(10 pm, DuGrey mansion)
Tristan was home. His new home that he still had to get used to and find the downstairs bathroom to, yes, but still home. His parents had bought a house that was part of some new developments in town. Now he was lying on his old, familiar bed, with his nevy blue comforter, staring up at the ceiling.
Deciding he couldn't stand the silence anymore, he rolled off the best and went across the room to his stereo. He threw on a 'Tool' CD and jumped back onto the bed. He slowly drifted off to sleep.
(August 29th, 2002. 6:55 am, Tristan's car)
Tristan drove smoothly along the Merritt Parkway on his way to his first day of school. A few days after he got home, he and his parents had discussed some schools in the area. He could go to a private all-boys school or a private co-ed school. Sure he had changed, but school without girls? No, not happening. So he had chosen Our Lady Catholic High School in Fairfield, about twenty five minutes away. School started at 7:40, so he left to get there by 7:20.
He was a little nervous about starting his senior year at a school where he didn't know anybody, but it was better than going back to Chilton. Our Lady was supposedly more mellow, though not by much. At least the uniforms were better - solid dark or khaki pants, with their choice of dress shirt and tie. In the first and last marking periods, students were allowed to wear polo shirts bearing the Our Lady crest in a variety of colors. Not really caring, Tristan had put on a pair of khaki Dockers and a light blue polo.
He had his favorite rock station back on - Radio 104. In military school they weren't allowed to have radios, but that didn't matter because all they had in North Carolina was country anyway.
Tristan pulled off the highway at the exit only half a mile down a hill from the school. He had already been there a few times to register and find his way. He was getting more nervous as he pulled up another hill, the driveway, and made his way into the student parking lot.
He pulled the rearview mirror down and ran his fingers through his hair, sighed, and got out of the car. He opened the back door and grabbed his backpack, slinging it over one shoulder. By the looks of it, most students arrived around this time. Juniors and other seniors were parking, and the underclassmen were getting dropped off in front of the school.
Tristan followed a redhead in a navy skirt and a maroon polo holding a large Styrofoam Dunkin' Donuts cup down some stairs and across the driveway. She made her way down a cement path on the side of the school, opened the door, and looked behind her. She pushed the door open for Tristan. He saw two flights of stairs, up and down. Shit. "Hey, can you tell me where room 102 is?" He asked her. She spun around from her place on the bottom step of the staircase leading downstairs.
"It's down here. We don't get many new students, let alone seniors." She smiled at him. He made his way down the five stairs.
"How did you know I'm a senior?" He stopped in front of her
"There are only senior homerooms down here. You're with me. I'm Lauren."
"Tristan." Lauren led him through a pair of doors into a hallway and stopped again.
"It's really easy to find your way around. That's the gym in front of us, and the girls' locker room right there." She pointed to a door labeled "GIRLS" next to the gym entrance. That's the teacher's lounge," She started down the short hallway, "that's the weight room," They turned a corner, "and that's 101 and 102. Those are the only two classrooms down here. On the other side of 102 is just a storage room." They continued down the hallway and turned again. "That's the cafeteria." It was a large room with lots of rectangular tables and windows lining the hallway side of it. "That's just the other side of the gym, it's in the middle of the school. The boys' locker room is through there."
"Thanks for showing me all this." Tristan commented as they walked.
"Sure." They reached a lobby. "Another staircase, girls and boys bathrooms, art room, chapel, and front entrance to the gym. Getting around is easy. Rooms that start with 'one' are down here, on the first floor, 'two' on the second floor above us, and 'three' on the top floor. The school is just a big square."
"How do we know where our lockers are?"
"Oh, we get locker assignments in homeroom. We can drop our stuff off and I'll show you around some more." Lauren led him back down the hallway, around the corner, and into their homeroom.
"Are we supposed to sit anywhere special?" Tristan asked, looking around the room at some desks with backpacks on the chair. A few girls were sitting and chatting. Oh, yes, he was going to like it here. The skirts were much shorter. Okay, so he had changed, but the was still Tristan.
"We'll probably be in alphabetical order, but for now we can sit anywhere." Tristan placed his backpack on a chair next to Lauren. "Ok, let's see. I already showed you down here. Let's go upstairs." They walked out of the classroom, around the corner, and up the stairs they had come down from. More and more kids were arriving and greeting each other excitedly. The two stepped out of the doors of the main floor.
"Oh I've been up here for registration and stuff."
"Yeah, that's just the main office. The main entrance, the bookstore. Um, let's go this way." Lauren led him past the main office. "That's the 'holding pen', for when you get in trouble. Sometimes you have to sit there all day and do nothing. The office that's connected to is Mr. Read's, the dean of students and the reason why I dropped down to honors. Well, part of the reason. Next to that is the nurse's office - Hey, Nic!" Lauren hugged a tall blonde and the two separated, holding hands. "Tristan, this is my friend Nicole. Nic, this is Tristan."
"Hi."
"Hey. A new boy. Very rare. I gotta go find Shaun, I'll see you in homeroom."
"Bye." Nicole walked away. "I've known Nic since like, the fourth grade. We're really close. Actually, everyone here is really close." She took a large sip of coffee. "So, anyway that's the nurses' office, the big thing with windows we've been walking past is the library." They stood another corner. "That's the guidance office, and the rest of the hall is classrooms. Like I said, it's really easy to get around. That first class past the girls' bathroom is 201, and it just goes around. The room to the right of where we came is 212."
"Yeah, it's nice how there's only one building and it's a square. At Chilton there are all these big old buildings and the rooms aren't in order." Tristan explained.
"Where's Chilton?"
"In Hartford. I just moved from there to Easton."
"A couple of my friends live in Easton. What street?"
"South Street."
"That's the street next to my friend Marie. That's awesome. My other friend Beth lives like two minutes away."
"Sweet. So, what's that?" Tristan pointed to a door behind them, a few feet away from the guidance office.
"Oh, that's just a one flight staircase upstairs. Everyone calls it the secret staircase, but it's not."
"You know, every year, the freshmen get more amusing." A tall teacher in his late twenties came up behind Lauren, holding a travel mug. She jumped and turned around.
"What's up Mr. Callard?" She hugged him weakly, careful not to spill her coffee.
"Not much, Lauren, not much."
"Yeah, well, about those freshmen. We were the last cool frosh class here." Lauren laughed.
"Of course. They should probably just shut the school down because the seniors are the only cool ones." Mr. Callard suggested jokingly.
"Well duh! Oh, this is Tristan. This is Mr. Callard, the coolest teacher here." She introduced.
"Welcome. You showing him around? Are you guys in the same homeroom?"
"Yes and yes." Lauren answered.
"Who do you have?"
"Mrs. Lincoln." She grinned and scrunched her nose.
"Sweet." Mr. Callard laughed.
"Oh, yeah, sweet."
"What's wrong with her?" Tristan interjected, feeling stupid not knowing anything.
"Oh, nothing. Her casket should be arriving any day now, although I'm sure her soul went a long time ago."
"I so did not hear that. See you guys later." He smiled at them and walked away.
"He seems pretty cool." Tristan noted.
"He is. He's one of the favorite teachers here. He's like my best friend." Lauren laughed. "So what's your schedule like?"
"Umm." He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her.
"Let's see.we have English, Analysis, Religion and Physics together. The only thing we don't have is Spanish. Mostly everyone has the same classes. Seniors only have five periods, everyone else has seven." She took a long sip of coffee and licked her lips. "Any questions?"
"No, thanks for showing me around Lauren."
"No problem. Come on, let's go find some of my friends."
Tristan was home. His new home that he still had to get used to and find the downstairs bathroom to, yes, but still home. His parents had bought a house that was part of some new developments in town. Now he was lying on his old, familiar bed, with his nevy blue comforter, staring up at the ceiling.
Deciding he couldn't stand the silence anymore, he rolled off the best and went across the room to his stereo. He threw on a 'Tool' CD and jumped back onto the bed. He slowly drifted off to sleep.
(August 29th, 2002. 6:55 am, Tristan's car)
Tristan drove smoothly along the Merritt Parkway on his way to his first day of school. A few days after he got home, he and his parents had discussed some schools in the area. He could go to a private all-boys school or a private co-ed school. Sure he had changed, but school without girls? No, not happening. So he had chosen Our Lady Catholic High School in Fairfield, about twenty five minutes away. School started at 7:40, so he left to get there by 7:20.
He was a little nervous about starting his senior year at a school where he didn't know anybody, but it was better than going back to Chilton. Our Lady was supposedly more mellow, though not by much. At least the uniforms were better - solid dark or khaki pants, with their choice of dress shirt and tie. In the first and last marking periods, students were allowed to wear polo shirts bearing the Our Lady crest in a variety of colors. Not really caring, Tristan had put on a pair of khaki Dockers and a light blue polo.
He had his favorite rock station back on - Radio 104. In military school they weren't allowed to have radios, but that didn't matter because all they had in North Carolina was country anyway.
Tristan pulled off the highway at the exit only half a mile down a hill from the school. He had already been there a few times to register and find his way. He was getting more nervous as he pulled up another hill, the driveway, and made his way into the student parking lot.
He pulled the rearview mirror down and ran his fingers through his hair, sighed, and got out of the car. He opened the back door and grabbed his backpack, slinging it over one shoulder. By the looks of it, most students arrived around this time. Juniors and other seniors were parking, and the underclassmen were getting dropped off in front of the school.
Tristan followed a redhead in a navy skirt and a maroon polo holding a large Styrofoam Dunkin' Donuts cup down some stairs and across the driveway. She made her way down a cement path on the side of the school, opened the door, and looked behind her. She pushed the door open for Tristan. He saw two flights of stairs, up and down. Shit. "Hey, can you tell me where room 102 is?" He asked her. She spun around from her place on the bottom step of the staircase leading downstairs.
"It's down here. We don't get many new students, let alone seniors." She smiled at him. He made his way down the five stairs.
"How did you know I'm a senior?" He stopped in front of her
"There are only senior homerooms down here. You're with me. I'm Lauren."
"Tristan." Lauren led him through a pair of doors into a hallway and stopped again.
"It's really easy to find your way around. That's the gym in front of us, and the girls' locker room right there." She pointed to a door labeled "GIRLS" next to the gym entrance. That's the teacher's lounge," She started down the short hallway, "that's the weight room," They turned a corner, "and that's 101 and 102. Those are the only two classrooms down here. On the other side of 102 is just a storage room." They continued down the hallway and turned again. "That's the cafeteria." It was a large room with lots of rectangular tables and windows lining the hallway side of it. "That's just the other side of the gym, it's in the middle of the school. The boys' locker room is through there."
"Thanks for showing me all this." Tristan commented as they walked.
"Sure." They reached a lobby. "Another staircase, girls and boys bathrooms, art room, chapel, and front entrance to the gym. Getting around is easy. Rooms that start with 'one' are down here, on the first floor, 'two' on the second floor above us, and 'three' on the top floor. The school is just a big square."
"How do we know where our lockers are?"
"Oh, we get locker assignments in homeroom. We can drop our stuff off and I'll show you around some more." Lauren led him back down the hallway, around the corner, and into their homeroom.
"Are we supposed to sit anywhere special?" Tristan asked, looking around the room at some desks with backpacks on the chair. A few girls were sitting and chatting. Oh, yes, he was going to like it here. The skirts were much shorter. Okay, so he had changed, but the was still Tristan.
"We'll probably be in alphabetical order, but for now we can sit anywhere." Tristan placed his backpack on a chair next to Lauren. "Ok, let's see. I already showed you down here. Let's go upstairs." They walked out of the classroom, around the corner, and up the stairs they had come down from. More and more kids were arriving and greeting each other excitedly. The two stepped out of the doors of the main floor.
"Oh I've been up here for registration and stuff."
"Yeah, that's just the main office. The main entrance, the bookstore. Um, let's go this way." Lauren led him past the main office. "That's the 'holding pen', for when you get in trouble. Sometimes you have to sit there all day and do nothing. The office that's connected to is Mr. Read's, the dean of students and the reason why I dropped down to honors. Well, part of the reason. Next to that is the nurse's office - Hey, Nic!" Lauren hugged a tall blonde and the two separated, holding hands. "Tristan, this is my friend Nicole. Nic, this is Tristan."
"Hi."
"Hey. A new boy. Very rare. I gotta go find Shaun, I'll see you in homeroom."
"Bye." Nicole walked away. "I've known Nic since like, the fourth grade. We're really close. Actually, everyone here is really close." She took a large sip of coffee. "So, anyway that's the nurses' office, the big thing with windows we've been walking past is the library." They stood another corner. "That's the guidance office, and the rest of the hall is classrooms. Like I said, it's really easy to get around. That first class past the girls' bathroom is 201, and it just goes around. The room to the right of where we came is 212."
"Yeah, it's nice how there's only one building and it's a square. At Chilton there are all these big old buildings and the rooms aren't in order." Tristan explained.
"Where's Chilton?"
"In Hartford. I just moved from there to Easton."
"A couple of my friends live in Easton. What street?"
"South Street."
"That's the street next to my friend Marie. That's awesome. My other friend Beth lives like two minutes away."
"Sweet. So, what's that?" Tristan pointed to a door behind them, a few feet away from the guidance office.
"Oh, that's just a one flight staircase upstairs. Everyone calls it the secret staircase, but it's not."
"You know, every year, the freshmen get more amusing." A tall teacher in his late twenties came up behind Lauren, holding a travel mug. She jumped and turned around.
"What's up Mr. Callard?" She hugged him weakly, careful not to spill her coffee.
"Not much, Lauren, not much."
"Yeah, well, about those freshmen. We were the last cool frosh class here." Lauren laughed.
"Of course. They should probably just shut the school down because the seniors are the only cool ones." Mr. Callard suggested jokingly.
"Well duh! Oh, this is Tristan. This is Mr. Callard, the coolest teacher here." She introduced.
"Welcome. You showing him around? Are you guys in the same homeroom?"
"Yes and yes." Lauren answered.
"Who do you have?"
"Mrs. Lincoln." She grinned and scrunched her nose.
"Sweet." Mr. Callard laughed.
"Oh, yeah, sweet."
"What's wrong with her?" Tristan interjected, feeling stupid not knowing anything.
"Oh, nothing. Her casket should be arriving any day now, although I'm sure her soul went a long time ago."
"I so did not hear that. See you guys later." He smiled at them and walked away.
"He seems pretty cool." Tristan noted.
"He is. He's one of the favorite teachers here. He's like my best friend." Lauren laughed. "So what's your schedule like?"
"Umm." He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her.
"Let's see.we have English, Analysis, Religion and Physics together. The only thing we don't have is Spanish. Mostly everyone has the same classes. Seniors only have five periods, everyone else has seven." She took a long sip of coffee and licked her lips. "Any questions?"
"No, thanks for showing me around Lauren."
"No problem. Come on, let's go find some of my friends."