I woke up and smiled. It was one day before I was officially 11 and I was going to make it perfect. I jumped out of bed which was a first for me and ran over to my closet. My smile was gone the minute I looked in because the first thought that came into my head was wondering weather or not people would like what I chose to wore. "Why can't I just be more like Ella?" I asked my self. Ella Hart was a 5th grader like me but she had this aura of not caring what other people thought that made you think she was a 7th or even 8th grader. But of course she was already 11 so maybe tomorrow she would have that aura, too. I smiled out of hope and started to pick out my clothes. I finally emerged my bedroom wearing a black hungergames t-shirt, white shorts and my ever present glasses. "Hyla breakfast is almost ready!" I heard my mother shout from down the stairs. I walked up to the mirror on our hallway mall and looked at myself. I frowned at my glasses and took them off, but I quickly pushed them back on my face since I couldn't see anything without them. I slide down the rail of our stairs to my expectant mother. I slide into a seat at the kitchen table and started poking my eggs with my fork. "Mom, why can't I have contacts again?" I asked for the millionth time. My Mom smiled at me and shook her head. "Sweetie, don't you agree that they are an unnecessary hassle? With glasses you just pop them on and your done." I mumble random words and ate my eggs.

I pushed my way off the bus which was surprisingly easy. That was since I sat in the front with all the quiet kids, but I guess it was only fitting since I was that "weird fangirl". I spent most of my time reading or rereading books. People thought I read because I liked the stories unfolding on the pages, I guess they aren't completely wrong, but I wish I had a different escape like friends. I wish I sat in the back like Ella Hart. Yet all that wishing was for nothing because I was still plain old Hyla or as some some people know me as, that weird girl with the name to match. As I got off the bus I looked around until I locked eyes with my best friend. "Garret!" I exclaimed, but not too loud. I ran over to my friend and gave him a big hug which would have been weird if we were normal people but we weren't so no one gave us weird looks. Like me, Garrett was a social sort of outcast, but not for the same reasons. Garrett was handsome enough and interested in sports but he had a fake leg. He didn't act like someone you would imagine with only one leg would. He could still beat me at anything anyway. "Hyla! Omy freaking goodness I was only gone to Spain for a week!" he practically yelled. I jerked my hands back and looked around to see if anyone had heard, which they hadn't, and started walking inside.

I walked in to Alfred Intermediate School. I felt a gust of cool air and shivered. I looked over at Garrett and saw he looked comfortable with the temperature. It figures since I had always been cold-natured. I heard the warning bell ring and we made our way toward our classrooms across the school from each other. The class time before lunch passed pretty much uneventfully. A worksheet here, a spit ball flying there, but finally after what seemed like forever it was time for lunch. The kids who ate the seemingly inedible hot lunches went to get in line for whatever disgusting concoction the school had come up with today, while the kids who brought their lunch (eg. me) went and tried to find a table. I looked down at my perfect egg salad sandwich, product of my mom being a fabulous cook, and back up at the tables that seated my classmates. I bit my lip glancing around until a hand grabbed my shoulder. I must have jumped a foot before I turned around and attempted to slug Garrett in the arm. Alas, he was too fast. He dragged my over to a table and sat down. I handed him half of my sandwich before sitting across from him. We ate in silence, well, I ate, Garrett practically inhaled the half my sandwich, a bag of chips, and a school meatloaf that I SWEAR was moving. I set down my apple I was gnawing on and asked him the highlights of Spain since this was the first time I had talked to him besides kiking and skyping. I tried to pay attention to him, I really did, It's just that Ella was only 2 tables over. She just looked like she didn't care and she was flawless at the same time. I dragged my eyes back toward Garrett. "And the food was just..." I smiled and he reached over and ate my carrots. Surprisingly he finished them before we had to go back to our classrooms. After lunch was pretty uneventful with only minimal bullying. A assignment here, a paper airplane there. Soon it was time to go home. I decided I was going to see if Ella wanted to go to my 11th birthday party after school ended which was pretty soon. She glided down the hall and I took my opportunity. "Um, Ella?" I asked. She turned to look at me and laughed. "What do you want?" She asked in not the nicest tone but I ignored it and continued. "I was wondering if you maybe might want to c-come to my party?" I asked my eyes full of hope, I'm sure. She looked at me with a smirk. "You w-want me to g-go to your p-party? How about no."she laughed and walked off with her friends, leaving me in her wake. It took all I had in me not to cry on the walk home. Garrett walked with like we always did but I guess he understood that I didn't want to talk. He is good about stuff like that. I finally got home and went straight up to my room.