So my first day wasn't as horrible as I thought. I actually made multiple new friends, but they'll appear later on. Anyway, my story starts the first day, but let's skip ahead to mid-September. The annual Homecoming Dance was fast approaching and tons of my friends were getting asked. Cindy was first to get asked by her then boyfriend Charlie, then Belle was asked by a new guy she met at the library named Adam. Another friend I met a few weeks into school, Snow, was asked by her choir friend, Ferdinand. Quasi also got up the nerve to ask Tiana to go and even Ariel got asked by some guy she met at a fast food Mexican restaurant. But not me. And that's okay. I didn't even want to go to the stupid dance. Sure, I love dancing, I'm at the studio two times a week, but Homecoming was the last place I wanted to go to. And hearing about it just made me want to scream. I mean even my dance friend, Pocahontas, was asked by some junior at her school named John Smith. I couldn't escape it. My friends constantly begging me to go, the non-stop conversation about dress shopping, and the endless aweing over whoever was asked next. Finally, I decided I needed to talk to someone who hated this event more than I did. My best friend.

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Philip and I's moms have been friends for about a year now. We introduced them to each other when we were in eighth grade and soon, they were as inseparable as we were. His mom invited mine to come over to help her with some house decoration and I agreed to tag along to hang out with Philip. Once we walked inside, Philip and I headed upstairs to play some pool.

"So, are you going to go to homecoming?" I asked as he broke.

"No," he scoffed. "Dances are lame. Just some stupid excuse to spend money and dress up for no reason."

"You know, I actually agree with you," I said after knocking a striped ball into a corner pocket. "Both Tiana and Belle will not stop talking about how amazing the night's going to be and I'm sick of it."

"I just don't see the point," Philip stated as he waited for me to finish my turn.

"Would you go if you wanted to ask someone?" I questioned after switching places with him.

"Uh, I don't know," he said lining up his shot. "Truthfully, I'd have to really like them if I actually made an effort to go."

"Makes sense," I said watching as he accidently hit the cue ball into a side pocket. "Ha, sucker. I own this game."

"Yeah, whatever," he laughed. "You're just getting lucky." I laughed as I set up the cue ball in front of a striped one and easily hit it into a corner pocket. I started to align my next shot when Philip said, "So, who are you hoping asks you?" After he said that my aim slipped causing the ball to just roll slowly into the middle of the table.

"What?" I asked recovering. "No one. I don't want to be asked. I don't want to go just as much as you do."

"Come on, you know that's not true," Philip explained. "You only say that because you want someone to ask you. And because they haven't, the thought of this dance makes you angry. So who is it?"

"You're hilarious," I laughed. "I don't want to go because the dance is going to be lame and boring. Not because I don't have a date."

"See you want to believe that," Philip pointed out. "But deep down, you know it's not true."

As Philip began to align the cue ball, I thought about what he said. I was certain that I hated homecoming because everyone wouldn't stop talking about it. But maybe he was right? After we finished our game, my mom informed me we should be heading back home. After arriving back, I went straight to my room. I needed time to think. And this is hard to confess, but if you want to know the full story, I have to tell you everything.

Middle school was the time in my life when I developed my first crush. I thought he was so funny and sweet that I couldn't help falling for him. I always wanted to tell him how I felt, but I always got shy about it and couldn't handle it. I was never great at expressing my true feelings. I just found it hard to trust people. And I still have that problem. By the time eighth grade came around, I was ready to face my fear and tell him the truth. But when I went to tell him, he told me that he was grateful to have me in his life. That I was like a sister to him. That's right, I got friend-zoned. Hard. After that day, I realized we had built a very strong friendship, and telling him about my little crush could ruin that. I admitted it. We were better as friends, and I didn't want to ruin that. And that guy, was Philip. To this day, he doesn't know about how I felt, and he may never, and that's just fine.

The reason I'm talking about this though is because Philip may have been right. Deep down, I did want someone to ask me to the dance. A really good friend of mine. The one and only, Philip. But he said so himself, he'd only go if he really liked the girl. And clearly that wasn't me.

Finally, the night of the dance arrived. All my friends had posted pictures of them dressed up all beautifully. Though I missed out by my own choice, I think it was a good one. I enjoyed staying home and watching TV till I almost fell asleep on the couch. I heard my phone buzzing. It turned out to be my bestest friend in the whole world face-timing. We've known each other since kindergarten, and even though she became homeschooled, we never lost touch.

"Hey, Punzie," I said answering the phone. "What's up?"

"I remember you telling me it was your homecoming night and that you were instead staying home, so I just wanted to check in on how your evening is going," Rapunzel replied.

"Oh, it's been going okay," I smiled. "Just been watching some shows on Netflix."

"Es, seriously, what's going on?" Rapunzel urged not buying my okay.

"What do you mean? Nothing," I claimed.

"Come on," she whined. "Something's up. Are you regretting not going to the dance?"

"What? No. It's just…" I stop to find the right words to say.

"Just what?" Rapunzel questioned. I fell silent. Not wanting to admit what's been going on in my head. In my thoughts. "Is this about Philip? You said you just wanted to be friends. Did you change your mind?"

"No!" I exclaimed. "No. I just…I just needed a night to think. You know? Yes, I really liked him, and yes, it would have been nice if he asked me to the dance, but it didn't happen. And I needed to wake up and realize this is reality. He's one of my best friends. And he ever felt the way I felt, he would have asked me. I just couldn't deal with all my friends at the dance when I was the only one unhappy."

"Hey, don't talk like that," Rapunzel said comfortingly. "You are one of the most upbeat, positive people I know. You saw that instead of gaining a boyfriend, you gained a lifetime of friendship. And you saw that instead of starting high school, you gained four years of endless possibilities. That's the kind of person you are. You turn a bad situation into a good one. And that's why I'm proud to call you my best friend."

I quietly thanked her as we continued the conversation on for a few more minutes. After hanging up, I began thinking to myself. Rapunzel was right. I was that person who turned a bad situation into a positive one. But sometimes it becomes too much. It becomes more of challenge every day to always be the one with a smile on your face. So yes, I was that person. But things change. And as life goes on, so do people. I may try my best to put on a happy face, but behind every smile, is a dark secret. A sadness no one can ever understand.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. So do you think Esmeralda still has feelings for Philip? or is she just jealous of her friends? What do you think of Rapunzel as the encouraging childhood best friend? And do you have any ideas to why Esmeralda isn't her usual positive self? Please review and let me know. All Love:)