"Are you sure you don't want a ride?"
Juliette looked up from her plate of pancakes to see her father across the dining table, slowly sipping his mug of coffee. "Yeah, dad, I'm sure," she nodded in confirmation. It was the start of her senior year in high school and while it would have been great to drive up in her own set of wheels, that was not a luxury she could afford. She was currently working on fixing up a used car but there was still a bit of work to be done till it was up and running, which meant that for the time being, Juliette was stuck getting rides from her dad, or just using her bike -- the latter was a more preferred method because she didn't like bugging her dad for a lift all the time, and she was more than capable of biking a few miles to get where she needed to go.
"I can pick you up if you want," he added. Juliette knew he was being this way because it was the first day of a new year. The past years in school hadn't exactly been very pleasant, and it only seemed to get worse as she got older, because people got more cruel. Well, the popular ones at least. Her father knew little details, but he knew something and that alone was enough to make him a bit paranoid. She had a feeling he only offered because he wanted to scout the place, see if anything was happening on his watch. And the last thing Juliette wanted was trouble.
"Really, dad, it's fine," she assured him as she finished up her breakfast and rose to her feet. "I'll see you at the garage in the evening," she added, grabbing her bag and slinging it over her shoulder.
"You need anything, you call. Understood?"
Juliette smiled a bit and gave him a mock salute. "Yes, sir." And with that, she left the house. Her bicycle was parked out on the front porch of her small little house and she immediately got on, making the trip to school. She was already running a bit late so she had to pick up the pace. Another year, more troubles to face. Juliette had grown immune to the name calling, and thankfully, unlike some of the boys she knew that were outcasts much like herself, she didn't receive any physical bullying like being shoved into lockers. Though there were many attempts by cheerleaders to try and embarrass her in public, that usually resulted in panic attacks. Juliette was hoping none of that would happen this year. Or at least, not the first day.
She reached school quick enough, but the seemingly empty parking lot, save for the vacant cars that filled it, told her that the last bell had rung already. Juliette was rarely late to class, which was why she was in such a hurry. She forgot to even lock her bike, instead abandoning it near the bicycle stand and rushing into the building. She was so consumed with where she was going that she hardly noticed someone around the corner as she turned into a new hallway, which would have led right to her history class. She met the person on the other side with a bit of force, sending her back and sprawling to the floor. Two books scattered away from her hand -- ones she had just grabbed from her locker in her hurry to get to class -- and she was quite sure her wrist was twisted or something. Still, Juliette had to shake her head slightly to realise what actually happened, which was when she looked up to see a familiar face. A face she hadn't exactly spoken to in a long time...