Our eighth-grade year proceeded much as seventh grade had. We were now on the third and highest floor of our school, once again divided into two different groups. There was quite a bit of drama when Krista and Jimmy were put into the Group B side of the floor while the rest of our friend group was in the Group A section. But then they were moved into our group just a few days later, and we were all together again. There were rumors that Jimmy’s parents, who were both well-known, wealthy lawyers in our town, had intervened to get their son back with his friends. I remember thinking that Jimmy must have had them work to move Krista back, too, which I thought was so sweet of him.
While our daily routine of classes and lunch breaks mirrored those of the previous years, there was the added tension of high school looming ahead. Our teachers seemed to remind us every day that big changes were coming for us: a larger school, more students, harder classes, stricter teachers, and lots of homework. I am sure their intentions were to simply prepare us mentally for what was ahead, but it all ended up causing me major anxiety. So much so that, after one particularly harsh lecture by our science teacher, Mr. Knox, I ended up crying while standing by my locker. Fortunately, science was my last period of the day; and I managed to hold my tears back until the hallways had cleared out.
Mr. Knox’s words rang in my ears as I tried to hide behind my open locker door, just in case anyone happened upon me. “You kids need to be ready to go on day one of high school,” he had said sternly. “You can’t let yourselves fall behind. The first week will determine the rest of your academic career, including getting into college. Be ready to work harder than you’ve ever worked before.”
I felt sick to my stomach with worry. I had always done well in school, but I felt like I had to study harder than my friends. English was, of course, where I excelled; but I had started to struggle in math and science during the eighth grade, earning my first B’s ever in any subjects. And of course, both Mrs. Anchor and Mr. Jennings, my teachers for those classes, had insisted to my parents that I was capable of A’s. I was distraught that they were expecting me to do any better than I already was as I felt like I was barely hanging on to the B’s I had worked so hard for.
“LEE-AH, whatcha doing IN your locker?” Matty teased as he came up behind me and gently pinched my side. “Are you trying to crawl in there or something?” He leaned against the opposite side of my locker where my door was open, so he was not able to see my face. I could hear him unwrap a piece of gum before shoving it into his mouth. I’d thought he had basketball practice that afternoon, but I guess I had been wrong.
“Go away, Matty,” I choked through my tears. “Just leave me alone.”
“Hey, what’s going on?” Matty came around to the other side of my locker so he could see my face, but I turned the other way. I knew that my face was red and puffy from crying, and I did not want him to see me that way.
“Nothing, just go already!” I said, struggling to steady my voice. Unfortunately, the effort of talking only made my crying intensify.
“Leah, hey, come here,” Matty reached out and gently put his arms around me and pulled me into a hug. We had danced before, held hands before, and of course, even kissed before; and while we sat side-by-side nearly every day, including on my bed alone in my room, we had never really hugged before, at least not for a prolonged period of time.
I let out a loud sob and allowed myself to sink into Matty, putting my arms around his waist. I buried my head in his chest while he wrapped his arms around me tightly. Matty had grown a few inches in recent months and was now significantly taller than me. “Leah, shh. Don’t cry. Tell me what happened. Was someone mean to you?”
I shook my head against his chest, unable to stop crying long enough to talk. Matty held me for several minutes, gently twirling my braid in his fingers, until I finally calmed down. I pulled myself away from him, fully aware that my face was as red as a lobster and that my nose was running. But I didn’t even care anymore.
“I don’t think I’m gonna make it in high school,” I said, my voice shaking and the tears starting again. “You heard what Mr. Knox said. How hard it is going to be. How we must be ready to go on day one. I already feel like I am falling behind in school now. High school is gonna kill me.” I turned back around to my open locker to grab my backpack before slamming the door shut and starting to walk towards the staircase.
“Leah Andrews!” Matty said in a stern voice, falling into step beside me. “You are going to do great in high school. You are so smart; do not let that stupid Knox get into to your head. Plus,” and he stepped in front of me to stop me from going further, “you’ll have me. As you know, I am a genius. And I can help you if you need it. How many other kids have a genius for a best friend? You’re very lucky!”
“Yeah, you’re a genius,” I scoffed, not letting myself cave to his attempts to cheer me up. “And athletic. And popular. And the girls love you. You’ll probably drop me in high school because you won’t want to me seen with boring, stupid, ugly Leah.” I pushed past
