Disclaimer: Not mine.
CHAPTER 2: The Sound of Settling
The next morning I woke to the annoying ringing of my alarm. The room was still dark and I groaned at the thought of having to leave the warmth of my bed. Pulling my blankets along with me as I got up, I walked towards my closet. I didn't bother to turn the light on as I dressed as fast as possible. My room was freezing. I went through my normal routine and tried my hardest not to think of the long day ahead of me.
Not being able to prolong the inevitable I woke my dad to take me to school. I would have driven myself, but I was nervous enough already without having to drive on the ice-covered roads. We were able to find it easily. My dad stopped in front of the office building. The school was so different from Yuma High. It was a lot smaller, and the only thing that made it appear like a school was the sign in the front. There was no gates, no security waiting for you at the door.
"You'll be alright?" my dad asked. I could only nod.
"I'll be fine, just don't forget to pick me up at three, ok," I said as I opened the door.
"Okay," my dad said. I got out of the car and waited until the car had left the campus before entering the building. The secretary looked up when I entered and smiled at me.
"How can I help you?" She asked politely.
"Uh, hi. I'm new here so I need to get my schedule," I answered. The secretary's smile widened at the news.
"Oh you must be Amelia Arzola," the women said.
"Yes, but I prefer Amy," I answered.
"Of course, well here's your schedule and a map. And have your teachers sign this and return it at the end of the day," She gave me a few sheets of paper. I thanked her for her help and grabbed my things. As I walked to the door I looked at the map of the school. Looking at my schedule, I determined which would be the best route to get to my first class. The door opened suddenly and I was able to move out of the way. I kept my eyes on my schedule and then I froze.
In capital letters the word gym was next to fifth period. I couldn't believe it. P.E. was the setting for many incidents I would rather forget. Sure I was decent at sports, but I always somehow ended up either on the floor or with a ball in the face. There was even an incident involving a locker door. Let me just say, I'd rather forget. I heard a soft chuckle next to me. Quickly I went back to the counter.
"I think there's been a mistake with my schedule. I already passed P.E.," I said pointing at my golden sheet. "I took it my freshman year."
"Yes we know, but here in Forks it's mandatory for all four years," The woman looked at me sympathetically. What! Two more years of running the mile. Oh please no, please no. I heard another chuckle, behind me this time. Someone must be laughing at my misfortune. How inconsiderate of them.
"Ok thank you," I said dejectedly. I stepped around the guy who had laughed at me and left the office. I had always hated P.E., ever since I was in elementary school. I was never good at running and each class started with a lap around the field. I wasn't out of shape. I did take care to keep myself in condition. I supposed I would have to make due.
I headed to my first class which was Physics, yet another subject I hated with a passion. Nothing my teacher ever said stuck in my head. I walked in and hung my jacket on the hooks along the wall. Slip in hand, I went to the front of the class to the teacher's desk. I handed him my schedule and the slip he needed to sign. He did so quickly and sent me to an empty seat near the front of the class. Hopefully this guy would help me make sense of the mystery that was Physics. This morning he gave notes on a new section. The lesson was over early, so the class took advantage of the free minutes to talk to their friends. As I was putting my things away the girl next to me turned towards me.
"Hello, I'm Veronica," She gave me a smile.
"Hi, I'm Amy," I answered feeling awkward at her scrutiny.
"Where did you move from?" She questioned, her blue eyes were curious. She had light brown hair and very straight, white teeth. She was pretty in the girl-next-door kind of way.
"I'm from Arizona," I answered. I noticed her eyes size me up before a look of approval crossed her face. I guess I must have passed her test.
"This must be a big change, huh?" She asked.
"Yeah, Forks is much smaller than my hometown. And the weather is very different. You guys don't get much sun up here, do you?" I asked trying to break some of the awkwardness.
"No, only rain and snow," She answered with a smile. "Mainly rain."
"So what do you have next?" She asked after an uncomfortable silence had fallen over us. I glanced at my schedule before responding.
"I have Calculus," Veronica stared at me for a moment.
"But that's a senior class," She responded.
"Yeah, I guess, but that's what I was taking back home. I took a Trigonometry class in the community college during the summer," I explained with a shrug. At that moment the bell rang. We all moved towards the coat racks. I pulled my jacket off the hook and tried to get out of the classroom as fast as possible.
"Amy, wait!" I heard Veronica call for me as I stepped out the door. The cold air surprised me. I turned around and Veronica came up to me. "Do you need help finding your next class?"
"Sure," I answered and gave her my schedule to see the room for Calculus. We walked together to the next building and she waved goodbye. I waved back before entering the class and going to the teacher's desk again. The man was concentrating on grading papers, so he didn't notice me standing there. I waited a few more seconds before clearing my throat loudly. The teacher looked up at the sound and gave me a small glare.
"What do you need?" He asked gruffly. I pulled out the paper he needed to sign and my schedule for him to see.
"I'm new," I answered simply. He gave me a look before taking the sheets. I heard the bell ring and everyone make a commotion to get to their seats. I heard the whispers begin as the teacher took too long in signing. Suddenly he stood up and around his desk he went.
"Class we have a new addition to the class," the teacher said. "How about we let Amelia Arzola introduce herself." Oh great, because that's exactly what I wanted to do. All eyes were on me and most were eyeing me with the same curiosity as Veronica.
"Uh, hi. I'm Amy and I just moved here from Arizona," I said. I could fee myself growing hot, but I knew that I wasn't blushing. I never blushed when I'm embarrassed, my skin was too dark. I knew they wanted more from me, but I didn't want to be up there anymore. I turned to the teacher hoping he would understand the message I was desperately trying to send him. I really was beginning to hate this guy.
"You can sit behind Ms. Stanley," He pointed at the empty seat. I took great care stepping over bags and legs. I took my seat and let myself relax. I liked math, but I always ended up with the jerkish teachers. Once again I took notes on the lesson and tried so hard not to space out. Which ended up happening anyways because the next thing I knew I was being tapped in the shoulder by the person behind me. It was another girl; she had brown hair and brown eyes and very pale skin. She gave me a small smile.
"Class ended," She told me as she and another girl and a boy left the classroom. And that's how things went until lunch. I was walking with Veronica, who I had 4th period English with, and her friends to the cafeteria. It was small and didn't have as much of a variety as Yuma did. I gave the lunch lady a form my councilor had told me to hand in so I wouldn't have to pay for lunch. I followed the rest of the group to an empty table. As we sat down the gossip began.
I stayed silent picking at my too-greasy pizza. Note to self: pack homemade lunch from now on. I really had no appetite and once again I was beginning to feel homesick. I stayed silent and tried to pay attention to whatever Veronica was talking about, but I found myself looking around the cafeteria. My eyes landed on a table where the girl from Calculus sat with a small group of friends. I really wish that I could go home already.
"So Amelia right? Where are you from exactly?" All of my teachers so far had insisted in calling me Amelia. I turned to the boy who had asked the question. He had black hair, and I noticed his very pretty blue eyes.
"Actually I prefer Amy, and to answer your question I'm from Yuma. It's a small city in Arizona," I answered. The boy nodded his head slowly as if trying to see if he knew anything about Yuma.
"Hmm, never heard of it. I'm Ryan by the way," He smiled as he reached his hand out for a handshake.
"Nice to meet you. And yeah I wouldn't have expected you to know it. Only the snowbirds and natives are familiar with it," I answered. I noticed the confused look on his face.
"Snowbirds?" He asked.
"Sorry, it's a term we use for the senior citizens who come down to live in Yuma for the winter season," I explained. "Yuma has nice weather in the winter, which attracts a lot of people."
"Interesting," Ryan replied with his permanent smile.
"Not really," I said giving him my own smile which caused him to laugh.
"Yeah, but I was trying to be polite," He answered. At that moment Veronica entered our conversation.
"Ryan being polite, what for?" She asked. A girl named Lindsay had been talking to her for the last few minutes.
"He didn't want to tell me how boring my hometown was," I answered her taking a bite of my pizza, which I soon regretted.
"It's not like we have much of a say. Look at where we live," Veronica said.
"True," Ryan agreed as he began unpacking his lunch. He noticed me push my pizza away as I watched him. "Yeah it's better to bring your own lunch. The food isn't completely horrible, but it does raise some suspicions. Here have some of my sub."
"Uh no it's fine, I usually eat when I get home anyways," I answered. I could feel myself growing hot once again.
"I would go ahead and take it if I were you," Veronica said as she bit into her red apple. "He'll only make a scene and force it on you." I glanced at Ryan, who nodded soberly before pushing the half of his sub in front of me. I took it and bit into it; I was rewarded with one of Ryan's smiles.
"There you go, now we are officially friends since there is no greater offer of friendship than a shared meal," He winked at me before giving his lunch his full attention. I turned towards Veronica who rolled her eyes at Ryan. I wasn't the only one to notice her action because Ryan elbowed her lightly in her side. She in return stuck out her tongue at him. The light teasing made me remember my own friends. The similarity between this scene and one from a few days back comforted me. It was then that I realized that I would adjust to life in Forks; I would be able to settle. The transition wouldn't be short and easy, but at least I found two people who could soften the blow.
