Looking Into the Past

Chapter 1: Coming Down! Neff's First Day!

Dedicated to: my 14 year old self.

Coming Down! Neff's First Day!

In which Neff goes to a new high school and meets new people.

~x~

After being here for a few days, I don't know what to think about Elmore. My dad gets lost everywhere, even with GPS. Maybe it's broken or something. We haven't met a lot of people except the person we bought the house from. But then again, we'll never see them again. We're complete strangers to this new place.

Back in my hometown, we had it made. Financial stability, always going places, being a happy family. Unfortunately, my parents split up for a reason I have yet to know. I would hear them arguing over me all the time. They wouldn't tell me exactly what was wrong. These days, I'm never told anything anymore.

It took us thirty minutes to find the school, and I TOLD my dad that we needed to leave earlier so we'd have time to spare. But no. As a result, I'm fifteen minutes late on my first day at my new high school.

I don't have a problem with school. I do fine. Elmore High School has a clean campus, I noted, as I got out of the car and looked around. The sun was beating down on the tan concrete walls that stood intimidatingly. A banner hung high above the doors to the entrance, reading "Welcome Back, Mustangs!" Pristine windows revealed classrooms inside and some of the people in them, who I'm honestly scared to meet. I don't know about the people yet. I hope they're not like the ones back home.

I walked in and went to the front office that was in plain sight. A cupcake secretary sat at her computer. It was surprising seeing a different species, as I haven't seen one in a long time. My hometown all had the same species: synthetic mice that have red skin because of the blood given to us at birth to stay alive. We have electrical wires and a machine heart that pump it all around our bodies, along with crystal white eyes that light up at night if we want them to. Whenever kids see us they think it's cool, so I feel pretty proud of my kind.

"Ah, you're late. Name?" she asked, her tone was that of a smoker.

"Neff Mau5. I'm new here."

"Oh, ugh, that means more paperwork." She searched her cluttered desk drawers and eventually pulled out a tan manila folder. Handing it to me, she said, "Here. Just take this. It's a copy of your old transcript, schedule, all that info. Now if you'll excuse me I have to get back to work."

And she continued to type away at her old computer.

Without saying a word, I walked out of the office and sat on one of the wooden benches outside.

"She hates me. She definitely hates me!" I whispered to myself, putting my face in my hands. "What did I do wrong? Did I talk too much? I only said like one sentence..." My mind was racing with all of these thoughts and possible scenarios that caused her to be that way towards me. I don't see what I did wrong. Does she hate everyone? I always want to get on the good sides of people. I hate it when others don't like me or think badly of me.

After calming down, I went down the hall to find room 137. First class of the day. The inside of the school was as nice as the outside. Pristine white floors, ruby red lockers, and neatly placed posters amongst the walls. Hell, this might be better than my old school. Just as I'm getting to the room, a blue cat and a fish with legs are running out of it. They whip past me, almost knocking me down.

"JUST RUN!" one of them screams. I hear a loud, ear-piercing screech. I've never heard a screech that loud and terrifying in my life. "RUN, I SAID! DON'T JUST STAND THERE! COME ON!" the blue cat said, as he grabbed my wrist and forced me to run with him and the fish. Another screech comes from behind us, and I turn my head to see this apeshit angry baboon coming towards us covered in white paint from head to toe.