Introducing Kate and Jeff

Here it is, A rough draft.  There will be errors.  What do you think of it?

Chapter 1

First Day, New School

“Autumn Leaves”

Swirling to the ground

Bright Red, Yellow, Orange and Brown

Color all around

I looked out the window, and saw the truth in my poem,  Autumn was in full swing with rich and vibrant colors in the trees.  It was my first day of school in Chance, Montana.  It was bitterly cold to anyone unused to the region as I was.  I had never been in such a miserable place, and I hated it.  This was nothing like Tuscon, Arizona.  Chance is a small, remote, cold, and boring.  Tuscon had Jimmy  I missed him, but he didn’t miss me.  He’d dumped me a few days before school ended, when he found out I was moving to an entirely different state.  Now he was probably hooked up with Jaycee.  The girl I hated most.

“How’s your poem coming along Kaitlyn?”
I started “Oh!”  I looked up to see Mr. Tauter.  “I’m sorry I zoned out.”
“Well then,”  He replied with a huff, “be sure it never happens again.”
“It won’t, Sir.”  I said.
Mr. Tauter started to move away.  “Um Sir, excuse me, but could you just call me Kate?”
He stopped, “I’ll try to remember that Kate.”  Then he continued to his desk and sat down.
As I shifted to work on my assignment I noticed a boy staring at me, so I stared right back.  When he saw me return his stare, he smiled and turned to his work, so I turned back to mine as well.
I tried to think of a subject I could write a poem about, but they were all lame ideas.  I wrote about leaves, I mean what kind of teenage girl writes about leaves.  How about a pathetic teenage girl named Kate from Tuscon, Arizona.  Kids from here see leaves every day of autumn, but a girl from Southern Arizona isn’t used ot so many trees and the beauty they have.  It’s not that cacti aren’t pretty, they are.  It’s just that the leafy trees here have a different beauty from the flowering cacti I’ mused to. 
The bell rang, and I pulled out my new schedule.  As I placed my binder in my back-pack someone approached me.
“Hi,” a voice said. “Kate, right?”
I looked up, and there was the boy who had been staring at me earlier.  I was impressed.  apparently the guy had some guts.
“Yeah, that’s me.”  I looked at him curiously.  “Hey, umm, who are you?”
“Oh!”  He raised his hand to the back of his head and grinned awkwardly.  He looked pretty embarrassed.  “Sorry, my name’s Jeff”  He held out his hand, and I shook it politely.  He had a firm grip and I saw that he was tall well built, and had light green eyes that were surprising under his messy shock of brown hair.
“It’s nice to meet you,”  I was definitely impressed by this guy.  “You know, I’m new here, and so I’m kinda lost around here.”  I smiled up at him.  “could you tell me where Mrs. Greene’s class is?  Room 16?”
“That’s on my way, I’ll show you.  Come on.”  I shrugged on my backpack and followed him into the crowded hallway.  Thankfully Jeff was considerate and walked slowly.  We went outside to building “A” and just inside and to the right was room 16.  “Here you are:  Mrs. Greene’s class.”
“Thank you very much.”  I said “Jeff, right?”
“Yep! You’re welcome Kate.”  He gave a dramatic bow flipping his hand in circles. “I’ll see you around.”  and with a wink and wave he continued on down the hall.

“Yeah, later.” I watched him turn the corner with a little smile on my face before turning towards Mrs. Greene’s class and entering the room to find the first seat I could.  All the seats close to the door were taken already.  I assumed it was because lunch is next and everyone would want to get out fast and meet up with their cliches.  After a while I also wished I was close to the door too.  

This class passed by slowly and I felt like I could fall asleep.  Unlike English, this class didn’t have us doing anything.  Mrs. Greene simply went over the rules, regulations and disciplinary procedures, and a basic overview of what we would learn in her class.  So instead of being bored out of my mind I decided to pull out my sketchbook and stared to draw.  I didn’t really think about what I was drawing, I just drew.  When the class ended I packed up and went to my locker.
I knew it was lunch time, the mentioned the in all her rules.  I put my back-pack in my locker.  grabbed my sketchbook, pencil, and lunch.  I wasn’t sure where the lunchroom was, but I figured that if I wandered the halls I’d find it eventually.  As it turned out, the lunchroom was not difficult to find at all.  As I entered, I saw that it was practically empty.  I found an empty table to sit down by myself.  Unzipping my lunchbox I slid along the bench, not liking to sit on the edge. I flipped open my sketchbook to the first blank page, opened up my sandwich and chowed down.  A common ritual for me, I held the sandwich in my left hand,  and sketched with my right hand.  If I hadn’t been in a drawing mood, I probably would have had a book instead.  I don’t like staring at people when I eat, so drawing and reading are my eating buddies.  Besides, it’s not like I had anything better to do.  I didn’t have a posse of friends to laugh with.  I hardly knew anyone.  Except Jeff...

“Hey.”

I jumped.  Not just any startled jump, I jumped about 2 feet straight up, and whacked my legs on the lunch table.  I had zoned out again, and now I was sure it was going to haunt me.  I didn’t even need to turn around, because I already knew who was behind me.  It was Jeff.  Jeff was the only one who had talked to me all day, and it was a male voice.

I regained my composure, and turned around smiling.  “Hi Jeff”  Then I saw that he was not alone.  With him was a group of girls and guys.  I retreated into myself suddenly uncomfortable with the whole situation, and overly conscious of the way I’d smiled at Jeff.

Jeff seemed to sense my nervousness, because he said, “I thought you might want to know more people.”  He turned slightly to the girl nearest him.  “This is my sister Amelia.”  Now knowing the relation, I saw that they had the same dark hair and face shape, but her eyes were chocolate brown with eyelashes that could make you dizzy.  Envy sliced through me quickly, but I smiled at her kindly.

However Amelia busy glared darkly at her brother.  The effect was beautifully frightening.  Then she suddenly flipped her head back to look at me and with a dazzling smile announced. “I prefer Amy over Amelia.”  She grimaced at the full name, “It’s just so uppity you know?”  

I smiled.  “Hello Amy, I’m Kaitlyn, but I like to be called Kate.”

“Hey Kate, I really like your name.”  “Thanks.  And I like your name too Amy.”

Amy just smiled, “Could we sit with you?”

“Sure, there’s plenty of room.”

“Oh good, I was worried you’d turn us away.”  Jeff winked at me and my breath caught in my throat. He slid onto the bench on one side of me, and Amy took the other side.  Then a massive group that had followed them walked around the table to sit across from the three of us.

Then the introductions began.  “This is Emily, Cassie, Liz, and Heather”  Amy pointed out each as she said their names.  We nodded to each other.  Then Jeff took over for his sister.  “This is my right-hand man: Kyle.  That there’s David, James and Ben.”  I got a “hey” out of each of them and that was about the extent of their interest.  Except for Kyle, he seemed wary of me.  I felt as though he was deciding if I was safe or not.

That’s when Jeff noticed my sketchbook.  “What’s this?” he asked, “Can I look at it?”

I nodded feeling a little embarrassed and feeling the need to explain.  “Those are just pictures I’ve drawn over the last couple of years.  I’ve started drawing more often lately.  Only a few of them are any good or anything...” I decided to stop blabbing.

Jeff took the book and I saw Kyle lean over and look at the pictures too.  To my astonishment they seemed to like my drawings at least a little bit.  “I’ve seen this style of drawing before.  What is it called?” Kyle asked.
It’s called Anime or Manga.  Anime is animated and Manga is like a comic book.  It’s Japanese.  My friends in Arizona introduced me to the style and I’m adapting it to me.  I eventually want to draw more life-like characters. 
“They’re good,” Jeff complimented my drawings.  “You should show us more sometime.  We’d all be interested, my friends are into the whole art thing especially Kyle.  My sister and I are more involved in drama and music.
Then the bell rang, bringing lunch to a close.  Amy, her friends, and the guys all scattered to find their classes.  Jeff asked me what my last two classes were and where my locker was.  I showed him my locker, and he showed me where my classes were.  I didn’t see him again until after school.  Luckily that time I was ready for anything unexpected and I saw him before he saw me.  As I approached my locker I saw him with his left shoulder leaning against my neighboring locker. His legs were crossed like a number four and his hands over his pockets, thumbs tucked in. 
“Hey there, Stranger.”  I mocked him.
“When do you come to school in the mornings?”  Jeff asked without preamble.
“I don’t know yet.  It’s my first day, and I didn’t ride the bus.  I will be riding it tomorrow.”
“Well I come about an hour and a half before school starts.  Come by the band room any time in the morning and I’ll help you find your B-block classes for tomorrow.”
“Thank you.  I think I just might do that.”  I said feeling grateful for the friendship I feel I’ve been given in this strange new place.
“Good.”  Jeff looks satisfied.  “I’ll see ya tomorrow then.” he left with a wave, and I watched him.  I saw him walk to Kyle and James.  They exchanged fist pounds and headed down the hall.  Shutting my locker door firmly and checking to see that it locked, I walked the opposite direction towards the buses.  I caught bus #14 home.