beginning and end 1

settling in

Don't be nervous, Pearl!" Nicole reassured me. "We're all in the same homeroom. We'll stick together.

on getting to the home room we all head to their seats

As we took our seats, the teacher, Mrs. Johnson, greeted us warmly. "Good morning, class. I trust you all had a great summer?"

The class murmured in response, and Mrs. Johnson smiled. "Excellent. Now, I believe we have a new student joining us today. Pearl, would you like to introduce yourself to the class?"

I felt a surge of nervousness, but Nicole gave me an encouraging smile. I stood up, trying to composed myself. "Hi, everyone. My name is Pearl Oyekanmi,am Nigerian and I'm a junior. I just transferred here from... um... a different school

"what sort of surname is that" a boy said

and the whole class burst out laughing .

" well it definitely not as common as your ignorance" Nicki said in my defense.

The classroom fell silent, with all eyes on Nicole and the boy who had made the comment. The air was thick with tension, and you could almost hear a pin drop. The boy's face turned bright red, and he looked like he was about to shrink into his seat. Mrs. Johnson, the teacher, raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile on her face, seeming to say, "Well played, Nicole."Let's keep going..

I sat back down, feeling a mix of emotions. I was grateful to Nicole for standing up for me, but I was also embarrassed that my surname had been the subject of ridicule.

Nicole gave me a reassuring smile and whispered, "Don't mind him, Pearl. He's just a jerk."

I nodded, feeling a little better.

The rest of the day was a blur of new classes, new teachers, and new classmates. I struggled to keep up, feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information being thrown at me.

At lunchtime, Nicole and her friends invited me to sit with them in the cafeteria. I hesitated at first, feeling like an outsider, but Nicole reassured me that it was fine and am one of them now

As we sat together during lunch, Nicole turned to me with a excited grin. "Hey, Pearl, have you heard about the party tonight?"

I shook my head, curious. "What party?"

Nicole's eyes sparkled. "The one hosted by the Queen Bees – Tiffany, Brittany, McKenzie, and Morgan. It's the biggest party of the year, and everyone's going to be there."

I frowned, feeling a sense of unease. "I don't think I can go," I said.

Nicole raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

I hesitated, feeling a surge of guilt. "My mom would kill me if she found out. She's really strict about me going to parties."

Nicole leaned in, a mischievous glint in her eye. "You should sneak out, Pearl! It'll be fun, I promise."

Caroline, Archer, and Josephine, who were sitting with us, started to chime in.

"Yeah, come on, Pearl! Don't be a party pooper!" Caroline said.

"It'll be a blast!" Archer added.

Josephine leaned in, a sly smile spreading across her face. "I sneak out all the time, Pearl. It's no big deal."

I hesitated, feeling my resolve weaken. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to sneak out just this once...