The cold atmosphere made it hard for me to sit still in the car. Even with the windows rolled up and the heater on full blast, I was freezing. I pulled my jacket closer to my body and leaned my head against the fogged up window in my dad’s BMW. I sighed, hating the unfortunate events that have unfolded in my short seventeen years of life.

My dad cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence. “Daniella,” my dad looked at me through the rearview mirror. “Can we talk? I’m sorry.” I rolled my eyes and turned up the volume to my music, making sure I couldn’t hear him speak. I’m tired of his “sorry” crap. He’s been trying to apologize to me for a week, but apologies just don’t cut it anymore.

I couldn’t wait until I got to my mother’s house. Just thirty more minutes and I’ll be able to smile again. My father was making me move in with my mom because of his bitchy, evil new wife, Sandra. She hated my guts because she wanted my dad for herself. More likely, she wanted his money to herself. Just then, her irritating voice popped into my head. “Just wait, you little brat. When your father and I get married, you are going to be so gone. You’re going to move back with the monster that made you.” My father did give her everything she wanted, but I didn’t expect him to grant that one wish of hers. Right now, that pissed me off. He chose her over his own daughter. I know right? What a dedicated, loving father.

I moved in with my dad because my mother was a hard worker. She was a famous designer who made clothes for celebrities. Her brand, “Lovely Avenue” was a hit. Because of that, she constantly traveled place to place. She sacrificed seeing her daughter every day because she paid for my tuition so that I could follow my dreams to open my own bakery. My father went against that. He thought I should be a surgeon, just like him. That was one of the reasons my parents are divorced. He wanted my older brother and I to live our lives the way my father wanted.

Just then, my phone vibrated in my pocket, waking me up from my reverie. I pulled out my cell phone. ‘One New Text Message From: Chase,’ it read. I sighed and opened up the text message. “Baby, I miss you. I hope you forgive me. I’m sorry for all the crap I have done. I’m sorry. I love you.” I rolled my eyes once again. This time, I was on the verge of crying. Another man I loved in my life that let me down.

Chase was my boyfriend. I loved him very much. He had short, curly blonde hair and brown eyes. We were together for two years and I always thought we were going to be together. I always thought we would’ve gotten married and have kids. But I was foolish to believe in love. Look where it led me. My parents divorce, my dad leaving me and Chase cheating on me with my best friend, Ali. I felt a pang in my chest just thinking about it.

Flashback *

I was heading over to Chase’s house to rant about how my dad chose Sandra over me. That was the day my father broke the news about me going back to live with my mother. I was angry and my tears just kept rolling down my face. I turned into Chase’s street and pulled up into his house. There was another car there and I knew instantly from the Hello Kitty sticker on the bumper that it was my best friend, Ali’s car. She probably came over to tell him about me moving.

I walked in without knocking, like I usually do. I going up the stairs and froze when I heard moaning and grunts coming from upstairs. “Oh my gosh, Chase! Faster,” a distressed voice said. I heard another moan. I knew that voice. That was Ali.

At that moment, I felt like the whole world turned against me. Everyone I loved was stabbing me in the back. Why fate chose for it all to be on the same day was beyond me. I could literally hear my heart breaking. But, it wasn’t the time to think about that. I had to hold my head up high, I was strong. I wasn’t angry, I was infuriated. The moan from Ali’s mouth sent me stomping up the stairs and barging into Chase’s room. My heart broke some more.

I saw Ali’s red hair poking out from under Chase. Chase looked back at me at the doorway with the look of horror on his face. They both scrambled to their feet. “Oh, why did you guys stop? It was getting to the good part," I said, venom dripping from my voice. They were scrambling, looking for their clothes that were thrown all over the floor. I saw Ali's bra and threw it at her. "You may want to use this." Her face was red.

"Danny, it's not what it looks like," Chase said. I scoffed and rolled my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Oh yeah, let me guess.” I paused dramatically. “You guys decided to get to know each other like I had been insisting all this time,” I spat. Both of them flinched. Ali was looking at the ground and she was quiet the whole time. Something she did often when she was scared. “Ali, I can’t believe you. We’ve been friends since the first grade!” I yelled. I looked at Chase. “And you, I loved you.” I turned on my heel, stalking out of the house. Chase kept yelling my name, telling me to come back and saying how much he was sorry and how much he loved me.

End of Flashback*

I used to be happy, care free, bright, and thought love was the most amazing thing in the world. I used to go to parties, make out with my boyfriend, made new friends, and do the unthinkable. I used to love sky diving, surfing, and riding the most terrifying rides at the amusement park. Now, I’m sad, serious, and dull. Now, I prefer staying at home watching re-runs of Pretty Little Liars, eating tubs of Ben & Jerry’s strawberry ice cream, and trying to avoid my social life. Most importantly, I don’t believe in falling in love.

“Danny!” My mom yelled and ran out of the house engulfing me in a bear hug. I almost fell from the impact. I laughed when she smothered my face with kisses and tears streamed down her face. Her perfume filled my nose and I instantly relaxed. I sighed in contentment. I knew for sure my mother would never betray me. She would never give up on me. This is the first time I smiled in days. I felt so safe in her arms. “You’ve grown so much! I missed you!”

“Mom, you saw me two weeks ago.” I chuckled and sighed again. “I missed you too,” I said seriously. My dad cleared his throat and I scowled. What did he want this time? I turned around and glared at my dad, but he just smiled at me. I narrowed my eyes at him and he just turned to smile at my mother.

“Ella, you look great as always,” My father greeted. It was true. My mother looked gorgeous. She’s forty two and she looked like she was still in her early thirties. Her long straight, dark brown hair was pulled into a tight pony tail and she wore a black dress that hugged her body nicely. Her high cheekbones complimented her black eyes and her red lipstick made her look professional, yet lovely. I looked just like her, except my hair was slightly curled at the bottom making it look like I’ve curled it with a curling iron and my eyes were green, just like my father’s own. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t good looking. It ran in my blood and most of my family members were models.

“Thank you, George. I’ve got a meeting in an hour,” she groaned and looked at her watch. “I hate to leave Danny because she just arrived, but duty calls.” She looked at me apologetically. “I’m sorry. I was hoping I wasn’t going to be busy today. I hope you don’t mind because it’s going to be held in the house.” I looked over at the mansion my mom called home. It was beautiful, of course. She was filthy rich, but she didn’t take it for granted. It was two stories high. Inside, there was twelve bedrooms, ten bathrooms, one huge kitchen, a dining room, a living area, a work out area, my mother’s work shop, a basement, an attic and finally a huge meeting room for when she has meetings for her job.

I shook my head and smiled at my mom. “Mom, this is your house. Stop freaking out. I understand.” She smiled sweetly at me. I saw Feli, one of my mother’s maids coming outside and I ran up to her, hugging her. She was like my Aunt. She had short curly gray hair and she was short and stubby. She had a huge smile on her face that brightened up her whole face. “Aunt Feli, how you doing?”

“Oh, I’m doing fine. No need to worry about me, sweet heart. How ya’ doing?” She smiled, trying to smooth out her hair. “By the way, I made your favorite southern pot pie to make you feel better.”

“I’m alright. Could be doing better. Oh, I can’t wait to eat that.” My mouth watered at the thought of her famous pot pie. She chuckled at my expression.

“Feli, it’s good to see you again!” My dad said enthusiastically, interrupting my conversation once again. He looked at me with a serious look on his face. “Danny, can we talk?”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” I simply said, shrugging. “Mom, I’ll see you inside,” My mother looked concerned. Her hands were knotted together in front of her. She started twiddling her thumbs and she bit her lip. She did that often when she was deep in thought or when she was nervous. I started stalking off towards the main entrance of the house, while Feli followed me, rubbing my back soothingly.

“Daniella Jean Wrode Saunders,” I froze in place when he said my whole name. My back was still facing him and I tensed up. Feli noticed and she stepped away from me. She knew that when I was tense, I was mad. And it isn’t pretty when I’m mad, trust me. “I expected you to understand. You’re not a child anymore, Daniella.” My father’s voice sounded angry. He was getting tired and impatient with me, which pissed me off some more.

“I do understand. You love Sandra more than me.” I spat out and walked into the house without looking back. I was on the verge of crying again. How much tears can a girl hold? I was just one person and I certainly couldn’t handle this crap anymore. I was only seventeen and I shouldn’t be worrying about these things. I wished I was normal. I wished that my parents were still married, that my dad took care of his ‘little girl’, and that my boyfriend loved me unconditionally. But I wasn’t normal. I was Daniella Saunders. I was far from normal.

Half an hour later, my dad finally left. He tried to say good bye, but I ignored him. My mom left me with some Ben & Jerry’s strawberry ice cream before going to her meeting. I wished my brother were here. He would’ve been comforting me and he would’ve told my dad to leave me the hell alone. He would’ve protected me. He would’ve tickled me until I started smiling again.  

My brother, Darren was two years older than me and right now, he was at college all the way in Washington. I missed him terribly. He was working on getting a degree as a mechanic. My father wanted him to become a star baseball player, but Darren didn’t listen to him. It was his life after all. That’s how I learned to stand up to my father. Darren was my inspiration. His voice popped into my mind. “Hold your head up high and smile. Stand up tall and remain strong. You are strong. You know why?” I would smile at him, knowing what he would say next. “Because I’m your brother.” We would laugh and he would tickle me until I was almost out of breath.

It was getting dark already and I could see the stars in the sky began to appear. I was sitting in my huge bedroom, looking out the window to the back yard. The only thing I didn’t like about this place was the forest that was a few feet away from my house. It was strange and creepy. It looked like one of those forests in those scary movies they tell you not to go into. The fog surrounded the trees mysteriously and I shivered at the thought of walking into the forest and what could happen if I did.  Just when I thought that, I saw something black zipping through trees. What the hell was that? I started to panic. Was it a dog? Dogs certainly weren’t as big as that. Maybe it was a bear. But bears didn’t move that fast, a little voice in my head said. Goosebumps rose all over my body and my heart started going in overdrive. I closed my eyes and shook my head and looked back at the forest. There was nothing. It just looked creepy as usual. Maybe I was hallucinating, I was tired after all.

Someone knocked on my door, waking me up from my reverie. “Come in,” I called, still looking outside. The door opened slowly and my mom’s head popped inside. She looked concerned and worried. She came in and obviously, she changed into something more comfortable. Her hair was in a messy bun and she wore a white loose shirt and gray sweats. “Honey, you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m just mad at dad.” I sighed.

“You have every right to be. I can’t believe he married a skank.” My mother spat and shivered in disgust. “I can’t believe he chose her over his own daughter.”

I stayed quite the whole time my mom ranted about the reasons she divorced him. “He was selfish. He wanted things to go his way. Gosh, when is he ever going to learn?” My mom just kept going on and on until I got up and started unpacking my clothes. She watched me curiously and started helping me unpack my stuff. It was silent and I appreciated it. I didn’t feel like talking about my dad anymore. What’s done is done.

By the time I was half way done, my right shoulder started aching. I winced and started rolling it. I rubbed it, but it did nothing to help my burning shoulder. My mom noticed and she looked at me worried. She bit her lip. “What’s wrong?” She asked.

“Nothing big. It’s been happening for a week.” I rubbed my shoulder, wincing. I closed my eyes and counted to ten, trying to calm myself down. “It’s probably because I’m tired.”

“I think your sh-“ my mom stopped herself midsentence and looked scared for a moment. I looked at her curiously. She bit her lip again and she looked off into space.

“Huh?” That seemed to jolt her out of whatever she was thinking. Gosh, what is wrong? Weird things just keep happening. “Mom, are you alright?”

“Yeah. It’s probably because you’re tired. I mean, you’ve been stressed. You’ve been through a lot.” She said nervously. I looked at her suspiciously and she sighed. “Honey, you do realize I’m sorry? You don’t deserve any of this.”

“Mom, it’s not your fault. Trust me. I’m with you now and I couldn’t wish for anything else.” I hugged her as she began to cry.

“I feel like a horrible parent. I mean, my daughter is not happy. What’s wrong with me?” She said upset. She wiped her tears away. I felt a pang in my chest. She thought this was her fault. “Let me make it up to you. Spa day Saturday.”

“Mom, it’s not your fault. And I’d love to.” I sighed and hugged her once more. She looked excited and I smiled. I missed these moments with my mom. The moments where it was just the two of us, either shopping, relaxing, getting our nails done or just talking. She always found a way to make my day.

“That way, the aching in your shoulder would go away,” she winked. “And you look like crap.” She said, her face scrunching up. “And you stink too. You really need to take a bath.”

“Jee, thanks mom. I love you too.” I said sarcastically. “Anyways, what did dad say to you?”

“He didn’t say anything. He was a chicken,” my mom rolled her eyes. “I did most of the talking. I told him that you needed space. I also said some violent things, but you don’t need to hear those things.” She said proudly. She didn’t like it when someone messes with her or her kids. When she gets mad, she gets mad. Never get on my mom’s bad side, just saying. “So, how’s you and Chase?”

I broke down. I couldn’t take it anymore. Holding back my tears was too hard. My heart was aching some more. My mother looked at me curiously while she held my hand. She looked sorry for me. She probably thought I only missed him. To tell you the truth, I do miss him and I hate myself for that. “He cheated on me,” I said between sobs. My mom gasped and embraced me in a motherly hug. “W-with Ali.”

“What!” She said angrily. Her eyes narrowing and she looked like she was going to kill someone pretty soon. “I swear, when I see those two, I’m going to –“

“Mom, forget about it. They’re nothing to me anymore. Since I’m here, I’m going to leave the past behind and start fresh.” I interrupted, putting on a fake smile. “I’m going to take a shower since I stink.” I said, emphasizing the last two words. She laughed and I smiled. I loved my mom’s laugh. It made me happy to know I made her happy. “Do you have some Epsom Salt? My shoulder is really hurting.” I started rubbing my shoulder again, wincing when the pain intensified.

“Yeah, it’s in your bathroom drawer.”

“Okay, thanks.” I started walking to my bathroom. “Good night mom. I love you. Thanks for everything.” I could tell she smiled even if I wasn’t looking at her. I could feel the happiness radiating off of her.

“Good night Danny. No problem, sweet heart.” She said softly. “By the way, you start school in two days.”

Great, I thought. Here comes the torture.

I walked through the hallway looking for class A232. I was getting impatient. Oh God, I’m going to be late for my first class on my first day, I thought. My teacher is going to think I’m one of the people who think they’re ‘bad ass’. I rolled my eyes. Teachers were so judgmental. Oh well, it’s not my fault the classroom numbers were faded and so hard to read.

I was busy trying to decipher the classroom numbers that I accidently bumped into someone hard. I stumbled back a bit from the impact, but luckily I caught myself before I fell. “Oh gosh, I’m so sorry,” I said scared. Would’ve this person killed me? This school scared the shit out of me already.

I looked up at a tall, muscular guy who looked about my age. He had jet black hair and blue eyes. He was really hot and good looking. He was scowling until he looked into my eyes. The whole world seemed to stop for a moment. It felt like we were the only two in the hallway. My heart skipped multiple beats and I saw something in those blue eyes. It was as if I was looking at the scene all by myself. It was a gray wolf and he looked as if he found something he has been searching for his whole life. For some reason it made my heart swell up.

The scene disappeared and I closed my eyes. I felt dizzy. I opened my eyes again when I felt normal. The guy’s face softened a bit, but before I could blink an eye, his eyes hardened and he scowled. “Watch where you’re going, bitch. Are you blind or something?” He said harshly and he continued walking in the other direction, but before he left, he bumped my shoulder hard that I fell on the ground. I grabbed my shoulder in pain. It was bad enough that it was hurting already. Everyone started laughing at me and I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. He walked away and for some reason, I felt like my heart broke in two.

---------

“Hi, I’m Jade Marshall,” a gorgeous girl came up to me while I was entering the school. I froze and looked at her cautiously. I wasn’t expecting to meet someone this fast and I was actually hoping I didn’t meet anyone at all today. Darn, bad luck just loves me. Jade had clear blue eyes and dark long hair that reached up to her belly button. Her bangs were cut side swept and her smile was stunning. She was also tall and wore a black leather jacket. Her olive skin was glowing in the sun. For a moment, I thought she just came from a photo shoot, but I quickly shook the thoughts away and gave her a small smile. “Welcome to Crawford High, Home of the Lions,” she said enthusiastically and held her hand out to me.

“Hi, I’m Daniella Saunders,” I said, taking her hand in mine and shaking it. I smiled softly at her. “But, just call me Danny.”

“Cool. Sorry if the welcoming thing was kind of creepy,” she said shyly. “I’m part of the ‘Welcoming committee’ here at this school. Since this is a small town, not many people enroll here. Obviously, since the welcoming was horrible, this is my first time.”

“Oh, come on, it wasn’t that bad.” I laughed along with her. We walked into the school and just like the movies, everyone was in their small little cliques. The jocks and cheerleaders were near their lockers, the nerds sitting at the stairs getting bothered by the bullies, the scary students leaning against the wall trying to look innocent, the sluts looking at the mirrors in their lockers … well you get the idea. This school was quite small and the hallways were crowded. It was also old. The lockers were rusting a little, the red paint was faded, and the sign at the entrance of the school was missing the f in Crawford so that it read, “Craw ord High.” It was a public school. I begged my mom for about an hour yesterday to enroll me here because I didn’t want to go to a rich, snobby, stuck up school.

“I already got your schedule and school packet,” Jade said. She handed me my things. I looked around. Panic began to surge through me. I’m going to be a lone and lost and who knows what will happen to me? I thought to myself. Jade must’ve seen the look of horror on my face because she said, “Oh, don’t worry. You’ll get used to it. Plus, I’ll be sticking with you today. It’s part of the job.” She winked.

I opened the packet up. “So, what’s your first period?” Jade asked, looking over my shoulder at my schedule.

“AP Calculus.”

“Oh, that’s A232 with Mr. Jenkins. He’s pretty cool, just gives tons of homework. What else do you have?”

“Second period world geography, third period gym, fourth period literature and, or drama class, and fifth period AP chemistry,” I replied. I scrunched up my nose. “Yuck, I have gym for third period.”

“Wow, I have you for everything except for first and fifth. Looks like you’re my part- oh shit, I got to go,” She said, looking panicked. “I totally forgot I had to do something! If I’m not back by the time the first bell rings, I’m sorry! But, you’re a smart girl, you’ll figure it out,” She called out to me while speed walking down the hallway. Great, I thought, I’m all alone now. I ignored all the stares that I was receiving. I put on a fake smile. Minus well give them something to look at.

I found my locker and opened it up. It was actually pretty clean, I was lucky. I sighed when I was putting all the notebooks my mom told me to bring into my locker. I pleaded with her to leave it at home since it was my first day and I didn’t really need to bring so many stuff. She simply scolded me and said, “It’s better to be prepared than to wait last minute.”

Someone leaned coolly against the locker next to mine. I looked up and found a guy with curly blonde hair and chocolate brown eyes. He had a nice build. You could tell because the dark gray shirt he wore showed off his nice body. I would’ve been swooning over him, but he had a cocky smirk on his face. Big turn off: cocky dudes. “Hey, sweet heart. What do you say we get out of this place and do something more entertaining?” He asked and added a wink.

“Sorry, my parents told me to stay away from strangers,” I simply said and almost smiled when he looked shocked for a moment. Obviously, he wasn’t used to rejection. I mentally smiled at myself.

“But how are you going to make new friends if you don’t talk to people you don’t know?” He smirked again. I seriously wanted to slap this guy already. Did my forehead read, “I’m easy”? I don’t think so. “I’m Jarred. Jarred Hunter. And you look familiar.” He said. Oh man, here comes the pick-up lines. Whoopee.

“Yeah, I look like the girl you’ve been waiting for or perhaps your next girl friend? I heard that many times before.” He looked shocked again, before smirking at me once more.

“Baby, you could fall off a building, or fall out of a tree, but –“

“But, the best way to fall is to fall in love with me,” I interrupted him and looked up to see him shocked. I laughed and scrunched up my nose. “Just give it up Romeo. You’re lame and boring.”

“Romeo’s a wuss and I am not boring,” he faked hurt.

“Well, he’s manlier than you’ll ever be.”

He scoffed. “Chick, you’re good,” He admitted and held out his hand so I could pound his rock. “You know what? You’re my new best friend. It’s about time I found a bad *** chick. All the girl’s here are too easy.” He put his arm around my shoulder in a friendly way and we started walking down the hall. “I’m going to show you off to my friends! But, seriously, what’s your name?”

“Gosh Jarred. You’re so bipolar. I mean, first you’re hitting on me and the next, you’re suddenly excited that I rejected you,” I laughed. “I’m Daniella. Daniella Saunders,” I said it huskily resembling the way he introduced himself earlier and he chuckled.

“Do you have a band aid?” He whispered in my ear.

“Why?” I asked, pausing dramatically. “Let me guess, you scraped your knee falling for me,” We both laughed out loud and I shoved him playfully.

“Holy crap, you’re good.” Finally, we reached his group of friends. I stood there stunned. How many people in this school are good looking?! This school is filled with people who look like gods or goddesses. “Guys, this is Daniella Saunders. Just call her Danny. You know, Darren Saunders’s sister.” They nodded, knowingly. I was surprised they knew my brother. “She’s totally bad ***. She rejected me.” Everyone laughed when he pretended to cry.

“I’m Charles,” they guy with the brown fro-hawk and gray eyes said. He had his hands wrapped around a pretty girl’s waist. Obviously, that was his girl friend. “Bad *** like your brother huh?” He asked. I nodded and smiled, feeling proud of my brother.

The girl that Charles was holding had green eyes and blonde wavy hair that went past her shoulders. She spoke up. “I’m Abigail Hunter. That stupid prick’s twin sister,” she nodded at Jarred. A look of disgust came upon her face when she looked at her twin. Jarred stuck his tongue out at her.

“I’m Dustin,” a guy with dirty blonde hair said, shaking my hand. He seemed uncomfortable. He probably wasn’t the social type.

“And, I’m Alex,” The last guy said. He had black hair that was spiked up. By the look of his perfect sculpted face, I could tell a lot of girl’s hit on him. He smiled at me and shook my hand.

The bell rang and I said my goodbyes, not wanting to be late for my first class. That would make me look bad for the rest of the year. We had five minutes to get to class before the late bell sounded. I hurriedly climbed up the stairs where the ‘A’ section of the building was.

I walked through the hallway looking for class A232. I was getting impatient. Oh God, I’m going to be late for my first class on my first day, I thought. My teacher is going to think I’m one of those people who think they’re ‘bad ass’. I rolled my eyes. Teachers were so judgmental. Oh well, it’s not my fault the classroom numbers were faded and so hard to read.

I was busy trying to decipher the classroom numbers that I accidently bumped into someone hard. I stumbled back a bit from the impact, but luckily I caught myself before I fell. The place where our skin touched was tingling and I rubbed it involuntarily. “Crap, I’m so s-sorry,” I said scared. Would’ve this person killed me? This school scared the shit out of me already with all the good looking people and how strange the atmosphere seemed to be.

I looked up at a tall guy who looked about my age and had a nice build. He had jet black hair and blue eyes. He was really hot and good looking. Again, I would’ve been swooning over him if he didn’t have that scowl on his face. Our eyes locked and the whole world seemed to stop for a moment. It felt like we were the only two in the hallway. My heart skipped multiple beats and my breath hitched. I saw something in those blue eyes. It was as if I was looking at the scene all by myself. It was a huge gray wolf and he looked like a puppy that was given a treat. It was as if he found something he has been searching for his whole life. For some reason it made my heart swell up.

The scene disappeared and I closed my eyes. I felt dizzy and stupid. I was hallucinating again. I opened my eyes again when I regained my strength. The guy’s face softened a bit, but before I could blink an eye, his eyes hardened and he scowled. “Watch where you’re going, bitch. Are you blind or something?” He said harshly and he continued walking in the other direction, but before he left, he bumped my shoulder hard that I fell on the ground. I grabbed my shoulder in pain. It was bad enough that it was hurting already. Everyone started laughing at me and I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. I watched the mysterious guy’s back retreating and for some reason, I felt like my heart broke in two.

What the hell? I thought. What’s going on? And what the hell is shoved up that guy’s as-butt? I smiled a little. He had a great butt for sure. I shook my head to clear those nasty thoughts. He certainly wasn’t having a good morning but he shouldn’t have taken his anger out on me. I did nothing to him. Why did I feel like my heart broke in two? I didn’t know him. I certainly didn’t love him. I don’t believe in falling in love. It was too overrated. Anger began to surge inside of me and I heard a deep growl. It wasn’t until then, that I realized it came from me. What the hell? Did I just growl?

Surely, this school isn’t normal. I could feel it in the atmosphere. I felt like there were many things that I was meant to uncover. But how can I find it if I don’t even know what I’m looking for in the first place? And why the hell did I feel like I didn’t know myself anymore? I felt like I was stronger and my temper was hanging on a thread. My temper never went out of control this fast. I wondered why I suddenly felt like this. Oh right, I wasn’t normal. I’m Daniella Saunders. I was far from normal.

The people were still staring at me and for a moment, I felt embarrassed. “Hold your head up high and smile. Stand up tall and remain strong. You are strong,” I heard my brother’s voice in my head. So, I stood up, picked up my stuff and walked away with my head help up high, feeling strong.