Meeting Kyle.

Yesterday wasn't as dreadful as I thought it would be. There was no doubt that Mr. Barnes is a hot dude that's why the girls in his class undeniably simped for him. But not me, and I think nor does Catherine. Catherine and I talked about a lot of things and judging from yesterday's chit-chat, she's not into twenty-seven-year-old teachers with huge biceps and veiny arms. So do I. Hmm. I don't even know my type yet, though. I never had a crush since I was from an all-girl school and the only guy I interacted with was my father because our relatives live in a different country. My dad is half Portuguese and half Spanish while my mom is a Filipina - that explains why I have brown hair, lightly tanned skin, and almond-shaped hazel eyes; that's where my name came from. My parents met in the Philippines when they were younger and just moved here in America to get married and start a family. I only talk to my grandparents, uncles and aunties, through FaceTime and online chatting.

Catherine and I look so much different. She has glowing white skin, shiny black hair, beautiful gray eyes, and a perfectly sculpted nose. She said she got those from her Greek mom and only got her sexy hourglass figure from the American genes that she got from her father. Somehow, when I look at her, I feel insecure because I, on the other hand, have a small nose, wavy hair, and a petite physique. Her boobs are also a lot bigger than mine. I don't even look like I have boobs. When I look in the mirror, I see a boy. Ahh. I just wish my body is still developing because I'm still undergoing puberty. Well, I am just glad that Catherine and I are both five foot four inches in height. But she loves wearing heels so I still look smaller.

Despite those differences, we get along so well. She loves talking and I enjoy listening to her. We both love ice cream and hate peanut butter. We love watching movies and series during free time and we also listen to the same bands. Even our music playlists are so much alike. Basically, if we only look just a tiny bit like each other, we could pass as sisters.

I'm glad that I met Catherine on the first day of class. I am also glad that she doesn't have her own friend group yet and she's just starting to meet new people here in Grace High because like me, she was also from a different school in a different state.

My subjects today are Math, Biology, History and Swimming. I will only see Catherine during Biology class because it is the only subject that we have in common during Tuesdays unlike Mondays where we both share the same schedule.

Mom didn't wake up early so I had to prepare my own breakfast and pack my lunch. I contemplated whether I'd walk to school or wait for my mom to finish getting ready so she could drive me there. I chose the latter.

It's already six o'clock in the morning and unfortunately, I forgot that every Tuesdays, Grace High holds a school-wide flag-raising ceremony before the first subject starts and it would begin at 7AM because class starts at eight. I forgot to tell mom about it last night as well.

Luckily, the road was clear and we had a smooth ride going to the campus. I kissed mom goodbye before I hopped out of the car and hurriedly ran to find where the large auditorium is located as I forgot to search for it yesterday because I got distracted by Catherine’s vacation story in France last summer and I forgot about my to-do lists for that day.

As I was running down the empty hallway, a guy from the right wing was also hurrying towards my direction. It was so fast that I didn't get the chance to move and dodge him even when my brain knew that he's gonna crash on me. The impact was so strong and we both fell to the ground with our books scattered around. He immediately got on his feet to pick up the books and distribute them accordingly. Anyone who'd see us could tell how awfully embarrassed we were as we fixed ourselves.

"Thank you." I said when he handed me my History book. I have no time to check for dents and scratches. When I glanced through the wall clock above us, the hands of the clock pointed at seven and one. I am five minutes late already so I ran as fast as I could towards the end of the hall but the guy grabbed my hand and stopped me.

“You’re also attending the flag-raising ceremony, right?” he asked. I had to tilt my head up to look at him because he’s so tall. This is gonna be the first time I’d be able to study his face. He has round, deep set eyes that are green. His eyebrows are thick and bushy but they’re neat. His nose - I can’t even explain how good his nose looks. It’s like he has a perfect face. His lips are full and his jawline is strong and chiseled, much more better looking than Mr. Barnes’. At this point, I don’t even wanna know what he’d look like when he smiles. He looks athletic but I don’t think he’s a varsity. He’s not wearing those varsity jackets most student-athletes wear in this school.

“Y-yea.” I stuttered. Hazel, you fool! It’s just one word. I noticed that he was still holding my hand so I pulled it back and used it to scratch the back of my ear, then I looked away.

“You’re running the wrong way.” He said. “Follow me. But be quick cause we’re late.”

I trusted him. We ran towards a flight of stairs and climbed it till we reached the floor where the auditorium’s at. Luckily, the entrance wasn’t locked when we pushed it so we just invited ourselves in. Obviously, we already missed most parts of the ceremony. The school’s at the “Moment of Silence” part when we arrived. Thus, we just quietly walked ourselves towards the empty seats at the backmost section of the auditorium so we wouldn’t bother anyone. We carefully sat and bowed our heads in silence.

“I’m still glad we didn’t miss it,” he whispered, his head still facing the ground. “We’d be put in detention if we did.”

“Really?” I asked, whispering too.

“Yea. Students will have to sign an attendance sheet after the ceremony before leaving the auditorium. And then, they’d announce the students whose name isn’t on the list later at recess through a speaker that would be heard by the entire school.” He explained, with emphasis on the entire.

“Gosh. That would be such a drag.” I answered.

“I am Kyle, by the way.”

“Hazel.”

We looked at each other in sync like somebody told us to do so. I felt burning on my cheeks so I quickly averted my eyes and faced front cause I didn't want him to see my face turning red. I saw him smile on my peripheral vision then I smiled too as if it was automatic. I bit my lower lip to shorten my grin.

The school principal began the announcements. There’s gonna be an upcoming election for new student leaders for this school year. Homeroom teachers should start classroom elections for class officers this week. Then, for each homeroom section, the elected class president is required to attend the nomination day next week for the positions of Student Body president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and four councilors (one from each grade). The nominated students will be grouped into two parties that will compete against each other in a debate during the election day next month. The elected student leaders will be responsible for the upcoming events of this school year, which includes the sportsfest, fairs, camping trips, prom, and graduation ball for this year’s graduating students. The principal promised that this will be a fun and exciting school year filled with activities.

The ceremony ended at exactly 7:45AM and all of the students gathered around the exit to sign the attendance sheet before heading out of the auditorium. Kyle and I signed the sheet together then we waved each other goodbye and went in opposite directions to go to our first classes.