Hunt

Chapter 2: New Day, New Faces

The current of the highschool hallways always seem to get you to where you need to be, and without fail I arrive at math class with only a few bumps and bruises. Brushing myself off I make my way to the nearest empty seat in the back. It didn't seem that there were many people here yet, as most of the seats were empty. I guess everyone was wanting to put off morning math as long as they could.

"Mornin' Mrs. Henderson." I say kindly to my teacher with a smile.

She smiles back at me. "Good morning Kyle, did you have a good weekend?"

"Not the worst. I could use another day." I say with a laugh.

She nods and sighs, "Ain't that the truth..." our talk is interrupted as the rest of the class begins to filter into the room, ending our less formal conversation as she puts her teaching face on. The seats fill up quickly, filling from back to front. The lecture commences soon after, the class bell acting like the starting pistol in a race. But as Mrs. Henderson begins to write todays topic on the board the door clicks open.

"Excuse me? I'm looking for Mrs. Henderson's calculus class?" It was a girl I've never seen before. I could tell nobody else recognized her by the stares she was getting. Must be a new student. Weird since it was so late in the school year...

"Yes! You must be Reyna. You're in the right place." She turns to address the rest of us, "Class, this is Reyna Anderson. She just moved up here from California." A few of the students give halfhearted welcomes, some of the guys seemed to try a little too hard... I choose to remain silent, still writing down what was written on the whiteboard. Calculus was kicking my butt and I couldn't afford to fail this class. I couldn't be held back a year, I wouldn't be able to survive another year of high school.

"There's a seat in the back there." I hear as I catch Mrs. Henderson point my way out of the corner of my eye. Glancing quickly to my left I notice the empty desk. Odd... I could've sworn it was taken just a moment ago. Nonetheless the new girl, Reyna, quickly navigates to the back. I watch as she approaches, now beginning to notice how she looked. Chocolate brown hair pulled back into a messy bun, tanned skin with the physique of a surfer, and emerald eyes that seemed to shine under the industrial lights of the classroom. She held herself with a warm confidence. Her outfit as casual as her smile towards me as she sits down.

"Nice to meet you," She says in a whisper, as the lecture starts again. Extending a hand to shake mine.

I take it and return the smile, her grip was surprisingly strong. "You too, I'm Kyle." With casual introductions concluded we both quickly slide into note taking mode, but as the lecture drags on I begin to lose my focus, slipping back to familiar daydreams of being elsewhere. In a forest, by a lake, a mountain stream in the snow. Places I'd much rather be than stuck in this classroom. Just as I'm beginning to losing the fight with my heavy eyelids and drifting off to sleep the bell rings. The marking of the end of class as the jarring sound jolts me back awake.

Mrs. Henderson stops awkwardly halfway through one of the problems she was writing on the board. Looking from us to the school clock, to her watch and back to us again. "Huh, must've lost track of time. Well, have a great rest of your days and don't forget the homework!"

Everyone scrambles to get out and off to their next class, and as I'm standing up I feel Reyna tap my shoulder. "Hey. I hate to be a bother, but do you know where my chemistry class is?" She passes me her schedule.

"Oh no worries!" I reassure her as I take the paper, looking over the list of classes. "Chemistry will be down this hall. Take the first left and follow it down to the end. It should be a door on the right."

She laughs, filling me with a warm and foreign feeling. "Awesome! Thanks a lot." She stands and shoulders her pack, "I'll see you around Kyle." She leaves at the same rushed pace that everyone else is moving at. Nobody living in the moment, just not wanting to be late. My next class was shop, and while the bell does tell us when class starts we usually had a looser concept of starting on time. So I wasn't in that much of a rush.

Working against the tide of students, I push my way back out towards the cafeteria. The shop room was on the complete other side of the school. Not many classes are held over here, so it's often a lot quieter. Today is like all the others. Nobody in the cafeteria except for a couple students moving towards the same place I was going. I finally felt like I could breathe. No longer packed into the halls like a sardine.

Lunch time rolls around quickly and I'm starving. Luckily I packed...nothing? Damnit... sitting on the steps leading from the school entrance to the cafeteria I pull a water bottle from my pack. It'll have to do. This isn't the first time Ive forgotten my lunch. I know exactly where I left it too, but I try not to beat myself up too much about it.

"Oh! Hey Kyle!" A familiar voice calls my name from a ways out. Looking up I can see Reyna pushing her way over, struggling against the tide. "Glad I caught you. There aren't many places to sit in here."

"Haha, yeah it's always a bit crowded in here. You gotta claim some territory pretty quick," I reply with a chuckle. "You're welcome to join me if you'd like."

"Thanks," She slumps back onto the steps next to me. Breathing in deeply through her nose she holds it for a moment before slowly releasing it through her mouth. "This school's such a maze..."

"Yeah?" I say glancing over, "I hope you aren't getting too lost on your first day."

"Oh no! Everyone's been very helpful, it's just gonna take some time to learn it all." She pulls a sack lunch from her pack. The traditional paper bag.

I take a sip from my water and look back out over the crowd of students. Laughing, joking, cursing, living. A small smile creeping onto my face, "You'll get used to it pretty quickly. Just got to go with the flow, literally. It usually takes you where you're looking to go.

"No kidding... Hey where's your lunch?" She asks, motioning to my lack of food.

"Oh. Well, I kinda forgot it on the counter at home. I'm not much of a morning person." I reply sheepishly, shrugging it off like it wasn't that big of a deal.

Before I can begin to protest, half of a sandwich is placed into my hand. Peanut butter and jelly, the classic. "Well we can't have you starve. Here! Have some of mine."

"Oh! That's really kind, but won't you be hungry?" I ask, taken aback by her sudden kindness.

"Well you'll starve without anything," she says with a stubborn smile that I recognize Julie often makes when she doubles down on something. No amount of protest would sway her. She's won this time. Taking a small bite from the sandwich I return my gaze to everyone in the cafeteria. It wasn't the whole student body, but even so the room was packed. "So what brings you and your family up to the Pacific Northwest? Can't be the weather." I ask Reyna.

"My dad got a new job up here. It drug us up with him. I think I'll like it up here though. I was getting tired of the Cali life." She says lightheartedly, "I enjoy seeing all the green. It's a lot better than all the smog."

Nodding I can feel the smile creeping back onto my face, Reyna's energy felt so pure, so free spirited. "Well if you like getting out into nature I can show you some good trails sometime. Some of the views are to die for."

I didn't need to look at her to see her attempt to hide a smile, "Yeah, I think I'd like that."