Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 2020complete | Page 535

So now I was supposed to meet Jack and his friends in front of the school gates at 7:00 and from
there we would go to dinner. Just great! I threw on a pair of jeans, a striped t-shirt, and a denim jacket. I
knew it was old-fashioned but it was just the way I liked.
I met up with Jack. He introduced me to his girlfriend Bernice who seemed really welcoming and
we soon became friends. Amongst Jack’s other friends were Cevin (who was on a lot of sports teams) and
Angela (best friend of Bernice). We tried a lot of activities but one of my favourites was using the invisibility
mantle. Just throw it on and you would become as clear as air. I was having the time of my life and didn’t
want the night to end but sadly I had to return to my dorm.
By the time I was back in my dorm, my roommate had returned. Her name was Angela and she
was one of the scholars at the school. She was in the calligraphy club, too, where she learnt how to write
Chinese using calligraphy pen and paper. She also learnt a few classical Chinese instruments. She even played
some songs on the Xiao for me which were fabulous. Later we talked about my school back in the U.S. and
I told her about a few of my close friends. I also told her how I like reading but I found out that she actually
hated reading even after being a scholar. She told me she was expected to do well in academics because of
her parents and couldn’t pursue music in the future even when it was her passion. I was really thankful that
my parents didn’t force me like that.
After a long talk, we both went to sleep and I actually couldn’t wait to attend my new school the
next morning.
I woke up to the voice of Alexa, the AI, installed in our smart homes. She read out our schedules
and even prepared breakfast for us which was absolutely delicious. I could choose from a variety of cuisines
but I thought about trying the local food. I got to taste hot pot, dumplings, fried rice, bubble tea, and a lot
more.
I reached the school 15 minutes early just so that I could figure out where things were and not be
late to class. I went to my locker and collected my books. My first class was English and it was pretty fun. I
am not saying this to brag but I have always been the best student in my English classes. Next came Maths,
which was just ok as I have never been a huge fan of Maths. Most of the students were better than me and
that didn’t help matters much, either. The same thing happened in my Cantonese class as I just knew the
basics. History class, though, was the best of them all where I learnt how Cantonesia was formed.
As I was heading to the cafeteria for lunch, I realized that most people were getting away from me
but I ignored it. Jack and Bernice had their lunch at a different time which was bad news as I didn’t know a
lot of other people. I sat down at an empty table and hoped that somebody would join me. Nobody did
except that I heard a few people talking about me and pointing at me.
The other half of the day wasn’t bad either but what happened during lunch was mortifying. I
went back to my dorm and found Angela practising for her upcoming performance. I told her everything
that happened. She seemed a bit worried but then she assured me that it was hard for people to accept others
so easily here.
This made me think that maybe if I made the first move of talking to people it would help. The
hard part was how I was going to do it. I rehearsed about what I was going to say a million times and then
the next morning I tried implementing it with people. It worked like a charm. I made so many new friends!
The next couple of days went by without me realising. I had never had so much fun before. Sadly,
it was time for me to leave. Jack, Bernice, Angela and a lot of other people came to drop me off. It was so
sad but I promised them that I will come to meet them again soon.
It has been a couple of months since I left Cantonesia and I miss all my friends like crazy but I
think my decision of visiting Cantonesia was one of the best ones of my life!