Making an Entrance

            Today is orientation for the freshman class.  It’s just me and the other fresh meat and no other upperclassmen.  It’s the perfect opportunity to scout out the competition. 

            I look at my brother, Cole, he’s going to be a senior at the school and all my friends have crushes on him.  Eww!  But I’m so glad my attractive looking brother is taking me into school on his motorcycle instead of my mom dropping me off in her mom car.  I don’t know exactly how he convinced my mom to let him get a motorcycle but whatever, it’s here, and it certainly makes an entrance. 

            We pull in front of Phoenix High and people are already starting to stare at the loud motorcycle.  It’s perfect! I already got a lot of people’s attention.  I swing my leg around the seat and gracefully get off and balance on my four-inch wedges.  I do not care to admit how long it took me to perfect that move.  I wave goodbye to Cole and hoist my black leather backpack around one shoulder.  I start towards my homeroom.  I already memorized my schedule and the rooms they were in.  I didn’t want to look like a complete clueless freshman.

            My outfit was perfect.  I had my mom’s stylist help me pick it out.  I wore white skinny jeans, cobalt blue peplum top, and my favorite Michael Kors wedges.  My recently dyed dirty blonde hair was in loose curls thanks to Mindy at the blow dry bar.  And of course I did my makeup.  I am much better than those ladies who work at beauty bars when it comes to makeup.  It’s like painting on your face and I am an amazing artist. 

            I arrive at my homeroom; it’s a science room.  My teacher, Mrs. Hanks, is wearing an awful outfit and her face was twisted into this position like she ate a sour grape.  As soon as the bell rang and everyone was in their seats Mrs. Hanks started reading off the attendance.  She went down the list reading out the names.  I checked out all of the students while the names were being called.  Once she got to the Ws I started to listen for my last name, Walter.  But she never called it. 

            “Did I miss any one,” Mrs. Hanks said in her deep voice.

            “Me.” I said blandly.

            “What’s your name,” she answered back.

            “Katrina Walter, but people call me Kat.”  She looked at her list of students.

            “There is no Katrina Walter on my homeroom list, let me see your schedule.”  Blood rose to my face.  S**t, did I mess up when I was memorizing my schedule?  I handed her it and she looked it over.  “You are in the wrong building.  You need to go to next building over, room 213.”

            Now I was mortified.  I should’ve just had my schedule out like a normal person.  I just have to play it cool.  So I turned around and strutted out of the classroom and right before exited I turned around and gave the class a flirty wave.  ‘Nice way to start off high school, Kat,’ I told myself. 

            I walked over to the next building and went up to my correct room.  I walked into the room and it was gray and musty.  I think it is used as an all purpose room.  There was one round table set up in the middle.  It looked like one of those tables used for a conference or a meeting. 

            As soon as I stepped in people were staring.  They probably wondered why I was walking in so late.  I played it off like I was fashionable late. The teacher looked irritated. 

            “You are late,” he said icily.  His name was Mr. Keith.

            “Whoops, sorry,” I replied sassily.  “My name is Kat or Katrina Walter.”

            “Okay, sit please.”  I looked around there was one empty seat and that was right next to the teacher and some loser boy who looked like he picked his nose.  Sighing I walked over to the seat and slid into it. 

            “So, Katrina,” he said.

            “Um its Kat,” I interrupted. 

            “Kat, I sure hope you have a legitimate explanation for why you are late to my homeroom.”  I could feel everyone’s eyes burning into me.  I sat up in my chair.

            “There was a line at the ladies’ room.” 

            “A line?  Every freshman should be in his or her homeroom right now.”

            Thinking quick on my feet I answered, “You know girls, always having to take their time.  A girl gotta do what a girl has to do.”  He shut up after that. 

            Mr. Keith then went over the rules and pretty soon I went to my first couple of classes.  They were boring for the most part and there were only a couple of girls that were maybe prettier then me.

            After my last class before lunch, which was geometry, I marched out of the room and glided down the stairs.  Then something hit me, I had nobody to sit with at lunch.  They’re were a couple girls in some of my classes that I talked to so maybe I could sit there.  Then I made eye contact with a former friend of mine, Kelsey Strait.

            “No way! Kat!  You look fabulous,” she said as she ran over to me and wrapped her meaty arms around me.  I cringed and backed away a little bit.  “What’s wrong?” she asked me.  Her baby blue eyes were staring at me.

            “Nothing,” I quickly responded.  “It’s just we haven’t talked all summer and we’ve sorta gotten distant.”

            “What? No way!  The only reason we haven’t talked is because I’ve been volunteering in Africa and there is zero cell service there.  Anyway I figured we could be just like the friends we were before we left!”

            “I don’t think so Kelsey,” I said.  “I have goals, major goals, and if I keep you as a friend then those goals are going to the ruined just like your bikini body by all those stretch marks.”  As soon as a said those words I immediately regretted it.  “S**t, Kelsey, I’m so sorry I didn’t mean that.”

            “Well b***h, it’s too late,” Kelsey, screamed at me.  The next thing I knew her hand smacked my face so hard that I started swaying on my heels and boom!  My hip hit the grass hard and pain shot through my entire body.

            I opened my eyes and Kelsey was looking down on me.  I quickly stood up; my hip was throbbing with pain now.  I looked strait into her eyes and forced out my words before I broke into a sob, “We are even now.”  I walked away and I head her chanting something.

            “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words would never hurt me.”  By this moment I realized I had an audience.  I needed to have the last word.  I stopped and spun around on the toes of my heels which by the way now had mud rubbed in on the side. 

            “Oh really, Kelsey?”  I started.  “If words didn’t hurt you then why did you slap me?”  Kelsey’s lips pursed and she stormed away. 

            I don’t think I’ve ever been this bitchy in my entire life.  I certainly feel awful about it but I definitely got people’s attention.  That had to count for something.  Right?