Side by side, I was late.
Oceanview, unlike my last school, didn’t have a uniform. So it took me a little longer to get ready on Monday than usual. Eventually, I decided on a striped t-shirt from Goodwill and a pair of semi-high-waisted skinny jeans, with my worn black Converse. I was getting the hang of the condo pretty quickly. We had about a maximum of 15-minutes of hot water, which meant I had to shave my legs and arms in the cold, and if you put the blow dryer on high, the lights flickered.
So I showered as fast as I could so I could have time to dry my hair, since the low setting on the blow dryer was really weak. After it was dried, I got dressed, tucking my shirt into my jeans as I usually did. I paired the outfit with a white shawl that reached my knees, since it was cold out. Put on minimal makeup, just enough to cover my acne and make my eyelashes longer. I then plummy hair up into a purposefully messy bun.
At 7:15 Mom called me into the kitchen for breakfast, which was a protein shake. She was using the car today for job-hunting, so I fished my skateboard out of the bottom drawer of my dresser, putting on a hat so my hair didn’t get frizzy from the wind.
“Bye, mom,” I said as I left, blowing her a kiss. She smiled at me, sipping from her mug of coffee. I got the directions on my phone for walking to my school and put my headphones in, pushing off with my right foot. My dad had gotten me my first skateboard when I was nine. That skateboard had gotten hit by a car when I was practicing tricks in the middle of the road and had jumped off as said car drove me.
It was about a fifteen minute ride to Oceanview, and the students stared as I casually skated through the parking lot, turning off the directions on my phone and unplugging my headphones. I tucked the skateboard under my arm, looking around warily as I walked into the school.
Since my admission to the school had been so abrupt, there hadn’t been time for them to mail my schedule to me. I’d been instructed, via email, to go to the front office once I arrived, and I did just that, receiving a weird look form the receptionist as she spotted my skateboard.
“Rowan Barnes. I’m new here,” I told her, smiling as she nodded, going into the back room. I stood there awkwardly for a few minutes, until she came back carrying a blue folder with my name on it. I thanked her, then stepped off to the side. Inside was my ID with my photo from my old school, my locker number and combination, and my schedule.
The warning bell rang when I finally found my locker, and, after unlocking it and unloading my backpack, I was already five minutes late. and I hadn’t even found my first period – Science, Mr. Smith – yet. I ground my teeth together as I searched the halls, desperately searching for room D101.
“Need help?” a voice said from behind, and I turned to see a guy, quite a bit taller then me, with chestnut hair and brown eyes, dressed in a white shirt and jeans. He was cute, I guess.
“Uh, yeah,” I said, slightly flustered as I walked a bit closer to him. “I’m looking for Mr. Smith’s room.”
“Well, you’re definitely in the wrong place.” He chuckled, turning to exit the hallway, and I followed. “So, you’re new here?”
“Uh, yeah,” I said, then smiled at him. “I’m Rowan.”
He smiled in return, leading the way down another hallway. “Trey. Well, this is your stop. Nice to meet you, Rowan.”
I thanked him before entering the classroom. The teacher, mr. Smith, I assumed, stopped talking and turned to look at me.
This was going to be a long day.
Realistic Fiction
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