[Note: Cautions apply to the entire story.]

PROLOGUE

I wasn't always the girl you know. I didn't used to go to a great school. I didn't used to have a gang of great friends. I didn't used to think that I mattered all that much.

I used to live with my brothers and my parents over on the west side of town.

I used to go to West High School.

I used to be a boy named Martin Rawlings.

This is my story.

CHAPTER 1 -- Reckless Driving

It all happened because I was in love.

I was madly in love with my brother Pete's motorcycle.

Pete had gotten the motorcycle so he could get to his classes at the local community college when our parents couldn't spare one of their cars for him. It mostly sat in our carport, but sometimes he would ride it to school, and sometimes, if he was in a good mood and I begged him hard enough, he'd give me a ride on it. My parents were scared half to death, of course. That was part of the fun. When I was on it, I was in heaven, and when I wasn't, all I could think about was when I'd next be on it. In class, instead of paying attention to the lesson, I dreamed of riding down country roads with the wind on my face and all my cares left far behind. I got in trouble for it, but what did I care? I was already branded a "loser", which is what they called us boys at the bottom of the social pecking order, and it wasn't like I could fall any lower.

The trouble started with me just looking at it. It was a warm June day, my parents were at work and Pete at the campus and Biff was somewhere or other, and I had only a half-day of school. I felt it call me. I was just going to take a look and then go back to whatever boring stuff I usually did. The motorcycle was standing in the carport, just begging me to come closer. When I did, I saw the key still in the ignition. Pete was always doing that. It was a miracle it never got stolen.

It couldn't hurt to just sit on the motorcycle, could it? So I swung my leg over the saddle and sat on it. Not in back, where I sat when riding with Pete, but in front, where I could reach the handlebars. After pretending I was riding all over the place with it, I thought, now that I'm here, I could see if I can start the engine, but I won't go anywhere.

Well, one thing led to another and before long, I was on the open road, enjoying the wind on my face and the thrill of speed. Just like riding a bike, not so hard, is it? Then I saw that the road in front of me made a sharp right turn at the bottom of a hill, and then I saw the gravel.

The last thing I remember was going "oh, shit!"