New Beginnings

After 3 years:

"When my time comes, forget the wrong that I've done, help me leave behind some, reasons to be missed."

I woke up with my phone alarm blaring out. I know it's a rather gloomy song to begin your day with but Linkin Park songs are always the ones to remove all the tiredness from me leaving me awake and alert.

As lazy as I am, I just put it on snooze and thought of napping a little longer. It was a Monday morning.

"Yes Mom, I am ready. Will be down in just a minute." I shouted while struggling to pull a pair of skinny jeans up my wet legs.

Reminder for self; Never ever stop an alarm thinking you are awake till you are still on the bed. (Yes I stopped it instead of snoozing it.)

Skipping and jumping across my room and the washroom, I somehow managed to comb my unruly curly hair and tied it in a high ponytail. A loud shrieking horn of a car sounded, signalling me to accept the fact that I am, indeed, late.

Catching hold of my backpack as quickly as I can, I dashed down the flight of stairs. Kissing Mom goodbye and snatching up some sandwiches which were supposed to be my breakfast, I rushed out of the door to meet the fury herself, boiling with anger on the driver seat.

Audrey King

"Hey, Ry" I greeted casually trying to dissolve a little of the tension in the car and got seated beside her.

"Don't you dare 'hey' me. Do you know I have been waiting for three and a half minute here? " She fumed accusingly. With her Ocean green eyes wide open and reddish brown wisps of hair framing her scrunched up angry face, she did look quite intimidating.

Now before you get the idea that Audrey is an extremely punctual person, let me warn you, She is anything but. Today is an exception as its the first day of senior year today, and also, today was a rare chance she was earlier than me.

It has been three years, three whole years since I had first moved to West Abana. Audrey King is the first person I met here. Well, she helped me when I was lost in the confusing lanes of the neighborhood on my first day here and we immediately became friends. Later I found out that she went to the same school I was later joining. I never bonded so well with anyone that well after her here, but I guess living next doors and having endless sleepovers did contribute a lot.

Three years have passed since I left everything behind to start a new life here. I never went back to Bridgeville after we moved.

I haven't talked to my friends properly for a long time now. The last time we three talked was on Diana's birthday last year, which just included me wishing her and us saying how we were fine in our life. Somehow distance does create a destabilization due to lack of contact and communication. They have been busy with their high school while I was busy trying to adjust to this alien place.

A soft tapping on my shoulder brought me back to the present and I realized we were parked in the spacious parking lot of our school. Audrey was looking at me with concern.

"Are you okay? You look sad!", she said softly.

"I am fine. Don't worry, just a spur of the moment", I said, "lets go!"

With that said she got off and started walking gracefully towards the school building. Audrey was dressed in a white pleated skirt and a fuchsia shirt. Her heels crackled and heads turned as she made her way to the entryway, casually.

I wore a black hoody paired up with the jeans and a comfortable pair of converse. How was it that I end up being friends with people having the best fashion sense while I remain an amateur mess at it? In the beginning, it was quite embarrassing and I felt conscious walking with her.

You see Audrey is like a Goddess here. Guys worship the ground she walks on and girls, well, enjoy scheming against her but none had succeeded yet, wonder why? She does have a great luck stat though. No wonder she got so much attention.

But after an hour-long lecture on how I shouldn't care about what others say or feel, from the Goddess herself, I am slowly learning to ignore it. I walked beside her, listening to her talk about the things we should do before the end of the senior year.

We separated after the school assembly as regrettably our first class wasn't the same.

I walked into my designated class and was walking to an empty seat I spotted, when someone called my name from behind.

I turned around and saw a girl with a mop of burgundy hair making her way towards me. Her ringlets bouncing as she pranced through the hallway filled with people. As she came closer I recognized her. We met last year. She was my partner for an English project. Her name is Rebecca Green.

She, with her constant gossiping usually made me eager to get away from her. Most of the things that she discussed included either those that I don't understand or those that I don't want to. For example Boys.

"Hey! Did you hear? There is a new guy in school. He joined in senior year, wonder what the reason might be?" she said catching up with me as I had already started walking away. I know it was rude but I was least interested in her stupid 'boy talks'. Unlike Ry, she never understood when to drop a topic.

I got to my seat in a record time counting the fact that I was still trying to be a bit polite to her. Rebecca took a seat behind me. Rebecca is a happy sunshine type of person. It's not that she was trying to intentionally irritate me, but being 'understanding' is not one of her fortes.

I was waiting for our English teacher Ms. Jane to show up when I heard a group of girls giggling and gossiping near me. I had nothing much to do and so I let my mind wander. I suddenly heard someone mentioning the new guy again, which broke me out of my trance. I was really curious now, hearing about him again and again. I decided to eavesdrop.

"So, did you hear about this new guy? Someone told me he is damn hot. I can't wait to meet him", one of them chirped.

"Yes! Of course I heard. I heard he is from a small town though. Who knows if he is really smart or just hot-bod farmer" a girl standing near the next desk to me said in a dreamy voice.

"Yeah as if you can handle smart"  Rebecca chirped in and started giggling, "you need to be smart for that too, ya' know?! " she said through her chuckle and the first girl joined in laughing uncontrollably.

The other girl threw a disgusted glance at the laughing girls and went to her seat as Ms. Jane entered.

Who the hell is this guy?

The news of his joining this school has travelled so fast. Everyone's talking about him. And this is no small school like Bridgeville Jr. High. I got a little curious now.

The class ended after the teacher introduced a poem by Shakespeare.

My next class was art. I speed-walked towards my locker through flooded corridors, took my art file and started walking towards the staircase for art room. I expected to spot Audrey on my way as she had her first class upstairs.

When I was not able to find her, I started towards the stairs. I was abruptly stopped on my way as I saw a group of four girls hiding behind the banister and blocking the way. When I came closer I saw two of them were the same ones from my English class. They were spying on someone. As I somehow managed to move through them, I found that they were trying to have a peek at the already popular new guy.

The guy had his back towards them. As I moved forward hoping to see the mysterious guys face, the final bell rang indicating that I should hurry to the class if I didn't wanted to be late.