Delia entered her homeroom and made her way toward her seat. Several of her classmates greeted her, people she recognized from her old life and ones she didn't. Delia knew them, though. Names at least. She smiled and said her hellos, then took her seat. It was all so strange and so familiar all at once. So many people saying hello, being happy to see her. All after years of...
Of being basically invisible.
Her bag slid off of her shoulder and to the floor. Her eyes scanned the room, a habit she had held onto from her life as Derek. Each of her classes had seemed to have some of the more popular kids, the ones who weren't the sort to completely overlook someone like Derek. An easy target, friendless and easy to mess with. They wouldn't always do something themselves. They might just report back to people like Steve Farber or Tom Welles. Seeing people paying attention to Derek had been a sure sign that something bad would be coming down the pipeline later in the day.
Now, she saw people smiling at her, waving and acknowledging her. Super different vibes, and she knew that was true from her life as Delia. Popular kids in her classes would want to talk to her and catch up rather than make her a target of bullies. Steve and Tom wanted to be in her good graces rather than torturing her. All because she was popular now. Because she was Delia, not Derek.
Her eyes shot to the door as a familiar figure entered. Trinity, wearing a purple top and black leggings walked in, her long hair braided and dangling behind her. She moved easily to her seat, next to Delia's, and sat down. "Morning T," Delia said.
"Morning D," Trinity responded. She seemed to hesitate after saying it, like she recognized it as automatic, rote, and knew it shouldn't be. "Feels weird to be sitting in homeroom, waiting for school to start like normal," she added, quieter.
"Yeah..." Delia agreed. She couldn't really deny that it was strange. It felt so different than it had on Friday. None of the anxiety and dread that had for so long accompanied school. She glanced toward Trinity, one of her oldest friends in this new life. Going further back than any of the others. Her dream from the night before was still fresh in her mind. Trevor had been in a somewhat similar boat to Derek, hadn't he? The goth kids were on the outskirts of the social hierarchy. Had he dreaded coming to school in the same way? Was Trinity feeling the relief that Delia was?
Though that wasn't even true in this new world, Delia now realized. Trinity being who she was, central to the new social structure, had elevated the other goths a bit. People like Athena and Zelda still weren't popular, but with their edges dulled a bit by being around Trinity and others not being instantly put off by the style, they weren't the targets they had been before.
So many little things, like that and her parents being together still, they added up to her just feeling like this new world was... better. Had Ms. Holloway done that intentionally? Trying to make up for the massive changes that each of them had gone through by improving the world around them? Or was it not even related? Maybe this was just what the world would have been like if they had all been born like this. Had it been partially her fault, as Derek, that her life had been so... negative?
"Lost in thought, Mopes?" Trinity asked, startling Delia out of her thoughts. Trinity had a tone that she kept in her voice, almost like she was interrogating whoever she was speaking to.
"Sorry, just... A lot is different, yeah."
Trinity squinted, but followed it up with a nod. The teacher, luckily, chose that point to enter and start taking attendance. From there, there wasn't much room to chat before homeroom ended and they all had to make their way to their first classes of the day. Delia was more hesitant for that than she had been for homeroom. None of the others from the cheer team were in her English class. Not even Sarah, who... well, she'd be complicated to be around, even after the pool party.
She entered the class and found her seat, glancing up from pulling her books out to see Amber Levine taking the seat in front of her. Amber was one of Sarah's friends that hadn't been on the cheer team and avoided the whole drug scandal.
"Hey Dee," Amber said, leaning back in her seat and looking over her shoulder. She seemed to consider her position then twist more fully around. "Did you do the reading over the weekend? I tried but, like... what even was that stuff? I couldn't follow any of it."
Delia smiled. "Um, you could have asked me a little earlier than this, you know? Sent me a message or something."
"I didn't want to bother you over the weekend, but-" The teacher came in and started pulling out her supplies at her desk. Amber looked back to Delia, eyes dramatically wide and hands coming together into a praying gesture.
"Okay, so... you remember where the chapter started?" Delia asked, her voice a whisper. Amber nodded and Delia did her best to give the girl a rundown of the reading assignment. It was a nice distraction, and... well, she wasn't quite alone in this class, she supposed.
