The Pastor's Daughter

One: At First Glance

Looking in the mirror on the first day of school makes every teenage girl feel at least a little insecure, but for Kennedy it was worse. Every last strand of her long blonde hair had to be curled to perfection and there could not be any clumps in her mascara. Everyone was watching. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, recalling how it felt to walk down the halls at Meadowbrook High.

All eyes were on her, waiting for her to make even the slightest mistake. But she never did. When needed, she bit her tongue and watched her words, making sure to be polished and polite. Being the Pastor's daughter had transformed the blue-eyed Barbie from an average girl to queen of the school. Girls aspired to be her and guys dreamed of being with her. Her life would seem like heaven to most people, but it was complete hell. Perfection comes at a price.

Upon finishing the last curl, she turned off her curling iron and adjusted her knee length skirt and blouse, straightening out the old school uniform. Before going down for breakfast she put a smile on her lips. It wasn't genuine, it never was, but a pretty little smile is one more accessory that every queen needs.

"Morning Dee!" An overly perky Susan Adams called out from the kitchen as she heard her daughter walking down the stairs. The grey-haired, always happy woman had been up since early that morning preparing breakfast.

"Morning Mom." Kennedy responded sweetly, sitting down at the table and crossing her ankles. "Whatever you're making smells amazing!"

"Pancakes," She set a plate of them down on the table as she spoke, "Though it's just me and you this morning, your dad had to go to a prayer meeting."

Unless someone was watching her very carefully, the faint frown that had crossed Kennedy's lips would go unnoticed, as it was quickly disguised with another smile. Of course he was gone already. Her father had a tendency to miss the important days in her life for prayer meetings or sermons, and her first day of eleventh grade was no exception.

To avoid being forced into a conversation, she quickly put a piece of pancake into her mouth and the rest of the breakfast dragged on in silence.

~><~

If there was a prize for sleeping in late on important days, Katalaine would have won. It was 8:02 when her eyes opened in the morning. The bus was due to arrive in 18 minutes and whisk her away to her first day at a new school. The moment Kat's eyes saw the bold red numbers on her alarm clock the panic set in.

Within a matter of seconds she was up and at her closet, flipping through hanger after hanger. When nothing looked appealing enough she sighed in frustration and turned to her dresser. That's when she noticed the neatly folded uniform on her chair that she had forgotten about amid her panic. Her eyebrows furrowed and she cursed at herself for wasting six minutes looking for clothes.

By the time she was dressed and her hair was in a makeshift ponytail, it was 8:14. She had just enough time to apply some mascara and grab her book bag before running out. No one in her family said goodbye as she left to meet the bus which was already at the end of her driveway.

The yellow bus doors opened with a creak and Katalaine quickly got on, sitting in the first available seat and keeping her eyes on the floor. Even though she wasn't looking, she could feel the multiple sets of eyes glued to her. People were already forming their opinions. The hushed whispers coming from various spots on the bus only confirmed her suspicions. In an attempt to tune them out she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, playing with her long, auburn ponytail.

A short fifteen minutes later the doors opened again and the other kids started walking out. Kat stayed put, waiting till everyone else was off before standing from her seat and walking down the bus steps.

"Thank you for the ride." Kat turned to the old man who had driven the bus that morning. Out of all the students, what she believed to be thirty kids, she was the only one to have acknowledged him."

"You're very welcome miss," the man's eyes smiled and the wrinkles underneath them lifted, "you have a very good day now."

Katalaine's ponytail fell onto her shoulder as she nodded, "I will, thank you." Her feet made contact with the pavement and she took a deep breath.

Meadowbrook High, an old but prestigious brick building, faced her. People were already starting to file into the school and she quickly followed, not wanting to be late.

The halls were crowded, as they were in every high school. Friends were hugging and informing each other on all the latest gossip from the summer. Katalaine felt more out of place than ever. She was the new girl, and she didn't go unnoticed. Everywhere she went people whispered and occasionally pointed. The whispers only stopped when a door closed at the end of the hall. Within a few seconds everything was silent.

"Oh look," A girl with jet black hair whispered to the person next to her, "It's Queen Dee."

Kat could hear the sarcasm in her voice, but there was something else there too, admiration maybe? She slowly turned to face said 'Queen' but instantly regretted it. Her brown eyes locked with the bright blue ones belonging to the girl at the end of the hall. Kat took a deep breath, and she could have sworn she heard the other girl do the same.