The main entrance to the school seemed to be halfway down a large hallway. There didn't seem to be anyone to her right, so Zoe turned down the left hallway. This side of the building had four doors, leading to four small-looking classrooms.
The first room had about a dozen very small children inside of it. Zoe guessed they ranged from ages 5 to 7. The second door had slightly less-small children. If she had to guess, Zoe would have said they were around 8 to 10 years old. There were only five students here, but as one of them turned around, Zoe's breath caught in her throat. Was that Mikey? It had to be. Zoe would recognize her little brother anywhere. But what was with his cowboy boots and button-up? The Mikey that Zoe remembered could barely be convinced to wear sneakers and a polo shirt.
Zoe closed her eyes, took a breath, and kept walking.
The third room contained children who were older, still. Zoe would say 11 to 13. There were a lot in this room, at least 20, and there were two teachers, where the previous rooms only had one each. Zoe recognized a few students here, but nobody she'd ever interacted with too much.
It was the last room where Zoe found Athena. Or at least, this new version of Athena. The last room also contained versions of some people Zoe recognized: Derek Lettman, a sophomore who Zoe got along with, but could be a bit of an ass, Melony Tyne appeared to be all that remained of the junior class, and the seniors appeared to be represented by Karyn Black, Sarah McMillan, and an extremely bewildered Jon.
Of course, they were all wearing their own versions of country fashion. Whatever clique or social group they had belonged to before was stripped from them and replaced with a thick layer of Kansas.
An entire high school, distilled down to seven students. Zoe could feel her gut sink. But she didn't have time to dwell on that feeling, as Mrs. Watson soon clapped her hands and everyone sat behind a desk. Zoe, half a step behind everyone else, took the last, empty desk, and stared holes into her hands as she folded them in front of herself.
