Aggressively bouncing her leg up and down, (Y/N) waited for English to end. The last one of the day. After this, she would get the chance to make new friends, but she found herself more nervous than usual.

She kept herself occupied in the back of the class doing her calculus homework.

"(Y/N), could you answer for us?" Mrs. Richie grabbed her attention. Clicking her pen a few times, (Y/N) looked up at the board and briefly looked at the question.

"I think one of the greatest symbols in The Great Gatsby revolves around the green lantern at the end of his pier." (Y/N) commented, looking back down.

"And why is that?" Mrs. Richie pressed.

"Well, uh, arguably Gatsby's main goal is to bring back Daisy. And this green light symbolizes his jealousy of Daisy's husband, since every time he looks across the water that's what he's staring at is the life Daisy has that he isn't apart of." (Y/N) said.

"Very good, Miss (Y/L/N) just gave you an answer to your quiz this Friday. I'm glad someone did the reading." Mrs. Richie gave a half smile. (Y/N) put her head back down. When the bell rang, she was approached by someone she had noticed before. He was very cute.

 "Hi, uh, hi I'm Joseph." He introduced himself, he had blue eyes and dark quaffed hair and wore these circular glasses that nicely framed his face. 

 "Hi, (Y/N)." She shook his hand and walked out with him.

 "You're new right?" Joseph asked her, "Like you got into the class last week?"

 "Yeah." She smiled.

 "Awesome, yeah. I just wanted to know if you needed a study buddy for the quiz on Friday? I'd be happy to show you around the library and stuff, you know?" Joseph asked. Finally, some kind of social interaction. She was so thankful she did that reading.

 "Yeah, why not?" She shrugged trying to stay cool as the cute kid in class had just asked her out. Not out-out but like to study.

 "Joseph! You comin', bro?" Over his shoulder and down the hall two guys waited for him. 

 "Yeah, man, gimme a minute!" Joseph swatted them, "Thursday, during lunch?" 

 "Yeah, that's fine." (Y/N) smiled, 

 "See you then." Joseph smiled back and ran off to join his friends. As they walked away, she watched them. It wasn't until Peter came down the hall with his head down and the two boys with Joseph "accidentally" knocking into both sides of him that she became turned off.

 She smiled at Peter. He was so cute and sweet. If he would just look at her.

 "Peter!" She got his attention. He looked up and smiled.

 "Hey, (Y/N)." Peter looked behind him, self-conscious of the fact that he was just picked on right in front of her.

 "You still going to the decathlon?" She asked.

 "Yeah, yeah. I just had to stop by my locker." Peter said, shoving some books inside, "You have class over here?"

 "Yeah, Mrs. Richie for English." She explained, leaning against the locker next to his.

 "Aw, I had her last year. Her quizzes are the worst." Peter said, slamming his locker shut.

 "Even if I did the reading?" She asked.

 "No, if you read you should be fine." Peter said, starting to walk, "Uh, so the Decathlon is usually just for kids who are the smartest in school. But Ned and I are thinking what'll happen is, like, if we bring you there and obviously, you have to be really smart to come in halfway through the year, if you show your grades from your old school Mr. Harrington'll let you in."

 "Thanks, Peter." (Y/N) smiled, nervously. Starting to pull up her grades on her phone.

 "Honestly, it's not that hard." Peter attempted to aid her nerves as they got closer to the theater.

 "You say that, but Ned said you were the smartest guy on the team. I've been in public school my whole life, I don't know about-" (Y/N) started, but Peter turned to talk to her and walking backwards.

 "That means nothing. It's all about memorization and what you know." Peter said, opening up the doors for them, saying a little quieter: "At least you won't be last."

 "Peter! There you are," Mr. Harrington got up to meet him, "you said you needed to talk, what's going on?"

 "Bad news or good news first?" Peter asked, wincing a little bit.

 "Really?" Mr. Harrington shifted, "Bad news."

 "I can't go to Washington." Peter swallowed hard. Mr. Harrington waved for him to join him to sit at the front table. Peter sat down. (Y/N) uncomfortably hung by the door.

 "Let's move to the next question:" Liz, the girl from the cafeteria stood at the podium asking questions, "What is the heaviest naturally occurring element?"

 Uranium 

 (Y/N) answered in her head, that was an easy one. The bell rang immediately.

 "Hydrogens the lightest." Some kid with glasses and a jean jacket answered, "That's not the question, ok."

 A bell rang right after, "Uranium." 

 "That is correct. Thank you, Abraham." Liz said. Abraham did a celebratory fist pump.

 Ned was also practicing on the stage and looked over at her. He waved just before everything blew up.

 "You've never even been in the same room as Tony Stark!" Another boy, who she recognized from one of Josephs friends, called at Peter.

 "Wait, wait what's happening?" The only girl on stage chimed in.

 "Peter isn't going to nationals." Another girl lying on the floor answered.

 "What? N-No, no, no." The girl on stage said.

 "Why not?" Abraham chimed the bell.

 "Really? Right before nationals?" Liz looked over. If the look on her face didn't change Peter's mind nothing would.

 "He already quit marching band and robotics lab." Michelle, the same girl from the lunchroom said from the side, everyone looked over at her. "I'm not obsessed with him, I'm just very observant."

 "Ok, then, Flash you're in for Peter." Liz called back to Josephs friend.

 "Oof, I dunno. I gotta check my calendar, I have a hot date with Black Widow coming up." Flash said, flipping through a magazine.

 Abraham ringed the bell again, "That is false."

 "What'd I tell you about ringing the bell for comedic purposes?" Mr. Harrington scorned him.

 "Sorry." Abraham leaned back.

 "I wish I could, I just, with the internship and school it's a lot on my plate right now." Peter stuttered, "But I did find someone else for the team."

 "We did!" Ned chimed in, everyone looked at Ned, "Technically I hit her in the face with my locker, so I did."

 "No way, we don't just pity let people on this team so close to nationals!" Flash threw his magazine down.

 "Peter, that's great but we both know that we don't accept people that way." Mr. Harrington said.

 "I know, but she's really smart and really wants to join. She just started school here just give her a chance. She could take my spot." Peter said, "(Y/N), come here."

 (Y/N) got off the wall to go to Peter. Mr. Harrington got up to stop her, "You two follow me outside."

 (Y/N) and Peter stopped to follow him out into the hall. Mr. Harrington rubbed his brow, trying to understand what was happening.

 "Alright, so, you want to join the team. Is there anyone you could get to reference you? Besides Peter." Mr. Harrington asked.

 "Uh, probably my old teachers at Bayside." (Y/N) said nervously.

 "Ok. What was your GPA there?" Mr. Harrington asked.

 "A 4.2 GPA, sir." (Y/N) said quickly. Both Peter and Mr. Harrington were surprised at that, she shrugged, "It was a public school, I took AP's."

 "Okay, well, between us-- I need another head to go to DC. It's too late to cancel the bus and I need at least 15 heads. So I'll give you the entry-level test, but sure you're in." Mr. Harrington said, "But if those kids in there ask, say I interrogated you so hard. You start tomorrow."

 Mr. Harrington went back inside the theater after that. Leaving you and Peter alone in the hallway.

 "That wasn't so bad, right?" Peter smiled.

 "Only incredibly embarrassing." (Y/N) sighed, moving her hair out of her face.

 "Get used to that while you're here," Peter said, looking at the anxiety-ridden girl, staring at the theater door. He noticed this look in her eyes, one that he knew all too well of wanting to be accepted and hopefulness. Her eyes were really pretty, "I'll walk you home if you want, you're gonna need to start studying, right?"

 "Right."