Chapter One

Different From the Rest

Alexandria yawned as she entered the school, dreading the day that was to come. She walked through the deserted halls to the cafeteria, were the teachers kept them cooped up so they couldn't 'wander the halls.' Alexandria snorted as she thought of this. As if anybody would wander the halls, there's nothing to do! They'd much rather stay here and talk to their friends. If they did leave it would be for something important. She walked over to a table that was empty except for two girls, Nicole and Marie. Nicole was fiddling around with a fork, her dark chocolate, almost black hair hanging down in her face, glasses perched on her nose. Marie was drumming her fingers on the table, bored, twirling a piece of light blond hair. As Alexandria sat down, Marie's bored expression brightened up.

"Hey Alex!" She said, snatching Nicole's fork away. Nicole frowned, taking it back. Alex smiled.

"Hey guys. So, how's everything?" She replied, sitting down. Marie shrugged.

"Same as always. Ready for the test?" Alex rolled her eyes, standing up with the rest of the room and heading for the large double doors.

"As ready as I can be." She waved goodbye to them and walked into the hall, one of the first to enter. She smiled, suddenly bursting out into song. 'Little town, it's a quiet village. Everyday like the one before. Little town, full of little people, waking up to say...' There was a great slamming of lockers as people began to file through, greeting each other in various "hey's", "hi's", and "hello's". Alex smiled, walking down the hall and continuing to sing, few taking notice. 'There goes the baker with his tray like always, the same old bread and rolls to sell. Every morning just the same, since the morning that we came, to this poor provincial town--"

"Hey Alex!" Alex looked over to see one of her friends, Josh, leaning against his locker. She smiled. "Hey Josh."

"Where are you headed off to?" He asked, unloading his backpack.

"The library. I just finished the most wonderful book about these friends and a pair of magic pants and--" She realized Josh hadn't really been listening as he greeted one of his other friends. She shrugged and walked towards the library. No one really paid attention to her past "hello" and "how are you" anyways. She could practically hear everyone singing the other lines, explaining how odd she was. Alex didn't really care.

"Hi Alex!" Miss Peterson greeted her as she walked through the library's double doors. Alex smiled and handed her the book in her hand. Miss Peterson took it and placed it on the nearby cart. "Finished already? Why am I not surprised?" She said with a smile. Alex grinned, walking over to the shelves.

"Are you kidding? I couldn't put it down! Have you got anything new?" She replied, examining the shelves. Miss Peterson laughed.

"Not since yesterday!" Alex, who had been searching the shelves with a detailed eye, pulled out a book from the shelf.

"Oh, okay then. I'll just borrow this one." Miss Peterson took the book from her to scan it, examining it with her horn rimmed glasses.

"Are you sure?" She said, laughing. "You've read it twice!" Alex sighed, taking the book after Miss Peterson had scanned it and holding it to her chest.

"Well, it's my favorite! Daring sword fights, magic spells, a prince in disguise!" Miss Peterson laughed as Alex acting out a sword fight.

"Oh Alex, if only every student read as much as you, we'd have the highest test scores for miles around!" Alex shrunk back, embarrassed, and began to walk out of the library.

"Thanks Miss Peterson! I'll be back tomorrow!" She called over her shoulder, already deeply emerged in the book. Completely unaware of what was going on around her, she walked through the crowded halls, unpacked her things, and went to her homeroom without putting the book down. As she sat down at he desk, she began singing, as if on cue, to those around her.

'Oh, isn't this amazing? It's my favorite part because, you'll see,' she grabbed her neighbor's attention and pointed to the part where she was at, continuing to read. 'Here's where she meets Prince Charming. But she won't discover that it's him 'til chapter three.' She looked up to find that the person had gone, off to a group of friends to make conversation. She shrugged and returned to her reading.

Over at the back of the classroom stood Tom Andrews, his best friend Nick at his side. He was obviously the most good-looking guy in the class, with his jet black hair, pale skin with an olive tone, and muscular build. He smirked, his eyes boring into the back of Alex's head as she read. Nick laughed as he recounted the weekend they had just spent. "I counted ten girls asking you to the dance next weekend, isn't that right? No girl is going to turn you down," he said, elbowing Tom in the ribs. Tom's smirk widened, his eyes never leaving Alex.

"Yeah, that's right. And that lucky girl is standing right over there." He jerked his head towards where Alex sat. Nick looked confused.

"The Bookworm? Seriously? Hello, she's part of the Drama Freaks, if you haven't realized. She's--"

"The hottest girl in our class."

"Really? 'Cause I saw some pretty hot girls in Gym class--"

"She's the best, and I deserve the best. Don't I?" His eyes left Alex as he turned his head to glare at Nick.

"Well, yeah, of course, but--" Nick was cut off by the sound of the shrill bell, which silenced everyone and signaled them to take their seats. Mr. Howard walked to the front of the classroom, his monotone voice drowning out the last sounds of the bell.

"Alright everyone, to your seats now, be quiet. Miss Valdez, for the umpteenth time, put your book up or it will become mine." Alex quickly shut her book and put it away for fear of it going into Mr. Howard's possession. He began lecturing as the class took out their paper for note-taking. "Now today we will be discussing the wondrous world of verbs." Alex groaned to herself. She already new about verbs. Why do teachers always review over the same things? She asked herself as she wrote down Mr. Howard's words from the whiteboard. She couldn't wait until school let out, and she could go home. There, no one would bother her about being different or weird. She could just be herself.

The day chugged on slowly, finally coming to a close. Alex packed up her books and walked outside into the cold, frigid air. Marie and Nicole caught up with her.

"Hey, you got lots of homework?" Nicole asked. Alex shook her head.

"No, thankfully nothing. I'm going home and watching my movies." She said. Marie rolled her eyes.

"Is that all you ever do? I mean, come on Alex!" Alex laughed.

"It's not all I ever do, I just like the movies a lot. I mean, I grew up with them. They're like my friends..."

"Oh, and we're not your friends?" Marie said jokingly. Alex laughed.

"Of course you guys are my friends, Disney's just my childhood friend." They all laughed.

"Hey, Alex!" Alex, Marie, and Nicole turned around to see Tom coming towards them, Nick closely following. Marie and Nicole began to walk away, as none of the friends really liked Tom.

"We'll see you tomorrow Alex!" Nicole called over her shoulder. Alex waved and turned to face Tom.

"Hey Tom," she said, a little less cheerful than necessary.

"So, the Winter dance is coming up," Tom said.

"Yeah, so?" Alex said, now a little agitated. Tom smirked.

"Take a guess at who's going with me." Alex rolled her eyes.

"Oh, I don't know, who?" She said sarcastically. Tom's smirk widened.

"You, Alex Valdez, are the lucky girl going with me, Tom Andrews, to the Winter Dance." Alex's eyes widened, her lips twisting into a grimace.

"Tom, this is so... sudden. I, I don't know what to say."

"Say yes." Tom began to stalk towards her. Alex backed up, slightly stepping to the side.

"I can't say that Tom, I just don't deserve you." As she said this, she snaked her arm to his back, pushing him into a large puddle of mud. She ran off, grinning, his shouts echoing in her ears.