Chapter 2 Winne

        I walked down to the second floor for my school duty. I had to file some documents for my math teacher, Mr. Angelos. I squeezed through the packed hallways to get myself in the office.

         "Hey, red hair girl!" I frozed as I listen to the words pass through my ears. "Can you grab that brown handbag for me? Just throw it here. " I looked at the bag on the floor. It was shuffling through the crowd and the papers were falling out. But I just held my breath and walked away, pretending not to hear a thing. I didn't look back, only because I knew that the student will probably be looking at me, confused and wondering why I have such an attitude. But at least he won't remember me anymore. Despite that my red hair stands out in a crowd, no one ever notices me except for Ava and a few other people.

         I finally reached the filing office. I went inside and slammed the door behind me, letting out a small sigh.

         "How was your trip through the hallways?" Mr. Angelos said with a smirk on his face. "It's always busy at the end of the day, no?"

         I nodded, then set my schoolbag to the nearest chair and sat down. As Mr. Angelos started piling stacks of paper in front of me, I tied my hair up and rolled up my sleeves, ready to work. He walked away and a few minutes later he started again.

         "Now where did I put that stapler? I swear I was just using it." he said while looking under the tables and behind some papers. I scattered through some of my paperwork and uncovered the small green stapler. I tapped his shoulder and handed it to him.

         "Oh. There it is. Thanks Win. Sorry I'm all over the place." he sighed, ruffling through my hair until the hair bun got loose. I smiled, turned around, and continued to file the papers. Mr. Angelos is the closest person I've ever had. He was a great friend of my father and he would usually entertain me when I was little. I probably like him more than my mother and father. I grinned at my inner thoughs. Even though my father passed away, he still stayed close and supported me when I need help with schoolwork. But that was it, nothing further than that. Teacher and student relationships were forbidden.

         We worked peacefully for about two hours until Mr. Angelos had to leave for an emergency after a cell phone call. I smiled and whispered "OK" to him. He took his leave after that. 

         I locked the door after I finished cleaning up the scraps. Well, he forgot his keys. I thought to myself. I walked myself to the Annex and exited the school entrance, looked up, and squinting at the orange sunset. Normally, a high school student would probably be home by now. But that's the case if they have a family who still supports them. I still have my part time job to do, which ends at around 9 o' clock.

         I work as a cashier in a music shop. It sells things like radios, minor instruments, music boxes, and many more. Since my role is only in calculations, I don't really have to worry about socializing much.

         Not long after I started my shift. A group of college students came in the store. One of them looked at me and strolled over.

       "Hey girl. You know where me and my fellas can find the good quality radios are?" I looked up. Out of the whole group, he seemed to be the one who stands out. So I guess he's a gang leader. I stared at him silently, then pointed to a direction to his right, showing him that the radios are in that isle. 

         "Come onnn, come out and lead me there, I can't understand if you just pointed." 

         I tensed and backed up, trying to figure out what he's trying to pull. No one is that stupid to not understand that. Then, my manager, Ms. Tracy, appeared.

         "What are you boys doing here? Are you bothering my worker? Get out of here or else I'll call the cops on you!"

        The leader looked at his friends and tilted his head sideways, signaling them to leave. A few seconds later, they all turned and left.

        "Goodness gracious! Just barging in like that! Are you alright?" Ms. Tracy asked.

        I nodded and gestured with my hand, telling her that it's okay. I worked in dismay after what happened. I kept eyeing through the door, staying alarmed in case the gang came in again. I worked after a while until it was 9, and headed out the door after my shift ended. I walked a few blocks downhill into a dead end and ready to make a turn. Occasionally, making turns like this one can lead into many surprises because it's a sharp turn. However, what I saw was a nightmare.