Okay, on with the story. Hope you enjoy.
Chapter 2
Robbie Ray pulled up to Seaview High School and Jackson immediately jumped out. Miley scrambled out to catch up. She at least wanted to keep her hideousness a secret until homeroom, and figured hiding behind her brother would be the best way to do it.
"HAVE A...good...day." Robbie Ray started to yell, but ended up just whispering instead. He watched Jackson stalk off with Miley trailing behind him, almost visibly hiding. Please God, just let them treat her right. Please. Robbie drove off, hoping against hope that when Miley came home that day, she would say she had a "good day" at school. Jackson he didn't worry about so much, and Robbie knew that it wasn't fair, but Miley was so much more delicate than he was. He just hoped Jackson would look out for Miley, like he wasn't doing at the moment.
As Robbie headed to work, he resigned himself to the fact that there was nothing more he could do...but hope.
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The secretary at the main office had been nice enough. She handed Miley her program with the biggest fake smile she could muster, and Miley was grateful that she only flinched once when staring at her.
Jackson didn't seem to care either way. He snatched the program from the woman's hands and was out the door before Miley could even utter a "thank you."
As they walked through the hallway, Miley tried to make conversation, if only to keep from throwing up. "So, when do you have lunch?"
"Don't know."
"I have lunch fifth period...little late in the day." Miley mumbled, looking at her program.
"Don't care." Jackson answered.
"Well...will I see you there?"
"Don't count on it." Jackson said, and slapped his headphones on, making a sharp left, leaving Miley in the middle of a crowded hallway, all by herself.
"Christ..." She mumbled, looking down so her face would be covered by her hair. She weaved through the halls with ease (having expertly mastered the art of walking while looking down years ago), glancing at the locker numbers every so often to make sure she was going the right way. When she reached her locker, she glanced at the combination number on her program and tried it. It didn't open. She tried again...nothing. And again...nothing. She looked at the locker number. She was in the right place. So, she tried again...nope.
Oliver Oscar Oken was talking to one of his buddies in the hallway when he noticed a girl he'd never seen before. "Smokin' Oken" was familiar with all of the ladies in Seaview from sophomore up, and hoped that the girl wasn't a freshman...because from the back, she was totally hot. She seemed to be having trouble with her locker, and he was more than willing to help. "Oooh...fresh meat." Oliver whispered to his buddies, and they laughed. "And by the looks of it, Grade A choice prime rib. Let's see if she can handle a little 'Smokin' Oken," he said as he sauntered over.
"Excuse me, but I couldn't help but notice you were having trouble with your locker. Well, never fear. The doctor is in the house." He said, trying his best to sound smooth. The girl looked at him nervously, staring at him through the veil of her hair.
When Oliver addressed her, Miley thought she was going to jump out of her skin. She did her best to hide her face while Oliver openly flirted and hoped he would take her silence as a cue to leave her alone.
He laughed nervously when she didn't answer and tapped on the locker a few times, making it pop open with ease. "It's all in the wrists." He joked, and hoped she would laugh, or at the very least look at him, so he wouldn't look like a fool in front of his friends.
"Uh...thanks." Miley mumbled, throwing her books inside. She slammed the locker shut and walked away, hoping that he would forget he ever saw her.
Oliver watched Miley walk away, completely puzzled by what had just transpired. "I'm Oliver...by the way." He said to Miley as she walked away. What the hell's her problem? One of his buddies walked up to him and slapped him on the back.
"Ouch...that hurt just to watch." And then everyone else laughed.
Oliver was about to retort when the school bell rang, signaling the beginning of homeroom. He decided to save his comeback for later, and rushed off to class, wondering about the new girl and what exactly her problem was.
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Miley practically ran to her classroom and found a seat way in the back, hoping to God that the teacher wouldn't announce her presence. If he didn't, maybe she would just blend in and fade away into the background, a place she found most comfortable nowadays.
Oliver jogged into class and into his seat, looking around. His friend Lilly wasn't there yet, but his buddy Malcolm was.
"Hey Oken, fresh meat in the back."
Oliver turned to see the girl from the hallway. "Yeah, we've met already."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I opened up her locker. We talked."
Malcolm was clearly unimpressed. "Oh yeah? What's her name then?"
"Uh...it's..."
Mr. Corelli shuffled to the front of the classroom, ready for another humdrum day. For another day of trying to reach out to the students and staring at a sea of empty faces. For another day of counting down the minutes until lunch and then counting down the minutes to the end of the day after. "All right class, open your books to page...ooohhh!" Finally, a little variety.
A note on his desk exclaimed there was a new girl in class. "Well, class, it seems as though a stranger is in our midst...we have a new student...come all the way from Tennessee." He looked down at the note, squinting. "Miley...Stewart, please stand up."
"Miley. I knew that." Oliver said, and Malcolm rolled his eyes.
The second Miley heard Mr. Corelli exclaim, "ooh" in surprise and delight, her heart constricted. Then, to make matters worse, he called her name and asked her to stand. Her breathing wavered and she very reluctantly stood. Might as well show them now...get it over with.
"Ah yes, there you...are." Mr. Corelli exclaimed excitedly, until he saw her whole face. He tried his best to remain indifferent, but it wasn't every day one saw a scar of that magnitude. He gulped, regretting making her stand. He could clearly see now that he was hurting her more than helping her.
Oliver turned to Malcolm and said, "Face it man, you're just jealous because I talked to her first." He could see Malcolm wasn't looking at him anymore. Instead, he was gaping at the girl, so he turned to see what the fuss was about. "And she is soooo...not...hot."
He didn't mean for it to come out so loudly.
The class laughed, and Miley cringed. Mr. Corelli did his best to quiet them down, but it was no use. Once the laughter died down, the class erupted into hoarse, loud, whisper. They stared, they pointed, they giggled...they did everything Miley knew they would do. And at once, she knew she wasn't going to have an easy time in Malibu.
Though it seemed like forever, it was only a few minutes. Miley looked at Mr. Corelli pleadingly, hoping he would let her sit. Mr. Corelli was too busy trying to quiet the class down to see her look.
Suddenly, there was a flash of blonde hair and a crash, and the class was laughing at something else. Miley took their distraction as an opportunity to sit and disappear again.
"Miss Truscott," Mr. Corelli sternly addressed Lilly, secretly grateful for her distraction as well. "How many times do I have to tell you not to skate into class?"
Lilly stood up, removing the helmet from her head, letting her strawberry blonde hair flow over her shoulders. "Sorry Mr. Corelli, but I didn't want to be later than I already am. I figure, what better way to show you that I care than to rush in here without even stopping by my locker?"
"That's sweet Miss Truscott, but there are several fatal flaws to your theory. One: you hate this class and two: you're still five minutes late. Now take a seat."
The second Miley looked at Lilly she was fascinated. There was a girl she saw as strong, courageous, and obviously confident. She carried herself well, but didn't seem obnoxious or arrogant. Miley wondered if Lilly would ever notice her, but then remembered she didn't want anyone to notice her. Still, she couldn't look away.
Lilly smiled and shrugged, plopping down next to Oliver. "Hey," she whispered at him, while he tried not to continue to stare at Miley. "What'd I miss?"
"Uh...new girl. From Tennessee...not really the ten I see...unless you like the mangled look." Oliver said, not so discreetly pointing at Miley.
Lilly turned to the back and looked, and was immediately taken aback by the girl's beauty. She smiled in Miley's direction, but Miley didn't smile back. She just looked down. Confused, Lilly looked back at Oliver, and then remembered what he just said. "Jesus, can you be a little more insensitive you damn doughnut?"
"What?" Oliver asked defensively, but was interrupted by Mr. Corelli.
"All right, now that we've all settled down, let's try to learn something. Open your books to chapter seven..."
As Mr. Corelli droned on, Lilly couldn't help but turn around to look at the new girl in the back. She looks so lonely, and so...beautiful. She did have a scar, but it wasn't all that bad. Plus, Lilly wasn't one to care about crap like that. She had a feeling though that the only type of people Miley dealt with were those that did care. Well, she was going to change that. Today, at lunch, she was going to introduce herself and hopefully, make a friend.
Why does she keep staring at me? Miley could feel the heat of Lilly's stare from across the room. Am I that frightening that she has to keep looking? She sank lower in her chair, but didn't dare meet Lilly's gaze. She knew that if she did, there would be some sort of taunting later. It always happened that way. Just keep going, just keep breathing. It will all be over before you know it. Miley thought to herself.
If only that were true.