In the morning, I woke up with the sun. I stumbled to the vanity, and looked at the girl in the reflection. "Dramatic and unique," were the terms I usually heard to describe my features. I had round green eyes, long dark hair, full red lips, and high cheekbones. Boys called me DSL, for dick sucking lips, which made me feel dirty. I also heard duck face, and ugly duckling, because I was awkward and tall. I had long, skinny limbs that look skeletal when I was younger.

I didn't have any makeup of my own. I pulled on the outfit, and shoved my notebooks and pencils in an old backpack. After taking care of basic toiletries, I went downstairs, where I picked at some toast. Taking a look at the clock, I walked out the door, yelling a 'bye' on my way out.

The short drive was hardly enough to let me collect my thoughts. I arrived at the plain school. Gingerly, I crept through the parking lot. Lots of eyes stared at me, the 5'8 new girl with the sheet of dark hair. After letting the office give me my locker and schedule, I walked through the empty halls, now empty, due to a long line in the office. Ahead, I saw a figure, a boy.

"You new or something?" He commented. I just shrugged. "Or something." He raised his eyebrows.

"What's your name?" He asked, sizing me up.

"Lana."

"Pretty name. I'm Jesse."

I looked at the clock on the wall. "I should go. I don't need to make any bad impressions. See you around."

"See ya."

Without looking back, I headed toward Chemistry, room C104.

The second I walked in, everything froze.

"You're late." The teacher snarled. He was an older man with a tweed suit.

I wanted to run away, but I knew I wouldn't be fast enough.

"I'm new. I was getting my schedule from the office."

Looking disapprovingly at me, he ripped off a tardy sheet. "Late is late."

When I sat down, I found myself surrounded my whispers and giggles. I heard the words "new," "weird," and "freak" uttered in the stale air. Tense, I closed my eyes and went into my wonderland.

I'm falling into the earth. Going down, down, down. I land, without pain, in a field. Bright green, with neon flowers dotting the view. I turn and see someone farther back, blowing in the wind.

"Lana! My darling!"

"Alessandra!" She has long, long blond hair and huge, blue Bambi eyes. She is wearing a breezy white dress. We run to each other and hug. I haven't seen her recently. She feels like sunshine. I look into her eyes and see a tear.

"Alessandra? What's wrong?" I frown, worried.

She wipes it away. "Lana, how I hate him." I turn behind me.

There he is.

Those eyes.

Pulling me in when I need to get away.

"Lana?"

Silence.

"Lana?"

WAKE UP.

"Lana!" My eyes open. Everyone laughing, pointing, and my teacher, that mean old man with his dumb suit, is staring disappointed.

"Daydreaming! Not a good way to start off the year." My face feels like it's sunburnt and my nose burns like I'm going to cry. I sit up straight, letting the whispers fly.