When they entered the gym, Casey was relieved by the familiar sound of screeching sneakers and bouncing balls. At least this much was the same.
"Coach!" Danni shouted above the noise, drawing immediate attention to the two girls.
"Yeah, London?" Coach yelled back, calling Danni by her last name.
"This is McDonald." Danni pointed to Casey. "She needs her uniform." Casey could feel the boys' eyes upon her, despite the sounds she'd been familiar with continuing. As they walked toward Coach, Danni continued. "Coach does things on a last name basis."
"Oh." Coach, or Mr. McGuffey, was a tall, skinny man who seemed to carry himself as though he were fifty pounds heavier.
"Follow me into my office," Coach commanded. His office was about the size of an office cubical, filled with soccer jerseys and plaques.
"Soccer's a big sport here," Danni whispered to Casey. She nodded, taking in the sight. There was something on the wall that caught her eye.
"McDonald, right?" Coach asked, searching through his piles.
"Yeah," Casey replied, standing nervously. McGuffey pulled out two skirts two shirts, and a small tie attached to it.
"That should do it." Casey nodded without even taking a look at the size of the uniform.
"Thanks, Coach." Danni intervened, grabbing Casey by the arm and pulling her motionless body out of the office. "Are you claustrophobic or something, because I could've sworn that you were hyperventilating."
"I'm fine," Casey insisted. "Just a little nervous about being in a new school. Does this school have a football team?" Danni's head jerked at the random question.
"No…" Danni's mind in intense thought. "Oh! You saw the plaque! Coach's son was a football player at the public school he went to." Casey nodded, trying not to think too deeply into the subject. "Why?"
"Oh. We had football back home."
"Max," Casey thought, feeling queasy.
"So you like football?" Danni asked.
"Not really."
"Oh. Well, I guess that's good. Like I said, soccer's the main sport around here. But we also have field hockey, lacrosse, tennis, which I play, volleyball-"
"Volleyball?" Danni nodded. "That sounds fun."
"Suit yourself. Too much diving for my liking." Casey smiled, trying to avoid the feeling in her stomach threatening to take over. "So when do you start?"
"Monday."
"So you have the next three days to do whatever you want." Casey nodded. "Have any plans?"
"Well, my dad wants to catch up. I haven't really spent much time with him since the divorce."
"Well, most parents who send their kids here don't spend a lot of time with their kids." Danni commented.
"Do they think that because they pay so much money to send us here, it keeps them off the hook when it comes to communication?" Casey questioned. Danni laughed, taking a path that Casey hadn't seen before.
"Something like that." Danni agreed.
"Well, see you Monday." Danni said, leaving Casey at the office.
"Uh…Do we have any classes together?" Casey asked.
"Yeah, we do. Just check your schedule."
"You've seen it?"
"You're the one who handed it to me!" Danni shouted, her voice fading as she walked down the hallway. Casey took her schedule into her hand, finding two of her four classes for the semester starred.
"This is gonna be an interesting year," Casey told herself, hoping that by interesting, she meant good.