Socially Awkward

I.

My teacher has demanded we get into groups and find out things about our partners.

I want nothing to do with it, at all.

This class has already rubbed me off in the wrong direction and it's only the first day. Plus, I thought silly icebreakers like this, were eliminated after high school.

The teacher holds his hand up, silently reminding us that we only have five more minutes left.

While the two guys I somehow wound up grouped with converse, I try not to concentrate too intently on them.

The chair-desk thing is hurting my butt. The chair is weirdly concave and the backrest is so straight that a tree couldn't sit comfortably in the contraption.

"Hey, you're next." The guy taps on my desk.

I take a deep breath and try to naturally smile. My stomach ties in knots.

It's not like the guys are hot and I'm getting nervous like some girl on a teen drama show. This is just a normal reaction for me to have to other people.

One dude is super tan. The other looks like he never leaves his house for more than five minutes. There is no way these two could get together and judge me for anything I say right now.

"My name, Kalen."

"Kalen, huh?" Super Tan reiterates. "Never heard that one before."

Pale guy grunts like he has no interest in me being in the group. That's great because I think that this assignment is completely pointless. I'm not going to talk to any of these people after today anyway.

"Dude, you weren't paying attention to anything the teacher said."

I stare at him, failing to come up with some kind of rebuttal.

"So, no need in us getting to know you?" Pale guy states, neatly placing his pencil on the desk.

"I'm a Physics major. Probably a French minor."

"Why French?" Super tan cocks his head to the side looking mildly interested.

"Pourquoi pas?"

"What?"

"Précisément!"

Pale guy shrugs his shoulders, unimpressed, and slouches down in his seat.

"I'm Bryan. Chemistry major."

"I'm Alex. Major is still undecided. I'll pick something soon. Til then, I'm just gonna call it chills."

I can't tell who the bigger slacker in this group is.

I press my lips together and nod. "Great. That's it?"

"No, you haven't answered all the questions yet." Super Tan, now Alex, points to the board.

"Times up," Our teacher calls out, waving his hands in the air. "Who wants to go first?"

Seriously, was this guy expecting anyone to willingly volunteer. After a brief moment of scanning his eyes across the classroom, he clasps his hands together.

"Okay then," He shakes his head and turns to the board. "For those who haven't even blinked at the syllabus, I'm Doctor Tim Ryanleer. I received my Ph.D. in Chemistry from this university. I loved it so much I came back."

A few scoffs and hushed comments are shared around the class before Dr.Ryanleer sighs.

"You're first group three." He snaps a demanding index finger in our direction.