The Arts

5 - The Top of the 9th

IVAN

          Ivan's middle name was Chaos.

          Actually, his middle name was Thomas. But it may as well have been Chaos, because he lived to create it. Whether he was getting everyone's panties in a twist with his crazy comments and jokes, putting people on the spot with a camera in their face, or arranging parties where there was bound to be drama, there was just something about conflict that Ivan liked. Now more than ever.

          Ivan graduated from Hillside Middle School as decidedly the most unpopular kid in his grade. On some levels, he knew he deserved it, and upping the ante on his most undesirable personality traits unsurprisingly did nothing for his social currency. Even when he tried to backtrack and be genuine, it didn't matter. All the damage he caused had been done, and he was left at the bottom with little to no hope of rising up.

          Then he got into The Arts.

          He had submitted fragments of the documentary that he attempted to produce in the eighth grade. He couldn't use most of the footage, but what he did use turned into a case study of the jungle that was middle school. At first he didn't even think it was that good. Whether he got in on talent or based off the fact that his mom ran the most successful department of the school, Ivan wasn't sure. But what he was sure of was that he had a real chance to reinvent himself.

          By an almost unbelievable chain of events that seemed to come from just sheer luck, Ivan found himself being a freshman at the most coveted performing arts academy in the state of Ohio, friends with upperclassmen, and acquaintances with a resident Cool Kid from Hillside.

          It was amazing how drastically things had changed in just a few months.

          With his newfound popularity, Ivan planned to create drama. Nothing too malicious by any means, but enough to just get something interesting happening for once. Something really out of the ordinary to maybe inspire his next film project. He was, after all, planning on applying to the film program once he was expected to declare a concentration his sophomore year. In any case, he banked on having total control over all potential drama-inducing situations.

          Unfortunately, it was not that simple.

          When he walked into his 9th period "Freshman Orientation" course and saw all five of his former Hillside classmates, Ivan realized his plans to meddle in other's lives, particularly the lives of those who treated him with such disdain for the past three years, had just had a giant wrench thrown into them.

          Organizing a party with a friend and inviting kids from his alma mater was one thing. That, he could control when the party was hosted by his connection. But being involuntarily put in a class with everyone who called him "gross," "garbage," and "pervert" for several years straight, where they could easily gang up on him if they really tried? That was a different beast, and it was not one that Ivan was prepared for.

          His one connection that he had managed to make was Tyler. Unfortunately, the seat next to Tyler was taken. Ivan sat at the desk behind him, and a minute later class began.

          "Okay, looks like everyone's here, so we're all good to get started," the instructor chirped as she finished taking attendance. "Welcome to Freshman Orientation! Since today's the first day, we'll do a get-to-know-you activity, and then just run through our syllabus for the semester!"