Cinder & Ella

Chapter 7

My first day of school went pretty much as I'd expected it would. Everyone stared. I wore my winter uniform even though it was still so hot out because it covered my skin, but it didn't matter that people couldn't see my scars. They watched me limp around on my cane and stared at my long-sleeves and tights, knowing exactly who I was and what I was hiding beneath my clothes.

Some people tried to be discreet, or tried not to look, but their eyes drifted back to me anyway. Those were the kids who would force a smile my direction or speak to me out of politeness when they had to. Other kids stared openly, laughed, pointed, and teased me in an attempt to make the kids around them laugh.

No one made an effort to befriend me. No one stuck up for me when I was being teased. Some looked as if they felt bad for me, but were too afraid to intervene. I figured they were probably the kids who had been the target of the bullies until I came to school and took their places. Not even those kids invited me to sit with them at lunch. They were too afraid to be nice to me.

I did my best to ignore it all, but it was going to take time for me to get to the point where it wouldn't hurt me—if that was even possible.

My stepsisters were absolutely no help to me. I had both of them in at least one class and we all had the same lunch, but as I'd suspected would happen, they'd assumed the pretend-Ella-doesn't-exist tactic. The only time we spoke the entire day was in the parking lot after school. Anastasia greeted me with a nasty glare as she opened the passenger door of their tiny two-door convertible. "Parking in the handicapped section is so embarrassing."

Juliette dumped her backpack on the backseat and climbed behind the wheel. "Whatever. It's the best space in the entire parking lot. It's so close we'll be out of here before the real traffic."

Anastasia scoffed at her sister and pulled the passenger seat forward, gesturing for me to climb into the backseat. Was she kidding? "You know I can't climb in there, right?"

Anastasia shrugged. "Then walk home. I'm not riding in the back the whole year."

I closed my eyes against the sudden sting of frustrated tears. This had been an awful day and I just wanted to get home. "I'm not trying to be difficult. I physically can't climb back there."

"Ana!" Juliette hissed. "Would you just get in?"

"No. This is our car. We shouldn't have to be punished because the freak can't use her legs."

She'd raised her voice enough to gain the attention of half the kids in the parking lot. If she was truly embarrassed of me, she was definitely handling the situation the wrong way. Juliette obviously thought so, too. She glared at her sister and walked around the car to drop the keys in Anastasia's hand.

"Thanks," I mumbled when Juliette climbed into the back and pulled the seat back so that I could sit down.

"Whatever."

Anastasia looked at us both, then shook her head in disgust. After slipping into the driver's seat, she gave her hair a flip and glanced at her sister in the rearview mirror. "I can't believe you just gave her what she wants. Are you going to sit back there every day for the rest of the year?"

"Would you just go, already?" Juliette snapped. "People are staring."

The ride home was silent, save for the Top 40 pop on the radio. Jennifer was home and waiting to greet us with huge smiles and a million questions. I wanted to go straight to my room and stay there until tomorrow, but my stomach won the battle against my willpower. I hadn't eaten breakfast or lunch, and I was going to be sick if I didn't get some food in me.

"How was your first day?" Jennifer asked the three of us as we all wandered into the kitchen.

Deciding she really only cared about her daughters, I let them field the questions and headed straight for the fridge. "It was a nightmare," Anastasia grumbled behind me. "Mom, she just walked around like a zombie, even though people kept laughing and pointing at her and stuff. It was like she had some nasty disease. She sat down in the cafeteria at lunch, and the kids at her table scattered like cockroaches. The place was packed—like, every seat was taken—but nobody would sit by her. She had the whole table all to herself. It was so embarrassing."