"Bye, mom!" Sarah called, slinging her checkered backpack over her shoulder, "The bus is here".
"Bye honey, have a great day at school," her mother called from the kitchen where she was cleaning up the mess Sarah's four year old sister, Helen, had made.
Sarah stepped onto the wooden porch and breathed in the cool, crisp autumn air. Closing the door behind her, she made her way around the random toys Helen had left strewn around. Sarah was sure her mother would chasten Helen later when she dropped her off at her preschool, which would leave Helen in a foul mood all day. Yay for me, Sarah thought to herself. Sarah was usually the one who had to calm Helen from her many temper tantrums. But she couldn't think of that now. She had a math test first period, and she needed to ace it in order to keep her grade from slipping from an A to a B.
When Sarah got on the bus, she looked around for her best friend Claire. She had been friends with Claire since the fourth grade, and they were always there for each other. She finally spotted her friend at the very back of the bus, smiling and patting the seat next to her.
"Hey," Claire said when she sat down, "Are you ready for the math test?"
Sarah sighed, "I hope so. I studied for two hours last night but I still feel nervous. I really need a good grade."
"Don't worry about it," Claire patted her on the shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile, "You'll do great as always."
Sarah smiled at her friend, "Thanks. I hope you do well too."
Too soon, the bus reached its destination, Beacon Hills High School. The two girls quickly got off the bus and walked to the Quad, which was where they met with their friends. The Quad was an octagonal shaped courtyard in the center of the school. Tables were littered around in a seemingly random fashion. Students milled around, talking in groups, reading, or staring into classrooms, trying to freak out the people inside. Claire pointed to right, where Allison and Lydia were sitting, waving frantically to get the girls' attention.
"What took you guys so long?" Lydia said sarcastically, "We've been waiting here for two entire minutes."
Sarah laughed, "Then that's a new record, isn't it?"
The first bell suddenly rang, and students started walking in a mob, trying to get to their classes. Claire and Sarah had homeroom together, so they said goodbye to their friends and wove through the tables toward the E building, which was on the other side of the campus. They squeezed through the horde of teenagers and then started running, hoping they wouldn't be late.
They made it just as Ms. Blake started closing the beige colored door. They found two desks near the back and sat down, panting from the brisk run. Sarah took out her math notes, planning on studying during the 15 minutes of homeroom. What if I forget everything? What if I fail this test and my grade goes down. I can't let that happen. I need to have perfect grades to make it in to the college I want to go to. If I fail, my parents will be so mad. What if… what if…. Claire glanced at Sarah and noticed that she her hands were shaking. Sarah was having a panic attack.
"Sarah," Claire whispered to her friend, "I read somewhere online that human contact can ease nerves and can get rid of forgetfulness for two hours."
Sarah looked up at Claire, looking confused.
"It's worth a try, no?" Claire said hopefully.
"O-ok," Sarah stuttered.
Claire put her hands on Sarah's shoulders and looked into her eyes. She started muttering something in what sounded like Latin. Sarah's breathing slowed down, and her hands stopped shaking. Suddenly she could see a photographic image of her notes mind. They were clear and she could read everything they said. Claire took her hands off Sarah's shoulders and smiled.
"How did you do that?" Sarah asked.
"Magic," Claire winked at Sarah and laughed.
Sarah shook her head in disbelief. That was weird. I'll have to ask Claire about that later.
She looked forward at Ms. Blake. A new student was standing next to her, looking at his hands, obviously not wanting to stand in the front of the classroom. He was tall and had straight black hair. When he looked up Sarah noticed that he had striking green eyes, the color of emeralds.
"Class, this is Cameron Sage. He is new to this school and to this country. He just moved here from China yesterday. Please help him feel welcome," Ms. Blake looked around the room and pointed Cameron to the seat next to Sarah, "Cameron, you can sit in that desk next to Sarah. Sarah, will you please raise your hand?"
Sarah raised her hand timidly. Claire chuckled under her breath and pulled Sarah's arm higher. Cameron walked slowly toward the back of the room, trying not to look at the people staring at him. He finally made it to the desk and sat down, looking at the map of the school.
"Hi, I'm Sarah, and this is Claire," Sarah said, pointing to her right where Claire was waving and smiling creepily.
"I'm Cameron," he said, smiling, "but most people call me Cam."
