New Friends

I walked into the classroom, feeling nervous and out of place. As I took my seat, my eyes were drawn to the girl sitting next to me, with her long curly hair and bright smile. 

"Hey there, I'm Natasha," she said warmly.

"Hi, I'm Caroline," I replied, trying to hide my nerves.

"Are you new here?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

"Yeah, I just moved here from Denmark," I explained.

"Wow, that's cool! We're going to be great friends," she said, her excitement contagious.

As soon as the teacher entered the room, the chatter of the class died down in a moment of respectful silence. Once the bell rang, Natasha and I hastily gathered our bags and headed out together.

"So, how was class?" she asked with a smile.

"Well, let's just say it wasn't exactly a thrill ride," I replied with a deadpan expression, which made her burst out laughing.

"Ha! Tell me about it. I was practically dying of boredom in there," she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air dramatically.

We both burst out laughing. As we walked together in the hallway, we talked about everything and anything. She was telling me about herself, and I was all ears. She was kind and beautiful, and I could tell we were going to be great friends.

"Natasha! Wait for me!" Suddenly, someone shouted from behind.

We both turned around and saw a girl running towards us. She stopped in front of us, panting. She looked so cute with her little nose and blonde hair.

"What happened, Addy?" Natasha asked with concern.

"It's just that I missed you," the cute girl replied, smiling cheekily.

"Really? Addy, you need to get yourself a boyfriend. You don't want to die single, right?" Natasha said, rolling her eyes.

"Nat, that was rude," the cute girl said, dramatically clutching her chest.

I couldn't help but chuckle at their banter. As they both looked at me, I felt a bit awkward between them, so I just smiled nervously.

"Hi, I'm Caroline," I said hesitantly.

"Who are..." Natasha stopped Addison and nudged Addison's shoulder, giving her a look.

"That was really weird," I thought.

"Hey, I'm Addison. You can call me Addy," she said, smiling.

As I was about to speak, Addison hugged me, leaving me confused. I stood there silently as she hugged me, then she got away and looked at me with her eyes filled with water.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" I asked her, concerned.

"No, I'm just happy I got to meet you," she said, crying yet smiling.

I was confused. She was acting like she had met a close friend after many years and couldn't control her emotions. But I didn't know this girl. I had just met her a minute ago.

"I'm sorry, Caroline. She thought you looked like our childhood friend whom we've been separated from. So don't mind her. She's just emotional," Natasha said nervously.

"It's okay, Addison. Don't worry," I patted her shoulder, and she smiled at me sadly.

I walked a little ahead of them, letting them talk. Addison might have felt uncomfortable around me in that state, as we weren't that close.

"Are you stupid, Addison? Why would you do that?" Natasha whisper-shouted angrily.

"I'm sorry. I got emotional when I saw her. I couldn't control myself," Addison said.

"Don't mess this up," Natasha warned Addison, coming to me.

I shouldn't have heard that conversation, but they were kind of talking loudly. It's nothing to think about. Natasha said that she thought I was her childhood friend. I felt bad for her; she must have been missing her so much to cry like that.

"Hey, Caroline, you two have history together, so you go with Addison. I will meet you at the cafeteria. Bye." She gave me a warm hug and disappeared around the corner.

As I turned to face Addison, I noticed a hint of nervousness in her eyes. 

"Are you okay?" I asked her, concerned.

Her reply was hesitant. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm sorry, you must have felt uncomfortable."

I shook my head, smiling.

"No, it's okay. I totally get how you feel. We're all human, after all."

Her nervousness dissipated, and she grinned at me. "I have a feeling we might become besties. But shh, don't tell Natasha I said that!" 

We both laughed, knowing that our newfound bond was something special.

As soon as I stepped into the classroom, my eyes started scanning the room for Nathaniel. He had promised to meet me here, but he was nowhere to be found. I checked my watch and realized that we only had 10 minutes left before the class started. 

"Are you looking for someone?" Addison asked me.

I tried to mask my disappointment and replied, "No, I'm just taking a look around."

We were sitting together, Addison telling me about her gang of friends that she had known since childhood. But my mind was elsewhere. I was waiting for Nathaniel. 

As soon as I saw him enter the classroom, my heart skipped a beat until I saw the girl he was with. My smile quickly faded, and I felt disappointed. But why was I disappointed? He had never shown any interest in me, so why should it matter if he was with someone else?

I knew it was just my imagination running wild. He had only flirted with me, and maybe I had taken it a little too seriously. When Nathaniel saw the disappointment on my face, he looked at me with a question in his eyes. I couldn't bear to look at him, so I just turned away, embarrassed.

"How could I have thought that he would be single when he was so good-looking? It was my fault for jumping to conclusions." I thought.

The girl was clinging onto his arm, and I couldn't help but remember how he had held me in his arms. Maybe I was a little jealous.

But who was I to feel jealous? I was just the new girl, and Nathaniel was probably just being nice. Maybe even Addison and Natasha felt sorry for me and were being nice.

Addison's concern was evident in her voice as she asked me, "Hey, Caroline. Are you okay?"

I wasn't really okay, but I didn't want to burden Addison with my troubles. 

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lied with a fake smile.

As the teacher walked in, we settled in for our class. I tried to concentrate on the lecture, but my thoughts kept wandering. Being a nerd, I knew that study was more important than anything else, so I tried to push Nathaniel's flirtatious behavior out of my mind.

Addison leaned over and whispered, "Caroline, did you join any clubs?"

"No, I have to join today, or I won't be accepted into college," I whispered back.

"Shit,”

"Shit, you're in trouble. All the clubs are filled," Addison said, her concern growing.

"WHAT?" I almost shouted, causing everyone's attention to turn towards me.

The teacher gave me an angry look while Nathaniel tried to get my attention, but I ignored him.

"Caroline and Addison. I guess you two have more important things to discuss than class. You can join us again when you're done," the teacher said urgently, wanting to continue the class.

"But sir..." I tried to protest, but he cut me off.

"Get out. Now," he said sternly. 

We both walked out of the class, feeling embarrassed.

As soon as we were out of earshot, we burst out laughing.

"That was hilarious. You should have seen your face when everyone looked at you," Addison said, looking at me.

"Am I that funny?" I asked, chuckling.

"Yes, you are," she laughed.

"So what do I do now? Are there any clubs with vacancies?" I asked her.

"I think football and cheerleading. The boys would love to have you on the team," she teased me.

"I guess that leaves cheerleading," I said, feeling a little dejected.

"Join cheerleading. I will be with you. I'm on the squad. I can help you," she said excitedly.

"Me? Cheerleading? No way in hell," I said, my mind already made up.

"Come on, you're hot. You would make a good cheerleader," Addison pleaded with me.

"Okay, I guess. I don't even have a choice," I said, feeling a little hesitant.

She excitedly danced as I laughed, looking at her.

"I will have to talk to Riley, the captain. She can easily get you on the team," she said.

"Who is she?" I asked Addison.

"Oh, she's Nathaniel's girlfriend. I told you about my friends, right? Nathaniel is one of us," she said.

My heart sank as all the color drained from my face. I was sure I am doomed. The girl who is the cheerleading captain was none other than the girlfriend of my crush. I may not have been crushing on him for long, but if she finds out, I'm afraid I won't stand a chance of being accepted into the team. 

Oh, my god. I have to join cheerleading, or else I have to say goodbye to my dream college.

I felt angry towards Nathaniel. He was ruining my first day. I didn't like him, but I hated him for flirting with me when he had a girlfriend and putting me in this situation.

So much drama on the first day. I could say bye-bye to peace.