Well here we go... Enjoy~
When Naminé was woken up by her father she felt like punching him in the face. Of course she would never do such a thing but it's the thought that counts. Right? Her legs ached her head felt heavy. Not just from the party, but from the apprehensive, first day of school feeling. If her father hadn't lifted her out of bed, she never would have left. After her father swung her around a couple of times and let her down, she zombie walked to the bathroom and showered. Even after her shower, she still felt as active as a corpse.
After grabbing her messenger bag she trudged through the living room, down the spiral stairs and through the cafe before her father stopped her. He said something about Hayner before handing her a lunch box, a cup of coffee and her roller blades. She took a gulp of coffee and walked out of The Art Deco Cafe and into a huge and empty mall.
She walked down stairs and greeted the people who were opening up their stores and sending their own children to school. It was strange living in Castle Oblivion seeing as it was so huge but eventually, Naminé got used to it. After seeing it as a huge and somewhat gated community, she began to like living there. The only downside to living and working in the Castle Oblivion mall was that it was way too big. To go from top to bottom by stairs it would take Naminé a good two hours and that's if she only spent about five minutes per floor. Luckily for her, she was only on the fifth floor so she didn't mind walking.
When she got downstairs she had the round-the-clock security guard open the door for her seeing as the mall wasn't supposed to be open until an hour and a half later. She saw Hayner walk towards her with a skateboard in hand. She slipped on her blades and skated over to him.
"Ready?" he asked once she was next to him. She nodded and gave him an uneasy smile. After minutes of skating in silence Hayner spoke up.
"Why don't we skip school today?"
Naminé's eyes widened in shock. "Skip?" She squeaked.
He nodded and kept riding to school. "What if we go half of the day? You know, to test the waters."
Naminé let out a small nod of approval. She was still a little sleepy and she didn't know if she could put up with a whole day of looking for classes, learning names, getting sheets signed and schedules approved. She just wanted to see how people walked and talked in this new school of hers before she dove into schoolwork. For a moment, she wondered how her father would take the news that his daughter was playing hooky. It made her nervous to think of his reaction but once she saw the huge grey and red building coming into view, her decision was made.
"Ok, that sounds like a good idea."
They rolled into the school parking lot and up to the school steps before Naminé stopped at the entrance. She felt as if she would blow chunks. It was as if her breath was as scared to leave her throat.
"Naminé! Calm down, I promise that my friends don't bite."
Wait. What? She stopped hyperventilating and looked at him trying to figure out if he meant it or not.
For once, Hayner looked nervous. "Well I mean, if you want to hang out with my friends. It's not like you have to. You probably want to make new friends anyway."
Naminé shrugged and pushed the brown doors open. Hayner gave her a quick pre-school tour and showed her where things were, including the location of his classrooms, just in case she needed his help. They were done after twenty minutes and went outside to meet some Hayner's friends who'd just arrived. As they neared the group of teens sitting on and around a bench, Naminé's pace slowed and she tried to hide behind Hayner.
"Hey Hayner!" They called. There was one guy and two girls. One of the girls who was laughing and smiling was Olette. Her shoulder length brown hair moved as a cold wind blew through it. The redhead standing next to Olette giggled and wrapped her arms around herself. The only boy blew on his hands to keep warm.
"Naminé, you already know Olette. The boy is Pence, and the girl is Kairi." Hayner said as he shoved her towards them.
"Hey, great party yesterday!" Pence said once he saw the nervous look on her face. Aside from the school pullover he wore a Polaroid camera around his neck and a blue sweatband to keep his dark hair out of his brown eyes.
"It was so much fun!" Kairi added as she moved her body in a way that could have been considered dancing. Naminé pursed her lips so she wouldn't laugh at the redhead who was making a fool of herself. Her friends just smiled and laughed while Naminé watched in silent awe and confusion. They didn't reprimand her for acting so weird or scold her for being loud, if anything, their laughter encouraged Kairi to dance more.
After Kairi finished dancing, they launched into an animated conversation. There were, of course, many different instances where Naminé could have jumped in, but she was too busy thinking about the day ahead of her.
"Kairi!" A voice in the distance yelled, causing the conversation about mimes to stop.
"Hayner, Pence, Olette!," a second voice yelled. Kairi got up from beside Naminé and went to go greet the owners of the voices and the rest of the group followed. Naminé stood up and debated on what to do next.
On one hand, I can go to class, seeing as there's a minute before the bell rings. On the other hand, maybe they want to talk to me. Though, I think I would probably like to talk to these people more than they would want to talk to me... I just have to take the initiative...
A smile worked it's way onto her face and butterflies burst from the cocoons in her stomach. She knew exactly what her plan of attack would be. She would march right up to the two people and introduce herself with a smile. She took a step forward and a voice echoed in her head.
Why would they want to meet someone like you?
Her smile cracked and the composure she'd tried so hard to keep slipped from her fingers and shattered. Slowly, she backed away quietly until she was sure that no one from the group could see her running. Once she was near her first period classroom she sent Hayner a text to let him know that she wasn't going to cut class anymore. Her insides were numb. The butterflies died and the dim fire in her eyes disappeared completely.
Naminé decided to concentrate on the little things as she moved from the door to her chemistry teacher's desk to the seat she chose in the back. Her breathing, the sound her flats made against the light blue tile, the creaking sound her seat made when she sat into it. Anything at all to keep the voices out of her head. Once the sound stopped she focused on her book bag and wondered what she was thinking when she decided to decorate it.
Paint was smeared and splattered all over it so that you wouldn't be able to tell what the original color was. If that wasn't enough she stitched and glued random stuff onto it. There were still buttons sewn onto it but the pins she added long ago were gone by now. She was told that her book bag looked like an art supply store threw up on it and that it made her look like she was a stupid five year old. After all, they were right.
She took a deep breath and successfully shook the voices out of her head. They. Were. Wrong. She kept repeating that in her head and she loosened up a bit.
The teacher did what teachers do and called role, gave assignments and gave lectures but by the time Naminé got her notebook out of her backpack the bell rang. Her expression was one of shock and confusion but she packed her bag and began to walk out of the classroom.
As she moved through the crowded hallways she kept her eyes on her class list on her way to homeroom. Her itinerary consisted of Chemistry, Algebra 2, AP European History, lunch, Elective 1, Elective 2 , English, P.E, and finally Career Research. She bit her lip as she slid into an empty seat.
Her eyes stayed on her paper and she wondered what her two electives were. The only thing she knew about the classes were the room number and how long she had each class. She spent such a long time wondering about the two classes that homeroom flew by. Her head shot up and she looked up at the clock. She raised an eyebrow and slowly picked up her stuff to go to her Algebra 2 Class. Once again she was thrown into the swarm of students but this time someone grabbed her arm and spun her around.
She shut her eyes and kept her head down.
"It's, um, Naminé right?"
Slowly, she opened her eyes and saw a spiky-headed brunette looking at her with an uneasy expression. She closed her eyes as she tried to remember from where she'd seen this guy from. It dawned on her and she quickly looked down.
"I'm really sorry for bumping into you at the party," She began before looking up and lightly hitting her head. "I'm such an idiot sometimes."
The boy laughed and she blushed a bit and looked down. "I would say no problem but seeing as it was my fault I can't do that. Hayner told me to tell you that he forgot to tell you that today is an early release day." He said as he walked forward and moved his hands while he spoke. Once he finished he grabbed her arm and dragged her to the direction opposite to where her math class was. She nearly asked him why but he began to speak again. "He also forgot to tell you that this school goes by a block schedule and that today is an Odd day."
She inhaled deeply and asked him a question. "So instead of second period, I'd go to third right?"
The boy nodded, "Exactly. My name is Sora by the way."
"Thank you so much Sora. I really appreciate it"
He pulled open the classroom door and bowed. "It's no trouble at all, m'lady"
By the end of the class Naminé was no longer Naminé Nakahara, ordinary and unimportant teenager. She was Joan of Arc, Maid of Orleans or at least she was every third period. That made her feel as if she was floating to her second elective.
When she stepped through the door her eyes widened and her jaw dropped in shock. For a split second she thought that she'd somehow walked out of school and into the first steps of space. A small wave of vertigo hit her as she stared into the dark rounded ceiling. It was currently decorated with tiny white pinpricks of light.
Naminé tore her eyes away from the celestial ceiling and looked around the dark room. Right now she was at the highest point in the room and she could see the silhouettes of students moving down below. She was about to take a step down the stairs in front of her when something caught her eye. Slowly she turned her head and looked at two floating circles of light near a huge machine. She was about to scream but she quickly covered her mouth.
The two circles laughed, "I always scare the new kids. Class is about to start, so if you will, take your seat and then we can get this show on the road."
Naminé nodded and stumbled down the stairs and to a seat down below. From her seat she could hear her professor clearing his throat. His voice resonated throughout the room.
"Welcome one and welcome all to another wonderful class period of astronomy! For those of you who don't know and for those who don't remember, my name is Mr. Bruknnec and...I- I am your father. Ha! JKJK! I'm just your kickass Astronomy teacher. So let's learn about space shall we? Ad astra and all!"
The class responded with a round of laughs and giggles. Naminé cracked a smile and relaxed a bit. As the class went on she felt a strange feeling of amusement and bewilderment. Mr. Bruknnec was a great teacher. He knew enough about what he was talking about to make it fun and easy to learn. Within the class period she knew the sun's composition of elements, its diameter, how long it takes for its light to reach Earth and even the cultures that worshiped the sun.
Even though it was fun and educational, Naminé couldn't help but wonder how Mr. Bruknnec felt about his fifth period class. How was it that he could stand students calling him out of his name? How could he stand the interruptions? The laughing, the giggling, the talking, the snoring? She felt a little angry for him. After all, he was the one in charge and everyone else should respect that. If not for that, they should at least respect those who actually want to learn. Right?
The thought followed her to her next and last class of the day but when she reached the double doors leading to the gym, all she could think about was how nervous she was. She took a deep breath and pushed open the doors. A blast of cool air blew her blond hair behind her and the cold sunk into her skin, causing goosebumps to rise, despite the fact that she was wearing a sweater. The P.E. teacher was smiling and talking to her class by the time Naminé got there. She felt a little uneasy. Had she been late? The teacher turned towards her. The teacher's face was angry and her hands were in fists at her hips.
Naminé paled. She'd done something wrong. Everyone in the class turned in her direction and she was lost in a sea of eyes. Her stomach knotted up and she wondered what they were thinking. She'd give anything to know what they were thinking. The teacher called her to the front of the class and put her hands on Naminé's shoulders. After turning the blond towards the class she said the words that Naminé feared the most.
"Why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself, sweetheart?"
Naminé bit her lip and thought about it. She was about to say "I like to…" or "I enjoy…" but the more she wondered what to say the more she realized that she had nothing worth mentioning. She had no talents or skills that she could share. Nothing worth mentioning. All she had was her old town and her old school.
"I, um, I used to go to Twilight Academy for the Intellectually Gifted in Twilight Town."
Once the words left her mouth the class she immediately regretted it because the whole class launched into an animated discussion about her old private school. They tried to drag her into what she was saying but because there were so many people talking at once that she could get by without answering them under the guise of confusion. After about six minutes of the class talking about great schools, the Phys. Ed. teacher regained control of the situation.
"Ok class, now that we've all met Naminé, let's get down to business."
Naminé took this as her cue to take a seat on the bleachers so she walked over and sat down. Unlike her astronomy class, the seating arrangements were a little tight to say the least. She ended up sitting on the very edge of the bleachers next to a blond boy.
"Now as you know, we just finished our unit on basketball so now we are on to soccer. So change out right now and meet back here in ten minutes."
Naminé bit her lip. She didn't have a PE uniform or a locker. She didn't even have a clue where the girls' locker room was. As the crowd of tenth and ninth graders shuffled to the changing rooms she stood to the side. It wasn't until people began coming back that the teacher remembered Naminé standing to one side of the bleachers.
"Oh! That's right! Follow me hun, I've got a uniform you can use for now and you can keep your bookbag in my office." She said leading the teenager to a door. "It's sitting on my desk for you and use my key to lock the room, ok? Meet us outside when you're done."
The young girl nodded and stepped inside of the room. It was a little messy and had a chlorine smell to it. There were papers and pens scattered across a desk and in the corners of the room lay different buckets and bins with equipment. On a pile of papers on the desk sat her grey and red PE uniform. After taking her jeans off, she grabbed the grey shorts. Once they were on, she wondered if they should really be that short. Only about six inches of her skin were covered by the shorts; the rest of her nasty, pasty white legs were exposed to the elements. She shoved her arms through the sleeves of the red shirt and she was ready to go.
She walked outside after locking the door and was happy to feel that it was no longer ice cold. Instead it was nice and balmy outside. The wind blew through her hair as she looked below to see kids running, laughing and screaming around the field. She walked over to where the instructor was and waited quietly for instructions. She stood there for a while and watched as the kids ran across the field. It wasn't until a teacher aide walked up to her P.E instructor and handed her a note did she notice Naminé standing like around awkwardly.
"Naminé, you were called to the office so just leave the uniform on my desk. The aid has the key."
She did as she was told and walked back to the gym with the T.A. and quickly changed back into her normal clothes before following him to the office. She muttered a word of thanks before stepping into the principals' office. She shifted nervously before stepping in.
It was a relatively plain room. The walls were a pale blue and there were several fake plants at the corners of the room. A somewhat rickety metal desk was standing between her and the principle who was looking through files that were presumably hers.
"So Naminé," She began. "I am Principle Ine and I'm incredibly happy that you're here, though I do wish it were under better circumstances."
"I- I do t-too, ma'am," Naminé stuttered before flinching. It was a motion that didn't go undetected by her principle.
"Naminé, it's ok to be nervous in a new school you know," she said smiling. "We promote healthy lifestyles here at Traverse High. Physical, mental and emotional. Which is why you'll talk to the school therapist every day for at least twenty minutes. In fact, here he is now." Principle Ine motioned towards the door.
A man who could have been in his mid twenties walked over to Naminé, smiled and shook her hand before introducing himself as Chad Sasaki.
"He'll be showing you where his office is but wait a second," said Principal Ine as she rummaged through her desk that looked as if it would fall apart any second. "Where did I put the the things for... Ah-ha! Here they are," she said as she stretched up to get a small cardboard box containing a P.E uniform, a P.E locker number and lock, a regular locker number and lock and last but not least, her student ID. She thanked the principle and walked behind the young man. He led her to a door that had the words 'Chad Sasaki, School Therapist' in big silver block lettering.
Inside, the walls were painted a burnt orange color that was surprisingly calming. A bookcase took up one wall, while framed pictures and letters lined another. Chad sat down in an red egg chair and motioned for Naminé to sit down on the worn leather sofa.
"So, is there anything you want to talk about?"
Naminé shrugged and looked down. She didn't like psychologists very much; it'd taken her months to get used to her old one.
"Well how about school?"
Naminé's eyes flickered upward. She sucked in a big gulp of air before asking her question. "Can you tell me what my other electives are?"
"Oh, no problem. Just hand me your schedule. You already had Astrology so your next elective is Art."
"What! No, no, no. I seriously can't do art at all. I don't even know why my dad signed me up for it. Is there any way I can switch my classes?"
Chad was clearly stunned by her sudden outburst but quickly gained composure. "So what makes you think that you won't do well in art?"
"That doesn't matter. What matters is that my schedule should be filled with more academic classes. You know? Something to actually fill my brain with stuff I can use in life!"
"I understand that you want to be successful in life but what's the point of all that success if you don't enjoy life. I've looked at your transcript and you're a wonderful student. I un-"
"No, my grades were pathetic last semester..."
He shifted around in his seat a little bit, crossing one leg over the other.
"Naminé, I want you to think-just humor me, ok?- think of reasons why art isn't for you and I'll give you reasons why it doesn't matter. Sound good?"
"Uh, sure. It's a complete waste of a high school credit."
"You need a type of art credit to graduate from here." To this she furrowed her eyebrows.
"I'll never be able to use art to help me or earn a living."
"There are actually many jobs that use art and creativity. You could be hired for commission, make concept drawings for various institutes or even work in law enforcement as a sketch artist."
"When I do draw, my drawings look like crap."
"So you admit it! You do draw, which is reason enough for you to be taking an art class."
Naminé stared at the man in front of her. What he said made perfect sense, no matter how much she hated it. When she looked at Chad he was staring back at her, as if expecting another reason from her. She opened her mouth to say something when he jumped, as if someone pricked him with a pin.
"I just remembered that I got something for you." He hopped out of his chair and went rummaging through the one of the bookcases in the room. From it he pulled out a medium-sized spiral notebook."
Consider this your therapy homework. Everyday before you come here, you have to make an entry of how you're feeling. It could be a written entry, a picture or even a song, but you have to let me know how it makes you feel and why, ok?"
Naminé was reluctant to take the notebook. Why would he care about how she felt? Granted, it was his job but the way he smiled, it felt as if he really cared. She gulped, her throat suddenly dry and took the book from him. Snapping it open, she took out a pen from her backpack and scribbled words down angrily.
I should have skipped school today.