REALLY ✓

1: The New Era

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KAUAI, HAWAII

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        TAYA's POV:

Question: "What's your story? What are your greatest accomplishments? What are your aspirations for the future?"

Your answer:

None. Sorry College App, I had absolutely no stories to tell you.

For the past two and a half months, I had been staring at the same set of questions. I had all summer to start writing my college essay, and so far the total word count was zero point pathetic.

All my life I lived by the rules: I obeyed authorities, I colored inside the lines, and I never got into trouble. So when it was time for me to think for myself and decide what I want to be, I hadn't got a clue. My whole existence had been reduced to nothing but a blank white page.

There was an episode on Friends where Rachel said, "all my life, everyone's told me, 'You're a shoe! You're a shoe!' Well what if I don't want to be a shoe? What if I want to be a purse or a hat?"

At least she knew she didn't want to be a shoe. I wished I knew that much.

This entire summer, I was debating myself on the way I had been living my life. I realized now that I had never done anything remotely crazy or brave in my seventeen years of existence. Playing it safe all these years had got me nowhere.

So on the last day of summer break, fueled by my desperate need for a breakthrough, I decided to dye my hair bright platinum blonde. It was supposed to be a metaphor, signaling the birth of the new and improved Taya Leigh Williams.

It was weird seeing my own reflection in the mirror for the first time. The old Taya would freak out and get super insecure, but not the new Taya. Taya 2.0 would be fierce and always down to try new things.

Plus, I didn't look that bad. I might actually pull it off—

"Taya Leigh Williams! What in the world happened to your hair?" mom's high-pitched voice pulled me out of my daydreaming.

She was standing outside my bedroom door, with a pie on her hand, and her mouth on the floor.

"Mom, relax. I just bleached them a little,"

She stepped closer and began assessing my hair more carefully.

"You had beautiful brown hair and now it's all... white. Like old people white,"

"It's called platinum blonde,"

"What did you do that for?"

"Well tomorrow's the first day back to school. I just feel like it's time for a little change..."

My whole high school career had been somewhat... bland. Zero love life, no dramas, and no fights. That sounded peaceful, yes, but also very boring.

Sure, the old Taya's play-it-safe policy was a big reason behind the lack of excitement in my high school days. But there was something else. The reason why my love life was drier than the Sub-Saharan desert was this: Ryder Jake Williams.

To the world, Ryder was RJ— the talented young surfer who was one of the most popular guys at school. But to me he was just Ry; my annoying older cousin.