Bad Luck Hannah
Orientation
I chewed my lip nervously as I walked to school, dreading it. On a normal day, I would have been so happy to leave my house behind and get to school were I could hide in the library and listen to music.
But not today.
Today was orientation for new students, or freshman, where I had just turned sixteen and become a sophomore.
That meant people would be coming in and out of the classrooms, touring our school grounds, asking for help.
I didn't mind helping them in for library, I liked talking books, it was just normal conversations that were beyond me.
I was kind of lame, and I knew that.
I ducked my head automatically as I stepped onto the school grounds, my headphones blasting music so I wouldn't be able to hear anything else. My hood was up, as we lived in a cold state, and it kept the prying eyes away from me.
I swear the front of our school looked just like the one out of Grease, flag pole included. Some people were sitting at its base, and some people were lounging at the picnic tables to the side that separated the pavilion from the parking lot.
I glanced over, seeing my brother Jason lounging against his car in in the parking lot, his girlfriend Hayley under his arm and laughing at something he was saying., their friends gathered in front of them.
We weren't close, we didn't even talk unless he was being mean to me, so I tried to leave him alone, I didn't tell Mom and Dad when he snuck off in the middle of the night, or that he smoked in his room (as if they couldn't tell by the ashtray smell), or that the only reason he'd become a senior was because I'd wrote all his essays for him last year, and I'd just been a freshman.
I sighed, letting my eyes rove to the side of the building where I was heading. There was a back door into the library, which is where I spent my last two periods thanks to the student work program. Next semester it would only be one and that really sort of devastated me.
Math was first period, then literature, which wasn't too bad.
I could talk books.
Numbers confused me though, and I really hated the fact math was my first class.
I sighed, staring down at the books I carried in my arms, stray papers sticking hazardly out of them; I wasn't a very organized person.
And this was just the first week.
Black Veil Brides burst loudly through my headphones, drowning out everything else, and it was no surprise I didn't hear the group of people I literally walked into I was so lost in thought.
I turned the corner quickly, staring at the the ground, and crashed into the back of someone, dropping my math book and my chicken scratch notes falling everywhere, one headphone ripping out. I looked down a in devastation as My notes fluttered.
"Hey!" the guy I'd rammed into grunted. "Watch it!"
"Sorry!" I burst, dropping to my knees immediately, scrambling to get all my things back together, fumbling in my haste.
I shoved the papers into my books, not caring that they wrinkled or bunched.
This was so embarrassing.
"Er, here," I glanced up, seeing the person I'd bumped up too squat down to help me gather everything back, and I blinked, seeing he had tattoos on his hands.
I hesitated, then took the papers he offered me, rising instantly to my feet.
I didn't recognize any of the boys standing in a half circle, smoking, and all staring at me. There was two girls with them, probably their girlfriends, their makeup thick but pretty.
I flushed, my eyes flicking nervously to the library door they were blocking.
They must be new or something, we were always getting transfers, so I wasn't surprised I didn't know them.
I honestly knew hardly anyone I went to school with, I didn't like talking to people, I got nervous and always came off sounding really stupid and lame.
Everyone thought I was weird.
Jasons weird little sister.
I hovered in place a moment, unsure whether to just turn around and leave or go through the door like normal.
The really tall thin guy moved to the side, raising his painted brows. "You need through the door?"
I nodded, feeling my face flush, and I darted hastily forward, keeping my eyes down as I shoved the exit door open and escaped into the dark interior, letting my breath go.
That was awful.
I walked to the front, seeing Mr. Turner already sitting at the computers by the front doors, his shaved head gleaming. I sent him a smile as I let my things drop onto the table behind his desk, seeing I had ten minutes before the bell rang for school to start.
I sat down with a sigh, trying to straighten out my wrinkled notes.
"What happened there?" Mr. Turner asked, turning around in his chair, looking amused. He was tall, probably in his forties and really nice to talk too, and really athletic; he rode his bicycle to school and back every morning unless it was raining.
"I dropped my books," I sighed, letting my hood fall off my hair.
Jason said my hair looked horrible, but I liked it.
I was naturally a soft blonde, but I had black streaks coursing through it in thick waves, and I thought it looked really cool and so had the lady who'd done my hair. It was longer then I usually kept it, and I always made sure it was straightened.
Otherwise it really did look bad.
"Wouldn't be because of those kids camping outside, would it?" Mr. Turner asked, raising his brows. "I ran into them this morning when I was unlocking everything. Kind of rough new students, huh?"
"Yeah, I don't recognize any of them."
The other high school across town had closed down due to then fact there wasn't many students going there, so all of them were at our school now, which was probably the worst idea the school district had ever had.
Overcrowding was going to be a major issue.
I frowned, unable to find where the notes were supposed to go in my book, so I gave up, sticking them in the front cover.
I cringed as the bell rang, and Mr. Turner hopped to his feet, unlocking the front doors and letting me out with an encouraging smile.
"Have a good day, Hannah!"
"You too!"
I hesitated as I started in the hallway, the swarm of people thick and all of them very rude. If they didn't stop in front of you, they walked too fast, or because I was short I couldn't muscle my way through them, and I Almost ended up being late to my first period.
I felt my stomach drop as I realized the only open seat was halfway to the front, and I hastily scurried there, not even glancing around the room. I always tried to sit in the back, the teacher was less likely to call on me.
Math was definitely not my thing.
I felt like the first hour took absolutely forever, and by the time second period was out it was all I could do not to crawl out the window.
Lunch was going to be a disaster this year, there was no way our cafeteria was going to be big enough to support all the students and get them seated and fed within one hour.
I waited until the halls were mostly clear before I went to my locker, shoving my books inside with with a huff. I strained, reaching for my bag where I'd tossed it on the top shelf in a hurry. My fingers brushed the strap, but I was just too short to pull on it.
I took a step back, growing aggravated, and went to reach again when a pale hand suddenly closed over it, pulling it down for me and dropping it into my hands.
I looked over, then up, seeing it was the guy who'd been leaning against the door this morning, his eyebrows artfully painted on.
Jeez, why couldn't my eyebrows turn out that great?
"um, thanks," I mumbled, putting it over my shoulder, hastily closing my locker door when I saw him looking inside.
"No problem. Where's the gym?"
"Go all the way down the, um, hall here, turn left, and it's the very last doors," I mumbled, keeping my eyes on his black t shirt, not recognizing the band on it.
"Thanks, I'm Chris, by the way. Sorry about this morning."
"It was my bad," I told him, never once looking up at his face as I stepped around him nervously. "Nice to meet you."
I just wanted to go hide in the library.
"Er, wait a sec," he burst, and my footsteps hesitated. I glanced over my shoulder.
"Could you at least show me the cafeteria? I'm kind of lost."
What, he couldn't follow the pack of other students all heading that way?
"Sure." I turned around, mentally grimacing. It was going to be loud and packed and awful. "This way."
"Thanks," he easily kept pace with my shorter frame. "What's your name?"
God, had I not told him?
"Hannah."
"Cool.. Have you always gone here?"
"Yeah."
"What grade are you?"
"S-sophomore."
I wished he'd stop asking me questions.
I upped my pace, making him stride to keep up with me, and I turned the last corner, leading him to the open lunch room doors, the line for food a mile long.
"Here you go."
"Thanks. This place is so big I got lost," he sighed, tugging his beanie lower on his head, his hair tucked in it so I couldn't see what color it was.
I glanced up at him curiously.
He was so tall.
I was barely five three.
I let my eyes scan the cafeteria, finding his friends pretty easily. They were hard to miss, loud and laughing and carrying on.
Chris spied them not long after I did, and gave me a smile.
"Thanks for the guide, Hannah."
I nodded, stepping away from him to head back in the direction of the library.
I watched him walk off and sit down with his friends, all of them dark haired and kind of rough looking, like you definitely wouldn't want to he caught in in a dark alley and bump into them.
I sighed.
It must be nice to have so many friends.
"Yo, Hannah Banana!"
Uh oh.
I turned with a cringe, my fingers clenching into the strap of my bag as my brother trotted over to me. He frowned at my hair, then handed me a bunch of papers.
"I got an essay due at the end of the week, this is what it's over."
"Jason, I can't, I have so much home work---."
"Don't be lame, Hannah, just do it. It's not like you've got anything better to do," he shoved the papers at me when I didn't immediately take them. "Just make sure I pass. If I fail, you're gonna hear about it big time."
But not today.
Today was orientation for new students, or freshman, where I had just turned sixteen and become a sophomore.
That meant people would be coming in and out of the classrooms, touring our school grounds, asking for help.
I didn't mind helping them in for library, I liked talking books, it was just normal conversations that were beyond me.
I was kind of lame, and I knew that.
I ducked my head automatically as I stepped onto the school grounds, my headphones blasting music so I wouldn't be able to hear anything else. My hood was up, as we lived in a cold state, and it kept the prying eyes away from me.
I swear the front of our school looked just like the one out of Grease, flag pole included. Some people were sitting at its base, and some people were lounging at the picnic tables to the side that separated the pavilion from the parking lot.
I glanced over, seeing my brother Jason lounging against his car in in the parking lot, his girlfriend Hayley under his arm and laughing at something he was saying., their friends gathered in front of them.
We weren't close, we didn't even talk unless he was being mean to me, so I tried to leave him alone, I didn't tell Mom and Dad when he snuck off in the middle of the night, or that he smoked in his room (as if they couldn't tell by the ashtray smell), or that the only reason he'd become a senior was because I'd wrote all his essays for him last year, and I'd just been a freshman.
I sighed, letting my eyes rove to the side of the building where I was heading. There was a back door into the library, which is where I spent my last two periods thanks to the student work program. Next semester it would only be one and that really sort of devastated me.
Math was first period, then literature, which wasn't too bad.
I could talk books.
Numbers confused me though, and I really hated the fact math was my first class.
I sighed, staring down at the books I carried in my arms, stray papers sticking hazardly out of them; I wasn't a very organized person.
And this was just the first week.
Black Veil Brides burst loudly through my headphones, drowning out everything else, and it was no surprise I didn't hear the group of people I literally walked into I was so lost in thought.
I turned the corner quickly, staring at the the ground, and crashed into the back of someone, dropping my math book and my chicken scratch notes falling everywhere, one headphone ripping out. I looked down a in devastation as My notes fluttered.
"Hey!" the guy I'd rammed into grunted. "Watch it!"
"Sorry!" I burst, dropping to my knees immediately, scrambling to get all my things back together, fumbling in my haste.
I shoved the papers into my books, not caring that they wrinkled or bunched.
This was so embarrassing.
"Er, here," I glanced up, seeing the person I'd bumped up too squat down to help me gather everything back, and I blinked, seeing he had tattoos on his hands.
I hesitated, then took the papers he offered me, rising instantly to my feet.
I didn't recognize any of the boys standing in a half circle, smoking, and all staring at me. There was two girls with them, probably their girlfriends, their makeup thick but pretty.
I flushed, my eyes flicking nervously to the library door they were blocking.
They must be new or something, we were always getting transfers, so I wasn't surprised I didn't know them.
I honestly knew hardly anyone I went to school with, I didn't like talking to people, I got nervous and always came off sounding really stupid and lame.
Everyone thought I was weird.
Jasons weird little sister.
I hovered in place a moment, unsure whether to just turn around and leave or go through the door like normal.
The really tall thin guy moved to the side, raising his painted brows. "You need through the door?"
I nodded, feeling my face flush, and I darted hastily forward, keeping my eyes down as I shoved the exit door open and escaped into the dark interior, letting my breath go.
That was awful.
I walked to the front, seeing Mr. Turner already sitting at the computers by the front doors, his shaved head gleaming. I sent him a smile as I let my things drop onto the table behind his desk, seeing I had ten minutes before the bell rang for school to start.
I sat down with a sigh, trying to straighten out my wrinkled notes.
"What happened there?" Mr. Turner asked, turning around in his chair, looking amused. He was tall, probably in his forties and really nice to talk too, and really athletic; he rode his bicycle to school and back every morning unless it was raining.
"I dropped my books," I sighed, letting my hood fall off my hair.
Jason said my hair looked horrible, but I liked it.
I was naturally a soft blonde, but I had black streaks coursing through it in thick waves, and I thought it looked really cool and so had the lady who'd done my hair. It was longer then I usually kept it, and I always made sure it was straightened.
Otherwise it really did look bad.
"Wouldn't be because of those kids camping outside, would it?" Mr. Turner asked, raising his brows. "I ran into them this morning when I was unlocking everything. Kind of rough new students, huh?"
"Yeah, I don't recognize any of them."
The other high school across town had closed down due to then fact there wasn't many students going there, so all of them were at our school now, which was probably the worst idea the school district had ever had.
Overcrowding was going to be a major issue.
I frowned, unable to find where the notes were supposed to go in my book, so I gave up, sticking them in the front cover.
I cringed as the bell rang, and Mr. Turner hopped to his feet, unlocking the front doors and letting me out with an encouraging smile.
"Have a good day, Hannah!"
"You too!"
I hesitated as I started in the hallway, the swarm of people thick and all of them very rude. If they didn't stop in front of you, they walked too fast, or because I was short I couldn't muscle my way through them, and I Almost ended up being late to my first period.
I felt my stomach drop as I realized the only open seat was halfway to the front, and I hastily scurried there, not even glancing around the room. I always tried to sit in the back, the teacher was less likely to call on me.
Math was definitely not my thing.
I felt like the first hour took absolutely forever, and by the time second period was out it was all I could do not to crawl out the window.
Lunch was going to be a disaster this year, there was no way our cafeteria was going to be big enough to support all the students and get them seated and fed within one hour.
I waited until the halls were mostly clear before I went to my locker, shoving my books inside with with a huff. I strained, reaching for my bag where I'd tossed it on the top shelf in a hurry. My fingers brushed the strap, but I was just too short to pull on it.
I took a step back, growing aggravated, and went to reach again when a pale hand suddenly closed over it, pulling it down for me and dropping it into my hands.
I looked over, then up, seeing it was the guy who'd been leaning against the door this morning, his eyebrows artfully painted on.
Jeez, why couldn't my eyebrows turn out that great?
"um, thanks," I mumbled, putting it over my shoulder, hastily closing my locker door when I saw him looking inside.
"No problem. Where's the gym?"
"Go all the way down the, um, hall here, turn left, and it's the very last doors," I mumbled, keeping my eyes on his black t shirt, not recognizing the band on it.
"Thanks, I'm Chris, by the way. Sorry about this morning."
"It was my bad," I told him, never once looking up at his face as I stepped around him nervously. "Nice to meet you."
I just wanted to go hide in the library.
"Er, wait a sec," he burst, and my footsteps hesitated. I glanced over my shoulder.
"Could you at least show me the cafeteria? I'm kind of lost."
What, he couldn't follow the pack of other students all heading that way?
"Sure." I turned around, mentally grimacing. It was going to be loud and packed and awful. "This way."
"Thanks," he easily kept pace with my shorter frame. "What's your name?"
God, had I not told him?
"Hannah."
"Cool.. Have you always gone here?"
"Yeah."
"What grade are you?"
"S-sophomore."
I wished he'd stop asking me questions.
I upped my pace, making him stride to keep up with me, and I turned the last corner, leading him to the open lunch room doors, the line for food a mile long.
"Here you go."
"Thanks. This place is so big I got lost," he sighed, tugging his beanie lower on his head, his hair tucked in it so I couldn't see what color it was.
I glanced up at him curiously.
He was so tall.
I was barely five three.
I let my eyes scan the cafeteria, finding his friends pretty easily. They were hard to miss, loud and laughing and carrying on.
Chris spied them not long after I did, and gave me a smile.
"Thanks for the guide, Hannah."
I nodded, stepping away from him to head back in the direction of the library.
I watched him walk off and sit down with his friends, all of them dark haired and kind of rough looking, like you definitely wouldn't want to he caught in in a dark alley and bump into them.
I sighed.
It must be nice to have so many friends.
"Yo, Hannah Banana!"
Uh oh.
I turned with a cringe, my fingers clenching into the strap of my bag as my brother trotted over to me. He frowned at my hair, then handed me a bunch of papers.
"I got an essay due at the end of the week, this is what it's over."
"Jason, I can't, I have so much home work---."
"Don't be lame, Hannah, just do it. It's not like you've got anything better to do," he shoved the papers at me when I didn't immediately take them. "Just make sure I pass. If I fail, you're gonna hear about it big time."