Chapter 1

Autumn leaves float towards the ground, gently landing atop the dewy grass. The sun still below the horizon begins to inch its way into view. Faint chirping from a nearby nest can be heard. Many birds have already begun their journey to warmer destinations. The few singing stragglers shake one of the newcomers from her slumber.

"Good morning hun," the driver of the vehicle whispers towards the younger passenger. "We are pulling into the drive of our new oasis now."

The young girl peeks through the window of the minivan to see a red-brick building neighboring many other similar structures. Located on a main city street rests the 3-story 'oasis.' Vines slowly creep up the sides of this tired place. Large shop windows dress the first floor of the building, almost as if there is no cover for anyone who occupies that space from the outside world. Smaller, two-pane windows adorn the surfaces of the second and third floors. Flowering pear trees line the sidewalks just outside of this new home. Although losing their leafy vesture, the trees continue to provide shelter to the neighboring wildlife in the area.

"This looks a bit big for just the two of us... don't you think mom?" the girl articulates as she soaks up the rest of what she can gather from her new place of residence.

"It may be big, but any place can be called home with the right attitude. Just think. This is a new start for us. I finally have the space to start up my own craft store. You might make some new friends at your new school later. With some time, you may come to find that you like it here. Endless possibilities lay right behind this very door," remarks the young girl's mother as she motions towards said door. The young girl opens the door for her mother who is scrambling to gather some bags and a few other stray items from the van to tide them over until later in the evening when they will unpack.

A few steps in and the younger girl starts analyzing any detail she can take in. White and gray striped walls. An open, industrial ceiling hangs over her head along with multiple, black, iron light fixtures. The light produced by the seemingly small lightbulbs is painfully harsh. Black-brick tiles cover the floor. It seems a bit too hipster-esque for someone as kitschy as her mother. After removing her slip-on shoes, she begins her trek up the stairs to find the potential space that will serve as her room. Her mom had all the larger furniture delivered and set up a few weeks prior with the help of a small moving company run by the girl's uncle. A few rooms later she finds her things. Her bed, void of sheets and pillows, silently gathers dust in the corner of the room. She rummages around the items in the room to find a suitable blanket. She obtains a small, light green throw blanket and lays down with it, covering herself as best as she can to get whatever sleep she can.

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The girl sits up, stretching her arms above her head, shaking the sleep from her features. She leaves her bed to shower and gets ready for whatever is left of the day ahead.

As she lumbers out of her room, and down the hall, she finds herself in a large open space that has all the appliances necessary to cook and a floating island in the center of the room with a few bar stools just underneath the lip of the counter. Her mom rushes from one side of the kitchen to the other, trying to prepare what could be labeled 'breakfast.'

"Howdy C." Her chipper voice rings.

"Hi mom," the girl replies.

"You slept in a bit later than we planned, but you can still catch the last few classes of the day if you head out now." Shrugging and grabbing a small bundle of grapes from the large bowl on the counter, the girl scoops up her backpack and makes her way towards the front door. She turns around and gives her mom a quick grape-filled smile and a small wave of her hand before turning back around, pushing open the heavy black door, and skipping down the stairs into her new unknown.

After arriving, speaking to the secretary at the front office, and obtaining her new schedule, she looks at her paper. After staring at it for a few moments, every question, every concern she had been holding back since the moving announcement was made, floods her mind. She has no idea what hallway to go to, what class is next, where she is, or why they had to move. What friends will she meet that would have been any better than the friends from her last school? What makes this city better than her old hometown? Why did they have to move so far? How is she supposed to catch up in the middle of her final year of high school? These thoughts race through her head as she bumps into the person in front of her.

"Sorry," she whispers almost inaudibly.

"You better be. Who the hell do you think you are?" the taller girl howls.

"Claudia." Claudia shrinks further back, trying to escape whatever unwanted confrontation approaches.

"Well since it's your first day, I'll give you a warning. Never touch me you little freak." The taller girl leers before walking away.

'Who crapped in her cornflakes!' Claudia thinks before returning to the task at hand. 'Where the heck am I,' she utters as she wanders the main hall aimlessly.

"Room 1215," she mumbles, looking down long hallways. "This school is a thousand times larger than my last school. Why am I here?" she ponders.

Looking up from her schedule she scans the locker-filled space that surrounds her. Gray and white tiled concrete floors cascade from one end of the building to the other. White and burgundy brick walls stretch up towards the sky being closed off by the pale ceiling full of skylights. Every hallway is separated by a row of matching burgundy lockers. Each hallway also has a numbered sign that juts out into the main hallway to help guide students to their destinations. 100, 200, 300, all the way to 1000 can be seen perched at the top of the separated walls. Claudia glances back down at the paper in her hand with a look of confusion mixed with frustration.

"Room 1215...room 1215...room 12--"

"Hey, sounds like you're looking for the twelve-hundred hallway?" guesses the person behind her.

Turning around, Claudia clears her throat to reply. "How'd you know? Are you some kind of psychic?" she asserts sarcastically, while a small but confident smirk spreads across her lips.

"Like Hell, I'd tell you if I was. However, you are in luck. You have fifth period with me. We are already 3 minutes late, but I am sure I can convince Mr. Rennet to let us in. He loves me anyway," the boy chuckles half-heartedly, "Come on, we don't want to be any later than we already are." He says as he pulls her down the 1000 hallway which bleeds into the 1100 and 1200 hallways. 'You'd think they would have labeled that better,' Claudia thinks to herself before the boy abruptly stops in front of room 1215.

Knock. Knock. Knock. The door opens to reveal a burly man, maybe in his early thirties. He wears a light blue polo shirt and a pair of khaki dress pants. His hair, loose blond wispy curls, softens his sharp facial features. He pinches the bridge of his nose, trying not to scowl too much. He is too young to start his collection of wrinkles now. He is not happy.

"You're late Mr. Foster and Miss...?" The teacher contends.

"Ah... Jones," Claudia answers.

"Are you the new student? Claudia Jones?"

"Yes sir," she says meekly. A slight blush creeps across the bridge of her nose. The back of her neck flushes as well.

"Go sit down Foster. Miss Jones, please introduce yourself to the class," demands Mr. Rennet. Claudia stands, frozen like a deer in headlights. So many faces. Everyone in the class stares straight at her. Why did she have to be late? If only she had made it on time or even early to mentally prepare herself to face her peers. She opens her mouth to speak but no words come out.

"I asked you to introduce yourself," he states again, a bit harsher this time. Still no words pass through her lips. Whispers can be heard around the room. After the whispers came a peal of hushed laughter. Tears start to prick at the corners of her eyes.

"Aww, the little freak is crying. How pathetic." The taller girl from earlier pipes up. Now the room erupts with laughter and the few pitied sighs from the more compassionate peers. She feels all alone. Her body reacts before her brain even registers what is happening.

Running.

"Get back here!" Mr. Rennet shouts.

"Foster! Go get Miss Jones," Mr. Rennet orders. Foster salutes the teacher obnoxiously and takes off behind her, cursing under his breath at his ruthless peers.

Footsteps pounding against pavement. With tears falling, embarrassment fills the air, suffocating her. Why did this happen? Why did they have to leave home just to come to this dreadful town?