The Exchange

Chapter 12

I sit in my desk on my second day of school during homeroom. The girls I met yesterday sit around me. I think I have learned all their names by now but I'm not quite sure.

I think I'm most comfortable with Brianna and Wendy. Brianna is the one who invited me to lunch yesterday and Wendy is very outgoing and friendly. The roudy boys from the back are standing around us talking and laughing. For the first time since I've arrived I feel myself relax and enjoy the moment.

"So Mira, are you coming to my party on Friday?" I look up and see Brandon standing right in front of me. I look up into his eyes and notice the nice brown they are.

"Maybe," I reply not even knowing he was having a party.

"You should. Your friends are coming and we're going to have a great time. You should really come. It's a great way to meet everyone."

"Maybe I will then if you say it's going to be that great."

Brandon fills me in on all the party details until the bell rings and Mme. Gardien tells us all to sit down. I turn in my desk to face the front of the class. Did Brandon just ask me to go to his party? I have never been to an actual party before. My friends and I aren't really into the crazy party's at home and decline when we get a facebook invite but it might be nice to go to one and see what it's like. Besides, if it's a good way to meet more of the people at school maybe it would be a good idea to go.

"Mirabelle?" I hear my voice and raised my head to see the teacher who is looking at me, awaiting a response. Shoot! What was the question?

"As-tu une reponse a la question?"

"Peux-tu répété la question sil-vu-plaît?" I ask, praying that was the right way to ask. The teacer looks stunned and I figure that was either totally wrong or perfectly right. I guess the first one but I hope I am wrong.

My friends find me at my locker at lunch. We aren't a big group of friends but people seem to attract to them all the time.

Brianna is very sporty and loves leggings and penny boarding. Something about her reminds me of Britney

Wendy is loud and outgoing and knows mostly everyone in our grade and offered to introduce me to anyone I want to meet. She knows information about some people and I do not want to know how she got that information.

Lillian is an excercise junkie. The complete opposite from me who has never run a day in my life and has no interest in changing that. She offered to jog with me one day but I giggled and told her that sweat and I don't go together very well.

Jessica is very quiet and shy but I think she will open up to me more as I get to know her. So far all I know is her parents are very strict and have a say in every aspect of her life. I feel kind of sorry for her because she can't even go and see the movie she wants to see sometimes. She is very passive though and allows the other girls to walk on her without them knowing. I made a promise I won't walk on her when I figured that out.

The other girl in our group is Dallia. She is quite hard-core and fierce and I find she keeps many aspects of her life private. My first lunch with the girls, they basically told me everything about themselves within five minutes, but all I know about Dallia is she goes by her middle name, likes wearing long necklaces and tons of bracelets and she moved to London from Brazil when she was seven. Hence her spanish accent since she continues to speak spanish at home.

About fifteen minutes into our lunch break, we are done eating and more people are sitting or standing around us, talking to us six.

"So I heard Brandon ask you to go to his party." Brianna says, leaning across the table and lowering her voice.