Andrew Sullivan took a deep breath as he entered the main building of Marietta High school in Maui Hawaii. High school was a new experience for him and he was extremely nervous.
Andrew studied his reflection in the glass covering the trophy case just inside the door. His sun-streaked blond hair hung in his blue-green eyes the way he now liked it to. He was dressed in khakis, a black tech vest, and a blue tee shirt that matched his eyes perfectly. This whole set up was a new look for him and he hoped he could pull it off.
Andrew walked into his first class, something called trigonometry, he'd never heard of it.
"Hello," the teacher said to him. "You must be Andrew."
"Yes, I'm Andrew Sullivan," he replied hoping he didn't have a funny accent. Back where he was from no one had an accent but ever since he'd arrived in America, everyone sounded like they had an accent.
"It's nice to meet you Andrew. I'm Ms. Reynolds. Why don't you have a seat in the middle row over there," she replied pointing to a seat on the other side of the room.
Mikaylah Roberts was sitting half asleep at her desk in the middle row when the new boy walked in. The second she laid eyes on him she could not stop staring, he had to be the best looking boy she'd ever seen. She listened intently as Ms. Reynolds said the boys name.
Andrew she thought to herself. What a common name for such an uncommonly handsome person.
Andrew walked towards the empty desk next to Mikaylah's .As he moved closer Mikaylah couldn't help but notice that he moved like his body didn't quite fit him right. He walked awkwardly as if it were a new concept for him.
"Hi, I'm Mikaylah," she said as he sat next to her.
"I'm Andrew," he replied with a faint accent she couldn't trace.
"Where are you from?"
"Riahcrevlis."
"I've never heard of it."
"Most people haven't."
Ms. Reynolds called the class back to order before Mikaylah could ask Andrew anymore questions. Andrew sighed with relief, he wanted to avoid talking about his background as much as possible. He knew he would never understand trig so he slouched down in his chair and began to do the job he was sent to do, observe the people around him.
"Andrew, what class do you have next?" Mikaylah asked at the end of the period.
"English with some guy named Mr. Richmond."
"Me too. We can walk together."
"Cool." Andrew looked around at the other students walking to class and studied them carefully. He smiled at Mikaylah and offered his arm as escort. Mikaylah smiled back and looped her arms through his.
"Let's go," she said. "Mr. Richmond's room is upstairs, first room on the right."
Andrew and Mikaylah walked up the stairs to Mr. Richmond's room.
"Hello Mikaylah, lovely to see you today," Mr. Richmond said cheerfully. Mr. Richmond was Mikaylah's favorite teacher. A tall thin, bald man in his mid-forties, Mr. Richmond was always in a good mood and trying his hardest to make his students love his English 3 class.
"Hey Mr. Richmond. This is Andrew Sullivan, the new boy."
"Ah yes. Welcome to Marietta High Andrew, I'm Mr. Richmond."
"It's nice to meet you," Andrew replied, trying his best to imitate the teacher's American accent.
"Since you and Mikaylah seem to be getting along you may sit with her."
"All right. Thank-you."
"No problem. I'll get you a book in a few minutes."
Mikaylah led Andrew to the pair of desks they would be sitting at.
"We have lunch this period, halfway through. I'll show you the good food, the majority of it's really nasty."
"Okay." Andrew couldn't wait to try American food, it was something he'd been looking forward too since his mother had told him of his journey and he'd studied up on American culture.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"All right, go to lunch. Be back by twelve thirty or I'll be seeing you tomorrow after school."
Mikaylah hooked her arm through Andrew's and led him to the cafeteria.
"Let's get baked potatoes, they're the best."
"All right."
They grabbed baked potatoes with cheese and sour cream.
"What do you want to drink?"
"Doesn't matter to me."
"Do you like Dr. Pepper?"
"Never tried it."
"You are deprived! You have to try it."
"Okay."
"Don't you ever say anything but all right and okay?"
"Yeah."
They paid for their food and set out to find a table. Mikaylah spotted her friends Ana, Tori, and Rachel and Rachel's' boyfriend Chris sitting nearby. Rachel was one of Mikaylah's closest friends but she was constantly rubbing the fact that she had a boyfriend while none of the others did in, and Mikaylah hated that.
"Let's sit over there," Mikaylah told Andrew, pointing to an empty table nearby. She looked at her friends and waved. Rachel's jaw dropped when she saw Andrew. Mikaylah smiled to herself as she saw Rachel lean over to Tori and whisper, "Who's that guy?" Tori shook her head.
Mikaylah smiled at Andrew as she sat down.
"Hey Andrew, do you like music?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Well, I know we don't know each other that well yet but I was wondering if you would like to come to a party with me on Friday night. My friend Chris's band is playing and it's gonna be a lot of fun."
"Sure, why not? It'll be a great way to meet people right?"
"excellent way."
"Mikaylah," a female voice said. Tori dropped into the seat next to her
"Hey Tori. What's up?"
"Not much. So who's this new guy?"
"Tori this is Andrew, Andrew this is my friend Tori."
"Nice to meet you," Andrew replied.
"I had to get away from Rachel. Her and Chris were being all lovey-dovey and it was making me sick."
"What a surprise. I'm bringing Andrew to Rachel's party of Friday."
"Cool. You will have so much fun Andrew."
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Friday night came up fast. Mikaylah and Andrew had spent nearly all their waking hours together getting to know each other, having fun, and maybe even falling in love. They had agreed to meet at the party that night.
Andrew paced his room as he got ready for the party. He wanted to look good for Mikaylah and none of his clothes seemed good enough.
The alarms on the communication device his mother had given him sounded. The small device called a remah, looked like what Americans called a cell phone. Instead of a number pad, it had a tiny television screen on which Andrew could see his mother.
"Hello son," she said in Riahcrevlin, their native language.
"Hello Mother."
"How is Hawaii?"
"It's beautiful Mother, you would love it here."
"I'm sure I would. How is your mission going so far?"
"Very well. I have learned a lot about American culture." Andrew filled his mother in on all the information he had gathered.
"Very good son."
"Mother I have to get going. I'm going to a party."
"A party? I sent you to observe, not to party."
"I am observing, that's why I'm going."
"Very well, I will speak with you later."
"Good night Mother." Andrew turned off the remah and dashed out the door.
Mikaylah spotted Andrew the second he walked into the party. He was wearing jeans, a gray tee shirt and a gray and blue button down shirt over the tee-shirt. He looked incredibly handsome.
"Hey Mikaylah."
"Hey Andrew."
"You look nice."
"Thank-you. Come on, I'll introduce you to some people."
After a while of meets and greets, Chris's band began to play. Rachel was in all of her glory watching her man play, and everyone one else kicked back to enjoy the party.
"Let's dance," Mikaylah told Andrew.
"Okay." Andrew pulled Mikaylah close and held he tightly against his cool body.
Mikaylah rested her head on his shoulder in contentment. She had only known Andrew for five days but they'd spent tons of time together and she cared for him very deeply.
Andrew studied Mikaylah's face while they danced, losing himself in her gaze. He had never felt the way he felt when he was with Mikaylah before. He enjoyed he company so much, he didn't eve want to leave her side.
Mikaylah looked deep into Andrew's eyes. She saw they way she felt for him being mirrored back at her. On a sudden impulse she kissed him. Andrew seemed startled at first but returned the kiss feverishly. The pair lost themselves in the moment. No one seemed to exist but them.
They finally pulled apart when the song ended.
"I'll go get us some drinks," Andrew said.
"Okay."
"Hey baby girl," a male voice said wrapping his arms around Mikaylah's waist.
"Jesse, don't touch me!" Mikaylah snapped.
Jesse Parker was the most popular boy at Marietta High and he had a crush on Mikaylah. Jesse was very handsome. He had black hair he always wore slicked back, a dark, year round tan and smoldering brown eyes. His looks however, were the only good thing about him. He had a short temper, was rude and insulting, and played too rough for Mikaylah's taste.
"Come on Mikaylah, you know you want me."
"Yeah right!"
"Let's dance."
"No."
"Come on baby."
"I said no!"
Jesse roughly grabbed Mikaylah's arm and tried to drag her to the makeshift dance floor.
"She said no!" Andrew said shoving Jesse's arm off Mikaylah.
"Did you just push me?" Jesse asked grabbing Andrew by the collar.
Most people were afraid of Jesse, Mikaylah included, but there was no fear in Andrew's eyes. Instead his eyes were glowing an eerie shade of red.
An excited buzz filled the crown which had formed a circle around Jesse and Andrew.
"What's wrong with that new kid?"
"Why are his eyes that color?"
"Are those contacts?"
An angry looked crossed Jesse's face. "You're a freak," he said dropping Andrew on the floor.
Several people started laughing. The glow in Andrew's eyes shifted from red to blue. He climbed to his feet and ran from the house.
"Andrew wait!" Mikaylah called.
"Mikaylah, don't go after him. We don't need freaks like that around here."
"Shut up Jesse!" Mikaylah cried. She dashed out of the house after Andrew.
Meanwhile Andrew headed towards home feeling low. Now that everyone hated him he could never complete his mission. How was he going to tell his mother he failed? He feared her wrath more than any other force in the universe.
To top it all off rain clouds were forming in the sky. Andrew started to run. If he got wet and anyone saw him, his life would be truly over.
Mikaylah walked on through the dark calling Andrew's name. She had to find him. A cold raindrop hit her forehead, Mikaylah smiled, she loved the rain. When she found Andrew she'd have to convince him to dance in the rain with her.
All of a sudden she spotted him running several feet in front of her.
"Andrew!" she called. "Wait up!" She raced to catch up with him.
"Andrew are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Look I gotta get going, the rain.. I'll"
"Let's go to my house and talk. Please?"
"All right."
Mikaylah led Andrew up the street to her house.
"We can sit on my porch swing and enjoy the rain," Mikaylah said as they sat down. Andrew glanced around to make sure the area was dry, to his relief it was.
"Are you okay?" Mikaylah repeated.
Andrew looked at her, his eyes faintly glowing blue.
"Don't you think I'm a freak like everyone else?"
"No. Jesse's is just a jerk. he's always trying to make something out of nothing."
"I can't stay here."
"What?!"
"I have to leave. No one wants me here."
"I want you here," Mikaylah said taking his hand. "I really care about you."
""You're the only person who ever has."
Mikaylah leaned over and gave Andrew a gentle kiss, as she pulled back the sky opened up and it began to pour.
"Ooh I love the rain!" Mikaylah cried. She jumped off the porch and began dancing.
Andrew watched her with an amused smile.
"Andrew come dance with me!" Mikaylah called over the sound of the pouring rain.
"No thanks. I'm fine up here!" Andrew replied from his dry place on the porch.
"Come on," Mikaylah whined grabbing his hand. Andrew flinched and pulled back. Small patched of blue began to appear where the water on Mikaylah's hand had touched his skin.
"You're worse than a cat!" Mikaylah grabbed his arms and pulled him out into the rain.
Andrew tried to shield himself but Mikaylah's horrified scream told him it was too late.
"Oh my God!" she shrieked. Mikaylah could not believe what she was seeing. Andrew's skin had turned a bluish hue and his eyes had turned to yellow with turquoise pupils. The shape of his face morphed, the skin on his forehead bunched together giving him a ferocious look.
"Mikaylah, I can explain??p;quot;
"Get away from me! What are you? Some kind of freak?"
"If you give me a towel and five minutes I can tell you."
Mikaylah didn't reply, she just stared at him in horror and disgust.
"Please Mikaylah. I care about you more than anything and I want you to know the truth."
"Fine, " she reluctantly agreed. "But five minutes is all you get."
"Let's go inside."
They walked into the house. Mikaylah shuddered when she saw Andrew in the lust, he was hideous.
"Here's your towel."
"Thanks."
When Andrew rubbed his face and arms dry he returned to his human form.
"What are you?" Mikaylah asked.
"I'm not what you call human. I'm from a planet called Riahcrevlis in another galaxy. What you saw outside is what I really look like."
"Why are you here on Earth?"
"My mother is the ruler of my planet. She sent me here to observe humans and to see if we could colonize."
"Colonize ?That's sick."
"I didn't want to come but women have all the say on my planet, I had no choice. But once I got here and met you, I stopped doing my mission."
"Women have all the say on your planet."
"Yeah .men have a few rights but women hold most of the power."
"Wow."
"The world is so much better. In my world my mother and a few other women have all the power and everyone else are followers. If you speak out you die."
"That's awful."
"I don't ever want to go back."
"Do you have to?"
"I'm not really sure, probably."
"Andrew you can't go back, they'll probably kill you!"
"You wouldn't care," Andrew replied looking down.
"Yes I would! Look, I'm sorry for freaking out before. It just startled me to see you like that."
Andrew looked up. "You still care about me?"
"Yes .I feel for you and your funny little accent, not what you look like."
"Thank-you Mikaylah, you're the first person that's ever really cared about me."
"You're welcome," she replied hugging him. Andrew clung to her tightly, he didn't ever want to let her go, he just wanted to stay there in her arms forever.
"Ekin!" a female voice said sharply. His head snapped up in surprise, someone had called his real name. He saw his mother and his aunt standing before him.
They grabbed Andrew's arms and yanked him off the couch. "You are coming back with us! You betrayed your mission, now you must pay!"
"No!" Mikaylah cried. She couldn't understand what they were saying but she knew it wasn't good.
"Teleport now!"
Mikaylah grabbed onto Andrew and seconds later the group was teleported to Riahcrevlis.
"Andrew, where are we?"
"My home planet."
"Are they going to hurt you?"
"Most likely."
"Oh Andrew." Mikaylah buried her face in his chest and sobbed.
An hour later, the Riahcrevlin women's council ha ddecided Andrew's fate, he and Mikaylah were sentenced to a life of slavery.
As they were led out of the courthouse, Andrew grabbed onto Mikaylah and broke loose.
"Run!" he told her. "Don't stop until I tell you to."
"Okay."
They ran to a secluded area two miles from the courthouse. Andrew led Mikaylah into an abandoned room. Andre knew what he had to do, he just didn't know if he could do it. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a large sparkly ring, Mikaylah's ticket to freedom.

"They only way to save you and get you home is to turn back time. This ring is a device that will send you back to the day you met me. I wont show up in your trig class and you'll never meet me."
Mikaylah's eyes filled with tears."Will I remember this?"
"No."
"But Andrew I don't want to forget you, I want to be with you!"
"It's better this way. We can't be together if my family is always hunting us down, we can't hide from them."
"The risk it worth it."
"Mikaylah, I love you too much to risk your life like that."
A loud rumble sounded in the distance, Andrew's family was getting closer to finding them.
"We have to hurry."
Mikaylah nodded. "I love you Andrew," she whispered throwing her arms around him.
"I love you too," he replied slipping the time teleportation ring on her finger.
"May I have a kiss good-bye?"
Andrew kissed her passionately in response. Mikaylah melted against him, her tears mixing with his. As they kissed on he pressed the button on Mikaylah's ring sending her back in time. An emptiness filled his heart as the realization of what he'd done hit him.
"Mikaylah," he whispered. Her tears on his face was all he had left of her. Andrew dropped to his knees and let his sobs fill the empty room