I have been in the foster care system for as long as I could remember. My dad died in the military, and my mom had jumped off a bridge not long after that. My family tried to take me in, but I never felt like I belonged. And as soon as I got to school, I didn't have any friends, so I felt alone. I ran away at nine.

They had tried to take me back a few times, but I learned not to get caught. Now I'm in high school. Today, I live in New York, going to James Madison High School. I sat in the back of the cafeteria, staring at the city outside. It's raining.

"Hey."

I turn to see a girl looking at me. "Sup?"

"Is anyone sitting here?"

I pause a second before I gesture for her to sit down. I was about to go back to looking outside, but then the girl said, "I'm Eliza! What's your name?"

"Isabella."

"Cool." She poked at her food. "So, um, why aren't you sitting with anyone else."

"I'm the weird new kid," I laugh. "The question is, why aren't you?"

She looks at her lap. "Well, um, there usually isn't anyone to sit with. But since I figured you're new and you don't have anyone to sit with."

Elza attempts to smile at me, but I just shrug. "You didn't need to do that."

I go back to looking at the rain. Outside, it's pouring, and I see the flash of lighting. Boom!

"Ah!" a little voice shrieks. I turn to see that Eliza looking very tense.

"Dude, chill, it's just the thunder sheesh."

"Sorry," Eliza whispers. I notice she's not eating anything and is glancing around nervously.

"I'm sorry," I sigh. "I'm just not used to people, you know, talking to me."

Eliza perks up. "Really? Why?"

"I told you. I'm weird," I say darkly.

"Well," Eliza shrugs, "I don't think you're weird."

Eliza insists on sitting with me. She keep on saying she wants to be my friend, and I keep on telling her I don't have friends. She always ignores me. This day, it was sunny outside. There weren't any birds out, though. We're smack dab in the middle of the city, no trees nearby.

"Izzy?"

That snapped me out of it. "Sorry, what did you say?"

"I was asking if you wanted to try out for the musical with me!"

I brake out in fits of laugher. "Are you-With me- The musical?!" I'm laughing so hard tears escape my eyes.

Eliza seems to put on a bit of a fit. "I was being serious," she muttered.

I regain control of myself. "Sorry, sorry. I'm just not a very 'musical' person."

"Well you never know," Eliza says, shrugging, "You could end up liking it!"

"The answer is no, Eliza."

"Come on, at least look up the musical!"

"No," I growl. "I can't, Eliza! I don't have any way to look it up! I don't have a phone, or electronics or anything!"

Eliza is silenced by my sudden change in attitude. She knows I am a foster kid, but she doesn't really know anything about me. About my past. I like it that way.

"Then come to my house," she whispered. "We'll watch it together."

I sighed. She was going to push this, wasn't she? "Fine."

"Nice to meet you."

I awkwardly shake hands with both of Eliza's parents. "It's our pleasure," her mom says.

Eliza grabs me before I could say anything else and pulls me upstairs, into her room. She grabs her laptop and hops onto the bed. "So, it's called 'Heather's The Musical. It's super dark, and like a rock musical. I think you'll like it."

She pulls up the show on Youtube. However, before it starts to play, she pauses it. "I'm gonna go make some popcorn, kay?"

I nod.

She bounds downstairs, leaving me alone in her room. I look around the place, suddenly tempted to steal random crap and run. It's not like I haven't done that before. This time, though, I decide I wouldn't. I actually liked Eliza.

So instead, I sit on her bed and waited patiently for her to return.

"Okay!" Eliza runs in, holding a giant bowl of popcorn and has a huge grin. "Let's go."

She unpauses it.

"September 1st, 1989-"