Grace Under Pressure (Grace Walker Series Book 1)

Chapter 5:

The morning came on fast. I got a better head start than yesterday though. I actually woke up before my alarm went off. I jumped in the shower really quick and decided to pick something out that would look good for after school when I hung out with Reni and Gretchen. I don't dress up much, so I didn't have much to choose from. Mom had gotten me a pretty yellow top that tied in the front that I put in my closet and actually forgotten about. So, I paired that with a pair of jeggings. I had to go search her closet for shoes because all I ever wore were sneakers and we wore the same size shoe. I found a pair of boots with fur at the top and I didn't think they looked too bad with the ensemble I picked out. I straightened my hair and put a scrunchie on my wrist just for safe measure. I could always put it up if I get hot. I don't wear much makeup, so I put on some tinted moisturizer, mascara and lip gloss and put what I used into my backpack.
I walked downstairs and Mom told me she was going to go into work earlier than expected, and asked if I was ready. Surprisingly enough, I was. I grabbed a banana and a granola bar to eat on the way to school. That should tide me over until lunch.
I got to school a short time later and was early so I slowly walked to my locker, so I could actually have a chance to look for familiar faces today. I've gone to school with these people for many years, so there were a lot of hellos my way and I said hello back, never really getting into a long conversation, just enough not to seem rude. After all, if I was going to hang out with Reni and Gretchen this afternoon, I'm sure there were going to be kids from school there and I didn't want to seem stand-offish.

The morning went by fast and I was relieved it was lunchtime. A banana and granola bar doesn't go very far and I was famished. The cafeteria was packed. I hadn't really noticed yesterday because I was so preoccupied. I walked up to the line I knew had a la carte items so I could choose what I wanted instead of eating what they served. It didn't always look good. I got my food, which I decided the safest choice today was a turkey and cheese sub with an apple and some water and searched the cafeteria for a familiar face. Same ol kids, same ol cliques. There was the jock table that consisted mostly of juniors and seniors, and sometimes a lucky sophomore here and there. There was four boys in particular, who went by The Fearsome Foursome. They were three seniors, Ashton Steele, Landon Mitchell and Carter Matthews, who happened to be the brother of my friend Gretchen. The only junior, Mason James, was the last member of the group. He was also the best looking. They all were good-looking, rich, and popular and they knew it. All the cheerleaders, including Gretchen, flocked to the table trying their hardest to get the attention of at least one of the guys. They were the guys guys wanted to be, and the guys girls wanted to be with. I knew all of them and they were decent, but getting them together, their moods became very conceited and it was all about them. I walked past the table and waved at Gretchen, who got a huge grin on her face and walked over to say hi. She was also very pretty, much like my friend Reni. She was the captain of the cheerleading squad, worked her butt off and was also the daughter of Pastor Samuel of  Preston Christian Church, where our friendship started. Her dad is very strict on her, which is part of the reason I agreed to go today, because I knew the chances of her going out with friends, on a school night were few and far between. She walked over and we sat and talked the rest of lunch. She was excited we could hang out this afternoon. She hugged me and told me she'd see me later.