"Now I'd like to welcome our valedictorian, Jolie Watson, up to the podium to give her speech," the principal said before turning around and sitting down.

Jolie stood up and straightened out her blue robe with a gold sash that hung around her neck that was embroidered with the word Valedictorian. She walked up to the podium and cleared her throat and looked out at the sea of faces in front of her.

"Over the last year that I've spent here at Riverview High I've learned more than I ever thought possible, and most of it wasn't learned in the classroom. This town taught me that even though a town may look small that does not mean it's boring and I also learned that country people are way more fun than city people."

The students started clapping and whistling, making her smile.

"I also learned that if you bleach your hair blonde and get contacts people will suddenly start underestimating your intelligence. That was a bit of shock to me at first. Now I've gotten used to it. I loved to see the surprised looks on people's faces when they realized a blonde girl really could solve a complicated math problem faster than a bunch of MIT geniuses."

The audience started laughing at that.

"But on a serious note, the people here at Riverview High have taught me so many lessons that I'll carry with me the rest of my life. My best friend Bailey Stark taught me that life is short and you don't want to waste a minute. That you always need at least one friend that will have your back no matter what and that If you want something you can't be afraid to go after it. My friend Blaze McDaniels taught me to loosen up and stop caring so much about what other people think about me and to care more about what I thought about myself. Also that it's never too late to start over and reinvent yourself if you're not happy with who you are. Mandy Reynolds taught me that high school popularity means nothing because what type of person you are on the inside means so much more. Ryan Gentry taught me how valuable best friends are in life and how important forgiveness is."

She looked out among the sea of students and saw Austin sitting in the front center. She took a deep breath and let it out and said, "And Austin Fox taught me that there are still good people in the world and not everyone is out to get you. He taught me how important it is to let your guard down and trust people, even if you've been hurt in the past because you think the walls you put up will protect you but they really just keep good people out."

Her eyes started to water and a tear fell down her cheek and she said, "He also taught me that the quarterback of the football team can also be a nerd and that being a nerd is pretty amazing. That being smart is nothing to be ashamed of."

She lifted her eyes up and looked at Austin and his eyes looked a little red and watery.

She looked down and said, "The 'Chasing the New Girl' site that I'm sure the entire town is well aware of, taught me how important it is not to succumb to peer pressure and to follow your heart and do what's right even when it leads you against the stream. That just because everyone's doing something doesn't mean you have to do it. That the popular opinion isn't always the right one."

She looked down at the podium and said, "Even though this has been the hardest year of my life, I wouldn't trade it for anything because the friends and memories I've made here at Riverview, I'll carry with me the rest of my life. This school and the people in it are special and I know you all have the potential to do great things and change the world. My Mom taught me that when you leave this place and go out into the big city and move hours away, you'll always carry Riverview with you in your heart. I know I'll never forget this place and I'll never forget all of you."

Jolie looked down as she turned around and walked across the stage and sat back down in her seat and when she looked up she was surprised that she was getting a standing ovation and everyone was cheering and clapping for her. She smiled at them as she wiped a tear away and mouthed the words 'Thank you' to them.

After the graduation ceremony was over she stood and several people stopped by to shake her hand and congratulate her, telling her how great her speech was. Mandy just glared at her as she walked past.

Her Mom walked by and gave her a hug and a kiss, taking a few pictures and then her Dad walked up with his arm around his new wife and her belly was huge. She looked about to pop at any minute. Jolie kept her eyes on her Dad and refused to even look at the woman beside him.

"Hey kiddo. That was a great speech you gave. Very heartfelt," her Dad said proudly. .

"Thanks Dad," she told him, walking forward and giving him a hug. "When I move to Boston I'll make sure to come visit the firm a lot. I think I can learn a lot from you."

"I'd like that," he said with a smile. "You can also come by the house anytime you want. I'm sure your new baby sister will be excited to spend time with you."

"I'll try. I don't know how busy I'll be with classes."

There was an awkward tension between them now, mainly caused by the woman hanging from his arm and the fact that she had to bite her tongue to keep from telling her what she really thought about her. If she wanted to have a relationship with her Dad and her soon to be baby sister she needed to keep the peace.

"Jolie. Can I talk to you for a minute?" a deep male voice said from behind her.

She turned around and was surprised to see Ryan standing there.

"Umm sure," she said, looking down at the ground, rubbing the back of her neck and then back up at him. She hadn't talked to him in months so it felt a little awkward.

"Can we go somewhere private to talk for a minute?"

"Umm. Sure. Let's go in a classroom down the hall," she said giving her Dad a hug and saying goodbye before leading Ryan to a classroom to talk.

When they got in the room she shut the door and turned around and Ryan was looking at the ground.

"I needed to talk to you because there's something I need to confess and it's been eating away at me for months," he said, with his hands shoved in his pockets, looking at the ground and fidgeting nervously with his foot.

Jolie smiled and said, "What? That you're the one behind the website? I already know."

Ryan raised his head and his eyes widened.

"What? How did you find out?" he asked in shock. "And how long have you known?"

"Well one Day Chaz told me that whoever's running the website must have something going on because the site hadn't been updated recently when it was usually updated several times a day. I looked it up and saw that the last update and admin message was made the same afternoon you went into the hospital. It all made sense. You had enough money and connections to get a website made overseas that even my Dad's lawyer friends couldn't trace. I also noticed the subtle guilty expression on your face any time someone mentioned the website that nobody else picked up on. All the clues pointed to you."

Ryan stood there in awe for a second, shaking his head before he said, "Wow. You're going to make one hell of a lawyer one day. Why didn't you say anything?" he asked, scrunching his eyebrows in confusion.

"Because I figured you had already been through enough and if Austin found out it would just give him another reason to hate you and I guess I was hoping maybe you two could patch things up."

"Wow. After the way I've treated you that's awful nice of you. Thank you for not telling him, but I don't know if he'll ever forgive me. He seems pretty good at holding a grudge. Do you think he'll ever forgive you?"

"I doubt it," she said sadly. "I don't blame him though. I was a pretty terrible girlfriend."

"No you weren't Jolie. You were just another victim of Mandy's mind tricks. She's the reason you guys broke up. She was behind the texts that said Austin had made the website causing you to break up the first time. She was the one that told you in class that Austin wasn't as attracted to you as he is to her and made you doubt yourself. She was also the one that convinced you at Homecoming that Austin only wanted to sleep with you to win the bet and caused you guys to break up again. If none of those things had happened you guys would still be together."

Jolie thought about it and said, "Yeah. You're right."

"She's a master manipulator. I would know. I'm a victim of her mind games too. She convinced me the night of the party to keep taking shots and then she told me that Austin had broken up with her and they were done. She said Austin told her that I wasn't a real friend and that he just kept me around because my Dad had so much money and power. She said Austin was bragging that he was the only one good enough for her at our school and that I'd never get a girl as pretty as her. She made me second guess our entire friendship and by the end of our conversation that night I was so mad at Austin and drunk that I had sex with her. Afterwards she admitted that she made everything up because she knew it was the only way she could have me. She wanted to know what I was like in bed and if I was better than Austin. Then she told me he was way better and left with this evil laugh that made me feel sick. That's when I panicked I tried to cover it up and forget it ever happened."

Jolie was stunned.

"Does Austin know any of this?"