The lunch bell rings. You walk into the Senior Hallway, a place of sanctity, and look on in horror. Freshmen. As far as the eye can see. Swarming. Polluting the honor of the much-anticipated seniority. Run. Run as fast as you can.

Okay, maybe that’s a bit dramatic. After all, most seniors don’t even eat lunch at school. But the freshman zombie-like occupation of the senior hallway this year is just strange, and upperclassmen are noticing.

“The Senior Hallway is called the Senior Hallway for a reason. It’s that simple,” said Frank Kim (’21).

“Not only are freshmen taking up spots in the Senior Hallway, but they also sit in lines that clog the hallway and make it impossible to get through,” said Elias Kim (’21).

The unspoken rule that the hallway leading to the locker rooms, bordering the courtyard, is reserved for seniors has stood the test of time, so it only makes sense that people are upset about this change. The violation of this near-sacred law does almost portray, even if unintentionally, an unprecedented sense of entitlement from the freshman class.

“In addition to their takeover of the senior hallway, [the freshmen] don’t know how to walk in the hallway and have no sense of urgency,” said Serenity Cray (’19). “If we were in the case of an emergency, I wouldn’t be able to get through. Not to mention the backpacks are an issue. They’re so big they literally look like turtle shells.”

Perhaps the most interesting detail of the “Freshpocalypse” is that the sophomores are the most outspoken on this issue, contrary to what one might expect. Sure, you can hear some frustrated grunts from seniors walking through the hallway and joking comments from juniors, but sophomores with their fresh memories of being freshmen have the greatest understanding of the place in the high school hierarchy the freshmen take up. In the midst of pandemonium, some sophomores have dared to face the chaos head-on.

“They are expected and should follow what [the upperclassmen are] doing and what has been done, especially since they’re the youngest and should be learning the ropes here,” said Freshpocalypse survivor Thomas Lederer (’21). “They should understand that the hallway is the seniors’ place to sit and it’s their job to understand the rules set out by upperclassmen like we all had to when we were freshmen. The freshmen have a place in the school dynamic: they’re at the bottom of the totem pole and should earn their spot in the Senior Hallway. It’s just the cycle, and you need to respect it.”

Although there aren’t any school rules acting against the freshman invasion of the Senior Hallway, it’s clear that the walkway symbolizes a small reward to seniors, who spent their three years in the school climbing that “totem pole,” which they deserve to reap after their hard work and persistence. Sure, it’s a small token, and a bit of a foolish one at that, but students—especially the sophomores who have experienced jostling in the hallways and retain fresh memories of the vitriolic chants against them at the THS Olympics—are right to be upset as they fend off the Freshpocalypse. Sophomores understand this initiation process and see its value, as it only serves to make each promotion through the years so much sweeter.

It is completely possible that some freshmen aren’t even aware of the tarnishing of the hallway’s honor, so here’s a friendly suggestion to all freshmen reading: don’t be brainless, let’s end the Freshpocalypse and consider relocating, or at least make an effort to stop obstructing flow in the halls. Respect the process. It’s only fair.