Gertrude has been living with me for two months now. I talk to her a lot, every day. And every time I think of Miss Charlotte.
Sometimes I think I recognize our teacher in the street when I see an old, tall and skinny lady. I imagine her wearing a hat, like a witch’s hat but with a round top instead of a long, pointy one.
But each time I’m disappointed. It’s never Miss Charlotte.
At school a new teacher has taken her place. His name is Henri and he is very friendly. He even accepted that we work very hard in the morning in order to do things that are a bit wackier in the afternoon. But still, we miss Miss Charlotte.
A lot.
Soon school will be over. I can’t wait for the holidays to start. Henri is not coming back in September. Nor is our old teacher. She decided to spend a whole year looking after her baby.
I’m wondering what our new teacher will look like. It would be amazing if Miss Charlotte were to return!
Sometimes, when I talk to Gertrude at night, I have the feeling that Miss Charlotte can hear me. Then I tell myself that maybe my original suspicion was correct: what if Miss Charlotte really did come from another planet? Maybe she’s travelling through space right now, billions of light years away. And yet she sees and hears everything thanks to her pebble.
I know that this may seem a little crazy. But can you really be sure?