In Her Shoes

Chapter 1

“And we’re here,” Dean said as he pulled up his sedan in front of the school gates.

Students are already milling about the grounds, catching up after summer vacation. The green trees and blue sky are tranquil but seeing the activity outside made Lindsey's stomach churn. Her nails had somehow found its way to her mouth and nervously, she chewed. “I’m scared.”

“Sweetie, it’s the first day of school, not the end of the world.”

“Same difference.”

“Okay, whatever.” He slipped a hand around her shoulder and gave her a side-hug before she climbed out of the car. “Have fun, kid. And remember,” he raised both brows. “Don’t get pregnant.”

Dean sped off to the student parking lot, chuckling as Lindsey shot him the dirty finger.

She felt hopeless. The car ride to school with her brother (who's conveniently popular) is supposed to calm her down but seeing Dean breeze so effortlessly, gorgeous dark hair and all, in his sleek red sedan only succeeded in exploding her nerve endings.

He's Dean Wilmann: role model, superstar athlete. As much as she looks up to him, she couldn't help but feel jealous about how easy getting through high school is for him.

Because for Lindsey, it's not.

A Stoneriver High school bus pulled up in front of her and students poured out of the bus. Lindsey waited until a bright red mop of hair popped out. Kate Welsh, her best friend, has the most striking face she's ever seen but no one can see that behind her unruly hair and huge, square, tinted glasses. Judging by the lethal look on her face, a bomb is about to blow.

“LINDSEY WILMANN!”

"Oh, dear." Lindsey ducked and tried to hide between two towering basketball players. Kate began charging towards her direction so she fled toward the main building across the lawn.

She weaved between students, pushing and apologizing as she went. Panting, she looked back and seeing that she lost Kate, Lindsey stopped to catch her breath.

Then Kate grabbed her by the shoulders from behind and tackled her to the grass.

Lindsey spat out a mouthful of grass. "Hey! What the hell?"

"You left me on the school bus to rot-" Kate twisted Lindsey's arm behind her back, "-on the first day!"

"Ow! Dean and I took the sedan!"

"That's even worse than I thought!"

They both rolled around the grass, screaming and flailing, getting their uniforms damp with morning dew, oblivious to the curious stares of the other students.

As Kate was about to pull out her ponytail, Lindsey saw the school guard approaching them warily.

"Dude, stop. Guard's here."

Kate looked up and seeing the guard's grim face, she immediately clambered off Lindsey.

The guard stopped mid-step, thrown off track by the sight of two disheveled girls who were at each other's throats just sheer seconds ago now sitting innocently beside each other on the grass. He raised an eyebrow, and Kate smiled cheekily at him.

"Stupid kids," the guard muttered to himself, shaking his head as he walked away.