Genius

Chapter 26

The next day…

Today feels different as I walked down the halls towards the Principal's office. Maybe it is because of the students gawking at me as I pass by, or the whispers and gossip I heard at the school entrance by students and teachers about me, or maybe it is the newfound sense of freedom that I am now feeling knowing that I don't have to hide a huge part of my true self from everybody. I don't know what to feel about all of these events, which again is nothing new.

I reached the Principal's office and went inside and made my way towards the Assistants table.

"Good morning, I need to talk to Mrs. Kingston please. Tell her it's Claire."

"Wait a moment, I'll see if she's free." The assistant went inside the door leading to Mrs. Kingston's office. A moment later he emerged from it and said for me to come in. I've had countless visits to this office throughout my high school life. Unpleasant visits, that is.

"Claire! It's nice to see you after that exceptional performance yesterday, congratulations. Come, have a seat." She raised both her arms in welcome.

"Thank you, Mrs. Kingston." I took a seat and folded my hands neatly on my lap.

"So what is it you would like to talk about?" She gazed at me intently.

"You promised that if I compete in the Science fair and be in the top 3 then I will be exempted for the rest of the school years tests and exams and get a passing grade on all subjects." I paused and let her recall her promise.

"Yes, I remember. You got 1st and made a never before made invention that brought the school positive publicity. I never break promises so yes, you are exempted from all tests and exams yet still get a passing grade. I'll talk to your teachers about that."

"Thank you. I was also thinking if I could get my Highschool diploma?" I said carefully.

"Yes you can get it but why this early?" She asked.

"I will leave town tomorrow." I admitted yet not giving away too much information.

"Oh, I see… Okay, come to my office tomorrow at 9 am, I'll get your diploma and report card ready by then." She smiled and lifted her hands for a handshake.

I stood up and shook her hands. "Thank you so much." I said sincerely then left the office.

Now that that is done. Only a few things are left that need to be crossed out of my list of things I need to do before I leave.

After that successful visit from the Principal, I went to the 2nd period of the morning. The people I know, which only include Brian, Morgan, and Tyler, aren't in that class so I was all alone. 3rd period was Maths, and this time, all my friends were there. They were already seated when I arrived in class. Again, students stared at me. Saying phrases like: "Hey!, It's the sudden nerd", "Robot!", "How much money did you pay for that project!". Unlike the previous class where students only stared at me, half of this class was full of insolent students who prefer voicing out rude opinions and insults, and like confrontation. Chad Roswelt and Rachel Reed, and their friends were in this class. Staying silent is how I handle those types of people and situations, though now, I feel fury slowly creeping up on me. But I ignore it and them.

When I sat in my seat the teacher arrived also, so the laughing and bullying stopped, for now. Tyler and Morgan gave me sympathetic looks, I glanced at Brian and saw him glaring at some of our classmates. I stared at him for a moment and I felt this warmth on my face. The weird feeling I got when I was at Morgan's when we were playing that game. I quickly looked away and glanced at the people around me. Nobody noticed, what a relief. The warm feeling was still there so I turned my attention to the math teacher who is now writing an equation on the board.