Giggleswick: The Amadán Map

Chapter Eight: The School Bell

Chapter Eight: The School Bell

"I hear she’s really nice, but gives loads of homework,” Eliza said with a frown about their first period teacher, Ms. Limerick. 

“Hmm,” said Elliot distractedly, trying not to drop the pile of newly purchased school books pinned between his arms and chest as he and Eliza maneuvered the jam-packed hallways of Giggleswick’s only school house toward their English class. 

“I do hate homework, don’t you?” Eliza continued.

“Hmm,” replied Elliot again, sidestepping a locker door that had nearly swung into his face. 

“At least we get to read Julio and Bernadette this semester. Everyone says there’s a kissing scene in the fifth act,” she said excitedly. 

“Right,” said Elliot, thinking he’d heard Eliza say something about kissing and hoping she didn’t mean with him. He was too busy taking everything in to catch every word his friend was saying. 

“It’s this room,” said Eliza, steering him in through a classroom door to the left where many students were already seated and chatting feverishly. “If we sit in the back, we’ll be able to pass notes.” 

Elliot didn’t think this was necessarily the wisest idea, but seeing as he’d never had someone to pass notes with before, he was too flattered to object. Plus, he’d spotted Kory Kreville toward the front of the room and didn’t fancy sitting too close to the half-Ukrainian snob. He followed Eliza toward two empty seats in the back row and happily plopped his arm full of books upon the desk. 

Before his backside even hit the seat, their teacher strode into the room amidst a multitude of billowing fabric. Her brightly colored dress floated around her willowy frame, and a butterfly hair-clip held her long flowing locks away from her face. “Attention class,” she trilled softly in a sweet tone somewhere between singing and speaking. “Welcome to your first year of Giggleswickian literature. I am Ms. Linda Limerick, though you may call me Ly-Ly ...” she trailed over to the blackboard and sprawled Ms. Ly-Ly in purple chalk across the board. 

Elliot and Eliza exchanged wide-eyed glances, and many other students seemed to be doing the same. There was no way Elliot would be calling their teacher Ms. Ly-Ly, and he had a feeling the rest of the class felt similarly.

“I would like everyone to please take out a writing utensil and blank sheet of paper. We’ll be doing a fun little introductory exercise to practice our writing.” She clasped her hands together and smiled at them, her eyes twinkling. “For the next fifteen minutes I want you all to tell me about the most exciting thing to happen to you over your summer holidays. Remember ... be creative!” 

Ms. Limerick slipped behind her desk. “I will be writing something about my own summer holiday to share with you as well. You may begin!” Elliot watched as Ms. Limerick began scribbling furiously with a pen that looked to have a big purple flower sprouting out the end of it. 

“Psst,” whispered Eliza, nudging her elbow into his side. “What are you going to write about?” 

“Dunno,” Elliot whispered back. His summer had been pretty dull and uneventful, and then he’d gotten himself suspended within the first two weeks of school at St. Bartholomew’s. That wasn’t exactly something he wanted to share with the class. He guessed the boat ride over in Olive Juice would still count as part of his summer holiday since school hadn’t yet started in Giggleswick. That had been pretty exciting, he thought. “I’m going to write about Evol and sailing through the Wailing Wanda Waters,” he told Eliza, thankful to have found something to write about.