The Collection

New kid

"Hey." I jump and whip around and see a black haired boy behind me. He couldn't be older than me. He's only a little taller than me and has round glasses.

I was just looking for an empty table to eat. I don't really have friends yet, so eating with other people has been a big 'no' so far.

"Hi?" I reply. I haven't spoken anyone since I moved across the country and this kid is the first person to speak to me other than my family since about a month ago. Even to my family I didn't talk much. I would just play music in my room and sing along. It's fun, but when you have the same songs on repeat for about a month, it gets a bit boring.

"Umm, I'm James," the boy says. He's fidgeting with his shirt sleeve. Is he... nervous? One of the most popular kids at my school is nervous talking to me? Why?

I push the thought away. "I'm Louise," I say. I realize I'm fidgeting with my bag strings and immediately drop my hands to my sides. 'Not cool Louise,' I think to myself. 'Not cool.'

"My, uh, friends saw you walk in here alone the last few days and wondered if you wanted to, maybe, um, eat with us?" He says as he gestures to a table a few feet away. At the table is a red-head, a short blonde boy, a tall kid with honey brown hair, and a boy with long dark hair sitting next to him. They're all laughing and the long haired boy has a red flush on his cheeks like he's embarrassed. I'm not going to lie, they look intimidating.

But hey, I can't be without friends forever. So I suck in a breath through my teeth, look at James, and reply as evenly as I can: "Thanks, I'd love to." He smiles. Maybe this won't be so bad. I hope.