Author's Notes: I was recently informed that Zack's name is spelled with a K, not an H. Apparently Eric Millegan said so himself. So I went back and changed it, although this site still has it wrong. Oh well.
Things get rougher in this chappie… I was originally going to put more in this one, but I write WAY too much detail and this ended up really long, so a lot of chapter 2 stuff is going to be in chapter 3. I normally like long chapters, but this thing is 7 pages on Microsoft Word and it probably would've been 14 if I kept it going. That's too long even for me. Oh, and major angst warning… things get a lot rougher here. Sorry, Zack. :'(
Disclaimer: Is anybody still reading the bold text? If you are, let me know in your review and I'll give you a cookie. :) Anyway, not mine.
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The building was big, ominous. Not even one building… multiple buildings, all linked together by breezeways on the 2nd floor. All huge and made from that same depressing bland gray brick. So mundane, so uncreative… so scary.
He knew it was irrational to be scared… It wasn't a dangerous school. There was nothing to be afraid of… but still. Moments earlier, his mother had been dropping him off, telling him that he would do fine, that he would be challenged here, that this was all good for him. Even at the age of eight and with very little knowledge of psychology, he could tell that she was really talking to herself. His parents had been worried, but they had decided that it was for the best. And it was. So why didn't he walk into the building already?
He sighed quietly, adjusting his backpack and remembering the previous night. His brother Scott, a sophomore, had pulled him aside to talk to him. He remembered every word.
"Listen, Zack." Scott had said, "I'm sure that you're all excited and whatever about being in high school, but—" Zack had tried to say that he wasn't excited and what was exciting about it when Scott held his hand up. "BUT," she said forcefully, making it clear that there would be no more interruptions, "It ain't that easy, so I'm gonna give you some pointers, seeing as I'm your brother and I look after you." Zack resisted the urge to correct Scott's grammar… he knew how much that annoyed him. He also didn't say anything about the fact that Scott very rarely looked after him… that was a job that very few wanted and it usually got dumped on other siblings or his parents. Scott continued. "Don't call attention to yourself. Don't talk to anybody besides a teacher unless they ask you something. You're weird, so it's probably best for you to just stay off everyone's radar. The teachers'll like you… talk to them if you get lonely. Or talk to your books or write equations or whatever the hell it is you do.' Scott paused for a moment before continuing. "That being said, don't expect me to talk to you or anything while we're there. I've got a reputation to preserve and Addy isn't such a uncommon name, so inside the building, we've never met, K?" Zack just nodded. What else could he do?
Scott had already entered the building with his sister, Callie. Callie was a senior and, although Zack could tell she disliked being in the same building as him, she was at least nice enough to pretend that it didn't bother her. She was the nicer older sibling… when Zack was little, Callie had been the only one who was willing to hold his hand and walk him to places he needed to go. But she wouldn't be holding his hand today… she too had a social reputation to protect.
Zack adjusted his bag again, which was heavier than it should have been. He hadn't been given any textbooks yet, so he should have just had basic supplies: paper, pencils, pens, maybe a notebook. But Zack carried his books with him everywhere… they were the only familiar comfort in this alien environment. He glanced at his watch…it was probably the fanciest thing he owned. It had been a special present for advancing so far in school… it was probably really just to make up for the complete lack of social life. The watch read 7:35 am. 7:35? How long ad he been standing there? First period started in ten minutes and he still had to go through the metal detectors and figure out where his first class was!
Zack took a deep breath and started moving forward. He stepped inside the building and saw along line for the metal detectors. This many people surely made up a large percentage of the school… Did most students make it a habit to come to school this late? Surely they wouldn't be on time for their classes? He sighed as he remembered that, no matter what grade he was in, most people still didn't hold school in as high regard as he did. The line moved at a steady pace… people put their backpacks on conveyor belts as they walked through the metal detector. Zack was reminded of the airport. He had once asked his mother why the airport had metal detectors and she had told him that they were there to keep people from bringing weapons on the plane. Were weapons a serious threat in the high school? They didn't have metal detectors at the middle school… did people suddenly become dangerous when they graduated from 8th grade?
Zack realized that he had come to the front of the line. He clumsily placed his bag on the conveyor belt and walked through the metal detector. It didn't beep. Thank God. He thought quietly as he grabbed the bad, noticing that the security guard was giving him an odd look. He probably stood out a lot in the sea of young adults. He quickly started walking, remembering what Scott had said about being inconspicuous.
He pulled out his schedule. He had first period English with Ms. Hudson in room 217. The second floor. He looked around for stairs and didn't see any. He couldn't see anything but the ocean of people surrounding him. Zack suddenly felt very small. He had to crane his neck up to see anything…and even then, he could only see people. How many students were in this school? "Excuse me…" he said meekly, but no one paid any attention to him. He started walking and the people acted like he wasn't there. He nearly crashed into about 10 high schoolers, none of which even acknowledged his presence. He eventually gave up and simply started weaving through the crowd, searching for stairs. Why hadn't anybody given him a map?!
The crowd started to thin. What was happening? Zack hadn't though about this particular component in high school… he'd switched classes during his brief time in middle school, but they had all been right down a hall… not in all different buildings on all different floors! The crowd was getting thinner and thinner… Zack finally saw stairs at the end of the hall… just before he heard the shrill sound of the bell. He was late. This would not make a good impression on his new teachers… and walking in late would attract attention. He started to move more quickly towards the stairs.
"Where do you think you're going?" boomed a voice behind him. Zack turned around to see a large security guard approaching him.
"To class," he said, failing miserably at his attempt to not sound nervous.
"Class?" said the security guard, "How old are you?"
I really don't see how that's relevant to this conversation, Zack said inside his head. Out loud, he simply said "Eight."
"What are you doing in a high school?"
Zack sighed and held out his ID card, which was hanging around his neck. "I'm a student."
The security guard pulled the ID towards him -- rather hard. It made Zack's neck hurt – and examined it longer than was really necessary. "Fine," he said eventually, sounding almost disappointed, "But if you're a student, what are you doing in the halls during class?"
"Looking for my class," said Zack. Didn't I say that already? "It's my first day."
The security guard paused for a second. "Then get out of the halls and into a classroom," he said, "But next time, you're going to need to get a tardy pass from the attendance office."
Zack nodded quickly. "Um, could you tell me where 217 is?" he asked the security guard, who had already started to walk away.
"Up the stair, across the breezeway, make a left," said the security guard, not bothering to turn around.
Zack quickly moved through the halls, firmly telling himself that next period, he would need to ask a teacher for directions to his next class… or to the attendance office, wherever that was. What was the attendance office, anyway? Were there so many late students that they needed an entire office for all of them?
As usual, his thoughts were interrupted by his destination. He looked at the doors around him. 225, 216… 217. He paused for a second before pushing the door open. The entrance to the classroom was at the front, so all eyes immediately turned towards Zack. "Can I help you?" asked the teacher, looking somewhat annoyed. Zack handed her his schedule that he was supposed to get all of his teachers to sign. She looked over it quickly. "Oh, you must be the new student..." she said, "I got a note about a you a while back. Um, there's an open desk over there. Go sit down and take out a sheet of paper for notes. We're reading The Pearl by William Steinbeck. I'll find a copy for you after class." Zack quickly moved to his seat, noting how different things were here. The teacher didn't ask him to introduce himself to the class and there didn't appear to be a seating chart. He noticed that a kid 2 desks down was sleeping. They apparently didn't enforce rules as much here, either. That kid would probably just lose points when the test came around and he didn't know anything.
They were discussing uses of symbolism in the 3rd chapter. Zack had never particularly liked English for this reason… he only understood things for their face value. He didn't do too well with analytical. Still, a grade was a grade, so he could always catch in to the symbolism the teacher was talking about and go off of that. If he was called on and didn't have an opinion, he would just find some connection between the story and Greek mythology. That always impressed teachers. Of course, the teacher wouldn't call on him today. He hadn't even been given the book yet. Zack had already read The Pearl, but Ms. Hudson didn't know that.
Zack carefully wrote down every word on the chalkboard, struggling to keep up. He understood everything, but she wrote really fast! During his moments of spare time, Zack glanced around the room. It wasn't anything like the ones at his old school. No solar system drawings, no crafts, nothing made from construction paper… no encouraging posters about trying. There were maps on both sides – this room was probably also used for social studies – and an abstinence poster in the back. At his age, Zack was not completely certain of the full definitions of phrases like "abstinence" (he'd heard it mentioned during conversations held by his older siblings, but he was still hazy on the meaning) but he did know that he would not have found anything like that at his old schools.
The teacher finished her discussion and assigned the homework: read chapter 4 and write a page about its symbolism. A few kids took out notebooks to write down the homework… most of them just sat there. Zack didn't need to write anything down, of course, but he wrote it down anyway, in case anyone was watching.
The bell rang and the students quickly cleared out of the room. Zack walked up to his teacher, who was busy typing something on the computer. She looked up. "Yes?" she said, looking distracted.
"You told me to talk to you after class about getting my book?' he said, wondering if she had already forgotten.
"Oh, yes…" said Ms Hudson, slowly getting up and walking towards a bookshelf. Zack glanced at his watch nervously. He only had four minutes to get to his next class and they were quickly disappearing… he really didn't want to be late again.
The teacher pulled a thin blue book off of the shelf and handed it to him. "This is The Pearl, the book we are currently reading." She said, "We have already finished the first 3 chapters, so try to catch up." Zack nodded, not bothering to say that he had already read the book and could recite the fist 3 chapters word-for-word if she asked him to. He continued to nod as she told him that he would need a spiral-bound notebook for his classwork and notes – he had 3 in his backpack… he brought a lot of everything just in case – and as she reminded him 7 times to be careful with the book and not lose it. Does she think I'm an idiot? He wondered, Does she not trust me because I'm young or are all of her students generally irresponsible? Zack thought of the sleeping boy and realized that maybe she had reason for all the precautions.
Ms Hudson appeared to be done talking. Zack glanced at his watch – Only 1 minute left! He looked at his schedule. He had division next. What was division? Whatever it was, it was short. It only took up 15 minutes. "Where is room 132?" he asked quickly.
"Down the hall, down the stairs, take a left, down the hall, last door on your left." Zack moved quickly, but he knew there was no way he could make it there in the 45 seconds he had remaining. He had just reached the stairs when he heard the familiar screech of the bell. He quickened his pace, praying he wouldn't run into that security guard again. He didn't. Thank God. He was completely out of breath by the time he entered the classroom. It was large and divided into 2 sections of desks. "Ms. McRoberts?" he asked the woman who appeared to be glaring at him. She simply shook her head and pointed across the room. He walked over to the other teacher, who was taking attendance. "Ms. McRoberts?" He tried again. The teacher looked up. "I'm Zack Addy… Is this division?" She nodded.
"Oh, you're the new boy… the 8 –year old." She said, smiling. "Yes, this is division 253. You can go take a seat over there, behind Sarah."
"What is division?" Zack asked, looking around. Everyone was talking except for 2 students who appeared to actually be doing work.
"Did they not have division at the middle school?" She asked, "No, I suppose they wouldn't have. Division is like homeroom… we check to see who's here, we make announcements, kids work on homework."
"Why do it after 1st period?"
"Because a lot of students tend to get here late or cut 1st period, so this way no one misses division." She returned to her papers, a clear sign that the conversation was over. Zack looked around for his seat. There was only one open, so he assumed that the girl in front of it was Sarah. He sat down. A girl sitting next to Sarah turned to him.
"How old are you?" She asked in a way that even someone as socially naïve as Zack knew was very rude.
"Eight." He said, hoping to avoid confrontation. No such luck.
"Get out!" she exclaimed, "Seriously?" Zack paused, wondering whether or not that question was rhetorical. Eventually, he just nodded. "Oh my God!" She shouted. "Hey, Sarah, Eleanor, look at this!" The two girls sitting on either side of her turned.
"Rowan," said Eleanor, "I need to finish my Social Studies before next period or Mr. Sarudi's gonna freak. He's been so spazzy lately… I swear, he's gotta be PMSing." The 3 girls snickered as Zack remained confused.
"But this is important!" said Rowan. "Look at this guy!" She pulled on Zack's arm. Does she really need to do that? He thought, The nearest other boy is 3 seats down! "He's 8 years old and in high school!"
"Wow." Said Sarah. Eleanor poked him. What the…? Zack thought, Is she checking to see if I'm real or something? "So…" Sarah continued, "Are you like some sorta freaky genius or something?"
Zack had no idea how to answer that. Freaky? Usually people waited until they thought they were out of earshot to call him a freak… clearly, rudeness was far more common in high school.
They didn't wait for an answer. "How many grades have you skipped?" asked Eleanor. Zack sincerely hoped (but sincerely doubted) that she was asking this in case he had already had a birthday this year and not because she couldn't (or wouldn't) do the basic math to figure it out.
"Well," said Zack, "I didn't completely skip any grades except first… I was in 2nd for about three quarters of a school year, and then I did a little bit of 3rd through fifth until the beginning of this year. I was in middle school for two weeks before they decided to send me here."
They started for a bit and Zack began to wonder if he shouldn't have spoken so much. Finally, Rowan simply whispered "Freaky." They all nodded and returned to their own separate activities. Zack reviewed The Pearl for about 30 seconds before the bell rang.
The next few periods passed in much the same manner… teachers gave him books, he took notes on things he already knew, people started at him and asked him his age. By the time his lunch period had come, he felt drained. School was supposed to be easy for him… How did all the other kids handle this stuff with difficulty in classes on top of it? Stupid question, he told himself, These things aren't hard for them because they aren't as socially awkward as you are. Zack wasn't insulting himself, he was merely stating fact.
By the time he had found the lunchroom (2 minutes after the bell), the line was long and he was starving. He looked at his watch. 1:15. What kind of school had a lunch period at 1:15? He remembered what the bell schedule had said… there were 4 lunch periods. He had the latest, which started at 1:30. The earliest started at 10:45. Those 2 were the most crowded lunch periods, according to his siblings. Why? He wondered. Why give the majority of the school ridiculous lunch periods? They could at least put more of them in 5th and 6th, which start at reasonable times… The line was moving, at least. Slowly. Zack noticed a group of 6 girls walk right past him and take places near the front of the line. That never would have been allowed in his old schools, but no one really seemed to care here. As more and more people joined the line, Zack noticed that about 60 of them were cutting somewhere. Zack knew better then to cut – it would draw attention to him and it might require a certain social status. He simply waited and moved when he could, eventually reaching the front when he was sure there would be very little time left to eat. That was probably a good thing. People would probably be staring at him in the lunchroom, too.
He took him food, paid the scary-looking cafeteria worker, and walked into the lunchroom. He found an empty table and quickly took it, afraid of what might happen if he attempted to share a table with a teenager.
He ate in silence and attempted to read his English book. In a house with 7 children (once 9), he had quickly become good at drowning out distractions, but this was different from simple noise and chaos. He couldn't drown out the images in his mind of people staring, whispering… they were making his head hurt. Then from a few feet away, he heard a familiar voice. He looked to see Sarah, one of the girls from division. She was talking to someone… Callie! Callie knew Sarah? Strange. He listened and immediately regretted it. "Hey, you won't believe this," Sarah was saying, "There's this really freaky little kid in my division now… he's like 8 or something." She giggled. "What is an 8-year old doing at Kenwood Academy? I mean, I've heard of skipping a grade, but jeez! It's sorta sad, really, I mean that kid must spend his time doing nothing but schoolwork! I can't imagine having no life like that…" Callie's face showed no emotion. Zack quickly sank into his chair and hid behind his book as they passed right by his table. Sarah didn't notice him, but Callie discreetly put a folded piece of paper on the table. A note. Zack opened it and read it quickly.
"Zack –
Holding up OK? Just try to blend in. The day is almost over. I'm sorry I can't talk to you in person about this, but it would look weird and I don't want to have to explain myself to my friends. You're smart, Zack, I'm sure you can figure out how to survive high school, at least for one more period. I'll talk to you when we get home, OK? Good luck!"
She had drawn a smiley face at the bottom. Zack allowed himself to smile slightly. He knew that Callie was a little resentful of him being here, but it felt good to know that she cared. He missed the feeling of his older siblings looking after him… it had mostly stopped around the time the "freaky genius" thing started. He placed the note in his backpack as the bell rang. He took a deep breath and pulled out his schedule… only one period left. Gym. He sighed as he stood up and followed the crowd out of the cafeteria. This day just kept getting longer.
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Wow, that was long! Nearly 4,000 words! I hope you enjoyed:) Zack's life really sucks right now, doesn't it? And it gets MUCH worse in the next chappie. But at least he has Callie now.
Zack is sad right now. But reviews might cheer him up. And speed up the next chappie. Care to try?
