It was nice to have a home cooked meal for the first time in forever. My mom died when I was about 5, and my dad was usually working. If we ever had a meal that wasn’t take out, frozen meals, or restaurants, it would most likely be Mac ‘n Cheese that I cooked last minute. We went to bed after getting settled considering I had my first day of American school tomorrow. It was already the second week of school for Barbour County High School, so it would be odd to be in the middle of something that had already started. I had all classes except art with Emily, so I would definitely have a familiar face in my classes. I just hoped that I would be able to find a friend in art. I could easily concentrate on just my work if not, so I wasn’t too worried.
Waking up at 7 in the morning for school the next day was difficult, but the excitement took over at that point. We had a breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes and a new food I had never heard of called ‘grits.’ They were delicious, but very unique.
“Hey Livi! Grab your bag. We’re going to ride with Lee today and stop by Starbucks, so we have to leave a little earlier than usual.” Emily slung her black backpack over her shoulder and slipped on her shoes. I grabbed my canvas backpack and copied her movements. We jumped into Lee’s car, a forest green Jeep Wrangler. It was such a cool car, but we had to sit in the back because Lee was picking up a friend on the street over. We pulled out of the driveway after saying out goodbyes to Rae and Robert.
Turning right onto the street after, we pulled into the driveway of a grey house. It looked more like something you would find in Australia with the modern touches, but was still southern. A boy our age ran out the door with a golden retriever yapping at his heels. He closed the door and let the dog stay on the lawn, jumping into the jeep without even opening the door. He was dressed almost exactly like Lee, but was wearing a different colored shirt. They both had the name ‘Southern Tide’ on the back, one with a fish and the other with a boat. I had never heard of it before.
“Hey Livi, this is Christian. He’s one of Lee’s best friends. Our parents are good friends too.” He nodded at me as I observed his features. He had blond hair that was straight, and looked to be around six feet. He looked really nice, but a little intimidating. I could tell he and Lee were popular at Barbour. They had that whole persona.
“Nice to meet you Christian. I’m Livi. I’m the exchange student from Australia.” He nodded at me again and shook my hand.
“Nice to meet you Livi. That so cool that you’re from Australia.”
After a fifteen minute drive, we pulled into Barbour County High School. Lee parked the Jeep in the parking garage filled with other cars. It was around 7:45, but school started at 8. Once we got in the school, Lee and Christian turned the other way to go to their advisory, while Emily and I went to the office to get my locker, schedule, and anything else I might need. After getting what I needed, we arrived at advisory right at the bell. There were around 15 kids inside the room, with a woman who was probably around 35 sitting on the desk in the front of the room.
“So nice to see you Emily! And Livi! It is a pleasure to have you joining us at Barbour this year. I’m Mrs. Crosby, but everyone calls me Mrs. C. I’ll be teaching you in English this year.” She smiled at me and hugged me.
“Thank you so much for having me Mrs. C. I am so excited.” Emily sat down, but Mrs. C made me introduce me to the rest of the advisory.
‘Well, hi! I’m Livi, um, I’m from Australia. I’m excited to be here this year!” Everyone kind of laughed with me and I sat down next to Emily and two other girls.
“Hey Livi – this is Riley and Evie. They’re my best friends and you will probably be seeing them a lot this year!” They smiled at me and introduced themselves as we chatted for the remaining 20 minutes of advisory. As the bell rang, we filed out and headed off to the first class of the day: Spanish.
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By the time lunch rolled around, I had met a few people, but mostly stuck by Emily the whole day. I saw Riley and Evie throughout the classes and had seen Christian once in the hall, but mostly I had just met new teachers. We strolled into lunch and picked up a sandwich and soda. Going to the register, I signed with my new I.D. that I would have this year. We sat down at the table that Evie and Riley were sitting at, but there was another girl who I hadn't met.
"Oh Livi, this is Eliza Billard. She's one of my good friends and is also dating Christian." Emily introduced us and slid into her seat next to her, while I was in between Emily and Evie. After a lunch in which I was told who to watch out for, what teachers were the best, and which classes would be the easiest or hardest. The bell for class rang and we rushed to our next class. Emily dropped me off at art, showing me where it was. She hurried to her next class, saying she would meet me here after to go to English. I walked in to a classroom that had a bohemian vibe to it, with a young teacher who looked to be just out of college in the front. I scanned the room to see if there was anyone I knew, worried that I would be alone. My eyes settled on Lee, so I walked over to him and sat at his table with a girl and a guy that I didn't recognize.
"Hey Livi, I didn't realize you were going to be in my art class. Well, just letting you know, Mary is so relaxed. She's great." He smiled and turned to look in front of the room.
"Um, Lee? Who's Mary?" I smiled innocently.
"Oh sorry, that's the teacher. Ms. Larsen asks us to call her Mary." We heard a throat being cleared in the front of the room, turning our attention towards the woman up front.
"I'm Mary Larsen, for those of you who don't know me. Welcome to Advanced Painting, hopefully your favorite class for the next 180 days."
