Phoenix Drop High School

Chapter 1: First Day of School!

The sun was shining brightly on a Wednesday morning. A woman, in her early thirties, climbed up the stairs of her suburban home. She began to call out her daughter's name.

"Aphmau? Aphmau!" The woman walked into the room, yelling her daughter's name once more. "Aphmau, get up! Come on!"

Her daughter groggily opened her eyes and replied. "Mom," she whined. "Just, like, five more minutes and I promise I'll get up." The girl turned over and pulled the blankets over her head.

"You always say that!" Her mother ripped the blankets off of her child, who groaned at the sudden exposure to light. "It turns into twenty minutes, if not the whole day. Now get your butt out of bed!"

"Ugh, okay, okay!" Aphmau grumbled. "I'm awake. I just need like five more minutes to rest my eyes." The woman could tell her child had already fallen half-asleep.

"Fine," she sighed. "Sleep in. Such a shame. You're going to be late for your first day at high school. Yesterday you were so excited, too. Tsk, oh well." The woman left the room, promptly shutting the door behind her. She expected Aphmau to jump out of bed at any given second.

Aphmau just laughed to herself a little. "Mom, today isn't even--" She stopped, gasping largely. "It's the first day of school!" she said to herself, leaping out of bed. She ran to her closet and got dressed in her school uniform. Afterward, she did a checklist of the things she needed. She had her backpack, pencils, college-ruled paper, and stuffed animal. Pfft, no. I'm a high school freshman now, I need to be cool, she thought. "Sorry, Neko-Neko." She frowned at her favorite stuffed toy that she couldn't bring on her first day.

Aphmau couldn't wait to go to her classes and make a first impression. She had been preparing all summer for that moment. Aphmau thought nothing could stand in her way. She laughed hard before it turned into a sob. She sat in her closet and continued her sorrow. Her mother grew concerned that she wasn't coming down for breakfast, her favorite meal of the day.

"Aphmau? Aphmau?" she called, searching her daughter's bedroom. She looked at the purple comforter on the bed, which was perfectly made. She smiled at her child's organization. The rest of the room was a mess, but her bed hadn't a single wrinkle on the surface.

She heard distant sobs and walked closer to the closet, listening harder. "Are you crying in the closet again?" Having a timid daughter like she did was rough sometimes.

"N-No," she stuttered between sobs from inside.

Her mother sighed and opened the door. "Sometimes I wish you had claustrophobia because of these little hiding spots you have. Tell Mama what's wrong."

Aphmau looked up, her eyes red and puffy. "Mom, I'm scared. I don't wanna go to high school anymore."

"What? But, sweetheart, you've been so excited about this since we moved back here." She sat on the floor next to her daughter, petting the back of her head. "Calm down, sweetie. It was just a year."

"Still. Even before then. My old middle school... I didn't really talk to anyone. I haven't seen another kid my age in person in a year."

Aphmau's mother couldn't stand to see her so upset. "Well, I tried to get you to go out, but you wanted to stay inside and play your internet games." Aphmau sniffled, but no other sound came from her. "Mija, look. You're going to be fine. Sure, it's going to be hard because you're really annoying sometimes."

"Mom," Aphmau growled. Her mother laughed, glad she finally got something out of her.

"But, really, in all honesty, if they find you annoying then you don't need to be their friend in the first place. Just have fun and be you. You'll find people who love you for the beautiful person I know you are. Just keep that smile on."