Chapter 1

I've never imagined myself as an icon for girls my age; nor did I imagine myself as a teenage spy either, but life is full of surprises. I'm rambling again, I really need to control that.

My name is Allison Allegretto (Ally if you know me well enough) and I'm 16. By looking at me you'd think I'm just a normal teenage girl. I have long and naturally blonde hair that comes down to my waist, clear blue eyes that I get complimented on often, and a tanned, slim built body. Overall I'm happy with my body. I don't want to sound like one of those girls that are obsessed with themselves and spend half of their time in front of the mirror practicing on seducing a different guy every week. I'm not like that. I'm just a down to earth girl who loves movies, shopping, hanging with my friends, and soccer. I've always been the athletic type but it's always revolved around soccer. It's the one thing I can totally lose myself in and forget all the other problems in my life.

I live in Santa Cruz, California. Yes, I said California. A place of fun, sun, and anything else you'd ever want in life. I've lived with my Aunt Staci in her beach house since I was a kid. She never had any children so I was always accepted as her own. My parents were killed in a car accident when I was five.

We lived in London at the time. If there's one thing I remember about my parents, it was the crisp British accent they used to have. It wasn't a bad accent that made them sound proper and stuck up. It just had a musical ring to it. My aunt's accent gradually faded away after she spent a few years in California. But I don't think I ever fully lost mine. You wouldn't pick up on it if you met me for the first time. But when I get angry or frightened, it just slips out. Not that I'm ashamed of it. Part of me doesn't want to lose it, it's sort of the only quality of my parents that I feel I have left in me.

So as I was saying, I live in paradise. Santa Cruz is bright and sunny. White sandy beaches that are populated by sun bathers, surfers, skaters, bikers, and so much more.

I have two of the greatest friends in the world. Brooke and Chloe. We met shortly after I moved here to America. I don't think I'll ever forget that day. Our class was on the playground and it seemed everyone had a place to fit in but me. So there I sat, under a shade tree on that hot sweaty day, minding my own business. Then a scrawny long haired boy approached me. His two overweight lackeys flanking him on each side.

"Hey! It's the Brit! Come on, say something for me in that freaky voice of yours!" he said in a mocking tone which I strongly disliked. He didn't get a chance to make another insult toward me after that. It started hailing pinecones and acorns from the tree above. I wasn't sure at first. One minute I'm thinking of a smart remark to say to these pests and then all of a sudden they turn and hightail it out of there while getting pinecones pelted into their backs.

"That's right Tommy! Run and find a hole to hide in before I find one for you!" called someone from above.

When it stopped raining I looked up to see where my rescuers came from, only to see these two girls, my age, smiling down at me. They hopped down and stood in front of me.

"Hiya! I'm Chloe!" said the smaller of the two. She had on a bright tie-dyed shirt, shorts, and flip flops. She was the brightest one on the whole playground, you could pick her out easily from the group of kids. She had short hair that flipped out in all kinds of different directions. When she spoke, her movements where excited, causing her hair to bounce. You could tell she was a naturally perky girl.

"I'm Brooke," said the second girl. She had bright auburn hair that came down to the middle of her back. She was a good bit taller than Chloe. She was slim and had freckles that dotted her nose. She was wearing a purple school shirt, capris, and flip flops.

"My name's Allison, but my friends call me Ally for short," I said. Back then I still had my accent.

"Wow! Your British! That's so cool!" exclaimed Chloe. For some reason I laughed at that. No one else liked my accent around here, they all looked at me like I was an alien from another planet.

"So if your from England, what are you doing way over here in California?" asked Brooke.

"I moved here from London to live with my aunt. My parents were killed in a car accident about a month ago," I explained.

They exchanged glances. There was a moment of awkward silence then Chloe spoke, "Well hey! You can hang out with us! We don't mind!" I looked over at Brooke and saw her giving me a warm smile in agreement with Chloe.

I smiled and nodded. And that was all it took for our little trio to form. Eleven years later and we're closer than ever.

A lot has changed in those eleven years. Dozens of sleepovers where we never fell asleep, parties, dances, soccer games, and plenty of other memories. Brooke still has the red hair but her freckles disappeared as she got older. If you want my opinion, she's probably the prettiest girl in our school but she won't listen to me. She could easily fit in with the preps but she claims she wants absolutely no part of that. She found her passion when we were in sixth grade. After months of begging her mom, she was enrolled in private art classes. She's really talented. She carries her sketchpad everywhere she goes in case she sees something that may inspire her.

Chloe is still the perkiest girl I know and I don't think she's grown an inch since the day we met. Well, okay maybe a little, but at 4'11 she is the shortest girl in our grade. Her hair turned dark brown as she got older but she still keeps it cropped short and flipped out in a stylish way. Her passion is shopping and has been ever since I can remember. She plans on being a fashion designer when she gets older.

I still live with Aunt Staci in her two story beach house. I pretty much have the whole top of the house to myself. That's one thing I love about Staci, she says that teenage girls should have some freedom to be themselves. So when I was twelve Brooke, Chloe, and I put on our overalls and gave my bedroom and bathroom a total makeover. It's great to be friends with an artist! Bright colorful geometric designs cover my yellow walls. A huge canopy bed stands against the middle wall and to the left I have a large L-shaped desk where my Mac sits. In the other corner I have a fluffy futon facing my 50 inch plasma flat screen that hangs on my wall. I have a large walk in closet which has a 3-d mirror and way to many clothes (Thanks to Chloe). My room has a balcony with a beachfront view. I love waking up to the sound of the crashing waves on the pacific ocean every morning.

What can I say? I have it good! Great friends, good grades, an awesome Aunt, good looks, I love my life. I never realized how fast everything can change. In the blink of an eye, everything you know disappears right out from under you.