Globetrotter Ingrid gets a fabulous fresh start when her job takes her to Melbourne, Australia. Here she meets wise and sweet Oliver, who makes her forget she doesn't have a heart.
This successful stability prompts Ingrid to accept an invitation to...
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September 2004
Unlike Ingrid, Filip had never excelled in school. He'd never liked doing his homework, or the reading required for his classes. So, while middle school had been a breeze for Ingrid, graduating at the top of her class, Filip had struggled to pass some subjects and to catch up in eighth grade. He was sure their village teachers had inflated his last-year grades out of pity for his mother.
There was no other reasonable explanation for how he'd ended up sitting in the city's most elite high-school classroom, with Ingrid beside him. She was beaming, excited for their new adventure to begin, whereas he couldn't bear to look at the rich city kids surrounding them.
Why couldn't he just stay at home? Why did their village not have a high school? He fiddled with the ballpoint pen on his desk. Even something as silly as a pen made him feel self-conscious. His already-horrible handwriting became downright atrocious in ballpoint. But everybody used it in high school, so he had to renounce the fountain pen he'd had since first grade.
"Everyone is seriously so pretty," Ingrid whispered in his ear. "Look at their shoes! They're brand new and clean." She giggled.
Filip glanced down at his dirt-caked trainers. He gulped. His mother had bought him a new pair for his first day of high school, but he'd pointedly refused to wear them.
Their homeroom teacher finally arrived to introduce them to their new school, inform them of their schedule, and help them pick up their allotted textbooks. They were dismissed after only a couple of hours and reunited with George in the schoolyard. Filip's cousin had managed to get into the same high school as him, just in a different class. The boy was grateful for the extra familiar face in the crowd.
"How was it?" George asked, grinning.
Ingrid didn't hide her enthusiasm. "Everyone is so cool! And our homeroom teacher is hilarious. I'm so pleased I can still take German! I thought I'd no longer be able to, but our class is split into French and German. I heard we have one of the best German teachers. I can't wait!"
"I'm looking forward to PE on Wednesday," Filip contributed, reluctant. "I'd like to join the football team."
As he spoke, his eyes drifted to the boys heading across the yard to the sports field.
"Should we watch for a bit?" George suggested, wiggling his eyebrows.
"I do believe we shall," Ingrid solemnly replied and linked her arm with his.
Filip followed from a distance. The last thing he wanted was to embarrass himself in front of the very team he strived to become a part of. The boys had dropped their bags in a pile by a tree and started to stretch. One of them stood out, taller and better built, with a mop of thick, black hair which he constantly ran his fingers through. He brought the football and rallied the others around him.
