My mind flashes back to this morning when I frantically tore my bedroom apart in search for my missing diary. Where was it? I looked under my twin-size bed, on my messy desk filled with unfinished assignments due next week, and in my dresser where I usually hid it from my family. No luck. My diary was everything to me. If it fell into the wrong hands, then my life would literally be over.
     “TESSA, are you paying attention?” Mrs. B snapped diverting my attention to her as she walked down the rows of wooden desks to make sure everyone was staying on task. I immediately sat up and looked at the dusty old chalkboard in the front of the classroom for the question she asked me. Darn! It wasn’t there! This must be one of her “questions she asks to see who is paying attention.” At this moment, I regretted sitting in the front of the classroom, because I was always in her line of sight. Usually, my best friend, Amanda, sits next to me, but today she was out sick. Besides talking to Amanda, I prefer sitting in the background writing in my diary. Now, since my diary has disappeared, I don’t know what to do with myself.
     “Sorry Mrs. B, but what was the question?” I asked hesitantly in a really small voice. I don’t like all of the attention I am getting from my classmates. Everyone’s eyes are on me. Are
they waiting to see what I say next? Or are they pitying me for getting cold called? Or are they judging me? Maybe I shouldn’t have worn blue high waisted jeans, a brown belt, a white button down plaid shirt, and a black denim jacket today.
     “If you were paying attention, you would have heard the question! Oh well. Participation points deducted for the day,” Mrs. B said nastily. Mrs. B is one of the worst teachers at Abilene Public High School in Kansas. She is really tall, her mouth is always arranged in a straight thin line, and her white hair is up in this freaky bun, like she is a ballet teacher. She is always wearing a long red skirt and a white button down shirt tucked in. She is probably the oldest teacher in school, but the most powerful. You do not want to get on her bad side.
     This comment really irritated me because I care a lot about my grade, and I never do anything wrong. It’s not like many people would notice if I did.
     Everywhere I go, I used to keep my old purple moleskine diary with me. It has a very simplistic cover with a singular yellow tulip on the front. I wrote my name, Tessa Hope, on the bottom right corner, so no one could ever mistake it for theirs. I have no idea how it vanished into thin air, because it is never out of my sight. My best guess is someone took it when I turned my head the other way. I have no idea why anyone would take it. No one really notices me.
     My family doesn’t even pay attention to me. It’s all about Reece, my brother. He is in 8th grade, constantly plays baseball, and every other weekend I attend some tournament for him. It’s not like my parents don’t try though. They love me so much, but I always feel like there is something off. To show they care, they enrolled me in dance classes when I was younger, but dance just wasn’t my thing. I don’t understand how ballerinas can stand on their toes for hours and do so many turns without getting dizzy.
     DING! The bell rings signaling the end of first period. I slowly stand up from my creaky desk and reluctantly push in my blue chair. I grabbed my pencil, and placed my ginormous American History textbook, my notebook and folder into a pile, as everyone made their way to the front of the classroom and filed out the door. As I picked up my belongings, I couldn’t help but notice a small piece of notebook paper on the ground by my desk. Someone must have dropped it on their way out. When I bent down to pick it up, I saw my name hastily written on it. Weird.
     “Tessa, what are you still doing in here?” Mrs. B barked. Because I was so caught up in the note, I forgot I was still standing in her classroom.
     “Sorry, I’m leaving now!” 
     I zoomed out of the classroom and ran down the hallway to my locker. I weaved in and out of people and kept my head down. All I wanted to do was open the note, but I wanted to read it in private. No one needed to see my reaction, especially if it was prank note. When I arrived at my orange locker, I quickly undid the lock (7-8-10), jammed my textbook in and grabbed Jane Eyre for my next class. Then, I took off sprinting to the library on the second floor. For once, my mind was taken off of my missing diary.
     SLAM! Because I wasn’t paying attention to where I was running, I crashed into this tall guy who came out of nowhere. I was knocked off my feet, hurtled backwards towards the ground, and my books and papers were launched into the air and flew everywhere. It was really embarrassing.
     The next thing I heard was, “Are you ok? Sorry for running into you!” He sounded genuinely sorry and pretty shaken up. I was pretty surprised he stayed to make sure I was okay. Usually, when I make a fool of myself everyone turns the other way and continues walking. I felt pretty happy this guy stayed to talk to me!
     I quickly sat up because I didn’t like looking helpless sprawled out on the ground. “Oh, um, I wasn’t paying attention either. I’m quite clumsy.”
     He reached out his hand to help me up. His hand felt warm, and my stomach exploded with butterflies just thinking about him. He was seriously cute. He had floppy brown hair, bright green eyes, and was relativity tall. He was wearing leather parachute pants, a white t-shirt and high top sneakers.
     “That makes two of us! I swear because I like rock climbing people think I am nimble, but half of the time I am tripping over my own two feet. Anyways, why are you in such a hurry? Class doesn’t start for a least five more minutes.” My heart was quickly beating in my chest and my palms were starting to sweat. He was still talking to me!
     “Oh, I was uh.. going to the library to um.. check out a book for my next class.” What are you doing down here?” I rushed out.
     We were down in freshman hall, which both smelled and looked gross. Freshman hall was in the downstairs corner of our small school where no one usually went unless they were a freshman. (It brings back horrible memories from two years ago.) The white floor tiles were caked with grime, the orange lockers stretched from the ceiling to the ground, and the brick walls were bare. It was not a tourist attraction that’s for sure. Unfortunately, it is the fastest route to the library, so I had no other choice but to come down here.
     “Oh, cool. Which class?” I noticed he didn’t answer my question.
     “English, we are reading Jane Eyre, which is super boring if you ask me,” I responded.
     “Yeah, it looks boring. I am reading that next year. Instead I am forced to read Frankenstein, which awful.”
     “Yeah, I remember that from sophomore year. It was creepy.”
     “It is! Well, I have to run, see ya later?”
     “Ok see ya.” I turned to leave, then remembered I never asked him his name.
     “Wait! What is your name?” I yelled as I turned back around. I probably looked stupid, but I wanted to know who he was.
     “James. You?” he called out.
     “Tessa!”
     “Bye!”
     He waved, turned around, and ran off. I couldn’t believe I actually had a conversation with a cute guy! I was kind of surprised I didn’t know him because this is a small school. I guess he is a year younger than me, and I don’t interact with sophomores, so it makes sense. I reached down for my diary, so I could write about this experience, but then I remembered it was gone. The pain hit me harder this time, and I was furious I forgot about my best friend! This caused me to remember the mysterious note. I desperately wanted to open it to see what it was about. I quickly looked around and saw no one else in the hall except a few very frustrated
freshmen kicking their lockers because they wouldn’t open. I decided I didn’t have time to go to the library, so I sat down where I previously fell and opened the note.
 
Dear Tessa Hope,

     Yes, you are probably wondering why I am writing to you. You don’t know me, (I think) but I           know you, sort of. I have been watching you. Not in a creepy pervert way. Man, that sounds wrong. I would just start over, but this is my only paper, and I wrote in pen like a total idiot. Anyways, you are in a few of my classes, and while you think no one notices you, I do, in a completely cool way of course. (What is wrong with me?) I know who has your diary. So, if you trust me and want your diary back, please write me a note and drop it in locker 677 (sophomore hall). If you think I am a pervert (completely valid), then just ignore this and throw it away. I hope we can work together, so I can actually get to know you.
                                                    Your friend (definitely not a pervert),
                                                                                                              JTM
 
     JTM? Who is that? What did he mean by “he was watching me?” This note left me more confused than ever. Why would some random guy (I’m pretty sure it is a guy) write me something like this? Did I actually have a secret admirer? I couldn’t think about this letter too long though, because the bell rang signaling the start of 2nd period.
     I full out booked it to class and decided I would write my response to the mysterious letter during English.

     English dragged on forever. Usually, I like this class because I love reading, but today I just couldn’t handle it. Mr. Brown was droning on about Jane Eyre, and I could only think about JTM. Could I trust him? His note did sound creepy at first, but after rereading it, I think he means well. Why else would he write me a note? Amanda would know just what to do in this situation. She always has the answer to my problems. Unfortunately, I have to figure it out on my own this time.
     I glanced around the classroom to make sure no one was watching me, and I quickly tore a piece of paper out of my notebook. I carefully folded it into a little square, and I began to write my message:
 
Dear JTM,

     I guess I trust you enough to get my diary back, even though I have no clue who you are. What’s the plan?          

                                                                                                                         TBH

     After I finished writing my note, I couldn’t sit still. I desperately wanted class to be over, so I could send JTM my note. Speaking of JTM, who is he? He definitely seems mysterious and maybe into me? Is he someone I know? Not likely. Even the school is small, I barley know anyone because I have a hard time talking to people. I bet he is a sophomore because he mentioned his locker was in sophomore hall. Maybe I will get to met him after this boring class. I wish I could talk to Amanda about JTM. She probably knows who he is because she has a younger brother who is a sophomore.
     I glanced at the clock, and saw we still had 30 more minutes of class! Ugh. I tried to pay attention to the lecture, but I kept thinking about my diary. Now I know someone at school has it, instead of my brother. I almost wish Reece had it instead, because I don’t want the whole school to know my secrets. On the other hand, Reece and I aren’t every close. I don’t want him to know what is in there either. If he found out my secret, he would tell my parents, and then my life would be over. The less my parents know, the better. I don’t hate my family, I just feel like an outsider. I wish I could fit in and enjoy the same things, but I just can’t. I don’t like football, or baseball, or sports in general. I don’t like the same foods, and I even look different. I never do what my parents want me to do, and deep down I feel like I should be part of another family.
     DING! The bell rang startling me out of my thoughts. I bolted from my English classroom all the way up to sophomore hall. I wanted to find JTM’s locker before I could change my mind. 612…646…671…Bingo! 677. He had a top locker, so I stood on my toes in order to slide my note into the slit of his locker. Done. I slowly dragged my feet around the corner and down the stairs to my locker (435) dreading my next class. I hated science because physics made no sense to me. Who cares how fast a toy car can slide down a ramp? I didn’t have much time to dwell about how much I hated science because as soon as I opened my locker another note fell out! How did he know where my locker was, and how did he have time to respond to the first note? It was kind of creepy. I opened the note and read it as fast I could. The note said:
 
Dear Tessa Hope,

      Meet me outside by the cowboy statue if you are in. This will work.
                                                                                                              JTM
     What was that supposed to mean? Did this potential pervert think I was okay skipping class to meet up with him to discuss a plan? I already regretted my decision to agree to his plan, but I needed my diary back. If anyone found out what I wrote and researched, I would be in huge trouble. I would be even more of an outsider.
     I pondered over his note for a little bit as I grabbed my textbook, notebook and calculator for physics. I thought about what my teacher would say if I didn’t show up for class, if he noticed. It wouldn’t be pretty, but I could survive with one detention. My diary was more important. I slammed my locker door shut in anger. Suddenly, the events of the day caused my mind to explode. I needed to find my diary, meet this JTM person, skip class, and make sure no one had read my secret or else I was done for. I started freaking out running all of the possible scenarios through my head. What if, I was caught and my diary was confiscated? Or what if, JTM turned out to be a pervert and wanted the diary for himself? Or what if, whoever stole my
diary spread my secret to the entire school? I was in full panic mode now. However, there wasn’t much time to dwell on these thoughts. I took a deep breath and started walking to help clear my mind. I wished Amanda was here, because she would give me reassurance that everything would be okay, but I guess I just have to get through it myself.
     These scenarios played on repeat in my head as I walked out to the cowboy statue. I walked through senior hall in order to get to the back door of the school. I felt like crying, but I knew I would get stared at if someone saw the tears sliding down my face. I looked up as I turned the corner into yet another bland hallway, and I saw something suspicious. I saw a group of five or six rambunctious sophomore guys heading with confidence in the direction of the quad. These guys weren’t like me. They wanted to be noticed and were very outspoken. I had seen their pictures in the school newspaper a few times for winning speech and debate tournaments. They were definitely out of place, appeared to be up to no good, kept looking over their shoulders to make sure they weren’t followed, and fiercely whispered about something. My panic turned to confusion. Why would these guys go outside right before class started unless they were up to no good? I made a split second decision to follow them. They were going in the same direction I was anyways.
     I kept my head down and tried to blend in. I started walking softly trying not to draw any unwanted attention to myself. I doubted they would notice me, because they don’t know I exist. I guess there is a plus side to being a quiet reserved introvert. Only once they turned back to see if anyone was following them, but since there were still people hanging around, I just stopped at a locker and pretended to open it.
     After what seemed like hours, they finally existed the building out the back door and proceeded to walk past the picnic tables towards the russet statue of a cowboy (our school’s
mascot) in the middle of the quad. This statue stood about 10 ft high, was the pride and joy of my high school, and depicted a cowboy riding a horse waving his lasso in the air. In my opinion, this statue was pointless and only took up space. It wasn’t cool, and honestly it looked like it should be in an history museum. I have to say it was fitting for this ridiculously small town though. Surrounding the statue was a grassy field where kids loved to play soccer.
     Why were these guys headed in the same direction as I was? Maybe JTM was one of those boys, but it didn’t seem likely. As they approached the huge statue, I ran around to the other side to eavesdrop and hopefully meet up with JTM. Unfortunately, I didn’t see anyone else around. This slightly disappointed me because I really wanted to get my diary back.
     “Yo, Eric, do you see him anywhere?” one of guys called. He had shaggy blond hair, chocolate eyes, and was wearing a blue t-shirt with cuffed jeans, matched with checkered black and white vans. He had on aviator sunglasses to block out the blazing sun.
     “No,” the dude with curly black hair replied. He was wearing a grey aviator jacket, matched with a white shirt and rolled up jeans. He had to be Eric.
     “Well, where is he? I told him to meet me out here cause I have something important to give him!” The dude with aviator sun glasses said exasperated. I figured he must be the most outspoken.
     “Tim, chill out. He’ll come. You saw the way he looked when you stole it. He’d be an idiot not to come,” commented another guy with slicked back brown hair. He was wearing an orange letter jacket with brown pants. I was starting to like these guys less and less.
     “If you say so, Marcus,” Tim responded. I hoped whoever was supposed to show up would soon, because I was getting impatient. Where was JTM?
     “Trust me, he will,” Marcus said.
     No more words were spoken because we were waiting in anticipation for this “said” guy to arrive. The only thing which disturbed the silence was the bell ringing signaling the start of physics. I wished JTM was here, because I needed my diary. Thankfully, only after a couple of minutes, I saw a guy running towards the statue. From this far away I couldn’t tell who he was, but he looked terrified.
     “Sorry I’m late!” he said in a familiar voice huffing and puffing. His back was facing me, so I couldn’t get a good look at his face.
     “Dude! We’ve been waiting out here for at least 10 minutes! What took you so long?” Tim snapped.
     “Uh…nothing. I just…was looking for some…thing,” he stuttered. This was definitely a lie. His voice sounded so familiar though…
     “Sure. Whatever.” Eric said in a suspicious voice. Apparently, he didn’t buy the guy’s lie either.
     Changing the subject the mysterious dude asked, “Anyways, why do you want me here?”  He wasn’t fully paying attention because he kept looking around for someone.
    “As you know, I have it, and you better read it out loud. I want to know what it says,” Tim demanded while thrusting something purple at the intriguing dude.
     I gasped, and my heart dropped in my chest. I felt paralyzed. Did he just say read? The dots started connecting in my head, but I refused to believe the truth.
     “No. I won’t read it.”
     “Yes, you will.”
     “No, I won’t, Tim!”
     “YES YOU WILL, JAMES!” Tim shouted. James? As in, the James I bumped into earlier today?
     “NO! I won’t read Tessa’s diary! It isn’t my story to tell!” My heart dropped even farther into my chest. My face was turning pale, my hands were clamming up, and my knees started wobbling. These boys had stolen my diary and wanted James to read it! Why?
     “Aren’t you at least a tiny bit curious to see what she is constantly writing about in that thing?” Wow, people were curious about me? I didn’t think anyone noticed me!
     “Of course, but that doesn’t mean I start stealing people’s stuff!”
     Thank god James was refusing to read it. I begged and prayed with every part of my soul James wouldn’t read it. I didn’t want anyone, not even my family, to know what I had written in there.
     “It’s not stealing! It’s borrowing! Anyways, I doubt she cares that much. If I was writing in this diary, didn’t speak at all, and never participated in any activity, wouldn’t you want to know more about me? Shouldn’t this be the same with the girl you like?” My heart froze in my chest. James liked me? But why? I don’t speak very often, and I am definitely not pretty. Before my mind could wander too far, I quickly shut the thought down. I didn’t need to think about my sad love life right now.
     “NO! I would just ask her to see it. But, I guess I am a little bit curious.” James snapped.
It looked like James was going to crack. I couldn’t stand it anymore. I had to do something. I couldn’t let them read my personal secrets.
     “STOP!” I shouted jumping out from behind the foot of the cowboy statue. I was surprised I had the courage to speak up because usually in a situation like this I keep quiet.
     “Where the heck did you come from?” Tim asked very confused. Seeing him up close made my confidence waiver. He towered over me, his shaggy blonde hair was styled so perfectly, and his face looked intimidating because of the way he pursed his lips. He brought out all of my insecurities about myself. I am quite short, and my messy curly brown hair is always everywhere. I did not want to get on his bad side.
     I must have waited too long to respond because Eric (I think?) uttered, “Tim asked you a question. Aren’t you going to respond?”
     “Sorry,” I rushed out. “I was uh just passing through, and I saw…no…heard you guys talking and then…”
     “Ok fine whatever.” Man, Tim was rude. Why can’t I be anywhere, but here?
     “It looks like James won’t read it, so I will!” Tim stated. A second later he reached over to James and tore the diary out of his hands. He flipped it open to a random page and started to read. James’s look of shock and disbelief sparked real fear in me. If these boys found out my secret, the whole school would know!
     “‘Dear Diary, October 22, 1981,’” Tim read. “‘I don’t feel like I fit in at school or in my family. I am too quiet for my own good, and my only true passion is writing in you. I feel trapped in Abilene, Kansas where I know almost the whole town, but not the school. I observe people, but no one talks to me, and I want to move somewhere else where I am accepted…’ That’s sad, but you can fix that, you know,” Tim commented. My face was turning red, and I hoped he would just stop, but he didn’t.
     He flipped through a couple more pages and continued, “‘Dear Diary, December 17, 1981. Christmas is coming up, and I am super excited to have a few weeks off from school. But, I am not excited to spend the time with my family. Reece is finally home from his baseball season, and he is acting super annoying. I don’t want to help him with homework! I don’t understand how we are related; he is totally different…’ So, Tessa has a brother and doesn’t get along with him very well. Okay, not going to lie, kinda boring.” Tim spoke without passion in his voice.
     He was almost at the spot I didn’t want anyone to read. The panic was building, but there wasn’t anything I could do about it. He briefly looked at a couple more pages, finally stopping about 19 pages later.
     “‘Dear Diary, April 7, 1982. School sucks. I feel so lonely all the time. My social life is pitiful, and I have no friends. To make matters worse my family is all outgoing. I don’t know why I am so different…’ Interesting.” Tim scoffed emphasizing every syllable. “Didn’t I read this a few pages ago?”
     The tears were streaming down my face as I tried my hardest to hide behind my hair. Everyone, except James, was peering intently over Tim’s shoulder trying to get a good look at my diary. He turned the page and gasped in disbelief. Just then, I knew he stumbled upon my secret.
     “‘Dear Diary, April 9, 1982. Today I came across something I never should have seen,’” Tim continued. Oh no.
     “Please don’t read what I wrote next!” The words were out of my mouth before I could take them back.
     “Logically, he should keep reading because it will tell us more about you, and we are all curious to hear what you wrote. Think of it this way, by hearing this “secret” you will now have us as friends because we know information about you,” Marcus stated. I could see why he was on the speech and debate team.
     “Uh…”
     “‘Something that changed my life forever,’” Tim interrupted. I don’t think he wanted to hear what I had to say.
     “‘Something that was supposed to be kept a secret. Today while I was trying to find Reece’s old baseball, I stumbled across my adoption papers! At first I couldn’t believe my eyes, why was I adopted? Why didn’t my “parents” tell me? But, then, I started to think about why I was given up. Why didn’t my own family want me? Was it because they were busy in life and decided it was best to give me up, or did something tragic happen? Or was it simply because they didn’t love me? I am so confused and hurt. This explains why I never fit into my family, and why I never will. I’m the outsider. I’m different…’ Tessa is adopted?” Tim yelled.
     Silence was the only response to his words.
     I was going to be sick. Why did he read that? No one knows I am adopted, and my parents don’t even know I know. The tears were sliding down face faster. No one needed to know I wasn’t accepted in my family or at school, and my only wish is my real parents could love me.
“Oh, it gets even better. These next pages have records, maps, and data about who she thinks her real parents are. She even has a list of candidates! The first person on the list is Mrs.
Peterson. According to Tessa’s data, she died in a car crash 15 years ago. The next person on the list is…”
     “STOP IT!” I shrieked. I couldn’t take it any longer.
     “Tim, that’s enough,” James said firmly. He sounded dead serious and was shaking with anger. “Give her back her diary.”
     I was crying uncontrollably now, and my world was ending. I was fine with being the outsider, but now everyone knew why.
     “No.”
     “You will give her back her diary.” I decided I never wanted to make James mad.
     “No, I won’t.” The next second was a blur. James literally jumped at Tim. He tackled him to the ground and started punching him. Marcus and Eric raced to Tim’s aid, but Tim screamed,    “HE’S MINE!”
     In the hassle, Tim let go of the diary, and I raced to pick it up. No one else would be reading my secrets. I noticed there was a small tear in the cover, but everything else looked to be in order.
     Finally, Marcus and Eric pushed James off of Tim. They helped him up, and with one last glare at James they walked away supporting Tim.
     James and I stood awkwardly glancing each other, but the tears were still streaming down my face. I didn’t know what to say.
     “Sorry about that,” he apologized as we walked over to a picnic table. “Are you ok? What he did was wrong.” The butterflies started doing flips in my stomach as he spoke to me. But even though he was comforting me, I felt the tears coming again as I thought about the hurtful things Tim did. My emotions were a mess. Should I feel miserable? Or embarrassed? Or angry? Or excited James stood up for me?
     “No. That was the worst experience of my life. I don’t know what to do.”
Hearing my secrets read aloud was much worse than finding those adoption papers in my parents room. At least then I could process the shock alone. I didn’t have to worry about facing anyone, besides Reece, who just left me alone. I could write in my diary without everyone watching knowing what I was writing about. I didn’t have to worry about the entire school finding out my secret.
     We sat in silence for a long time while I cried. The tears were dripping down my face, and I didn’t want to face James. I bet he was uncomfortable, but he stayed by my side, which was nice of him. At long last, I took a deep breath and the the tears stopped. I couldn’t cry forever.
     “So, you are JTM, aren’t you?” I finally asked.
     “Yeah. James Thomas Moore. Sorry about those strange letters. I wanted to talk to you, but I didn’t know how. Then, when I bumped into you, I thought about telling you, but I just couldn’t.” This was a new experience for me. I had never been told a guy couldn’t talk to me. I always assumed it was the other way around.
     “That’s ok. Don’t worry about it. How did you know Tim had my diary?”
     “Well, I saw him steal it. Your backpack was hanging on the back of your chair in Algebra II, and he just reached in and grabbed it…”
     “Wait, why did he steal it in the first place?”
     “I honestly don’t know. I guess because he wanted to dig up secrets? He is very nosy and probably wanted to have some fun. Before you ask, I don’t even know why I hang out with that jerk. We are on the Speech and Debate team together, but we don’t really get along. He’s just mean. He probably wanted to force me to tell you I like you because he thrives on conflict.” So it was true, James actually liked me! I couldn’t believe this guy who I just met, actually liked me.
     “Do you still like me, even after hearing my secret?”
     “Tessa, I have liked you for a long time now, even though you are a junior. I don’t care you are adopted and don’t know who your real parents are. That doesn’t change anything. I like you. And if Tim thinks it changes a thing, then he is stupid. I just hope you like me back…”
James said nervously as he ruffled his hair. I was speechless. This boy I didn’t know very well actually cared about me.
     “Um, cool?” I inwardly cringed after seeing the expression on his face. Why can’t say something cool? I decided to try again after the awkward silence.
     “Sorry, I suck at talking. I guess that’s because I’m quiet. But, thank you for making me feel better. That was literally my worst nightmare and to have it come true before my eyes was traumatizing. Anyways, I um don’t really know you yet. I guess we could be friends. I mean  how couldn’t we after that?” I tried to say confidently, but it probably sounded pitiful.
     “It’s ok, I get it. Just know I’ll be here, if you need anything,” James replied.
     Even though my emotions were still a mess, I couldn’t help but smile a sad little smile. He was so nice.
     James beamed at me and took a crumbled piece of paper out of his pocket. He quickly scribbled a message on it and folded it up.
     “We better get going otherwise we will become detention buddies!” We stood up and slowly walked back to school as the last of my sniffles subsided. Even though I was trying my hardest to put on my brave face, I knew once I arrived home, the tears would be back. But I couldn’t think about that now. Once we got the entrance, he slipped a piece of paper into my hand. Then, we parted ways.
     As I headed to physics, I realized even though my biggest secret had been spilled, my life was not over. It only changed. I was happy I had my diary back, and today I made a new friend. It is a step in the right direction. I know I will still be upset, but that’s okay. Maybe I can gain enough courage to tell Amanda, and then she can help me through the pain.
     When I arrived at physics, I slipped into my seat in the back of the classroom unnoticed by the teacher who was too busy writing notes on the chalkboard. I remembered the note James wrote me. I was really curious, so I opened his letter.
 
Dear Tessa Hope,

     Your name inspires hope in me. It gave me the courage to write a strange note to you and to tackle Tim. I am sorry for any pain I have caused you, but I know you will be ok. If you
would like, I can eat lunch with you today. Maybe we can eat by the cowboy statue because that is where we shared our first real conversation. Anyways, have fun in physics!

                                                                                                     Your friend,
                                                                                                                         JTM