My Life Exposed

A fresh start

Morning time approaches and I put on my uniform, which isn't too bad. My new Converse are a great compliment. I say hello to Micheal as I get into the car to head to school. When we arrive, I walk up to the steps and try to be as invisible as possible and start searching for the office. I feel someone behind me so I turn around and find Jade's boyfriend, who stops along side me. He introduces himself as Jace and he apologies again for the way Jade acted yesterday. "Do you need any help getting around?" I took a moment to contemplate whether or not it was a good idea, but Jace seems like a nice enough guy, so I accept his offer and ask if he can lead me to the school office. I'm curious as to why he's helping me out when I know for a fact that his girlfriend hates me. When we get to the office, he walks in with me and introduces me as Mila. He tells them that I am new and that I'll need my class schedule. "Mila Anderson" I clarify to the lady who seems very willing to help us. As she hands me my schedule, Jace takes it from me and looks it over. "We have a lot of classes together. I'll walk you to your first one." I smile at him and tell him that would be great. "Nobody should go through their first day at a new school alone. I'll be here to help you," he says. When we walk into our first class, the first face I see is Jade's. Of course Jade is in the same class as me, right along with her minions. They all give me an evil stare as I walk in with Jace. I go to the very back and take a seat so I can stay under their radar as much as possible. After the teacher makes her entrance, Jade decides to announce "We have a new student!" "Oh, what a treat! I am Mrs. Williams Welcome to AP Biology. Please, stand up and introduce myself." I stand and say as little as possible; just my name and where I am from. "Why did you move here?" Jade asks. Of course she wants more. I stand back up and decide to give her what she wants. "I moved here because I found my mother dead on the kitchen floor. Is that a good enough answer for you or would you like to humiliate me more?" The room went silent. I glanced over at Jace and see him give Jade a very disapproving look. After class, everyone walks up to me and tells me how sorry they were that Jade did that to me. Honestly, it was genuinely nice of them, but the last thing I want is attention. I just want to graduate and get away from here as fast as I can. When lunch time comes around, everyone seems to have their own cliques to sit with. There's the jocks, the nerds, the loners and of course the queen bees of the school. I make my way over to a small, empty table in the corner. It's not long before I see Jace walking up to my table and sit down. "What are you doing?" I ask him. "I'd rather eat with you than listen to Jade bitch about you any more." "Well isn't it your job to listen to your girlfriend bitch even if it's annoying?" He then comes clean and tells me that him and Jade are not together, but their families want them together. He says Jade is obsessed with him, but he finds her selfish and entitled. "I play along. It pleases my parents. I'm a very wealthy guy, but I'd give up all the money in a heartbeat just for my parents to show any interest in my life and let me be who I want to be." Jace shrugs. As Jace went on to tell me about how he really feels about his life, I begin to feel like I can relate to him. I mean don't get me wrong, he is very attractive and sweet, but if I've learned anything about the upper east side it's that you can't really trust anyone. Before lunch was over, Jade and her possie make their way to our table. "Jace, are you done being nice to your charity case?" Jade purrs to him. "Just walk away, Jade." he says. That did not make her happy at all. I start to get up to leave but Jace stops me and asks if I have any plans for tonight. Of course I don't, so he asks me if I would like to hangout and he could show me the city. Every bone in my body was saying no, but I said yes. I think a night out would be good for me. It would be better than staying in a home I don't feel wanted in. School was finally over. I begin walking to the car when Jace stops me and gives me his number. He tells me he would pick me up at 6:00. I knew that I shouldn't get too excited about this, but I couldn't help it. I have never actually been on a date before. The guys back home just weren't worth the time; all they cared about was drinking, drugs, and sex. After I got home, I try to avoid Tracy and Jade and run straight to my room to start getting ready. I text him to ask him what I should wear so that I was dressed appropriately and he replies "Just dress cute-casual." Thanks to my dad's credit card, I had the perfect outfit to wear for tonight. As 6:00 was approaching, I decide to wait outside so I don't have to answer any questions. I send a quick text to my dad telling him I'm going to hang out with a friend so that he wouldn't worry. It was 6:30 and I was still waiting outside, wondering where Jace was. I call him but he doesn't answer. Was this all just in my head? Was I really just a charity case to him? When the clock turned 7:00, I decide to go back inside, put on my PJs, and crawl into bed with a delightful book. I'm feeling pretty depressed that the first guy I might like stood me up. He was playing me the whole time; I should have known. I've made the decision - no boys, no friends, just working on my studies so I can get into Yale. Yale has been my dream since I was a little girl. Nothing is going to distract me or get in my way, especially not Jace Henderson. The next morning, as I head downstairs for school, I overhear Tracy and Jade talking about Jace. "Jade, you cannot let Jace end up with Mila. Do you know how bad this will reflect on our family?" "Yes, mother," Jade said. "I know that. That's why I am taking care of things. Jace loves me and always will. Once Mila turns 18, we can convince daddy that she is not good enough for our family and he will be forced to kick her out and everything will go back to normal." Now I see the truth. Tracy must be responsible for me not hearing from my father all these years; it was never him, it was her. I walk straight past them and head to the car for school. My plan is to ignore Jace and just focus on my senior year. The first thing I do when I get to school is go find the guidance counselor's office; I want to talk about my chances in getting into Yale. When I enter the main office, of course there is Jace. He tries to talk to me, but I just ignore him and walk into the counselor's office. Thankfully, the counselor has the best news I could possibly imagine. "Your grades are outstanding. You could actually graduate first in your class and Yale would be very impressed. There's just one slight problem. If you want early acceptance, you will have to join some after school curriculums. Yale takes that into big consideration. I can set you up with the student council and the debate club", the counselor tells me. "That sounds great, but I would love to try out for the swim team and track team as well." "Well, that's perfect! I will set that up for you at once." Walking out of the office, I was kind of overwhelmed. I didn't expect to put more on my plate than I already have. Dealing with my four AP classes plus all of the new extracurricular activities sounds exhausting. I guess overall it will be best. I won't have time to get distracted by drama or boys or Jade and Tracy. I walk into the student counsel room and there are two girls sitting at the first table. One of the girls says, "Oh hey! You must be Mila. I'm Brandi and this is Candace. Welcome to the student council!" I say thank you and take a seat next to them. "Okay, so we were just working on the charity ball that we are hosting in two weeks. If you have any ideas, please don't hesitate to throw them at us." Before I could even get a word in, I hear a voice behind me saying, "Sorry I'm late!" Of course, it's Jace. "Mila, I didn't know you joined the student council." "Well," I tell him, "there is a lot you don't know about me." We continue on with planning and put together the most amazing ball I could ever dreamed of. When the bell rings signaling the next class, Jace grabs my hand and begs me to talk to him. "Why should I even bother? I was just your charity case, right?" "No," Jace says, "that's not it at all, I swear. Jade told me what happened to your mother and all the details of your childhood. She told me that if I went out with you, she would broadcast it to the entire school. I just couldn't let that happen. I really like you, Mila. I was just trying to protect you." "Well, news flash, I don't need protecting. You could have called or texted me to tell me instead of leaving me on my steps for an hour feeling like a fool." "You're right," he says, "I should have said something. I just don't want Jade to hurt you in any way. She is evil. Please be careful with her, Mila." I tell him, "Well don't worry, I have been taking care of myself my whole life and I don't need anyone coming to my rescue now. I will handle Jade on my own." "Mila, there is something else she told me. She found out you want to go to Yale and only one girl can get an early acceptance from our school. She will do anything to sabotage your chances, so just watch your back when it comes to her." "You don't have to worry about me, Jace. I can handle myself especially when it comes to bullies."