Switching Places

(Currently editing this story. I don't think anything major will change. I am mostly just going to fix spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes. Thanks!)   

      I stood in front of the long mirror in the hallway and fluffed up my short brown hair to add some volume to it. It was obvious that I haven't washed my hair in a few days.

     "Come on Chloe, we're going to be late!" my foster mother, Jody, said.

     "I'm coming, relax." I said, and took one last look at my makeup free face, and boring brown eyes, before moving toward the front door.

     "Don't forget your bag." She said before walking out of the apartment.

     Our apartment was small, two bedrooms, one bathroom, an outdated cramped kitchen and small living room. The walls and floors were stained from previous owners, but Jody did her best to cover them up with pictures and fashionable carpets. Even though the place was old and outdated, it was perfect for Jody and I. This was the best foster home I have lived in yet.

     After grabbing my bag from the living room couch, I went to meet Jody in the car. She rolled her eyes before laughing and pulling out of the driveway.

     Jody was young, in her early thirties. She had a son, Jake, who was five years old, but he lived with his father Steve. She had dated him for two years before finding out she was pregnant. Steve was kind enough to stay and help out while Jake was growing up, but neither he nor Jody loved each other anymore. When Jake was old enough to think for himself, Jody and Steve split up. They mutually agreed on Jake living with his father and visiting on weekends. But Jody got lonely and wanted to foster a child, where she found me.

     I had just got taken out of a bad foster home, and was happy for anyone who looked sane to take me in. I have been with Jody for a year now. She treats me more like a big sister than a daughter.

     As we drove to my high school, I stared out the window and let my thoughts run wild. It was never a good thing for me to be left alone with my thoughts. I always started to think about what happened to my parents, and then tried to ask questions that apparently no one knew the answer to. Such as, why did they give me up?

     Sensing my quietness, Jody started a conversation. "I have a late meeting today, so do you think you can walk to the coffee shop after school? I can pick you up when I'm done."

     "Why would I go to the coffee shop? Why not just wait till you're done?"

     "I might be a while. If you're at the coffee shop then you have a nice place to relax, work on homework and have a snack before I get there." She said, and she made a good point.

     "Okay," I said as we pulled into the school parking lot. "I'll see you then I guess." With that, I got out of her car, took a deep breath as she pulled away, and walked up the steps to hell.

     I shouldn't really say hell. School wasn't really that bad. I got looks from people because of my outfits. I couldn't afford to have brand name clothes, so I wore stuff from the good will stores. Aside from the looks, people avoided me. I liked to stay in the shadow, and focus on my school work.

     "Watch it nerd," David said as he bumped into me at my locker.

     "Watch yourself, David. You're still tripping over your two left feet." I said with a laugh. David is one of my best friends. We met at the coffee shop the second day I moved in with Jody. He was working behind the counter that day, giving people their orders, and spilt my drink on me. It was only a matter of time till it happened. His hair was so long that it covered his eyes. I'm surprised he could see anything at all. David's dad was behind the counter to - he owned the place - and forced David to sit and apologize to me after giving me a new drink for free.

     "Have you seen Jasmine yet?" David asked me as he checked himself out in my locker mirror. He's a very handsome boy, I have no idea why he hangs out with me. His hair is now cropped short, and his blue eyes make him look really young. He could be popular, but he has told me before that he would rather hang out with me, then people who are fake.

     "I got here five minutes ago, David, of course I haven't seen Jasmine." I said while I grabbed my books and closed up my locker.

     "You look really tired today, everything alright?" He asked me as we headed off to first period English.

     "I stayed up late trying to do research on my parents. I swear it's like they just up and disappeared, leaving me behind on some random person's doorstep."

     "I'm sure that's not what happened." David said.

     "Yeah, whatever," I said and turned into our English class. Jasmine was sitting in the front corner by the teacher's desk, as usual, waiting for us. Her bright messy blonde hair and colourful outfit choices always made it hard for you to miss her. Even though Jasmine hung out with us most of the time, she was also a cheerleader. She had told me many times that I had the perfect body for a cheerleader and that I should try out for the team, but I always replied that schoolwork is more important than extracurricular stuff.

     "What's up girl?" She said as David and I took our seats beside her.

     Before I could answer, the bell rang and the teacher started the lesson.

     School passed in a blur. I sat quiet in all my classes, and ordered the same meal at lunch, a vegetarian sub, and avoided the popular people. Before I knew it, I was walking into the coffee shop down the road from my school.