Five days later, school was starting. Marissa woke up at six in the morning in order to get ready for her first day of her senior year at The Harbor School. Slowly, she made her way out of her bed and into the bathroom, so she could shower, and get dressed. She chose something casual to wear that day. Some jeans and a long sleeve t-shirt with a pair of sneakers. Nothing flashy. She wanted to blend in as much as possible this first day. Then she went back into her room to put on her make-up. Once again, she wanted to blend in as much as possible. She tried not to overload herself with make-up.

Finally, an hour and a half later, she made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen where her mother was preparing breakfast. It appeared that Julie was making Pop Tarts. "How original," Marissa thought to herself. Kaitlin was sitting at the table, waiting for her mother to serve her the Pop Tarts. She was wearing a new mini skirt, a new top. Although Kaitlin had not seemed to have physically grown much in the past year, Marissa saw a new Kaitlin - not the one she knew the previous year. She seemed knowing, but still possessed a child-like innocence. Marissa sat down across from Kaitlin.

"So Kaity, ready for your first day of school?" Marissa asked. Her sister shrugged.

"I guess," she replied softly. "I don't really know anyone here anymore." Julie had enrolled her younger daughter to attend the same school that Marissa had while she was in junior high. She was entering the seventh grade. It was a good school, which led right into the competitive Harbor School.

"I know the feeling," Marissa said with a sigh. She sat at the table with her mother and sister and ate her Pop Tarts. They ate silently.

"Kaitlin, I can drop you off on my way to the office, and Daddy can pick you up, okay?" her mother told her. Kaitlin nodded while she ate. After the three of them finished eating they went to their various places. Marissa drove herself to school, and her mother went to work and took her sister to school.

When Marissa got to school, she did to want to get out of the car, for she was afraid of what was going to happen when she did. Even from the inside of her car, she could see people looking at her and saying things. Although she did not know what they were saying, she could tell. She thought about turning around, and skipping. Maybe she would go to South Coast Plaza and do some shopping, then she saw this black S.U.V. pull in next to her. It looked like Kirsten Cohen's car, but Marissa knew that it was not Kirsten who was inside. It dawned on her then that it was Seth and Ryan. Ryan looked out of the passenger window, down into Marissa's driver seat window. When Seth turned off the car, they got out of the car. Seth went off to find Summer, and Ryan stood there for a second. Marissa was still sitting there in her red, Ford Mustang. Then, he decided to knock on her window. She opened it for him.

"Hey, thinking of skipping?" Ryan asked her.

She smiled at him. Marissa replied, "I'm so afraid to go in there."

"Yeah, but the more you put it off, the worse it gets," Ryan told her.

"I have no one, though. All of my 'friends' hate me, I mean, besides Summer. Senior year is going to be hell," Marissa sighed.

"Well, you have me," Ryan told her. "And I need someone to walk to me to home room. Wanna walk with me?" He hoped that he could convince her not to skip the first day of her senior year of high school.

She gave him a weak smile, and replied, "All right."