Before It's Too Late.

"Wake up, honey," my mom said, pulling the blanket off the bed.
"Five more minutes," I whined, trying to block out the light.
"You said that ten minutes ago."
"I know," I muttered, falling back to sleep.
"I'm counting to three, Alayna."
"Fine. I'm up, I'm up," I groaned as I got tangled in the sheet and hit the floor. It is serious business when your mother starts counting; never, ever take it lightly.
"I'm gonna go make breakfast," she said.
"Whatever," I mumbled, rummaging through my closet.
"What was that?"
"I said I love you."
"That's what I thought," she said, smiling.

I had managed to find some decent clothes, and I had twenty minutes until I had to leave for school. I grabbed my bag and went downstairs to the kitchen. My mom had a plate of scrambled eggs waiting for me.
"So, what's the name of this school again," I asked as I grabbed a bottle of juice from the fridge.
"Tranquility High. Do you remember that nice family from next door," she asked.
"Oh yeah, the Withickys or somethin' like that. They have that old beat-up Camaro, right?"
"Yes. Apparently, their son goes there, too," she said with a grin.
"And," I asked, perking an eyebrow.
"Well, I was thinking you could use some help getting over that Ryan boy you went out with," she said. I choked on the juice I was drinking, and ran to the sink to stop myself from spewing it all over the kitchen.
"Are you freakin' kidding me?! Mom, I'm over Ryan. You're the only one who hasn't gotten over it yet," I said, grabbing my bag and storming out. I climbed into my Jeep, throwing my bag in the passenger seat. I banged my head on the steering wheel, and got a weird look from the neighbors. Who the hell would be doing yard work this early? Freaking nutcases. I glanced down at the clock and nearly had a panic attack.
"I've got five freakin' minutes to get to school," I shouted as I threw the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway.

"It's my first day and I'm already late," I muttered, running to homeroom. I ran into the class just as the tardy bell rang. Everyone else was already in their seats, so they all turned to stare.
"Ah, you must be Alayna," the teacher said.
"Yes, sir."
"I'm Mr. Hosney. Welcome to Tranquility," he said.
"Thanks," I said awkwardly.
"So, why don't you tell us a bit about yourself?" You've got to be kidding me.
"Oh, well, I'm Alayna Davis and I just moved here from Santa Cruz."
"It's nice to have you with us, Ms. Davis. So everyone be nice and make her feel welcome," Mr. Hosney said.
"Oh, I can definitely make her feel welcome," some guy shouted. The pretty brunette sitting next to him smacked him on the arm.
"God, chill out 'Kaela! I was just kidding," he said, blocking her slaps. I noticed a boy in the back of the class watching them. He looked as if he wanted to cry.
"That's enough, Mr. DeMarco. Ms. Davis, you can have a seat next to Mr. Witwicky," he said, leading me to the empty desk. I sat down and pulled out a notebook. A few minutes into Mr. Hosney's lecture, I felt like I was being watched. I glanced up and saw that brunette girl glaring at me.
"What the hell's her problem," I muttered, causing the Witwicky kid to glance at me. I smiled and was about to speak to him when the bell rang.

I slammed my hand against the locker, trying to get it to open.
"What the fu-," I started, but I was interrupted by a hand slamming into my locker, right beneath the latch. It swung open.
"I had that locker last year and I spent half the year trying to open it."
"Thanks. I was about to give up," I said.
"No problem. I'm Sam," he said.
"Alayna." The bell rang before he could say anything and I quickly grabbed my books.
"I'll see ya later, Sam."
"Bye, Alayna."