My alarm rang and I got up languidly. I stretched my arms and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. I pushed my covers off me and clambered out of bed.
Yawning, I walked to my door and threw it open. It hit the wall with a bang. Now, I knew Sokka would sleep through that. He could probably manage to sleep through a stampede running through his room. The only way to wake him was to go into his room, and gently shake him, the way our mother used to wake us. So, that's exactly what I did. I shook, he yawned, I left and he got up. Simple.
I went back in my room and sauntered over to bathroom. My own private bathroom with a marble tub and my own shower, and marble floors, and marble counters. I sighed. There was way too much marble in this bathroom for me. Plus, everything echoed. I could even hear my footsteps float back and forth between the walls and floors.
I threw water on my face, and brushed my teeth. You know, all the normal morning stuff.
I put on some clothes, and looked out the window. It looked like a nice day and since I knew Sokka wouldn't be ready yet, I decided I would walk.
This school was absolutely huge. Students pushed their way through the crowd and I assumed that if I wanted to get anywhere on time, I would have to do the same. I began shoving my way through, saying sorry when I could.
I got inside the office and got my class schedule. They asked me where Sokka was and I told them he would be here shortly. They told me that one girl was in almost all of my classes and had agreed to show me around. I shrugged, but truly I couldn't have been more relieved.
The girl walked in only moments later, wearing a light green shirt with a darker green jacket and white pants. "Hi," she said, "I'm Suki."
"Hey, my name's Katara."
"Our first class will be starting soon. Did they assign you a locker? I could help you find it."
"Oh, yeah, that would be great! Let's see." I pulled out the piece of paper with the number written on it. "It's number one hundred and thirty seven."
"That's the empty locker near me!" Suki squealed.
I smiled.
"I'll show you where it is," she offered.
After Suki had shown me my locker, the bell rang and we had to get to class. Suki wasn't in two of my classes and the first period happened to be one of them. I had been pushed ahead on some of my classes: math and biology.
I hesitantly walked into the room.
"Ah," the teacher said. "You must be the new student. Your name?" he asked as he searched for a book I could use.
"Katara Water," I responded.
He handed me the book. "Well, I'm Mr. Anderson and welcome to my class. Let's see. The only seat available is the one next to Zuko," he pointed to the tan seat next to a threatening looking guy with a large scar covering the left side of his face.
I nodded and walked over to my seat. I awkwardly sat down next to him.
"Katara, you can copy Zuko's notes to see what we're doing."
I looked over at the boy and his notes. The paper was blank except for doodles. Zuko glared at me and I pretended to write things down from his page.
The next fifty minutes were the most awkward in my life. I could feel Zuko's glare burning into me and I was afraid to look at him, so I took all my notes and made sure that one hundred percent of my attention was focused on the class, even if it was just review.
When the class ended, Zuko looked down at my notes, rolled his eyes, and mumbled something under his breath before leaving.
There was about three more classes before lunch and I sat with Suki and all of her friends. They asked me about practically everything. What was my school like before? Who were my friends? What were my hobbies? Who did I have a crush on? All that stuff and while they learned about me I learned about them.
Sokka grabbed my arm and pulled me aside. "Who's that girl you were sitting with?"
"Which one?"
"The cute one," Sokka answered.
"Only one's cute?" I asked with a laugh.
Suki walked over. "You coming Katara?"
"Her," Sokka mumbled, low enough for only me to hear.
"Suki, this is my brother, Sokka. Sokka, this is my friend, Suki."
"It's very nice to meet you." She held her arm out for him to shake it and he grabbed it without a second thought.
"Nice to meet you, too." Minutes passed by as they looked at each other and continued shaking the other person's hand.
"We have to get to classes," I reminded her.
"Oh, yeah, right," she said, releasing Sokka's hand. "Let me see your schedule." I handed to her and she groaned. "We don't have this class together either. But come on. That room's over here."
She grabbed and dragged me to my class. Before she opened the door she said, "Gosh, your brother's cute."
I grimaced and opened the door as she walked away. One good thing about being new is that you aren't really expected to be there right on time; you're still finding your way around.
"You must be the new student," the teacher said, standing up. "I'm Mrs. Walker."
"I'm Katara."
"Nice to meet you. Here's your book," she said, handing it to me. "The only seat left is next to Zuko."
Zuko scowled. Great. My biology partner for the rest of the year is some guy that hates me just for being forced to sit next to him.
I nodded and walked to me seat, holding my book like it was a life preserver and I was stranded in the middle of the ocean.
He stared and I glared back. Mrs. Walker talked in the front of the class, but what she was saying, I had no idea.
We almost made it through the whole class. Five minutes before class ended, we both simultaneously stood up and screamed, "What's your problem?"
Mrs. Walker turned around and looked at us both. "Excuse me?"
"He keeps staring at me like he wants like he wants to kill me or something!" I shrieked.
"She kept glaring at me!"
"You two have-" The bell cut her off and I raced out of the classroom.