A Story about a Girl who didn’t want to be Queen
By: Lime Green Giraffe Social Director, Alyssa N.
Prologue
Adalina Roosevelt grew up in London, England. She was
born to the strictest parents and Adalina wished for a little freedom. Her
parents were forcing her to become the next queen of England and they were
already training her since she was currently a princess. But that wasn’t
Adalina’s dream. Her dream was to be a graceful horseback rider, not a prissy,
little queen. Adalina had told her parents about being a horseback rider many
times but her parents shook their heads and said, “Horseback riding is for
amateurs. Wouldn’t you rather become the queen of your own country instead?”
Adalina tried to talk her parents out of making her be a queen but she always
failed.
The neighborhood that Adalina lives in is Abbey Wood.
Adalina’s parents told her that once she became queen, they would move to
Westminster. And that was happening soon, she was about to turn 17 next year. The
only way Adalina wouldn’t become queen would be if she failed all of her
classes. As soon as she finished her homework, the family butler, Scott checked
and if she got something wrong. Scott would go over her mistakes with her. At
St. Monica Manchester High School, homework was always graded. Homework was 25%
of your grade, which is a big deal. Adalina has always had A’s, since Kindergarten.
She has never gotten anything lower than a B on an assignment or test.
This year, Adalina had plans. She was junior and she
was going to try her best to fail her classes. If she fails, she wouldn’t be queen.
She would have to repeat the grade and according to London Laws, any queens
need to be 17 for their last year of high school to be eligible for the throne.
And since there is no summer school in London, Adalina’s plan just might work.
Chapter 1
Adalina woke up to the sound of her tan, French
bulldog licking her face. Adalina didn’t really like dogs. She was more of a
cat person but her parents thought a dog would be fun and they got one. She
especially didn’t like this dog because it drooled but her parents said that is
just what makes the dog special. She had named the dog, Sammy since Sam kind of
rhymed with tan.
Adalina picked up Sammy and placed him on her carpeted
floor. She strolled to her mirror and looked at her reflection. Her long, black
hair that was in a bun had come out and her hair was covering her face. She was
wearing her blue, pajama dress.
As Adalina started to undress, Sammy rolled around in
the carpet and started to chew. Adalina glared at Sammy, which was a warning to
him, but he continued to chew the carpet. After a while, Adalina picked up
Sammy and placed him near the bedroom window with a chew toy. Then she grabbed
her hair brush and comb from her bathroom that was connected to her room. She
started to brush her hair and after it was brushed, she curled it and combed
it, making it straight and curly. Then she tied it into a bun. She then brushed
her teeth, washed her face, and took a shower. After she got dressed, she
packed up her bag for school. She would bring her phone to school but she had
to be 18 before she could bring her phone to school or else she would be
prosecuted and sent to jail. It was the law.
After she packed her bag, she grabbed Sammy and
headed downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast was a cheesy omelet, bacon and toast
plus pancakes drizzled in blueberry syrup and a tall glass of orange juice.
Adalina placed Sammy
on the kitchen floor and washed her
hands at the kitchen sink. She sat down at the breakfast table, prayed and dug
into her food. While she was eating, her mother ambled by.
“Good morning, Adalina.” her mother said.
“Good morning, Maina.” Adalina replied in a pleasant
tone. Adalina was forced to say her mother’s real name instead of calling her
“mother” or “mom” because they wanted her to be more grown up.
“How well did you sleep last night? Did you get the
required 8-10 hours of sleep?” Maina asked, sitting down across from her.
“Yes, Maina.”
“Very good. Your
father had to leave early because his job interview started at 6, which is
ridiculously early if you tell me.”
Adalina nodded. She glanced around the room. “Where
is Scott? Shouldn’t he be down here making you breakfast?”
“Scott told me yesterday that his wife is pregnant,”
Maina started, then hesitated and continued. “and he told me it might be a
girl.”
“Wow.” Adalina stated, shocked. “Scott never even
told us he was married.”
“He just told me yesterday and it was so sudden. So,
I told Scott he can leave to go take care of his wife.”
Well, at
least now nobody will check my homework, Adalina thought, relieved.
“But who will be our new butler, then?” Adalina
asked, starting to chew on some bacon.
“I don’t know for right now, but until Scott gets
back, you can check your own homework. You are responsible and old enough.” Maina
told me.
Best day
ever so far, Adalina thought.
“I got you, Maina.”
“Now, hurry up and finish your breakfast, so I can
drop you off at school.”
Adalina finished her breakfast and rushed back
upstairs to brush her teeth again. She had just grabbed her bag that was on the
floor when Maina stopped her before she walked out the door.
“Adalina, what is Sammy doing on the floor? You know
he sheds and you are supposed to keep him in your room.” Maina questioned her.
“Maina, it’s not my fault. He was chewing up my
carpet and not listening to me. Plus, I didn’t even want a dog. I wanted a
cat!” I explained to her.
“Fine, whatever, just put him on the couch! I’ll deal
with it when I come back.”
Adalina grabbed Sammy and put him on our beige couch
and then sauntered out the door. After Adalina got out the car and closed the
door behind her at St. Monica Manchester High School, Maina rolled down the
window. “Now you have a great first day of being a junior, okay?”
“Okay, Maina.” She smiled at her. “One question: Why
didn’t we take the limo?”
“I don’t have my limo driver’s license.”
“There’s a limo driver’s license?”
“Yeah, whatever. Bye, love you!” Maina told her. She
waved back as the car window rolled up and she drove away.
Chapter 2
Adalina walked into St. Monica Manchester High
School, ready to make a first Junior Year impression. But it didn’t turn out as
well as she thought because as she was walking to her homeroom and she bumped
into a senior. Based on his outfit, which was a black, wrinkled, leather jacket
with a gray shirt, black jeans and black sneakers, he looked like the type to
avoid. His black hair was all messed up.
“Oh, um, I’m so sorry!” Adalina exclaimed.
“Just watch where you’re going, alright?” he told
her, then rolled his eyes and wandered off.
Adalina was about to go to homeroom when a hand was
placed in front of her face. She peered around and saw it was a girl, probably a
sophomore or junior.
“Why’d you bump into him?” the girl asked.
“And you are?” Adalina questioned.
“The name’s Calneema Ross.”
“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Calneema?”
“I know, my name’s weird. I’ve always hated it. My
friends call me Callie or Neema. You can call me either one.”
“I don’t think your name is that weird.”
“What’s your name?”
“Adalina.” Adalina said, introducing herself.
“Adalina?”
Adalina held out her hand and Calneema shook it for a
few seconds, then let go.
“So, why’d you bump into that guy?”
“It was an accident, Neema.”
“Oh.” Neema said, understanding that it was an
accident. “Are you new here?”
“No. Been going here for a while. I’m a junior now.”
“Oh, I’m in sophomore. I just moved here from Abuja,
Nigeria. My younger brother goes to Langes Elementary. How many siblings do you
have? I have 2. I’m getting a baby sister in a few weeks.”
“I am an only child.” Adalina said.
“Do you have a pet?”
“Just a dog. His name is Sammy. He’s a French
bulldog. I didn’t want a dog. I’m a cat person. I don’t like dogs.”
“Same. My parents are thinking of getting me a cat
but it depends. My new sister could be allergic.”
“Oh. Are your parents strict?”
“No. They’re really nice once you get to know them.
My parents let me do what I want sometimes as long as it is appropriate.”
Adalina glanced at the clock. It was 6:58 am. She
still had time. The bell wouldn’t to ring for another 10-minutes. “So, is your
house big?”
“Not that big. We only have four bedrooms. My parents
room, my room, my brother’s room, and my sister’s room. We don’t have a guest
room.”
“Oh, my house is really big. It is like a mansion.”
“Hey,” Calneema started. “Aren’t you supposed to be
queen next year? I heard about on the news.”
“Yeah, it’s true. But I don’t want to be queen. My
parents are so strict. They don’t let me do a lot of things. I want to be a
horseback rider instead of a prissy queen. I wish they would understand.”
Adalina explained.
“They probably do but because it is your family
heritage. You probably can’t do anything about it.”
“Actually, I can. It is against the law if you fail
your classes and have to repeat Junior year because to be queen you need to be no
older than 17-years-old when you are a senior in high school.”
“But won’t your parents try to do something about
it?”
“Maybe, but they might not expect it. Since up until
now my grades have been like sort of perfect.”
“Oh, okay.”
“Hey, you are Nigerian, right?”
“No, I’m just from a country that is on the
continent, Africa, of course, I’m Nigerian, I told you that a few minutes ago!”
Calneema teased.
“You said you were from Nigeria.”
“Same thing.”
“Oh, do you want
to go to breakfast?” Adalina asked.
“No, I eat breakfast at home.” Calneema replied.
“Oh, whew, I thought I wasted your time. I eat
breakfast at home too.”
“What did you have?”
“A cheesy omelet, bacon and toast plus pancakes and
orange juice. You?”
“Cereal. Your breakfast was fancier but it must be
because you are royal. Do you have a butler?”
“Yep, his name is Scott. But he isn’t with us right
now because he has some family stuff.”
“Oh, I won’t ask. But hey, if you are royal, why are
you going to this school? Wouldn’t you be homeschooled or in a private school?”
“I have never asked my parents but it is probably
because this is the closest school. When I become queen, we’ll be moving to
Westminster and I’ll be probably homeschooled for a year while learning my queen
responsibilities.”
“Wow.” Calneema gasped.
“I might not be homeschooled or be going to school
anymore, since that’ll be my job, unless my plan works.”
“Okay, so what else do you want to talk about?”
“Do you need a tour around the school?” Adalina
inquired.
“No thanks. I had a tour a few days ago.”
“Oh, well what classes are you in?”
“I have homeroom with Mr. Fletcher, my science
teacher, then I have Math with Mrs. Dunlop, then Social Studies with Ms.
Kitteridge, then P.E. with Mrs. Johnson, then Language Arts with Mr. Turner
along with lunch, and then finally, Drama with Mr. Green.”
“O.M.G, we literally have all the same classes,
except for Drama, I have art last with Mrs. Sandige. I love art, but it’s not
my passion. That’s horseback riding. I want to be a horseback riding teacher
when I grow up. Do you like to act? Is that why you chose Drama?”
“Yep,
I want to be an actor when I grow up like Mariette Hartley. She’s my favorite
actor. She portrayed Clarey in Gunsmoke.”
“I’ve never seen that.”
“Well, have you at least seen Full House?” Calneema inquired.
“No, my parents think T.V. will rot my brain, so they
never bought me one.”
“Wow, sucks to be you.”
“Yeah. Hey, what school did you go to before moving
here?”
“American International School. It was one of the
best private schools in Abuja. I loved it there. I miss all my old friends.”
“Why did you move?”
“My mom and my dad both found better, higher paying
jobs here, so we moved.”
“When did you move?”
“A few months ago. During the summer, after the school
term ended. I should probably call my friends when I get home.”
“You do that. So, what else should we talk about?”
Just then the bell rang. The conversation was interrupted.
“Well, we best
get to class. Don’t want to be tardy.” Calneema said. Adalina’s new friend
said.
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