2

After waving Peter goodbye, I took a deep breath before entering the school. The guard greeted me, smiling in a friendly way. I wasn't going to lie, this helped calm my nerves down. If everyone was going to be this friendly, i'd have no trouble to 'fit in'.

The hallway wasn't packed with students which was amazing to say the least. I did not need the eyes on me, following my every movement just because I was the new student, or their new 'target' for the year. I was not going to let myself get bullied. Bullying was something I had always been completely against. I could stand up for myself just fine even though sometimes I lack the courage.

The few students who were in the hallway, against their lockers did not even notice me which I was grateful for. I quietly made my way to the principal's office which wasn't hard to find at all given the huge 'principal's office' written in bold above the brown door at the end of the hallway.

I knocked once, twice, then heard a 'come in'. I opened the door, being immediately greeted by a woman and a man together in the same room. My eyes roamed around the woman's face, her lipstick smeared and the man's unbuttoned shirt. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out what was going on behind closed doors just a minute before my knocking. That was awkward.

"Morning." I smiled, looking at the frames on the wall which suddenly became so interesting. "Do you need a moment?"

The man chuckled, "That won't be necessary. Please, take a seat. My assistant was just leaving."

The assistant shot the man a glare before leaving. I looked at the man who I figured was the principal as he sat on the chair behind the desk shortly after I did. "You must be the new student. Thea Hart, is it?"

"Yes, sir." I nodded. "May I have my schedule? I assume I am already late given the almost empty hallways."

"Oh, no need to worry about that." He waved me off. "Classes started like five minutes ago but since you are a new student, I am sure the teacher will understand." He opened his desk, removing a page which could only be my schedule and handed me it with a smile. "There you go. Have a great year."

"Thank you, sir." I returned the smile, taking a look at my schedule as I walked out of the office. I looked around, the hallway now completely empty. I sighed, knowing it was going to be difficult to find the science class, or the rest of my classes alone. Thankfully, the science lab was not that hard to find considering it was on the first floor itself. The thought of entering the lab while all eyes were on me made my mouth turn dry and almost gave me an anxiety attack right on the spot. Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, my hands found their way on the strap of my back, clutching it tighter and tighter with every step I took closer to the door. I entered the lab and like I predicted, everyone's eyes were on me. Some were staring, whispering, smiling even.

"Good morning, miss..." The red haired woman looked at me from behind the desk, waiting for me to introduce myself and I wanted to do was run out of the classroom. 

"Thea." I did not feel like saying my full name, my last name sure would make me somewhat recognizable.

"Hello, Thea." She smiled, her dimples on display. "It is very nice to have you join us. Please, take a seat."

I was grateful of the fact that she did not press for a last name. I glanced around the lab, biting the inside of my cheek as I looked for an empty seat. I almost let out a sigh of relief when I found one next to a girl who waved at me, urging me to come to sit next to her. Well, it was going to be easy to make friends here.

"Hey, Thea. I'm Penelope." She smiled. "But you can call me Penny or Pen. Whichever works for ya."

"Hello, Penelope." I returned her smile, choosing not to use her nickname this soon. "You been here long?"

"Yup." She sighed, rolling her eyes. "My parents wanted only what's best for their kid. So I've been stuck here."

"So, I take it the school isn't that prestigious?"

"The word prestigious should be illegal in this place. It's anything but prestigious." I was not going to lie. Her statement did nothing to calm my dancing nerves and she noticed that. She gave me an apologetic smile. "Im sorry. I know you're new and all, but I felt like I should warn you."

"It's alright." I shrugged her off. "Thank you for the warning."

"Anytime." She smiled and our conversation ended as the teacher started explaining the syllabus for the year. "Do I need to go over it again or has everyone understood?"

No one said answered her question which she took as an 'Everyone understood'. She smiled, clapping her hands together. "Very well. Tomorrow, we shall test just how much knowledge you have on certain things. I will not tell you what will be in the small test but, I am hoping you will do your best."

I almost groaned at her announcement. It wasn't even half of the day and the teacher deemed it fun to hold a test on the next day. Cruel, cruel human being. I wasn't worried about the test. I would excel at it, just like I did my every tests. That was what I kept telling myself every time I was being tested on my knowledge on certain things.

While I tried to concentrate, I couldn't help but feel that several stares were still on me, burning holes at the back of my head. I had a feeling not everyone was going to be friendly like the encounters I already made.