I never gave much thought to actually moving away and being the “new girl.” I mean, I always thought that things like this happened in books or movies. Not in real life, of course. I guess I never thought that something like that would happen to me. That’s why I didn’t even know what to do or even think when my mom broke the news to me one day after school.

It was a silent car ride, and there was tension in the air. I shifted in my seat uncomfortably, waiting for someone to talk or make a noise. I certainly didn’t want to be the one to break through the thick silence. But eventually, my mom spoke up. “I need you to listen to me.” She started talking in a very serious tone. “Dad lost his job. And now we have to move.” Her words sliced through me like a knife. What was I supposed to say to that? After what seemed like an hour, I finally talked. “What?”

The next few days were racing by. My friends and I were exchanging hugs, crying together, and promising we would make sure to keep in touch, because nothing would get in the way of our friendship. They spent as much time with me as possible, even if it was packing up bags and getting ready to leave my hometown. Dad seemed very sad to leave our house, but well all told him it wasn’t his fault, and that the economy was getting bad. We would just have to make sure our family stuck together no matter what. And that’s what we did, even though it was hard for all of us.

I climbed into the white moving truck after a tearful goodbye with everyone. “Bye…” I whispered, looking out the window. They were all waving good-bye as the truck revved up and started to move forward. The rich green Magnolia trees swayed in the wind, as if to say good-bye for one last time. I wonder what my life would be like after moving. Would I go to a good school? And would I even make friends? I asked myself a lot of these questions on the way to our new home.

Finally, we had arrived at the house. It was a pretty, old brick house with ivy leaves cascading down the sides of the walls. The movers immediately started to unpack and move things into the house, as my mom and dad directed as to wear they wanted the furniture. I went up into my room and watched as the men brought up large boxes of my things from my old room. From there, the rest of the day didn’t feel quite… real, I guess you could say. It seemed like this was all a bad dream and I was going to wake up from it soon enough. But I never did wake up.

Going to sleep wasn’t easy either; it felt weird being in my new room, like I was sleeping at some stranger’s house. But this was hour house, and I had to get used to it no matter what. I tossed and turned in my bed, trying to get to sleep. It didn’t help that my mind kept wandering back to going to starting my first day at my new school, either. I definitely wasn’t looking forward to that.

My mom woke me up the next morning, and I could see the bright, early sunlight shining into my room. I groaned and forced myself up. What was my new school going to be like? Would I get any friends? I doubt it was going to be like it was in the movies… I don’t think I was going to get a friend right away. With depressing thoughts of my new school, I slowly got ready for the day.


We lived close enough to the school that I could just walk there in a matter of minutes. That was nice, I guess. I the distance I could see more and more people waiting in front of the large brick school. When I got closer, it was easier to hear the loud chattering of the students, and I could see the large sign that sported the school’s name and mascot.

I walked closer to the building. I saw that people were broken up into cliques. There were the popular/cheerleader girls, the jocks, nerds, and outcasts. I already felt like I didn’t belong. Suddenly, a tall, gawky girl with blonde hair came up to me. Her blue eyes lit up as she talked. “Hey! I’m new here!” She smiled brightly. “Hi…” I said shyly. She looked at the small slip of paper in my hand. “Hey, we have homeroom together!” She said excitedly. We walked together into our homeroom. The teachers were nice, and so were most of the students.

Maybe, just maybe, this new school wouldn’t be so bad after all.