A/N: Thank you all so much for your lovely comments. I will reply to them right after I publish this chapter, which means you already got it by now. ;-D

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Teresa's POV

As I drove near California High, I had to admit that I was impressed.

The walls of the campus were made of clear brick. I was bewildered by the beautiful simplicity of it. The biggest brick building was a rectangle in the back, with two parallel square bricks side by side in front of it. The big one was three storied building and the two small once were two storied. There was black iron fencing all around the campus. A swimming pool and a field were slightly visible from behind the big building. There was a beautiful garden in front of the big building. Between the two small buildings stood a black iron gate with silver signs on top that read California High.

I parked into an empty space in the far corner of the parking lot. My butt was aching like hell from being seated for so long. I guess I had to get used to that. I got out of the car, locked it and looked around the parking lot. There were many nice cars around here. I saw some Porsches, some Corollas, some Mitsubishis and some Sedans. My car looked fairly decent next to them.

I started walking to the small sign in the right building. It read Information Desk. I pushed the glass door open, walked into the room and surveyed it. It was a warm honey brown colored room; with honey walls and brown floors. There were two brown desks side by side at the far end. There were sofas lining the sides of the room. A chocolate brown rectangular mat covered the floor.

I went to the desk with a Student Information label on top of it. A woman sat behind the desk, chatting with someone on the phone. She had blonde, straight hair which fell mid-back. She was wearing a purple sweater with pearl buttons stuck to it. She had a very pretty face. Her eyes were electric blue in color. Her lips were glossed pink. She gave me a small smile as she chatted away, showing her hand in indication for me to sit down and wait. I obliged.

She smiled at me when she put the phone down. The left desk was empty. She and I were alone in the room.

"So," she spoke up. "First day, huh?"

"Yeah,"

"Okay, then. What's your name?"

"Teresa Lisbon,"

She shuffled through a pile of neatly folded papers in her desk drawer as she replied me. "That's a nice name."

I was already beginning to like this woman. "Thanks. What's yours?"

"Marie Thompson; but you can just call me Marie. I hate the Ms. Thompson business." She frowned.

I smiled shyly at her. "Okay then, Marie"

"Well look, we already like each other." She smiled at me as she took out a file from her desk

"Well, Teresa." she told me. "You have applied for tenth grade in this school, yes?"

"Yeah,"

"Transferred from Chicago High school?"

"Yeah,"

"Then this is your folder." she told me, giving me the file. "Your class schedule is in there, along with the teachers' names. There is a map in there, also marking teachers' desks as well as other stuff. You won't need that after a while." She grinned at me. "Your admit paper and booklist are also in there, too."

"Thank you." I told her.

"No problem." she told me. "Don't freak out, okay? Trust me, the day won't go bad."

"That's what I hope." I told her as I got up from the caramel colored chair.

"I hope we meet again." she said. "Bye,"

"Bye, then." I said as I left the room.

I ran back to my car to get my red backpack. I slung it over my shoulder and studied my schedule for today.

First period was Chemistry with Mr. Jason. It would take place in classroom 24. I took the map and tried to go through it, failing miserably. I exhaled in annoyance and looked it over.

"Need help?" said a feminine voice from behind me.

I turned around and saw a girl standing from behind me. She looked about the same age as me. Her hair was a shade of fiery red. She had hazel eyes. She was wearing a blue T-shirt with black, denim pants. She wore white sports shoes. She had a blue bag slung over her shoulders.

"Yes, I do." I told her.

"First day? Three months are already gone since semester started."

"Yeah. What about you?"

"No, I've been here since the start of semester. I'm Grace Van Pelt." she held her hand out.

I shook it. "I'm Teresa Lisbon."

She took a look at my map and beamed. "You're in class 24 for Chem! That's my first period too."

I smiled at her. "That's great."

"We could walk to class together if you want."

"Sure, let's do it."

We walked together towards the smaller building on the left. While we did, we got to know each other a little more.

"Are you a transfer? I don't think I've ever seen you before." she told me.

"Yeah, I'm new here. You?"

"I came here in seventh grade. Been here since."

"I'm embarrassed to ask you this, but how is everyone here?"

She laughed. "Don't worry. Only about ten percent of the school is bullies. The rest are pretty decent. They'll make an exception for you, though."

I stared at her. "Why?"

"What, you never saw yourself in the mirror? Trust me, the girls will go crazy jealous when they see you."

"Oh, that."

She chuckled. "Believe me, I had the experience."

I could tell she wasn't lying. She was freaking gorgeous.

We climbed the stairs to the second floor. The right of the corridor was lined with balconies. The left were lined with classrooms one after another. I checked the classroom numbers as she passed by. When I found a wooden door marked with a golden 24, I indicated Grace to stop with my hand.

"Okay then," Grace said as she turned the knob and held the door half open. "Are you ready?"

I took a deep breath and confidently looked at the classroom as I went in. "I'm ready."