2 Chapter 1

Each morning was a challenge to get on time for school for me.

My alarm went off, and I got out of bed too late. Rushing to my closed to grab a few casual clothes. I didn't care much about what I was wearing anyway. The next stop would be the bathroom. To start there with brushing the knots out of my blond frizzy hair as fast as I could. Having just enough time before I went into the shower to make my hair wet and braid it.

The war water left a feeling of being clean and it made me feel better. Coming out of the shower I went to the mirror. I felt direclty ugly and uncomfortable. My hair was still a mess and my eyes were red. I hoped it would go away when I was in school. My hair was even worse with the braids in it. Still, I had to get them out when I arrived at school if I had time, of course.

Then I checked my room fast to see if I hadn't forgotten anything. This morning I almost forgot my phone. I grabbed it quickly out of the corner of my room where it was charging. On the chair at my desk, I grabbed my bag and quickly put my phone in the tiny pocket at the front of my bag.

I had to hurry because today we had Religion from Mrs. Dom. She was my worst nightmare just underneath Ellen. Ellen was my worst bully and the person who made me feel ugly and made my life hell. Mrs. Dom was the one person you didn't want to come too late to class with or detention would hang in the air, so I better didn't mess that up.

Yesterday, I was almost too late for Mr. Janssen's class because Ellen had the good idea to bump into me and let me fall fell. I even had to go to first aid in school. I was glad that Mr. Janssen understood. Even when I left the part out were Ellen let me fall. He knew I was lying to him, but he knew the situation and left it like that.

My knees still hurt because of Ellen's harsness. Luckily, I got long pants in my wardrobe to hide the two blue bruises on my knees for my mom. I just didn't want to worry her.

As fast as I could, I tried to run down the stairs. I almost got no control over my knees, so I couldn't go as fast as usual. I already felt happy when I came downstairs without broken knees.

Coming into the kitchen, my mom looked away from her phone and she frowned. Then she made a worried face and said, "Good morning to you too, you better hurry because otherwise you will come late for school." She knew what would happen if I was too late, Mrs. Dom her class. It would probably mean that I would get detention till almost seven.

'Why didn't you call me an extra time? I hope Mrs. Dom will understand if I am too late, but probably not', I said, irritated.

She laughed sarcastically and tried to hide her worry for me.

"Tiene you have to teach yourself to wake up on time. You know what the consequences or when you come too late. Still hurry, maybe you will make it in time!"

I made an angry face at my mom and quickly took my lunch from the kitchen counter when my mom put it there.

Normally, if I had time, I looked at what she made for lunch, but I didn't have time for that. So, I just shoff it down fast into my bag.

I ran around the kitchen Island and gave my mom a fast hug to apologize for my anger. Still, it felt strange to do it because normally I never did that. My mom gave me a strange look, and she even frowned. When she did that, she looked older and ugly. In fact, I didn't like it when she did that.

'You never hug me.' My mom said. She saw I felt uncomfortable and changed the subject.

'Oh, I almost forgot I will work till late because of the building project.

'I will see you in the evening. Don't worry mom, I will not forget. I have to go now, or I will be too late for sure.'

Before I left the kitchen I said to my mom, "don't frown so much it makes you old." Shy I ran into the garage to get my bike before she could said something about my reaction.

I sighed. Lately, I have always had to go by bike because my parents were so caught up in their work. They didn't have time to take me and that's why I was most of the time late at school.

I put my airports in my ears and put my music on.

When I went outside with my bike it was still dark. I was so sleepy that it didn't even come to my mind. All of a sudden, I woke up and quickly got back inside to put on the light on the outside of the door. I was just so scared in the dark that I biked past the streets with no light in them. Even when I was in a hurry, because then I had to bike ten minutes more, when the sun was up again in the morning, I would take the shorter route again, but now there was no way I would do that.

On my way to River College I was in such a hurry that I didn't see a biker coming from behind me...