people

Eighth grade. Age thirteen.

Eighth grade. Kids confused me. I understood adults better.

September, and wearing a San Francisco shirt on the first day. Giselle noticed. She asked. I told. It wasn't complicated.

October. I went back to Harry Potter. The books had inspired me since third grade. I knew the plot inside out.

Civics. Giselle, Andrew, Alice again. Our schedules mostly matched.

English. The teacher that everyone loved. She was like a teenager herself. Cara, Giselle again, Laila. Alice.

There were less people I connected to. I didn't stay in touch with many of my old friends. Just Anne, and Nicole.

November. Knitting. Confused sexualities. Nicole was gay. Anne was bi. I was still figuring myself out.

Thanksgiving. Tumblr. My favorite scarf, and old worn jeans. Nobody brought a decent vegetable to Thanksgiving.

December. Still identifying as straight. Alice was class president now. The most popular girl in the grade, and still willing to lend me her homework. Thank you.

Geometry. I was on my own.

Chorus. A new director. Nobody could figure out what the heck a vowel was.

Applying for a job in the state senate, and studying eight hours a week for a test I knew I wouldn't pass.

January. I got the job. So did Cara. Nobody except Anne noticed when I left. It scared me.

The senate now. There was Asia, and Catter, and Kate. The best roommate ever, and freedom.

There was a routine. Big breakfasts on Fridays. Blueberry muffins and lattes for breakfast every other day. Grilled cheese for lunch. Soup for dinner.

Community bacon. Sweet tea.

I came out as ace and panromantic via text to Nicole and Anne.

Writing during work and after dinner. Failing geometry and French because of miscommunications and an inability to change radians to degrees on a calculator.

Tumblr. I had a tiny following, but people listened to what I had to say. That was new. I liked it.

Back to school in March. I fell back into the old routine.

Working doubletime in French and geometry to catch up. D+ to B-.

Extra credit in Civics.

Anne had missed me. She was the only one.

Alice noticed I was back. She said hi. I realized how massive my crush on her was. I had zero chance with her.

Chorus. Science.

Standardized testing in May. It threw off the whole schedule. Now science wasn't fun anymore.

Texting with Catter and Asia and Kate. Cara and I were closer now. The whole school had moved on, and we had stayed stationary. It scared me.