Author's Note: Hey guys! So this is my first story on here! I hope you all enjoy reading it!

I hurried through the crowded corridors as students poured into their various classes. I nervously walked beside my Mother who was leading me to the reception area. My heart was pounding as fear surged through my body.

"You okay Ariel?" Mum asked me worriedly. I nodded unconvincingly.

I was extremely terrified. My face had turned a ghostly pale shade and my hands were clammy with sweat. Today was my first day at Meadow View High School. I have been homeschooled for the whole of my school life. However, my Mum had decided that it would be best for me to start my GCSEs in an ordinary secondary school. I was horrified when she told me this. I didn't need to go to public school, I was fine with being educated in my own home.

I groaned at my hideous school uniform. The long navy blue skirt stretched a little way below my knees. My white button up shirt was slightly hidden by the knitted jumper that matched my skirt and an oversized blazer that drooped down past my waist. My alarming, white knee-high socks stood out and attracted a lot of negative attention from pupils that were passing by, receiving sniggers and crude remarks.

"They're laughing at me…why are they laughing?"

"Nonsense! Nobody's laughing at you, they're just…curious," Mum replied tactfully.

I frowned at her obvious lie but decided not to push the conversation any further. We sat down on the cotton armchairs in the school entrance and waited to talk to the Head Teacher. I let my eyes wander over the building. I sat and stared in awe at the many pieces of artwork that were hung on the walls of the school entrance with pride. I've never been particular good at drawing. Mum never did Art with me at home as she always thought that it was a waste of time. Instead, she focused on teaching me the core subjects such as Maths, English and Science. I was mostly taught by sitting in the study and copying notes from old and dusty textbooks. These lessons were extremely tedious at times but I must admit, they helped me a lot.

"You must be Ariel Evans! Pleased to meet you. I am the Head Teacher of Meadow View, Mrs. Hathorne," Mrs. Hathorne said in a friendly tone of voice.

She was a small woman with short brown hair and warm brown eyes. Her skin wrinkled at the sides of her eyes when she smiled, which she was doing right now. I returned her smile and stood up to follow her to her office. "She seems nice," Mum whispered softly. I shrugged, not being one to jump to conclusions from first impressions. As we sat down in her office she gave us another one of her welcoming smiles. "How old are you again Ariel?"

"I turn fifteen next month," I mumbled quietly.

"Oh yes, I remember your mother saying so. Right then. Mrs. Evans do you have those forms for me?"

"Yes, they are right here." I watched as Mum handed Mrs. Hathorne the required forms.

"Alright then, I have sent for someone to come and take you to your first lesson Ariel. I hope you have a very enjoyable first day here at Meadow View. Our students and our staff are sure to take good care of you." I doubted this as I remembered their earlier comments about my socks.

When I didn't say anything Mum nudged me encouragingly. "I hope so…" I said under my breath.

There was a sudden knock at the door. "Come in!" Mrs. Hathorne called out cheerfully.

A tall and slim girl with feathered black hair that had a red streak in the fringe came in. Her skirt was extremely short and her shirt was unbuttoned at the top. Her blazer sat on top of her shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Her green eyes were emboldened by coal black eyeliner and mascara and she had multiple freckles on her face. She was pretty and had an apparent unique style.

"I'm here to collect Ariel Evans," she announced confidently. I stood up as she said this and waved Mrs. Hathorne and my Mother goodbye. When the door was shut, the girl inspected me.

"Ariel…that's a cute name," she said smirking. I blushed at how stupid and immature my name sounded.

"My Mum had an obsession with The Little Mermaid," I explained whilst sighing.

"I see, well my name is Jasly Harper. I'm in your Maths class, which is what we have first. So it's your first day here, huh?"

"Yep, it's so big here." Jasly laughed when I said this.

"You sound like you're in Year 7. Was your old school quite small then?"

"I've never been to a real school before. My Mum's been homeschooling me since I started to get an education.

"Seriously? Wow… You're pretty brave to come to Meadow View after being homeschooled. It takes some time to get used to this school. It's very…" I watched Jasly as she tried to find a word that would appropriately describe the school. "Well, you'll see by the end of your first lesson."

My heart started to beat faster with nerves when she'd said this. "It's that bad?"

Jasly laughed at the shocked expression on my face. "Relax, you'll fit in eventually."

My first day was terrifying. Maths was daunting. Hardly anybody listened to the teacher, Miss Dean. Instead, the boys decided to throw numerous paper airplanes at each other and the girls sat in a group, reading magazines and catching up on the latest gossip. Jasly sat next to me. She had raised her perfectly arched left eyebrow at me when I pulled out my exercise book and started working out the sums that Miss Dean had put on the board for us to work through.

"Are you actually going to bother with that?" She'd said, gesturing to my book.

"Of course…I came to school to learn didn't I?" I said sounding confused. Jasly leaned back in her chair watching me until she decided that she was bored and went to talk to some of the other girls in the class.

Most of my other classes were like this too. Jasly wasn't in any other class except for English and I didn't have that today so I ended up spending the rest of the day by myself. I got lost several times and sat by myself in the canteen at lunch. I couldn't wait to go home. When it was finally the end of the day I was extremely relieved. I grabbed my stuff quickly and rushed to get the bus. The bus was also very loud as students started to pile onto it. I sat alone at the front, trying to make myself hidden. I was beginning to really hate school.

When the bus was about to start moving, a group of Year 10s walked onto the bus. I immediately recognized Jasly amongst the group but she obviously didn't notice me as she headed towards the back row. The noise grew suddenly as a tall and lean boy got on the bus. He had dark scruffy hair that fell into his grey eyes handsomely and his hands were shoved carelessly into his trouser pockets. I swear, I could practically hear the whole population of girls on the bus swoon dramatically. He gave me a quick glance and then carried on walking to the back to meet the rest of his companions.

So...how was it? Please review!

-Amaka :)