Pandora grabbed her book bag from the back seat of her red 97 Toyota Corolla, her baby. She huffed as she swung her bag over her back and walked to her school. George Wilkins high school, the biggest public high school in the city of Philadelphia. Almost 800 students in her grade and the school was big enough to fit all of them. Best public school in the area, everyone would say. Worst prison ever, Pandora would often correct. Well, a prison with her best friends doing the same time. Another huff as she opened her locker to start setting it up.
"Gang, gang, gang, gang!" Pandora eagerly turned to the animated voice with a expecting smile. She easily recognized the source of the voice as her childhood best friend, Phoenix. Phoenix danced over with her dark brown hair in loose coils falling over her caramel skin and bright green eyes that popped out. Pandora smiled as she watched Phoenix make a fool out of herself. Neither of them cared anyway. They were seniors, no one else's opinion mattered. "Nine more months and then freedom!" Phoenix exclaimed as she bounced on her toes.
"Stop, you're gonna get me too excited," Pandora warned with her body buzzing with an odd excitement. "We'll get out of here and go to New York and finally be free."
"You, me, Eve and Laurel, at NYU," Phoenix sighed as she moved her hand across the empty space as of showing something. Her voice was dreamlike as if she could see the vision in the air. Pandora could see it right along with her.
It was clear as day until Pandora was literally yanked out of her daydream. She was ready to curse the unknown hand until she met familiar wide blue-green eyes matched with the pale face. There stood the only one blue-eyed blonde that she would let the action pass. Laurel, her grade school best friend, had strands falling over her eyes as she continued to yank at Pandora's arm. Her beach blonde hair bone straight. Her dark eyebrows and eyelashes helped her eyes pop out even more. Light freckles dusted her cheeks. Pandora looked at her friend with the vice-like grip on her arms and tried to snatch her arm away, but to no avail. Her face scrunched together as she struggled.
"Did you hear? Did you hear about the new kids?" she quickly asked, her talking all jumbled together. Pandora finally was able to yank her arm back before Laurel almost dislocated her shoulder.
"But you do?" Pandora questioned, but turned herself to face Laurel, her interest piqued. Phoenix joined on Pandora's side.
"They came from New Jersey, but it isn't even their first time transferring schools," Laurel began, "Four boys, extremely close friends, I heard their parents are also best friends," she continued to ramble and Pandora was beginning to lose interest.
"Who's close friends?" Another body jumped behind Pandora and leaned on her shoulder. She turned as much as she could to identify the face. She met with Eve's chocolate brown eyes, light caramel skin and bright smile. Eve's bun would occasionally bump into Pandora's head. Her eyebrows were covered by her straight bangs.
"A group of new kids," Phoenix answered as she finally stood up straight beside Pandora. "And apparently naughty."
"Oh," Eve popped up, "So your type?" she teased and Phoenix shoved her away. Eve cackled evilly as moved away from more possible hits from Phoenix. Pandora stood taller than her friends in between the chaos. Pandora always stuck out among her groups, being the tallest, darkest, and quietest. She had long braid extensions that reached the middle of her back and styled the front half with space buns. Her eyes were dark brown, close to black with her arched eyebrows going along her upturned eyes.
Pandora sighed as she began to ignore them, "Do you know their names?" she continued.
"No," Laurel shook her head, "I just heard from Rachel, you know how her step dad is the disciplinary," she explained and Pandora nodded, noting the information she was given.
Phoenix finally got tired and gave up trying to add another hit on Eve. She panted as she joined with Pandora and Laurel having their civilized conversation. "That was too much physical activity, I'm not in season yet," Phoenix sighed her excuse with a dismissive wave.
"Excuses, excuses," Eve continued to tease safely behind Pandora. Pandora quickly stopped Phoenix before she tried anything else because she did not want to get caught in the middle again.
"Alright, please calm down," Pandora told, already assuming her role as mother of the group.
"Yeah, Phoenix, calm down," Eve taunted with a tongue out.
"I'm going to be the mature one and ignore that," Phoenix proudly said and Pandora simply held her forehead as she shook her head.
"Tell me when you find out their names," Pandora told Laurel and she laughed.
"Already ready to avoid them?" Laurel questioned with a knowing smile.
"You know it," Pandora bragged, "I know a cliche when I hear one."
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Pandora was lucky enough to get fifth period lunch along with Eve, Phoenix, and Laurel. Or at least she thought as Laurel was late.
Pandora began to cut her wrap in half as she talked to her friends, "Nix and I were so close to getting homeroom together too, and I know because Mike-"
"Guys! Guys!" Pandora was kindly interrupted by Laurel once again as she rushed over the table with her lunch tray. "So the new kids are coming in and they are snacks," she raved with a low voice as she leaned in.
"What? Where?" Phoenix quickly jumped up, dropping her fry as she scanned around the lunchroom.
"They were doing something by someone's locker when I saw them and they mentioned they had fifth lunch," Laurel told and Pandora rolled her eyes.
"Stalker," she accused followed by a sip of her Dr Pepper. Laurel set her tray down in between Phoenix and Pandora and squished her way in the little space between them.
"But they're really hot," Laurel continued to urged but Pandora's look stayed the same unconvinced stare. Eve had been eating her slice of pepperoni pizza happily, barely listening to the conversation.
"I don't know Laurel, you tend to over exaggerate things in this area," Pandora accused, but could tell Laurel's partner in over exaggeration, Phoenix, was believing her right away.
"Wait, wait, I took a lowkey pic," Laurel continued to argue as she began to pull out her. One of her friends, Ana was posing in the picture, but Pandora knew Laurel had her poor friend pose for a "picture" as a cover. She showed her friends pictures of a brown skinned boy with a nice shape up with curly hair over his face who had a nice jawline and a septum glinting in the light. He was leaning back in his chair, looking down to his not so hidden phone.
Pandora's eyebrows quickly raised and fell. "You're right," she frankly admitted.
"I know right," Laurel beamed as she looked at her picture one last time before putting her phone away.
"What is Laurel actually right about?" A tray dropped down on my free side. Alex, a close friend the group of girls found as a whole in the school equality club. He had a fresh low cut for the new school year. He could be friends with the boy in Laurel's picture with hisstrong jawline. He had a small mustache on his lips that the girls hated, but everyone he's been with loved. Today he was wearing his gold retro round glasses over his dark brown eyes.
"Hot new kids," Pandora answered as she began to eat her chicken wrap. "Boys."
Alex groaned as he dropped in the seat beside me. "It's always boys, I get tired of them sometimes," he whined as he placed his elbow on the table and held his head with his hand. "How about female hot new kids?"
"If you what'em so bad why don't you find them yourself, isn't that what you say to us all the time?" Eve droned as she checked her nails. She looked up and gave Alex a lazy accusing look. Alex scoffed as he placed his hand on his heart.
"That's mean," he accused with a pout.
"She looks new," Phoenix said as she subtly pointed to her left. The girl she pointed to had jet black hair in a bob. She wore sharp eyeliner over her monolid eyes and the blush on her cheeks matched the color of her lips. Phoenix looked at Alex as she suggestively raised her eyebrows.
"Go get'em tiger," Pandora encouraged with a supporting wink.
Alex stood with a smirk, "Wish me luck." He walked off to girl with his shoulders squared. Pandora shook her head with a distant smile as she looked around the cafeteria for other students she may had known. Her eyes stopped on the brown skinned boy from Laurel's picture. There were two other boys accompanying him. From what Pandora could see, one had jet black hair that fell over his forehead, and the other stood tallest of the group his hair was shorter and also black with distant freckles dusting his nose and cheeks. They walked in the direction of where Alyssa, Aaliyah and Andriana were sitting. The giggle that Pandora hated so much could be heard from where she was sitting. It was very typical for the trio to gravitate towards the 'hot' new guys.
"The dead triple As caught wind of the kids," Pandora mumbled as she took a lazy sip from her Dr Pepper. Eve scrunched up her face by the simple nickname the group had for the dreaded trio.
"They're so easy to not like," she groaned. "And the whole situation last year was fucked up."
"Rather not think about it," Pandora told as she massaged her forehead. She stole another glance back to the trio.
"Why don't we talk about summer instead?" Laurel quickly suggested with a smile. "That was fun right?"
"Cool, that means I can tell y'all the good news I've been wanting to tell," Phoenix beamed as she practically danced in her seat.
"Do tell," Pandora rushed impatiently. She knew how Phoenix would hype up events only for it to be something mundane or average. Everyone in the group knew her life wasn't boring Phoenix just had the horrible habit of grouping her boring happenings in the same category as her exciting happenings.
"Y'all know the dude, Mason I met down the shore right?" she started and the group nodded, "Well, we've been steady talking since July and it's getting a little serious," she hinted with a proud smile and an accompanying knowing shrug. The group gasped with wide smiles.
"Yes, Phoenix!" Eve congratulated.
"What school," Pandora questioned as she leaned over the table, very interested.
"Temple, freshman, point guard on the ball team," Phoenix bragged her smile getting wider.
"A college boy?" Laurel restated proudly. Pandora lightly clapped for her and Phoenix chuckled.
"Yeah, and he really nice and intelligent," Phoenix continued to list, a happy sway with her movements. "Almost like a new age philosopher." Pandora choked on the wrap she was in the process of eating. She coughed as she pounded her chest to clear her throat.
"Phoenix... probably a little too extreme," she choked out in between coughs. Phoenix laughed as Laurel patted Pandora on her back.
"Let's look over that part... but we're very happy for you Nix," Eve praised calmly. "But um..." she tried to find another subject, "My trip to Cali was very fun. The studios were so nice," she gushed.
"I wish I could go to those beaches," Laurel sighed, "I could probably get the best tan there."
Phoenix eagerly gasped, "Summer trip!" she exclaimed. Laurel was quick to nod along but Pandora was caught completely off guard. The first taught that rushed to her mind was the money.
"Woah, woah," Pandora quickly put her hands out. "Cali, as in across the country California?" she questioned.
"Yes, California. We've been saving up for Miami, might as well transfer it to Cali," Laurel suggested as excitement completely took over her. Pandora held my head as she scoffed and turned to Eve.
"California?" she repeated, unsure she even heard her two friends right.
"I mean... I got family down there, we could always stay with them if we don't find a hotel," Eve added with a shrug.
"Wow, okay. Fine, California Senior Summer it is, I guess," Pandora let her excitement get the best of her too. The group cheered and whooped as Pandora laughed.
~
Pandora had finished her wrap with glad satisfaction. As she stood up her friends quickly stacked their trays on top of hers. She sighed as she looked at the four trays she was holding.
"Why did I get up?" she groaned as she still began to walk to the trash bin.
"Because you love us," Eve gushed after Pandora and she turned with her face scrunched up. It quickly slacked along with her mouth forming in a perfect 'O' shape as she bumped into something hard. A chest. Who's chest? She would have to worry about it later. What she did worry about was the trays falling out of her hands. Before they did, Phoenix's tray that was the messiest with her deconstructed pizza smashed into her chest. Pandora's first instinct was to gasp, but to her luck, Phoenix was kind enough to have a napkin on top. After that quick realization her next instinct was to profusely apologize.
"Shit, I'm so sor-"
"Yo, watch it." Before Pandora could utter her first apology, a gruff voice interrupted. She looked up to the source, letting the boy's rudeness distract her from the fallen trays. It was one of the new kids. This one was really tan and his jawline was mentally quoted to be: 'Sharper than my wits, which is saying a lot.' His messy chocolate brown hair fell over his forehead and stray stands went over his hazel eyes. 'Hot,' Pandora instinctively thought.
She ignored her initial thought and squared her shoulders, "Damn, my bad," her second apology lost all sincerity as she let her attitude override.
The new kid easily sensed the attitude and raised an eyebrow, "You're the one who bumped into me," he reminded.
Pandora scoffed, "And you're the one acting like a bitch when I'm trying to apologize to you," she boldly argued, crossing her arms across her chest. She couldn't tell why she was talking because she knew she wold act the same way. 'But he's doing it towards me and that's not okay,' she quickly concluded with her stubbornness evident in her own mental voice.
People began to pay attention to the argument arising. They started to murmur and Pandora even heard Laurel say a distant, "Oh shit."
The new kid scoffed, "Excuse me?" His tone was both challenging Pandora and giving her a chance to back down- but she knew there was no shot she was simply walking away now. The boy had effectively been to make himself appear taller but her attitude has reached all kinds of heights.
Pandora coolly chuckled, "Oh! I'm sorry... am I supposed be threatened?" she questioned with an accompanying smirk. She read the easy visible signs of his agitation and boy was it a sight for her. He had set his jaw as he shifted on his feet and even subconsciously mirrored Pandora with her arms crossed. "Trust me when I say this, you can go look for someone else because you're definitely not gonna get the reaction you want from me," she assured as she added a shoulder pat. The new kid suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his chest. Another gasp escaped Pandora as they stood chest to chest with their faces merely inches apart. His eyes burned into hers as she tried to look anywhere else for an escape.
"I guarantee you I'll get a reaction I want out of you," he threatened lowly almost as a growl. That was the last straw to throw Pandora completely off. She opened her mouth as her skin heated up horribly. She struggled to pull some smart comment from her ass, but the bell interrupted her already frantic thoughts. He smirked, obviously satisfied by Pandora's final silence. He gently dropped her arm back to her side and walked to his friends as they were exiting.
Eve came by Pandora's side with her books in hand and she snatched them from her. She could hear Phoenix and Laurel trying to stifle their laughter as she stormed out the cafeteria.
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Oh, what is this? Another rewrite? Yes this is like my tenth rewrite of this plot but I hope it is my final. The only reason why I've rewritten it so many times is because I genuinely like this plot idea and I really want it to work. I hope this is the one.
Hope you enjoyed.
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Temporary Riddance ✨