404: Love Not Found

Woven Weaves

[POV: Emily]

July is such a beautiful month, don't you think? The weather is slowly settling down in a sort of hot-cold mix, the wind is still breezy from the summer period, and most importantly, school is back! I know it's odd, but I kind of have a thing about hearing those newly bought black shoes. The crunching sounds of those new uniforms have always given my ears this nice tingly feeling that reminds me of toasted bread for some reason. Yeah yeah, it's because they sound identical, but come on, isn't that a neat coincidence? Going back to the topic of school, I think the people in my old school are very hurt. I remember this one kid who came up to me and just made fun of the shoes I designed myself with stickers. It was an old converse I got from my older sister and it was a bit beaten up, so I thought I could fix it with my embroidery-looking stickers I got that same month. Now imagine my surprise this girl suddenly was making fun of it. It wasn't a big deal since at least someone saw my shoes, but I couldn't shake the feeling that underneath all those laughter and makeup, someone was groaning. Everyone had just given a glance at my shoes but this girl was completely adamant about making fun of them. Naturally, I wanted to know more, and what I discovered was that her older sisters were exactly like her. The moment they meet in the hallways, they immediately just tease their sister about how she wasn't wearing her attire right. Safe to say that attitude won't help anyone. That's mainly why I was glad to be in a new school now. I now have a chance to make myself out to be the friend of those too afraid to open up about their pain.

With that being said, the funniest thing happened the morning of the first day of school. My mom forgot that we were supposed to wake up early, so when I went to the dining table to make myself some eggs, I peeked into her bed and saw that she was still completely knocked out from a day's worth of work yesterday. Like she says, "Being a nurse is the fastest way to get old in the medical industry." I don't know about the old part since her cheeks are still as rosy as they were in her old photos, but the dark areas under her eyes may vouch for her claim. Since this was the case, I just made breakfast for both of us, ate mine, and quickly prepared myself for the new year. After about half an hour of doing this, I peeked again at her room and she was still asleep so I had to calmly wake her up to ask her to drive me to school. Thankfully, she just wiped her eyes, looked at the time, and hurried to the car with me as fast as she could. 

After arriving at school, I remember not entering the gates immediately. Instead, there was this big sign right above the gates of the school that just says, "Hello Students! Welcome to a New Voyage in the Sea of Learning!" Right under those words are kids in a boat and they were paddling forward with pencils instead of oars. However, what got me looking was the fact that they were paddling using the pencil's tips instead of the other side, which would make advancing faster. 

As I look at this painting, I hear my watch chiming alerting me that it's about 5 minutes before class starts. Given the circumstance, there's one thing and one thing only that one could do: book it down the hall! So I did! Wind gush across my face while my feet continuously bang along the glossy-cement floors to propel me forward faster and faster. The sunrays periodically beam on my skin whenever I pass a window or an opening that allows the sky to be visible. In my run, I saw smiles, frowns, awkwardness, and even weird looks given to me. Despite that, it's abundantly clear that summer has not worn off for some of these people. Seats are either filled with yawning, sleepy, or even absent students, and I don't plan to be one of those.

It's one thing to be exhausted, but it's another to be exhilarated, and I don't which one I felt but all I know is that the overwhelming feeling of that run got to me pretty quickly slowing me down ever so slightly by the second. Thankfully, my classroom is not far away from where I'm at right now. Just three or four more signs and I'll be there. However, weirdly enough, I didn't hear any noise coming from there as I slowly approach it. It's like there's a dark and gloomy force surrounding its premises and this thick atmosphere was pushing against everyone. At first, I thought it was just me feeling it since everyone else in the classroom is sitting straight but with a calm and modest look on their faces, but then this one kid was so evidently grinding his teeth and dwindling his thumbs that I knew that it's not just in my head.