"I can't believe it's time for school already," I mumbled to myself as I turned off my alarm clock and rolled out of bed. It was the first day back to school after summer vacation, and I certainly wasn't feeling too happy about it. Early mornings, boring classes, lots of homework; the very thought of these things made me want to cover myself with blankets and never get up. Still, I didn't have much of a choice, so I got up, got dressed (in a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers: my new favorite clothing combo), and made myself something to eat for breakfast. I'm sure it won't be all bad..., I thought to myself as I ate. At least I'll get to see my friends again, and maybe I'll check out some new club activities. The more I thought about it, the better I felt about going back to school. After all, everything was going my way.
It had been over a year since I transferred to Lakewood High School. Just like with every other school, I had busy days going to and from classes and trying my best to finish the not-so-modest amount of homework assigned to me. However, this school was different from the rest too. Instead of racing through the halls in fear of being late for class, my schedule now allowed me some time to take a breath and calmly walk to wherever I was going. While the subjects were still boring and there was still plenty of homework, somehow, it didn't feel as difficult as it did before, and the teachers were very nice. In fact, the whole atmosphere was very nice. The hallways were calm and quiet, the lunches were always served hot (except for when they're not supposed to be, that is), and almost everyone was kind to each other. Things were considerably different here than they'd ever been at my previous school, Sweet Amoris High. If I didn't know any better, I'd say I died there and went straight to academic heaven. By the time I reached the front doors of peaceful Lakewood High, I felt myself actually smile for once. After all these years of hardship and heartbreak, I could only hope that this had been my last transfer, my final high school. And with that in mind, I opened the door in front of me and entered the building.
My schedule for that day was typical: math, science, history...all the basic stuff. I was on my way to my first class when I heard a familiar voice call out to me.
"Hey, Julia!"
I stopped walking and turned around to see a tall boy with brown hair and blue eyes walking towards me. It was Chris, the boy I'd bumped into on my first day here...literally. I remember it very well. I was almost dashing through the halls, desperate to not be late for class, when I accidentally ran right into him. Everything I was carrying was knocked to the floor, including myself. I thought for sure he'd think I was an idiot, but then he started to help me as I scrambled to pick up my things (…including myself...). We both introduced ourselves afterwards, and we've been friends ever since. It was a huge relief to have made a friend on the first day, no matter how unexpectedly it happened. It was also kind of refreshing to have a non-romantic relationship with a boy for once, unlike that other year... very much unlike that other year...
"Hey...hello? Are you listening?"
I saw a hand wave in front of my face. "Geez, where are you? I'm trying to tell you some good news here..."
I realized just then that I was off in my own little world again and quickly snapped out of it. "Oh! I'm sorry...what were you saying?"
He chortled and shook his head. "Sheesh. How 'bout a fair warning next time you go to another planet, space cadet?"
I couldn't help but giggle at that, for I knew all too well that he was right. Then he continued,
"Anyway, guess who just got nominated for student body president?"
I smiled. "Oh, I don't know...it couldn't be you, could it?"
He smiled back. "Sorry to disappoint you~."
We both laughed for a few seconds and then I said, "But really, that's great! I hope you get elected."
"Trust me. I'll do everything I can to win that election."
I really believed that, and he really deserved it too. He'd been trying to become the student body president ever since I met him – probably even longer – and up until recently, he was stuck as a class president. I was just about to wish him luck, but he spoke first.
"Anyway, we should probably go to our classes now. I'll see you later."
With that, he turned and walked away.
"Okay, see you later!" I replied to him as I did the same.
My first few classes of the day were not easy. Whoever made my schedule was crazy if they thought putting Algebra II, U.S. History, and English together first thing in the morning was a good idea. At least I had an interest in Chinese class, but that too was incredibly difficult. Regardless, I managed to set my grievances aside and power through the lectures. After the bell signaling the end of English finally rang, it was time for lunch. I felt myself smile as I walked from my classroom to my locker and then to the cafeteria. And to top it off, today was pizza day.
At the cafeteria, I got my lunch and looked around for somewhere to sit. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed someone waving at me. I looked over to see my best friend, Jasmine, gesturing for me to sit with her.
Jasmine was another good friend I made here at Lakewood. I met her in one of the classes we had together last year, and we got along so well that we became best friends that very day. The fact that we were so much alike, especially in terms of awkwardness, was a great relief to both of us since no one else seemed to understand. I thought it'd be a good idea to join her today, so I smiled and walked over.
"Hi, Jasmine!" I said, as I sat down next to her. "How are you today?"
She shrugged. "I'm alright, just bored with this whole day. You?"
"Yeah, me too. Morning classes are never any fun, dude. Hopefully the ones after this will be better."
"Hopefully. Lemme see your schedule, maybe we'll have something together."
I took my class schedule out of my pocket and handed it to Jasmine, who immediately started comparing it to her own.
"Hmm... hey! We have the next three classes together! We got physics, choir & floral." She declared happily.
My mood brightened as well. "Wow, really? That's awesome – three for three! This is gonna be a great year!"
"Agreed," Jasmine agreed.
After sharing our excitement about our same classes, we spent the rest of the hour talking about animals, video games, and nail polish. We got so caught up in our conversation, in fact, that we nearly forgot to eat! But then, that's how it always was with us. After lunch was over, we separated briefly so I could get what I needed for the next class, and then we met up again in our designated classroom. It was time for Floral Design. Shortly after I'd arrived at the classroom, the teacher walked in and introduced herself to everyone.
"Hello, everyone. My name is Mrs. Hana." ...Really?
After the introductions, Mrs. Hana began lecturing the class on how to identify various types of flowers and how to take care of them, the different kinds of tools and how to use them, and most importantly, how to make them into a nice bouquet. She then proceeded to hand out one flower, a pair of shears, and a notecard to each student.
"Now then..." she said. "First, I would like each of you to identify the flower I just gave you and write the name down on your notecard. Then you will practice using those shears to cut off the excess stems. I will be walking around the classroom every now and then to check on your progress, so please let me know if you're having any trouble. Don't worry about getting everything right. It's only the first day and this is only a practice activity, so no one's getting graded today. I will be revealing the correct name of the flower at the end of class though, so please pay attention. Oh, and I cannot stress this enough; please be very careful not to cut yourselves with the shears! Now, if you're all ready, you may begin."
So we did.
As I followed my teacher's instructions, I found that while naming the flower was easy, cutting off its stem evenly was quite the challenge. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't cut it to the right length and it was almost always at a bad angle. I felt even worse when I looked at Jasmine's flower and saw that not only had she cut the stem perfectly, she had tied a small, pink bow around it too.
Where did she even get that...?
By the time I looked back at my own almost-adequate flower to try and fix it, the bell for the end of class rang.
Oh no...
"Okay everyone, time's up!" Mrs. Hana exclaimed before walking around the room one last time to collect everyone's work. After she was done, she walked back to the front of the class and continued. "Now, if you paid attention to the lesson, you would know that the flowers I gave you are called Chrysanthemums. Everyone did well with them, but I can see that many of you would've benefited from more time. Don't worry, I don't expect all of you to work at the same pace; floral design is a form of art, after all. Rushing you guys would be like rushing Leonardo da Vinci or Vincent van Gogh! I promise you will all have more time to work on projects in the future – this one was just a warm-up. In the meantime, you've all worked very hard today. Keep it up and your grades are sure to reflect that. Class dismissed!"
So we left.
As I walked through the hallways on my way to...wherever I was going, I pulled out my class schedule again to see where exactly that was. According to the list, next up was Physics.
"Oh, boy..." I muttered to myself before getting the textbook out of my backpack. I had a strong feeling I wasn't going to like this class, and just one glance at the first chapter confirmed it. I flipped through the pages of the book and stared at them in complete and utter dismay as I made my way to class. But before I even got to the door...
*BUMP*
I ran into something and fell backwards onto the floor. "Oww..."
"Uh...you alright?"
Not something...someone...
"Huh?" I looked up to see Chris holding his hand out to me with a pitying smile on his face.
Oh god. Why me? Why him? Why now?
"Y-Yeah..." I stuttered as I took his hand, letting him quickly pull me up.
"You sure have a strange habit of doing that..." He said to me, his smile growing.
"Yes, yes I do. I'm sorry and I promise I'll work on that, but right now, I need to get to class." I replied unamused and somewhat impatiently. Only then did I realize that the door to my classroom was right in front of me.
"Oh...well I guess I'm already here..."
"Then it looks like we finally have a class together."
My irritation was quickly replaced with excitement.
"Really? That's awesome!"
Last year, Chris and I didn't even get one class together, so we were really hoping we'd get one this year. Now, upon hearing that our wish would be granted, we were more than looking forward to it. After all, having Jasmine and Chris in the same class with me made even physics sound bearable. With that in mind, Chris and I entered the classroom.
As it turned out, not only were the three of us in the same class together, but the teacher even let us choose our lab partners, so we got to stay together. So far, this class was going great. But alas, physics was still physics, and physics was complicated; too many graphs, too many equations, and too many...problems! Chris and Jasmine seemed to understand the concepts well enough, but I for one struggled with almost every task that was given to me. Clearly, I had some studying to do. Perhaps I could get one of my friends to help me, but that would have to wait until later. I was way too exhausted to think about it anymore today. As I was leaving the classroom after we'd been dismissed, I felt someone shove me from behind.
"Get out of my way, numbnuts!" A brown-haired girl in a pink dress barked as she passed by, pushing me into the wall.
I remembered her. That was Capucine, the meanest girl in school. Remember when I said almost everyone was nice to each other? Well she's the exception. This girl liked to torture just about everyone, and her favorite way of doing so was blackmail. Last year, she stole my backpack and threatened to destroy it and everything in it if I didn't do that day's homework for her. One time, she threatened to spread terrible rumors about Jasmine doing "special favors" for teachers in exchange for better grades if she didn't hand over her sweater and shoes. I even saw her hold a switchblade to Chris's throat once and threaten...well, the obvious, if he didn't use his status and power to make her Prom Queen that year. I've seen her stealing from people, vandalizing school and student property, telling terrible lies about people, and sometimes worse just so she would get her way. Many students have tried reporting her (including me), but her act of innocence seems to have the entire school staff fooled. We've tried time and time again to find something, anything we could use against her, but we failed every single time. She was just too good at covering up her tracks, and was quick to take revenge upon those who tried to bring her to justice. Now a lot of students are too scared to even question her actions, let alone fight against them. I too was a little on edge, but I wasn't giving up. I couldn't give up. She'd hurt too many people, and I wasn't going to stand for it. Mean Queen Capucine was going down, even if I had to dethrone her myself. I just needed to figure out how. Regardless, I didn't have time to think about that now. I'd been lost in my thoughts for so long that by the time I snapped out of it, I was already five minutes late for Choir.
Oh no! I thought to myself as I dashed through the hallways trying to figure out where I was going. I realized it was still only the first day, but I've always pushed myself to be on time no matter what, for to be late was to be a disgrace in my mind. I'd been pretty good about it my whole life, but the one time I was late, I was sent to detention, and I certainly didn't want that again. It was a good thing there were maps everywhere in the school, or I would've been lost forever, but I eventually did find my class. After receiving a warning from my teacher about tardiness I took my spot in the choir. I had gotten there just after the introductions, and all we really did that day were vocal warm-ups and basic sheet music reading anyway. We were each given a warm-up exercise sheet and a copy of the sheet music for "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" to take home and practice by ourselves, but that was the extent of today's lesson. I was fairly confident I hadn't missed anything important, but if I was wrong, Jasmine would surely fill me in on whatever I needed to know. That being said, it was time to move on to my last (and certainly not best) class, Physical Education.
There was nothing really special about P.E. class that day. We stretched, ran laps, did push-ups, the usual agonizing workouts, and the coach didn't let up until the class was over. What did interest me is that on my way out of the gym, I ran into yet another person; a girl with blue hair tied up into a half-ponytail with a ton of colorful hairpins all over (or is that confetti...? I can never be sure...). There was no way I could forget hair like that. It was Lucy, another new friend I'd made here about a year ago, when one of our teachers put us on the same collaboration team. I didn't notice until now, but it seems we were classmates once again.
"Hi, Lucy! How are ya?"
"Oh wow, Julia, hi! I'm doing great, thanks for asking! It's already my month-iversary with my boyfriend, AND we're in all the same classes together! Can you believe it?"
I was kind of surprised, actually. Not just because they were in every single class together (which in and of itself is very unlikely), but because she actually managed to stay with someone for more than a week. Lucy must have gone through 15 boyfriends last year alone, and every time it was always the same – date for a week, break up, cry about it for a few days, find a new boyfriend, rinse and repeat. Her track record caught many people's attention, and "One-Week Wendy" became the highlight of gossip at school. Maybe now, with this new relationship, "Honey-Month Mindy" could make her debut. In all honesty though, I was really happy for her.
"Wow, that's great! Happy Month-iversary!" I congratulated her with a big smile.
"Thanks!" She replied, practically jumping with excitement. "Well, I'm gonna go find him now. I'll see you later!"
"Yeah, see you!"
At that, she turned and skipped away. P.E. class was over and so was school for the day, so I left too.
On my way out of the school, I had a short conversation with Chris and then caught up with Jasmine so we could walk home together, as we always did since we lived in the same apartment building. Once we got there, we said goodbye to each other and parted ways. I went back to my apartment exhausted, yet somewhat excited for the new school year. I reunited with my best friends, discovered I had some interesting classes, and I had those classes with my best friends; what else could possibly go right? Things were looking up for me this year, I could just feel it. So, I retrieved my homework from my backpack and got started on it. I was stressed and relaxed all at the same time, and it was wonderful. At that moment, I knew that nothing could ruin my quiet, carefree life. Nothing.
Yet.
