Built on Lies

Chapter One

Mira

Mira walked down the halls, head down, as always. A book in hand and a schoolbag so large that she could probably fit in if she tried to. She was a scrawny girl, barely 5'5 and she had mousy brown dead hair that swung in the wind, but not like in the TV advertisements. Her face was, under all the acne, gorgeous. You had to take time to really appreciate her beauty but of course no one ever did.

She skipped going to her locker. It's not like she was going to do the homework anyway. She walked towards her bus stop. She walked as fast as she could, she knew that if she didn't  Dana would be there and try to make conversation. Its not that Mira didn't like Dana, its just, she didn't like her. Dana got off on making others feel bad, maybe not intentionally but she did it all the same. Mia didn't know why Dana tried to make conversation with her. She had waited for her to drop a  bitchy remark on her hair or her clothes  or yell "Now" over to the other girls as their cue to throw something at her. It never came.

Her thoughts had obviously somehow slowed her down because by the time she got to the bus the single seat by the bus driver had been taken. She could see Dana at the back of the bus, the only consoling factor to the situation was that Dana hadn't seen her,yet. She searched almost frantically for an empty chair, preferably beside a quiet freshmen who wouldn't try and talk to her but there were none. Just as she had accepted her fate a bag was lifted from a chair and placed on the floor. It was a senior, and a hot one at that. She didn't know his name but he offered her a seat and had unknowingly saved her from Dana and her troop of squeaky monkeys. As Mia moved to the seat the bus driver called over to her 

"Ninety-cents kiddo"

Her heart sank. She'd forgotten her purse in her locker. She decided to do the easiest thing and lie

"Um I forgot it at home"

"How did you get on this morning?"

"I - uh.."

Another kid was behind her now  and was shuffling impatiently.He looked at his watch again and again.  He spoke up.

"I'll pay for the both of us, I have really got to get home on time today "

"You really don't have to"  Mia says but she silently hoped otherwise.

"Its fine , whatever" He pays and walks toward the back of the bus and sits in an empty seat. Mia turns back to the seat that had been silently offered to her  but it had been taken now.She gingerly took a seat next to the impatient guy with his eye on his watch.

She wondered whether or not to thank him.It might result in a conversation, Mia wasn't very conversational.She decided not to say anything. She didn't want to risk it. 

"Sorry if I came off a little rude, I just really have to get home on time today" he said "Todd" he added. She knew he was waiting for her to respond with her name and maybe even a question like why did he have to get home so early or maybe even a thank you. She knew she had to say something. She turned to look at him.

"Thanks anyway, Mira" she tried to smile. The rest of the bus was so loud she was unsure as to whether he had even heard her.

"Excuse me?!"

"Mira! M-I-R-A"

" Nice to meet you!Sorry its just really loud in here!"

"I know!"

She turned around to see what the commotion was at the back of the bus.It was Dana.Her fifty-second boyfriend had broken up with her and she was crying hysterically. It looked like an awkward situation because it had happened on the bus and he was just sitting about three seats up listening and trying to dodge the death glares that Lana and Sara( or the squeaky monkeys) were shooting him.