The (Not so amazing) adventures of Max

Eighth Entry: Surviving Day Two

Wednesday, August 9

I made it through the second day, which I'm pretty sure qualifies me for some kind of survival badge. The school didn't feel quite as enormous today, but it's still easy to get lost if you make a wrong turn. I saw one freshman actually end up in the janitor's closet when he was looking for the art room. At least I'm not that guy.

First period was pretty chill. Our teacher, Mr. Cooper, is a laid-back kind of guy who talks like he's permanently stuck in summer vacation mode. He made us introduce ourselves and say one interesting fact, so of course I panicked and said, "I can juggle," which is only true if you count the three seconds before everything crashes to the ground. Great first impression.

Then came third period: Mr. Dreadmore's English class. Walking into that room felt like stepping into a dungeon. He's tall, with a glare so intense I'm pretty sure it could melt steel. He launched straight into his expectations, and let's just say they're stricter than Dad's rules about not touching the TV remote. No talking, no laughing, and "absolutely no late assignments." He even made a point to look at me when he said that last part, and I have no idea why. Did I already mess up by breathing too loudly? The whole class sat frozen like statues while he paced up and down the aisles.

The rest of the day was a mix of dodging upperclassmen who think freshmen are invisible and trying not to look totally clueless in gym class (spoiler: I did). We did laps today, and Ben joked that he thought he saw the light at the end of the tunnel. I believe him—Coach Lewis acts like we're all training for the Olympics.

Leo managed to spill juice on his new shirt at lunch, which turned into a mini crisis until we convinced him that "tie-dye is totally in." He didn't buy it, but at least he laughed. It felt good to have the guys around, making stupid jokes and making this whole high school thing feel just a little less terrifying.

Two days down, and I'm still standing. Just five more periods tomorrow before I have to deal with Dreadmore again. Wish me luck—I think I'm gonna need it.