The busy chatter in the cafeteria made me wide-awake. It was a normal winter in December and it was beginning to get quite chilly. Okay, scratch that. It was freezing cold! I had to wear thick layers of sweaters so I wouldn't turn into am ice Popsicle or something. Inside the school, it was very warm with heaters. We had to take off our coats and hang them on the old, wooden coat rack. It really smelled like trees from the forest, and you still could feel the carved markings on it. The snow on our jackets would soon turn into water, puddles of frosty liquid that could make you trip; and embarrass yourself in front of the whole school. Of course, I knew that because it actually happened to me this year! So now I was in the cafeteria, trying to think over all the loud row and commotion, while sitting on a lonesome table drinking hot chocolate with islands of little marshmallows. "Hey, Cameron! Why don't you shrink yourself and turn into a tiny ant so no one can notice your big, fat, ugly head!" I didn't know what to say. Teasing always occurred at our all-girls school. Especially… to me. Of course, it wasn't such a big shock but then, it was never that harsh, either! You're probably thinking, but that's not mean at all! You wouldn't believe what they call me in school! I know, I know, it wasn't really bad… but still. I felt the pain prickling to my heart. I felt like a volcano, ready to erupt. I felt hot, scared, embarrassed that people would make fun of me. It always happened. I snapped out of my feeling sorry for myself and went back to sipping my what were now puddles of chocolate milk in my mug. I quietly peeled off the wrapper of my homemade BLT sandwich. I could smell the crisp bacon, the juicy tomato, and the crunching lettuce… I finished it in a flash, and just when I was about to throw my wrapper away, I bumped into Jenna. A.k.a. the meanest, cruelest girl in school. "Watch where you're going, pig head!" she mumbled grumpily. 'What's up with her?' I thought. I went back to the table and sat on the sky blue colored chair. I listened closely to all the crazy noise. I felt hot, pouring tears as I heard girls wearing miniskirts gossiping about me. I felt like I didn't have a place to belong. I quietly and swiftly rushed out of the cafeteria making sure that no one would notice me. I walked fast, almost like running when I bumped into someone. Hailey. She was really quiet in class, and she wasn't so mean. She was the teacher's pet, and everyone respected her. We both bumped our heads at the same time, and down we fell. She got herself up, dusted her clothes and helped me get up. "Are you okay?" she asked. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I managed to mutter. We gathered up our stuff and left before another word was said. By then my tears had disappeared and I could hear teachers talking about… Well, I don't really care, do I? Must be about boring, old stuff. Back to me. What was I going to do now? I was stranded in the hallways, and I was to afraid to go back inside the cafeteria. That left me no choice. To the library! That's where nerds and geeks hung out during lunch. Probably because they would be blinded if they ever saw a popular girl. The library was always quiet, of course, since the librarian is always looking out for someone she could get into trouble. Like a predator stalking their prey, I might add. Her name is Mrs. Whittaker. She's creepy, with pointed teeth and her glasses! It made everyone see that she had no fashion sense. Her face was square shaped, and her eyeglasses too. She always wore dull, boring colors like black. The only color I've ever seen her wear, anyway. You could always smell a bad odor coming out of her, which nobody wanted to sniff. So I was in the library, frightened Mrs. Whittaker would scare the death out of me. I scurried across the humungous, white painted library and to where the computers were. You should know something about me; I'm a techno freak. I just love it! Laptops, cell phones, cameras, PDA's, you name it! I clicked on the blue Internet icon and typed on the address bar. It's basically a website that allows you to meet new people, chat with them and post your own blog. I went to sign in and quickly checked my email. It was blank. Nothing. Nada. Not even from my New Jersey BFF, Jordan! You see, I lived in New Jersey before. Flowers, fresh air! There weren't any snobby girls, and we were all friends at our old school. We all played during recess, passed notes in class and had fun in detention even if we got into trouble, it was all fun! Except now, when my parents divorced. I remembered crying myself to sleep every night and sobbing and calling my friends for help. They always cared for me and reminded me that I still had them. My heart ached. I shed tears. My life was miserable… until I moved to New York. Here. Now my life is a living hell. There was nothing great here! I know that New York would be your heart's desired destination if you haven't been here yet, but I had nobody to share the whole city with! Only my mom, who I currently hated. New York was terrible! I felt like I was being held prisoner and I couldn't do anything to get out. I was trapped and doomed forever. I moved here with my mom. She always told me reassuringly that I would find new friends here. But she was wrong. That never happened. It could never. I quickly wiped the tear halfway down my face. Just remembering those awful memories- it made me feel hurt. I exited the Internet and gathered my things. Just when I was about to get off my chair, you wouldn't believe it- I hit someone… again! It was a boy, this time. What's this boy doing here? I wondered. Should I remind you that this was an all girls-school? 'Sorry,' he mumbled. I skidded out of the gigantic place before he got a clear view of my face. Who was he? I thought again. Should I tell someone? But… Mrs. Whittaker should've seen him entering the library! Okay, that was bizarre. It was none of my business though, so why did I care? I went back to the hallways and sat in front of my locker until the bell rang. Hordes of people filled the hallways and I was like a little fish, being carried off by the wave. I went to class. Good thing it was English, my favorite subject. We studied about poems. Different kinds of them. Our homework was to write one. Wow, how hard- not! English class passed like a blur. Like a fighting scene you see in movies. One moment there are two enemies, one of them saying, "Prepare to fight!" and suddenly, Kapow! Before you know it, one of them is bleeding like bloody hell and the other is feeling all-triumphant and he suddenly escapes before anyone could catch a glimpse of him- the person who just murdered the other guy. Know what I mean? At least, at this moment there was no fighting involved. Insulting, maybe, but no violence. I fled to my next class before anyone could spot me. I had to be careful. It was Social Science next. Oh, how I dreaded it! I don't really know why, but I've hated Social Science since I was in Grade 1. "What will happen today?" I sighed. I lazily dragged myself into the room and sat on my seat. It looked like it always was. The teacher came. Class started. I listened impatiently. I waited until the bell rang. I heard the teacher talking gibberish. Something about… Sumerians? Mesopotamia? I was daydreaming of what could happen when I got home. Like there would be any change. Not. Our house was completely ordinary. I thought about our house getting on fire. Then suddenly, a cute fireman, about my age would sweep down and save me before I could even say, "Cherry pie!" It would never happen, though. Our house was as dull as a gray, old painting. There was nothing interesting. I dreamed about creating my own house. Even if I wanted to become a writer when I grew up, I was thinking about designing my home house. I would live alone with my best friends. If I ever had any. I know, I should be living in a house with my family, but it was too far to think of now. Everything I was thinking was too early for me to think of! Let's see, I had about eight more years of studying. I ticked off my fingers as I counted. I was in grade 7 now; so next year would be my last year in Junior High. Then, four years in High School, have a rest for a couple of years, and soon I would be heading off to three years of college! Wow. Just then, the bell rang. "Yes!" I murmured silently, so only I could hear. I quickly exited the room and went outside to wait for the bus. I know what you think. The bus sucks, right? Well, our does too. You wouldn't believe what it is inside! Let me tell you. Our bus driver, her name is Mrs. Murphy. She likes to be called Becky. She's-surprisingly- muscular. She has really huge muscles that are six-pack our something. I heard it from my brother, Gabriel. More on him later. Mrs. Murphy- or Becky- has a tattoo on her 'six-pack' too. It was one of those heart shaped with 'Mom' tattoos, and let's just say it was not pretty. Then there were they popular people (the ones who insulted me before!) who sat in the front row. All eyes are always on them. You would always catch them- gross- making out, gossiping, and commenting rudely at other people! Mostly, their fashion sense. Ha! Like they know fashion well. Actually, they do. But there's this one kid, her name is Sandy and she wears terribly ugly clothes everyday! Like, one time she wore an aqua spaghetti strap shirt with burgundy brown Capri pants. Seriously. Who the heck would wear that? I might not be the best fashion consultant but I know the wrongs and the rights. I'm sure the popular crowd has noticed, but the real question is, why do they even keep her 'in' when they know she doesn't belong? I mean, it all doesn't make sense. Unless… they were using her! Read my lips. They. Are. Using. Her! I wonder why I'm being all giddy about this. There was no significance. I would've told someone, if there were anyone to tell it to. Might I remind you about my cruel, horrible life? I guess you already knew. So, let's move on! First row, check. Next row, crazy people. They're actually… the wacky crew in school. Those extreme people and they usually do bizarre stunts and do skateboarding. Like I said, wacky! And in the back, who do you think sits there? Me. Me. Me! I sit at the back. And guess what crowd I'm in! Well, if it isn't obvious to you then there must be something wrong with you! I mean, hello? What else is left? Oh, never mind. I'll just tell you if you can't figure it out. The back is… the loser group. I hesitated for a moment, mind you. We are what the popular crowd calls, 'Loser group'. We don't hang out or anything, and we barely know each other. Except if you have a best friend who is also in the loser group, then, you wouldn't be the only one. But for me, you already know. I sat in my usual place, the sixth row on the left with the slightly tattered window. You can feel the cool breeze here. I sat alone as usual. I waited patiently as the bus began to move and run it's way through the usual route. There was a lot of talking and commotion, but I didn't care. I just stared blankly at the window and looked outside, as if waiting for something unusually special to happen. But it didn't. That time never came. Of course, I didn't suspect it would, anyway. I arrived back home late at 4:00. "Hey Cameron!" I turned. It was Megan. She was a new transfer student from L.A. "You left you notebook in the bus!" she said in her petite, mini voice. I froze. Right on the sidewalk. My notebook. MY notebook! I scrambled and felt shook up. I checked my bag. I checked hard. It wasn't there. Oh my gosh. It was the notebook I had put all thoughts in! All my writing, my hard work. I had used my school notebook as my personal diary-like thing. I thought that if my brother, Gabriel saw it he wouldn't care. He wouldn't suspect that all my private stuff was there. And now it was gone. Well, not necessarily. All I had to do was get it back from- Megan. Megan! Shit. The bus wasn't there anymore! Maybe she left. Maybe Megan saw the nervousness and the worry in my face. Maybe she thought it was important to me and that she could just take it without my permission. Oh, shoot. What was I going to do now? Call her. Yes! That was the perfect idea! If only I had her phone number. "What is Megan's phone number?!" I said too loudly. I heard panting behind me. Who was it? I turned just in time to hear the tiny voice again, "Cameron!!!" It was Megan. She was following me. Was she? I stopped for a moment. "Hey…" I muttered. Megan reached me and stopped, too. She was sweating and she dropped something on the ground. My notebook! She brought it! So she wasn't a thief after all! Her hands were on her thighs. "Ca-meron… I-I bro-brought… your no-note…book…" she said in between breaths. I couldn't believe what she had done for me! She ran all the way from the bus stop to here, just to return my notebook! I wonder if she got off the bus just for me. How was she going to get home? It wasn't my concern, but still. I got my notebook from the stone sidewalk and helped Megan onto a nearby bench. After she cooled down she started telling me everything. "I found your notebook on the bus and tried to find its owner but there wasn't any name on the cover so I opened the first page and I saw your name. I didn't mean to look or anything, but I really wanted to give it back to the person it belonged to! I'm sorry if I did it or anything, but you have to understand…" You better be sorry all right. I mumbled. But I forgave her. If it weren't for Megan, my notebook wouldn't even be here right now! It would be, sadly, in the bus. "I asked the bus driver who you were and she pointed to you. We were already on your stop and you were going down the bus! I started thinking, "Oh, shoot! I have to hurry! She's going to leave already!" I ran my best to catch up to you, since you were also really running. I didn't know why, but your reason must be really important…" Whoa. I was running? I don't remember that part. I turned around, and sure enough there were little marks on the stone floor! I must've been really serious, or worried. Well, anyhow my notebook was here with me right now. "…And so now, here I am!" I heard Megan finish. I was speechless. I didn't know how to thank her, "I-I… th-thank you." I stammered. "No worries!" she replied, with her bright face. A silent moment brewed. We were alone, leaving the wind to rustle with its calm feel. I waited for a moment, and then hesitated, "So… can you get back home?" Just as the same time she said, "I live near here too." I stopped speaking. Where do you live?" I questioned her. "Oh, I just live two blocks down ahead and across Butterfly Street. I live on Duke." She replied cheerfully. "That's where I live, too! I mean, I live on Duke, not in the same house you live. He he." I couldn't stop myself from blurting out. Wow, I thought. We both lived on the same street! It could've been a coincidence, well it was of course. But still. I was imagining. We could be the best of friends! You never know. We walked slowly towards our homes. We didn't talk. We just… walked together. I was thinking about the endless possibilities that could go on forever. Before I knew it, we were at Megan's house. "So, here we are!" Megan said. Yep. It was her home. "Oh, okay. I live just down there," I pointed to my brick house with a garden surrounding it. "… And if you need me just call me!" Except she didn't have my number, and I didn't have hers either. "What's your number?" Megan asked curiously, reading my mind. "Oh, it's 765-9724. Yours?" I asked her. "Mine's 765-9746." Megan said, reciting it slowly. After a long silence, "Thanks," we both said in unison. "Thanks for what?" We said again together. "You're the first person who has talked to me all morning," Megan said. "Oh, well, it's okay. But remember? You were the one who found my notebook and returned it to me. Thanks. I'm real grateful for ya." I told her truthfully. "See you around," I said. She waved goodbye to me before I turned around slowly and left. Not once did I turn around to look at her. But I had a feeling that there was a pair of eyes spying my back. That didn't bother me though. I just kept walking straight home. Ten minutes later I was back in my room, on my bed, lying on my purple blanket with blue flowers. I was doing my homework and I was copying some stuff down on my lavender notebook. My whole room was practically purple! I had purple rug, purple chair, purple wallpaper, you couldn't name them all. After I finished my homework, (with a lot of research and mental thoughts, I'll tell you that) I got my laptop beside, which, you guessed it, is purple and opened it up. Once my desktop appeared on the screen I went straight to the Internet and typed http://www.us. It's a really cool website that allows you to write blogs, upload pictures, and upload videos. I went to my account and… just checked. Whatever. I checked my e-mail then. There were four emails for me. One from Kathy, who was my other New Jersey BFF. The others were junk. Except one was from American Greetings and it said that you could send free e-cards for three days. Like there was anyone to send it to. Not. Anyway, I checked my e-mail from Kathy and she said back at home it was chaos! It was all… weird and all. Again, whatever. It wasn't like I was going to go back there or anything. I can't get involved in stuff that I wasn't involved in, in the first place. I went to sleep and after that everything was a blur.