Waking Up in Dixie Read Online Free PDF Page A

Whittington High. She sat gracefully to wait till her name was called. As she waited, more than one male teacher and student eyed her new womanly curves with approval, but she didn’t let on that she noticed.
    This was her chance to leave Bessie Mae behind, forever.
    She’d worked hard to make sure her golden-brown hair swung sweet and shiny as she moved, and the clothes she was wearing looked like the ones worn by the popular girls. Nobody would ever know she’d taken the Greyhound into Atlanta to pick out the best the Goodwill and uptown thrift shops had to offer. Or that she’d cut them to style, then sewn them with perfect, even stitches under the light of a single dim bulb till they fit like they were custom-made—not too tight, but modestly close enough to make the most of her bustline and small waist. Herwhole wardrobe had cost her only fifty dollars, but looked like thousands.
    Now, here she was at last. She’d been planning for this day since her mother had announced her new job at the mill in Whittington, a job that came with a house in a new town, far from Greenville, where nobody knew them. A perfect chance for Elizabeth to start over and be who she wanted to be, not who she really was. A chance to hide the shame and poverty of her family.
    Beautiful, brilliant, and unattainable, that’s what she would be. Bessie Mae was dead, and in her place was Elizabeth, a paragon of virtue and intelligence, the kind of woman men wanted, but couldn’t have. The kind of woman wealthy boys would marry.
    “Miss Mooney,” the school secretary announced, “Mr. Cowan will see you now.” She motioned to the door with PRINCIPAL COWAN painted on the frosted glass.
    Elizabeth rose with perfect poise and glided into the small office to face the first man she had to win over.
    “Welcome, Miss Mooney. Welcome.” Eyeing her up and down with appreciation, the principal motioned for her to sit. “I must say, I’m quite impressed with your transcripts from Greenville. Straight A’s. Don’t see many records like that.” He patted her file. “We’re glad to have you in our student body.” Glancing again at her impressive curves and narrow waist, he colored and smoothed his lapel. “May I ask, do you have any specific goals for your time with us?”
    “Yes,” she said with a careful mix of shyness and warmth.“I want to win a full academic scholarship to Emory and get my masters’ in political science.” Her whole plan depended on it.
    The principal nodded with a mixture of skepticism and approval. “Nothing like setting your sights on the best. Good luck to you on that. If you keep up the good work, you might just make it.” He leaned forward to press a button on his phone. “Phyllis, is Miss Mooney’s student guide there yet?”
    “Yes,” crackled through the speaker.
    “Then send her in.” Mr. Cowan rose. “Welcome to Whittington High. All our new students have a guide to take them to their classes for the first day.” He surveyed her again as she stood. “If you have any problems or questions after that, feel free to come by, and we’ll do our best to iron things out.” His expression said he hoped she would.
    The door opened and a total nerd of a girl in thick glasses scurried in, carrying a canvas book bag printed with the school’s tiger mascot. She granted Elizabeth a nervous wave. “Hi. I’m Cathy, your guide.”
    “Hi.” Elizabeth smiled back warmly. She had a soft spot for misfits, having been one herself for all those years. And she needed every friend she could get in this place. “Thanks for showing me around.”
    Cathy handed her the book bag. “Your teachers will give you your books.”
    “Thanks.”
    “Have a nice day,” the principal dismissed, then stood in his doorway watching Elizabeth cross the offices and exit into the corridor.
    Once she and Cathy were out in the hall, Elizabeth glided with perfect posture through the stream of students, her head held high, ignoring the