Young Banana Bus Squad

New Kid

As I walk in the classroom, I see all eyes turn on me. 

I shield my face as I make my way to the back of the room. I sit down in the back row, sliding down in my chair. 

I hate being the new kid. And coming to America all the way from Northern Ireland isn't easy either. But Dad has a work exchange program here, so I had to move. He needed to be at work for a few months, leaving me alone to stay in a motel. 

I sigh, and lean my head down on the desk, closing my eyes. Twelfth grade is a hard enough year without being the new kid. 

Then I feel a small piece of paper hit me. I look up, and turn to see a kid staring at me, smiling. He has hair that's styled over to one side, a kind of queer quiff. He grins at me, then he scooches his chair closer to me, and I lean back a little. He pokes me in the shoulder. 

"Hey. I'm Brian. You're the new exchange kid, right? Welcome." He says, and I smile when I realize that he has an Irish accent. 

"You....you're from the UK, too?" I ask, and he nods. 

"Yeah. I transferred here last year from Ireland, along with my buddy, David." He points to a tall, skinny kid sitting two rows ahead. "We call him Daithi. It means the same thing in Irish. Anyway, what's your name?" He asks, and I grin a little. 

"Craig. Nice to meet you. I transferred here from Northern Ireland." I stick out my hand, and Brian takes it gladly, smiling. 

"Hey, we weren't too far apart, back there in the UK." 

I grin. Then he looks at the clock. "Hey, it's almost lunch. Wanna sit with me and my friends?" 

I shrug my shoulders. "I mean.....I guess..." I say carefully, and Brian grins widely. 

"Awesome. Wait, what locker number are you?" He asks, and I look at my paper. 

"24." 

Brian puts his hand on my shoulder. "Cool! That's right next to mine!" He peers at my schedule, and then laughs. "Craig, we have every class together!" 

I smile. So, Brian seems really cool. I wonder what his friends will be like? Then the bell rings, and Brian jumps to his feet. 

"Come on, Craig! Let's go eat lunch, and I can introduce you to everyone!" 

I pick up my bag, and follow Brian outside. He heads over to a picnic table, where seven other guys are sitting. Brian waves at them, and they all smile. 

"Hey! Brian!" One of them says. He has black spiked up hair, and he has cool shades on. 

He looks at me. "Who's this?" He says, and I walk over cautiously. 

Brian grabs my shirt and drags me closer. "Guys, this is Craig! He's the new exchange student. I wanted him to meet you guys!" 

The guys smile, and I sit down. The guy with the spiky hair puts his hand out. 

"Hey. I'm Evan. How's it going?" 

I nod, and smile. "Pretty good, thanks." 

The kid sitting next to Evan waves at me, but doesn't say anything. He's pretty handsome, but he turns his head away from everyone. I look back at Evan, who sighs. 

"That's Jon. He.....he doesn't really talk much since......" Evan leans closer. "His parents died about two months ago. The cops are still trying to figure out who did it. Actually, Jon hasn't said a word since it happened." 

I look over at Jon, and I feel sorry for him. I know what it's like to have a parent die. Mum died about a year ago, when she fell into a coma as the result of a car crash. She was on life support for months, then Dad finally decided to pull the plug. That's when he got his exchange job over here. I frown. 

Then I feel a tap on my shoulder, and I spin around to see a short kid, about four inches shorter than me, and he sticks his hand out. 

"Hey. I'm Lui. I can act like a little kid sometimes." 

Brian laughs. "Do the voice, Lui." 

Lui smiles, and then glances over to me. "Hey, I'm Lui, and I'm a monkey!" He says, in a voice that sounds like a five year old. 

I laugh, and then turn to the others. A kid with a buzz cut and red-rimmed sunglasses fist bumps me. 

"Hey. I'm Brock."

I smile, and look at the kid next to him. It's Daithi. He puts his hand out, and smiles at me. 

"Hi Craig. I'm-" 

"You're Daithi. Brian told me about you. Nice to meet you." I say, shaking his hand. Then I look at the boy next to Daithi. He's about six feet tall, and he smiles at me. 

"Hey, Craig. My name's Tyler." 

I nod, and then look over to the last kid. He's a medium height boy, and he makes the peace symbol at me. 

"Sup, bro. I'm Marcel, and I'm the coolest dude here. And don't worry about black jokes, cuz since I'm black, and I make them myself, it's not racist." 

I laugh, and then turn back to Brian. "Is that everyone?" I ask, and he nods. 

"Out of our group of friends, yes. Welcome to the Banana Bus Squad."