KUPANO, LORELEI LAIDEN

Honestly, I think I am the type to over think things. I mean, I get attached to someone really easily, and I tend to just over analyze every single move they make. It's probably because I'm either scared of getting screwed over again or I'm just really insecure. It's why I look for those first signs of trouble. I hate acting like this, but I do it anyway. In the end, we only regret the chances we didn't take. I for one, love to take chances and make something of myself. I have worked hard to get to where I am today. The things that make me different are the things that make me, me.

I choose to live by choice, not by chance. To make changes, not excuses. To be motivated, not manipulated. The be useful, not used. To excel, not compete. I choose self-esteem, not self-pity. I choose to listen to my inner voice, not the random opinions of others. Everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something. Remember that. I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them.

Regrets? I have no regrets. Even if I could, I would not change anything in my past. Rather, I look back with gratitude because if it weren't for my past, I would not be who I am today. Rainy nights. You know what I really love? Rain. Especially at night. All the lights are turned off, and you're snuggled in bed with the window cracked just a bit. Just enough to smell the rain, to feel the breeze, and hear the pitter patter. And then once in a while you hear a car or two pass by through the wet road. And you can't help but wonder, where they're going and if they like the rain too.

I was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. My mother was a Puerto Rican and my father was a French-Canadian. My home was strict, but I learned a lot there. I have values and I know what love is. I feel as though my life has some sort of meaning. My mother was a super hero to me. After I was born, my father decided that it would be best to leave so that way he would be able to provide a better life for us. In all reality, he left us because he had a hot, young woman on the side. Rumors spread quickly through our little neighborhood and my mother made the wise decision to move us away. At the age of six, we moved our lives to Newport Beach, California.

Moving wasn't the worst thing to happen. I mean, I was still young and still made friends quite easily. Newport was a fun place to grow up. The people were always friendly to us. The friends I made in middle school carried over to high school. Now, high school was a different story for me. Once I reached high school, it was as if all of my hard work had gone to waste. The girls were mean to me, for no apparent reason and the boys just followed suit. As I grew within the Newport High community, my looks and personality kind of flourished... I guess you could say. People started warming up to me and I soon became one of the "popular" girls. The only difference between myself and the girls before me is that I didn't have to belittle anyone to be well-liked. I kind of just went with the flow, you know?

After high school, I graduated with honors in arts and science. Weird, I know, but I have always loved school, learning and becoming a success. I brought that attitude toward my college experience. My mother, nor myself could afford to send me away for college, so I decided to stay in Newport. Port college has been my home for the past five years now. I am a year shy of graduating with a major in music production. My love of music stems back all the way to my teen years. My mother thought it would be best that I got into something creative and positive. I went to my first rave at the age of seventeen and saw my very first dj. That is when I decided that I wanted to be a DJ and bring music to peoples lives. I wanted to create and give back to a community of misfits, and I still do. Now, in my last year of college, I have never been busier with my music career and my life in general.

Juniper was having an awful day. She was not pleased with herself at all. She felt as though she could have done so much better on her math exam. She didn't think on it too hard, that would have put her in a terrible mood. Instead she walked straight up to her dorm room and shot a text to her dear friend Henry. He always knew what to say and how to cheer her up. You see, Juniper was hardly ever the one needing cheering up. She was always the one to do the cheering. This time was different though.

Sighing to herself, the young redhead trotted along the corridor until she came face to face with her room number. Oh how she wished to have a single dwelling, but the darn school didn't do such things. She was not pleased with this, but learned to cope with it. It was her last year in school and all and soon, she would be in college. There, she knew, offered single dorm dwelling.

Upon opening the door, a wonderful aroma of baked goods filled the young girl's nose. Someone had gotten baking from their grandmother today. That had to be her roommate. That was the one thing she could count on the roommate for, sweets. Not wanting to be greedy or savage, Juni walked past the girl, waved and closed her bedroom door. Not even one sweet was offered to her that evening. Well, fine then. I will go out and get my own treats, she thought to herself.

That was one place Juniper loved being. Inside her head. She was there all of the time when she was alone, and that was quite often. When she wasn't at school, with her super friend Lainey or Henry, she was in her head. There, she could be anyone she wanted to be. She was the Captain of the Enterprise, or she was a Mage fighting off rogues and warriors. Perhaps an elf from time to time. What ever the case may be, Juniper was always someone else in her head. Always.

Today, she had no time to be someone else. Today, she had to be Juniper or she was going to be late for a very important date. The girl stripped out of her uniform and busied around the room. It was a sty. She was never a very clean girl, taking after her two older brothers. They had taught her well. She scratched her head, placing both hands on her sides, giving her the shape of a duck.

"Where in the hell are my fucking pants man?!" She yelled to herself. She had just seen them the previous day.

Now, there is one thing that you need to know about Juniper and her roommate. They have a very hard time not going through each other's things. At times, Juniper will find her roomie wearing one of her favorite tunics, or pants, or shoes. It was something that irked her beyond belief and has caused many a fights between the two. Now, Juniper was certain she had seen her favorite pants laying on the pile of clean dress tops. The only culprits... The dryer or the roomie.

Racing out of her room, Juniper jumped into the hallway and raced down to the laundry facility. Looking around frantically, the young girl didn't see any of her belongings there. Nothing. The room was indeed empty. That left one other lead to the missing pant case. ROOMIE. She ran back upstairs where her roommate was located. Jumping on the poor, unaware female, Juniper pinned her to the couch.

"Bitch, tell me where the hell my pants are or you won't even have legs to wear them with," she screamed angrily. There was nothing she hated more than a liar and she knew there was a lie of sorts coming.

The girl tried to fight the petite beast off but couldn't. Years of fighting with her brothers taught her well.

"Get off of me, you psycho!" She yelled back.

"Not until you tell me where my fucking pants are!"

She could tell that her roommate was getting tired and lazy, due to the amount of squirming left. Would she finally get the truth out of this girl? Nope. Instead she was thrown off and the girl ran to her own room locking the door behind her. This infuriated Juniper. The girl got up, ran to her roomie's door and kicked it as hard as she could. She didn't break the door down, but did leave a little dent instead.

"You're dead to me bitch! Watch what fucking happens when you come out! I will rip your fucking ovaries out and tube feed them to you! Do you understand me?!"

Huffing with rage, Juniper walked to her room and closed the door delicately. She needed to calm herself before it was time to see Henry. She was going to be late... again. Henry should know this by now. Always say the meeting is a half an hour earlier than you plan on being there. Shaking her head and taking a deep breath, Juniper look about her room. She was bound to find something else to wear. The weather was nice enough to permit a dress. Juni didn't have very many of those, but she did have one that was perfect for this occasion.

Picking up the dress from the ground, Juni pulled it over her head. Eh, not bad. It'll do, she thought to herself shrugging her scrawny shoulders. Throwing her red-brown hair into a low pony, Juniper grabbed her hand bag and left her bedroom, locking the door behind her this time. She walked out into the hall and to the kitchen, stealing her roommates baked good. Fat bitch doesn't need anymore of those sweets anyway.

Turning the corner of downtown, Juniper skipped along and finally found her way to the Starbucks. It was coffee time with a wonderful friend. Henry meant the world to Juniper. Other than Lainey, Juni had no other friends. And her brother didn't really count. She was content that these two could even keep up with her crazy antics. Scouting the room, Juni didn't really see Henry. Perhaps she wasn't the one who was late after all? Or, he could have retreated to the washroom? In any circumstance, Juni shot Henry a text, saying she was seated by the window when he he was done taking a deuce.

lucia; central; nine years; juniper fitzsimmons and silas rhys