A new beginning.

"Make sure to put your contacts in, dear, and hurry up. You don't want to be late for your first day of school!"

Lion eyes, that's what her Dad calls them, but why Lisa had to hide them behind contact lenses was a mystery to her, and why brown contacts??

David and Lacey Montgomery found Lisa on their doorstep seventeen years ago.

All she wore was a grubby threadbare onesie, and a gold bracelet with the letters LDM inscribed on the front and a cryptic message on the inside reading, "Don't take this off and please hide her eyes." Over the years, as she had grown, so had the bracelet, and despite every tool imaginable, she couldn't for the life of her remove it. In the end, she had given in, and now it was just another part of her body.

No words of love or any information about her were left in the cardboard box she was found in, not even a name to call her. However, the young couple still felt blessed by this event, as they would tell Lisa years later, they were unable to have biological children, so as far as they were concerned, she was a gift from the gods.

Lisa let out a frustrated growl as she launched herself off the bed and into the bathroom to get ready for her "first day" at a "new school"...what a joke, this was the fifth school this year, and she felt a little guilty at the fact that mom and dad had actually had to move this time, halfway across the country because Lisa had run out of schools willing to take a risk on her in Texas.

A quick shower later, and she had grabbed the brush to attack her hair with. It was a daily battle with her long curls, and she cursed at her mongrel hair, a strange combination of midnight black locks with blue streaks, all-natural, that had a weird white shimmer to it in the dark.

Huffing with the effort, she piled the stubborn mess on top of her head and secured it there, scowling as she looked in the mirror at herself. She wasn't blind and knew that guys found her attractive, she was a tall girl for seventeen, almost six foot and well built, for some reason she always maintained a curvy, muscular body, despite eating whatever she liked, and while other girls her age struggled with acne and baby fat, her tanned skin was always blemished free and body tight.

Looking in the mirror to put in the contacts, she said a mental goodbye to herself, a ritual she did every day when it was time to hide her eyes. Lisa guessed perhaps some might find her eyes scary; they were the color of fire, oranges, reds, and yellow swirls dancing around in her sockets, and when she got angry? Well, they burned colder than ice, every shade of blue in the universe coalesced in her orbs, but to her, at least, they were just eyes, the ones she was born with, although admittedly she'd never met anyone else with eyes like hers.

Looking at her watch, she realized that she had half an hour to get ready, grab a bite for breakfast, get to school and find her classes before she was late, "Damn it, I hate this school already!"

Black skinny jeans were pulled up over toned legs, black combat boots shoved onto dainty feet, white bolero top off one tanned shoulder, black leather jacket, lip gloss check, mascara on, teeth brushed, and Lisa headed down the stairs.

The tantalizing smell of waffles teased her nose as mom popped her head out of the kitchen, "Did you want bacon with these, Lisa?"

Regretfully Lisa shook her head. "Sorry, mom, I have to skip waffles, or I'll be late for school, and none of us want that, right?"

"That's right."Her dad's voice echoed from down the hall; he must already be in his office.

David Montgomery was a well-known vet. He had a way with animals and owners that made him extremely successful. Unfortunately, the paperwork that came with such a successful career often followed him home, and it wasn't unusual to see him still hard at work in the early hours of the morning.

It was no secret that he hoped Lisa would follow him on this career path, and one day he could hand over his practice franchise with clinics all over the country to her, their only child.

"What the shit?!" Lisa shrieked as she opened the front door to where her bike was usually parked, except in the driveway. Instead of her beautiful bike, there sat a car that looked like it had eaten her bike and swallowed steroids for good measure.

"Where is my bike?!"

"Settle down, Lisa, your death trap is in the shed, but your mom and I agreed that a car was safer to travel in and might help you settle in better. Who knows, you might make friends by dropping your fellow classmates off home if they need a ride?"

Lisa's Dad's voice was low and gravelly, bearing witness to the long hours he was pulling getting the new clinic established. She felt another stab of guilt in the feels at what her parents had had to suffer through because of her out of control temper and resolved to try harder to make things easier on them, starting with appreciating their gift of a car.

Clearly, Dad was the one who chose it, a Shelby gt500. She was sleek and beautiful, a bright red with black racing stripes, a car that promised a wild ride and definitely a head-turner.

The jingle of keys bought Lisa's attention back to the present, and David Montgomery tossed the keys to his only daughter.

"Be careful, and for God's sake, Lisa, do not drive it like you stole it!"

Grinning at her father as she tossed her bag in the backseat, Lisa jumped in the front seat and fired up the engine.

Laughing as she peeled out of the driveway, she shouted over her shoulder, " Where would the fun be in that?? Love you!"

As Lisa gunned it down the road, her dad shook his head and wandered back inside.