The first day in a new school is like a the purchasing of a new canvas.

One is allowed to paint whatever image of themselves onto the canvas and the image they create will be what others will see until graduation or even afterward.

That's what Azizi Jelani thoutgt as hewore his pure black blazer.

He walked out of his room and took a deep breath. Almost nothing could compare to new car smell and new house smell.

It with strange yet comforting, adventurous and-

“Az, get down here! You’re gonna be late.” Someone called from below.

Az descended down a short flight if stairs to find his father, a tall and rather handsome man.

He was fully dressed in a dark blue suit and a devilish red tie that gave him the aura of an evil corporate overlord.

Az and his mother knew otherwise.

Radhi Jelani was actually an engineer who loved getting his hands dirty.

“Hurry and eat up.” Radhi said, his voice low and smooth.

Az nodded before making his way to the kitchen where his mother joyfully prepared breakfast.

Az sat by the table and patiently awaited his breakfast only for his mother to hand him a bowl full of oats.

She sat on a chair opposite his and ate away at what looked like bacon, eggs and orange juice.

Az didn’t complain.

He knew her intentions were pure and so he ate away as his dad walked back and forth.

Az finished up his meal and waved his mother goodbye before following his father out of the house.

They had just moved to the eastern side of Acan, which was one of the six districts of Unity – the man made continent.

Az entered his father's black car and they made their way toward his new school.

“Feeling nervous?” Radhi asked.

“Meh, I’m fine. What worries me is the curriculum. Twelfth grade is the make or break period in life and I’m not sure how to approach it.” Az said.

“Hehe, always the serious one. Just don’t forget to have a little fun, alright?” Radhi said as they drove out of the suburban area and into the general Acan area.

They eventually arrived at Acan Technical High, which was pretty small for a high school.

Radhi parked a bit away from the main building.

“Alright, knock em dead, champ.” Radhi said with a gentle smile.

“You got it!” Az said before hopping out of the car.

He crossed the street as his father drove off.

The color scheme for the school uniform was a simple black main body with white highlights coupled with yellow ties, but some of the girls wore skirts with black, grey and yellow plaid pattern.

Az made his way up the short set of stairs before entering the main building.

The school was engulfed in a suffocating amount of chatter, but Az was unaffected by it.

Also, this wasn’t his first time in the building.

He had accompanied his parents during their tour of the school and so he knew exactly where his class was.

He found a door with the label “12A" written on it.

Apparently, every grade was divided into three.

A for the smarter students and C for the… less smart ones.

Az entered the class and made his way toward the chair at the far right corner of the class and there he sat as his classmates chatted about.

His heart rate was slightly elevated, but it was normal as he was surrounded by a complete new set of people.

His peripheral vision caught the sight of a rather tall and rather smiley person.

“Hello, sorry to disturb, but I really wanted to meet the new student who instantly got accepted into A class. The names Ryan, by the way.” Ryan said.

Az sighed before turning to fully face him.

“Nice to meet you Ryan. My name is Azizi and as for how I got accepted into this class, I guess it’s just hard work plus a bit of luck.” Az said with a faint smile.

“Nice. Although I’m sure you’re aware that if you slack off, even for a bit, they’ll downgrade you-"

“Alright, everyone take your seats and we’ll do a quick roll call.” A tall, formally dressed man said with a monotone voice.

Everyone sat down and the school day commenced.

.

..

“That’s all for now, enjoy your lunch break.” The physics teacher said before leaving the room.

Az closed his eyes before looking to his side.

He picked up his backpack and from it, took out a medium sized blue lunchbox.

Within it, Az found four compact nutrient bars and juice box.

“Strange lunch you got there. What? Did your mom pack it for you?” Ryan asked, his face uncomfortably close to Az's.

“Yes, she did.” Az said as he took a bite from his bar.

“I see… well, some of us get our lunch in the cafeteria. Wanna join me?” Ryan asked.

“No thanks.” Az said, prompting Ryan to shrug.

“Alright, let me know if you change your mind.” He said as he walked away.

The rather short break came to an end and Az found himself with his nose buried in a ton of notes.

The learning day came to an end and everyone packed their things as the afternoon sun dyed the inside of the classroom a pale orange.

Az got up and made his way out of the classroom.

He reflected on how his first day had gone.

Meh, it was ok. Az thought as he left the school building.

His destination was a train station just south of the school.

A surprising number of students headed in the same direction and so the path was littered with students.

Az then heard someone whisper something peculiar.

“That's the new guy, huh?” A female voice whispered.

“Yep, he’s so mysterious. He didn’t speak to anyone but Ryan today.” Another voice said.

Az wanted to walk faster to avoid hearing their conversation, but his curiosity made him maintain his walking speed.

“I wonder what his deal is.” The first voice said.

“I guess only time will tell. Mmm… go talk to him.” The second voice said.

“Sure.” The first voice said and Az could hear as footsteps approached him from behind.

His heartrate skyrocketed, but he maintained a neutral façade.

“Umm…. Hello.” A girl greeted before popping into Az's field of view.

“Hi.” Az said simply, even as his heart threatened to pop out of his chest.

“How was your first day in our prestigious school?” The girl asked.

“It was passable- err, I expected it to he a lot more strict since it’s a technical high school.” Az said.

He didn’t know why, but he felt extremely dehydrated for some reason and looking into the girls big green eyes wasn’t helping.

“Oh? Well, I’m glad you had a good time. My name is Zoey, but the way. Come to me if you want to hang out or something. You’ll find me in the cafeteria or in 12C.” Zoey said before walking back to her friend.

Az returned his gaze to his front.

He didn’t know why, but speaking with Zoey exhausted him.

Az brushed his mental fatigue away by thinking about something else.

He thought about the internal mechanics of a train and almost as if on cue, a train passed by.

Az made his way into the station and walked onto one of the many platforms.

The trains of Unity could be classified by how far they traveled.

Red coded trains traveled the longest distance, blue trains traveled between districts and green trains were local.

Az waited patiently for the green coded train that would be taking him from G03 to G01.

Az took mental notes of his surroundings as he waited.

“Hi there.” A voice said, prompting Az to turn around.

He saw a rather short girl whose hair was tied to a bun.

Her big brown eyes and soft features gaze her a cute appearance.

“Hi. Do you need something?” Az asked.

“Oh, not really. I just wanted to talk and it looks like we’re taking the same train.” The girl said.

“I see… well, what do you want to walk about?” Az asked.

“Why are you so broody and quiet?” The girl asked in a rather upfront manner.

Az’s eyes widened slightly but he forced himself to remain composed.

“Mmm… I’m not sure. It could be that I don’t feel the need to be talkative.” Az said.

“Oh? Oh…” The girl said.

A deep silence followed and it was amplified by the fact that the platform was sparsely populated.

“What’s your name again?” Az asked.

“Holly. Yours is Azizi, right?” Holly asked.

“Yep.”

“What does that mean?” Holly asked.

"Precious treasure. What does your name mean?” Az asked.

“Oh- I’m… not sure.” Holley said as a train came into the station.

The two boarded the train and it wasn’t long before the train was off.

“Will you be taking the train tomorrow?” Holly asked.

“Yep.” Az said.

“Hehe, that will make us train buddies.” Holly said with an awkward smile.

“I guess it would.” Az said with a faint smile.

[Now arriving at station G02]

A mechanical voice said over a speaker in the train.

“Uh- this is my stop.” Holly said as she readjusted her backpack.

Az nodded as Holly hopped off of the train.

She waved him goodbye as the train took off.

Az didn’t bother waving back as the train quickly zipped away.

He sighed before taking out his phone to see that it was a few minutes past three.

The time itself had no significance, but Az wanted to record how long it took him to commute.

.

..

Az eventually arrived home and he could smell something rather delicious even though he hadn’t even opened the front door.

He entered the house before promptly kicking off his shoes.

“Heya! How was school?” His mother asked.

“It was ok.” Az said as he made his way up to his room.

He carefully placed his bag in its place before taking off clothes, which he tossed into a basket.

Az then waddled into the bathroom where he took a quick shower.

“Are you hungry? I’ve some leftovers.” Az’s mother asked.

“Nah, I’m good.” Az said as he dried himself.

He then walked over to his room and plopped onto his bed where he quickly fell asleep.

.

..

Az woke up fairly refreshed.

He looked at his rooms only window and saw that it had gotten rather late.

He then crawled out of his bed and made his way downstairs and searched the fridge for nourishment.

He grabbed a tuna sandwich and sat idly in the silence of the house.

He ate away at his sandwich before the door loudly opened.

“I’m home.” Radhi said as he walked into the house.

“Hey, dad.” Az greeted.

“How was school?” Radhi asked as he played with his undone tie.

“It was ok.” Az said.

“Is that so? Then I wish you a good year. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to sleep.” Radhi said before ascending to the second floor.

Az cleaned his plate and returned to his room where he slept after a short session of studying.