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Cheers to the Teenage Years

Chapter Two

I spent the rest of the weekend unpacking and setting my room up the way that I wanted. I felt much better after everything was correctly organized. It was Sunday evening and my first day of school was the next day, I could feel my stomach churning with fear. I was dreading the thought of arriving in school on a rowdy bus. I shook the thought from my head and went to my closet to pick out a perfect outfit for tomorrow.
———

After pulling everything out of my closet and still coming up with nothing I gave up and returned to my window seat. In the driveway I could see a black Mini CooperS convertible pull up, honking. With a grin on my face I pushed the window open and shouted to my father who was behind the wheel. “Is it mine?!”

“It’s for you being such a good sport about moving.” He replied and jingled the keys. “Come try it out!” I squealed and pulled on some shoes and a cardigan over my lounge clothes (http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=125524895). I rushed outside to see my brand new car. I honestly couldn’t believe that they had bought me one. I happily took the keys from my father and hugged him tightly.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!!” I cried and jumped into the drivers seat. Finn hoped in after me and started fiddling with the technology.

“Dude, theres an iPod dock and you can connect to the internet. My car can’t do this, hey what does this do?” He reached for one of the buttons but I slapped his hand out of the way.

“Get out of my car, loser. You stink…” I said while shoving him, he was all sweaty and gross, plus I didn’t want his cooties in my clean car.

“I’m good sissy.” He smirked and put his feet on my dashboard to get comfortable. I rolled my eyes but put my key in the ignition and started down the road while waving to my parents. We passed Harry’s house, he was in his driveway with a couple of guys. They were all laughing but they stopped when I passed by. I knew that they were staring but I didn’t care, the one guy looked like trouble with a capitol T.

———

After my drive around the neighborhood, Finn and I came back home for dinner. Harry and his friends had left the driveway. After eating and talking to my family I retreated to my room to finish getting ready for school in the morning. I finally decided on an outfit and after making sure that I had all of my school supplies tucked neatly into my canvas backpack, I padded into the bathroom to take a steamy hot shower.

That night I was in my bed overthinking every little thing that could go wrong tomorrow. No matter how many times that I tossed and turned while trying to get comfortable in my soft sheets, I couldn’t sleep. Eventually I gave up, using my iPhone as a flashlight I tiptoed to the window. I knew it was probably freezing outside so I grabbed a soft cardigan and threw it over my plain, black tank top. I opened the window and climbed to the little balcony, I settled against the wall of my house and stared up at the sky. It was quite pretty tonight, the stars were vivid against the dark of the night. The moon cast an eerie glow on the earth below it, illuminating the rows of houses beneath it. It was very early, about two am and I didn’t expect anyone else to be awake. I gazed at my surroundings, Harry’s house was very close to mine. If I wanted to I could almost jump to his roof. When I was looking at his house I saw something move, I assumed it was a cat or something but when it moved again I noticed that it was much larger than a cat.

In the dim moonlight I could just make out Harry’s features squatting on his own roof. ‘What was he doing on the roof?’ I wondered to myself but I then realized that I too was on the roof. We were both dumb. I didn’t want him to see me so I lowered myself onto my stomach in the process I dropped my phone off of the side of my house. I gave myself a heart attack when I watched it plummet to the ground. CLUNK! It thudded onto the freshly cut lawn notifying Harry of my presence. He jerked his head up and our eyes met, he shot me a confused look but stood up and walked to the edge of his own roof and looked down. My phone sat on the ground with its screen light up casting shadows on the blades of grass.

Harry noticed my predicament and quietly laughed, he walked down to a lower part of his roof and jumped to the ground gracefully. He picked up my phone and turned it over a few times to check if it had cracked. He began to look for a way to get onto my roof, his eye focused on the large, wooden trellis that stood from the ground to the top of the walls of my house. He ran over and began to climb while trying not to kill any of the vines growing up the structure. He got to the top and handed me my phone.

“Mind if I stay?” he asked while sitting next to me without waiting for an answer. “There aren’t any cracks, I already checked.” He continued while extending his legs, he didn’t have any shoes on and his feet were a few shades white than the rest of his body due to them not being exposed to the sun.

“Why were you on the roof?” I asked him, hoping to bring up a conversation. He probably had some cool reason for being on a roof.

“A friend dropped me off, I was sneaking back into my room.” He grinned, I was right, he did have a cool reason unlike me. He returned the question and I just laughed.

“I needed to think and clear my mind.” I looked down at my lap and then I realized how I wasn’t wearing that much clothing. I had a pair of tight, grey spandex on as well as a thin top. I self consciously pulled my cardigan tighter around my body. I hoped that he wasn’t staring, when I looked over, he was.

“I bet you’re nervous for tomorrow, huh?” He asked sensing my nerves.

“Yeah, just a little,” I laughed and picked at my hair.

“Nah, don’t be nervous. All of the boys are going to love you.” He reassured me, or at least tried to. I just rolled my eyes and shook my head.

“Haha, you’re funny.” I had never been considered hot in America and I was fine with that. I was okay without boys distracting me from my studies. Harry stared at me with his eyebrows arched.

“We will see then, I’ll introduce you to my friends. I’m sure they’ll love you.” I smiled at his friendly offer but I felt uneasy. I had seen a couple of his friends earlier and they seemed, rough.

———

I stood in front of mirror the next morning staring at myself. I hoped that I looked okay and not like I was trying too hard. (http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=125530449) Before i stressed myself out even more grabbed my backpack, wallet and keychain before heading downstairs to the kitchen. I was going to pour myself some coffee but then I remembered this cute little café that I had seen when arriving in London. I kissed my parents goodbye and totally ignored my brother who was rummaging around in the fridge.

As soon as I opened the front door I noticed that the air was significantly warmer, it was the second week of April so i assumed that Spring had indeed sprung. Although the air was warm it was not warm enough to leave the top down on my Mini Cooper. I saw Harry in his front yard waiting for his friends to pick him up I assume. He noticed me standing outside and jerked his chin out as a way of saying hello. I waved and sat on the dark leather seats, I thought about asking Harry if he needed a ride. After a minute I decided against it and put my car in reverse.

After almost getting lost a couple of times I finally found my destination, FreeState Coffee. I opened the door and the little bell above it jingled. An aroma of fresh coffee wafted into my nose, I was in heaven. The whole café was very tranquil probably because it wasn’t even seven in the morning but I could tell that it was peaceful even later in the day. The walls were painted a neutral white shade and the floors were made with a dark multicolored wood. To the side of the room was the counter where the customers could order, there was also a few barstools. Above the counter there were two large chalkboards with the coffees handwritten on them. The rest of the room was just a couple of tables and booths. I immediately fell in love with it.

“I’ll have a Vanilla Latte and a croissant to go, please.” I told the girl working behind the counter. She nodded and began to brew my drink. After she gave me my steaming drink in a paper coffee cup with the company’s logo on it and a brown paper bag with my croissant. I thanked her and walked to my car that was parked outside. I took a sip of my coffee, it was delicious. I was honestly surprised. I decided to save my croissant for lunch so I stuck it in my backpack being careful not to crush it. I only had twenty minutes to get to school but luckily it was nearby. I revved the engine and kept an eye out for the school building.

Welcome to Wren Academy a sign read in front of the building. I sighed and found a place to park among the hundreds of high school students hanging out in front of the building. I had ten minutes before classes start and I had a few things to do. I needed to get my parking pass, my schedule, and my locker. Knowing that as soon as I stepped out of my car that I would be judged. Heck, I was being judged right now. Nonetheless I checked my complexion in the mirror before stepping onto the cement. I slung my backpack over my shoulder and slipped my circular sunglasses over my eyes. I locked my car with a beep and started to walk to the main doors.

I could feel various pairs of eyes stare at me as I passed, not surprising. I noticed that I dressed way different than the other girls. They all dressed pretty normal in jeans and cute tops with matching shoes. Sometimes I wished that I could just be normal but that’s boring. I shook the thought from my head and focused on finding the main office. When I entered the school I gaped at the sheer size of it. It had to be at least ten times bigger than my old one. Luckily the office was right in the front of the building so it was easy to locate. I took off my sunglasses and pushed through the glass doors to go inside.

“Here’s your schedule and your locker number and combination is on the bottom.” The lady behind the desk handed me a yellow sheet of paper with my classes printed on it.

“Also, this is your parking pass, just hang it somewhere noticeable inside of your car.” I took it, it was just a simple cardboard slab with a chain attached at the top. It had my name and a random number scrawled on it. I took the pass and smiled at the kind lady.

“So, you moved from across the water. That must be rough?” She asked while writing another pass for me. I nodded while putting the parking slip in a safe place within my backpack.

“Yes, it’s strange hearing words that aren’t used in America.” I replied, diverting my attention back to her. She chuckled.

“I bet honey, now make sure to get your teachers to sign this and bring it back at the end of the day.” she handed me a small, rectangular sheet of paper with a note scrawled onto it. I thanked her and left the office with five minutes to spare before the bell rang. Having no clue what to do I decided to look for my locker.

“231, 232, 233, 234… Ah, I found it, 235!” I mumbled to myself while I was searching for my locker. On my quest to find it I had taken a total wrong turn and I ended up on the other side of the school. I put my combination in, 12, 45, 03, and I was happy to see that it worked. I hung my backpack on one of the hooks and took a few locker accessories out. I liked to keep my locker relatively simple with a mirror on the door and a little pouch for extra pens and pencils. I also stuck a few pictures up with these cool little magnets. While I was busy with my locker I didn’t notice another girl who was at her locker next to me. I peeked over at her and I was surprised to see that she had a similar style ( http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=125557553 ) to me! I decided that this must be fate or destiny, I mean she looked like someone I could totally get along with.

The girl noticed me and smiled, “Uh hey, are you new?” She grabbed a book from her locker and closed it.

“Yeah, I just moved here from America.” I replied while shifting my binders to one arm so that i could carry my coffee. “Do the teachers here let you have drinks in class?” I asked because i was really looking forward to my coffee.

“Oh yeah, they totally understand. I mean it’s early and I need my coffee!” She laughed and held up a FreeState coffee cup.

“Hey, I went there too! it’s so amazing.” I smiled and held mine up. We both quietly laughed before going silent. “Geez, we already have a lot in common.” I said referring to our similar styles and taste in coffee.

“Yeah, I noticed how you dress. I like am in love with your outfit!” She exclaimed.

“Same to you! I’m Avalynn by the way.”

“Hollie!” She replied. I showed her my schedule and we concluded that she had homeroom, AP English and AP French with me. I was so relived to have a friend, I could tell that we were going to be very close.

———

We walked to homeroom together which was AP English. I gave my pass to the teacher, Mr. Hodder, who signed it and told me to introduce myself to the class. Thirty heads shot up and stared at me I glanced at everyone nervously before speaking.

“Uh, hey everyone, I’m Avalynn and I moved here from America.” I turned to Mr. Hodder and he just told me to find a seat while handing me a book. Hollie pointed to an empty seat next to her to which I gladly sat in. I looked at the book that he had handed me, it was East of Eden by John Steinbeck. I had already read it a couple of times. John Steinbeck was my favorite author.

Mr. Hodder went through some announcements, most of the class wasn’t paying attention. I stuck my binders in the desk and neatly put my pencil pouch onto of them.

“We are in the middle of the book, if you need to catch up I can help you. I’ve already read this like three times.” Hollie laughed and started to flip through the pages.

“Yeah, i know it’s amazing. Cathy is such a bitch.” I smiled thinking of the antagonist of the story. Hollie looked at me surprised.

“You’ve read it?” She asked surprised.

“Yeah! Steinbeck is my favorite!” I replied. We went on to talk about our favorite books by him and the other things we’ve read. Soon class began and we quietly listened to the teacher speak. After class ended I walked with Hollie to the door and through the hallway.

“So, do you want to eat lunch with me? I could introduce you to my friends.” She invited me and i felt really touched. Not only had I made a friend but now I had someone to eat luck with.

“Of course, thanks for the invite!” I smiled. She told me to meet at our lockers after third period and we’d walk together. I agreed and told her goodbye when I got to my Biology class. As I walked into the room I wondered who her friends were.