The Price Of Acceptance - [On Hold]

Chapter 1 - First impressions

I was walking along the park path. The wind blowing my long wavy blonde hair behind me. The cool breeze in the summer heat felt divine and a huge grin was plastered across my face displaying my pearly whites. I had never been so content as I watched a baby Labrador chasing after a Frisbee and jumping into the air to catch it. I looked to the other side where couples and families were sitting on the grass with their picnic lay outs around them. Everyone seemed happy. This is how the world should be, I thought without a care in the world.

Brrrrring! Brrrrring! Argh! The noise I detest most in the world is my alarm clock ringing. I hated it when it rang interrupting my amazing dream. I groaned as I pressed down the snooze button and went back to sleep, the dream didn't start again of course. They never did when you wanted them to.

Five minutes later, the alarm went off again. I looked at the time this time and wondered what I was doing up at seven thirty AM during the holidays. I wasn't a morning person, never have been. Then I remembered... it was my first day back at school today at my new school. Oh my God! I had completely forgotten, why does this always happen to me, I moaned to myself in my head. I leaped out of bed and ran across the landing to my mum's room and moaned at her for not reminding me the night before when it was her job as my parent.

Of course she said she did, like she always did. I tried to recall last night's events while rushing about the place not really having a clue what I was looking for. Last night... what was I doing last night? I tried to remember in a rush giving myself a headache. I was on Facebook as I usually am and watching X Factor. Oh yeah, I did remember something about it now. But of course I wasn't going to let my mum know that so I continued denying her protests as she got out of bed and wrapped her dressing robe round herself very calmly, it was easy for her, she didn't have a reputation at stake.

I ran back to my room despite the fact I still felt half asleep. I flung open my wardrobe and looked for something to wear. I was stuck between grey skinny jeans, a yellow top, grey cardigan with a grey sequin scarf and converses or black skinny jeans, fuchsia top and my converses. I decided to go with the grey and yellow outfit thinking that if I went through the school gates with a fuchsia top it would attract too much unwanted attentions from those chav groups that every school has.

I didn't have time to evaluate my choice having just about enough time to check I'd dressed myself right in the mirror. I rushed to the bathroom to put on some make-up. I took a quick peek at my watch and automatically wished I hadn't. If I wasn't late at this rate it would be a miracle. I grabbed my make-up bag off the shelf and tried to get it opened. Of course it was going to be jammed when I was in a rush.

"Oh crap!" I screamed as if I was in agony. I threw the zip in my hand that had broken off over my shoulder to concentrate on my face.

"You have to calm down Lucy, rushing will only stress you out more" said my mum yawning and walking calmly down the stairs. I shot a look at her from the bathroom door, she had no idea.

I settled for a L'Oreal grey shimmer eye shadow, my black Rimmel eyeliner and mascara, some light blusher my friend had gotten me for my birthday. I quickly applied a nude lip-gloss and looked in the mirror. I took a deep breath and smiled my most dazzling smile at the mirror on the wall, not bad, I thought cheering up a bit. I looked at my watch for a third time, now is not the time to be cheerful, I told myself rushing down the stairs two steps at a time. First impressions are very important you know. They're what decide the rest of your life and the reputation you receive and reputations are very hard to build back up once you've lost them. And this was Secondary school, one mistake and you'd be doomed for eternity.

I didn't have any time for breakfast if I didn't want to be late so I just grabbed a biscuit and a carton of pineapple juice from the fridge, called out bye to my mum, who was calmly making a cup of coffee for herself and slammed the front door closed behind me.

I was going to re-invent myself at this school, I'd messed up too many times at my last one and I intended to have the best year ever this year. I was going to make every girl at this new school adore me, hang onto my every word, ask for fashion advice, boyfriend advice and just really be in awe of me. I was going to make every boy fall head over heels in love with me, compliment me and want to be my date for any occasion.

This is a second chance and a new chapter of my life and I am not going to mess it up, I thought to myself. And you know what, there is nothing anybody can do to mess it up for me, I thought grinning as I arrived at the bus stop.