Rachel Stoppable woke up to the ringing of her alarm clock, a sound that she hadn't heard in a while. Immediately, Rachel hit the snooze button and turned over in bed. Today was her first day at Middleton High School, and she was nervous. Rachel's parents assured her that it was a great school, but she didn't want to go. Rachel already missed middle school, and most of her friends from there were attending Upperton High School. Rachel managed to doze off for almost twenty more minutes until her sister barged into the room.

"Get up, Rachel!" Tessa Stoppable shouted.

"I don't want to," Rachel mumbled. Before she could stop her older sister, Tessa tore the sheets off of her bed.

"Come on, I told you as long as you don't make Mr. Barkin angry and avoid the cafeteria food, you'll be fine!" Tessa exclaimed. Rachel grunted and slowly got out of bed.

"Hurry up! I'm leaving here in fifteen minutes, with or without you," Tessa yelled as she walked downstairs. Hearing this, Rachel ran out of her room and down the stairs.

"Sleepy head!" Devin Stoppable yelled as Rachel flew into the kitchen.

"Oh, be quiet," Rachel groaned as she dumped cereal into her bowl.

"Good morning, Rachel!" Kim greeted.

"There's our freshman!" Ron announced.

"Hey mom, hey dad," Rachel replied. She sat down at the kitchen table to eat her cereal as fast as she could.

"Are you guys excited for school?" Kim asked.

"I'm just excited about my parking spot. I got one of the best ones near the gym," Tessa bragged.

"Heck yeah I'm excited! I'm no longer a little elementary schooler," Devin answered. Rachel audibly sighed and wished if she was at least a little excited about school starting.

"How about you, Rachel?" Kim asked.

"Not really," Rachel truthfully responded.

"Why not?" Ron asked.

"I won't know too many people and I'm not good at making friends," Rachel sighed.

"Sweetie, I bet you'll make a lot of friends-" Kim comforted.

"Introduce yourself to new people and soon you'll be riding down the road of friendship!" Ron interrupted.

"What if it's a bumpy road?" Rachel murmured, but quietly enough that no one else heard her.

In thirteen minutes Rachel was able to finish her cereal and get ready for school. She planned last night to straighten her blonde hair, but there wasn't enough time for that now. Rachel looked at herself in the full length mirror, making sure that she was ready. She admired her casual, floral print dress and her new white converses. Rachel's freckles were dotted all around her cheeks and nose. Her green eyes started at her back in the mirror. She smiled and grabbed her navy blue backpack.

"Bye Rachel!" Tessa shouted from downstairs.

"Wait up! I'm coming!" Rachel yelled back. She bolted down the stairs.

"Devin, can I borrow your shirt sometime?" Ron asked his son, who was wearing a Star Wars shirt.

"I'm sure it would fit you perfectly," Devin joked.

"It's Bueno Nacho's fault. Plus, I'm too old," Ron sighed. This made the family laugh. Ron still loved eating there whenever he had the chance.

"I remember when your dad turned into a mutant from eating too much Bueno Nacho," Kim stated.

"Can you tell that story again?" Devin asked.

"I would, but if I do, you guys would be late," Kim replied as he guided her children out the door. Hugs and kisses were exchanged.

Ron followed and said, "Have fun and be good!"

Devin was waiting for his bus while Tessa was on her way to the high school with Rachel. They were almost out of the neighborhood when Rachel yelled, "Stop the car!"

"What is it?" Tessa hissed. Then, the back door opened and Lindsay Fisher hopped inside.

"I need a ride," Lindsay panted.

"Hey Lindsay!" Rachel greeted.

"Even though we don't have any classes together, we can still share our first high school experiences together," Lindsay said,

"I thought your brother was driving you to school," Tessa sighed, clearly unhappy to have her sister's best friend as a passenger.

"Not now," Lindsay huffed, "Ben and I got into a fight. It's all we ever do. Plus, I would rather ride with you guys!"

"Younger brothers are worse. Younger sisters, too. Like somebody here who is forcing me to drive everybody to school," Tessa snapped.

"I'm not forcing-" Rachel started to say.

"I forgot who was begging me to drive their friends to school," Tessa paused, "Yeah, it was you, Rachel. I'm not going to do it."

Lindsay broke the silence by saying, "I am so excited for high school!"

"How can you be? It's so different," Rachel admitted.

"Loosen up! We are going to have so much more freedom. We can take driver's ed soon!" Lindsay cheered.

"A closer step to licenses," Tessa grumbled under her breath.

"Okay, okay. I'm excited!" Rachel replied, trying to sound as enthusiastic as possible. She wondered how her best friend could find something so new being so fun.

The girls got out of Tessa's car, which was parked right in front.

"Hey Tessa, nice spot!" Derrick called to her.

"I didn't stay at school overnight for nothing!" Tessa squealed, running to catch up to her crush. Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Well, this is where we'll be for the next four years," She fretted.

"Yeah! Let's get inside!" Lindsay exclaimed, pulling on Rachel's backpack, "I am going to try out for every sport. I want to be involved. There's so many opportunities here, how can you not love it?" Rachel pretended to be interested in what Lindsay had to say, but the fear she felt seemed to be consuming her.

Both girls were surprised at her much bigger everything seemed. The lockers were taller, and the people were, too.

"I feel like a shrimp," Rachel groaned.

"Soon we'll be where they all stand," Lindsay assured. She was always so positive. Soon? The girls wouldn't suddenly wake up as juniors in a month.

"Would you like a pool pass for $6?" An older boy asked.

"No thanks," Lindsay answered as she and Rachel passed by.

"Just because we are freshmen doesn't mean that we're stupid," Rachel whispered.

"They'll stop pulling tricks on us. Who thinks there is a pool here?" Lindsay questioned. Just as she said that, the girls saw a group of freshmen buying fake pool passes.

"Wow," Lindsay trailed off. She continued to walk around with Rachel, only to get cut off when an older couple started to kiss right in front of them.

"Watch it!" Lindsay fumed.

The couple pulled away and the guy asked, "What did you say?"

"Uh, nothing!" Lindsay squeaked as she began to walk faster, grabbing onto Rachel's arm.

"That guy had a beard!" Lindsay gasped when they were out of his line of vision.

"We shouldn't talk to the upperclassmen," Rachel said.

"Why are you so scared?" Lindsay asked, "They're just a little older than us."

"They rule this place," Rachel responded.

"Oh no they don't. The teachers do. Anyways, I think that is the 600 hallway," Lindsay directed, pointing to the left, "That's where I have to go." The best friends hugged, which didn't last long because people kept bumping into them.

"Be more positive! I'll see you at lunch!" Lindsay cheered.

"I'll try, and I'll meet you by the picnic tables!" Rachel said as she forced a smile. Lindsay waved as she walked away, and in doing so she bumped into an upperclassmen, who appeared angry that a freshman bumped into her.

Rachel found room 904, which was her homeroom. She felt chills up her spine as she walked inside. Rachel recognized a few faces from last year, and even some from elementary school. She sank down into a chair near the front and waited for the bell to ring. A girl with red hair sat down at the desk next to Rachel, who noticed that she had tattoos.

"My mom has red hair, too. My hair is just blonde though," Rachel said, trying to make conversation.

"I didn't ask," The girl scoffed. Rachel faced the front and felt even worse. Why was making friends so difficult?

To try to make things better, Rachel complimented, "I like your ghost tattoo."

"Thanks," The girl grumbled. Rachel nodded and then decided to not say anything else to her. Finally, the bell rang and a senior listed out the morning announcements over the intercom. After that, the teacher in the room stood up from her desk and walked to the front of the classroom.

"Hello, students! Welcome to Middleton High School. I am Mrs. Little and you are in room 904…" Rachel drowned out the rest of what she said. She felt too nervous to even think. Rachel lifted her right hand off of the desk and there was a sweaty palm print on the desk. The redhead saw this and made a face. Rachel closed her eyes and tried to imagine her father, as a mutant teenager, running towards Bueno Nacho.