As Tippy struggled through Laurens day, she slowly got the hang of it. Fortunately she had enough life experience to bullshit her way through it, and was educated enough to excel at her classes... when she could find them. Fortunately for her , it was still early in the school year and she was able to stop by the school office and pretend that she didn't remember her schedule or locker combination. She remembered her first time through high school when she was a supposedly ditzy cheerleader, and used her body to get others to do her work for her. She had no intentions of once again making that a habit, but really needed the information. She remembered how that act had actually hurt her once she made it into the real world and was not going to allow it to happen again. In her mind she thought about all the mistakes she had made in life , and was determined to not make them again. She only hoped she didn't make all new ones.
Once Tippy had her new schedule she made each one of them , and doing her best to keep up with the subject matter. The only thing she saw as a possible hindrance was how much the school used computers. That isn't how she was taught the first time through, and was a bit of a hurdle on the learning curve for her. The fact wasn't a huge problem , but apparently the original Lauren was a straight A bookworm and it was noticeable how much longer it took the 'new' Lauren to complete her tasks. Her math teacher Mrs. Pilkington even called her out on it in a private meeting after class. Tippy mentally rolled her eyes because the teacher was actually a former friend in her old life, a year younger than the former Rhonda was. They weren't close, but Tippy thought about how she used to try to get Sheila to let loose more and stop being such a nerd when they were younger. Sheila always knew she wanted to be a teacher, and had aspired to become one of the best in the state, earning award after award while doing so. Looking at her still attractive friend, Tippy was glad Sheila followed her own path.
"Lauren," Mrs. Pilkington said during the time immediately after class, " you seem distracted today. Is everything all right? "
" Yes Ma'am." Tippy replied. " I just had a little bit of a brain spaz is all. A mental fog is all. I am sure I will be fine after a good nights rest. I just feel a little off kilter is all Mrs. Pilkington."
" Lauren you are one of my brightest students, and because of that I worry even more about you than the rest of my students. There is no limit to what you can accomplish. You know you remind me of one of my friends in a way. She was very intelligent , but was a little lazy. So far you haven't been, but neither was she until her junior year. Anyway she realized the power she had over boys and began to exploit that. It didn't hurt her school wise that much until she wound up pregnant. She was forced to quit school and find a much harder way through life. Eventually she did get a GED and go to college, even made a moderately successful business and sell it for a nice profit, but she could have been so much more than she was. Trying to raise a little girl with little help stunted her achievements. I want you to aspire to your full potential. Don't rush it like she did. You have plenty of time to explore that part of your life." Sheila said mistaking the signs that she was reading from 'Lauren' .
Tippy knew she was actually talking about her, and was actually thankful that her former friend didn't look as far down as she had feared she did. Of course everything she said was true , if Tippy was honest about herself, but it still stung a little. She was sure that the subject only came to mind because she had stopped in to say hi to Sheila just before the life changing event between her and the former Lauren earlier today. She started to get angry , but knew her friend was right, and planned to take her advice.
" Thank you Mrs. Pilkington. I will keep that in mind, but I promise I am all right. I am just a little overwhelmed is all. It's Friday, and I am sure I will be back to normal by Monday. " Tippy placated. " I promise you don't have to worry about me."
" Okay Lauren. You can go. I will see you bright and early and ready to learn Monday morning. " Sheila said. " Have a good weekend. "
"Thank you Mrs. Pilkington. You do the same. " Tippy said , hoping that she could meet with the new Rhonda soon to try and find out more about her new life under the pretense of attempting to find a way to swap back. She needed more information on Lauren, so she knew how much she can change her new life without giving away her secret. Allowing the teenager to think she wanted to swap back was a lie she was willing to stick with until she could.
