White Daisies

Chapter 3

March 1, 1940

"Unlike King Louis XVI, Napoleon Bonaparte was the right leader at the right time. France had just gone through a bloody revolution, and the country was struggling to get back on its feet. Napoleon was a charismatic individual that promised to be both a strong and powerful leader. Many people fell behind him in support, disillusioned by the violence that had been caused by the revolution."

As he lectures, Mr. Jensen roams around the classroom. Half of the class is barely awake, only looking interested when he walks by, but my eyes are wide open, and my head rests against my fist. I had always found history fascinating, and Mr. Jensen told it like it was a story. I never had to fight sleep in his class.

"But he gained a lot of power in very little time. Although he made a lot of domestic reforms that were beneficial to France, he started to consolidate power for himself. Eventually, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor in 1804, which ended the First French Republic. Using this new source of power, Napoleon quickly launched the Napoleonic Wars to take more territory in Europe. This ultimately ended with Napoleon conquering Austria, Prussia, the Holy Roman Empire, Italy, Portugal, and Spain."

Mr. Jensen stops in front of me. "As I hinted at earlier this week, Napoleon reminds me of another individual that is in power right now. Which is why I think Denmark needs to be more wary of Germany. Hitler has already proved to be ambitious with his invasions of Poland, Austria, and Czechoslovakia. I wouldn't be surprised if his ambitions were not above invading Denmark."

That got people's attention. At this comment, everyone who was half asleep before was sitting up straight with their eyes widened, clearly alarmed at the thought of Denmark being invaded. Mr. Jensen just smirked. He knew how to get students to listen to him.

He waves his hand. "I'm sure the war will be over soon, though. Besides, there is not a big enough reason for Germany to divert military forces to take over a country like Denmark. Denmark poses no significant threat, and we managed to stay neutral in the last big war."

The bell rings for lunch, and everybody sighs in relief.

"Don't forget that we have an exam on Monday! Make sure to start studying," Mr. Jensen reminds us.

A collective groan sounds from the class as everyone picks up their books and begins shuffling towards the door. I'm about to stand up from my desk when Elias Norgaard stands in front of me.

"Hi, Ana," he greets me.

"Hello Elias," I say cautiously.

"I was just wondering if you're doing anything tomorrow."

At those words, I start to panic. Was he trying to ask me out on a date? Alarms start going off in my head, but I remember what I promised Macy this morning.

"I'm taking my sister to Tivoli Gardens tomorrow for her birthday."

"Oh, okay. Well, maybe another time?" he wonders, looking disappointed with my answer.

"Sure." Sending him a tight-lipped smile, I then duck out of the classroom to find Frances and Eva waiting for me in the hallway. 

Frances roars with laughter. "That was the most painful thing I've ever watched!"

I throw my hands up. "I didn't know what to do! I don't think I like him like that." 

"Well, I don't think he got that message," Eva remarks.

Pulling my books to my forehead, I groan as they tease me. They try to make me feel better by asking if I want to go to the cafe up the street for lunch.