Hanging With the Senior Boys

I

"I can't believe it!" Claire screamed, "This is the most exciting day of my life!"

"Come on Claire," Serena added, "it's not even that serious."

She was a lot calmer than Claire could manage her thoughts to be at that time, so Claire had to find someone at her level of spazing, "Ugh, you're a buzz kill Serena. Lexi? You get it right?"

"Nah, Serena's right Claire," I said.

"The first thing I'm doing is finding new friends," she shot to us both.

We could only laugh. Happy-go-lucky Claire Taylor, was on the verge of a nervous breakdown over one small destination we were journeying to: Cedar Rapids High School. (Ironically we lived in Michigan). Our first day as high school students.

She urged us further, "Come on you guys walk faster!"

We both groaned.

Fate's cruel, so we were walking on the first day. If she truly cared as much as she acted, you would think that she would have her mom drive us all. Alas, we lived too close to the building to waste gas, which costed $4.00 a gallon.

"I see it!"

"Claire, calm down!" Serena snapped, "Literally, we came here last week for schedule preview day."

"I know but this is different."

"How exactly?" I added.

She said nothing. Exactly as suspected.

"Just stop trying to ruin my joy guys," she sighed.

"We'll stop," Serena said.

"But let's all hope Terra won't ruin all of our joy this year," I said.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Claire sighed.

"I hope she got hit by a bus over the summer," Serena added.

"Lol," I said.

"You two are cruel," Claire said.

"And you weren't when you 'accidentally' knocked her phone off her desk last year?" I questioned.

We all humored the memory. Terra Oglesbee was the definition of a jerk. She wasn't the stereotype mean girl considering she resembled a fish, with a thin face and bulging eyes, plus her hair was never done any particular way besides Just Woke Up. But, she was the bully of the grade. She had menaced my friends and I since we were toddlers, and growing up didn't change it.

"We're here," Claire stated.

I took it into view, watching the dozens of cars enter and exit as we walked around the circular driveway sidewalk. Predominantly freshman exited the cars, their parents soaking up every second they could spend with them. But not us and forty other kids that walked or got off the public bus in front of the building. The rest. . . drove.

I watched car after car park, and stay parked. They were students, old enough to get on the highway and drive away. I had never seen it in my life before. It amazed my being entirely. But one in specific rocked us three to a stop. A red Jaguar sports car, practically roaring just like its name, spinning around the lot perfectly to a clear spot between two similar cars.

"Dewy Lakes," Claire said.

In eighth grade, Dewy Lakes turned into an apex of hot after summer vacation. His jaws straightened to a blade, his eyes emerald jewels twinkling songs onto our hearts, with his head caressed by dirty blonde hair; and he started working out so he could get into varsity sports after middle school graduation. We were only in fifth grade, but we could easily fall in love with his matured looks. Ever since then we practically waited to see him again. Claire at least. I lost my interest in him when he slept with Serena's older sister. Evidently she stopped liking him as well.

"He's still the most gorgeous man I've ever seen," Claire exclaimed.

"He's okay," I shrugged.

Serena only rolled her eyes, "He's not my type."

We turned our attention away, and walked into the doors after what seemed like hours of walking. From our houses we had to cross a busy freeway, just before walking three blocks straight and a half a block to the right. Who was I kidding, that was forever.

"Do you all remember your locker numbers?" Claire said.

I sighed, "Yes Claire."

"Bye Claire," Serena said.

"Where are ya going?" I asked.

"I have to go to the office first, my mom wants me to do some paperwork stuff and some other weird type of crud," she replied, "Bye Lexi."

Serena's mom was as overbearing when it came to education than a human can become. Being a graduate of Harvard University, she expected the same from her. I felt bad for her, because she genuinely hated it. It took everything in her being to reach her mother's standards, and was still never good enough. And all of this was happening during middle school; high school actually counted.

"Well, I'll see you later too Lexi," Claire said, "my class is this way."

"Bye," I said.

"Bye."

1047. The 47th locker on the first floor. I pulled out my cellphone and checked the time. It was ten minutes before the first bell. After getting my books that I had put in last week, and putting them in my backpack, I could only sit on the floor and wait until one of them texted me and asked where I was in the school so they could meet up with me. I ate breakfast at home, and I had to persevere the little juice I had on my phone left for another time. The hallway I was in was solitary at this time of day, only containing me and a few other students. The black floors with red and white lockers kept us all company.

Like I anticipated, Serena texted me and said she was in the cafeteria, as well as Claire, so I gathered my bag and went. Walking around the corner, through the crystal double doors, I passed Dewy once more. He was standing in a group with his friends, other seniors I did not know, chortling around. They resembled a cool drink of water in the desert. And I wanted to swim in said water. I quickly looked away when one caught my glare, and continued to walk.

"It's decided, this is our table," Claire said to Serena as I walked closer.

"It has to be," Serena said, "It's the closest to the lunch line."

We chuckled to ourselves, remembering the scarcity of food left during the third lunch period last year. We almost never got to eat. Hopefully that would be a thing of the past, and if not, we had the closest spots. Others walked in and through the lunchroom, screaming meeting their friends, and hugging their lives out. We lived near each other, so it would be pointless. We probably looked odd to them.

Two fair skin girls, one with golden blonde strands, and the other with thick light brown curls, and a caramel complexion girl also with brown curls but with blue highlights and a darker shade of maroon naturally blended with the brown; just sitting there not saying anything to each other, and remotely strangers. They were unaware we were far from strangers however, knowing each other since birth. Our parents grew up together before Serena's dad died in war.

Eventually we talked about what we could (which wasn't a lot considering we've talked so much in our lives so everyone knows) and vowed to come back with new things to talk about by lunch. We each went our separate ways in high school, and started our first heart-gripping journey as young adults. Each would have a different story to tell by the end of the day.