not a phase // l.h. au

two ♛

at lunch, i quickly put my bag down the table that my friends and i had sat at since the very first day of freshman year. back then, we were basically just lost, terrified ducks looking for somewhere to call home. we all ended up together that day, and we have never been seen sitting apart since.

first, there's kiara of course. she and i could never be separated. on that first day of school three years ago, we didn't leave eachother's sight whenever possible. she's kind of the only reason i ever made any other friends. she is so confident and always puts herself out there to meet new people. i'm pretty much the opposite. i remember the first day of high school like it was yesterday. i was virtually silent the entire day except for when i was talking to kiara or responding to a teacher. however, kiara had insisted that we didn't sit alone at lunch that day, and that's how we met our three other best friends. sure, i didn't say a word to them on that first day when we sat together, but kiara sure did. and eventually, i became as comfortable around them as i was around her.

then there's will. he has dark hair that he always keeps neat as if every individual hair had a specific place. he used to be pretty shy, but he really came out of his shell once he was elected class president. everyone likes will, and will likes everyone else. he is genuinely the nicest and most caring person i have ever known, and i'm lucky to have him as one of my closest friends. at this point, he could probably hang out with anyone he wanted. he is pretty popular around the school and he doesn't look half bad either. but, he chooses to stay friends with us which i am so so grateful for. i don't know what i would do without him to be honest.

next is matt. he is will's best friend. their families are really close, so they have basically been best friends since birth. matt is pretty much the opposite of will. not many people like him, and he doesn't like very many people either. he wears different clothes than the majority of west point and has different interests, so it's hard for him to fit in sometimes. he's not into the "preppy" style or anything like that. he's more into being a biker guy or whatever it's called. he wears leather and has a really nice motorcycle and has his ears pierced. a lot of people judge him because of that, but being one of the lucky people to become close to him, i know that he is also very intelligent and can be a real sweetheart - when he's not angry or irritable of course.

finally, alicia. she's the artistic one in our group of friends. she's extremely good at drawing and painting, and she also sings in the school chorus and plays three instruments. she says she wants to be an art or music teacher when she's older, which would be a perfect career for her in my opinion. not only does she have the skill to do it, but she is so patient and very good with young children. she's a great friend, too. she's the one i can always count on to answer my phone calls at three in the morning when i'm stressing out or to drive me somewhere on short notice when my mom takes my car.

now, at the very first lunch of senior year, it feels like just yesterday the five of us were awkwardly munching our food together on that first day and listening to kiara go on and on about her annoying teachers and horrible soccer team. i miss those simpler times.

"holy shit these east point kids are crazy!" kiara says as she sits down, her eyes wide.

"for once, someone's crazier than you," matt mumbles with a smirk, and kiara punches him playfully.

"shut up matt. i bet you like all of these badass dudes around anyway. wouldn't be surprised if you ended up ditching us to go smoke with them outside." sure enough, a group of probably 20 east point transfers are huddled outside of the open cafeteria doors smoking cigarettes. at least i'm hoping they're cigarettes. it makes me sick. i have never smoked or drank or anything like that. sure, i've tried some of my parents' wine before but that doesn't count. i don't usually judge people who do drink or smoke, i just didn't see the point in doing it myself.