Never Knew I Needed

Chapter 6- The New Guy

Lailah

Summer break went by way too fast. Other than recording music at the studio, I worked, hung out with my friends, hit up a couple parties at the beach and it was all over in the blink of an eye. I was back in school, for the start of senior year and I wasn't looking forward to it. Sure, I was happy to be in my last year of high school and all the exciting things that come with it, however, I dreaded doing the work. I just wanted to do music; that was it. Though, the thing that made school most enjoyable was having my best friends with me. Yet, the one thing we all loved the most at school was over. Back in June I found out that we no longer would have a drill team at school because there were no available coaches and not enough people would sign up for the team. Friday nights were the highlight of the week, but we would eventually be sitting in the stands rather than perform at the football games.

After I dropped Carter off to his elementary school, I made my way to my school. I pulled up in the school parking lot, preparing my mind for my 8 a.m. class. 

"Hey, girl!" Haley shouted, my other friends waving to me as I walked over to the entrance stairs they sat on.

"What's up, guys?" I said.

"Just ready for this year!" Lily said with a big smile. She loved school so much, not just because of friends and cute guys, but she loved doing the work and learning about new things. I really respected that, especially because I had never met a girl who could party hard until 2 a.m. but also stay getting A's in all her classes.

"Well, Lily, you can be excited for all of us because I'm irritated about having to take another damn math class." Kyla said and we all laughed. I loved my friends.

****

The morning flew by with the forty-five-minute periods that felt like fifteen minutes. After first and second period, which were my Government and Honors American Literature classes, respectively, I headed to the library for free period. I had to read the first five chapters of Great Expectations for Honors Lit then write a three-page analysis on it by Friday. Like, really? We had just got back. Luckily, I loved reading, it was just the written analysis part I wasn't a fan of.

While I was working, I saw a boy that I met last year named Cody Fleming, and he was a freshmen last year while I was a junior. We met in ceramics class when I offered to sit with him at a table he'd been alone at. He had sad eyes, low confidence and I wanted to help him. Reluctantly, he told me he was having troubles with a bully that always called him degrading names and pushed him around. He had also been dealing with the lost of his mom due to a car accident. I felt so bad for him, but that wasn't the reason I befriended him. He felt alone, thought no one cared about him, and I wanted to show him that he mattered and that his well-being was important to me. Cody Fleming's life was a perfect example of why you shouldn't pick on people because you don't know what they have going on at home.

When I began middle school, I always made sure that others were never left out because it wasn't a good feeling. I would know because I used to be treated that way in elementary school. People didn't want to talk to me because they thought I was the weird new girl. But I could see why they thought that. I rarely talked to people, except for my teachers, and no one wanted to befriend the mute girl. Also, I was the only black girl in my class, which made things even more uncomfortable and awkward for me. I hated going to New Haven's Middle but I had no choice. Dad had got a new job when I was eleven that moved us from Santa Monica to Sacramento, so I had to try to adapt to a new environment. It was hard being new, but over the years things got better, especially when I met Haley in eighth grade. The story of how Haley and I met is pretty crazy. We met in the restroom during the five-minute break in between classes. It was a day I would never forget.