Chapter 4: Isabelle: My Friends or My Future

As soon as the bell rings to signal class is over, I'm out of the room and speed walking to Hannah's locker. Thankfully, she's there. "You are not going to believe what happened."

She hangs her backpack on the hook in her locker. "Yeah, I hope you have a good reason for skipping chorus." She closes her locker and turns to look at me, arms crossed. "Cam spent the entire period staring at the door, waiting for you to show up."

"Wait. What? I have Senior Spanish first period." I dig out my schedule to double check, just to be sure. "Chorus is fifth period."

"Not anymore. Didn't you get the email yesterday? They moved chorus to first period. Something about a scheduling conflict."

"Are you serious?"

"Yup"

Great. That means I'm going to have to go back to the office to figure out what's up with my schedule. "So, Cam is mad?"

She shakes her head. "I think he's more worried than anything."

I groan. Can this day get any worse? Walking beside Hannah, I triple check my schedule. "Okay, well, I have a study hall this period. I guess I'm going to see my guidance counselor." I blow out a breath. My senior year is supposed to be perfect - easy schedule, classes with my boyfriend and best friend, all the fun stuff only seniors get to do - but nope. Instead, I almost get run over, I'm paired up with the guy who tried to kill me, and my schedule is a mess.

"Have you seen Andrea yet today?" Hannah asks as we near the end of the hall.

"No. Have you?"

"No. I'm texting her now." She pulls her phone from her back pocket.

A flash of curly, black hair catches my attention. I smack Hannah's arm. "There she is - Andrea!" I shout down the hallway, ignoring the dirty looks I get.

Andrea stops, rises up on her tiptoes to see over the crowd, and then waves. She weaves through the throngs of people and stops in front of us.

I throw my arms around her in a hug. "Oh, my goodness! It's been forever since I've seen you! You have to tell me about your trip!"

But Andrea doesn't return the affection. I might as well be hugging a mannequin. She stands stiffly, arms at her sides. I release her, stepping back. What's going on with her?

Hannah steps in to hug Andrea. I don't miss how Andrea hugs her back. A mix of emotions swirls inside of me. Did I do something to make her mad? Does Andrea like Hannah that much more than me? Is she tired of always making sure I'm okay? Does she think I'll never be fun again without Brandon around?

"Where have you been?" Hannah asks, stepping back.

"Around." Andrea shrugs. She doesn't so much as glance in my direction. "My schedule is crazy this year. I'm trying to double up on some classes, hoping maybe I can graduate a semester early."

I nod. I can't let her behavior bug me too much. I know she's struggling with the fact that she's only a junior. Andrea should have been a senior with Hannah and me, but thanks to a nasty case of mono in ninth grade, she missed most of her freshman year and had to repeat it. The first bell rings, disrupting our impromptu reunion.

"I'll see you guys later, okay?" Andrea's words fade as she walks away.

I turn to Hannah. "Is it just me, or is she acting weird?"

"She seemed fine to me."

Of course she did - Andrea didn't snub Hannah - but I don't have time to worry about it right now. Second period awaits. I slip my schedule into my back pocket. "Hey, if you see Cam, will you tell him what happened with my schedule?" I don't need him mad at me on top of Andrea and everything else.

"Of course." She turns to the right.

I've only taken a few steps in the other direction when I hear my name. I turn around.

"You never told me what happened," Hannah says.

I laugh. "I'll tell you later."

It can wait until I see her at lunch. Cam will be there, too, but he'll be talking baseball with his friends, as usual. Hannah and I will have plenty of time to talk. Right now, I need to get my schedule straightened out. I step into the guidance office just as the bell rings.

"Oh, hey, Isabelle." Erica, the secretary, smiles. Then her smile fades, replaced with the one look I can't stand - pity. She leans forward and softens her expression, as if that will somehow lessen the sting of her question. "How are you?"

"Fine." I don't bother to hide the irritation in my tone. "I think my schedule is mixed up. Is Mr. Peters available?"

"Yep. You can go right on in." Erica jabs a thumb over her shoulder.

"Thanks." I step around her desk and make my way down the short hall to Mr. Peters's office. His door is open, so I peek my head in. "Excuse me, Mr. Peters?"

He looks up. "Come on in." He waves me in and motions at one of the empty chairs. There are four of them, I guess in case parents come in. I'm more than thankful to handle my scheduling conflicts without my parents' input. My mother - drunk, slurring, and belligerent - would create a whole different kind of conflict. "So, what brings you here this morning?"

I slide my schedule across his desk. "Well, I'm supposed to have chorus fifth period, but I just found out it's been moved to first period. When I have Senior Spanish."

He grabs his glasses from the corner of his desk and slips them on. He studies my schedule for a moment and then taps away at his keyboard. "Ah, I see what happened." He takes his glasses off and returns them to their corner. "Mrs. Monroe had a scheduling conflict and can only be in the building in the morning, so we had to move chorus to first period."

My shoulders slump. "Okay, so what am I supposed to do? I was really looking forward to chorus this year."

He sighs. "I know. You should've received an email."

"I didn't get anything."

"Well, you can drop Senior Spanish and take chorus if you want. But" - he folds his hands on top of the desk - "considering your college plans, I don't think that's such a good idea."

Canyon College is my dream. With one of the best Spanish programs in the area, Canyon will more than prepare me for a future as an interpreter or maybe a bilingual tour guide. I need this extra Spanish class… But my friends are in chorus. I lean back in my seat and let out a huff. "So, I have to choose between my friends and my future."