Ordinary Folks

Part I - Something's Amiss

Ring! the school bell chimed, welcoming the students for yet another set of 180 days of learning, work, and stress (at least for some). It was September 6th in the ever-growing residential district of Weastside, and right smack in the middle of it was regular old Weastside High School. It certainly wasn't an old one, being constructed at the very midst of the "Residential Revolution", as many called it. The feeling of very late summer filled the air, as the sun reflected its warm ways onto the students, the sky showing its normal pale shade of blue, the smell of grass from the newly planted lawn being ever-present, and the trees bearing all of their leaves still, but their hues beginning to look off, hinting at their soon to be fall colors. All of the students were gathered in the main yard, waiting for the 8:30 a.m. bell to ring so they could get in. Particularly, five of these people were gathered on the right side of the entrance way, sitting on the various oversized boulders that were scattered across the lawn.

"So, guys, how do you think the school year's going to go?" Drew, normally considered to be the leader of this group of friends after "the incident", tried to start up the conversation. He was a little tall for his age, with medium length dark orange hair that was parted in both directions at the middle of his face, revealing his forehead. He had on a formal dark red polo shirt, dark brown khakis, and some standard black loafers.

"Much like the previous years. Nothing really changes when school is involved," Nat, the trouble maker of the group, (at least that's what the adults call her, but she was at least nice enough to her friends to not immediately be excommunicated) stated. This reputation was slightly emphasized with her appearance, with dark brown hair, a She had on a white long-sleeved shirt, pants that were a size or two smaller than hers (which everybody just called shorts), and red sneakers.

"Hey, it's high school, Nat, of course it will be different," Joseph disagreed. He was, ever since the group of friends was even established back in the third grade, deemed the "smart" one, due in no part to the various inventions and machinery that he had built. Appearance-wise, he had very spiked, unkempt, tan hair which blended into his tan complexion, and his large, black glasses. One thing that his friends always noticed about him was that he always wore the exact same dark purple, magenta striped sweater-vest. 

"Yeah, he's right! So many new experiences..." Alexa tried to defend Joseph. For some reason, Alexa was always somewhat happy and eager to do things, which the rest did like about her. She had dark orange, long, flowing hair that extended past her shoulders, a light skin tone, and very natural-looking green eyes. This was complimented by her lavender sweater with a flower print on it.

"How about you, Shyla? You haven't contributed anything to this conversation," Drew questioned.

"Uh...I don't know..." Shyla tried to respond, attempting to try to make a remark on the matter. She was never known as the most confident or friendly to new people of the group, and besides the other members of the group, she had no other experience with social interaction. Nobody even knew how she even looked like, since Shyla's entire face was covered up by a comical white mask, leaving only three gaping, large, black holes for her eyes and mouth. She also wore a bright pink robe that both covered her body and accentuated it at the same time. Strangely, it was never that stuffy or warm inside that robe, or at least that's what Shyla told everybody.

The school bell blared again, this time being the 8:30 bell. The students rushed inside, some eager to start the new year, some reluctant to even be in school.

"Hey, it looks like we're all in the same class, guys!" Alexa exclaimed. "Isn't that cool?"

"I guess," Shyla said.

"So...our first class is in the science wing, and it's...biology? I thought we took that one the year after?" Drew began.

"Beats me why they changed it," Nat replied.