The First Day (Editable)

Aksa's first day at her new school!

If there was one thing to know about Andres Cannon, it was that he hated mornings. It was like his normal personality shifted backwards and let loose some kind of mumbling ghoul. Or, that’s how I always saw it. Living in the same house would do that to you. You learn things about each-other that you never wanted to know, and, being related, we messed with each other incessantly about it. Boxes laid around like sleeping cats, on top of everything and balanced above each other. Some were labeled, others contents’ remained a mystery. My dad was still in bed, but Andres was up and about, shuffling in his room to my left. Could he make any less noise?

I hauled myself off of the mattress that was my temporary bed.

“First day of a new school.” I muttered. “I can do this. Just don’t be noticed.” With that statement, my feet hit the carpeted floor of my empty room. For some god-awful reason, dad liked it really cold at night, which led to me freezing in the mornings while I got ready. I threw on a long sweater, a pair of leggings, and flats before heading into the bare bathroom. I hated moving. I mean, what was this, the fifth time, now?

I had what I needed laid out on the white tile counter, just a hairbrush and all that. I dragged said brush through my dull brown hair, ignoring the small amount of makeup I had stashed in a drawer. Not like it would help, really. I looked in the mirror, chuckling to myself. I looked like a basket case, in this getup.

“Okay, I have that.” I muttered. “So I need this,” I grabbed an arrow necklace, “and that should be it.” I made my way into the kitchen, nearly bumping into my brother as he was going towards the bathroom.

“Watch it, Tiny.” Andres said sleepily, referring to my small stature.

“But that makes my neck hurt.” I whiningly complained, and Andres smiled a bit. “I’ll have something ready when you come out, Hermano.”

“Thanks.” He replied, walking in and about to shut the door. I was going to say something, make a jab at him, but the door shut before I could do anything, Although he was two years older, and a whole heck of a lot bigger, we still treated each other pretty equally. I shrugged off the missed opportunity and walked into the kitchen. I’m lucky dad made a grocery store run last night, so I had some stuff to work with. It didn’t take long for Andres to come out of the bathroom, and I had some toast on a paper plate for him. Mine was already in my mouth.

“Hurry up, Iron Man.” I told him through a mouthful of bread and peanut butter. He looked at me and smiled, grabbing the plate.

“I can walk and eat.” He responded, tossing the plate and shouldering his bag. I did the same, “And don’t call me that at school, ‘kay?”

“You got it. Though I doubt anybody would try and mess with you.” I told him truthfully, slipping out the door and towards the end of our street, where our bus would be in about five minutes.

“Heh, let’s hope you’re right.” He said. To be honest, I probably was. Andres was a freaking giant, or at least compared to me. I was only 5’4”, while he stood a foot above me or so. He was also pretty well built. If I wasn’t related to him I might find him cute, actually. He played sports, did decent in school, and overall did more than me.

I was happy to have him as a brother, no doubt, although he could be really scary when he got mad. I tried to avoid that.

“Hey, are you gonna be okay? We’re not going to a small school anymore, you know.” Andres asked/told me. “You’ve always been a bit shy…”

“A bit is an understatement.” I laughed to myself. “But I’ll be okay. I can always come find you during free period if I’m having trouble, right?” Andres nodded.

“Yep.” Was the simple reply, and we hit the stop sign. The yellow monstrosity of a bus slowly rumbled around the corner. We were the last stop, so we would probably be seperated, but it was a short ride. Andres boarded first, after it stopped, of course, and I followed. He found a seat in the back, and I took one next to a black-haired girl in jeans and a band t-shirt. She didn’t talk to me, I didn’t talk to her. Perfect. I was one of the first ones off, and I waited for my brother, who was already talking to someone. I strayed behind them, and the two led me to the office. This place really was big.

After they went through, I came up to the desk.

“What can I do for you today, sweetie?” Asked the older black woman at the front desk.

“I’m Aksa Cannon, the new student?” I asked her calmly.

“Ah, I’ve been waiting for you. Here’s your schedule, and a map. If you get lost, feel free to come down here and ask for me. I’m Mrs. Smith.” She told me kindly. I nodded, took the papers, and bailed. Interaction with people… was never my strong suit.

People were talking everywhere, and the noise grated against my ears. I found the staircase and headed into the top floor of the school, going right and into the hallway where my class was. It was U.S. History, taught by… Gerald Brown? Brown… Brown… oh, there is was! Room 248. I slipped inside and found an older man, with a strict face and brown hair, a bald spot on top.

“Mr. Brown?” I asked. “I’m the new student?”

“You’re Ms. Cannon, then.” He said, his voice kinder then I would have expected. “I have a book for you, some papers, and in case you need it, I grabbed an extra binder.”

“Thank you sir.” I told him, coming up to receive the papers and book.

“Just pick a seat anywhere.” He told me, and I nodded, finding one towards the board and his desk, which was littered with papers, a globe, maps, and several desk toys that were constantly in motion. I smiled. I liked him. Being the first one in the room, I got a good look at everyone coming in. Most of them were in groups, and I categorized them as I saw fit.

A group of guys with second bags full of sports stuff were the jocks, for instance. There were three of them, and one had a pretty brunette girl by his side. Those two were probably dating or something. Anyway, the bell rang a couple minutes later.

“Settle down, class.” Mr. Brown called over the chatter. “We have a new student today, her name is Aksa. Please introduce yourself at some point today, alright?” He said. Boy was I glad he didn’t have me come up and introduce myself.

“I’m going to go right from where we left off in the Civil War. Get your textbooks and turn to page 104.” He continued, writing the page number on the board. “Read that first passage while I take attendance.”

The passage was on The Battle of Gettysburg, and I handled it well enough. Mr. Brown stood up five minutes later and started lecturing. He didn’t exactly teach the way I liked, (Hands-on solo stuff,) but he was super nice and seemed to know what he was talking about.  

“Class dismissed.” He said as the bell rang. “I have a worksheet for you on the last couple chapters, Aksa, you will have a few extra days. Grab it on your way out please!”

Author's Note

Please tell me anything I need to fix. I mean anything! Ideas for sibling banter are appreciated.n