« Breathe, Juju ; » I reminded myself as I pushed open the heavy glass doors to Pinecrest high school. « You can do this. One day at a time. »
I readjusted my messenger bag over my right shoulder and entered the building. The hallways were fairly empty, since I had shown up early to get used to this new school. I followed the signs to the office, praying that I wouldn't get lost or ridicule myself too much today.
Back home, in France, my school's layout was simple. Two buildings, three storeys tall, parallel to each other, and connected in the basement by a long corridor leading to the gymnasiums. Here, on the other hand, there were several squat buildings sprawled around campus, connected by brick paths running through patches of stubby grass that was just starting to look green again. Picnic tables and a few sparse trees were scattered around. I couldn't get used to the idea of having to go outside to switch classes. You might think that a bit of fresh air in between classes would be good for you, or whatever. That's fine in California, but here in Seattle, Washington, it rains for a good 90% of the school year. I guess I'll have to get used to having wet hair.
I entered the office, and walked up to the secretary's desk. She was trying to type something out on her keyboard, but she was visibly struggling to do so because of her three inch long sparkly purple fingernails. I cleared my throat. « Um, hi. My name is Julie Robinson, I'm a new student here. » She painstakingly typed a few keystrokes and turned to grab something out of the printer. In a bored, nasal voice, she said : « Your homeroom is in room 13, C building. Here's a map of the school, Mrs. Hamilton will give you your schedule when you get to class. » « Thanks, » I said « Do I get a locker ? » « Oh yeah, » she replied, giving me a piece of paper. « You get number 1134. The combination is on your paper. It's right across the hall from your homeroom. » As I turned to go after thanking her, I noticed that she already had her nose buried in the latest edition of 'People' magazine.
Looking down at my new map, I sighed. C building was all the way across campus, as far away from the office as possible. Thankfully I still had plenty of time to get there. “It had better not be raining.” I thought, already moving towards the doors.
…
By the time I reached my homeroom, I was sure that my hair looked like I had picked a fight with a tornado and lost. It wasn't raining outside, but I had forgotten how windy this city could be in March. “Not like it's Chicago or anything” I muttered to myself. “Hmm?” I heard from my right. I turned suddenly. A tallish brown haired boy was standing there looking at me quizzically. “Excuse me?” I said. “ Oh, I thought you asked me something.” He responded. “No, just talking to myself” I smiled at him, pulling my hair up into a ponytail. Screw it, it's not like I had time to try and fix it before class anyways. “My name is Anton. Are you new here?” He asked, smiling back at me. “Julie. I just moved back actually. Up until grade 5 I lived near Greenlake. Then my whole family packed up and moved to Marseille, in France. And now I'm back in Seattle, but on the other side of the city this time.” I said with a shrug. “Do you miss it?” He asked. “Marseille, I mean. I come from Mannheim in Germany myself. Moved here in grade 8. I know how tough it can be to be uprooted like that.” “Yeah, it's tough.” I said, staring down at my paint-splattered Converse.
Just then, the first bell rang. “Where's your homeroom?” Asked Anton. “C 13.” “Me too! He cracked a smile, and started walking to the door.
Maybe this move will be easier than I thought?
Anton on the side!
