Karabo stayed clear of Buzz and William in the dining room. More of the senior boys had arrived back from their mid-term breaks with their families and were sitting together, leaving no space for Grade 10 girls. Buzz always became cool towards her after the weekends. She was used to it by now, and she knew he was just making sure his reputation stayed intact. But she had to admit, it still stung a little to be side-lined when they’d spent time together over the weekend. They were friends when it suited him.

Snapping back into the moment, Karabo joined in the conversation at a table of girls and sat down. Many of them had just arrived back from the mid-term break and were catching up on what they’d all done.

‘We went to Kenton. AGAIN!’ said Tiff, rolling her eyes and opening her mouth in mock boredom. ‘Mom drank G&Ts all weekend and Dad spent his time either on the phone to the office or on his laptop. I should have just stayed here,’ she huffed and sat back into her chair. A strawberry blonde with a light smattering of freckles, Tiff was a smart, sporty and very popular Grade 11. She flicked her ponytail and caught sight of William across the hall. Her eyes widened immediately as she lit up from her bored reverie. Leaning into the table she drew all the girls sitting around her in closer and whispered, ‘Who is that? No don’t look now! One at a time,’ she commanded. Carefully, each girl took a turn to look over at the Grade 12 table of boys. As they each spotted William they would turn back to Tiff and raise their eyebrows and mock squeal. The excitement around the table became heady.

Karabo didn’t have to turn her head, she knew who Tiff had spotted. He was the only new thing around. She waited for everyone to have their turn to gawk at him.

‘His name is William,’ Karabo said nonchalantly, taking a sip of her cold drink. ‘He arrived yesterday out of the blue. I got to take him to the boys’ dorm,’ she smiled, puffing herself up. Tiff was onto her.

‘You got to take him to his room, and not Buzz. How did that happen?’ Tiff asked, eyebrows raised and arms folded across her chest.

‘I was coming down to the reception and there he was. Mr BS told me to take him. That’s all. William seems OK, but he’s a bit weird and rude actually. Doesn’t say much,’ offered Karabo, starting to feel the heat rise in her cheeks.

‘So you’ve been striking up a conversation with the new gorgeous William have you Karabz?’ jeered Tiff, her eyes narrowing into slits as she watched Karabo suspiciously. Karabo swallowed and tried not to look guilty. She wished she hadn’t said anything! Tiff was an expert in manipulation. Where was Isla when she needed her! She breathed deeply and tried again.

‘No Tiff, just chatted to him on the way to the guy’s dorm. Nothing more,’ Karabo said, purposefully not telling Tiff about the bacon incident or playing basketball with him.

Tiff was vaguely satisfied. ‘Well, maybe I’ll be the judge of his weirdness. From here he looks delicious,’ Tiff stated, turning to look at William again, a small smile on her face. Some of the other Grade 11s agreed and nodded in unison.

‘Guess it’s game on girls,’ said Tiff to her friends, ignoring the younger girls who, in her mind, were no competition whatsoever.

Karabo finished her lunch quickly after the conversation with Tiff and retreated to her room, desperate to hide. Why had she told Tiff about William arriving? She could kick herself.

She burst into her dorm, ready to throw herself under her bed, and found Isla. Relief came flooding in and she rushed to Isla, hugging her fiercely.

‘Why have you taken so long to come back? I have been going freaking crazy all alone here!’ she demanded from Isla.

Isla, shorter than Karabo, with straight dark hair, blue-grey eyes, and a wide grin – almost permanently on her face – managed to beam even more.

‘Karabz you banana! I missed you madly. What do you mean you were here alone? I thought you were going to your mom?’ asked Isla, as she stepped back and took in Karabo.

Karabo’s face fell. It was hard to hide how she felt from Isla.

‘Bugger, sorry Karabz. She let you down again,’ said Isla and hugged Karabo back. ‘Wish I had known! You could have come to the farm with me. Was a pretty boring week though, but I did get to watch tons of series and make-up vlogs. Think I have perfected the natural look,’ said Isla, pouting as she turned her face to the side. This made Karabo smile. For a smart girl, Isla could get wrapped up in her beauty really easily. Isla beamed back – she’d missed her bestie and was dying to catch up.

‘So, anything exciting happen around here?’ Isla asked, not expecting much news. This was the opportunity Karabo had been waiting for

‘Well…there is the new guy,’ Karabo said slowly, watching Isla’s face carefully.

‘New guy?’ asked Isla, eyebrows raised. Isla was always complaining about their ‘stock’ as she called it. She found the pool of boys available at Dayeton College far too shallow, except for one. A new boy was always good news. Isla grabbed Karabo’s hand and they jumped onto her bed. ‘Tell me EVERYTHING!’ she said, the excitement in her voice almost screechy.

***

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