Enchanted By: Mariah Soleta

Chapter 1- Alex

   Snowy Hills, Minnesota.  It's a small town where the population is less than 900 and where people over 50 sit on their rickity old porch swings watching kids play football and baseball in the streets.  Yeah, you heard me right, the streets.  The town consists of an elementary school, a high school, a bar, a community center linked to the police department, a gas station, a cafe, and a ball field with a city park.  Pretty small right?  I know.  But I feel more content living in a small town rather than a big city because I've been raised here my whole life.   The bar is outside the city limits so really no adults from town go there because it's more like a club for teens than a bar for adults.  I've never been there and I don't really plan to go there anytime soon.  I call it a teen club for a reason.  Ian Lefolt is a student in my class and he's the school's top jock and bully.  So basically, he gets everything he wants without having to ask twice.  His parents own the bar and I heard that he actually threatented them until they gave him the bar.  Crazy right?  Well his dad is also the mayor so he tells the police not to arrest his son for underage alcohol consumption and selling.  This town is super crazy.

   Anyways it's like a club you'd find in all the big cities.  Strobe lights, Dj playing techno annd modern pop songs, and tons of grinding teenagers drinking alcohol and getting drunk.  The only reason I know about this place is because my sister, Ashley, goes there every weekend and hooks up with every other guy.  After that she tells me details that I don't want to learn at all.  But I don't blame any guy for hooking up with my sister.  She has long tan legs with glossy black hair and green eyes.  She's the head cheerleader and she has a ton of friends.  Me on the other hand?  I'm pretty much a loner with no friends.  I have pale skin that never seems to tan.  I have the bluest eyes and I have golden blonde hair that waves down to the middle of my back.  I have curves but I'm too ashamed to admit that I'm beautiful because I was bullied all throughout elementary school and I would cry myself to sleep each night I had nothing to look forward to the next day except Adam Blackwell.

   Adam was my best friend all throughout my life until he left in seventh grade.  He was the only one I could talk to about everything.  How insecure I felt about my body and how beautiful my sister was.  I remember that towards the end of sixth grade it got worse so I started crying more and more when I went over there so he would hug me and try to comfort me.  He would tell me I'm beautiful and that he preferred me over my sister.  I'd always laughed at that.  When he left, it felt like a piece of my heart was ripped out of my chest.  I had no one to talk to and I lay awake at night thinking about his warm chocolate brown eyes and his black as midnight hair.  I'd always wondered if he ever missed me because I sure missed him.

   Anyways, my parents noticed how I would sulk around so they made me meet up with a girl around my age.  Her name was Elizabeth Blackwell and she was apparently Adam's cousin.  We talked about a ton of things and she actually took my mind off of Adam for a while.  We started hanging out more and more after that.  We would talk about bullies, school, and a ton of things in our personal lives.  I met her four years ago, just a month after Adam left.  Speaking of school, it's starting tomorrow so I might as well go shopping today with Lizzie. 

   I got up off of my bed and went to my bathroom to start my shower.  As I was waiting for it to warm up a bit, I called Lizzie to let her know what I was doing and ask her if she wanted to come with me.

   It rang three times and Lizzie answered, " Hello?"

   " Hey Lizzie," I answered, " do you want to come last-minute school shopping with me?"

   She practically yelled in my ear, " Hell yeah I do!  When are you leaving?"

   I hesitated, thinking about it, " Umm how about 4:00?  I'll pick you up in an hour.  Okay?"