Harmony In May

The hallway was a whirlwind of chaos as students chatted with friends, lockers banged loudly, and books were pulled out, shoved to the bottom of bags. I tried to block out the noise as I twisted and turned the knob on my own locker, referring to a piece of paper once and a while to get the combination correct. It was dirty and as banged up as any of the others yet it seemed to be different, more isolated. I was stuck in my own corner of the harshly lit hallway, away from all the clusters of friends. I kept my head ducked down, my hair a dark halo around my face. It was bad enough being the new student but to be stuck a transfer in the middle of the year was even worse.
“Please welcome our new student, Miss Harmony” I clasped my hands tightly in my lap not daring to look up. Snickers echoed through the class room as the teacher announced my name. I could feel everyone’s stares on me and it was making me extremely uncomfortable. Self-consciously I brushed hair away from my face. It was cut short in the back but left longer in the front. A style I really liked but not a popular one apparently. It seemed that everything about me was unpopular.
“What kind of name is that?  You sound like a fifty year old women.” A boy in the row behind me hid a laugh behind his hand at his “clever” joke. A few other class mates laughed with him. Others just shook their heads. My cheeks flushed and my head lowered even more. I already hated this school and it was only first period.
“I think it’s pretty.” The compliment made my head tilt up a bit to catch who the speaker was. It was a small blond haired girl just to my right. She had her hair pulled back in a simple ponytail but her clothes looked expensive. As I caught her eye she smiled kindly. I smiled a tiny bit back before the rap of a ruler on a desk brought me to attention.
“Alright students if you would open your books to page…”
I prepared myself for a class period of boredom. The teacher’s voice droned on in the background. This lesson had already been covered in my old school weeks ago; I hoped my parents had thought of transferring my work. The minutes ticked by slowly on the round clock that hung above the blackboard. My eyes tracked the hands as they made their way around the face. I felt the eyes of the students on my back; they weren’t paying attention to the lesson either. They were paying attention to me. My nails scratched against the fabric of my jeans, my palms starting to sweat. One thing I hated more than anything was being the center of attention.
The bell rang and the sound of seats crashing into the desks behind them as student’s leapt up filled the class room. There was a small stampede towards the door as everyone fought to get out into the hallway and start towards their next class. I took my time gathering papers and slipping them back into my bag. My schedule lay on top of my desk next to a map of the school. I couldn’t embarrass myself anymore by getting lost going to class.
“Do you want some help?”
I looked up coming eye to eye with the blond who had spoken up for my name earlier. She was even prettier close up. Her face glowed with that natural beauty every girl would kill for. I looked down flushing. Why would someone who looked like that even talk to someone who looked like me? We were complete opposites. My ripped up pants and weather beaten leather jacket were shabby compared to her silk flower print blouse and designer jeans. She looked like a model. I just looked like loser.
“Um… No I think I’m okay.” I avoided looking back up at her. I probably did need her help but that didn’t mean I was going to admit it.
“Oh… well I have the same class as you do and I was just thinking maybe I would walk with you. My name is May.” She sounded genuine in her offer.
“Thanks for the offer, but I think I’m fine going alone.” This time I did look at her. Her eyes were such a light shade of blue. Mine were just a muddy hazel. There was no way I could stay with this girl; she was making my already low self-esteem drop down even more. I shouldered my backpack and made my way past her.
“Oh, well I guess I’ll see you around then.”
As I left her standing there in the class room I felt like I had just made a huge mistake. She was only trying to be nice. I’m sure she had a huge group of friends that she wanted to hang out with more than me anyway. She seemed like the type to be nice to everyone. I doubted we could be friends. In fact I doubted anyone here could be my friend.

The rest of the school day went by slowly. When the last bell finally managed to ring I was worn out. Who knew classes without any one to talk to could be so exhausting? Shuffling down the hallway I made my way to the exit. People were screaming at friends down the hall, some trying to make plans for the afternoon, others just saying goodbye. I kept my head low and focused on trying not to bump into somebody or trip and fall onto my face. A hand on my arm stopped me in my tracks.
My first reaction was to fight off the person holding onto me, but the grip was to light to mean any danger. I looked over my shoulder to see May smiling timidly at me.
“Hey Harmony.”
“Hi.” I turned to face her. All day she had been trying to talk to me. Avoiding conversation in a class was easier than in a hallway however.
“How was your day?” She pulled us to the side, out of the moving crowd.
“It could have been better.” I suppose I could put up with idle chat for a while. It did feel good to be talking to someone. I could hear people calling out goodbyes to her in the hall. Yet she didn’t answer any of them. All her focus was on me. It felt odd to have someone pay attention to me and for it not to be negative. The only attention I had got today was weird looks and whispered comments behind my back. I shifted awkwardly from foot to foot my bag heavy in my hands. I was waiting for her to say more but it seemed she wanted me to lead the conversation.
“Um…so do you have any homework…?” I said, wincing at my horrendous conversation skills.
“No. I was actually wondering if you had to go anywhere after school.”
“My dad’s supposed to pick me up, but he probably forgot about me. I was planning on walking home.” I found myself warming up to her. Everything she was doing was only to be kind to me, it was plain to see.
“I’ll walk with you!” She smiled big then stopped. I’m sure she saw the surprised look on my face at her enthusiasm to come with me. “I mean… if that’s okay with you. I don’t have anywhere to be for the next hour so…”
“No. It’s okay.” I looked at her and genuinely smiled for the first time since my move. “I’d love it if you kept me company.”
May smiled big back and nodded. We both started towards the door, hope stirring in my chest that just possibly I had made a friend.