memories of high school..

[Nidge Masterson]

"Uh, no, I think I'll take the long way." Alice nodded her head a few times too many, it made me grin.

"Right." I turned the other way, pressing my lips together again. It'd be hard to stop myself from laughing while around this girl.

I glanced back and stopped again, waving a sort goodbye although we'd meet again soon in the same class. Her face chanced colors, more of a tomato-ish now, as she waved back slightly, turning around as fast as possible. Wiggle room... I mused silently, turning the corner.

A few girls turned their heads' toward me and then whispered amongst each other, giggling. Then there were others who just gave me confused looks. The classroom was just up ahead and I got there without the warning bell ringing--that was a first. Most of the other students had already arrived and plenty were coming up to me asking if I was the newbie there.

"I didn't think I'd get such a welcome wagon!" I laughed aloud, noticing that there was a huge group of students huddled around me making small talk and asking for the seat beside mine.

Just then, a familiar voice came in. "What's goin' on?"

"I dunno," replied another, I didn't know this one.

I stood up and looked over the crowd, Alice had just arrived with another girl. "Hey, Alice," I waved, sitting back down.

The crowd around me seemed to part a little and all eyes darted over to her. That was weird, I thought, looking around at the others. Was it always this odd here? Alice blushed again at all the attention and gave me a small, "Hey," before averting her eyes.

The teacher, a stout, dark haired man with a seemingly permanent frown on his face, walked into the room, pushing aside Alice and her friend, and then dispersed the crowd to their seats. He took a glance at me and "harumphed" sort of. Alice and her friend walked near my desk, and, while the man at the front was shuffling papers, I turned and grabbed her wrist.

"Hey, wanna sit with me?" I whispered quickly, watching her face grow a bright pink with every ticking second. "I'm sure there's plenty of... wiggle room?" I shook my body from side to side, wiggling, my hair flung around me messily. And, when I stopped, I raised an eyebrow, awaiting her answer, and pursed my lips together, desperatly trying to keep myself from cracking up. "Well?"

Alice

Alice wore a mask of shock and disgust. Is he making fun of me? she thought. Alice pulled Jaclyn, her best friend, forward to the front of the room, two rows in front of Nidge.

"Well, children," the teacher said. "I am Harvey Johnson..." his voice faded into the background. Alice was too focused on what Nidge had said. Has he been internally laughing at me this whole time? Alice thought. I'm so tired of people treating me like that. Alice began making mental plans to confront Nidge on his rudeness. Hopefully her seat-evasion clued him in. She began to become steaming mad. Who was he, a new student, to harass a poor, innocent girl who was kind enough to give him directions to his next class and make small talk with him? He had some nerve.

"You may chat amongst yourselves for the remainder of the period," Mr. Johnson said. "Try to maintain a dull roar."

Alice heard every chair in the room scrape against the floor as students got up. Nidge walked to the front of her desk. "So, you don't like me. That's okay."

"I'm sorry, but friends don't let friends attend school drunk." Alice waved her arms at her side and shook her chair, as he had done.

"That's good, seeing as we're not friends. I can continue coming to school inebriated." He crossed his arms.

The bell rang. He continued to stand there.

Alice gathered her books and placed them at her hip. "Good luck meeting people here who you don't turn off five minutes after you meet them. At this rate, you won't have any friends to stop you from getting drunk."

And she walked out.

Paige

I walked out of Spanish, already bored with the school day.

"Hey Alice," I greeted as we walked by each other in the hall.

"Hey Paige," she said roughly.

"Soooo... what hour do you have next?"

"Ugh, gym," she said, checking her schedule and making a face.

"Oh cool! So do I!" I smiled.

She just half smiled and shrugged.

"What's up?" I asked.

[Nidge Masterson]

I scraped my feet against the cool tile underneath slowly, no emotion showed on my face. It was just... blank. Thinking. What was that about? I shoved my hands in my pocket and quickened my pace. She has some temper. I didn't even do anything!

"Geez, what did I do anyway?" I asked myself, spotting Alice just ahead with another girl.

I jogged up ahead so I'd be right behind them. The girl, nor Alice, seemed to notice me. "Before you make quick judments," I started, my lips turning down at the corners. "I wasn't making fun of you."

Alice swivled around with her friend, a sort of shocked look crossing her face. Her mouth moved slightly like she was about to come back with something, so I darted in before she was able to.

"And if you always make quick remarks such as the one in class about people, I'm surprised you have any friends. It's a sort of shock you didn't turn off people after the first five minutes." I glanced over at the girl beside her, then back to Alice. "See ya later, maybe."

After a second of silence I walked around them in one simple stride and started down the hall again. I didn't want to let her get something into the short, one-man conversation, but, to my disappointment, I hear my name being called behind me. The corners of my lips turned down a little more as I turned around.

Alice

Alice watched as Jaclyn walked over to Nidge. "Jackie! What are you doing?" she called. Jaclyn kept walking. She finally reached Nidge.

"Okay, listen up. I saw what you did in class. Yeah, maybe I don't get the underlying joke there, but it certainly didn't seem like my idea of good-natured fun. Now, Alice is my best friend, and has been since kindergarten, when she traded me her cupcake for a packet of carrots. She's been through a whole lot in her life, and she's never done anything unjustified or malicious, so if you did something that hurt her, even if you didn't mean it, you'd better march over there and apologize."

"Look, er, sorry what's your name?"

She glared at him. "Jaclyn."

"Yeah, uh, Jaclyn. I doubt that what Alice has been through is worse than anything I've heard of. Just--"

"Her brother was killed by a drunk driver, her mom divorced her father, and has, in the last two months, become an alchoholic and a gambling addict. Her father is the manager of Pearl's Dry Cleaning down in McIntyre Square. Don't ever tell her I told you that."

Nidge didn't look up for a while, but when he did his face was the same as before--blank, unaffected. "Just tell her I'm sorry for whatever I did, okay?"

Jaclyn walked back to Alice. "What was that about? Jackie, what did you say?"

"Nothing, I just told him to back off. Calm down, Alice." Jackie walked away.

"Hey, Alice." Paige's familiar voice called to her.

"Oh, hey, Paige," Alice responded, a little choked up.

"What hour do you have next?" She smiled as Alice checked her schedule.

"Ugh! Gym." Alice made a face.

"Cool, so do I!" Paige responded, enthusiastic.

Alice smiled.

"Uh, what's up?"

"Eh, just some drama with my locker neighbor."

"Oh, yeah. Catfights."

Alice laughed. "Not exactly. His name is Nidge Masterson. Apparently he--" Alice cut off.

Paige looked confused. "He what?"

"Nevermind. Anyway, how was your summer?"

Paige willingly changed topic. "Great. Too short, though. I am so not ready to be in school again."

"Yeah." Alice nodded as they walked down the hallway.

"So, what did you do?"

"Huh?" Alice said absentmindedly.

"To your shoulder?" Paige was looking at the bruised cuts no longer hidden under Alice's short sleeve and long hair.

Alice shrugged, which maneuvered her hair over the injury again. "Softball has its price. Especially when played with rather competitive teenagers."

Paige nodded. "Speaking of sports, are you doing volleyball in the spring?"

Alice shrugged. "I guess. I may even do the winter season if I can get conditioned."

"Join the soccer team. You'd be a great goalie, and you'd get running in," Paige suggested.

"I'll think about it."

*Hey guys, do any of you'll have a problem if we change the name of the story book because I have started writing a story with kind o a similar title....Please does any of you'll mind changing the title and do any of you'll have any suggestions??*

As the three of them were walking, Natasha rushed behind them.
"Hi," Natasha greeted everyone."So what you guys talking about?"
"Soccer!" Paige said.
"what you guys have now?" Natasha said.
"gym.."
"cool! I have to suffer in class...I have English!" Natasha was disgusted.
Paige giggled.

Natasha noticed that Alice wasn't speaking much. It was because Alice didn't like to talk to the popular girls.

"Whats up with you, Alice? Forgot how to talk??" Natasha said in a way she thought was funny.
Alice exploded at once. Her anger for Nidge combined with Natasha's.
"Listen, just because you go to Europe for your summer vacations and spend thousands on those dolce and gabbanaa shoes doesn't give you the right to judge me! I knew coming back to school wouldn't turn out well."

*Hey guys, we need to have this story going somewhere...We need a plot. Lets discuss it. I am gonna make a discussion thread in the storybook discussion forum...check it out!!"

Paige

I noticed Alice had been unusually sour today, especially to Natasha.

"You sure that you're okay Alice? Anything you wanna talk--"

"No, I'm perfectly happy!" she shouted, a little loudly.

"Okay, well I'll see you guys later! Bye!" Natasha said.

I grinned slyly at Alice as we walked quietly down to gym. "That new guy is cute. Nidge Matterson? Yeah, the one Jaclyn was talking to earlier."

She looked at me like I was crazy. "Oh my gosh! Trust me, he's not as great as he seems. I know."

"Mmm-hm."

"Yes! I do!" she cried indignantly.

It was hard to suppress a giggle.

*I don't mind if you change the title fun4ever. *

[Nidge Masterson]

This is going to be an irritating year. I thought, taking out my schedule and skimming over it again. Chemistry. I started a slow jog down the hall, taking the next corner and then jogging down again until I reached Mr. Templer's class.

He was a skinny, sort of lanky, man. Balding black hair at the top and a one of those mustaches that you always see with old, evil villains. The one that you curl at the ends and laugh maniacally. His personality was different though, jolly and loud. One of those outgoing teachers and do their best to know each and every one of their students names.

"Why welcome! Welcome! Please, uh," he paused a moment.

"Nidge Masterson."

"Yes! Nidge! What a fine name. Please, please, sit down!" Templer waved his arms over the class. "Pick a table and take a seat anywhere. I like to give my class a free choice of seat, not letting the 'man' hold 'em down." he nodded seriously.

"Um, thanks." I smiled a little crookedly and then took a seat in the middle/back end of the class.

A few more people came in, all being greeted by an overly cheerful by Mr. Templer. I stuffed my binder and chemistry book under the desk. Templer took out a rocket about a foot tall and pulled on a pair of goggles.

"Here's out first project!"

Maybe this won't be so boring after all...

*Hey, I was wondering if anyone's been officially 'claimed'.*

Mr. Scott was walking through the halls when he was stopped by another teacher, "Don't you have a class right now John?"

"No, this is my free period, but I have a class next." He continued to walk until he reached the copy room.

(Feel free to have global as your next class with my character.)

Tanya slowly entered after him.
"good afternoon sir." she whispered.
Mr.Scott looked at his watch and raised an eyebrow.
"I ...mean...good morning," Tanya mumbled.
"Why are you whispering? And aren't you supposed to be in class young lady?" Mr. Scott asked in a firm, but yet friendly way.
"Well, English actually. But there's something I need to talk to you about."
"Hmm. I am sure whatever it is, we can talk about it later. Meet me during lunch in my room. Now go attend your classes. ok?"
"sure." Tanya said as she left the room and caught up with Aya.
"hey, Aya wait up!"

*Guys how about this name?? memories of high school??If any of you'll wanna changet please PM me and let me know...*

Gregorius clampere:

He was leaving the school. He took his old Mercedes and drove home. When he was home he threw his briefcase on the floor and walked to his living room. There he took his cat on his lap.

"How are you today Mr. Figgles?"

The cat purred on his lap.

"Good." Mr. Clampere said.

Hayley sat on the bench outside of the headmasters office, with her feet up on the wall. Her feet slid down the wall leaving a brown stain. ''Woops'' Hayley said quitely and grinned. She sat and watched the time go by.

Alice

She exited the gym, finally calm. I need to calm down today. It's only second period. Chill, Alice, chill. She finally made it to her locker, feeling out of sorts. Nidge wasn't there, but since when did she care? Alice just began to gather her books for Choir. Suddenly, Nidge was beside her, not a word spoken.

Alice rushed in closing her locker, and her assignment book/ organizer/ calendar fell out of her arms without her noticing. "I'm sorry, Nidge," she said.

Nidge looked up. "Aren't we all...."

Alice shook her head. "No, really. I'm just a little touchy today. Ya know, hormones. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything."

Nidge just stood up, all strong and silent, and said, "Yeah, you're forgiven."

Alice smiled. "Sorry we got off to a bad start. I--oh, I have to get to Choir. See you later, okay?"

Nidge nodded. "'Kay."

Alice rushed down the hall, barely making it into the room.



*summer, I'm thinking Nidge and Alice may end up together. So long as it's okay with kittykat.*