Melissa Riley Is Suddenly Visible

Chapter One

I sat in fifth period, starring at the clock, waiting for the bell that signalled lunch. So far, my day has been dragging on, consisting of giggling girls, rude football players, and insanely long lectures. 

Just as Mrs. Chemlock begins to talk about the mass of an atom, the bell rings harshly, making half of the classes sleepy eyes snap open. I stuff everything into my bag, as the rest of the class runs out of the classroom faster than I thought possible.

I hurry into the lunchroom and rush through the line, happy when I make it to the safety of my lunch table. I sit by myself for a while, until my sister Rosette sits next to me, as does my friend Chloe. I look around the lunchroom observing everyone, as Rosette and Chloe strike up a conversation.

We have four obvious groups at Sandy High School: the "Jocks and Cheerleaders", the "Nerds", the "Bad Boys", and those people that take up space, remaining unnoticed.

The "Jocks and Cheerleaders" are exactly what they portray in every movie. They are what everyone else discribes as "popular". The one time someone tried to talk to this group, he was never seen again. So you could say I stay away from them.

Next, we have the "Nerds". In reality, the only time they even draw attention to themselves is when we get tests back, or after something big with the Chess Club, and don't even get me started on bullying. It doesn't happen, the nerds are invisible at my school.

Bad boys? Yup, we've got those, too. They are those eight random dudes, that you count on to be late to class and get in trouble. They are the ones that wear dark colors, leather, and are sporting excessive amounts of tattoos and a cigarette between their lips at all times. They smoke, drink, and they creep everyone out. 

And last but not least, you have the "Middle Class" of high school. Those people that remain unnoticed as they take up space in the classroom. That would be me. You keep to yourself, and avoid anything that could possibly draw the attention to you for once. You keep quiet, show up, and leave.

"Melissa?" Rosette asks, waving a hand in front of my face, snapping me back to reality. Rosette has long, dark brown hair, and peircing blue eyes. She's not the tallest, but she's taller than me, and she's not over-weight, but she's not too thin, either. She's in that wierd group where she's not popular, but she's not in the middle class either. 

"Huh?" I ask, focusing on her face, "What did I miss?"

"We were talking about the lame English II assingment," she says, "You know? The essay about our classmates?

"Right," I mumble, "Um . . . yeah, I know what your talking about, Rose. What are you going to write about?"

"Not a clue," she sighs, as does Chloe.

"How about you?" Chloe asks me, "Any ideas?"

"Not at the moment," I say. We talk a bit more about the assinment, but get cut short by the sound of the bell echoing through the lunch room. We hastily dump our trays, as to avoid the crowd, and mumble a few goodbyes as we diperse to our own classes. 

I hurry onto my sixth period class, attaining my seat in the back, just as the late bell rings. I sigh, praying for the rest of the day to go by quickly. Sixth period goes by in a blur, as does seventh and eigth, and  sigh in relief when I head to the library for my ninth period study hall.

I sit alone at one of the numerous tables, pulling out my blank sheet of paper that I somehow have to turn into an essay about people I barely even talk to. 

I search my brain for any personal or broad biases I could possibly have against these people I have to deal with every day. There has to be something, I mean I've been with them literally every day, nine months out of the year, for seven hours straight. I think back to lunch, seeing how everyone had seperated themselves by social status, that's something, right?

I scribble a heading on my paper: "Since You Asked . . . ", and sit back, pondering on a starting scentence.