Anxiety

Chapter Three

"Sorry, you don't mind driving Jung-guk, do you?" I shake my head, glancing into the rear-view mirror as the male slides intot he car, almost taking my breath away. I pull away from Drew's house, starting the route to school. It's silent the whole time, Drew spending the time on his phone, most likely scoring his enxt lay. I roll my eyes as I pull into the parking lot, swinging into a spot.

"Welcome to hell," I mumble, climbing out of the car. I elave the two, heading inside by myself. I ehad to my locker, changing my books around before heading to my first class. I slide into my seat, pulling out my homework, tapping my pen as I wait for the bell to ring. It does, Jung-guk walking in as it goes off. He hands Mr. Ruseo something, the teacher handing him a bunch of papers.

"You can sit next to Miss Salvatore," the male nods, moving towards me. I throw him a friendly smile, already annoyed at the giggling and whispering females. The lesson starts, the hour passing by slowly as the girls continue to giggle. I roll my eyes, helping Jung-guk understand the material he missed. The bell finally rings, my body moving slowly.

"Could you help me?" Jung-guk asks, his English skills surprising me. I nod, taking his schedule.

"We have Chemistry together, you have study-hall with Drew, and History with Drew after lunch," I explain, "the other elective you have with me, and then English with both of us," I explain, showing him wha ti am talking about. We leave the classroom, heading into Chemistry. Jung-guk is sat in front of me, next to Jaylynn. I listen to the teacher, tapping my pen lightly against the desk as she speaks. I bite my lower lip, jotting down notes to remember. The bell rings, leaving us with no homework. I hum gladly, leaving the class as Drew walks in. I head to the library, smiling at the libarian. I take my seat near the back, hidden from view. I start working on the homework I've gotten so far, finishing easily. I put it all away, sliding my laptop out of my bag and logging into it. I start working on the article for the newspaper, working on the sports section first. I put my laptop away as the bell rings, heading up to my locker. I pull out my lunch, heading to the classroom. I plop down into my seat, a sigh leaving my lips as I pull my laptop out again, continuing to work on the article. I move pictures into different places, trying to find the best fit.

"Wow, those are great!" Faith compliments, rubbing my shoulder. Drew walks in, Jung-guk behind him, smiling happily. Drew pulls a chair over for him, the male sitting down in it. Drew looks at the screen, snorting.

"No pictures of me?" he hums, winking at me. I roll my eyes, finishing the article, saving it and sending it to the Principal. I close my laptop, shoving it into my bookbag.

"Never," I tease, pulling out our lunch. I hand him his dish, pulling my own out. He scrafs the food down, making all of us laugh at him. I slowly eat mine, content with staying quiet.

"How's your first day of an American High-School going?" Faith asks, looking at Jung-guk.

"Different," he hums, "a lot more-"

"Skin showing?" I help, the male nodding, dark eyes flickering to me, "yeah, it takes some getting use too,"

"Are you-" Drew starts laughing, cutting the male off.

"She's half and half. Half American, half Korean," Drew chuckles, "I never knew that for the longest time and i'm her best friend," I roll my eyes, putting my dishes back into my lunch bag, "she's amazing at Korean, taught me what I know," I hum, smiling proudly at the male.

"I did my ebst at least, he's still having trouble with pronouciations," I hum, "but baby steps," Jung-guk chuckles, nodding.

"I have trouble at times to," he chuckles, my giggle joining soon with a nod in agreement. The bell rings, cutting our conversation off. I toss my bag into my locker, heading to English with the two males. I plop down into my chair, Jung-guk behind me, Drew in front of me. The door bangs open loudly, causing all heads to snap in the direction. My breath catches in my throat, my body tensing with fear.

"Mr. Parker, do not make me send you to the principals your first day back," Miss. Grys snaps, glaring at the male. Drew leans towards me, Jung-guk doing so as well. I can hear Drew whispering, just not what he's saying. I then feel a gentle hand on my shoulder, my eyes flickering to Jung-guks. I relax, shooting him a thankful smile. I can feel others taking the spots around us, creating a protective bubble almost. The class starts, just us reading the whole time. Drew and I catch Jung-guk up, helping him understand the storyline and assignments. The bell soon rings, the boys elaving me to go to another class while I head to the room where the Newspaper is held in terms. I enter the room, plopping down into the chair, laptop out. I look through all the information I have scattered around me, most being activities coming up, others being board discussions, or some financial problems or other projects teachers are suggesting. I pick what I want for the next day's paper, it being an everyday thing, or as much of an everything day as I can make it. I bite on the end of the pen, scribbling down notes on papers, pushing others away, throwing others out. The bell rings, my body not moving. I send Mrs. Asher a message, letting her know where I am. I continue working on the paper, humming soflty as I do. The door opens, Jung-guk entering the room.

"Mrs. Asher sent me down," he chuckles, "saw some of the work I've done," he shrugs. I raise an eyebrow. He blushes lightly, handing me notebooks. I flip through it, humming in approval.

"This is really good," I hum, "any interest in joining the Newspaper," he nods his head, a sigh leaving my lips. I push my laptop towards him, his body dropping into antoehr chair. We converse for a little bit before we have to move onto our next class.