The Other Side of the Glass

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

I don't understand how people can be so terrible. This morning I woke up to an alert on my phone, saying that a twelve-year-old girl was murdered. She was just an innocent kid, walking to the store, hoping to buy something. Little did she know that she would be killed by some psychopath. Why does this world have to be so horrible all of the time?

After being woken up by that bad news, I had to get ready for school. Tenth grade is difficult. Sophomores are viewed as the kids who think they're so cool, but in reality we are just like the rest. We are all just miserable teenagers, who want to be at home, laying in bed all day long. High school can get to be extremely stressful and annoying.

I change into my favorite black jeans and a gray hoodie, toss my dark, brown hair into a messy bun, and put mascara on. I look in the mirror to see what I look like. My mirror looked a little weird today, almost like it was going to lead me into it. I am probably just really tired and delusional. Usually I don't care about my appearance in school because I'm really just there to learn. Besides, it's what is on the inside that counts.

I run downstairs with ten minutes to spare, eat some cereal, and check my phone. I scroll through my social media and look at the weather, bright and sunny. My best friend, Lyla, texts me to let me know she's outside of my house. I say goodbye to my mom, dad, and my sister and brother, Kate and Brendon. I throw on a pair of uggs, grab my bag, and meet Lyla outside.

Let me just say, Lyla has a very bubbly, outgoing personality. Ever since kindergarten, this girl was always optimistic and happy, which I never understood. She likes to talk a whole lot, but she is a great listener. She greets me with a hug, and we start walking to school. "Megan, are you going to the school dance? If you are, we need to find you a date. You can't go without a date. We need to find you a dress and shoes. Your hair --" I cut her off.

"Lyla, calm down, it's only eight in the morning, I haven't had my coffee, and I am half asleep," I said exhaustedly.

"Oh, right, sorry. I'm just so excited. Let's go get you some coffee," Lyla said in reply. I roll my eyes jokingly and laugh.

We walk to the coffee shop around the corner from school almost everyday before school. The workers know us very well, and we usually get discounts. I always get a vanilla bean frappuccino to keep me awake throughout the day. They taste sweet, but very awakening. Lyla got a breakfast sandwich and tea. Then, we continued our walk to school. Lyla started talking about the dance again, and I told her that we would go shopping this weekend. My neighbor is a hair dresser, so she agreed to do our hair. We are going to get our nails done at a salon by Lyla's house tomorrow. The dance is four days away, and neither of us have a dress yet.

Our walk to school is typically enjoyable. In the warmer weather, like today, there are beautiful flowers and trees growing in people's yards. The sounds of the birds chirping and cars passing by are relaxing. I like that I am observant when it comes to nature. There is always a mom with two little children that pass by us on our walk. The kids and their mom seem very kind-hearted by the way they smile and Lyla and I. Our school corridors are very beautiful, covered with flowers and trees on the outside. On the inside there are stunning murals, painted by students and even large windows so that everyone is able to view the outside of the building.

Once we arrive at school, I open my gray locker and see a note. It says, "Megan, will you be my date to the dance on Saturday? I think you're really sweet and would love to get to know you better. -Brody." Brody is this very admirable, handsome, smart boy, who has had a crush on me for a while now. I just haven't had time for a boyfriend lately.

I put the note in my plain, black school bag, grab my heavy books and head to my first period class, which is English. Brody was in my second period, so I will talk to him then. My English class is really boring, but my teacher, Mrs. Cramer, is really easy. She usually allows us to be on our phones if we aren't doing anything important. Today she decided that we are going to learn vocabulary, so I decided to go on my phone. Vocabulary wasn't important to me because I could just look up the words if I needed to. Besides, it's not like I am going to be a professional writer or anything.

After a long, boring class, Lyla and I walk to Chemisrty together. I tell her about the note from Brody, and she thinks that I should go with him. I was in need of a date, so I agreed. Brody is kind of cute, he's funny, and he's really sweet. He is in a lot of honors classes and community service activities. He is a bit of a nerd, but it's adorable. When I walk into the classroom, Brody glances at me. I stroll over to his desk, and his face starts to become red. "Sure," I say to him, "I will go to the dance with you."

He just responds with "Cool," and I sit in my seat. Brody has brown hair, that is always buffed in the front. He has a good fashion sense too. Today he wore a navy blue polo shirt and black jeans. Brody likes alternative rock and art, two of my favorite things. We would make a good couple.

I briefly talk to him after class, and he gives me his phone number. He asks me to text him when I get a dress, so that he can match his tie with my dress. He's such a sweetheart.

Lyla and I walk home together and talk about Brody. It's not long before she starts talking about her precious date, Daniel. He is a six-foot-tall, football player. All Lyla does is brag about how cute he is.

We get back to my house and do homework. We eat dinner, which is chicken and rice. After dinner, Lyla and I go upstairs to my room to decide what we want our hair, makeup, and nails top look like for the dance. The theme is a night under the stars, so we decide to go with something dark, yet elegant. Lyla decided on a pretty braided up-do for her long, blonde hair. Her nails are going to be dark purple with white French tips. She wants her makeup to match her nails, dark purple eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, and dark red lipstick.

I decided to go with a dark blue and silver color scheme. I want my hair in a nice, curly, up-do, my nails to be silver and dark blue, and my makeup will match my nails as well.

A few days later, it's Friday. Lyla and I are going shopping today after school. It is really last minute, but we can get it done. We are meeting at the mall at twelve, getting lunch, and going dress shopping. I put on black leggings, a teal sweater, and my uggs. I put mascara on, and put my hair into a loose ponytail. My mom drives me to the mall and I walk to the meeting place. Lyla is waiting there for me.

"I'm so excited to try on a bunch of dresses. I have to try and get a purple one to match my nails. You have to look for blue. Let's get lunch first," Lyla exclaims. She sure does like to chat.

"Ok, let's get something to eat."

I buy a hoagie and iced tea and Lyla buys a meatball sub and lemonade. We sit down in the food court and discuss the dance.

"I am a little nervous to go to the dance with Brody, we haven't really talked much. He is sweet and all, but I wish we would have had more time to get to know each other," I say to Lyla.

"Yeah, I guess that would have been beneficial, but you guys will be fine. Text him now and talk to him."

I take out my phone and start a conversation with Brody. He likes a lot of the same things I like, music, art, and even basketball. I told him to wear a dark blue tie match my dress color. Brody said that was a good color choice, and that he would wear a gray button up shirt and black bottoms. He is going to meet me at my house at six, along with Lyla and Daniel, so that we can get pictures, and be at the dance by seven.