Learn to Fly

Chapter 1: Welcome to Maple Ridge High

A/N: Hi. As is the case with my previous two stories, I originally posted this to Quotev and AO3 about two years ago, but I decided to make an account and start posting on here as well.

This story contains some content that may be triggering to some people, warnings will be applied before any chapter where it's necessary. The pic is Sophie. Hope you enjoy <3.

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Monday, August 27th.

Today is the first day of school, and the beginning of my sophomore year. It's a little after six-thirty in the morning, I really don't want to be awake right now, and my head hurts. Why do we always go back so early? The other districts in our county don't start until after Labor Day, why can't we do the same? It never made any sense to me. I stand at the corner of my street, leaning against the stop sign and checking through my backpack one last time to make sure I have everything I need. Two binders, a few folders, six new notebooks, a small bag full of pencils, pens, and highlighters, and a bag with clothes for Gym. Okay, everything's where it should be.

The school bus pulls up to the curb after what feels like an eternity of waiting. The door opens and I step inside, giving the driver a small nod as a greeting. Because I'm the first pickup and there's nobody else at my stop, all the seats are empty. I quickly take a seat near the middle section as the bus starts moving again.

Students of various grades enter the bus in groups of four or five. Most of them are silent, obviously still half-asleep, but there are a few who come on softly talking and laughing with each other. As they walk down the aisle, people who were my lab partners or on my team in Gym last year say hi to me. I give them a small smile or a tired wave in response, still too tired to say anything. As the driver pulls away from the final stop, I take a look around the bus. As far as I can see, I'm the only one sitting alone. None of my friends are on the same route. Even if they were, I doubt any of them would talk to me. I haven't talked to them in a few weeks, and given how everything ended between us, I won't be surprised if they've been avoiding each other like the plague.

We pull into the bus lot, passing the large sign sitting in front of the high school. 'Maple Ridge High - Welcome back everyone!' is spelled out in large, black letters. Someone in one of the seats behind me is wearing way too much perfume. The smell stings my nose and makes my headache worse. I try to open my window, but the little latches are stuck and I can't get them to move.

The freshmen have to go to the auditorium for some 'welcome to the school' assembly, but the upperclassmen get to go straight to their homerooms. Just like all those cheesy high school movies, the students of Maple Ridge High fall into various cliques: Jocks, Preps, Gamers, Weebs, Hipsters, Artists, Theater kids, Band kids, Emos, Stoners, Nerds, Skaters, Country kids and the ones who drift between cliques. I walk past the groups, feeling extremely out of place. My last weeks of summer break were spent browsing around online or binging TV shows. I didn't go to the mall, the pool or the lake, I didn't call or text anyone aside from family. I'm going into my second year of high school with no one by my side.

I am nothing but an outcast.

I spot two of my friends, Jocelyn Evans and Zack O'Brien, on the walk to my homeroom, but I don't see a point in trying to talk to either of them. We had our own little clan, but after what happened this summer, it's been broken apart and the pieces have been stolen by the other cliques. Jocelyn is, unsurprisingly, hanging out with the Jocks, discussing their favorite sports and comparing bruises they got from their various summer activities. Zack walks with a group that seems to be made up of both Artists and Theater kids. He's always been the most extroverted member of our group, and he's got plenty of personality to be in two cliques at the same time. Lucky guy. Mikey moved up to New York not too long after summer break began. No real loss, he was mostly Jocelyn's friend. The rest of us were never super close with him.