Jinn, of the bottle

Chapter 5
New kid at school

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Chapter Description: 3 parts make up this chapter how the djinni introduces herself to Sam, not being the most traditional of djinni's, she meets him as if she were a new kid in school.

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Part 1 The bus journey

Sam sat on the rattling bus staring vacantly out of the window at the fields, along the horizon the city came into view, it wasn’t a large city, more of a large town but it was well connected and superior to his crummy town in every way imaginable, it had the only schools in the area so he travelled each morning.

As the bus clattered its way noisily along the streets Sam heard the familiar sound of a V8 burbling under full chat. Sal was driving his fathers ’68 Fastback Mustang to school, a Shelby, in the hands of a 16 year old delinquent.

He hated his step mother for allowing Sal to use it, but needs must, Sal wanted a car and that’s all she could give her at the time, in the will however, it was Sam’s, but to keep it in the garage, he had to let Sal have use of it, not that she ever actually took him in anywhere in it, he couldn’t so much as touch it.

The Mustang roared past the bus, all the kids watched in awe as the hot young brunette sped past them to school, she didn’t care much for the speed limit outside of the city, out here the cops couldn’t keep up even if they tried which they rarely did.

Sam remained in his seat facing out the other window, refusing to look at the rampant muscle car, he and just one other, a quiet girl of similar age sitting a few seats behind him.

She was quite unusual, with tanned skin and the greenest eyes imaginable, her hair was a striking colour, a dusty ginger, not quite blonde but not quite red, it hung loosely about her face like a frame.

Her head was hung low but she eyed the boy in front. It was not just her appearance that was so unusual however, it was the way she sat, with both legs on the bench she sat cross legged, with her hands were clasped tightly together. She seemed happy enough with a pleasant smile on her face.

The bus squealed to a halt outside the school, Sam could see the Mustang parked up in its usual spot, Sal was sitting on the bonnet chatting to her friends. He sighed at the sight of them and hung around on the bus waiting for them to go as everyone passed him by. The bus driver didn’t mind, he just read the paper, Sam sat patiently, he remembered the odd girl and turned, strangely, she was still there, still smiling vacantly out of the window.

The bell rang alerting the group around the mustang to depart , Sam waited another few minutes so he could make it in time for the second bell without getting caught by his sister or her cronies.

He slung on his bag and made his way to the front of the bus, “come on” he called, “you’re gonna be….” He stopped short, the girl was no where to be seen, he hadn’t seen her leave and she was nowhere in sight, he looked around on the bus and then at the driver who was still reading his paper.

He thought nothing more of it and ran into the building for morning reception.

Part 2 “But, but she’s a girl”

Sam rushed through the vacant corridors huffing and puffing as he raced toward his form urgently to beat the bell.

He crashed into the door as the second bell rang, his entrance to the class drew attention from all.

“Sam, so nice of you to finally join us.” The teacher said sarcastically

“Sorry miss” Sam replied with his head hung low as he slumped into his seat.

“Oh no, don’t be, I’m just glad you volunteered”

“Huh?!?” exclaimed Sam.

Behind the teacher stood the tanned girl with the sandy coloured hair. “Everyone, I would like you to all welcome miss Bottle to our class, she is an exchange student and will be staying with us for a while.”

Some of the children giggled at her name, they giggled again when she was required to write her name on the board and saw her first name was Djinni.

“Her name is D-Jinn-i?”, “No idiot, it’s pronounced Geene” “No it’s not, it’s Jinny” the class enquired.

Sam sunk even lower into his seat hoping that the enthusiasm of the class would spare him his fate of this oddity before him.

“Umm, it’s pronounced Dji-nie, like from the stories” the girl didn’t appear phased or shaken but told her case with a fairly shy tone, her vacant smile disappeared momentarily as she looked down to the floor and twiddled her thumbs, quietly she mumbled “you can call me Jinny if it’s easier”

“Well, ok then...Jinny it is, umm, ah yes, Sam, as you so kindly volunteered it is your task to show Jinny here around the school for the first few weeks” The teacher put a hand on Jinnies shoulder as she spoke.

Jinny smiled at the boy who sunk further into his seat, “but, but” he stammered, “She’s a girl”.

“Yes, and you’re a boy. I’m sure the two of you will get along just fine and in a few years you’d be begging for a chance like this to get to know a pretty girl like Jinny”

Sam practically slid out of his seat, his face was glowing as the other kids in the class laughed and giggled, a child at the back of the class called “Look, he’s gone red, that means he fancies her” the class bickered as Jinny pulled up a seat next to him, she smiled sweetly in his direction as Sam sunk further into his seat.

“I know that it is unusual for a boy to show a girl around but you two are sharing the same classes so it makes sense young man…. She’s very intelligent and good at sports, perhaps she can help you out a bit” To this the class roared with laughter at the teachers play on words.

“but there are girls in this class that I share most of my classes with” whined Sam.

“Yes Sam, but they aren’t late for school every day, perhaps Miss Bottle here will keep you in check”

The bell rang for 1st class and the children all upped to leave, Sam took a chance of freedom in the swarm, sneaking amongst the crowd.

The teachers hand firmly grasped him by the shoulder, “You’re forgetting someone mister”

“Oh but miss,aww… come on then, we’ll be late for class ”

Part 3 The strangers strangeness

Jinny’s first day in school was an experience Sam would sooner forget.

As if it weren’t bad enough that she followed him around like a shadow, she even followed him into the boy’s room.

“Jinny!!!! you can’t come in here, this is the boys room!” Sam had remarked, Jinny had just smiled examining the unusual décor of the boy’s toilets before her, the urinals catching her attention more than anything else. “Out, out, I’ve gotta pee” said Sam as he ushered her out the door.

For Sam, the greatest annoyance of this new found friend wasn’t even the vastness of her vocabulary, or the complete lack of it, such answers and comments restricted to simple a “yes”, “no”, “hmmm” or occasional grin.

It was how she worked in class, although baffling as it was sitting on her chair legs folded in the strangest of manners staring out of the window, she just looked around the class a lot, but somehow her work was always finished, her answer page was immaculate and simply demonstrated perfect answers.

This annoyed him, and no matter how hard he tried to avoid it she and her oddness just seemed to be everywhere he turned, everything he did she was there to ruin it someway or another.

In religious education, a topic Sam was not particularly thrilled about, Mr Smith had set a test. Jinny wrote some curious answers, he was hoping to copy off her but couldn’t use this stuff.

In understanding the events of Moses at the Red Sea, she wrote that Moses wished her to part the sea so he and his people could cross. She explained how the reeds of the sea snatched the wheels of the chariots of the pursuing army and held them in place as she released the waters to drown them.

In answer to a question of Noah and his ark, she claimed he wished her to grant him an arc and fill it with two of every animal from his farm. She continued saying that he also wished of her to create a great flood to wash away the evil of the world and finished stating that his third wish was that his story would be remembered for ever more. She wrote that he died in the flood for by his own standards he was guilty of a great evil, his greatest regret was not wishing room aboard for himself or his family.

The teacher, Mr Smith found her answers hilarious. “Do you misunderstand the moral of the story?” He spat.

“No… that is what he wanted?” replied Jinny, confidently, knowing she was right.

Mr Smith shook his head and rubbed his fingers across his chin “You know I wish I could understand exactly how you children can come up with such ridiculous comments….” He circled around her desk, “this may be a big joke to you but to me, religion is my life.”

He bent over her desk to look her in the eye, slowly he spoke his carefully picked words “to mock my religion… is to mock me…” he stared into her face, Jinny could smell the pungency of his coffee breath “I don’t like being mocked….especially by a child.”

Confidently she began to reply “But….” “NO BUTS” screamed the teacher slamming his hand down upon her desk. “DO NOT MOCK ME CHILD” spittle landed upon her cheeks.

Jinny didn’t so much as flinch but her head hung low, her hair framing her face as her smile faded, her eyes had narrowed at the teacher as she eyeballed the man. Watching from the next desk, Sam understood what it was like, he actually felt sorry for the girl.

The whole class was watching in stunned silence until the bell rang signalling the end of school, the chairs scrapped across the floor drowned only by the instantaneous chit chat of students and Sam yanked her arm as if to rescue the poor girl.

Together they ran down the hall hand in hand, Sam didn’t know why he still held her hand and was certain that some other students had noticed and were commenting.

“Sam, why are we running?” she said between breaths.

“We’ve got to get on the bus before my sister gets out of class” he replied still running, they burst through the gates amongst a swarm of charging students, they ran for the bus and burst onto the seats.

They grabbed a seat and sat down, Sam was relieved, also happy for a reason he didn’t know. He laughed a little and brushed his head of hair out his eyes.

He looked at his odd little friend, “You know, he’s an ass” he joked, “he always likes to pick on the new kids but you really got to him with those answers”

“He doesn’t like children?” she asked, the corner of her lip was lifting, “No I don’t think he does” replied Sam, “and he certainly doesn’t like us challenging his religious crap either” he joked as the bus rumbled to life.

 

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