“Would you stop looking at me like that?” she snaps with disgust. “Where are your glasses, and why are you not wearing them?”

I reach into my bag and pull out my designer aviators. “They’re right here.” I sigh softly, knowing I should have put them on before I came down.

“Then put them on. You know the deal, Emily. This is embarrassing enough for your father and me. If I hear of you taking them off while you are at school I will pull you out so fast your head will spin. Got it?”

Tears sting my eyes as I swallow past the hurt clogging my throat before putting them on. “Don’t you think I will look more ridiculous wearing them inside?”

“No, I don’t, and you know that!”

She’s right, I do. For some reason, my mother has never liked the color of my eyes; she says they stand out too much. After I lost my vision she made me keep them covered as often as possible. She says they wander and frighten people. Rosa says she’s crazy and that my eyes are beautiful. I don’t remember much about them, since I was so young when I lost my sight. But Rosa tells me they are very unique, a pale blue that reminds her of a snow princess. When I don’t wear my glasses I always try my hardest to focus, but I guess I didn’t do a very good job this morning. That, and my mother is in an even more hateful mood than usual, which I knew she would be.

“I’ll keep them on,” I promise quietly.

Before she can say anything else nasty, my father walks in. “Emily, good you’re still here.” I turn to my left at where I hear his voice and instantly get a whiff of his expensive cologne. “I wanted to let you know I was at the Prescott’s last night, and Kyle has graciously said he would watch out for you at school.”

I tense and my stomach recoils at the mention of the jerk’s name. I grind my teeth. “I told you I don’t need him to watch out for me. I don’t want anything to do with him.”

“Stop being a brat,” my mother cuts in. “You are lucky someone like him is willing to include you, and…”

“Lucky!” I interrupt with a shout. “How am I lucky? You do remember me telling you he tried forcing himself on me at the charity dinner, right?”

“He didn’t try to force himself on you,” my father replies in annoyance. “We have talked about this. His father and I think it would be good for you two to see each other, especially with the upcoming campaign. And…”

“Good for you, but not for me! The jerk shoved his tongue down my throat after I said no.”

“Oh stop being such a drama queen,” my mother chimes back in. “And if you ask me, it’s good for you. I mean, really, Emily, if someone like him is willing to date you, with your… disability then I wouldn’t be rejecting it. The chance of you getting another opportunity with someone like him is slim to none.”

I grind my teeth so hard I’m surprised my jaw doesn’t snap, and feel tears start to slip down my cheeks, which only makes me more angry that I let her get to me. “Yeah, well, I didn’t ask you, and I would rather have no opportunity than to have one with him.” Not wanting to stick around a second longer, I step past my mother and head to the front door. I try to push down my anger and concentrate on my direction.

Just as I reach out and grasp the handle, she says: “Don’t come crying to me, Emily, when this all blows up in your face like I know it will.”

I don’t bother to tell her that I would never come crying to her, because I know better. I’ve always known better. Opening the door, I walk out and make sure to slam it behind me. I take a moment and inhale a deep breath of fresh air, hoping to calm my angry heartbeat and the hurt trying to suffocate me.

Thankfully, it isn’t long before I hear the familiar sound of Cece’s high-pitched horn as she does her usual double honk while driving up the long road to my house. I walk across my porch and down the three steps just as she pulls up.

“Well hello, beautiful,” she greets me brightly. “Look at you, eagerly awaiting my arrival. Are you that excited for your first day of school?”

I reach for the handle of her convertible. “Try – ‘I was eagerly escaping my parents’,” I reply dully as I get in the car.

“Uh oh, bad morning?”

“That’s an understatement.” I try to say it easily but the hurt is evident in my tone.

Cece grasps my hand gently. “I’m sorry, Emily. They’re still giving you a hard time about this?”

I swallow thickly then shrug. “When are they not giving me a hard time?” I turn toward her. “Can you believe they told me to stay close to Kyle?”

She grunts then releases my hand before driving away. “Yes, I can.”

“Apparently Kyle told my dad that he would watch out for me. The jerk has some nerve.”

“Yeah… but he is hot.” I shake my head, not surprised by her comment. “What? I’m just stating the truth. Don’t get me wrong, the guy is a total douche bag, but he is good looking.”

“There is nothing attractive about him, Cece.”

“There is, trust me, but forget about all that. This year is going to be epic and we are going to have a blast finishing our last year of high school together.”

“I hope so,” I reply unsure, feeling nervous again for the coming day.

“I know so. Now, do you want to go over our meeting spots again?”

I shake my head. “No, I remember. We ran through it a million times over the course of the summer.”

“All right, well, I’ll be with you most of the time anyway, but you always have your phone if you need me.”

“I know. I’m good.”

I feel her grasp my hand again. “Trust me, Emily, everything is going to work out and we are going to have a great year.”

I smile and pray she’s right, because I do not want to hear ‘I told you so’.”

Chapter 2

Emily

I lean against the wall, next to the water fountain, with my books in hand while I wait for Cece. I listen to lockers slam shut, other kids bustling around in conversation, and feel the heat of their bodies as they pass me. I try really hard to calm my pounding heart, but all of it is so overwhelming, especially when I’m not used to being around crowds. I catch a couple of ‘bye Emily’s that I make sure to smile and reply to, but unfortunately I can’t tell who all addressed me.

I have to admit that all-in-all today went well, even if it was overwhelming. I felt like I was able to keep up with the teachers, and once I waited for the hallways to clear I was able to find my way around easily enough. I also made sure to stick with Cece when I could, which meant having to hang out with people I don’t care to, but it was better than being alone. It’s not that they’re terrible people, well, some of them aren’t anyway. It’s just that I can’t relate to them. They’re so… shallow. Most of them accept me because of who my father is. They accept the governor’s daughter, not the real Emily Michaels. I have no delusions that if I did not carry this last name none of them would be seen with me… the blind girl.

Shaking myself from my thoughts, I suddenly realize it’s gone completely quiet. I listen carefully and don’t even pick up the sound of distant footsteps. Pulling my phone from my bag I hit my braille touch screen to hear what time it is, and realize Cece is fifteen minutes late. I move my thumb over the voice app and wait for the beep. “Hey, Cece, I’m waiting by the fountain. Where are you?” I release my thumb and wait for my phone to chime with her reply, but five minutes later it still doesn’t come.

What the heck? There is no way she left without me, even if she had an emergency she would have let me know. After another five minutes pass, I decide to go check the parking lot and make sure her car is still here before I call for anyone else. I think about where I am in the school then turn to the left and start making my way down the hall. I drag my fingers along the lockers and count each one, knowing I will pass by eighteen before reaching the gym, then another twelve before making it to the school’s front doors.