Quick recap: Violet-Rose says that she trusts Isabella, and agrees to be her teacher. Vi then remembers the importance of wearing a disguise and brings this up to Isabella.

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“Oooo, you’re right!” Isabella giggles. “This is perfect, I love playing dress up!”

“Do you have any ideas for me?” I raise an eyebrow. From the excited look on her face, Isabella absolutely has an idea.

Her response was hooking her elbow with mine and bringing me to a walk-in closet, smiling as she opened the doors, revealing a treasure-trove of clothes. “Good thing you aren’t much bigger than me,” she winked.

As a twenty-one-year-old who has always been called ‘little,’ I wanted to be offended that a ten-year-old said that I wasn’t much bigger than her, but it is true. I am just shy of five feet tall and rather slight of frame. I have a young looking, heart-shaped, face that’s pale with a dusting of freckles along my cheeks. The same freckles kiss my shoulders, but they are usually covered by the long red hair that reaches my waist. The red hair accentuates my green eyes, which happen to be my favorite favorite feature. There is a ring of gold in the forest surrounding my iris, and it makes them look like my favorite mountain at sunset. And I have doe eyes with long lashes, which make my eyes look huge, and pouted, bowed, rosy lips, which frequently earns me the complement of having a princess face. While it is a great complement, it doesn’t necessarily help with making me look older. Whenever I go out, without fail, I get carded. Oh well, at least I can get the children’s discount when I go to restaurants. The thought makes me smile.

“How about a sundress with a cardigan?” I am pulled from my thoughts with a shake as Isabella shows me options with a smile.

“That sounds lovely,” I return the smile, grateful that she is giving me something to cover my wrists with. She still hasn’t questioned me further. I was so close to telling her what happened when Ms. Herrah knocked. I really need to have more self control.

“Great!” Isabella hands the clothes over. “Would you like to shower before changing?”

“Yes!” I exclaimed right away. I didn’t realize how dirty I felt. “I do think that I’ll need something to cover my hair and face though, what do you think?”

“Your hair is really recognizable because of the color! And your eyes are really unique too,” Isabella muses. “What if we cut your hair short and you wear fake glasses?”

My hands immediately go to my hair. It has been long for most of my life. It feels like a security blanket. But it is a trademark of mine. If someone were to see me with short hair, they probably wouldn’t recognize me. As much as I want my security blanket right now, I want to evade Jace even more. Plus, the look in Isabella’s eyes is telling me that this is the right thing to do. “Okay, cutting my hair sounds like a good idea. But, who is going to cut it?”

“Uhhhhhhhmmmmm,” the mischievous look is back in her eyes. “I have watched a ton of videos on how to cut hair! Plus, my brother gave me hair scissors and a razor for my birthday. And, and, he’s even let me cut his hair.”

“...” 

“Pleeeeeeeaaaaaase?” Isabella clasped her hands in front of her and begged. “You have to admit that Jasper’s haircut looks good!”

She has a point. His hair does look good. “Fine,” I sigh. But a smile soon follows. “I am trusting you with a lot, my dear.”

“I know, and you won’t regret it, I promise!”

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Looking in the mirror, I hardly recognize myself. My once long hair is now cropped close to my face in a modified pixie cut. The top is longer than the sides, and Isabella even managed to get a nice fade. She wasn’t kidding when she said she could cut hair. The cut looked amazing and fit my face-shape surprisingly well. It even helped me look a little older, which is a nice added benefit.

The fake glasses Isabella provided are black, thick, rectangular frames. They’re what I would have called hipster-glasses back when I was in middle school. Like the haircut, I feel like these glasses fit my face. I feel like I finally look my age.

The navy blue sundress Isabella is letting me wear is comfortable. Nice and flowy. And the gray cardigan on top is keeping me nice and cozy and warm. I can’t believe she had clothes that were such a perfect fit.

“You doing okay in there?” Isabella asks through the bathroom door.

“Yep,” I respond, finally turning away from the mirror and exiting the bathroom.

“Wooooooow, Sophia, you look really awesome!” Isabella’s eyes went wide.

“Thank you, I had a wonderful stylist,” I said with a bow. Isabella giggled and nodded. She hadn't seen the final product, because I styled it after taking a shower. Isabella was nice enough to point out the hair drier in the bathroom, so I wouldn't have to walk around with wet hair, and even left some hair product. It was really sweet of her. “Are you ready for me to teach you now?”

“Yes!” Her nodding became more vigorous. “I am really excited to see how you teach. I have a really good feeling about it.”

“I am so excited to hear that!” I pick up the pick folder that her teacher left behind. “It looks like right now you would be doing math, does that sound right?”

“I mean, I usually do math first thing in the morning,” Isabella pouts. “And science right before lunch.”

“Oh, what time is it then? It’s been really difficult for me to adjust to time, since, you know…” I couldn’t bring myself to say since I was shot. Or since I woke up in a strange place with someone trying to kill me.

Isabella’s eyes widen in recognition. “Oh, Sophia, I’m sorry. It is an adjustment period. It is currently almost noon. Your transformation took a little longer than I expected.” She looks at me with such sympathy. “Here, let me get you a watch!”

Looking at the lesson plan again, I see that science is right before lunch. And science is my specialty, so I am not against skipping math and diving into a lesson on natural disasters. I am handed a watch that I immediately put on my wrist. It’s odd because it has two faces within the glass. I guess it’s one of those watches that tells the time in two cities. “Thanks,” I smile. “And, I think that we should just move on to science. Math can wait until tomorrow morning.”

“Yay!”

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We work together on the science unit Isabella’s teacher left behind until we hear another knock on the door.

“Isa, who are you talkin’ to?” A very familiar southern drawl comes from the hallway. My eyes shoot to the door. Thomas? Again?

“Thomas, you know who this is, silly,” Isabella chuckled. “I know that Ms. Herrah told you that I found a new teacher.”

“Yes, but I haven’t had the chance to make their acquaintance yet,” Thomas seemed to beg. “She seems to be making your science lesson fun, and whoever can do that must be really somethin’.”

“She is really something!” She turns and looks at me. “It’s been one day, and it’s already been the most fun I’ve ever had while learning.”

I place my hands over my heart, as it is currently melting. That is the greatest compliment I have ever received. I mouth ‘thank you’ to her, not even able to find my voice.

“Well,” Thomas’ voice pulls me back. “If she is this wonderful, we should all grab lunch together in the atrium.”

Isabella sees me stiffen. She pats my hand, reassuring me that everything will be alright. “Sure, that way she can introduce herself to more of the staff.”

I give her a sideways look. I am trying to avoid people, not see more of them. She nudges my arm, urging me to say something. I make my voice deeper than I normally speak, hoping to sound a little bit older than the last time I talked to Thomas. “Yes, I would love to meet you all.”

“Great, can I open the door then?” Thomas asks as Isabella jumps from the table and runs to the door. I gulp.

“Nope, but I can,” Isabella laughs and opens the door a little wider. “Thomas, this is my new teacher, Sophia! Sophia, this is one of my bodyguards, Thomas!”

I do an awkward little wave from the table, waiting to see if he recognizes me. 

It is time to take my own advice… if you seem confident, no one will question you. 

I rise from the table and make my way to where Thomas is transfixed in the doorway. I smile and extend my hand, which he grabs and lightly shakes. “Hello, Thomas. My name is Sophia. I am Isabella’s new teacher. It is very nice to meet you.”

It is his turn to gulp. His eyes are glued to mine. “Lovely to meet ya, darlin’.”

I start to panic.

Darlin’.

He recognizes me.

Is he going to turn me in?

Am I done for?

“Thomas,” Isabella taps him and he shakes his head, looking back to her. “You should let Sophia’s hand go so we can go to the atrium and eat.”

Thomas looks down to see our hands still connected in a shake. “You are right, I am so sorry. I will alert Ms. Herrah that you’ll be taking lunch there.” He releases my hand and turns to exist but freezes before leaving.

“Don’t worry,” Isabella smiles, “Sophia and I are right behind you.”

Thomas gives a curt nod and starts down the hallway. Isabella and I follow, not too far behind, but far enough behind for Thomas to not hear her when she turns to tell me something. “Sorry about that Isabella, Thomas is a little weird.”

“Oh?” 

What does she mean by that? Am I in danger?

“Yeah, he gets really flustered by people he thinks are cute…” She whispers, smirking up at me.

“What do you mean by that?”

“When he thinks a person is cute, he calls them ‘darlin’’,” Isabella mimics his drawl on the last word and rolls her eyes. “It’s always obvious when he has a crush.”

“Really?” I am in shock. He called me darlin’ earlier too.

“Yep!” She chuckled. “There was a time when he liked Rex, and man, he was such a mess around him. But he goes through crushes like nobody's business, so don’t worry, he won’t bother you after awhile.”

Someone has a crush on me? How sweet! I don’t think anyone has ever had a crush on me before. I smile.

Wait.

Did she say Rex?

Rex? How common could that name be?

And Jace? I know that Jace works here, for sure.

And I am 99% sure she mentioned Jared at one point?

My mind was wondering all over the place, but it snapped back to Thomas as we caught up with him and were entering the atrium. I guess that I would be sharing a meal with darlin’.