And what was left in my suitcase after I'd removed that three years' worth of clothing? Outfits like Stacey's, only wilder, if you can believe it. I would say that, like Stacey, I'm pretty sophisticated, but I may be the chilliest dresser in the BSC. That's because I like to look different from other people. I make a lot of my own jewelry — big, dangly earrings, papier-mache bracelets and pins — and I'm always trying new ways to wear belts, layer my clothes, fix my hair. . . . I'm Japanese-American, and my hair is long and straight and black. It looks good when I pull it back with bright ribbons or combs or barrettes. And my eyes are dark and almond-shaped. I think I look exotic, especially with the right kind of makeup.

I stepped back and checked my suitcase. The floor around the bed was littered with discarded outfits, I still wasn't going to be able to close the suitcase, and I hadn't even packed my art materials yet. I had to bring them along if I was going to study with HIM.

Oh, well. I'd just borrow another suitcase from my sister.

Kristy.

Chapter 2.

It was time to say good-bye. I have never liked that very much. Not because it's sad or because maybe I'll never again see the people I'm saying good-bye to. (Mary Anne is always sure of that; she thinks some disaster will strike.) It's just that people get so mushy when they're saying good-bye. Also, my family is pretty big, so we make a spectacle of ourselves at train stations or airports.

These are the people who came to the train station to see me off on the day we left for New York: Mom, my stepfather, my grandmother Nannie, Charlie and Sam (my big brothers), David Michael (my little brother), Karen and Andrew (my stepsister and stepbrother), Emily Michelle (my adopted sister), and our dog, Shannon. I'm surprised the cat and the goldfish didn't come, too.