❝OVERSHADOWED SISTER ( twilight. )

❪3❫ ⋆₊˚. ᎒ never a priority

❝I WISH THEY WOULD ONLY TAKE ME AS I AM.❞

- Vincent van Gogh

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▍◦◦°.✽ DANI HAUGHTILY HELD THE OPINION THAT SCHOOL was unbelievably boring. Mostly because (being a gifted student) everything was way too easy; she was never challenged and therefore quickly lost interest. It never actually mattered if she paid attention in class, either way, she maintained her good grades. The subject where Dani didn't find herself fighting off sleep was physical education or P.E. for short. P.E. and lunch were the only times during her entire school day when she was actually enjoying herself. She'd always loved being active, and lunch was the only time she got to be with all of her friends at once; starting a new school had abruptly put an end to that though.

She'd never transferred schools before, other than transitioning from elementary school to middle school; her middle school and high school were in adjacent buildings. This was certainly going to be a very different experience and Dani wasn't sure how she'd handle it on her own.

Bella would be no help. Dani could never count on her. The last time she had was when she first skipped grades all those years ago. 

At the time Bella was about ten or eleven years old. Back then, she and Bella were just normal sisters, they had times when they got along great and other times when they argued nonstop or got into physical altercations. Still, Dani remembered being so excited to be in the same class as her big sister. To a six/seven year old fifth graders were huge! Plus it was also years before her growth spurt so Dani was still fairly small at that age—small and new, which made her the perfect target. 

The bullying started that very same day during recess. By now her memory was hazy since it was so long ago, but one thing she vividly remembered was all the crying she'd done. Crying and desperately looking around for Bella to help. She recalled seeing the conflicted look on her sister's face as if Bella was trying to figure out what to do and then... nothing; Bella just walked away.

She never stood up for Dani back then, not once during the entire time she got picked on. Bella didn't speak to her or acknowledge her presence. She was just so timid and awkward, she didn't know how to do anything.

Bella's inaction during that tense period of Dani's early life was the main reason why their relationship was so strained now. After that, Dani just didn't like Bella anymore and came to the realization that she had to start sticking up for herself. Then Bella's role as an "older sister" was quickly taken over by Serena and well, the rest is history.

High school had to be some massive bullshit social experiment. At least back in Arizona, Dani could face the absurdity with her friends; Serena and the girls on her volleyball team. Dani was even acquainted with a few people from other cliques—mainly the skaters and art geeks, having them around made high school so manageable. 

But Dani wasn't in Arizona anymore, and as much as she loved the fact that she was living with Charlie and had reunited with Jacob—which meant she would be seeing a lot more of him—it didn't change the fact that she was starting a new school, basically alone as the youngest in her grade again. 

She had no friends or allies to make her feel more secure, no reputation, no popularity (not that she had much of that before), and this was a small, close-knit town... Dani was preparing for the worst.