't happen every so often. It's science class and you're working with chemistry labs. We've learned to expect that sort of accident."

"But what if she doesn't want me in her class anymore?"

"That's not true. All of Ms. Fyres's students have done that at least once. She's not mad with you. I know it. She's happy to have you in her class."

"Did she say that?"

"Yes, but you were still asleep. She said it this morning when I told her and the rest of your teachers they'd meet you today."

"But...the science station..."

"Can be replaced. We have plenty of those stored away. That's how often this happens. It's the same reason we have the sprinklers. Well, that and we don't have firefighters in Newcrest."

"You don't? Why not?"

"Apparently, the town needs to save on taxes and resources, so they manufactured sprinkler systems instead."

"What does that mean?"

"It means we can't have firefighters because they're too costly for now."

"....Did you see lots of fires in science class?"

"Yes. Many. And I got often got showered right along with the fire."

"You did? Why?"

"When there's a fire, only the sprinkler above the fire is supposed to turn on. But for a while, we had a defect in the system that caused multiples ones to come on instead. If I was ever in the classroom, somehow, I could never dodge them."

Khalieah tried to hide it, but Ms. Sullivan could see she was stifling a laugh. "So, you got wet a lot?"

"Let's just say I started bringing an extra pair of work clothes with me."

Khalieah tried to picture the scenario in her head. The clearer she was able to make it, the harder it was to hold in and hide her steadily growing laughter. In truth, the defect was fixed long before any of the school's current students arrived, so it was a somewhat old story, but so far, it never failed to make any student laugh when Ms. Sullivan told it, so she didn't mind keeping it around. Besides, her co-workers never let her live it down anyway.

"How do you feel now?"

"Good. Are we going to go back to class?"

"No, class is over now. It's your lunchtime. And your new friend will be there."

The mention of Brianna made Khalieah jump up happily. The fire incident in class had completely left her mind for the time-being. She raced toward her door before Ms. Sullivan could get up.

"Are you com---ouch!" Not minding what was in front of her when she looked back to speak to Ms. Sullivan, Khalieah had run into her door.

(deadpan) "The door is closed."

"I know that now." Luckily, the hit into the door was a small one, so her head wasn't hurting. She and Ms. Sullivan headed downstairs to the cafeteria. The students were having BLTs for the lunch that day.

Khalieah grabbed her lunch and began to look for somewhere to sit when a familiar, cheerful voice rang out behind her.

"Khalieah! You're here! That means you're with us for lunch! Come with me! Come with me!"

Before Khalieah could reply, Brianna was nudging her toward a specific table, where two other girls were already sitting. Khalieah felt nervous for a moment until she recognized them, although it took her a few moments to remember where. They were in her art class with Brianna.

"Sit! Here, girls! This is Khalieah! Khalieah, these are my friends, Kimberly and Jennifer."



Brianna: "I was going to wait until recess, but this is better!"

Kimberly: "Khalieah, huh? I remember you from this morning. You sat next to Brianna. Nice to meet you."

Jennifer: "I remember you too. I was sitting right behind Brianna. Kimberly and I were wondering what she was excited about. Then again, she's always excited."

Kimberly: "Yeah, Brianna doesn't have an off switch. Hey, Brianna says you live here. That's cool. Jennifer and I live here too. What brought you here?"

Khalieah: (shyly) "My parents...went away."

Jennifer: "My parents sent me away. They said this school would be the best for me. I transferred here, but I've been in boarding school since kindergarten."

Kimberly: "My mom got hurt really bad in an accident. My dad takes care of her, but she's so bad, he couldn't take care of me too, so I had to come here. I get to talk to my dad everyday and he sends me letters."

Brianna: "Oh, I never told you why I was here! Well...I don't really know why. My dad died when I was littler and my mom took care of me and my sisters all by herself. We all go to different schools. My biggest sister goes to private school, my second big sister goes to a public school, I go here, and my little sister goes to a religious preschool. I'm the only one who lives away from home."

Khalieah: "What's a religious preschool?"

Brianna: "I don't know for sure. I just know they teach special things you don't learn in other schools. Oh, Khalieah, we have recess after lunch. Are you going to come to the playland with us? We play in the dollhouse and on the spaceship and in the maze! There's a swimming pool there too, but we're not allowed to go swimming. But it's okay. There's the spaceship and dollhouses, and there's books there because some students like to read, and there are stuffed animal and you can play pretend. But we can't go downstairs! There's a basement. We can't go down there without a grown-up. The bathrooms are down there. And we can---"

Kimberly and Jennifer: "Brianna!"

Brianna: Oops! Sorry, girls. I just wanted to tell Khalieah about everything we can do at the playland. There's lots of stuff, you know. Spaceship, dollhouses, books, animals. You can never play with it all in one day! Okay, maybe you can, but it'll take all day! You'll be having so much fun, you'll forget the time! *blabber blabber blabber*

Kimberly: (mouthing to Khalieah) "She does this all the time. If you want hang out with us, get used to it."

Khalieah: (mouthing back) "How do you make her stop?"

Jennifer: (mouthing) "Like this." (out loud to Brianna) "Planet Earth called! We need you back, Brianna!"

Brianna: "Huh? Did I go on again? Sorry. I forget. But I'm happy we have a new friend! I can't stop telling her everything! I like to tell everything!"

Kimberly: "That's our Brianna!"

The four girls managed to keep talking - thankfully, with no more of Brianna falling into endless chatter - until lunchtime ended. Afterwards, everyone gathered up for recess to head over to the playland, lead by Ms. Sullivan and the gym teacher, Ms. Wesley. Brianna fell behind with some other students she'd started talking to, but Kimberly stayed up with Khalieah while Jennifer followed behind.



Khalieah: "Kimberly, how did you and Jennifer meet Brianna?"

Kimberly: "Brianna and I already knew each other, but we came at separate times. Jennifer came later. I met her before Brianna did. That's why she's so excited. She got to meet someone first for once."

Khalieah: "Do lots of kids like Brianna?"

Kimberly: "Except Max, of course, all the kids like Brianna, but nobody can really hang out with her. She talks too much. Besides that, she's really the nicest kid here."

Khalieah: "I'm glad we're friends, but...uh..."

Kimberly: "She said you were friends before you felt comfortable? Yeah, she does that. But she can. Brianna has something special about her. You just can't not have her around. It doesn't feel right when she's not there."

Khalieah: "Does Brianna ever get sad?"

Kimberly: "Not a lot, but when she does, everybody will try to cheer her up. She's always doing it for us. And she's like a whole different person when she's sad. I bet you can't picture her being sad and quiet, right? I couldn't either until I saw her do it. It felt like she looked like Brianna, but she wasn't really Brianna. That's how weird it is."

Khalieah: "So, when Brianna's quiet..."

Kimberly: "Unless she's asleep, something's not right."

When the group reached the playland, Ms. Wesley announced to the children they had 45 minutes for recess and they'd all gather again to. The moment she was done speaking, the children raced off in different directions. Ms. Wesley and Ms. Sullivan stuck near the entrance to speak with each other.

Brianna, Khalieah, Kimberly, and Jennifer gathered together at one of the tables with stuffed animals.

Brianna: "Uh-oh. We only have three chairs. Here, Khalieah. Take mine. You can have it."

Khalieah: "It's okay. I'll stand. You can keep it. I want to be next to the blue dinosaur."



Kimberly: "Where are going to travel today? I vote for Sixam!"

Jennifer: "That's where we went last time! Let's fly to Lunar Lakes!"

Brianna: "No way! We crashed into an alien tree last time! Let's fly into the future! I didn't get a hoverboard! Khalieah, what do you think? Where do you want to go?"

Khalieah: "Umm...I'm...not sure."

Jennifer:"What about Imagination Place? Thar's where went the first time. Let's go there since we have Khalieah with us."

Brianna: "Oh, yeah! I like that! Want to go to Imagination Place, Khalieah? You'll love it!"

Khalieah: "Okay. How do we get there?"

Other three: "The spaceship! Let's go!"

The girls led Khalieah over to "their" spaceship and helped her climb aboard. Kimberly took control of the steering wheel as captain while Brianna manned the lookout. Jennifer hung on from the back with Khalieah, making sure all sides were clear.



Kimberly: Ladies, is everything clear? Are we ready for take-off?"

Brianna: "The premises are secure, Captain!

Jennifer and Khalieah: "All clear!"

Kimberly: "Systems are set! Prepare for take-off! On your marks!

Jennifer: (whispering to Khalieah) "Psst. When she says "countdown", start counting backwards from 5 and say lift-off."

Kimberly: "Countdown to take-off!"

All four: "5, 4, 3, 2, 1...LIFT-OFF!"

Kimberly: "Onward to Imagination Land!"

While the girls were "traveling" and having a good time, somebody else was causing some trouble at the dollhouse.

Max: "Hey, Livy! Get over here!"

Olivia: "Go away, Max. Leave me alone."

Max: (darting right up to her) "Hey! Listen to me! I got some cookies! I'll give you some if you can guess flavor they are. Bet you can't!"

Nobody, not even Brianna, knew it for the time-being, but Max had a crush on Olivia and she was the only person he would be nice to...when she did what he wanted, that is.

Olivia: "I don't want any cookies. Go away!

Max: "Come on! Don't be a dummy! Nobody else will get them."

Olivia: "You're dumb. I don't like you. Leave me alone!" (starts walking away)

Max: "Hey! Get back over here! Livy! You dumb---!

Meanwhile, the girls had landed in Imagination Land and Khalieah's new friends were giving her a tour.



Brianna: "Don't be fooled because it's narrow right now. All kinds of creatures pop out here! And they'll bite you!"

Jennifer: "We once saw a snake! It jumped right up Kimberly's skirt!"

Kimberly: (feigning hurt) "You promised not to tell!"

Brianna: "The snakes aren't scary. It's the beetles! They grow ten feet tall and try to smoosh you!"

Olivia: AHHHH!

Khalieah: "What was that?!"

Kimberly: "Look over there! Oh, no! Max is bothering Olivia again!"

The girls peered over the hedges and indeed saw Max just as he attacked Olivia. Her scream had resulted from dodging his first hit.



Thankfully, he had little time to do much to her because Ms. Sullivan and Ms. Wesley saw and interfered.

Ms. Wesley: "Max, what on Earth do you think you're doing?!"

Ms. Sullivan "Olivia, come here."

Olivia let Ms. Sullivan check her to make sure she wasn't injured. She wasn't, but Ms. Sullivan still wanted to take her to the nurse to be. Olivia objected, insisting she wasn't hurt besides a scratch from the ground.

Ms. Wesley: "Max! You are in a lot of trouble, young man! You know the rules! No fighting allowed!"



Max: "That's not fair! She attacked me first!"

Olivia: "I did not! You hit me because I didn't want your cookies!"

Max: "No, she got mad because I offered her cookies and hit me!"

By now, Brianna, Khalieah, Kimberly, and Jennifer had climbed over the hedges and brought themselves onto the scene to help Olivia out.

Brianna: "Max, you're lying! We saw you! You hit her first! And I know Olivia! She'd never hit anybody! You started it!

Max: "What do you know? You weren't here!"

Kimberly: "We were playing in the maze. We heard Olivia scream and we saw Max hit her!"

Jennifer: "Olivia didn't do anything! It's Max's fault!"

Max: "It's not fair! Those girls don't like me! They'll protect Livy because they don't like me and they like Livy!"

Olivia: (pointing to Khalieah) "Wait, I don't know her."

Ms. Wesley: "I'm certain who's the guilty party here, but that's true, Olivia. You and Khalieah haven't met. So, Khalieah, who's guilty?"

Max: "No, you can't ask her! She hates me more than all of them! She'll lie!"

Brianna: "Don't talk about Khalieah like that! She's not like you, Max! She'll tell the truth! She heard Olivia before we did! She was the first to say something! Right, Khalieah? You'll tell the truth, right? I know you will! You're not bad like Max! You're a good person!"

Max: "Stop talking! You talk too much!"

Khalieah hated that she was put in the spotlight this way. It was embarrassing. She wanted to sink into a hole. She almost wished she had stayed behind in the maze and minded her own business. She didn't want to say anything. But she remembered Brianna had spoken up for her before they met. And right now, Brianna was trusting her to do the same.

Ms. Sullivan: "I believe that's enough, Max! You're going to the office!"

Khalieah: "Wait! It's true. Max is lying again. He swung at her and she ducked, so he tackled her and made her fall. She hit her head on the chair because of him. She's innocent."

Khalieah's friends all beamed at what she said and even Olivia smiled widely. Max was fuming, but Ms. Wesley walked him away before he could say any more. She also took Olivia along to drop her off at the nurse's office and so Ms. Sullivan could continue watching the children. Olivia still didn't believe she needed to see the nurse, but since she'd hit her head, she had to. As they walked away, Olivia wordlessly said "thank you" to the girls for protecting her.

Brianna hugged Khalieah for speaking up and told her she did great, and Kimberly and Jennifer joined in on the praise too, much to Khalieah's embarrassment. Ms. Sullivan also took the chance to tell Khalieah she was proud of her for speaking up in Olivia's defense. Khalieah's face couldn't have gotten any redder if she tried. There was still some time left for recess, so the four girls decided to play inside the dollhouse.

Kimberly and Brianna played with the toy dollhouse while Khalieah and Jennifer read together on the couch.



The remainder of recess passed without incident, although the girls did wonder what would happen to Max. Khalieah, in particular, hoped he wouldn't come back to school again.

15 minutes later, recess ended and all the students were called together to head back to school. For now, Khalieah had to split from her new friends, but they invited her to get together with them after classes were done for the day. She happily agreed.

Khalieah's next class was computer class with Mr. Zest.



Aside from the sound of typing, the class went by peacefully, just as her others. For this day, they did math problems, which weren't Khalieah's strong suit, but Mr. Zest came by a few times to help her and some other students out.

Finally, it was time for Khalieah's last class of the day. This time, it was gym with Ms. Wesley, the same teacher who'd taken the students out for recess. The actual gym was across the street. To Khalieah's surprise, changing clothes wasn't necessary like it was at her old school, but she wanted to do it anyway because she didn't want to dirty her rose jacket.

Gym class was essentially doing exercises on the monkey bars the whole time.



Khalieah: (to herself) "This town is so weird. We can't even play catch?"

By the time gym class ended, it was 3:00. Classes were over and while Khalieah had a good day, she was glad it was over. She was tired and her arms were sore. She wanted to go back to her room.

"Are you alright there, Khalieah? You look like you need a nap."

"No, I'm too big for napping."

"Heh. Wait until you're bigger. You'll love napping. Be careful crossing the street."



As they got onto the other side of the street, Brianna, Kimberly, and Jennifer were coming outside. Their classes had ended and they were going to look for Khalieah.

Brianna: "There she is! Khalieah! So, you had gym last! Did you like it?"

Khalieah: "My arms hurt."

Kimberly: "Try hanging upside down for ten minutes and tell me how that feels."

Brianna: "Ms. Sullivan, since all the classes are over, can we take Khalieah by the picnic area? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we? Can we?"

Ms. Sullivan: (laughing) "Goodness! I see you've got plenty of energy left for the day, as always. Sure, but only until dinner."



Brianna: "Yes!"

Ms. Sullivan escorted the girls to the picnic area, where they gathered around one of the tables to talk for a while. They talked all about their classes, what they did, the playland, the "trip" they'd take tomorrow, and whatever else came they came up with. Well, Brianna did most of the chatting, but Kimberly and Jennifer got their own words in.



Khalieah didn't say much, but for once, she wasn't being quiet out of shyness. She simply wanted to listen for a little while. She kept going over the day in her head. She hadn't expected to like it as much as she did. Sure, there was the fire accident in class and what happened at recess, but neither of those incidents bothered her anymore. She liked her teachers, she liked the new friends she made, especially Brianna, and she really liked Ms. Sullivan. She felt worried about having to be without her tomorrow, but having the girls as her friends, even if they didn't share all of their classes together, put some of the worry to rest. This was the happiest she'd felt since she left her old city.

There was only one thing on her mind that wouldn't leave her alone. The thing she didn't want to talk about. That nightmare. What happened to her family?

KayeStar

Chapter 5: Review and Revenge

The rest of the week had gone without incident for Khalieah and when the weekend finally rolled around, Ms. Pancakes came to visit to see how she was doing. Khalieah was happy to see her and more excited to tell her how school had gone. Ms. Pancakes took her out to the Cozy Cubby, a children's cafe in Newcrest, so the two could sit and talk.

"I'm happy I could see you again, Khalieah. So, tell me, how was your first week of school. Did it go well?"

"It was good. And bad. But more good."



"Good and bad? How?"

"There was this mean boy. His name's Max. He started picking on me after I came there. But he got in trouble! And then, he beat up a girl at recess."

"Oh, my!"

"But he got in trouble again and he didn't come back to school. And I started a fire in science class."

"A fire?"

"Uh-huh. I made the sprinkler come on. My teacher and Ms. Sullivan said it happens a lot 'cause it's chemistry. That's why they have the sprinklers!"

"So, a bully and a fire. You've had a quite a week!"

"Wait, I didn't tell you the good stuff. I made friends!"

"Did you now? That's lovely! Who are your friends?"

"Brianna, Kimberly, and Jennifer. They're really nice. I met Brianna first and she let me meet Kimberly and Jennifer. We play together all the time. We go to the playland for recess. Jennifer can play the piano and sometimes, she plays for us. She's really good at it!"



"We don't always play in the dollhouse. We play on the spaceship and the pirate ship too! We go to lots of fun places!"



"And the school makes really yummy food! We had garlic noodles for dinner yesterday. I eat with my friends all the time now, and we talk about stuff. Brianna talks the most. She's really chatty, but she's the nicest."



"We played a new game last night! Brianna has cards and the teachers let us borrow a little table, so we could play in her room. It's called Lucky Stars."



"Sounds like you're having a good time. What about Ms. Sullivan? I hear you spent a lot of time with her."

"I did! I like Ms. Sullivan! She's really nice to me! She told me all about school and went with me to my classes on the first day. And she made me feel better about Max. I know where her office is now and I went to see her once."



"She said everything I tell her in her office is con...con...confi..."

"Confidential?"

"Yes, that. She doesn't tell anyone. Unless it's very bad. Like I get hurt. Then, she has to tell."

"I'm happy to hear you're having a good time in school. What about at night? Do you sleep well?"

"Uh..."

"No? Yes? Kind of? Do you have a hard time going to sleep?"

"........."

"Khalieah? What's the matter? You look sad all of a sudden."



She was. Khalieah did like school, but the nights were hard because of her dreams. Except for the time she fell asleep after she met Brianna, Khalieah didn't sleep well at night.

"Khalieah?"

Khalieah had gotten lost in her thoughts. The dreams themselves weren't really bad dreams. It's just that they were always about...



"You and Daddy met here, Mommy?"

"That's right, honey. This is where we had our first date."



"I like it here too! It's nice and shady. And the tree is pretty!"

"That's we liked best about it."

It was the one thing Khalieah couldn't talk about. It was on her mind a lot, but she didn't ever want to talk about it. She wanted it to be a secret. It was one of the few things Khalieah liked about being in Newcrest. Nobody had to know.

"Khalieah, are you alright? You're not answering--"

"I'm hungry."

"Excuse me?"



"Can I have a cookie?"

"Sure, I'll get you one, but do you remember what I asked you? How you're--"

"No! No! I sleep fine! I want a cookie!"

"You don't sound fine. Do you want to talk about something?"

"No! I'm fine! I'm hungry!" She was beginning to fidget and rock her seat.

"What's gotten you--?"

(raising her voice) "No!" Khalieah covered her ears and shook her head. "I sleep fine! I sleep fine!"

"Khalieah, please relax. I see you don't want to talk to me anymore. I'll get your cookie and we'll go back to school."

Khalieah quickly calmed down, though the cookie had just been an excuse. She didn't really want it. Well, not until she actually got it. Then, she very much wanted it.

When they returned to the school, Khalieah darted up to her room while Ms. Pancakes discussed things over with Ms. Sullivan.

"How does she seem at this point, Ms. Pancakes?"



"She certainly is happier than she was the week before I dropped. She was quite stressed out then. She talked a lot about the friends she's made and I'm sure she's grown fond of you. She did tell me about some incidents she had, but she didn't seem bothered by them. There is something I need to ask you, however."

"Go ahead."

"Has Khalieah had any outbursts or tantrums since she's been here?"

"Yes. The first time I discussed things with her, she shouted at me when I told her she'd have to live here. She had an incident with another students and she had a fit before we could get her side of the story because she believed she was in trouble. Is that ordinary of her?"

"Yes. I ask because she had a fit when we were speaking at the cafe. There's something she didn't want to talk about. I know there's something she's very sensitive about, but I'm afraid I don't know what it is."

"She is still a young child and outbursts aren't hugely uncommon at her age."

"But I've only seem her have a fit when this matter, whatever it is, comes up. I've never seen her become so upset about anything else."

While the counselor and social worker continued their discussion downstairs, Khalieah was having a conversation of her own upstairs with the only "person" she'd tell her secret to.

"I do like Ms. Pancakes, Kali, but I don't want to tell her. I don't want to tell anybody. It's supposed to be a secret forever. Why should I tell them? I don't want to tell Brianna or Kimberly or Jennifer either. No one ever. I know I told you, Kali! You're different! Nobody can ask you!"



Meanwhile...

Max: "Everyone knows why we're here, right? To get revenge! I'm gonna show everyone I'm the king!"



Ronnie: "Uh...who are we getting revenge on again?"

Max: "You're so dumb! That Khalieah girl! She got me in big trouble and I'm gonna pay her back! You're all gonna help me!"

Jake: "We like ya, Max, but why should we care about some little girl, dude?"

Max: "Because I'm the head honcho and that girl doesn't know it! Imma show her I'm in charge!"



Ben: "So what's the plan?"

Max: "We gotta go to the school later. I gotta talk to someone."

Later, evening had set. Brianna was outside by herself, gazing at the school's fountains. Even the young chatterbox enjoyed some quiet time now and then. She viewed the fountains as peaceful. Looking at them calmed her.

She didn't notice a certain someone about to disrupt her peace.



And she wasn't happy when he finally did.

"Hey there. What's up, chatty? Whatcha' doing? Gonna jump in the fountain?"

"Max, you got suspended. You can't be here! Go away or I'm telling!"

"Chill, chatty-chatter. I want to offer you a deal."



"A deal? For what?"

"You met my boys before, right?"

"What about them?"

"I was talking to the boys and they were saying they like you."

"They do?"

"Yeah. They want you to be in our club."

"Really? They want me? And my friends too?"

"Just you, but your friends can join later if you pass the test. You just gotta be on our side. Just do exactly what I say."

"Okay! What do I have to do? Eat a bug?"

"Nah. You gotta do something mean."

"Like a prank? I know great pranks!"

"Nah. It's your newbie friend. You gotta tell her you hate her."

"What?! No way! I'll never be mean to Khalieah!"



"Oh, come on! Who cares about her? She's new. Nobody likes her. They're just nice to her 'cause they have to be nice. Everybody likes you. Just tell everyone to be mean to her for a day and then, you can tell her you were kidding."

"Not in a million billion years! Get lost, Max!"

"But it's a prank. It's a good prank. She'll never suspect. Or just tell her you hate her and let her cry for a while. Is that better? That's all you gotta do!"

"No! I don't want to join anymore! I like Khalieah!"

"Why? Why do you like that newbie girl? What's so special about her?"

"Everything that's not you. Now, go away or I'm telling!"

"Brianna, don't be a dummy. I'm only giving you this chance one time. You'll lose it forever."

"Ms. Lee!"

"Alright, alright! I'm going! You're gonna feel bad about this! You'll see!"

Both kids stomped away from each other in fury, but Max wasn't going to give up that easily. If he couldn't get the leader of the kids to join his side, he'd force her. He'd make Brianna join him, whether she wanted to or not.



Max rejoined this friends down the street.



Jake: "I don't see anybody else. Guess she said no?"

Max: "I'll make her join. Nobody tells me no!"

Ben: (laughing) "Clearly, this "Brianna" does!"

Max: "Shut up! Nobody asked you!"

XSimMimX

Wow, drama! I really like this story

Charliimai

Another great chapter