My body shook as I was not expecting to be scared out of my wits. I look up to a blonde with straight hair cut just bellow her shoulder blades and her bangs cut to where they framed her face. She had a weave of flowers in her hair which gave her a sort of hippie, free spirited look. She wore jeans and a vintage Aerosmith tee and worn out Toms.

"It’s only the first day and Mrs. Thompson is already busting my balls," she said, her face turning red, "how am I supposed to be the next Gloria Steinem or Arianna Huffington? How am I supposed to win a Pulitzer if they keep stifling my creativity and my first amendment right?!"

"Hey Al, chill, it’s the school newspaper. A high school paper. You’ll have the freedom to write whatever you want in college and then when you get a job at the L.A.Weekly er New York Times er whatever."

"Ugh, my future starts now," she exclaimed looking from Shane to Carmen and then stopping at me, finally noticing my presence, "who are you?"

"Al, this is Tina Kennard, I met her this morning in homeroom, where you were supposed to be."

"Tina..Kennard, eh," she said, lifting her sunglasses revealing her brown eyes, "I’m Alice, where are you from?"

"Alexandria, Virginia."

"How long have you been in L.A.?"

"Just a couple of weeks."

"How old are you?"

"I just turned seventeen."

"Alright Alice, enough with the questions," Carmen said, and I bit into my pizza, "Alice is such a gossipy bitch and she can’t help her questions."

"I really can’t, it’s the journalist in me," Alice said shrugging, "so, TK, how do you like Los Angeles so far?"

"TK," I asked and she smiled as she bit into her sandwich, "It’s nice, the weather’s great."

"Good, perhaps you’ll go swimming with us," she said looking to Shane, "Bette’s place?"

"I sent a text to both Kit and Bette. So maybe, I’ll let you know."

We went on with the rest of lunch, gossiping about the girls in school and discussing what we did over summer break. Shane spent her summer surfing and skating, while Carmen tanned and hung out with her family. Alice spent the summer with her mother, on movie sets. Her mother was a small time actress who did some independent films and had minor rolls on tv. Whereas I spent the summer with my friends, before I had to leave. My friend Helena was the only one who would text and call everyday.