' new beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.  '

SOMETHING WAS burning. The strong smell of smoke filled Faye's nose, instantly pulling her from her slumber. A cold sweat made chills grow on her arms as she shot up from the dilapidated mattress, her eyes still adjusting to the bright light that cascaded into the room. Remembering what was going on and why she had woken up, she looked down at the white sheet that she was laying on. Faye closed her eyes, and reopened them, her eyesight still fuzzy. But, she could clearly see what had happened.

The white fabric was completely wrecked. It was covered in burns, which made the fabric shrivel up and turn brown, some of the edges still orange as if the fire was only put out moments before. Her hands rested just above the charred sheets, her fingertips coated in black. Yet, her skin was unscathed.

Her parents couldn't see this. Pulling herself away from her thoughts, she directed her head towards the door, listening for any indication that her parents were awake. Silence greeted her. Faye pushed the blue blanket with her legs, and hastily stripped the mattress of the tattered sheets. Scooping the white sheets into her arms, she stumbled down the carpet stairs, her hands shaking as she tried to figure out a place to put the destroyed sheets.

The blonde slipped on some flip flops and gently pushed open the front door, hoping the door wouldn't squeak and wake her parents. When the door opened fully without a sound, Faye rushed outside of the house, silently thanking her parents that they didn't have neighbors. Her heart thumped repeatedly against her chest and her legs wobbled as she jogged towards the beginning of the preserve.

Without her glasses, she still couldn't see clearly, but she still managed to find a trash can near a trail, about three minutes away from the new house. Hesitation didn't occur as she prodded the sheets down into the trash bag, the smell of smoke still present. After closing the trash can, Faye pushed away her knotty hair and rubbed her eyes, starting to make her way back to the house.

Faye's foot slipped into a puddle, her flip flop on her left foot sticking to the mud like glue. A frustrated breath escaped Faye's mouth as she leaned her body forwards, tugging on her stuck foot. That was a mistake. Her foot glided out of the shoe, making her lose her balance and fall face forwards.

Her pajama bottoms were now completely soaked and her skin was lathered in mud. She groaned and internally screamed at her bad luck. The blonde pulled herself back up from the forest floor, and trudged her way back to the new house, a grim expression on her face.

Arriving at the white house, Faye pushed open the already unlocked door and silently marched up the stairs, the one bathroom in sights. The door thankfully did not creak as she shoved it open. Her eyes glanced around the old bathroom, adjusting to the new room.

The counters and the toilet were a bright teal, along with the shower curtain. White tiles covered the floor, a thin black lining surrounding the small squares. Above the counter was an old mirror, which reflected the gaze of Faye's glance. The blonde stared at her reflection, analyzing all the specks of dirt hidden between the wrinkles of her nose and the twigs wrapped around in her hair.

Faye switched on the tap and scrubbed as hard as she could, trying to remove the ash from her hands. Her fingernails were tinted black and ash stuck under her nails, but eventually the black dissolved from her calloused skin. She took a deep breath in and glimpsed at the mirror one time.

Something was different. Even with her blurry eyesight, she could tell something was wrong. She gripped the edge of the counter with her hands and pushed her upper body forward, finally spotting the difference. Her eyes were glowing.

Faye covered her mouth, trying to keep herself calm as her eye color morphed from cobalt to fiery orange. It was like flames were dancing in her eyes. She shut her eyes and let out a muffled cry into her hand. What was happening to her? Faye inhaled a shaky breath and opened her eyes. The flames that once danced in her eyes disappeared and her blue eyes returned.

"This isn't real," she murmured to herself as she walked towards the bathtub, turning on the faucet. "This isn't real."

She stripped out of her muddy clothes and pulled herself into the shower, her weak limbs succumbing to the heat of the water. The dirt was effortlessly scraped off, her skin turning a light pink. Her nails dug into her scalp, pulling the leaves and twigs from her mess of blonde locks. Before she knew it, she had spent more then twenty minutes under the stream of water.

From the other room, she could hear her phone alarm going off. But it wasn't the first alarm. It was the alarm signalling that she had a half hour left before she needed to leave. Quickly turning off the shower, she wrapped the towel hanging from the towel rack around her frame, the soft fabric tickling her skin. Her wet hair stuck to her neck, droplets of water dribbling down her back. The blonde's hand touched the bathroom counter and it lazily tapped around, searching for her contacts case.

Unsuccessful with her search, Faye gave up and walked back to her room, her grip on the towel growing stronger. She bent down beside the mattress and pulled on her glasses, everything becoming non-blurry in an instant. As she was adjusting, she blinked a few times, trying to destroy the haze that was set over her eyes.

Afterwards, she stood back up and wandered over to a stack of boxes tucked neatly into a corner. Her fingers went under the first piece of cardboard and pulled it upwards, the rest of the box unraveling. Clothes of various colors struck her eyes as Faye put her hand into the box, sifting through the different fabrics. She pursed her lips and pulled out a black t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Discarding the towel, she quickly changed into her clothes and ran back to the bathroom, where she blow dried her hair.

Once she was pleased with the outcome, she grabbed her purse and her jacket, and trotted down the stairs to the kitchen, where both of her parents were drinking coffee. Her mother was still in her pajamas and her hair was a mess while her father was formally dressed, a tie wrapped around his neck. He greeted her by lifting up his coffee cup in a salute, the liquid swishing around in the red solo cup.

"Good morning, Faye. How did you sleep?" Mrs. Rosenberg asked, taking a sip from her wine glass full of coffee. Faye assumed that they could not locate the coffee cups. Before answering, she stepped into the kitchen behind her mom and poured herself a cup of coffee in a glass with Disney princesses on it. Picking up the glass, she walked to the counter and finally answered her mom's question.

"Good," she lied, taking a sip of her coffee. The taste was bitter and the drink burned her tongue, yet she loved it. Her mother walked over to her purse- that was placed on a stack of boxes- and pulled out a ten dollar bill. She handed it to Faye and smiled.

"We don't have any lunch meat. Or bread. Or anything really, so here's some money to buy a lunch." Faye graciously accepted the money and stuffed it into her purse, knowing that she wouldn't use it for lunch. The blonde took one last swig off her coffee and pulled on her jacket. Her father did the same. He tossed her the car keys to go start the car, and she obliged and walked outside.

The cold morning breeze nipped at her cheeks and danced in her blonde tresses. Faye unlocked the car with a press of a button, and jammed the keys into the ignition. Spinning the keys, the car purred to life. As she walked to the other side of the car, she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. Her skin tingled and she rolled on the bottoms of her feet just before she turned around towards the reserve.

Tree branches swayed in the wistful wind, and the leaves scattered themselves along the trail path. No one was there. What had she expected? Her face turned red from the wind, and she finally gave up by opening the passenger door and sitting herself down. Her father came out not even two seconds later, a briefcase in his hand. Faye raised an eyebrow as he entered the car and placed his briefcase behind him.

"What is the briefcase for?" Faye pondered out loud.

Her father gave a smile, the creases around his eyes and mouth expanding, making his skin wrinkle up. "I have a job interview at a law firm, here in town."

Faye grinned. Mr. Rosenberg was devastated when he lost his job as a paralegal back in their old hometown. She remembered him coming home that day, his eyes looking as if he were in immense pain. Yet, she had stayed in her room, terrified about what had happened just days before.

The fire.

Faye's smile vanished as Mr. Rosenberg focused his attention behind him as he began backing the car up. Her fingers trembled against her knees and her breaths became sharp, each one hitting her lungs like a knife.

She could never forget.

The car came to a stop, and Faye blinked away her thoughts, reality hitting her like a gust of wind. Students of various ages gathered in front of a giant building labelled "Beacon Hills High School".

Her throat closed and she choked on a breath, her nerves finally pulling her apart. She looked at her father and he smiled and kissed her cheek. "Have a great day, Faye. I'll see you later."

The blonde nodded and exited the car, gripping her purse, her nails digging into the brown leather. Everyone's eyes locked on her as walked to the front of the building, her glasses sliding off of her face. Pushing them back up with a finger, she opened the front doors and stepped inside.

Everyone went still. She knew this was a small town, and she knew that in small towns, everyone knows everyone. But she was a stranger. Looking down at her muddy shoes, she walked towards the front office, her hair shielding her from having to stare into anyone's eyes. Thankfully, the front office was close to the entrance. Pushing her bangs back, she stepped into the office and walked up to the desk, where an older lady with glasses sat.

"Excuse me?"

The woman looked up from her computer and gave a soft smile. She was the first person to smile at Faye. Taken aback, she stumbled on her words. After taking in a small breath, she coaxed the words out of her throat.

"My name is Faye Rosenberg. I was told that I should come here to receive my timetable?"

The lady nodded and stood up, a grunt escaping from her lips. She disappeared out of Faye's sight, but came back seconds later with a piece of paper in her hands. She handed it to Faye and the blonde took the paper, the sharpness of the paper scraping against the inner part of her hand.

Exiting the office, Faye took a look at the piece of paper that she was clasping at read it over. "Economics," she whispered to herself. Right beside Economics was the room number which was room B59. She blinked at looked up, spotting the closest classroom. It read D134. Faye glanced down at her schedule and took a deep breath. She could find the classroom in no time.

Not even 5 minutes later, Faye was standing in C hallway, more lost then ever. The piercing sound of the bell striking her ears made her wince as it echoed through the hallways, yelling at the students to go to class. She was going to be late on her first day of classes. The blonde walked straight and made a few turns, and finally she was in B hallway. She gradually passed each door, reading each number as best as her glasses would let her.

There was only one classroom left. Situated in the middle of B hallway, between a trophy case that held awards shaped like lacrosse sticks. Not paying any attention, she took a step forward and hit a towering force. She landed on her heels before she could fall completely, and looked up to asses who the hell had ran into her.

Two boys stood in front of her. The first boy was smaller than the second, beauty marks covering his skin in various locations. His hair was cut short, almost like a buzz cut. Plaid covered the upper part of his body and he wore shoes that looked like they should've been thrown out years ago. He had a giant goofy grin on his face that told Faye he didn't care that he had almost knocked her over.

The second boy was different. His skin was tanner and his hair was longer . He had a crooked jawline and his chocolate brown eyes looked so dark that they could almost be black. His face had creased, like he was worried about almost knocking Faye over. Unlike the other kid, Faye could tell this boy had a heart.

"Watch where you're going next time," Faye said, gritting her teeth.

"Really? Because I'm pretty sure you were the one who wasn't paying attention," the boy with the buzz cut hair retorted.

The blonde bit the inside of her cheek and gripped the piece of paper in her hand tighter. The tanner boy noticed her arm tensing, and his eyes wandered to the piece of paper in her hand. "Are you new?"

Faye glanced from one boy to another, debating to answer the question. She took a deep breath and released the tension from her shoulders. "Yes," she replied. "This is economics, right?"

The two boys nodded and the shorter one began to murmur to the other boy. "Scott, I have an idea. Let's say we were showing her around. Coach won't be mad at us then."

The taller boy's eyes widened. "You mean use her?"

The other boy rolled his eyes. "No, you dumbass. We'll tell coach the truth about what we were really doing," he said sarcastically.

His friend blinked. "Yes we're going to use her! Jesus, I thought you were smarter than this."

Faye stared at the boys, not hearing exactly what they were whispering about. She furrowed her eyebrows and just when she was about to confront them, the classroom door swung open, smacking the smaller boy in the head.

"Stilinski! McCall! What the hell are you doing out here?" A older man stood in the doorway, his hand on the doorknob. His appearance was unkempt and he had dark bags under his eyes.

"Hey Coach!" the boy who had just gotten hit by the door said. He rubbed his head with his fingertips and produced another silly grin."We were just, uh, you know, showing the new girl around!" He pointed his finger towards Faye and the man slowly turned his head around and looked at Faye.

His eyes scanned over her, as if he was truly trying to figure out if she was a student or not. Uncomfortable under his gaze, she shifted her weight on to her other foot and played with a loose string that was attached to her jacket.

"Is this true?" he asked, his voice hoarse and loud. Unsure of how to answer, Faye just shook her head. The last thing she wanted to do was have two random strangers hate her already on her first day of school. The man cleared his throat and stood aside, letting the two boys and Faye into the classroom. The two boys rushed to their seats and Faye stood in front of the class, everyone's eyes on her.

The teacher scratched the back of his head and then tucked it into his track pants pocket. "Well, introduce yourself."

Faye cleared her throat and whispered "Faye" under her breath. The teacher raised his eyebrows.

"What's your last name kid? I have to see if you're on my list."

"Rosenberg."

He pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of his back pocket and unraveled it. The teacher nodded and shoved it back into the depths of his pockets. "Alright. Take a seat."

"Thank you Mr. Finstock."

Mr. Finstock burst out laughing. His voice was coarse and his laugh was irritable. Faye winced at the sound. "No one's called me that in years! Call me coach, kid."

The classroom full of people laughed and Faye quickly sat herself down in the back left corner of the classroom, the last seat in the room. Burying her face is her hands, she accepted that today, was going to be a very long day.

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dedicated to molliest for being a great friend and very supportive.

thank you mollie. <3