WAFFLE-O

Chapter One

My alarm pulled me from sleep. I rubbed my eyes to wake myself up and pressed the button on my Tardis alarm clock to turn it off. ‘First day of school, Hall. Get yourself together.’ I thought. I grabbed a t-shirt and some jeans and went into the bathroom to have a shower. After I was dressed I put my contact lenses.  I then got breakfast. We had moved to America in the summer and today was the first day of school. England had been damp and miserable, but it was home. It was where I had grown up, where I had made friends and where I had discovered My Chemical Romance. I loved MCR more than anything. When I had finished breakfast I grabbed some bracelets and my school bag, said bye to my little brother, Max, and left the house. As I was walking down the road, I double checked what school I needed to go to. Austin School for Gifted Youngsters. When I reached the bus stop, I sat down on the bench. I glanced at the people around me. One boy was wearing a t-shirt with the Triforce from the Legend of Zelda. I smiled. I loved playing video games, and Zelda was my favourite series. I would have spoken to the boy, but I was terrified of crowds and socialising. I usually made a fool of myself around other people. The bus arrived, and one dull bus ride later and we were at school.

When I got off the bus, I saw the boy with the Triforce t-shirt again. He was standing next to another boy who was wearing a green scarf with a creeper face on it. I smiled again. Minecraft was cool. The bell rang and I went to the reception to get my timetable. I told the smiling lady at the desk my name and she handed me a piece of paper with lessons and times on it and a map of the school. I thanked her and went to my homeroom. Another new thing. In England they were called ‘form rooms’. As I got to the classroom, I heard a teacher shouting. Taking a deep breath, I knock on the door and went in. I looked around the classroom and saw the boy with the Zelda t-shirt and the boy with the creeper scarf.

“What do you need?” The teacher looked strict. I resisted the urge to say ‘Reporting for duty’ and answered.

“I’m Nerys-Arwen. I was told to come here.”

“Ah yes. You are sitting there by Michael.“ She pointed to the boy with the Zelda t-shirt. “My name is Mrs Whitehill. Now, first things first.” Me and Michael chatted for a bit until the bell rang. He seemed kind of cool.  

The day went quickly. I had art, music and geography in the morning. At lunch, I got my food went to sit on an empty table. But before I got there I heard someone call my name. I turned around and saw Michael sitting at a table with a group of boys. He gestured for me to come over. When I reached the table the boy with the creeper scarf grabbed the chair behind him and put it next to the table for me. “Hey Michael.”

“Hey Nerys. I just thought you could come eat with us, instead of on your own.”

“Thanks.” I looked at the boys around the table. Suddenly recognised the boy with the creeper scarf.

“Gavin? Oh my god, I didn’t know you came here!”

“Hey Nerys! How’s Jake?” Jake was my mum’s boyfriend and Gavin’s uncle.

“He’s great. He just moved in with us.”

“And then you moved here.”

“Yeah.”  I sat down next to him, opposite Michael.

“Guys, this is Nerys-Arwen. Nerys, Geoff, Ryan, Jack and Ray.” They smiled at me and then went back to their lunch. Me, Michael and Gavin chatted for a bit longer. The bell rang again and we went to lessons.

I had English straight after lunch. Walking to the classroom, I realised Ray was just behind me.

“Hey. Nerys wasn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

“What is your full name?”

“That’s a creepy question. Why?”

“Just curious.”

“Nerys-Arwen Autumn Rose Hall. What about you?”

“Ray Narvaez Jr. No middle names. “

“Lucky you. I have plenty to share.”

“Couldn’t your parents decide what to call you?”

“Not really. Double barrel names are bad enough, but a double barrel name and two middle names? Insane.” We reached the classroom. The teacher seated us, and read out the register. I was behind Ray. He turned around and grinned at me.

When we left school, Gavin, Ryan, and Jack had to go one way, Geoff a different way and me, Michael and Ray another way. We walked to the bus stop and joked around a bit. Michael and Ray had loads of in-jokes and I just couldn’t keep up. Michael’s dad’s car pulled up and he went over to it. He came back and told us that his mom had to stay late at work and his dad was giving him a lift. We nodded and he got in the car and drove away. Ray’s phone rang and he answered it. When he came off he told me that his mum was going away and he was home alone for the weekend.

I felt like I needed to start a conversation. “You like Sailor Moon?” His ringtone had been the theme from the anime.

“Yeah. You too?”

“Absolutely. That and Doctor Who.”

“Can’t say I’ve ever seen it. “

“It’s really cool. Time travel, aliens with two hearts, fezzes. What’s not to love?”

“You doing anything this weekend?”

“Nothing planned. Why?”

“We are going to see a movie on Saturday, I was wondering if you wanted to come.”

 “That’s cool with me. We are going to meet at Gavins."

“Okay.” The bus arrived and we got on it. I sat next to Ray at the back. Just before we got to my stop, he asked for my phone number. I gave it to him and got off the bus. I checked my phone. He had texted me already. ‘Hey Nerys. Do I have the right number?’

Grinning, I answered. ‘Yes you do. Already texting are we?’

‘I just wanted to check I had the right number.’

‘Of course.’I saved his number in my phone, unlocked my door and shouted hi to Jake. I then went upstairs and turned on my Xbox. I chose Team Fortress 2 from the shelf and put the disk in. As the game was loading I sat down on my bed and checked my phone. Ray hadn’t replied.

After a few hours of playing, my mum came home form work. She came in to my room and sat down next to me on my bed.

“How was school? Made any new friends?”

“A few, yeah. Gavin goes to the same school.”

“I know. I ran into his mum at the shopping centre.”

“Hey, can I go see a movie on Saturday?”

“Who with?”

“With the guys.”

“Ooh, boys.”

“Shut up.” I grinned

“Are they nice?”

“Yeah.  Its Gavin and his friends..”

“Fine. Just don’t be home to late.”

“I won’t.”

“Good. Now go do your homework.”