Hazel didn't have a real family. She never had a s sibling. Her dad had left when he found out her mom was pregnant and her mom died in child birth. Sometimes Hazel would lay in her bed and fantasize what her mother would do when she found Hazel crying into her pillow every night.

It probably wasn't, stare blankly at her before turning away. It probably wasn't a poorly sympathetic pat on the back, as she walked by without a word. All Hazel knew was that from her foster families. She'd been bounced around so many times she'd get confused with which was which.

And after crying, Hazel would remember one little thing about her current situation. She wasn't real. And then she'd sob a little harder.

That's how things worked in the Di Angelo household. She wasn't real. She was not Hazel Levesque, only daughter to Marie Levesque. She was a cheap replacement.

A replacement for Bianca Di Angelo.

The sister adored by Nico Di Angelo. The perfect daughter bragged about by the ever rich, ever busy, Hades Di Angelo. The confident, supportive friend of almost everyone in school.

And Hazel knew she'd never replace Bianca.

She wasn't pretty like the pictures showed her to be. She wasn't confident like the stories said she was. She had no clue how to be a sister, and never knew what Hades wanted.

And when she was at school, she didn't even know how to stick up for herself.

"Hazel, please stop crying." A voice said comforting, from beyond the tin metal stall door. "Let me in."

Hazel wiped the stream of tears off her cheek. Her wrist came back with a liquid black smudges. Hazel sobbed harder.

"Hazel!" The voice outside snapped, "Open this door right now!"

The tears made everything blurr together.

"Ughhh!" The voice outside groaned, "I'm trying to help Levesque! Stop pushing me away!"

"Just...go away... Selina."

"Maybe I will!" There was a stomping and silence other than Hazel's sobs.

"Damnit!" Selina cried, "Hazel, get out of there you're ruining your mascara!"

As far as friends go, Selina Beauregard was Hazel's only friend. If that. She was loyal...to her make up. She was nice but Hazel knew she only hung around her because her OCD hated seeing Hazel's make up, messed up.

"We have class in four minutes Hazel!" Selina urged, "Your Smokey eye takes slightly longer than that, alone!"

"Just go!" Hazel cried, hiccuping between words "I'll do...my own...today!"

"But-but!"

"GO!"

Hazel could imagine how furious Selina was. She wasn't quite sure the tile floor didn't crack when she stomped away.

Drew had "accidentally" shoved her head into a water fountain. So her hair was soaked, her dress which she just bought and a size too small was wet, her make up ruined. And her self confidence had been crushed almost a year ago.

Carefully, cautiously, Hazel opened the stall door.

The mirrors must have been broken. She couldn't look this bad. Her hair had twisted itself into a rat's nest of curls. Her face was streaked with black mascara, eye liner, and her eye shadow like a rainbow decided to throw up on her. She tugged at the chafing collar on her dress. The ribbon belt around her waist felt like someone had tied a noose around her middle.

The bell rang echoing through the halls.

Hazel tugged at a knot in her cinnamon hair. A spike of pain hit her and her fingers came loose. She wet a paper towel and dabbed away the tear trail.

Hazel pulled a mini make up kit from her bag. As soon as she opened it, her eye liner pencil flung out of the case rolling across the tile floor.

Hazel grabbed after it, only to have it stepped on by a red converse. Hazel looked up to see a familiar face. The popular girl who stood up to Drew for her yesterday. She looked beautiful, as always. Her choppy brown hair just seemed to work for her. And a tomboy jacket with her superhero T shirt and jeans, made her look easy going.

"Please tell me your not doing make up." She said.

Hazel glared distastefully. "Well not everyone is born perfect."

The girl rolled her eyes with...was that pity?! Seriously?!

"Look I can make you prefect." The girl claimed. She bent down and picked up the eye liner.

"What?"

"I can make you prefect." She said, "Just trust me and say the word."

Hazel looked at her. Was she joking? No, she was serious. She could make Hazel beautiful. She could make it so no one would laugh at her, so Nico would look up to her, so Hades would brag about her? She could do that?

"Yes."

The girl smiled. "Okay turn around and face the stall." She gently turned the girl. And Hazel crossed her fingers for luck. "I'm Piper, by the way."

"Hazel. Levesque." Hazel replied monotone. "And can you really make me beautiful?"

"Yep."

Piper pulled a brush from her bag. And Hazel could feel her tugging at the knots easily.

"Aren't you suppose to be in class?" Hazel asked tugging at her dress again.

Piper snorted, "I was in old man Dynonious's class. You know the teacher who only plays documentaries and sleeps during class? All I had to do was ask to get a drink. He probably forgot I left."

Hazel shared a smile with her. Piper finished with her hair and came around front brushing Hazel's face with a wet paper towel.

"Thanks. I mean I never told you yesterday. For sticking up for me." Hazel said. Piper paused with her wet cloth for a moment.

"No problem." Piper whispered as if suddenly on edge. "I don't like it when people around you ignore a situation. I don't like people getting ignored, in general."

Hazel frowned. Piper shook her head and he smile returned. She tossed the towel in the trash and brushed off her hands.

"There done."

Hazel was confused. She didn't add make up. Piper spun her around and reflection was...different. She looked natural. A face she hadn't seen in a year stared back at her foreignly.

"I'm...me?" Hazel asked quizzically.

"Yes." Piper placed her brush in her bag. "You are beautiful. Without the make-up. Without the dresses a size too small. And if anyone tells you otherwise, punch them in the face."

"I'm not sure I can do that without getting suspended."

"Well...then tell me and I'll punch them in the face. It's not like I have anything better to do." Piper shrugged with a trouble maker smile. "Or better yet, we both punch them in the face and get suspended together."

Hazel hated to admit it but every second Hazel was liking that idea a little more. She could feel this girl partially building her self confidence back up one brick at a time.

"Come on!" Piper tugged her arm, "Let's go do something."

"Like what?" Hazel shouldered her bag.

"I dunno. How about we-Oof!"

Piper slammed straight into a boy with bond hair and my blue eyes. They both blushed a light pink.

"Can't stop running into you, can I?" The boy asked.

Piper seemed to freeze for a moment, but she quickly smiled back. "Guess not. I'm Piper, by the way, and this is my friend, Hazel."

The word "friend" sent warn feeling down Hazel's spine. Piper considered her a friend?

"Jason." He smiled, though it seemed fake, like he was a  million miles away, "I'm sorry, I'd love to talk, but I've got to run."

"Where you headed?"

"My, uh, job. My car won't start and I can't risk being late again..." He feverishly checked his watch.

"I'll drive you." Piper offered.

"Uh..."

"It's okay, me and Hazel were just about to skip out anyway." Piper made a go-with-it nod at her.

"Yeah, sure, we were taking about going to movies later." Hazel said, "Maybe you could join us after you get off?"

Piper looked frozen with the smile on her face. Like she wasn't quite sure what just happened.

Jason swallowed uneasily. "I don't wanna push for a ride on you."

"Have you looked for a mechanic?" Hazel asked.

"Yeah, but a can't find a cheap one."

"Did you try Leo Valdez? He's actually a student here for now. Short, curly haired, Latino Santa elf? He's got a small Dragon statue he carries around like his life line ever since-"

Hazel gasped and choked on her words, slamming a hand over her mouth.

"What?" Piper prodded. Jason was frowning like something was bothering him.

"Nothing." Hazel said quickly. "Nothing at all."

"Oh come on, tell us!"

"He would hate me if I told." Hazel felt terrible all over again. "And we aren't on very good terms now."

"I ran into a guy a minute ago like that." Jason said, "He said he didn't know any mechanics."

Hazel bit her lip. Piper was giving her puppy dog eyes. "Okay fine," she relented, "When Leo was seven, his house burnt down, his mom got caught in the fire. We ended up in the same orphanage. He's a brilliant mechanic. He use to fix the tv there, and make little helicopters out of pipe cleaners that actually flew." She sighed for a moment, remembering Leo as he was back then. "I heard he's going to start running again though. That's all I know." Hazel hoped they wouldn't see through her white lies.

Jason looked crestfallen. "I need someone, now."

"Okay, here's the thing." Hazel said quietly, feeling a stab of guilt. "He's seriously attached to the Dragon statue. He'd do anything for it. Not kidding. I'm pretty sure he'd even murder for it. It's got some sentimental value to him."

"So your saying, this Leo Valdez would fix my car for free if I got my hands on his...Dragon?"

Hazel nodded, feeling sick.

"You know, how about you two go, Piper, Jason."  Hazel said, "I'll catch up to you later."

Piper looked at her funny, "you okay?"

Hazel forced a smile. "Yep, peachy!" She turned away. "Jason's almost late anyway." She called over her shoulder.

They didn't press. They looked at each other and ran in the opposite direction. Hazel could imagine them running into a sunset together.

She had a friend now. And she looked pretty. And she helped a poor guy with his car problem.

Hazel pulled out a picture her old boyfriend from her pocket. She let a tear hit the crumpled, written folded paper, right over the boy face.

"If so," she asked staring at the picture of a younger, Leo Valdez, before he started running, "Why do I feel so terrible?"