The Beauty of Death

Chapter 1: The New Girl Wears Designers

Junior year was the year of relaxation. You were mostly safe from anything important, so it was supposed to be my favorite year of school. The more I could just breeze through it and pretend as if I didn't exist, the happier I would be. I enjoyed not being noticed, since I was an introvert. The comfort of being alone was just too intoxicating for me to ignore. Some days it was like I was the new student-people forgot I existed. It could be funny if I cared, but I really didn't.

I got my schedule from the front desk and gave it a quick once over before heading to my locker. Most of my classes were on the second floor, right by my locker, and right by the library. It seemed as if everything was going too easy and it was only 7:30. I guess I'll be able to tell if anything is going to get worse after the rest of the school piles in and I see who I'll be dealing with my first semester. My head was down as I approached my locker, so I never noticed my new neighbor until I was bumped in the side.

"Oh! Hey.. Jeff, was it? Sorry!" Malorie Lawson exclaimed before turning back to her friend, Gabby Bishop. Both of them giggled and continued gossiping on about Lord-knows-what.

I mumbled an incoherent response and didn't even want to bother correcting them. It wasn't as if I didn't get called something different everyday, so I was used to it. Fumbling with my locker combination, I managed to jam the rusty thing open, and was met with a cloud of dust. I sighed and added gossiping girls as the first obstacle in my way for the year. Then I mentally added old and crappy locker as the second.

When most of my stuff was jammed into my locker, I struggled with slamming it shut and ended up coated in another layer of dust. I wiped most of it off before trudging to my first class of the day-Calculus II. My schedule was another obstacle but these classes had been pre-determined since the end of Sophomore year, so I had to learn to make the best of it. 

I entered the classroom and internally sighed in relief; I was the first one to arrive and had my pick of seating. My head turned in the direction of the chalkboard, then down onto Mr. Hanaford's desk. There was nothing that had any sort of seating chart on it, so I slipped between the aisles to the back row. Did I want a window seat or to be in the dark, spider webbed, corner? The choice was obvious. I didn't mind spiders so I set my stuff down and passed the time by curling up into my natural position, my body tilted towards the wall with my arms crossed and head down. Out of the corner of my eye, I counted the webs and students making their way into the classroom. I recognized everyone except the last student who walked in. And what I saw absolutely took my breath away.

She was new, obviously. By the way she wrinkled her nose at the musty smell and the look of her clothes, she wasn't used to a school so old that it'd probably crumble down in a few years. Her hair was perfectly straightened- no sign of curls to be found. I found that I oddly liked that. I learned her name after she handed Mr. Hanaford her slip- Jessamine, Jess, Belle. It sounded oddly southern but she sounded like she was from the West Coast, or to my ears, like an angel. I had no idea why I was thinking this way, so I turned my head and wiped some drool that started to form at the corner of my mouth. Every seat was taken but the one next to me. Which typically was empty.

She hurried her way to the back and set her stuff down, most of it being stuff that I knew I never could afford. I read the label on the side of her boot- Stuart Weitzman. I assumed that was some expensive designer from New York, or whatever. She met my stare with a quick smile, that included a flash of her extremely white teeth. Everything about her seemed to be perfect, and I now knew what my biggest obstacle of the year was going to be. Jessamine Belle, the new designer girl.

I sighed, looked away, and tried to listen to the welcome back speech on the intercom. Prepping myself for this class every morning would be my new routine, and I didn't know if I was up for it yet.