It was early in the school year, barely a week had passed since summer vacation had ended, and Carrie was late for her second period study hall. She'd been delayed by some rowdy students who had pushed past her thoughtlessly, causing her to spill her books and study materials over a sixteen square foot patch of hallway. It took her the entire two minutes of between period time just to collect every scrap of paper that had flown loose, and then another minute to arrive at her destination. By the time she made it to study hall, the rest of the class was already seated. A cluster of girls in the front of the room giggled. Though they were quiet, Carrie could just make out, "Awkward Carrie's making a grand entrance." She lowered her head and made her way to her usual seat in the back of the room.
As she drew closer, she was surprised to find it occupied. In her place sat a peachfuzz-headed girl in a baggy blue sweatshirt and jeans that would have fallen down to her ankles, had it not been for the merciful intervention of a thick leather belt. The next desk over was still open, so Carrie sat down next to the stranger and began to arrange her things.
She had just cracked open her history textbook, hoping to find some material for next week's essay, when she heard a voice whisper, "Hey." After a few moments she heard it again, this time more aggressive. She looked over her shoulder to see the new kid leaning toward her, expectantly. "Huh," she said, barely making eye contact.
The new kid shuffled her chair a bit closer. "Hey, um, sorry to bother you, but, are you any good at math?"
She wasn't, so she turned her face away and made another attempt to read.
"Okay," said the new kid, disappointedly. "Sorry to bother you."
Now feeling rather guilty, Carrie leaned over. "No," she said, nervous that her whispering was too loud. "You're not bothering me. I'm just not that smart."
A grin crossed the kids face which, in conjunction with the shaved head, gave her the appearance of a Jack-o-Lantern. "Well, neither am I," she said. "So I guess we're both fucked."
Startled by the casual profanity, Carrie let out an awkward giggle.
"Miss White," barked the teacher, Mrs. Rossbeck. "You want to tell that joke out loud for the rest of the class?"
Carrie's face grew hot. "No, Mrs. Rossbeck," she said, shrinking back into her seat.
"I thought not," she continued, folding her arms. "Please keep the noise to a minimum. I didn't think I'd have to tell you that."
A few stray snickers issued from the front of the room. It was the cluster.
"You too," snapped Rossbeck, glaring at the group. They all looked down at their homework and pretended to be busy.
Carrie sat curled into a slouch, staring dumbly into her lap.
"Sorry about that," whispered the stranger. "I didn't know she was such a hard ass."
"I heard that," roared the teacher. "Mss. Geraldine Foster, I will give you one chance to apologize and behave yourself. Is that clear?"
"Yea," she said, sighing.
"And?"
"Sorry for what I said," she lamented, almost saterially. "I won't do it again."
"Good," said Rossbeck. "Less than a day at this school and you're already on thin ice." Then, the teacher turned her attention back to her paperwork.
Geraldine looked over at Carrie, whose face she could no longer see from behind her hair, and opened her mouth to speak. Before the words could exit her mouth, however, she thought better of it and decided to spend the rest of the study hall reading quietly.
When the bell rang for third period, Carrie got up, gathered her belongings, and started out the door to her next class. She thought she was the last person out until a loud rustling behind her prompted her to look over her shoulder at Geraldine, who was busy juggling her piles of books, paperwork, and personal effects. Just as she had gotten her arms wrapped around the whole mess, a single piece of paper slipped from her grasp, landing at her feel. Carrie heard her swear in frustration. She smiled a knowing smile and left for Gym.