~Ava~

**

I was pulled out of my slumber abruptly by the constant ringing of my alarm. I reached over and turned it off before placing it back against the side table. It was already 7:30am and school was scheduled for 8am.

First week in school and am already going to arrive late and have the whole class stare at me like the freshman I really am.

That's just great!

I jumped out of bed and ran to my wardrobe and picked out the first piece of outfit i could lay my hands on. It was a knee length floral gown my mom got me for my fifteen birthday last summer.

The temperature out there is like minus zero degree and close to freezing as it was the beginning of winter so I pulled out my black leather jacket and proceeded to laying them neatly across the bed before retrieving my black ankle boots from under the bed.

My bag pack containing my school essentials was already waiting across the table. I was actually sensible enough to arrange everything I would be needing the previous night.

So pulling off my orange color pajamas and throwing them into the laundry basket. I rushed into the bathroom to brush then shower and get ready before my mom come knocking down the door herself to get me to wake up.

Twenty five minutes more and I was already dressed and brushing off the tangles in my curls.

My hair is a mass of sunburn mess seating on top of my head and each time I go to sleep, I wake up to a bird nest and sticking to all direction.

I wouldn't have bothered with the mess if I wanted to be the girl who showed up in school with hair like she was caught in a fisherman net so I just took a deep breath and kept doing the needful until I was done.

My skin is really tan with little sprout of freckles here and there across the bridge of my nose and cheeks unlike my mom who was completely flawless at her age with beautiful blond hair that is always maintained at shoulder length.

I wish I was half as beautiful as my mom but a girl can't complain not when my dad thinks am the most beautiful thing he has ever set his eyes on since I was born.

My brown hazel eyes was exactly like my dad's. Something I was grateful to inherit from him at least. Anything other than that, I was just the skinny daughter who doesn't look anything like her parent.

It's totally odd I know but that's just the way I grew up to meet things and their love for me pretty much make up for the lost of other physical attributes I could be lacking.

Most times, when i look at other people family and then remembered that am the only child of my parent, my mom would tell me, am worth more than a thousand children they could have ever given birth to.

I feel she is just saying it to put my mind at ease and as well as herself and my dad too. It breaks my heart to see the sadness in her eyes anytime we talk about me moving to college in California after high school someday.

She would act as though I was going away forever.

Anyways, that's just my mom. 

Always thinking deep when it comes to anything that has to do with me.

I didn’t bother applying any much make up as I quickly rolled my hair into a simple ponytail with its tip folded into a bun. Only a touch of lip balm and mascara on my lashes and I was good to go.

My phone vibrated on the bed and I reached for it.

My ride to school was already on her way to come pick me.

I rushed down the staircase and into the kitchen and found my mom fixing breakfast. I took out a glass and hurriedly poured myself a glass of warm milk before grabbing the freshly baked cookies in the tray that was waiting at the kitchen island.

"You are going to be late sweetie" my mom said. Feeling concern for me.

"I know Mom" I bite into the cookie and chew before taking a sip from my glass of milk.

"Your Dad will be down soon, he will drop you off at school"

"No mom, Kara will pick me. She is already on her way here"

"Okay then. Just go ahead and finish your milk while i wrap some of these for you"

She took some of the cookies and had them wrapped up nicely and handed them to me.

I placed them inside my bag and quickly down the rest of my milk before pulling her in for a quick hug.

"Thank you mom. Love you"

"Love you too sweetie"

She pulled away slightly and brushed my hair a little. "Are you sure Kara will make it here on time?"

"She will mom. Don't worry"

Car horn!

Car horn again!!

"Speak of the devil...she is already here"

I grabbed my backpack and kissed her on both cheeks before rushing out the door.

"Have a nice day sweetie" I heard her voice calling after me before I closed the door.

"You too mom" I muttered back, hoping the winds take them straight to her in the kitchen because I doubt she could still heard me.

I rushed out to meet Kara waiting in her pink color Audi. She was dressed in a white knee length coat with a tight baby pink dress underneath. Her every day perfect blonde rolled into wavy curls and floating freely down the bridge of her spine.

Kara looked like something out of a Hollywood movies.

Even her makeup looked perfect!

I hurried over to the passenger seat and got in before giving her a quick kiss across the cheek.

"Hey Kar. You look amazing" I told her quite frankly.

She gave me a smug grin.

"You too Ava, we better hurry before we end up late and loose all the parking space"

I couldn't agree any more than I already had with a single nod and click on the seat belt before she quickly hit the gas paddle and propelled us towards our destination for the day and also every single day of our high school lives.

Kara and I have been friends since first grade and have been inseparable since then, even though we are more like two opposite polar bears. She is everything outgoing and fun while I on the other hand is a second level boring story you don’t want to read so let not uncover that.

**

We made it to school and just like Kara had suspected. There was no single parking space left.

"Seems like we will have to find somewhere else really fast or we are going to be late" Kara had said. Her face turning into a deep frown at the idea of being late for her first class.

"I'm so sorry Kar. I made you late for class."

Her head snapped at me with a raised brow.

"What? It wasn't your fault Ava. So chill out and stop apologizing"

"Uhm, Okay" I answered with a nervous chuckle.

We were still contemplating on where to park her car when we noticed another car reversing out of the parking lot.

"Bingo!" We practically screamed the word at the same time and burst out laughing.

Kara and I do that most of the time. We sometimes think and say the same thing almost at the same time like we could read each other thoughts.

Weird.

Kara quickly began to reverse towards that direction when another car just sped past us heading the same way.

Oh no!

Our car screeched to a stop when Kara abruptly hit the break to prevent it from crashing into the next vehicle.

"Shit!_ guy just stole our space" Kara swear angrily.

"Uhm, technically he didn't Kara. This is a free school parking space and anyone can pretty much park whenever they see one" I tried to reason calmly but she snort at me instead.

"But we saw it first didn't we?"

"Yeah we did but he made it there first"

We quickly hurried into the school building after dumbing Kara's car in front of someone's motor bike. I bet the owner will be so pissed when he realizes it.

Kara and I don't have the same lectures that morning so we head in different directions. Fully equipped with the school map in hand and feeling completely confident.

The hallway was a total chaos making it hard to walk by without having to bump shoulders with others.

My first lecture for the day is AP history and according to my scheduled book, it's taking place at room 206 and I just realized am holding the map upside down and have been heading the wrong direction all along.

Gosh!

I quickly made a U-turn still looking at the map just to be sure am actually heading towards the right destination when I smacked into someone so hard and landed on my butt with a thud.

Dammit!

"Watch where you are going bitch!" A female voice had hissed angrily at me while the rest of the passerby just burst out laughing.

Not paying much attention to any of her demeaning word, i quickly tried to reach for my map on the floor because I couldn't afford to loose it or I might never make it to class on time.

Before I could reach it, one of the tall guys in the group of fools laughing at me kicked it towards another direction halting me in my approach.

Someone has got to be kidding me right now.

I stopped and took a deep breath to calm myself before looking up at the stupid face who is having so much fun bullying a girl in the hallway without a single ounce of shame.

My mouth practically hit the floor because he wasn't a stupid face at all when my eyes beheld his face. On the contrary, he has pretty eyes, chiseled cheeks and teeth so white that, he could pass an audition to model for Colgate without breaking a sweat.

And those side dimples are like that of an angel and I can totally die for it right now.

Who the heck is this guy?