The bell rings signaling the end of fourth period making me want to dash out of the class for lunch. I love language arts and all, but since it's right before lunch, it's kinda hard to concentrate when your tummy is literally yelling at you to put food inside!

"Alright class! Don't forget to finish reading the first 10 chapters of the book" My teacher yells. I doubt anyone was listening though. Half the class has already emptied out of the room when he said that.

I walk out of the class and head to my locker to put away my text book.

"Hey Elise!"

I turn around and recognize it to be Willa. She helped me find my way to my first period this morning. She saw me running around in the hallway, and asked if I was lost and needed help. I showed her my schedule and she said I was in the wrong building. It turns out that there's a building G1 and a building G2. Weird. I know. I thanked her and made it to my class with two minutes to spare. Since the school was so huge, they gave the students seven minutes to go to their locker and then get to class.

I offer her a smile. "Hey Willa"

"Did you find your class on time?"

"Yeah" I nod. "Thanks again"

"No problem! I know how it feels to get lost in this campus. I was the new student a couple of years ago and wish I had someone to show me the way."

"Oh. Thank you." I say again as we continue to walk toward my locker.

"Yeah! Anytime." She says and speaks up again "What lunch do you have?"

"I have lunch right now so lunch A. What about you?" I ask, hoping she has the same lunch so I don't have to sit alone. But with my luck, Willa frowns and says "I have lunch B". I open my mouth to respond but she speaks up. "I have to go to class...but maybe we can hang out later?"

"Yeah! For sure." I smile, happy I actually made a friend on my first day of school.

She smiles back "Ok! Great! See you" She says running off to her class.

When I get to my locker, I unlock it and stuff my text book into it. Afterwards, I make my way to the cafeteria and get in line to get my food.

I look at the lunch menu and my eyes widen in surprise. They literally serve anything here. They even have a desert menu! I start to think that I'm secretly going to a rich private school instead a public school.

"Excuse me miss your holding up the line!" A rude voice snaps at me.

I snap out of it and look sheepishly at the lunch lady who yelled at me. "Urm....sorry ma'am." I apologize.

The lunch lady sighs. "What would you like to eat?"

"The Chicken Alfredo Pasta please" I reply.

She nods and yells to no one in particular to the people cooking in the kitchen. The lunch ladies were never this rude at my old school. They would so kind to every student. What happened at this school?

I get to the paying section and a lady with a scanner says, "ID please" also putting my pasta on the counter. I give her my ID. She scans it and gives it back to me. I take my pasta and start to find a place to eat. I scan the cafeteria, catching a few people looking at me. Probably because I'm new.

At the far end of the cafe, I see a girl sitting by herself. At the near tables around her, people are pointing and whispering at her. I frown, feeling bad for her and decide to sit with her considering we both could use a new friend.

I make my way through the cafe, passing table after table, almost to the girl but stop at hearing my name being called.

"Elise! Over here!" A voice I recognize to be James' says.

I turn my head to see him sitting with his group of friends I saw this morning. The guy I saw that I saw staring at me this morning pulls away from a small make-out session he was having with his girlfriend to acknowledge my presence. Disgusting. His other group of friends stop the conversation they were having and snap their heads at me.

"Hey James, isn't that the girl that turned you down this morning?" A guy says chuckling.

James smacks him upside the head and sends him a death glare. "It was a dare! It doesn't count that she rejected me! And it was your dare in the first place Jayce!"

I raise an eyebrow, an amused look worming it's way onto my face. A dare? That would explain the reason why I saw James' friends staring and laughing in our direction this morning. I honestly don't care if it was a dare. I'm just enjoying them smacking each other back and forth.

"Would you guys stop acting like complete goofs?" the guy that was making out with his girlfriend says.

Whoa, his voice...it's so deep.

I shake my head at the thought and start to feel a little awkward just standing there watching their exchanges so, I start walking towards to where the lonely girl was sitting. But before I even get to move two steps, James calls me back. "Elise wait! Why don't you come sit with us?"

"Um...no it's fine. Thank you though. I was actually going to sit with that girl over there" I say pointing in the direction of the girl. They all give each other knowing looks however.

"I don't think that's a good idea" James says.

I sit down at the table and furrow my eyebrows. "Why?"

"It's because you won't be able to have an actual conversation with her" he answers.

From the corner of my eye I can see the guy that I don't know the name of observing me. I can tell his girlfriend's a little unhappy by it because of a glare she shoots at him. I ignore his stare and focus on the topic at hand.

"That still doesn't explain the reason why it's a bad idea James" I say, my eyebrows still furrowed.

"What he's trying to say is that she's mute" the guy with the girlfriend says. I look at him shocked. This is only the second time I heard him speak. He sees my shocked expression and smirks. "The names Daniel" he says catching onto my also confused state. I nod and get back to the subject we were just talking about. "How do you know she's mute?"

James just gives me an incredulous look. "She never speaks and she has someone translating for her in her classes. I've also heard that she's really weird too". Jayce nods in agreement.

I scrunch up my face at hearing that. How could they assume she's weird? I shake my head in disappointment. I didn't know they would be these kinds of people. "Are you guys just assuming she's weird because of 'rumors' you heard?"

He nods. "Basically. My 'resources' are pretty accurate"

I stand up getting a little agitated with him right now. He has no right to judge someone like that. No one has be right to do that. I should know. One of my former best friends went through that.

"Where you going?" James and Jayce asks at the same time.

"Have a conversation with that girl" I bluntly say. Including Daniel, they give me questioning looks.

"But you won't be able to understand her. She communicates with sign language" James speaks up.

"How do you know I won't be able to understand her?" sending them a smirk before heading towards her table.

When I get there, the girl looks up at me."Is it ok if I sit here?" I sign with my hands.

Her eyes widen in shock and slowly nods. When she finally comprehends that I know sign language, she signs "How do you know sign language?"

I shrug. "I was always interested in it when I was younger and taught myself through online classes."

She just nods and looks down.

My eyes flicker to her neckless that's around her neck. It has an infinity sign that has a chain extending down from it with a hand saying 'I love you' in sign language. Then I remember somewhere I read or saw online that when someone has a tattoo or a necklace of the hand, it means that their deaf (not mute). But then again, some people could have that sign because they just like it.

Since she knows sign language though, I'm assuming that's not the case. So when I get her attention, I sign ask her, "You're not 'mute' are you?" 

She reads my hands. "No...how do you know? Most people just assume me to be mute"

"Your necklace" I sign pointing to her neck.

She looks down at her necklace and nods.

"Why don't you tell people that you're deaf and not mute?" I sign tilting my head.

She just shrugs.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to" I sign.

She contemplates for a while but decides to tell me. "It's because even though I can't physically hear them, I still know that people laugh and make fun of me because they think I'm 'mute'.  I also see them doing it. So, if they find out I'm actually deaf, I'm scared they might do more than just laugh and make fun of me."

I almost didn't catch everything she signed because she went so fast. But I caught enough to understand what she was saying.

I nod in understanding. "Maybe if you give them a chance, some of them won't do what you're afraid of them doing." Then I get an idea. What if I introduce her to Daniel, James, and Jayce? I know they think she's weird because of their 'sources' but maybe once they see that she isn't, they would want to become friends with her (and maybe Willa). "Do you maybe want to come with me to lunch tomorrow and sit over there with them?" I sign, pointing in the direction of their table.

Her eyes widen to where I'm pointing. "You know them?" she signs.

"Sort of... I just met them actually but they're nice! So don't worry they won't do anything to you! I'll make sure of it!"

"I don't know..." She signs, trailing off.

"Come on! Just one lunch and if you don't like it, then you don't have to sit with them again"

Hesitantly, she signs, "Ok...but just for one lunch!"

"Yay!" I sign, smiling. "I'm Elise by the way" realizing that I didn't introduce myself to her.

"I'm Violet" she signs back smiling.

A/N: Hey!

Hope you're enjoying the book so far! I tried to have diversity into the kind of friends Elise makes. For instance just like Violet because she's hearing impaired and has to communicate using sign language. Anyway hope you enjoy whats to come later on!

-Gia