MidReal Story

Among the Girls

Martin Näsström

Scenario:I walk through the school gates, feeling out of place as the eyes of every girl around me turn in my direction. Whispers fill the air. The environment is tense, and I can feel the curiosity and judgment from every angle. I’m the only boy here, and the entire school is already watching my every move. Me: This is going to be... interesting. School (voice of the bot, a voice, almost too smooth, echoes through the hallway): "Oh, look who it is… the only boy in this whole place. You’re definitely going to stand out, huh? The entire school’s already talking about you, wondering what kind of trouble you’ll stir up. Will you be the nice guy, or will you cause chaos?" I hear giggles and curious whispers from nearby students. "You’d better watch out. There are plenty of eyes on you now. And some of us are already wondering what you’ll do next."

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I walk through the school gates, feeling out of place as the eyes of every girl around me turn in my direction. Whispers fill the air. The environment is tense, and I can feel the curiosity and judgment from every angle. I’m the only boy here, and the entire school is already watching my every move. Me: This is going to be... interesting. School (voice of the bot, a voice, almost too smooth, echoes through the hallway): "Oh, look who it is… the only boy in this whole place. You’re definitely going to stand out, huh? The entire school’s already talking about you, wondering what kind of trouble you’ll stir up. Will you be the nice guy, or will you cause chaos?" I hear giggles and curious whispers from nearby students. "You’d better watch out. There are plenty of eyes on you now. And some of us are already wondering what you’ll do next."

Ethan Logan

new student, relationships with other students are developing, tall with messy brown hair, curious and adaptable

Ava Torres

outcast student who befriends Ethan, friends with Ethan and rivals with Lily, short red hair in a pixie cut, rebellious and insightful

Lily Chen

senior student and leader of a popular clique, friends with Ethan, long black hair in a ponytail, ambitious and protective

I stood in the middle of the classroom, all eyes trained on me.

The entire student body seemed to be staring at me, and I felt like a zoo animal.

The teacher had just finished introducing me, and now everyone knew my name.

I was waiting for someone to take a picture of me with their phone and upload it to social media with the caption "New guy at Eleanor Parker. Get ready for the swoon fest!"

"Okay, Ethan. You can take your seat now."

The teacher's voice snapped me out of my reverie.

I gave the class a brief smile and walked toward an empty desk.

As I sat down, the legs of my chair scraped against the floor, making a sound that was way too loud in the silence.

I felt like I was taking a starring role in a horror movie, and at any moment someone was going to jump out from behind a desk and scream.

I kept my hands clenched around the edges of my seat and tried not to look at anyone.

This was way more attention than I wanted, and way more than I was used to.

Back at my old school, I had been just another face in a sea of students.

I saw a girl in my peripheral vision, leaning over to whisper to her friend two rows ahead of me.

The girl cupped her hand around her mouth and glanced back at me, catching my eye.

I felt my face heat up.

She quickly looked away, but I could sense the whispers spreading through the class like a wave.

It was going to be like this all day, every day.

The teacher droned on and on about cellular biology, but it was impossible for me to focus with all the murmuring going on around me.

I heard words here and there, like "cute," "nice," and "tall."

I tried to keep my eyes focused on the teacher, but they kept darting around the room.

A piece of paper landed on my desk in front of me, and I jumped in surprise.

I looked up to see who had thrown it at me, but no one was looking at me. The teacher's back was turned as she wrote on the whiteboard, oblivious to what was going on behind her.

Slowly, I reached for the folded note that had been thrown onto my desk.

My fingers hovered over the paper, wondering what it said.

The teacher was still facing the board, writing down formulas for something or other.

I unfolded the note cautiously, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Meet me at the library after school," it read, signed with a small heart and the initial "L."

I glanced around, trying to figure out who "L" could be, when the girl from earlier caught my eye again and gave me a quick, knowing smile.

I pretended to focus on the teacher's explanation of cell division, but my mind was racing.

Who was this girl, and why did she want to meet me?

I glanced up at her again, watching as she scribbled notes in her binder.

Her ponytail was perfectly maintained, not a single hair out of place.

She was wearing the standard uniform for Eleanor Parker, a crisp white shirt and a plaid skirt that fell just above her knees.

The black ponytail stood out against the bright colors of the uniform.

I wondered what color her eyes were.

When she turned again to glance back at me, I saw that her name tag read "Lily Chen."

I looked away quickly, not wanting to get caught staring.

The clock on the wall seemed to be moving at a snail's pace, and I wondered if I would actually show up at the library after school.

My palms were sweaty around my pen as I tried to decide what to do. Finally, the bell rang, signaling the end of class.

Students began filing out of the room, casting curious glances my way as they left.

I gathered my books slowly, taking my time as I shoved them into my backpack.

As I stood up, Lily approached me with a confident stride.

"Hey, Ethan," she said, her voice low enough that only I could hear.

"Meet me at the library, okay? There's something you need to know about this place."