The noise in the halls was deafening.

At least, it was to Tyler. The girl chewed her lip as she pushed her way through the throng of people, resulting in quite a few nasty remarks and angry glares. She fumbled around in her jacket pocket, pulling a scrap of paper out. Scrawled across it was a locker number and combination.

Tyler rubbed her temple, taking a deep breath as she turned a corner. The crush of students was, if possible, worse, and the girl grit her teeth angrily. She would have a locker right next to the cafeteria.

Switching schools isn't easy, but moving across the country halfway through someone's senior year to attend a new school was traumatizing. Tyler tucked a stray curl behind her ear as she flicked the dial on her locker round and round.

Her Aunt Ellen had been overly bubbly when her niece had arrived in Beacon Hills. She had no children, only two fluffy cats who liked to prowl around in the forest surrounding the house and shed all over Tyler's clothes, so she had showered Tyler with attention from the moment she put she put her bags down. She'd even taken her shopping for a new wardrobe the day before, and drove her to school today.

With an irritated sigh, Tyler dumped everything she didn't need into her locker, grabbed her lunch, and pulled her headphones over her ears. Slamming the door, she walked to the cafeteria, the hundreds of voices drowned out by her music.

One of the most stressful parts of switching schools was not knowing anyone. At all. Tyler glanced around, anxiously fiddling with her lunch bag. Thankfully, she spotted an empty table and rushed over to it. She sat facing the window, looking out at the line of trees as she pulled out her food. She looked antisocial, she knew, but she'd always had a hard time talking to people. If someone was curious, they'd come to her.

Tyler pulled out her schedule to see what class she'd have after lunch. As she did, a strange scent caught her attention. She froze, her nose wrinkled in distaste. She raised her hand to her face to cover her nose, then thought better of it. Instead, she turned from her window view to survey the cafeteria around her.

For the most part, everyone seemed to ignore her, which was fine. Every so often there'd be a glance or two in her direction, but no one outright staring at the new girl. The scent still tickled her nose, but she couldn't figure out where it was coming from.

She slid her headphones off her ears, and the crush of a hundred voices pounded in her skull. Tyler focused and tried to pick out single conversations.

Slowly, the background noise faded and Tyler listened in to one conversation at a time. It was hard to stay focused, but she'd have to be able to do it sooner or later.

"Is it a bad smell?" Tyler's ear perked up and she whipped her head around. To her left there was a table full of people. Unlike the rest of the students, who seemed to be laughing and enjoying their time, these ones looked intense and concerned. Tyler turned her head away so as not to stare directly at them, but kept her ear cocked in their direction.

"No, it's just, I don't know. Different." One voice whispered, a boy.

"I smell it too. But I don't recognize it." That was another boy.

"What good is a super sense of smell if you can't figure out what it is you're smelling?" this was a girl. Tyler heard someone sigh.

"Lydia, it's not that simple."

"Wait, who's that?"

The group stopped speaking and Tyler could feel their eyes on her. She didn't react; they'd know she was listening. She forced herself to take normal breaths as she bit into an apple.

"I don't know. I think she's new."

"Scott, we saw her in the office this morning."

As nonchalantly as she could, Tyler gathered her belongings and pulled her headphones over her ears. Her nerves were getting the better of her, and she'd lost her appetite. Tossing her scraps into the garbage, she calmly walked from the cafeteria. Her heart slammed against her ribcage.

"Calm down, calm down." She whispered to herself as she slid into the hallway. She glanced at her schedule and sighed with relief. She had chemistry next. Chemistry was something she could deal with, not strange boys who smell strange things too.

In the cafeteria, the group watched the girl leave.

"What's wrong?" Kira asked, looking up at Scott, who was staring at Isaac.

"The scent is gone."

"So, what? Is it coming from her or not?" Stiles asked, clearly impatient.

"I don't know." Scott said, looking at his friends. The bell rang loudly, signaling the end of their lunch. "But we're going to find out."