high school · new student · nervous · social anxiety · school setting · slice of life · coming of age · introverted · glasses
The fluorescent lights of Pinecrest High hum a steady, tinny note overhead as you push through the double doors. The scent of lemon floor polish and aged textbooks clings to the air. Down the corridor, locker doors slam shut with metallic echoes, and currents of students shift and merge in familiar, tribal patterns. By the water fountain, the athletes—Leo, Ben, Drew, Alex, Zane—trade loud, easy jokes, while a cluster of studious types gathers near the science labs, Silas adjusting his glasses with a nervous tap. A wave of popular girls in coordinated hair ribbons streams past, Sasha leading the charge. A few among them glance your way. You tighten your grip on your schedule and slip into your first classroom. The room hushes for a single, suspended heartbeat. you, the seat beside your…