Rollercoaster of Emotions: Seniors share significant memories from high school as their time at East comes to an end

From the day we walk into freshman Link Day to the day we walk across the stage, diploma in hand, high school is a rollercoaster of emotions. When it’s over, we’re left with the memories we’ll tell our kids about when they urge us to share the details of our adolescence and the ones immortalized only in the depths of our Snapchat memories. 

But for the seniors who’ve long awaited their movie moments, the most anticipated times of high school have been taken away — prom and graduation, a true last day of school, grad parties — gone. Even with the loss of their grand finales, as their last four years come to a close, the class of 2020 shares memories they won’t soon forget. 

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Katie Drake doesn’t consider herself an accident-prone person. Sure, she knocked over a bunch of desks on her first day of high school, but that had to be the most embarrassing thing you could do as a freshman, right?

Unfortunately, Drake would later one-up herself — her most embarrassing moment of high school came later freshman year. During her girls-only P.E. class, Drake was left with no lesson plan and practically zero supervision at the hands of a substitute, purely hoping to kill time with a casual game of wall ball. 

Drake absent-mindedly booted the ball and watched as it soared high — higher than she expected it to. The innocent game of wall ball took a turn in mere seconds as the ball hit a four-foot-wide lightbulb on the gym ceiling. Before Drake could comprehend what was to come, the fixture came crashing down, landing about two feet next to her. 

“I was about to cry [because] I was a freshman and I thought I was gonna get in so much trouble,” Drake said. “People started putting it on their Snapchat stories, and I was like, ‘no don’t put it on your stories, I don’t wanna get in trouble.’”

Unsure if she would be met with the reprimand of angry administration, Drake quickly texted her mom in an attempt to cover for herself — ‘Hey, I broke a lightbulb in the gym so if you get a call about it, please don’t be mad.’ 

Drake went about her day with her lips sealed, hoping that by some miracle she wouldn’t hear that heart-stopping “Katie Drake to the office” call over the PA system.

But the office never called her and never reached out to her mom. By the time her gym teacher came back the next week, it was like the incident never happened.

“I felt like I just got away with it. Like it was definitely an accident — but I felt like something should’ve happened,” Drake said.

While it was one of the more nauseating moments of Drake’s time at East, her legacy lies in the main gym — one massive ceiling light with yellow hues that stands out from a fleet of white, installed to replace one that came crashing down. 

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Nervousness, excitement, a tinge of fear and a soon-to-be-increased dose of confidence. Then-junior Jack Slaughter’s first soccer game as a varsity player was one of the most anticipated moments of his life. He’d stepped on the field with the varsity team for a few minutes at the end of one of their games when he was a sophomore on JV, but this was different. This time wasn’t a test — it was real. 

Though it was the same game he’d played for years, Slaughter spent his first minutes on the field tentatively. He’d worked hard to move from JV to varsity, logging extra practice hours the season before and going all out during drills and scrimmages during that year’s tryouts. But his only focus that game was being exactly where he needed to be — no more, no less. Now wasn’t the time to take a risk.  

Shortly after the start of the second half of East’s first game of the season against rival Shawnee Mission West, Slaughter had the ball and was driving up the field.

“I remember being on the edge of the [goal] box and … I realized I might have a shot, so I kind of just went for it — not even really thinking, just being in the moment, it was kind of a blur,” Slaughter said.

Instantly after his shot landed and became scoreboard official, Slaughter noticed a change. He’d reminded himself that he belonged on the field, that he was just as capable as his older teammates. Everything felt a bit more natural. He’d found his groove, and it felt good. 

Just minutes after his first goal, Slaughter got the ball on a breakaway. A well-placed shot landed in the back of the net. Slaughter was elated.   

“After that goal, I felt like, okay, maybe it’s gonna work out after all,” Slaughter said. “It felt really good; it felt like I’d proved myself.”  

When he first ran on the field, Slaughter was just happy to be representing East, happy that his mom, dad and sister were there to support him and happy that he’d made it to that moment. But when head varsity coach Jamie Kelly acknowledged Slaughter’s accomplishments — “I think it was something like, ‘Hope we see that again next game,’” Slaughter said — it sealed the deal: that game was one of the proudest moments of his life. 

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For Reilly Moreland, one of the most memorable moments of high school happened to be its end.

Moreland was at a loss when it was announced school was canceled for the rest of her senior semester. She “freaked out” and immediately called a friend to attempt to process the grief. It didn’t feel real for either of them, especially Moreland, who took the call as a complete gut-punch. 

The next few hours were spent rifling through Snapchat memories and old photos, texting friends and reminiscing. Moreland, whose family had chosen to stay home from their previously planned spring break trip to Cabo, knew she was one of the only seniors home at the time. Even before the soon-to-come mandated isolation, she felt lonely.  

But there was one place she felt could bring her comfort, one thing that could soothe the pain. In a spur of the moment decision, Moreland decided to give East a visit.  

“I just kind of drove into the parking lot and pulled into my spot,” Moreland said. “It was just a really emotional moment for me; I started playing ‘Ribs’ by Lorde, and I was just sobbing and looking at the school.”  

When high school came to an abrupt close on an insignificant day in the middle of March, Moreland felt a rush of emotions. Alone, scared, confused, lost. But most of all, she just felt sad. And though she’s come to terms with Gov. Laura Kelly’s decision, Moreland knows that moment will stick out for her as the worst feelings of the entire pandemic and one of the most heartbreaking moments of her high school career.