Derek had failed Algebra II already, so he was a senior in a class of juniors. You would think, with the type of job he had, he did it on purpose – but, no...he just really sucked at math. Kara's chestnut colored hair fell in waves down around her round face. She was tipped over her notebook doodling. Derek immediately noticed she looked sad. He plopped down in the desk next to her. The September sun streamed in through the row of windows lining the classroom. No matter how many years Derek spent in high school, he kept growing bigger and the desks stayed the same size. He glanced at her notebook. The doodles were of black-inked flowers with thick leaves. She was good. Derek wondered if she was in art class. The classroom continued to fill with chatty students. The first day was always loud with ‘hello’s’ and ‘how are you’s.’ A few people threw a ‘hey’ Derek's way, but no one seemed to even notice the chestnut-haired girl next to him. He stole another glance her way, and she still continued to draw.
