A New Beginning

Starting Again

Sam took a deep breath as she walked through the door. It was her first day at a new school, and she was bracing herself for what was to come. After going to the office and getting her schedule, she made her way to her first class, English. She knocked on the door and entered, ignoring the stares from the students around her. She walked up to the teacher, handed him a note, and took a seat at the back of the classroom next to a kid who looked like he jumped straight out of an issue of Sports Illustrated. Not that Sam read that stuff...

The teacher cleared his throat before addressing the class. "So it appears we have a new student today. I would like everyone to give a warm welcome to Samantha Rutherford." As the students reluctantly clapped, she muttered under her breath, "It's Sam." The kid next to her smiled, which Sam saw out of the corner of her eye. "What are you smiling at?" She asked him, with a hint of irritation in her voice. The boy turned to her and introduced himself with a slight bow in his chair. "I'm Zachary. Zachary Simmons. But you can call me Zach." Sam shook his outstretched hand, wondering why a guy like him was being nice to a girl like her. She pushed these thoughts aside as the teacher began the lesson.

It turns out that Sam had every class with Zach, so he showed her all the shortcuts, told her which teachers were nice and funny and all that, and which kids to steer clear of. The bell rang after their morning classes signaling lunch, so the two headed for the cafeteria. Sam could feel all the stares aimed at her, the sideways glances, the sneering remarks. She tried her best to ignore them and listen to what Zach was saying.

They made their way over to a table in the farthest corner of the cafeteria. Sam braced herself for a group of athletic guys who would question Zach's sanity at bringing her, but she was utterly surprised. She sat down in between Zach and a nice looking girl with purple streaks through her otherwise white-blond hair. "Hey guys, I found a new friend." Zach said to the group. Everyone smiled at her. One girl yelled something at her in a different language. "I'm sorry?" She asked. Purple-hair girl laughed and replied, "She said 'Salvé'. it means hello in Latin." So these guys are taking Latin too. Sam thought.

"You know what we need?" Zach said with a smile. "Ice breaker!" The rest of the group laughed. "I'll start." He said. "I'm Zach. I'm a junior and there's more to me than meets the eye." Sam looked at him with interest. Oh, is that so? she thought. The game went the same with the rest of the group: name, grade, and something about themselves. There was Leia, Jackie, Kyra, Dakota, Luca, Stephan, Felicia, Talia, Andrew, Ramona, Erica, Gabby, and Brett. They made up a pretty big group, and not all of them fit at the table, so the air vents under the window became seats for many.

Sam felt welcome almost instantly. Everyone was a little weird, just like her. They all shared a common interest in Patrick Stump, they were all Latin scholars, and none of them fit in with the "typical high schooler" stereotype.

It was soon Sam's turn for the ice breaker game. "Hi, I'm Sam. Don't EVER call me Samantha. I'm a junior, and I have never been so welcomed by a group of people. Ever." She looked down at the table as soon as she said it. There was no laughing this time. Zach moved over and put his arm around her shoulder. He spoke very quietly, so only she could hear. "You're safe with us. Don't worry, we got your back." Sam nodded and looked back up at the group. She truly felt safe with these people, even though she had only been with them for ten minutes. She felt happier than she had in weeks.

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A/N: hellooooo lovelies! I hope you've enjoyed the first part of my new story. The character Sam is based on parts of myself, and the friends she meets are loosely based on my friends, though all major detailed have been altered. I'm really excited for the rest of this story. It was really fun to get back to writing again after being away from it for so long. More chapters will be coming in the future so get ready for that. I really hope you guys enjoy :)