Emma Watson North

Chapter 1

I stared up at the huge doors of my new school.

It was light brown in colour, with the words "Evergreen Lake School" in gold at the top. The entrance somehow seemed very welcoming to me. This was different with some of my old schools- their entrances made me nervous at first sight.

"It's magnificent, isn't it?" A girl with caramel hair and matching eyes approached me. "Are you new?" 

"Yes. Nice to meet you!" I smiled, warmed to find a friendly face in the midst of unfamiliar ones. "I'm Emma."

"Welcome to Evergreen Lake! I'm Liliana, but just call me Lily. With one "l", kinda like Lily in Harry Potter," she introduced herself shyly. "Anyway, let me show you around before class starts.

Lily showed me around the campus, and we chatted as we walked. I told her that I was a huge Harry Potter fan as well. We talked excitedly about our hobbies and I noticed we had quite a lot in common. I immediately felt very comfortable with Lily.

The campus was not the largest I've been to, but it felt very big to me- open and cosy. It was very interesting exploring the school grounds as there were lots of different rooms with their purposes and activities.

"I'm starting eighth grade," Lily said, "I suppose you are as well?" I nodded. "Well, the classrooms are on the third floor," she informed. We then decided to head to our lockers to store our books that weren't needed yet.

"How's it like being in an all-girls school?" I asked.

"It's awesome. You don't have to worry about guys, and you can talk about girl stuff..." she explained. Then she stopped. "By the way," she turned to me, "where did you come from? I'm just curious."

"My mum and I recently moved here to California from the UK," I answered, "because of my mum's job." I was just considering on how to change the topic when the bell rang. Saved by the bell.

Lily shut her locker. "We better head to class."

The classroom was fairly large. The colour tone was soothing, the desks and chairs were of a variety of pastel colours and the walls were light brown. A huge whiteboard was fastened on the wall at the front of the room. Nevertheless, what really caught my eye was the back corner. It was an area covered with a large mattress. The area was big enough for at least 5 girls, and it was filled with several beanbags. On the walls were shelves with loads of books- this was a book corner! 

I was still processing this new environment, so focused that I didn't realize when someone tapped me on the shoulder.

"Hey there!"

I turned around. There was a girl standing there smiling at me. She had a white T-shirt on, with a black skirt. Her wavy golden blonde hair and clear blue eyes made me suspect she'd be like a typical "queen bee", like those "famous girls at school" who everyone wants to be friends with.

I was immensely surprised when she talked in a very affectionate, warm tone. 

Don't judge a book by its cover.

"Hi, I've heard you're new. I'm new as well. Do you want to sit here?" She motioned to the seat next to her. 

I hesitated. I had originally planned to sit with Lily but somehow the other new girl seemed so eager and kind and her gorgeous eyes were so gentle, I suddenly was dying to be her friend. Without noticing, I found myself sitting on the seat next to her.

I looked towards Lily. She gave me a little smile and headed to the other side of the room. I felt a little bad but assured myself she'd be fine, as she'd probably had friends of her own in the past years she had spent in this school.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Savannah. Want to be friends?" 

"Sure! I'm... Emma."

I found myself being amazed by the fact that she offered to be my friend, however it didn't seem the same as Lily. Savannah seemed... superior? Nah, I convinced myself, brushing it off, we're just awkward as new friends.

A small part of me was wondering: was she actually eager to be my friend, or was it because she knew...

"Good morning class!" A woman came into the room.

She looked young- she had an average size, green eyes and light brown hair made neatly into a ponytail.

I would've thought she was a new teacher but Savannah whispered in my ear, "I've heard she had been teaching here for eight years. She's really experienced at teaching eighth grade."

"I'm your teacher for eighth grade. Now, first, why don't we all introduce ourselves? I'll start. My name is Julia Elle Cahill, you can call me Miss Cahill."

She did a brief introduction of herself, then called on all of us individually to stand up and introduce ourselves.

"Thank you, Evelyn. Now next let's have Liliana Rose McJohn!" Miss Cahill said.

"Hi everyone! I'm Liliana but just call me Lily. I love reading, and some other things. My favourite books are the Harry Potter series..."

The outgoing, forthright but casual manner she introduced herself with made me smile. 

Savannah, on the other hand, seemed to have an opposite opinion. She didn't seem interested at all, examining her fingers. She even whispered to me, "She keeps babbling about books, like, nobody really asked."

I reluctantly smiled. I was astonished by my behaviour. I usually stood for my own opinion, didn't I, especially when someone gives spiteful remarks. At the moment though, something just pushed me to believe that she was right. Agreeing with her felt better, it gave a sense of pleasure.

"Savannah Lou Rayne!"

She stood up. "Hi everyone! I'm Savannah. I'm new here and I'm very excited to be friends with you all. Ice-skating is my favourite hobby ever, and I like science too, its cool. Anyhow, nice to meet you guys and I look forward to knowing all of you." 

I admired her for her dazzling confidence and calmness- I wouldn't ever believe that she was a new student here if she hadn't said it herself. 

I patted her arm encouragingly, grinning, "You did great!"

She returned the grin. 

Miss Cahill continued on a few more names. Then, a girl caught my eye.

It wasn't like she had a disco-ball shimmery outfit, nor did she wear a bright neon shirt. She wore a pale blue T-shirt and leggings, but the way she matched them, the simplicity of it made her eye-catching. She had golden-brown hair, blue eyes and autumn-toned skin.

"Amber Christine Smith!"

However, when Amber stood up, she introduced herself in a quiet voice. It was obvious that she didn't really like talking in front of the whole class. She seemed a little shy, and I made a mental note to approach her later and get to know her better.

As more girls stood up and did their introduction, I was very compelled because the girls all seemed to have such diverse personalities. 

Everything's going quite well, I thought.

I was just thinking about the girl who just introduced herself, Daphne Elizabeth Johnson. She had silky black hair and green eyes, and was also quite fashionable. She seemed to be outgoing, fun and eager to make friends, I noted.

In the midst of my thoughts, I was startled when just then, Miss Cahill called my name.

"Emma Watson North!"

There were gasps and murmurs at this.

Hi! This is the first chapter. What did you think? All the chapters are around this length (it gets a bit longer though, and more intense haha). I'll be updating soon again.

Omg my writing style's changed so much my vocabulary was- I had to edit some of the sentences and phrases, but most of it's unchanged from more than a year ago. Wow.