Novella #1, Chapter 2: Third Wheel

Hannah and Emily were both entering their first day of high school. Standing outside the front door of the building, they turned to face each other and smiled for a moment. There was a lot of indistinct chatter going on around them, and on the left hand side of the entrance, two tables were set up. Some of the seniors were left to stand behind it, handing out orientation packets and class schedules to the freshmen.

Feeling nervous and awkward, Hannah told Emily, "I guess we should make our way over there to that table."

"Sure. Lead the way," she said.

They made their way to the table and were greeted by a girl whose perky smile was contagious. "Hi there! What are your names?," she asked. 

Hannah spoke up for both of them, "My name is Hannah Martin and this is Emily Leighton." 

"Alright! Let me see if I can find your papers," the girl said as she rummaged through the stacks of folders. "Oh, here they are! Now, the first place you'll need to go to is to the gym. From there you'll be notified of what to do next."

The school was very spacious inside. The cafeteria wasn't that far away from the main entrance, and right adjacent to it was the gym. Across from the entrance was a grand staircase that lead to hallways left and right. Most of the kids who were inside were talking, walking to their lockers, or just sitting in common area to the left. There were a couple students here and there who looked lost, but everyone else seemed to fit right in and were able to find their friends. 

The two girls made their way to the gym and found a spot on the floor far from the crowds of freshmen in the center. 

"I'm kind of nervous, Em," Hannah said. 

"I am as well," she responded. "I didn't think the school would be this huge. It would take me forever to get from class to class."

"At least the tour will be lead by a senior and not some old teacher who walks at a very slow speed," Hannah said with a smile. That made the two girls laugh for a minute, but then they drifted back into an uneasy silence. 

A scrawny boy with hair in a bowl cut and glasses came walking in and sat down a foot away from the two best friends. He didn't pay any attention to them as he sat down and reached for a book out of his backpack and started to read it. It was a nonfiction read entitled "Historical Documentaries of Past Presidents". Seeing that in his hands made Emily smirk a little. "I didn't know that nerds were also a thing in high school," she said sarcastically. She chuckled to herself after making that comment which Hannah noticed, so she glared at her for a long moment.

"That's not nice, Em," Hannah said. "You shouldn't judge people you don't know."

Emily looked at her innocently and said, "What's the big deal? It's not like either one of us are going to talk to him."

Hannah hesitated for a minute, but after taking a deep breath she said, "Maybe you wouldn't, but I certainly would."

"Are you serious?," Emily asked with a surprised look on her face.

Hannah looked at her with no expression on her face and then moved to sit next to the guy. 

To her surprise, Hannah and the boy were actually talking comfortably to each other. Seeing them in that position made Emily feel a little insecure and lonely. But before she was able to get up and escape from the gym, two seniors walked in the room. One was wearing a football jersey and blue jeans, and the other was wearing a plain, white mini skirt and T-shirt with the school's logo on it. They told the students to stand up and follow them to the student store, which was the first stop of their campus tour. 

For most of the tour, Hannah was standing next to and talking to that boy. Emily just stood there by herself in the large crowd of freshmen, trying to focus on what the seniors were saying about this statue they were looking at which stood outside across from the senior courtyard. Suddenly she was getting hungry and wished lunch would get here sooner. Emily's train of thought stopped when Hannah jumped in front of her. She smiled and gave her a hug, and she hugged Hannah back. 

"So how are you doing, Emily?" Hannah asked, the smile still apparent on her face.
"I'm doing okay," she said, feeling tired and anxious. "I'm a little hungry right now. When is this tour going to be over?"

Hannah looked over at the two seniors then back to her best friend and said, "I think the senior girl said that lunch will be in 30 minutes or so. You know that boy we were sitting next to in the gym? While we were talking, I found out that he used to live in the same area I grew up in. You know, East Hartford? Turns out we were neighbors and I never knew about it! Oh, I think his name is Gavin, just in case you were wondering about that." Emily has never seen her best friend this excited, and even though she was getting weary from this long day, she relaxed herself and smiled. 

"It's cool that you two have something in common," she said. "Perhaps the three of us could hang out together some time. Why don't you ask Gavin if he's willing to do that? Might be good idea." She winked, and Hannah walked away to send the message, still grinning happily. If Emily knew any better, she would guess that perhaps Hannah had feelings for the guy. 

Lunch finally rolled around and the group headed back inside and towards the cafeteria. Before everyone had a chance to sit down, the two seniors in charge said that they were allowed to go to their lockers to drop off their stuff and could grab their lunch for those who brought it with them. Hannah left with the crowd. She had brought her lunch this time, but Emily was in the mood for what was set up in the cafeteria. Parents of currently enrolled students had just come in through the back door to help serve the food. Emily noticed that they had their school shirts on. It seems that school spirit is a big deal here, she thought to herself.

Once the rest of the freshmen returned to the cafeteria, the seniors signaled an okay for everyone to line up in front of the tables, ready to be served what seemed to be 3-cheese ziti, fettuccine alfredo, spaghetti with meatballs, break sticks and salad. Off to the right side was another table full of desserts and fruit options, and there was a cooler underneath that contained soft drinks and water. Emily decided to go with some of the fettuccine, spaghetti, and a salad. She then set her down the food at an empty table and came back to pick up a bowl of strawberries and water. Once she got settled, Hannah appeared and sat down across from her. Out of nowhere Gavin was standing at their table and asked if he could sit down next to them. Emily hesitated, but Hannah smiled and offered the seat next to her. 

After lunch was over, the rest of the day seemed to fly by faster to Emily's relief. The clock on the right hand wall read 2:30 pm, which meant the day would soon be over and she could go home. She was alone again, standing out in the middle of the hallway. The rest of the freshmen had spread out to compare their class schedules. Others had formed a line towards the lockers, waiting to talk to the two seniors in charge. Most likely they had questions about the teachers, where the classrooms were, or about certain items in the student store. 

Emily could see Hannah and Gavin talking excitedly in the corner of the hallway. He had said something to her and she laughed in response. She then leaned on his shoulder, and he put his arm around her. Seeing all of this made Emily feel small and empty on the inside. Was she becoming a third wheel? Two years of being best friends and suddenly this new guy comes in. Who does he think he is to do this to her? Hannah is her best friend and she wasn't ready to let this happen. The two of them have spent so much time together since the first day they met in middle school. Emily thought about confronting her best friend, but she didn't want to be rude, so she let out a sigh and left the school building to head home.