Anchor ♕ Scott McCall

First Day Jitters

First Day Jitters:
chapter one

I GROANED LOUDLY at the muffled yet loud music my brother was blasting from the bathroom just across the hall. Rolling over in my unfamiliar bed furiously, I took the old gray bed sheets into my fists and gripped them tight to suppress the growing ball of anger inside my chest.

It wasn't just the music that kept me up. My stomach was churning with nervousness for my first day at a new school, Beacon Hills High. My family and I used to live in Beacon Hills but, when I was eight my parents divorced and my mom moved to Edwards, California.

I groaned into my pillow before flipping back over on to my back.
"Baxter! Turn that crap off before I turn it off for you!" I shouted.

I waited impatiently for the song to cease, but as I deduced, it continued on.

I angrily threw my covers off my body, welcoming the cold air pumping through the air conditioning. I instantly felt vulnerable lying in my bed, uncovered and hardly clothed.
I huffed with frustration as I lifted my reluctant limbs up from the bed and dragged myself towards my lights. I flipped the switch and flinched, hiding from the blinding light behind closed eye lids. Eventually, after several agonizing moments I opened my eyes and continued getting ready.

As I finished putting on my typical outfit—a sweater, pair of ripped jeans, and my old worn out converse—the horribly modern music stopped and I heard my brother leave the bathroom.

"Thank you." I mouthed, slipping the pinkish sweater over my head. Before rushing out of my room and slipping into the bathroom I grabbed my shoes and put them on.

I was instantly overwhelmed by the steam that encompassed the bathroom, finding it hard to breath in the thick air. So I did what I needed to do—brush my hair, do my make up, etc.—and fled as soon as possible into the kitchen.

I found my backpack sitting on the kitchen counter with a little note stuck to the top.

Make some friends
Love, Mom

I laughed, sticking the note to the near by fridge and hoisting my bag onto my shoulders. 

"Come on!" I shouted towards the hall. Just as I did, Baxter came out of his room and trudged into the kitchen. His hair still wet, water dripped down the sides of his face making it look like he had just been on a run. He ran his hand through his damp hair and whipped his hand off on his jacket.

"I'm coming...God." He huffed, grabbing an apple from the kitchen counter and walking off. "You gonna eat something?" He asked, tacking a bite of the apple with a loud, cringy crunch.

"Not hungry." I said. "Let's go. Don't want to be late." I grabbed the car keys and followed behind him.

~   ~  ~

The school reeked of sweat and high expectations.

My heart beat pumped so hard in my chest I thought surely everyone around me could hear it. It didn't help that I was being hit with waves of nausea either.

The bell rang and my natural panic kicked in. I looked down at the schedule in my hands and frantically searched for my first class room. After five minutes of walking the halls looking like a complete spastic, I found my class and walked inside just as the bell rang.

I looked up from my schedule at the seats. Almost all of them were filler with students who began to flash me judgmental glares. The unwelcoming yet familiar feeling anxiety built up I my fluttering chest and I felt my face warm.

"Oh, You must be our new student." I turned my head towards the front of the room where a dark haired man wearing glasses stood. "I'm Mr. Harris." He said approaching me with a hand extended. I hesitantly accepted his brief handshake and quickly brought my hand to my side.

"Why do you..." he turned toward the class and searched for a seat."Sit next to Mr. McCall." He pointed to an empty seat in the back adjacent to a dark haired boy with olive skin and a warm smile.

I shyly made my way over to the empty desk next to him, plopping down in the seat and setting my bag down at my feet. I could feel everyone's eyes on me and it gave me a sick feeling in my stomach.

I glanced over at the boy with the olive skin, but swiftly looked away when I saw he was looking at me. I moved my hair so he couldn't see my redeeming face and tried to stay focused, but it was hard knowing all eyes were on me.

Four class periods passed and when I got to my fifth period I found myself sitting next to the same 'Mr. McCall' from my first class. I sat down reluctantly and he glanced up at me with his big brown eyes.

"Hey." I said with a nervous smile. He let out a small laugh through his nose.

"Long time no see." He joked. "Scott."

"I'm Amber." I smiled, nervously messing with the loose strand of string the end of my sweater sleeve.

"Well, Amber...welcome to Beacon Hills." Scott said, flashing me another warm smile.

"Thanks." I laughed. "You're actually the first person to welcome me."

Scott's warm smile left his face.

"I'm sorry, you should have had a better welcome." Scott said, his face like a sad puppy's. I just shook my low hanging head.

"It's okay, I don't expect much." I sighed. "I actually used to live here, but moved away for a while."

"Oh, well welcome back then." He said, putting his hand up on the table we shared, next to mine. I felt a warm tension grow, oddly paining my arm, so I moved my hand into my lap.

Class continued on after that, slowly and painfully. I had a hard time paying attention because of Scott. I kept looking over at him. His charming smile and friendly persona made me feel welcome in this inhospitable place.

~  ~  ~

I was walking out the front doors of the school when I felt a soft hand on my shoulder. I turned my head to the right to see that it was Scott, bright smile and all.

"Hey Amber." He said shakily, acting a bit nervous.

"Hey Scott." I smiled at him, trying ease his apparent nervousness.

"So...I was wondering if you wanted to maybe hang out tomorrow?" He said all at once, as if he was shoving the words out. 

I shuttered in shock. It must have been obvious because Scott looked away with a distressed smile.

"Sure, what time?" I asked. I hid my excitement with a casual grin that curled just ends on my lip slightly. Scott looked up and at me with surprise.

"Oh um...I could pick you up around 6:30?" He asked.

"Sure, that sounds great."

"Oh yeah!" He shouted suddenly, shoving his hand in his pocket. "I'll text you." he beamed, pulling out his phone. I returned the smile and added a nod. I took his phone and added my number, all the while my heart beat fast and a feeling filled my chest unlike any I'd felt before.