Hi readers! This is my new Atla highschool AU. It takes place in the real modern world (so no bending). Aang is the new kid with a secretive past, Toph is a rich homeschooled girl starting public school, Katara is an overacheiver, Zuko and Azula are the children of the school's principal and Sokka, well, Sokka is still the meat and sarcasm guy!

Hope you like it! And leave a review too - I'd love your feedback.

Chapter 1 - Benders Back Again! Part 1

Drnnnn! Drnnnn! Aang's alarm clock rang earlier than usual that day. He fiddled with the settings for a bit before sitting up in his bed, rubbing off his end-of-summer blues with a yawn. It was his first day of highschool at a new school and he didn't want to be late.

It took him an eternity to find the right clothes to wear. His closet was filled to the brim with a mess of orange and yellow t-shirt and shorts, too casual to make a good first impression. He HAD to make a good first impression, after all. Aang had been expelled from his old school before summer began (for reasons he doesn't like to share) and now had to start his freshman year of highschool at a completely new school with a group of strangers.

Just as he was about to leave his room, Aang's phone vibrated. He grabbed his phone from his bed, waking his pet dog Appa in the process and receiving a wet slobbery kiss.

Hey Aang! R we still on for this afternoon?- Kuzon

Kuzon, one of Aang's best friends, had been stressing over the fact that the three friends (Aang, Kuzon and Bumi) should still remain friends even after Aang's change of school. He had planned for them to meet at the park after school and had been asking for them to confirm it every single day for the past week.

Of course. I'll be there. - Aang

And Bumi, you're coming too, right? - Kuzon

Duh. And stop asking the same question every single second! We've already agreed on this. You don't have to keep confirming it!!! - Bumi

Aang laughed at his friends' light-hearted bickering. Then he sighed. A new school meant leaving all his old friends behind. Despite these sad thoughts, Aang was also exploding with excitement. He always liked making new friends and meeting new people. A new school couldn't be that bad? Could it?

"Sokka!! Where did you put my blue blouse?!" Katara yelled from one side of the house.

"Which blue blouse?" Sokka said from afar. Katara could almost see his self-satisfied smirk.

"My favourite blouse, obviously!" Katara yelled back.

"Oh... I used it to clean the grease after I fixed the sink."

Katara tried to stay calm and be mature but she could feel her face burning up. "What?!?! How dare- ughhhh! And since when do you fix anything?"

"Since I became the man of the house, of course."

"If anybody is the man of the house now that dad's gone, it's Gran Gran not you!" Katara said, hoping to deflate his big head

"I don't know if that's supposed to insult me or Gran Gran."

Katara muffled her screams with her pillow. It was like this every morning since Katara and Sokka's father had left town to work with the military. Gran Gran loved her grandchildren and had agreed to act as their guardian but the constant bickering was driving her crazy. She was actually quite relieved that they were going to start school so that she could have some time to herself. She would never admit this to their faces though.

"Hurry up kids or you'll miss the bus!"

There he was, staring at the entrance of Ba Sing Se Highschool. There was a huge banner hanging above the entrance which read 'Home of the Ba Sing Se Benders'. Aang knew that the Ba Sing Se Benders were the best highschool football team in the league but if he had to be honest he preferred to play soccer or lacrosse instead of something rough like football.

All around him students were chatting with their friends and Aang felt slightly embarrassed that he was just standing there with no one to talk to. His stomach was bugging him too. He didn't know if it was just nerves or if it was the onion and banana juice his adoptive father Gyatso had made him earlier that morning. Gyatso had borrowed the disgusting recipe from his friend Pathik to Aang's annoyance. He waved the feeling away and focused on the job at hand. Making it through his first day.

The halls were also full of people. Aang felt a little disoriented since his old school wasn't as big as this one and there weren't that many students either.

Suddenly Aang heard someone yell "Heads up". Aang didn't know exactly who the yell was meant for or from which direction it came but the next thing he knew he was being hit in the face by a flying football. The hit sent him sprawling to the floor. He lay there almost unconscious for a few seconds before he heard foot steps approaching him from behind. In a few seconds a girl with brown hair was standing over him looking worried. Next to her was a boy with crossed arms who Aang assumed was her brother. He didn't pay much attention to the brother though because the girl who was infront of him at that moment was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen with the softest eyes a human could possibly have. She helped him up and smiled. The smile set Aang's heart aflutter.

"Are you ok? That was a pretty hard hit," she said still smiling.

Aang stared for a moment, still quite dazed and his head pounding. Then he finally spoke up and said, "I'm fine. Thanks."

"You heard him, he's fine. Now come on. I don't want to be seen with some freshman," her brother stated, viewing Aang from top to bottom as though he was his enemy.

The girl scolded her brother then looked back at Aang. "My name's Katara. I'm a sophomore. The annoying one is my brother Sokka. He's a senior," she told him. "But he has the maturity of a kintergartener."

Sokka shot his tongue out at Katara. "See what I mean," she said.

Aang watched the siblings bicker in silence. When they finally stopped arguing, Aang said, "I'm Aang. I'm a new, um, transfer student. I'm a freshman."

"Where did you transfer from?" Katara asked.

"A private school on the other side of town," Aang said, not wanting to give away all the details.

"Well, we have to get to class but we'll see you around," Katara said with a swift wave of her hand and another heartwarming smile.

After they left, Aang concluded that this new school thing wasn't a bad thing after all.

The Beifong Family limo rolled into the school parking lot like it was the most normal thing in the world. You could almost see the drool coming from students' mouths as they examined the giant expensive vehicle. After a few seconds of bewilderment, the whispering began. Rumours and questions lingered in the air. Who owns this limo? Are they a new student? Are they related to royalty?

Toph Beifong stepped out of the backseat aided by her family's butler. Toph couldn't exactly see the look on people's faces and their pointing but she just knew it was there. She could sense others' stares every time she went out in the limo. She had tried convincing her parents to let her go to school without the limo but she didn't want to push her luck considering they actually let her go to public school in the first place.

Toph and her butler rushed past the swarm of gossing students in the halls and straight into the secretary's office. Toph's parents had arranged for her to be guided around the school by the secretary until she felt comfortable being aided by a student. Toph didn't exactly want some guide showing her around, she could handle everything by herself just fine and she definitely didn't want to be seen as some weak blind girl by her peers or her teachers. But anyway.

The secretary was a woman with straight brown hair and a face plastered with the fakest smile one can make.

"Hello. My name is Joo Dee and I am honoured to be showing Toph Beifong around Ba Sing Se Highschool," the secretary said and Toph almost gagged at her saccharine voice. If all the adults in this school were like this secretary, Toph was actually considering being homeschooled again.

Aang was lost. He had been trying to find his home room for 20 minutes with no luck. The halls were completely empty so Aang couldn't even ask a person for directions. He was practically running through the corridors, his eyes fixed on the room numbers zooming past. Then he bumped into something and looked up to see an angry senior with a scar on his face. His shirt was drenched in coffee and in his hand was an empty cup.

"Look what you've done! What do you have to say for yourself?!" the teenager yelled, his voice emanating angst.

"Ah... some vinegar and laundry detergent will get that out," Aang said with an awkward laugh, hoping the teenage would laugh it off.

"Are you trying to be funny?!" the senior screamed back.

"No, no, not at all," Aang said nervously.

The senior kept yelling but Aang wasn't really paying attention. His stomach felt even worse after all the running and before he knew it...

"Gross!" the teenager said, angrier now than ever. His shoes were now covered in puke.

The principal's office happened to be right next to were this whole thing was happening and the principal came barging out into the corridor, surprising Aang.

"Zuko, what is the meaning of this?" he said sternly.

"This freshman spilled my coffee and puked all over my shoes, father," the senior said.

Father??? Aang thought. Just my luck.

Part 2 coming soon. A class list will be included with the next chapter.

Thanks for reading!