"What the—" I stepped back but unfortunately fell butt first on the ground.
Why does this keep happening every time she appears?
"Ouch…" I uttered as I held my behind. It hurts since I ended up sitting on a couple of sharp pebbles; fortunately, it didn't butcher my tailored pants.
"What's your problem? Why do you always appear out of nowhere like your nightcrawler or something?! So annoying…" I stood up with a frown as I looked at her.
"Tch. It's not my fault you lack coordination."
I was left speechless by her sassy response. I've never met a girl so cocky. Still, I happened to notice that she seemed rather stressed today. Did I mention that she's still wearing the uniform? I know that today is the first day, but she also wore this yesterday, so that got me really thinking hard.
Is she a queen bee who bases her entire life on popularity in school, or does she not have a change of clothes?
Well, judging by her lack of flair and toned look, I'd say the latter is the right answer. Just then, Avery, patron of being tone-deaf, asked, "You done admiring me?"
"What?!" I sneered, trying to evoke my repugnance. She turned towards me with the most annoying smirk ever, winking playfully as if she was mocking me with the evident holding of her laughter.
"Nothing... You going to school?"
I clicked my tongue, saying, "Thanks for stating the obvious."
To avoid her from further ruining my day before it even starts, I began to walk away. I half expected her to follow, considering how much she enforces herself on me. And… cue to my assumptions, because I heard footsteps behind me. The grounding of the pebbles beneath the pavement automatically made me sigh.
What is it with this woman and her pining for me? Like heck I would ever get together with someone like her. Listen, I'm not going to act as if I'm all nice, but saying creepy shit to someone you just met is downright rude and borderline… creepy.
"With that sullen face of yours, Astley, nothing's really obvious."
"What are you talking about?" I asked back and fastened my pace, trying to lose her as we entered the road with cherry blossom trees covering both sides of the outside road. Why did I even answer?
"I'm just saying… smile. You're not going to a funeral, and don't worry. Everyone is nice; you just gotta act nicer."
Her words made me pause in irritation. I looked over and saw her with her hands inside her trouser's pockets, lifting her skirt up her waist. Is this a trend? She's walking leisurely about two meters and eight footsteps away from me.
"You know what, you have no idea how I'm feeling, so stop imposing shit as if you're the town councilor. I don't care about anything. I don't care about how you hicks see me. Just do me a favor and leave me alone!"
I turned my back again and started to half-jog.
"Please, I'm nothing like a town councilor. I'm more of a town Pariah!" she yelled behind me, but I didn't say anything back any longer. I might get late if I spend more time with that hideous woman. Besides, I don't think being seen together with her on my first day will benefit me in any way. I get it, my plan is to avoid everyone, but I'm not going to do that by being a social outcast because I'm associated with a weirdo like her.
Still…
"What if everyone in school is as weird as her?" I whispered to myself and unconsciously looked back.
The wind howled, snapping the leaves along with a few branches around. It swirled all over the place. Gaping widely, my body turned fully.
My feet froze on the spot.
I felt a chill run down my spine as I began to form excuses in my head. I didn't eat anything, but I felt my stomach knotting. It's like… I'll throw up at any given moment.
Can you blame me?
I mean... I only walk away without looking back for a minute, and already, she's nowhere to be found.
"What the heck?" I blurted out of confusion. "Did she run off in the other direction? But the school is this way..." I normally don't talk to myself like this, but I'm trying so hard to rationalize this shit so give a damn break.
For thirty seconds, I stood there and came up with answers to this strange girl but even stranger phenomena.
Yeah, for sure, she ran off and hid herself somewhere. How did she do it that fast? I don't know. Maybe she's a track and field club member. This explains why she's an outcast too since we all know that running isn't a real sport.
"Nice try! You still suck..." I just yelled and kept walking in the direction of the school. Let's not waste any more time on her. I've had enough weird encounters here.
...
About ten minutes later, after passing by several spots around the small town of Honeyshit, I arrived at the supposed school I'd be attending. There's a basketball-size yard after the gate, and beyond that, is the main building. A lonesome blue structure that's as big as the house I grew up in. It seems like it's 5 stories tall and 100 percent creepy.
Honeycreek High School. Can't get any more specific than that, can it?
I stood next to the gate and looked at the arc with the white wolf logo and letters bearing the name. Upon looking back and forth, heaps of students go in from all directions. Woods surrounds the road leading up here, so you get a clear view of where people came from. Some students walked across the road where I came from. They must be from the other side of town. As Janice said, there are two residential areas in this place, both coating the edges. Meanwhile, people living along the coastline are mostly merchants that sell essentials. I have also learned that there's only one grocery, one church, one clinic, a town hall, and three schools: one for elementary students, one for middle school students, and one for high school students. Getting out of this shithole is the only way to college.
But amidst all that, everyone is kinda close. Alright, maybe I downplayed it a little bit, but you get what I'm saying.
It's like…they're one big family.
Kidding! They probably beef over the most stupid shit.
In the midst of all the enthusiastic faces greeting me, I found myself contemplating if I really wanted to go or not.
I took a deep breath and boldly stepped inside, passing the entrance that had like one old guard. I strut across the yard with the other students. Of course, I held my head high because I'm cool like that.
Actually, I heard that there are significantly fewer students here than in the city, and most of them already knew each other, so I'd feel out of place if I act like fucking wuss. Nonetheless, it's not like I'm interested in making friends. Let me play the mysterious dude for now.
When I reached the middle part of the yard, "Hey!" a loud yell caught my attention.
I turned back, and it was this dud looking like he's a lead star in TBBT. The nerd vibes are immaculate. He was walking fast, and if I'm not stupid, I might think that he was calling for me. But I didn't know anyone here, so I diverted my gaze back to the path, only to be welcomed by a strong wallop on my back.
I flinched and furrowed my brows. "Hey, you!" he repeated and wrapped his arms around me, flashing the widest smile I've ever seen. "Hello! You're the new kid!"
I halted as I scanned his face. He had a gummy leer, and from the way he looked, he reminded me a lot of Jake. They have the same overly friendly vibe that I can't relate to.
"I'm Dominic!" he introduced himself out of nowhere. I'll admit that for a second, I was enthralled. I didn't know why I saw this circle halo on top of his head, but I just did. For a guy my age, he seems kinda… pure? That word sounds gay, but picture an eighteen-year-old kid as tall as me with thin brows and gigantic eyes like a doll. Kind of weird, but he looks like he can do no harm of some sort.
Still, I just nodded and looked away, heaving in tolerance because of how he's shoving himself onto me. Honestly, I'd hate to smash his face, but if he keeps this touchy approach up, I might end up doing it.
"You're Joaquin, right? My parents told me about you!" Does that mean that his parents are part of the crew that helped me yesterday? So, which one of those was it? I bet it's Fredprick.
"Yeah."
"Cool! Sorry if I wasn't able to help you settle! I slept with them." He then pointed at his back. I peeked over to look at the people he was pertaining to, and my jaw automatically dropped.
Girls, two of them, in fact. "Y—you slept with two girls at once?"
Damn, he isn't so pure after all.
He nodded. "Yeah! Sleepovers are fun! We roasted lots of marshmallows." He held his left cheek, "And it made my tooth hurt…"
Then, he... pouts.
My lips formed a straight line. I'm officially done.
"Diana, Nash, aren't you guys going to introduce yourselves?" He called for the two girls, and this time, I was able to look properly.
They trudged towards us slowly, and then stopped in front of Dominic and me. Just when I thought I finally got away from Stephanie... Here are her clones.
"I'm Diana. Are you an alien? How come you're so tall?" The taller one with tanned skin weirdly asked. Her freckles were prominent, and she had eyes as if she hasn't slept for weeks. I felt the indifference she possessed. Okay, no. I won't ever talk to her.
"Hello! I'm Natasha. Nice to meet you!" asked the smaller one. She had glasses and a chubby face. She's also a smiler, which is already off my list. She wore a pink headband and had books carried by her hands. Who does that? This ain't a rom-com book where you'll bump to someone and they'll help you pick your boring shit up.
"Joaquin," I introduced myself in the end cause I was pressured.