Prologue 1: The Beginning
Ten years ago.
Maya woke up that morning feeling nervous, with butterflies in her stomach. Today was her first day at the new school; Roosevelt High School, and she couldn't stop thinking about all the things that could happen. She was a shy introvert, and it had taken almost a year to make friends at her previous school. Now, she was sure it would be worse.
Anxious, she got out of bed and started getting ready. She carefully chose her outfit: a plain white t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. They didn't wear uniforms at this school, but she wished they had a standard outfit, so no one would be bullied for their clothing style. She wanted to feel comfortable and confident, but without drawing too much attention. If she could choose, she would study at home; she didn't like being among so many people, nor did she like boys. She just wanted to be buried in her books and nothing else, but unfortunately, she couldn't.
She got ready and had breakfast even though she had no appetite, as she tried to convince her mother that homeschooling would be better, but without success.
On the way to school, accompanied by her mother, Maya looked out the car window, trying to calm herself. Her mother, noticing her daughter's anxiety, tried to reassure her.
"Everything will be fine, Maya. Remember that you are an amazing girl and will make many new friends. Watch out for the boys with charming smiles, they are always dangerous and only want one thing."
Sex, Maya knew. In fact, she knew it by heart, having heard it so many times. Her mother's talks about s*x made her avoid boys, and she was afraid of getting pregnant. At fifteen, she had never kissed anyone, although she was curious, but also scared.
When they arrived at school, Maya took a deep breath before getting out of the car. Roosevelt High School was a large red brick building with many windows and a well-kept lawn in front. Students walked in groups, talking and laughing, as they headed to their classrooms. She held onto the strap of her backpack as she got out of the car. She wasn't good at making new friends or fitting in.
While most young people talked about s*x, parties, and drugs, she only had her routine to share; from school to home, or from school to the Pentecostal church her mother attended.
She walked silently towards her classroom, holding a small map her mother got when she enrolled her, she just needed to follow it.
As soon as she entered the school, premises, the sound of the bell echoed through the corridors, announcing the start of classes. She checked her class schedule and headed to her first period: English. The classroom was full of students, and everyone seemed to already know each other. Maya felt a bit out of place but found an empty seat at the back of the room where she sat down, hoping she could at least keep to herself and avoid being targeted by the cheerleaders, which had been one of the reasons her mother transferred her to a new school.
She had been beaten up by one of the cheerleaders at her last school, all because of some i***t boy who asked her to a dance. Maya had declined his invitation, but his girlfriend was still angry that he even spoke to her in the first place, so she teamed up with the other girls to beat her up. She got four stitches on her face and was scared to go back to school after that time. Now she would avoid any boy, not that she was interested in dating, she wasn't. She just wanted to finish high school and take a course that would allow her to be an assistant in a children's school. She didn't think she was cut out to be a teacher; she didn't consider herself very intelligent or anything like that; she always had to put in a lot of effort to pass all the subjects. She was content to work in a school, get married, and be happy. She would be delighted to own a house with a white picket fence, with a pool and a small porch for the afternoons. That's all she wanted, not some jerk of a football player who slept with every girl at school.