Karla's personality is like a room in a wallpaper brochure. Neat, orderly neutral and generally not very opinionated. There's nothing particularly controversial about Karla whatsoever, apart from the fact that she is a little different and has a tendency to sink into the background. So you can imagine her surprise and perhaps a slight disapproval when Blair is suddenly dragging her round school at her side, expecting Karla to uphold the same fearless reputation as she does. But Karla is not a fearless person, though she may have been once. She has had too many degrading comments thrown at her to feel that she can say what she wants and be who she is. She hasn't been treated like a normal person in a long time, and it's Blair that's making her realise this. Other girls never wanted to talk at her before or hold her hand or hug her, they just used to keep their distance. It wasn't that she didn't like this, but it was difficult for Karla to trust that things could stay this way, because they had never been this way in the past and, although she didn't realise this, Karla didn't believe that she deserved to be treated normally anymore. She had promised herself that she would never let the others get to her, but over the years they had. And now she was scared, even of Blair- who was the sweetest girl she'd ever met. It's difficult not to let people get to you, even when you are strong minded. They want to get to you, that's why, and they won't stop until they do.

But Karla knew almost as soon as they met that Blair wasn't about to take no for an answer. Even after she'd been told everything- about the other girls ganging up on her and the boys generally treating her like an object, Blair didn't seem much effected at all and decided she was going to fix it in her own way. So Karla finds herself being at the centre of a world she hadn't known existed. The girls spend every second they could together. Most of the school day was spent at the back of classes, whispering to each other and passing notes, Karla began to build a collection of paper aeroplanes in the corner of her room on which Blair had written her messages and drawn pointless pictures. She liked it this way. It was terrifyingly different, sometimes almost too terrifying, but she liked it anyway because different was what she had been searching for in the first place.

Not a lot of people know that Karla can sing. In school the girl barely even spoke, let alone belted out a tune. But she did it alone in her room sometimes, on a battered old keyboard that sounded tinny if you turned it up too loud. But when she is singing it feels like sometimes it might actually possible to… break out of her skin somehow. Her body feels like a trap sometimes, because she was born into it without choosing it. None of this reality was her choice. But sometimes when she's singing, Karla is able to separate mind and body somewhat, and her mind is so much freer than her body. It's able to fly away.

So it's easy for her to walk into the choir rehearsal room one day (that's the choir she hasn't even dared audition for yet) and sit at the grand piano (a significant step up!) and start to play with her soft fingers. She isn't scared to open her mouth at that moment and start to sing.

I could show you the world,

Shining, shimmering splendid,

Tell me princess,

Now when did you last,

Let your heart decide?

You may feel as though it'd be ridiculous for Blair to outside listening at this point, mightn't you? But I'm afraid that is exactly what's happening. Before Karla, Blair was used to being on her own, but now she is started to develop the need for company that she always despised in other people. So it isn't happy coincidence that she sees Karla walk into that choir room- Blair's been looking for her all day. It doesn't feel right somehow when they aren't together. Blair wasn't simply strolling past when she heard that voice drifting out through the corridors (although she will say later that she was), she was actually following Karla around like she did most of the time. She won't admit to any of this, at least not for a very long time.

Karla is seeing things differently now, and she is well aware of it. Loneliness is not just an emotion; it's a state of mind. But now she isn't lonely anymore she barely knows what to do with herself. Now she feels lost, but in a good way. Because she isn't alone anymore, and it's impossible to describe how good that feels after constantly being told that you are less than good enough.

A whole new world,

A new fantastic point of view,

No one to tell us no or where to go,

Or say we're only dreaming.

That voice is beautiful; you'd expect it to be given how often Karla practises alone in her room. But now that another girl can hear it it seems better somehow, worth more now that's it's precious to someone other than herself.

A whole new world,

That's where we'll be,

A thrilling chase,

A wondrous place,

For you and me.