Mrs. All American

Graduated

"Scarlett Marie Wilde."

It's about damn time. I'd been sitting in this crowded gym for over two hours just for a piece of paper saying that I can finally get out of this hell hole called high school. I politely smiled as I took the diploma from Principal Meyers, shook his hand and walked off the stage. Just like that my high school life was over. And I was always last. No matter where I went or what school I attended I was always last. As I made my way to the very last seat I could feel the stares. It was like there were hundreds of people just waiting for me to trip and fall. It made me feel like I was going to pass out. So many people staring at me at once, it was a lot. I hated being the center of attention. 

As principal Meyers finished off our graduation ceremony with another long winded speech, I looked around at my class mates. Most of which I knew, like the girl two rows in front of me who's curly hair was sticking out in every direction. Or the sassy blonde sitting all the way up front, disconnected from us all. And the two boys sitting side by side playing rock paper scissors as we all tuned Principal Meyers out.  We were a part of a hundred or so students graduating this year, which is relatively small compared to other high schools in New York. But seeing as how we all lived in the small city of Auburn it made sense as to why there weren't a lot of students.

Saying that I hated Auburn would be a bit of an understatement. I had always been a lover of the beach, and anything warm really. Up until 7th grade my family and I lived in Florida and not twenty minutes from the beach. It was a great and I had never once hated it there. But we moved when I was in 7th grade and life hit me like a truck. I had no friends here in New York, all of my friends stayed in Florida and apparently they kept all the warmth and sun for themselves. My first snow storm was a real shocker. I had never seen so much snow in one small space. It was fun for the first two days when my brother and I went sledding and ice skating, something we rarely had ever done. But by the second storm I was tired of the cold. I absolutely hated it. Summer was my escape even if the highest it ever got was in the 80's. I had grown so accustomed to living in high 90 degree weather, that when I heard weather reports saying the record breaking temperature was 85 I'm pretty sure I broke down in actual tears.

Eventually I made a few friends. I was never one to make myself known so it was a struggle for me to actually step out of my comfort zone and talk to someone new. Sure I had done that for forced group projects but I had only ever talked when someone had done something wrong or they needed my opinion. But I eventually found a small group of very close friends and even had some boyfriends here and there. But at the end of the day there was me and my four best friends. Kennedy, the sassiest blonde girl you will ever meet. Paxton who was by far the prettiest girl I knew, with hazel green eyes and perfect curly hair, though she's one of the sweetest people ever. Ryan who was a bit of a ladies man, or so he says. The rest of us know he is really just a good actor. And Eric, who may seem all macho but was one of the biggest teddy bears around.  All of us were considered the outcasts which basically meant we weren't like the redneck, country kids in our classes. But we couldn't complain. Being outcasts brought us together and made us inseparable. 

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When we finally were allowed to leave I was the first out because I sat in the very last seat. It was one of the few brief moments that I had ever been thankful for being last. I went out the doors and waited to see my brother. I would say my parents but my brother was easier to spot. Tyler was a skyscraper measuring around 6' 3''. He also ditched his natural dirty blonde hair a few years back and decided to dye it jet black. My mom thought it was a phase, but I'm not so sure anymore. Most people were intimidated by him, but I knew that he wouldn't even hurt a fly if his life depended on it. He was just a 16 year old boy who tried to be rock and roll, with his 'band', then came home and slept with a stuffed monkey in his sponge bob sweatpants.