Prologue

It was the first day of classes at Kennedy High School. Students are everywhere. The parking lot is full of cars belonging to the students and faculty. There are a few cars still roving the parking lot looking for empty spaces. The whole area looks like a marketplace, people yelling and waving at their friends to join them, some are already in groups talking animatedly. While some, well, they were just standing there, looking around them as if memorizing every building and every blade of grass around them. These people who looked like lost lambs are usually the new students, they just transferred from another school from some other city or country and haven't made friends yet. Too reserved to go out and meet other kids when they moved or they must've moved just a few days ago.

Cassie is one of those lost lambs. A girl of medium build, not too thin, not fat either (but she thinks she is as most teenagers do) long black hair that almost reaches down to her waist. She's not gorgeous, not the type that turns heads when she passes. But she is pretty in her own little way, long lashes and light brown eyes, which she thinks are so plain that she hides them behind her eyeglasses. She has a petite nose that fits just right in her oval face with her pretty little doe eyes, lips that seemed to pout all the time, and a cute dimple on her left cheek. She's not a sight for sore eyes but she's not hard on the eyes either. The thing is, she dresses like a tomboy, baggy jeans and T-shirts that seems two to three sizes bigger paired with old beat-up running shoes. Not to mention that she's a big fan of baseball caps.

Her family has just moved from New York to California. They had to move for financial reasons. It was just actually her mom's decision. Her dad died a year ago, and they were having a hard time making ends meet. Her mom used to live in California before she married her dad and she thought it will be a good idea to go back. Move to a smaller city, well, community is more like it, where everything is more affordable. Everything was just so expensive in the big city. She also thinks that Alicia and her small brother will be much safer, and that she can raise them better here in a smaller town where it's a bit quieter than the streets of New York. She also has family here who can help her out from time to time.

And now, here they are, her mom, Thea, her little brother Jason and her, Cassie, in this strange city or town, or whatever you call it, of Lodi, California. She feels so out of place here, she didn't have time to get new clothes and most of the kids are wearing summer clothes. They look like they're going to the beach (though the nearest beach is probably an hour away). Most of her clothes are for New York which is mostly cold, cloudy and damp and not for sunny California. As she looked at the kids, she couldn't help but think she won't fit in, "They all look so cool and so at ease in their environment, maybe I should just tell mom to look for another school. They probably grew up together." She thought to herself as she looked at a bunch of girls talking and laughing animatedly.

A particular person in the group caught Cassie's eye, "She is so pretty! I wish I could be like her." She mused

That particular girl is Taylor, who really is pretty considering she models for commercials and print ads. She has wavy blonde hair and if you look at her, she kinda looks like her namesake, Taylor Swift. White skin and full red lips, who would argue? Taylor loves Taylor Swift and dresses like her but adds a few touches of her own, so she can make it more of "her" style. She's one of the most popular girls in school and her boyfriend, of course (pardon the cliché) is the star basketball player, Raiden Patterson. Everyone thinks they are the perfect couple.

The other girls in the group are Heather, Angela, and Patricia. These girls have been friends since first grade. Sure they have had fights but they have always managed to work things out somehow. They are like sisters, they share everything, food, clothes, make-up, you name it. Well, maybe not everything, they don't share boys. They had agreed on that a long time ago, they will never ever share boyfriends!

Watching how happy they seemed, Cassie wished she's part of their group. But she knew she couldn't be part of this trendy group. 'Just look at the way they dress, I could never wear skirts as short as those! I wish I have the guts, if only I was thinner.' She thought, though she's not fat, she was built just right. A size two is not fat!

She took a deep breath and started towards the building. "Here goes!" she whispered to herself.