Forrest Green

Chapter 2: English, Snow, and Towers

Chapter 2: English, Snow, and Towers

Eryn pulls me through the hallways with a happy smile on her face until she notices multiple people moving out of her way like she's contagious. Eryn shouts, "You know, just because I'm not dating him anymore doesn't mean you have to treat me like I have a disease. I'm still the same person from before, I don't bite like you, assholes. Get over yourselves."

When she's done ranting at everyone, she takes a sharp turn and pulls us into a classroom near the back of the building. She releases my arm and walks to the back corner of the room, where there are some empty seats. When she sits in the chair at the edge of the room, she motions for me to join her. Practically skipping over to her, I smile brightly ignoring the strange looks from the few people in the classroom. "I have a feeling we're going to be best friends. My old friends screwed me over in the same way last year, I know what you're going through."

Eryn turns her head, tearing her eyes away from the whiteboard to meet my eyes, "Well, that's good because I thought I blew all my chances of ever becoming your friend when I started telling you about my sister's modesty issues. It feels good to have someone besides my mom telling me that we're going to be best friends. I mean, I love my mom and all, but I hang out with her way too much. So I appreciate that you'd want to be seen around the school with me."

"You said it right when you said they need to get over themselves. I've learned that people only see what they want to see if you're different. Some people won't take the time to get to know someone else because they think they know who you are the second they meet you. If they simply put in the time to broaden their horizons, maybe the world would be a less judgmental place. I would also love it if everyone stopped staring at me because I'm the new kid at school."

When I'm done speaking, look pointedly at the students who have gathered in the classroom. My comment causes everyone to look away, but it's short-lived when a voice rings out interrupting the silence of the room. My eyes snap to a guy in his late thirties, standing a few feet away from my desk. He looks mildly impressed as he crosses his arms across his chest. "I like your take on social injustice, maybe that's what you can write your midterm on. "

The man, who I assume is our teacher, is wearing black dress pants and a pink button-down shirt that's stretched across his belly and tucked into his pants, a black tie hanging around his neck. Even though the brown-black hair growing on his head needs to be cut, his long, bushy beard that rests on his chest is immaculate. He obviously puts a great deal of time into grooming his beard.

I shift my gaze away from him and let my eyes wander around the room, looking anywhere but at him. But then I make eye contact with a few other students and decide it's better for my health to look at the teacher.

God, I've already managed to embarrass myself.

"What's your name?" The man asks me, raising a bushy eyebrow.

"Whitman, Wynter Whitman," I sarcastically answer him. I use sarcasm as a defense mechanism to cover up the fact I'm uncomfortable. My plan this morning, when I woke up, was to act like I'm okay with being the new kid, but now that I'm on my second round of constant staring and curious looks, I want to crawl into a hole and stay there forever.

The guy nods as if remembering something before introducing himself. "I'm Mr. Regimen, the Advanced Placement English Literature teacher. It's nice to meet you, Wynter."

"Thanks..." I mutter, looking down at my hands that are fidgeting on the desk, hoping this conversation will just end and I can go back to pretending like I'm a well-adjusted teenager.

"What you said was fascinating. I'd like to hear your opinion on other subjects another time." The amount of awe in his voice is starting to make me feel more awkward with this situation.