My initial meeting with Mrs. Wong had been at the superintendent’s office, which was a separate building, so my first steps into the school were taken on my first day. Mom was at my side as we headed through the glass doors and past two impressive trophy cases to get to the main office. The floor beneath our feet was black-and-white tile. The walls were brick with oodles of bulletin boards with welcome-back banners.

Everything smelled like chlorine. It was not awesome on my roiling stomach. God, I love anti-nausea medicine.

On the upside? The school had a pool.

To the office counter we went. A middle-aged woman with brown hair came over, smiling at us. I presented my new student packet like I’d present a golden ticket to Willy Wonka. She eyed it and immediately pointed outside.

“Hi, Serendipity. Mrs. Wong is waiting for you. Two rooms down on the right.”

“Thanks.”

My mother walked me down the hall but paused outside of the guidance office door. “You want me to go with?” she asked, patting at imaginary lint on my oversize shirt. I wasn’t showing yet, thank God, but I’d taken to wearing big clothes, anyway, just in case. She tucked a lock of curly black hair behind my ear for good measure.

“Nah, I got this.”

“Alright. I haven’t been this invested in your first day since kindergarten, but that was because you peed yourself in the car on the way there.”

“Gee, Mom. Thanks for bringing that up.”

“Hey! You’re welcome!” There was a hug, a brief kiss and a whisper in my ear, “Don’t let the bastards get you down.”

“...it’s high school. I think I’ll be alright.”

Mom waggled her fingers and walked away. The fact that a few of my probably-classmates checked out her pert butt in jeans as she left was not lost on me. I rolled my eyes and headed into the guidance office. An elderly woman behind the desk motioned at a long table wordlessly. I parked myself, dropping my backpack onto the floor and waited.

“Name,” she barked a few minutes later.

“Serendipity Rodriguez,” I said. “I think I’m supposed to see Mrs. Wong.”

The secretary gave me a long assessing look before she picked up her phone. She was far more pleasant to Mrs. Wong than she was to me, continuing to ignore me both during and after the call. Fortunately, I wasn’t waiting with Cerberus long, as Mrs. Wong exited her office with a sheet of paper in her hand.

“Hi, Sara. Good to see you again,” she said.

“Hey. Hi.” I stood up as she offered me the paper.

“I think this covers what we talked about at your first meeting for class assignments. We were able to get you into all your selections. Your homeroom is on the second floor, Room 212. I’ll show you.”