First thing I notice about the high school: It's big. I mean, I thought the Elementary School, which was expanded to include a preschool and middle school, was big, but this high school is just huge! Also, it has a tall, wrought iron gate separating it from the street. There are tons of kids in all sorts of outfits and moods. You can see how cliquey everyone was, and I'm thinking about my friends. Are we a clique? I'll have to think more about it. Anyway, the school is awesome! On one side of the building, I can see a basketball court. On the other, some picnic tables. There are a couple oak trees in the front yard, but no one is climbing them, they're just sitting in the shade underneath, talking. Girls are hugging and squealing like they haven't seen each other for years. Guys are doing chest bumps and sizing each other up. As the limo pulls up, heads turn. People start whispering and pointing. "Who's that?" "Maybe it's someone famous!" "Oh my god, is that a stretch limo?" We haven't even set foot on the school grounds and already we're being gossiped about.
Bailey does the same routine he did at the Limo Stop. As he steps out of the way, Muffy uncrosses her legs, straightens her skirt, and steps gracefully out of the limo. She flips her hair over her shoulder and looks around with a coy smile on her carefully painted lips. She walks straight ahead then turns back to the limo, with an expression that says, "You coming or what?"
Binky jumps out first, all happy and excited. Since he lost weight, his face isn't as doughy, and you can see that he has a strong jaw line. He has girls batting their eyes at him within minutes. Francine gets out with Jenna and Fern and they link arms, walking into the crowd smiling. Buster looks kind of shy as he gets out, wearing his board shorts and an NYC t-shirt. He shoulders his backpack and waits for me and George to get out. George steps out in his favorite denim jacket. With his black hair cut short and a little spiked, he's looking confident as he walks over to Buster. I decide to go out next, wearing blue jeans, a furry bomber jacket, and a white t-shirt underneath. I don't feel like I'm standing out as much as the others, because they seem as though they got makeovers during the next few months, whereas all I've changed is my eyewear. I'm suddenly aware at how everyone is staring at me, and I shuffle over to George and Buster. Prunella and Brain step out together, his arm around her waist, and she walks him over to her tenth grade friends.
Muffy calls, "That will be all, Bailey" and he promptly closes the doors, gets into the driver's seat, and drives away silently. Muffy walks over to Buster, grabs him by the hand, and proceeds to drag him over to some tall, fabulous seniors. We can all tell that her plan is to get super popular, super fast. And starting off the year with a boyfriend is the way to get there. Poor Buster looks super uncomfortable though, and he mouths to me, "Help me!"
I laugh a little, but I'm heading over to him and Muffy. I say, "Hey dude, let's go" and he practically runs away from Muffy and her new "friends."
"Hey, where's Sue Ellen?" George asks us worriedly. "She said she'd meet us here."
Suddenly, our phones start beeping. Across the lawn, we can see the others' phones beeping too. We all look at our phones in unison. It's a text from Sue Ellen. "Hey guys, our car broke down. I'll see you at lunch, Ok?" All right, our reunion with Sue Ellen is being pushed back. Again.
Classes go by pretty quickly, but it gets pretty repetitive. Every teacher's job today is to introduce themselves and give the class rules and expectations. Eventually, it's lunch time. We're meeting in the cafeteria to finally see Sue Ellen.
Prunella and Brain get there early and save us a table, right in the center of the lunch room. Muffy has been dragging Buster around behind her all day, showing off her boyfriend to all the popular seniors. They seem to really like her, especially the guys, who seem more interested in her legs than her boyfriend. Finally, after everyone in our group has sat down at the table, Buster tells Muffy he's going to get a soda from the machine. As he goes up, we notice this girl sitting at a table near the drink machines. She has hair the color of cinnamon that's smooth and curly. She's wearing camouflage skinny jeans, a black tank top, and a scarf embroidered with all these different designs. She's not wearing any makeup, but I still think she's pretty. You can see that the other guys are impressed too. We're all surprised though, when the girl stands up and starts staring at Buster inquisitively. He's not looking at her, but we are. She's short but fit, and only comes up to his shoulder. Muffy stands up, looking like she's about to go all, "Oh no you didn't flirt with my man!" on this girl.
But then Buster turns around and looks at her with amazement. The girl is grinning ear to ear, and Buster is shaking with excitement, making his can of Mountain Dew vibrate in his hand. What's going on?
All of a sudden, the girl throws her arms around his neck, he wraps his arms around her waist, and they have a passionate kiss. The Mountain Dew drops, pops open, and explodes, showering the two with fizzy. Muffy looks shocked, and has these huge bug eyes, jaw dropped. Binky looks like the proud father whose kid just kicked the winning goal. The rest of us are just plain shocked. I'm feeling a mix of emotions right now. I feel happy for him, a little jealous, confused, but most of all, I'm just wondering what the heck is going on.
The two of them finally break apart, smiling, and Buster takes her hand, leading her over to our table.
"Uh guys? This is Sue Ellen"
We're all speechless. I mean, Sue Ellen? She's almost unrecognizable! Gone are the braces and crazy hair, gone with the lack of fashion sense. This new, older Sue Ellen is fashionable, a little shy, and very pretty. Oh, and by the way – She and Buster are boyfriend and girlfriend! Buster explains how, in the past month, Sue Ellen was visiting NYC to help her get back to the USA and they ran into each other. They started hanging out, and after two days, Buster asked her to go on a date with him. Sue Ellen accepted, and they've been together ever since. He's been trying to tell Muffy all day, but they were never alone. And he didn't want to tell the rest of us until he broke up with Muffy. Now I understand why he was so quiet. He told me a bit later, after he broke the news to the others, he had decided to wait and see how Muffy had changed or stayed over the summer. When he found that she had reverted back to her old bratty self, he chose Sue Ellen, because she's "beautiful on the inside and the outside." Buster's words, not mine.
Sue Ellen is still really nice and funny, but we all are feeling a bit shy around her because…well…remember how earlier I was telling you how I remember Sue Ellen? She was really fun and smart. She was also the girl who you always felt comfortable around. Now, she's much prettier, and her style has changed. She's still very quirky, but it's just…different. Plus, she and Buster are together, so we all keep looking at them like some crazy phenomenon is occurring.
But they don't notice. They're a bit wrapped up in each other. Literally, they're always in contact, whether it's hand holding, an arm around the shoulders, or touching knees under the table. Muffy is looking extremely conflicted right now. On one hand, Sue Ellen is her friend and they're seeing each other for the first time in years, but on the other, she just stole her boyfriend!
Meanwhile, George looks very thoughtful. I'm not exactly sure why, because although George has gotten over some of his elementary school shyness, he's still pretty quiet. All of a sudden, he says, "Muffy, will you go on a date with me?"
We all stare at him in shock. Muffy blinks once, twice. She has a funny expression on her face. He looks so hopeful, like the little boy asking for ice cream. She takes a tube of lip gloss from her purse and smears the gel on her lips. Then, she regards him with a cool look. We all flinch, preparing for a cruel rejection. But instead, she shrugs, says, "Ah, what the heck" and kisses him on the lips! George looks ecstatic and barely manages to squeak out that he'll pick her up at eight. Muffy smiles as she walks out the door.
"Way to go man!" Binky said, clapping George on the back. "I've been trying to get a date with Muffy for years!"
"Yeah," I agreed. "I just hope…"
"Hope what?" George asked, eyes widening with worry
"Oh, it's nothing"
"Tell me!"
"Well, it's just…I hope she's not just going out with you to get back at Buster"
George's eyes narrow and he says, "I can't believe you Arthur! For once in my life something good is happening to me and you, one of my oldest friends, can't support me!"
He shoulders his backpack and stalks down the hall.
"George…!" Binky calls, and then turns to me. "You really should apologize to him, Arthur. You really hurt him." He runs after George, hopefully to clear my name.
"Wow" Buster says, "And they say girls get all the drama" The bell rings, and he walks off to his next class, leaving me behind.
Well, school is over. I've decided to skip taking the limo home with the others, seeing as how George keeps giving me the evil eye. I don't think anyone will notice. They've all got super exciting things going on these days. I'm starting to feel like I'm not as exciting as the others. I mean, they've got all these cool things going on – relationships, sports, electives, new experiences – and I'm just the kid who hasn't changed and is boring. I wouldn't be surprised if they're all laughing it up in the limo as we speak, saying, "Oh, Arthur is so boring, Arthur is stupid, Arthur is so dull…!" I kick a rock and it bounces of a sign post right back onto my toe.
"Hey Arthur! Wait up!" Ugh, who's that? Hey, it's…Jenna!
"Uh, hi Jenna."
"Hey," She says, slightly out of breath. "Why weren't you at the Limo Stop? We were worried!"
"We?" I say, my eyebrows raised.
"Well…just me, really."
"You were worried about me?"
"Well, yeah." She says, blushing.
"Uh, thanks" I say. We walk in silence for a while until we reach her street.
"So, uh…" She says awkwardly.
"Can I walk you home?" I say, and she smiles and nods yes. We walk down the block in silence, but this time, it's a bit warmer.