What Are We? // Noah Schnapp

New School

I was so nervous to go to a new school. Especially a huge one. I felt so embarrassed when people thought I was a freshman even though I was a sophomore, because I didn't know where to go. I had to ask a teacher standing outside of his classroom where my first class was. I was wearing blue jeans, a plain black shirt, some white tennis shoes, and some jewelry.

I looked at my schedule and asked nervously, "Hi, do you know where room 832 is?" I said, looking up at him, trying not to look scared. "Yes, when you go upstairs, turn right and it should be at the very end." He replied with a smile, knowing I was nervous but tried not to pay attention to it. "Thank you." I said, returning the smile as I was walking away.

I walked up the huge stairs, trying not to trip or fall because of all the people pushing trying to get to their class before the bell rang. I walked around for a few seconds before I found the 800 hall. When I finally got to my class, I was greeted by my teacher at the door. "Hi, I'm Mrs. Williams. Welcome to my geometry class. What's your name?" "y/n." I say. She looked down at a clipboard she had been holding and checked her list to make sure I was in the right class. "Okay y/n, my seating chart is on the white board."

I found my seat and put my blue backpack next to my feet under my desk. The bell rang, and my teacher came in, excited to meet her new students. "Hi everyone! I was hoping we could get to know each other by telling something about ourselves." After she said that, I knew it was going to be a long day.

~TIME SKIP TO LUNCH~

Lunch on the first day of school is always weird. I saw my sister sitting by herself at a table towards the stairs and sat next to her. "Hi y/n." She said to me. "Hey June." I say, putting my lunch bag down on the table. I had kept it in my backpack, so I didn't have to carry it around. Inside, I had a turkey sandwich, an apple, and a bottle of water. We both had the same lunch. "How has it been so far?" She asked me. "Not that different from our old school. Some people were rude and some were nice. The teachers were really nice though. How has it been for you?" "The same." She says, starting to eat her sandwich.

We sat in silence, eating for a few minutes until we saw people crowding around someone. "What's going on?" I asked her, starting to eat my apple. "I don't know, but they're really loud." She says, before drinking water. We had both finished eating, and June offered to throw my trash away for me. As she got up, I put my lunch bag back into my backpack. I noticed she was standing near the crowd. She sat back down, and I asked, 'What happened?" 'Apparently someone famous goes here." "What?" I asked, starting to laugh, thinking she was joking. The bell rang, so we got up to go to our next class. "See you at home!" I said, waving to her. She waved back, disappearing into a crowd of people going the same way as her.

~TIME SKIP TO LAST CLASS~

After getting to my last class, I saw on the white board what we were doing today. I was so relieved we were doing actual work instead of sharing things about ourselves. Those always made me super nervous because of my anxiety. I was also glad it was chemistry, since math and science are my favorite subjects. There was no seating chart, so I sat in the back left corner by the window. I saw the class materials we needed for the day on the board, so I took out a composition book, a mechanical pencil, and yellow and green highlighters. We were going to do notes. A couple minutes later, I was approached by 3 boys. They all had brown hair and brown eyes. "Hey, could you maybe move?" One of them said, looking at me as it was a command rather than a question. "Why?" I asked shyly. "We like to sit by the window." Another said, more nicely than the other one. "It's just a seat, and there's another window in front of me. Besides, I already have my stuff out." I replied. At this point I was really uncomfortable.

Another boy came in, hearing our conversation. He had brown hair and hazel eyes. "Guys, she's right. It's just a seat. You're making her uncomfortable." He said, looking at me as he sat to my right. "Whatever." The third one said, sitting in front of him. The first one sat by the window in front of me, and the second sat in front of him.

"Sorry about them. They're just grumpy because they had to wake up early." He whispered to me. I quietly giggled. "Then why aren't you grumpy?" I asked quietly. "I'm used to waking up earlier." "I'm y/n." I said. "Nice to meet you. The guy in front of you is Jack, the one in front of him is Ethan, and the one in front of me is Jacob." he says to me. "And you are?" I said with a smile. Jack turned around, rolled his eyes, and said, "Don't act like you don't know who he is. This happens every year." "I'm new here, so I don't know anyone..." Jack whispered "Yeah right." and turned back around. "I'm Noah." The boy beside me says. "Nice to meet you." "Why do they care so much that I don't know you?" I whispered to him. "I don't know, but I'm glad you don't." He whispered back, smiling. "Why?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. "No reason." He said smiling, as our teacher walked in.