Tori's POV

After that Jade girl left me gawking behind her like an idiot, I barely even registered the amount of time that had passed before I realized there were a crap ton of other students milling around the hallways. This immediately made my anxiety return at full force, the voice pounding inside my skull as I curled in on myself, picking at my nails as I pressed myself against my locker.

They're all staring at you, judging you, your actions, your clothes...

I brought my head to my hands, cradling it as I chanted to myself to force the voice from my head which eventually worked and brought to the attention that the hallways were now empty.

"What the...oh shit! The bell must have rang!" I realized slowly out loud, starting to scramble towards where I thought my first period was.

I ended up wandering around the school for at least 10 minutes before I did manage to find the right classroom, my anxiety kicking back in and overtaking the adrenaline that had been flowing through my veins trying to get me to my class as fast as possible. Now that I was finally calming down, the voice was belittling me again as I battled with my hand to get it to open the door. My hand was physically shaking as I finally managed to get it on the doorknob and slowly turned it, timidly pushing the door open and into the classroom.

As soon as I entered the balding man at the front stopped speaking which made all the eyes in the class turn to look at me. The multitude of eyes on me made me freeze in the doorway, my own eyes frantically looking around for a place in the room that wasn't looking at me like I was a shiny new toy. Luckily the blading man at the front saved me from having to try and speak first as he bounded down the stairs of the stage and towards me.

"Well hello there Miss Vega! You're late to your first period on your first day! Well come in, come in! I'm Mr. Sikowitz, and this is your acting 1 class for the year." The bubbly man exclaimed to me as he ushered me into the classroom, closing the door behind me as he pointed to a seat next to a red headed girl. "That is Miss Valentine whom I'll be having you sit next to for the entirety of the school year, so go ahead and take a seat." I blinked a bit trying to process the rapid speaking of the older man before nodding in a bit of a daze, walking over to sit down next to the brightly colored red headed girl. She was playing with her hair before she gave me an enthusiastic wave, making me fidget nervously before giving a small wave back at the girl which made her entire face light up.

"Now! Let's get back to learning about the different parts of making a scene convincing! So..." I tuned Sikowitz out after that, focusing more on the fact that I could feel multiple pairs of eyes burning the back of my skull. I began nibbling on my lip, staring down at my lap as I tried to ignore the burning sensation. I could feel myself starting to shut down as the stares didn't go away, but was startled out of my anxiety ridden state by two sparkling brown eyes staring straight into mine, causing me to flinch backwards.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to startle you, you just looked like you were lost in your own world! And I get lost in my own world too so I was curious what your world was like, and if it was like mine. Mine has a lot of stuffed animals and bibble!" The red headed girl left my personal space which made me start breathing again as I looked at her curiously as she babbled on about stuff I didn't really understand. She was very bubbly and was actually doing a very good job of distracting me from my own inner monologue, so throughout the red girl's rambling I learned that her name was Cat and she had a pretty messed up brother by the sound of it.

I didn't even notice how much time had passed until the bell rang, surprising me because I'd expected the period to drag on forever with all the gazes on me. However, Cat did an amazing job of distracting me and I found myself grateful for the peppy little red head, and was happy when Cat waited for me to pack up so she could walk with me.

"So, why did you just transfer into Hollywood Arts Tori?" Cat curiously asked me as she walked me to my next class. I tensed a little at the question, eying the puppy-like girl next to me before deciding she wouldn't make fun of me.

"Uhm... well it's not because I have any talent... Uh- my mom is Holly Vega? She got a job offer here and part of her agreeing to work here was that I'd get to come here for free..." I nervously told the girl, who surprisingly managed to stay quiet long enough for me to tell her. Once I finished talking her eyes were practically sparkling again as she let out a rather shrill squeal that made me cringe a bit.

"Oh my god! Your mom is THE Holly Vega!? That's so cool! Her art is so beautiful! I don't even think I knew she had a daughter!" Cat loudly exclaimed in the hallway, causing some people to turn and look at us curiously which I hated.

"Cat! Shhhh! It's embarrassing... being a talentless kid in a kid full of talented kids... especially since my mom is who she is... don't get me wrong- I love my mom, but I didn't get any of her artistic abilities..." I shush Cat, putting a finger to my lips before mumbling the last part in embarrassment.

Cat quieted down but was now looking at me with a rather confused look combined with a slight head tilt which was burning through the walls I'd built up around my emotions. Luckily, she didn't ask anything else and instead launched into another random story about her wacky brother before we reached the auditorium which Cat told me was called the Black Box by the students.

Cat had to scurry off to her own class before she was late, so I had to say goodbye to her and venture into my lighting class on my own. At least this time I wasn't late, so there were just students talking in little groups around the auditorium before class started. This time I managed to get into the room without anyone really paying any attention to me, so I took a seat in the back and began pulling my binder out that I'd made for the class beforehand when I felt the presence of someone beside me. I whipped my head up, half expecting to see the goth girl from earlier, but was instead met with the sight of two boys. One had chocolate brown skin paired with his brown eyes, and the other was a scrawny looking white boy who had a pair of glasses framing his similarly brown eyes.

"Hey there new girl. We saw you sitting here by myself and thought you might want some company. I'm André and this is my friend Robbie!" The boy with the dreads introduced himself and the skinny boy behind him, giving me a friendly smile that instantly made me relax.

"Oh- uh hey... I'm uh- Tori- it's nice to meet you André and Robbie." I awkwardly introduced myself to them, watching the boy named Robbie fidget around with something behind André. I guess André noticed me eying Robbie because he chuckled and stepped to the side to reveal a large puppet on Robbie's hand that made my eyes widen.

"Yah- Robbie has a friend here named Rex that he's a little self conscious about." André explained as Robbie flushed with embarrassment when the puppet started talking.

"Hey there babe- you look really nice and it's an honor to meet you, I'm Rex and you are?" Rex cockily asked me, making me incredibly confused as I gave André a look of "really?" which he smiled and gave me a little nod in response to in which I sighed before turning back to the boy or well boys in front of me.

"I'm uh- I'm Tori- it's nice to meet you Rex, and it's nice to meet you too Robbie." I think saying hi to the puppet made Robbie happy because he smiled and stopped fidgeting around like he had been.

"It's nice to meet you too Tori!"

"Bro- she clearly only said hi to you because you're attached to me, don't get so excited."

"Shut up Rex!"

I watched the pair squabble with an amused smile, deciding that while Robbie was kinda weird he was entertaining and pretty chill. I turned my attention back to André who was watching the entire interaction with a big ass smile across his face which only grew in size as I returned my attention to him.

"So welcome to Hollywood Arts! How's your first day been going so far Tori?" André asked me curiously as he took a seat next to me as the bell rang in the background.

"It's been better than I thought it would be to be entirely honest- everyone has been pretty welcoming and helpful especially in my first period. I met this girl named Cat who walked me to this class period."

"Ah! You know little red! Yah she's great! She's bubbly and kinda random sometimes, but she's sweet and a great friend. You wanna sit with us at lunch? Little red will be there along with a couple of our other friends." He said with a chuckle, turning his attention to the teacher who was starting class on the different types of stage lighting.

I was surprised at his offer, expecting to sit alone at lunch today, so I quickly nodded. For some reason Cat and Andre had a way of calming my anxiety in different ways, so I was more than happy to try and make some friends that didn't give me anxiety attacks.

Andre smiled at my response before he fully focused on the lesson going on at the front of the classroom. I quickly followed suit, focusing my attention on the lesson since I didn't have any intentions of falling behind in my studies.

By the end of the class period I'd taken notes on the different types of lights and when they're intended to be used during performances. While I can't say it was the most interesting thing I've learned about it was definitely better than what I would've been learning at my old school right now.

Andre offered to walk me to my next class which I happily accepted, not wanted to be late or wander the school looking for my next class like a fool. Of course my anxiety about being so close to other people and talking to them was still present and nagging, but Andre had a way of quieting that nagging voice to a little whisper with how he talked. He was amazingly good at keeping the conversation going without causing awkward pauses or breaks that would typically send my anxiety spiking. I found it almost relaxing to talk to him, and Robbie and Rex tagged along and helped me relax too with their weird dynamic that I found rather amusing.

Unfortunately we reached my math class much too quickly for my likely, so I was forced to bid the boys a farewell. Andre assured me we'd see them at lunch next period though which calmed my nerves yet again as I entered my BC Calculus math class.

Math was about the only thing I was halfway decent at if I'm honest with myself. I was a year ahead of the math I should've been at, so I expected this class to be full of seniors and I wasn't wrong. It was easy to tell that the majority of the students in the class were seniors just because of their attitudes and how they held themselves.

I decided that if I didn't want to stand out I'd better avoid the seniors like the plague, so I took a seat near the back of the class since all the seniors were conglomerating near the front. Nobody gave me a second glance as I unpacked for the class and anxiously waited for the period to start.

Nobody sat down next to me until the bell rang which I was grateful for since I don't think it would be as easy to talk to the seniors as it was to talk to Andre, Cat, and Robbie. I didn't bother looking to see who sat next to me since whoever sat next to me probably didn't care who I was, so why should I care about who they were? As our teacher entered the classroom and began the lesson for the day I nearly jumped out of my seat as I felt someone poke my shoulder. I flinched away from the touch as I whipped my head around to see who the fuck had just touched me and I was met with a rather devilishly good looking guy who was looking at me a bit curiously with his hand still in the position it'd been in to poke my shoulder.

I narrowed my eyes at him questioningly, still leaning away from his hand which he still hadn't retracted. He gave me a smile before whispering, "Hey, do you have a pencil I could borrow? I left mine in my last period."

I sighed before nodding, turning to dig around in my backpack to find one before handing it to him. He gave me another smile before he turned back to focus on the teacher and write notes. I'd already learned this lesson at my last school so I wasn't paying too much attention to it, and instead found myself stealing glances at the guy next to me.

He was definitely a bad boy by the way he dressed, wearing jeans and a leather jacket at the moment. Not to mention his side-swept black hair that was sure to make any normal girl swoon. He also just had this aura around him that screamed "bad boy" in every sense of the word, and I'd put money on him loving motorcycles and possibly even owning one.

By the end of the period I'd probably spent more than half of it just studying the boy next to me, trying to put a finger on why the hell I found him intriguing at all. The realization finally hit me when the bell rang- he looked almost exactly like the guy that bullied me at my last school. Same clothing, same smile, same hair! I couldn't even begin to beat back the monstrously amount of anxiety that rose inside of me at the realization, my mind almost completely shutting down as I registered that he was turning towards me.

HE'S THE SAME AS BRIAN!

HE'LL HURT YOU!

YOU'RE A FREAK!

"Hey? You okay there new girl? I'm Beck, I just wanted to say thanks for letting me borrow a pencil." I was suddenly snapped from my inner turmoil by his words, his actions shoving my anxiety back into the cave it crawled out of.

"Oh uh- I-It's no problem! I'm uh Tori- it's nice to meet you Beck." I managed to stutter out to the boy in front of me who was already standing up with his backpack slung over his shoulder. He gave me a little half smile in response.

"It's nice to meet you Tori, it's your first day right? Do you need help getting to the lunch area? I'd be happy to show you the way." Beck offered, watching me as I packed up my stuff. Inside I was battling my anxiety that was telling me that he was just going to hurt me or take me somewhere he can belittle me, but the other half said he's just being a decent human and helping out the new girl.

Hugging my book to my chest I gave him a small nod in which his smile widened as he gave a little head nod towards the door.

"Then let's go Tori. If you don't have anyone to sit with you're more than welcome to sit with me and my friends." Beck said to me as he led me through the hallways where kids were chatting and also making their way towards the lunch area. Beck was surprisingly talkative and was telling me all about how I was going to love it here, and how nice everyone was, how it was like a big family at Hollywood Arts.

Eventually we reached a door that Beck so graciously held open for me that led to a big outdoor seating area that had food trucks along the sides. I stood their staring with my mouth wide open, like I'd known this was a private school, but I didn't realize just how much money the school must get funded to be able to afford food trucks and an outdoor seating arrangement like this! I heard Beck chuckle behind me, making me close my mouth and whip around to see him trying to hide his amusement at my reaction which made me blush a little in embarrassment. I mean I used to go to public school! What did he expect!

"Yah, it's pretty sweet isn't it? Anyways lemme introduce you to my friends, follow me." Beck chuckled again as he started towards the plethora of outdoor tables holding different groups of kids. I scurried after him, trying to keep an eye out for Andre, Robbie, or Cat since I really wanted to sit with them. Not that I thought Beck's friends wouldn't be cool, but I didn't really want to take the chance that they wouldn't like me since I'm a Junior, and plus I don't think I'd be able to handle being around a bunch of cool kids with how dorky I am.

I was much too busy looking around to notice when Beck stopped walking which resulted in me walking straight into his back, letting out an almost comical "oof". I felt him laugh before I scrambled backwards away from him, blushing with embarrassment again.

"You're kinda an airhead Tori- but anyways- these are my friends." Beck motioned to the table in front of him which I leaned to the side to see who was sitting there. My eyes widened in surprise as I saw Andre, Cat, and Robbie there. Andre had been talking to Cat while Robbie had been talking to Rex when we'd arrived. He lifted his head and his smile grew as he noticed me.

"Hey Beck! I see you've made friends with Tori! Glad I won't have to go on a search and rescue mission for ya Tori!" André jokingly exclaimed, drawing Cat and Robbie's attention towards me.

"Tori! I can't believe you happened to make friends with all of my friends! Isn't that funny?" Cat giggled out at me, making me smile as I thought about the situation, and I had to admit it was pretty amusing.

"Yah! What are the odds that you'd befriend people who had the same group of friends?" Robbie exclaimed as he thought about the situation too.

"I guess I can be lucky sometimes?" I said jokingly which made them all laugh, and that felt good. It felt good making others laugh and not having them laugh at me.

"Whatcha doin Tori? Aren't you gonna sit down?" André asked curiously as I noticed that I was still standing up, grinning like an idiot.

"Oh! Uhm yah! So what do you guys recommend for food here?" I asked timidly as I sat down next to Cat who seemed to be off in her own little world at the moment.

"I definitely recommend just about anything from The Grub Truck. They've got some bomb ass food, and it's pretty cheap." André said as he pointed out the truck to me. "Plus Festus is a really cool dude."

"Festus?"

"Yah, he owns the truck, and he's a really chill guy." Andre explained to me, pointing out a few of the other trucks there, but I ultimately decided to go get something from the Grub truck since Andre spoke so highly of it.

I dragged out my wallet from my bag and made my way over to the truck which had a small line for it, so I stood there and opened my wallet to look at a picture of my mom and I that I kept in it. It was a picture from when I turned 13, and my mom and I had spent the day playing video games since I absolutely adored video games before she took me out to get my ears pierced. The picture was of me all teary eyed as my mom hugged me after I got my ears pierced. The picture never failed to make me smile which was exactly what I was doing at the moment when I noticed it was my turn to order.

"Oh! Uhm... it's my first day... so you can just give your favorite I guess? I'm not a picky eater." I told Festus timidly, not wanting to hold up the line with my actual indecisiveness of what to get. The man smiled at me widely and nodded as he told me the price, making me fish out a ten to give him before he scurried to the back of his truck to make whatever it was I was going to eat. He came back a few moments later with some fries and a burger which made me smile since I adored burgers and fries. He must have noticed my smile because he said, "Ah! I knew you'd like fries and a burger! You gave off that vibe. I hope you have a good rest of your first day Miss...?"

"Vega. Tori Vega." I told him with a grin as I accepted my food from him, happily making my way back to the table containing my potential new friends. I may have gotten a little lost on my way back, but I managed to find them. Something was different however, and I quickly realized it was because there was another person at the table now.

As I approached I could make out that it was a girl because of their outfit that looked strangely familiar, and that she appeared to be leaning on Beck. The closer I got, the stronger the feeling of familiarity became. I knew this girl, but from what? From where? I finally reached the table and sat down next to Cat with my food. I looked up and locked eyes with the girl and felt my stomach drop. As piercing blue-green eyes bore into my soul, I gulped as I finally realized who it was.

It was Jade. Jade West.

~

Hey guys- just so you know I won't be updating constantly or on a schedule- really o just write when I have an urge to. Plus I have school and work. If any of you are here because of one of my other RWBY stories then I guess I can tell you that I'm not sure I'll be continuing those anytime soon if at all. I just I adore how I used to write those stories and I feel like my writing style has changed for the worse so it won't flow anymore. I prefer how I used to write much more than how I write now, but I can't do much about that other than to start a new story like this one so it's a consistent writing style. Sorry for rambling a bit, but I hope you enjoy. Feel free to favorite and comment if you'd like!