Triumphant

in which trouble walks in

chapter 1: in which trouble walks in

~

Upon entering what would soon be considered my 'second home' by many, I did not expect much of the dreary old building. However, very shortly, it would become just that. A second home.

    A 14-year-old in all black, looking a little bit like an angry bunny, only one word was- could- be used to describe me: emo. Nonetheless, I hoped to accomplish much in that building. The building was the home of the bees. The Baccalaureate School for Global Education welcomed me with open arms, for the most part anyway.

    My first day of high school may only be labeled as unfair. No one paid attention to me before during and after homeroom, it certainly was not by accident or because of first-day nerves. The school was a 7-12, so half of the freshman class knew each other. There was no room for the new girl and everyone relayed that message crystal clear. Maybe it was the dark eyeshadow and clothes. Maybe it was my resting bitch face, or as my dear friends sometimes called it, my STF, stuck bitch face. I then shook the thought away. It couldn't be my face or clothing, but it definitely had to do with my appearance. I was 5'5, which was taller than most of the girls, but in the halls, I was concealed by the towers of teenage boys walking around me. That had to be it! I would be noticed and spoken to in my classes which would lead to certain friendships!

I had chemistry for the first period, which was alright for the most part, until my teacher called my name out and blurted out "Jane like the virgin?!" This, of course, earned snickers and howls of laughter from my peers- who might I add were each at least a grade ahead of me. On the bright side, that was the end of any interactions anyone attempted to make with me.

The second period brought the dreaded art class every freshman has to take, and of course, I chose visual over the extensive offers of the performing arts programs. To be completely fair, this period brought nothing but joy, the teacher was lovely and treated us like her peers instead of her assignments. Still, the closest anyone got to speaking to me was a boy asking if anyone was using the chair next to me and whether he may take it elsewhere.

The third period was a free period- breakfast. This was when students indulged in the delicacies presented to them by the New York City Department of Education. Or, if they should feel the urge to, they would spend this period pestering their favourite teachers, in the library, or off-campus somewhere.

I, being the fresh meat, did not have a favourite teacher, friends to spend time with, and so I opted to sit in a far corner of the cafeteria while rapidly texting my closest friend from middle school on my out of date iPhone 7. That close friend just happened to be my US History teacher from 7th and 9th grade. Mr. Norman was sweet and kept his texts short- he was teaching after all! He wished me luck, he even sent me a video of his large hands knocking on his wooden desk but was quick to tell me I wouldn't need it. Not as long as I kept my head up and held onto the slight hope I had of making this year a decent school year.

The fourth period dragged on along with the voice of my global history teacher, but then came the fifth period.

Geometry. I normally despise math, so my bias towards this particular class was thicker than the tension between my dysfunctional family.

 I sat down in the back row, crossing my legs to make sure my short skirt does not show off too much of the fishnets I was sporting. The teacher went on and on, but she was interrupted by the door. As it flew open, a tall boy stepped through. The first thought that popped into my head was that he looked like he belonged in a cigarette commercial. His jet black hair was combed back, with a few strands sticking out at the sides. He grinned a million-dollar smile, which made his soft hazel eyes sparkle. He wore a leather jacket, although it was the beginning of September, the humidity in the air was unbearable. His black jeans and white shirt contrasted beautifully against his tanned complexion that I desperately wanted. There was no doubt about it- he was handsome, beyond gorgeous and bad news, along with 75% of my class.

"Sorry Mrs. McGibney, I was with guidance- Mr. Reed- he was helping me get my schedule in order. After the COVID-19 pandemic last year, some of my middle school credits did not transfer and I was put in Algebra I again."

"Ah yes of course... Students I do not normally excuse lateness without a pass unless you were with the administration. What is your name young man?" McG asked.

He grinned, "Brendan ma'am. Brendan Watson."

"Wonderful. Please take a seat."

Then, he walked his fine self to the column next to mine and plopped down in the vacant seat two rows behind me. Once he was situated, McG resumed her lecture on classroom procedures. Having Asian parents, I didn't need a lecture on how to behave, I knew the basics of a classroom too- all teachers have the same set of rules from grade k-12, just paraphrased. So, I started to zone out and stop listening to McG. As I unconsciously trailed my eyes around the room, I met was briefly met with the searing gaze of Brendan Watson. Turns out he had no interest in McG's lecture either. We both turned away as quickly as possible though, startled and blushing.

Considering his abrupt and very dramatic entrance into my life, I imagined he would, just like most mainstream books and movies, have a very important role to play. Perhaps he would be magically sat next to me, from where he would stare at me through class, perhaps one day he would talk to me and I would find a friend. However, none of that happened. In fact, Brendan and I completely avoided each other for another two weeks. We only shared the same breakfast, geometry, lunch, and P.E. periods, so it was not too hard. Two weeks of no shared glances, no bumping into each other, and no words spoken. To be completely honest, I had forgotten he even existed.

I was too preoccupied with other things to notice Brendan. Too far gone with my own problems to realize that my expectations of Brendan and I's nonexistent relationship were right in the ballpark of reality. 

~

hello to the 4 people reading this! this is my first story here and i'm really excited because i can finally tell these stories that have been eating me alive. hope you enjoy!

xx aj/cia