I'd been so used to navigating university campuses that I'd defaulted to heading to class and probably bypassing the staff that would have directed me to the waiting area.
Ms. Blumgren let out a reassuring smile... or she tried to. Then she said, "Do you... want to walk with me to meet the rest of the class? Oh! You can hang your backpack over there. Your cubby should be marked out... here." She held out her hand to me.
I stared at her a bit. Then I shrugged and let her lead me over.
That seemed to ease her nerves a bit. After that, Ms. Blumgren walked me to the array of cupboard closet compartment... things. Basically, just places to hang our things.
There was one marked with A. Li. Mine.
She gently took my backpack from me and hung it on the hook before continuing to lead me out of the classroom. As she did, Ms. Blumgren said, "You really came all the way to class by yourself, huh? That's amazing."
"Is it?" I tilted my head. "I just followed the map."
Ms. Blumgren laughed and said, "That's why it's amazing." She booped my nose and said, "You're a smart cookie, aren't you?"
I blinked, caught offguard at the act.
Huh.
Right, pre-COVID AND pre-social media. Random physical contact was a thing.
Ms. Blumgren froze and said, "S-Sorry. Was that uncomfortable? I haven't done this before so... Oh, what am I saying to a kid... Ugh, Debby, you dummy..."
I shook my head. "It's fine, Ms. Blumgren. But we should get going, right?"
"R-Right!" Ms. Blumgren... Well, I guess her name was Debby.
Debby nodded and said, "Let's go get your classmates, shall we?" After that, she plastered a bright smile on her face and headed towards the main hall, keeping my hand in hers to make sure she didn't lose me in the crowded hallways.
...This was going to take some getting used to.
===
Barely thirty minutes into homeroom, I was already bored to hell and back.
It COMPLETELY slipped my mind that first grade was barely a step above kindergarten.
Do you know what we did?
Numbers. Letters. How to write in cursive. Ice breaker games. Self-introductions. Story time.
If there was ANY saving grace, it was that Debby noticed I was way ahead of the curve. Probably from our interaction at the start too. So she didn't force me to participate, instead just making sure she didn't draw much attention to me while keeping the class focused.
Which, surprisingly, was a gargantuan task.
I'd forgotten just how... well, brainrotted kids were in my past life. I was used to them being tablet kids and all that, calm and barely noticing what was going on.
Here though... my 'peers' were a WILD bunch. Yapping in class, rocking in their chairs, spinning around, waving their hands for attention...
Considering Debby looked like she was JUST out of college, I was impressed she wasn't having a complete panic attack or mental breakdown.
Instead, she was calm, patient, kind, and gently steered my peers back on track while doing her best to teach and engage everyone.
Honestly, she was doing a better job than anyone I knew from my past life would have been at this.
But setting her aside...
Well.
I had considered trying to make friends. And I DID properly engage in ice breakers and games. But...
"Look look! I just caught Pikachu!"
"Huh? You don't have a gameboy?"
"My dad just bought me a buuuunch of pokemon cards! They're shiny!"
...Yeah. Kids. Not only kids, but kids who were excited about things I'd outgrown decades ago.
...Minus the pokemon cards.
That reminded me: get a full set of shadowless pokemon cards and at least first edition sets and stockpile them.
Even if trading cards didn't pop off in the future, I VERY much had experienced the regret of not taking better care of the things I had in the past.
Was NOT repeating that mistake.
But anyway.
To sum up my first day school experience: meet a bunch of kids, pretend to be interested, do quick sketches to practice drawing while Ms. Blumgren did homeroom and other class things.
Recess, lunch, all the rest of the day... pretty much just ordinary.
The only thing that stood out was the fact that my classmates seemed to get the vibe that I was different? They were nice and tried to talk, but instinctively followed my lead?
Wasn't too sure how I felt about that, but either way, school ended, Ms. Blumgren walked us to the pickup area, and we waited for either our parents to pick us up, or got on our buses to go home.
For me, I was getting picked up by my Aunt Yue... at least that was what my mom said.
I vaguely remembered that. Not from 'this' life, but the last life.
The thing was...
"Ugh. Why does sis make me do everything...?"
...Yeah. My aunt was still a teen at this time too.
A cute Asian teenaged girl with long wavy hair walked over, looking clearly annoyed. She was stylish, with a pair of aviator sunglasses, as well as a leopard print shirt and ripped jeans.
This was my aunt, Yue Wu. And if I remembered correctly, this was around the time where she was trying to make it big as an actress and filming her acting reels.
I waved at her and smiled. "Hi, Auntie Yue."
Yue looked at me and then did a double take. "The heck?" She reached over and pinched my cheeks. "Did you lose some weight, you fatty? Is my sis not feeding you enough?"
Before I could respond, my teacher, Debby, walked over and said, "Are you Alex's guardian?"
Yue raised an eyebrow and pulled me under her right arm. "I'm his aunt, yeah. You his teacher?"
Debby smiled and said, "That's right. I'm Debby Blumgren. I was hoping to be able to meet his parents..."
Yue looked at me and then Debby before frowning. "What? Did the little dumpling cause trouble?"
"No! Not at all." Debby shook her head. "It's just... Well, Alex seems a bit bored in class. He's very gifted, so I was wondering if his parents would be interested in putting him in the gifted and talented program." She reached out with a small folder. "If you could give that information to them, I would appreciate it."
Yue took the folder. "Gifted and talented, huh?" She ruffled up my hair and said, "You're full of surprises, aren't you, Fatty?"
It was an insult. But coming from Aunt Yue, it was a form of endearment. Nostalgic too.
...Hm.
Wait.
It never crossed my mind until now.
...But we were in California. My aunt was trying to be an actor. And it was the 90s and early 2000s...
...She was also much more meek in the future. At least when she wasn't drunk or gambling.
...Note to self. Keep an extra eye on Aunt Yue. Getting bad vibes considering the casting couch scandals that came out later.
For now though.
I leaned into Yue and said, "I'm just me, Auntie."
Yue flinched, caught off guard at the sudden affection. But then a warm smile crossed her face and she hugged me tighter. "You're lucky you're cute, Fatty. Come on."