Learning To Love

| 2 | New Faces, New Places |

| Manny Campbell | Tuesday, September 8th |

Turning down off my radio and pulling into the school's parking lot, stationing myself at a good midway distance from the school building and the lot exit. I peer out the window and watch as the students loiter around the school entrance, waiting for their friends and horsing around. I eye the Freshmen getting off the infamous yellow cheese bus and witness some teachers walking in groups already planning our demise. "Well, another year of torture." I murmured to myself as I grabbed my bag and hopped out of my pickup truck. I shuffled from my car to the school building, swinging my bag over my shoulder, shoving my hands into my pockets, and sighing as I made my way to the front doors.

My Junior year had been nonsense in a way. If it hadn't been for my best friends, George and Zeke, I wouldn't have known what to do. Things at home are still a little rocky. It's as if everyone's walking on glass. It's suffocating and honestly stressful, I haven't told the guys what really happened and I don't plan on it because truly it doesn't concern them and I don't want people to know the details, it's embarrassing, but because of that I couldn't really focus in school and I was lacking on my grades and so on. The only thing I wanted to do this year is hang-out with my friends, become quarter-back of the Westview High Trojans, and graduate. Unfortunately, life had other plans. My grades last year were horrible. College admissions are in a couple of months and I don't even know what I want to do or if I will even be able to go to college. Zeke got the quarterback position, and we've already had four games for this season. Today is the first day of school and they benched me for two of them, including this past Friday's game due to not being able to attend practice.

With all due respect, though, and in all honesty, we have afternoon practices starting at 3:30 pm Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for about two to three hours long and then morning practices at 6:30 am to 7:30 pm on Tuesdays, okay? That in its self is excessive, but I had two part times jobs this summer and my schedules clashed, so there wasn't really much I could do.

"Manny!" I turned around to see George jogging toward me. I grinned and stopped walking, giving him time to catch up. "George!" We gave each other a bro hug and head inside.

Around the school and the neighborhood it's usually known to be George, Jason, Zeke, and I. The four of us do everything together and have been together since elementary. However, this summer was bland. We all ended up having to do family stuff, so we didn't have time to meet up except for the back to school party, one guy from our school had on Thursday. We finally met up, but were too distracted to ask how we were doing. It's senior year now, and we've all been friends for as long as I can remember, but soon enough we will graduate and then going off to college — well, most of us will, anyway. I don't want us to drift and break apart.

"Man, can you believe it? We're seniors! We're finally going to graduate in ten months." George said excitedly. "For real. Finally, out of this hellhole. There's no way I'm trying to stay here for another 2 years." I commented. "But you're a little too excited," I laughed, "we just got back from summer break. The first period hasn't even started yet and you're already talking about graduating." George rubbed the back of his head and smiled at me.

Meet George Adams, Geo for short. He's been my boy since elementary. Besides me, he's mister cute stuff, with his blonde hair and blue eyes. Everyone loves him, girls, and guys alike. After all, every girl wanted him and every guy wanted to look like him. George and I can practically be called twins except he is blonde and I have brown hair.

"Dude, have you heard from Jason?" George asked me as we neared the doors.

"Nah. He told me he was going on a vacation with his family this summer and that's it. No return date or anything." I told him. "I don't think he went on a vacation for the whole summer, anyway. Zeke told me he saw him in town two weeks ago."