Uncharted Territory

Grace

My first day at ASU was actually pretty good. I somehow lucked out and didn’t have any kids that I knew from Tempe in my classes. My luck quickly changed the second day though. I walked in to my class and saw that the majority of the people in there had gone to my high school. I did my best to ignore them, even though they were staring at me, and sat down at a table by myself. They were whispering and I was sure it was about me. I held my head high though because I wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of seeing me break down.

I was doing so well at ignoring everyone that I didn’t notice someone was standing by my table until they said, “Do you mind if I sit here?”

I looked up in surprise and saw a pretty girl with red hair. I quickly smiled at her and said, “Of course not. I’m Grace.”

She smiled in relief as she sat down and said, “Thanks, I’m Reagan. I’m glad you let me sit by you because everyone else looks kind of stuck-up and mean.

I sighed and said, “Believe me, they are.”

Reagan looked a bit surprised as she asked, “Oh, do you know them?”

“Not all of them but the majority. I went to high school with a lot of them.”

I went on to tell Reagan that I was from Tempe, moved to Chicago, and then moved back. I learned that she had gone to Harvard the year before, which I found impressive, but she needed a change of scenery so she decided to move in with her brother in Tempe.

I wondered why she needed a change of scenery but didn’t ask because then I would feel as if I should tell her why I moved, which I didn’t want to do quite yet. It was nice having someone not knowing about my past and not judging me. I also wondered who her brother was and if I knew him since he lived in Tempe but figured he had most likely moved to Tempe while I had been away. If her brother had gone to high school in Tempe then she would have most likely gone also and I had never seen her before. I also didn’t know anyone with the last name Trotter.

Reagan and I talked the rest of the class period and I was thankful I had found a friend in a class where nearly everyone else hated me.

On Thursday I sat down at the table that Reagan and I had sat at two days before. She wasn’t there yet so I flipped through my book until I heard someone cough as if they were trying to get my attention.

I looked up and saw Brittany Hunter, a girl that had graduated high school the same year as me, had turned around in her seat so she was facing me.

“What are you doing Grace?” She hissed.

“Reading our book for class.”

“No, I meant what are you doing back here? Don’t you understand that no one wants you here? Everyone liked it better when you were in Chicago.”

I sighed and said, “You never did know when to just mind your own business, Brittany.”

“It is the town’s business though, Grace. You were Tempe’s golden girl. You were smart, popular, Homecoming queen, varsity volleyball player, and dating John, the star baseball player. Plus you were nice to everyone and did community service. The entire town put you up on some kind of pedestal but then you messed everything up. I must say though that I enjoy seeing just how far the mighty Grace Williams has fallen.”

“You were always so jealous of me, weren’t you? In all the movies it’s the head cheerleader who is loved, and you were cheerleading captain so obviously you thought that’s what would happen to you. Well it didn’t. I was the better person and everyone liked me more. I even got John which pissed you off. Yeah, I know about how you tried to steal him from me. Well it didn’t work, did it?” I hissed at her.

“You never deserved John. No one believed me when I said that but after what you did the whole town now agrees with me.”

“Well if I’m so bad for him then why aren’t you dating him?”

“Because he’s fucked up thanks to you! You hurt him so badly that he doesn’t believe in relationships anymore. Go back to Chicago before you fuck up the lives of even more people. In fact, I think I’ll warn your new friend about you.” Brittany smirked.

“You’re fucking pathetic.” I spat as she turned back around.

Thankfully Reagan came into class and sat by me a few seconds later. We immediately started talking again which helped take my mind off of the conversation I had just had.

Suddenly Brittany back around and looked at Reagan as she said, “You’re Reagan, right?”

Reagan confirmed that she was and Brittany continued, “Hi, I’m Brittany. I just wanted to warn you about Grace. I’ve noticed that you’ve been talking to her a lot in this class and I just wanted to tell you that Grace will stab you in the back without a second thought. She’s kind of known around Tempe for betraying people. Miss Grace caused quite the scandal a few years back.”

I couldn’t believe that Brittany was actually saying that to Reagan. The one good thing for me in Tempe was about to be ruined.

Reagan surprised me though when she said, “Well thanks for the advice Brittany but I think I can take care of myself. Grace seems perfectly fine to me so I think I’ll keep on talking to her.”

I sighed in relief as made one last comment and then turned around. I was still upset over the whole situation though. I tried to hold the tears back because I didn’t want to start crying in class.

Reagan must have noticed how upset I was because she said, “Well my first impressions were right. The girls in this class are bitches, except for you of course.”

I just shook my head, knowing that I should be honest, and said, “She’s right though. I did a few things that I regret but they got the whole town of Tempe talking. They’re talking again now that I’m back.”

Thankfully Reagan was understanding and just said that everyone makes mistakes but they’re in the past. She also said that I was one of the nicest people she had met in Tempe and wanted to keep being friends with me.

I smiled gratefully at her and said, “Thanks. It’s nice to finally have someone who doesn’t judge me.”

“Well I think it’s time for a subject change… My brother is having a Welcome to Tempe party for me tomorrow but since I don’t know many people it’s just going to mostly be his friends. That means it will be pretty awkward for me. You should come so I’ll have someone to hang out with.” Reagan said, offering me an invite to a party at the house she shared with her brother.

I contemplated it for a few seconds but figured there’d be no harm in going so I answered, “Sure, that actually sounds kind of fun. I didn’t have any other plans except for hanging out with my parents or my pregnant sister and her husband. The party sounds like a lot more fun though.”

“Great. Here’s the address. You have no idea how glad I am that you’re coming. I don’t have any friends here yet that are girls and hanging out with guys all the time is a little overwhelming.”

The professor started class then so Reagan and I stopped talking but I smiled to myself. This party actually sounded like a good idea. I’d finally be able to meet some new people who didn’t necessarily know about my past, and who wouldn’t judge me. I’d probably even make some new friends. It seemed as if things in Tempe were finally starting to look up.