The Inbetween Cult

chapter one - mustard-covered shoes

Casey

Mustard.

Mustard.

All over my new shoes.

"Sorry, Case," my third youngest brother Tony frowns. "It wouldn't come out."

It was the first day of junior year

And I had mustard on my shoes.

"I'll clean them, just take your Tims."

I couldn't. There was mud all over them.

I sigh and take a deep inhale before I push the mustard covered sandwich at him, mustard coating his shirt.

"Casey!"

I shrug. "Just take one of your other shirts." I quickly wash as much of the mustard off of my shoes as I can, then grab my backpack and run out the door to meet up with my best friend Jovie.

"Hey," she greets, wrapping her skinny, caramel arms around me. "How was trying to get ready?"

Jovie Thomas, the skinniest girl alive. Her hair was jet black and curly, her skin the mix of chocolate and vanilla, though it seems so delicate it seems if you flick her, she'd shatter. Her lips are large and light brown-pink, her eyes wide and brown. She was even probably the cutest girl alive, but also probably the dumbest. She is not very good in school, but I love her.

"Well, Tony spilled mustard all over my shoes, so I have mustard on my shoes for the first day," I comment as we walk to the bus stop.

"Aw, what'd you do back to him?"

"Spilled some on his shirt."

She grins at my over exaggeration on "spilled". "Well, I love your mustard-covered shoes. Matches your mustard-covered personality."

I've been told by multiple people - including Jovie - that I have a very interesting, different personality from others. She claims me as a hipster, a Tumblrina, those sorts of things, but I take them as a compliment. I don't like to be like everyone else.

But the problem with my mustered-covered shoes was that I just moved to this school, Jovie's been going here since high school began for us, and I didn't want to be called the mustard girl on the first day of school.

I just wanted to try and keep as much of my dignity that I had left.

"Are you ready to meet all the cute boys I tell you about?" Jovie grins. "I promise you, this will be the year you get a boyfriend."

I scoff. "Pass. Thank you for your consideration, though."

She frowns. "Come on, Case. You're gorgeous, so many guys would be lucky to be with you, and when they see you with your mustard-covered shoes, they're going to be in love."

I scowl at her and she giggles.

"My mustard-covered shoes are incredible, Jovie. Quit bashing at them, this is a hate crime."

She winks.

******

When we arrive at Ponder Hill, my eyes widen at the substantial building. It was bricked brown with purple and gold flags and a large "PH" on the front.

"This is going to be interesting," I whisper.

I scope every group; the annoying jocks, the girly cheerleaders, the insane book smarts, the suicidal emos, the weird gamers, the world peace freaks, the over-obsessive weight benchers,

And then Jovie and I;

The Inbetweens.

"C'mon, I'll show you our locker after we pick up our schedules." Jovie tugs on my arm and we enter the building.

The main office is on the left as soon as we enter the building; the attendance office on the right. When you walk forward, you enter the Commons, then see two flights of stairs, one going up to the left, the other going up to the right, and there are multiple hallways on the first level.

This place was so much bigger than my old school.

I felt extremely out of place but I hoped as the days, weeks, months went on, it'd be easier.

Jovie and I enter the main office to pick up our schedules, locker number, and locker combination.

Locker 702.

Combination 1-33-17. 

Easy enough.

I wrote down the locker number and combination in my notebook, then put it in my phone, Jovie and I trudging up the stairs to look for our locker.

We ended up realizing we were on the main floor in the left hallway.

I claimed the second shelf because I was shorter, and I gathered up all of my things for math.

I had Pre-Calculus first.

Then Scientology.

Then Government.

Then Honors English.

Then Women's Body Conditioning for P.E.

Easy enough.

"Good luck, new girl," Jovie winks, and she walks off to her first class; Team Sports for P.E.

I sigh.

I'm going to get lost.

******

Ten minutes after the bell rang, I finally find my Pre-Calculus class, and as soon as I walk in, everyone is staring at me.

"What's your name, young lady?" a young Korean woman whom I assume is the teacher asks me.

I gulp. Fuck. "Uh, Casey Garrett?"

"Mind telling me why you're late, young lady?" She removes her glasses.

"I - I'm new, I never got a tour of the school, so I didn't know where the class was."

The woman nods. "Okay, I'm not going to mark you tardy only because  it's your first day. Take a seat, you're going to sit next to Serena." She gestures to a black girl with long braids who smiles and waves her fingers. I sit in the empty seat beside her in a huff, sighing.

Great first start, Casey.

Suddenly a guy from the other side of me with short, messy brown hair, wearing a blue sweatshirt and khakis leans over and whispers, "I like your shoes."

I look at him and he smirks, but not in a taunting way, but more of a playful way.

I smile slightly. "Thanks. Mustard's the new trend now."

He chuckles. "I'm Matt."

I hold my hand out to shake his. "Casey."

I would call him Khakis.

"Nice to meet you, new girl."

"Nice to meet you, too."

I already made a friend.

One point - Casey.