The rest of the weekend went by, and now summer was over. Today was Teresa's first day at her new school, and here in the United States, too. She was all dressed up, and she was getting her stuff together.

"Well, this is it, Estrella—my first day of school in the United States," Teresa said. "I hope all goes well."

Estrella barked as though she were giving Teresa some pep talk.

"Gracias," Teresa smiled.

"¡Teresa!" Jesus called from downstairs.

"Coming, Abuelo," Teresa called back. She turned to her dog and said, "Vamos, Estrella." She and Estrella went downstairs, where her grandfather was waiting for them. "Buen día, Abuelo."

"Buen día, Tere," Jesus smiled. "Are you ready for your first day of school?"

"Bien lista," Teresa replied.

"Oh, by the way, there's something I want to give you," Jesus said with a cheeky smile.

"Really?" Teresa asked, noticing her grandfather's smile.

"Close your eyes," Jesus smiled.

Teresa closed her eyes, and five seconds later, she heard her grandfather say, "Okay, you can open your eyes now."

Teresa opened her eyes to find the little box that she'd found in her grandmother's trunk, and she had a feeling she knew what was happening. When she saw the strawberry ruby necklace inside, she asked, "You're giving me Abuela's necklace?"

"I figured it was time to pass it down to you," Jesus smiled, taking the necklace. He put the necklace on his granddaughter.

"Gracias, Abuelo," Teresa smiled back. She hugged her grandfather tightly, and they and Estrella went downstairs for breakfast. "Buen día."

"Buen día, mija," Mirabel smiled back.

Teresa filled Estrella's dog bowls, and then she washed her hands and sat at the table. Guillermo noticed that his daughter had her favorite book, and he knew that she read it a lot. He wondered if she was tired of this book.

"I see you have your favorite book, Tere," Guillermo remarked.

"Si, Papi," Teresa confirmed. "I thought I'd read it at school when I'm not having a lecture or talking to someone."

"Good plan, but you've read this book a lot," Mirabel told her. "Are you sure you're not tired of it?"

Teresa wasn't sure if she was tired of En el tiempo de las mariposas. "Que buena pregunta—bueno, tal vez un poco," she replied.

"Well, don't you worry," Jesus said. "You can still take this to school with you, but we'll find a library in Marigold City, so you can read a lifetime variety, okay?"

"Okay," Teresa smiled.

After breakfast, Mirabel went to work for the Marigold City police while Jesus and Guillermo took Teresa to school. Estrella tagged along because she wanted to bid Teresa farewell.

At Amber Bouquet High School, the Clancys' limousine pulled up in front of the school, and the twins and their mother—who happens to be the dance teacher—came out.

"Ah, first day of sophomore year," Becky smiled. "Just another perfect year of being the most popular girl in school."

"Yes, Becky," said her mother. "Well, I'm going to set up for class. You kids enjoy yourselves." She entered the school.

Becky turned to see a cute boy with sun-kissed skin, black hair, and dark eyes. "Hello, Antonio," she smiled sweetly.

Antonio turned, and he wasn't happy to see Becky, whom he didn't like at all. "Oh, hi, Becky," he said flatly.

Becky's two best friends came over to her. "Becky!" they chorused.

"Holly, Macy, so good to see you," Becky smiled.

"How was Paris?" the brunette asked.

"Tres excellente," Becky replied.

"Wow, sweet kicks," the redhead said, pointing to Becky's feet.

Becky was wearing magenta high-heeled ankle boots. "Yes, Macy, these are my brand-new one-of-a-kind Caprini Platform ankle boots, and they cost a ton of money," she boasted. "What do you think, Antonio?"

"I think you look like a giant," Antonio remarked.

Iggy turned to see Teresa hugging her father, grandfather, and dog.

"Okay, Tere, have a good day," Guillermo smiled.

"Be a good girl," Jesus told her.

"I will," Teresa said. She told Estrella, "And you be a good girl for Papi and Abuelo."

Estrella barked, promising to be good for Guillermo and Jesus, the latter holding her in his arms. Estrella, Jesus, and Guillermo got back in the car and took off.

"Well, look who came to our school," Iggy smirked.

"Ugh, not her again," Becky huffed.

Teresa was just about to enter the school when she heard Becky clear her throat. She turned to find Becky and her girl posse glaring at her.

"Not you again," Becky sneered.

Teresa couldn't believe that Becky was a student here, and it was even worse that Becky was harassing her just for being here—so much for staying away from her. "Hola, Becky," she said awkwardly.

"Hello, Teri," Iggy smirked.

"You know her?" Macy asked.

"We met her at the airport when we got back from Paris," Becky said. Then she turned to Teresa and angrily asked, "What are you even doing here?"

"The same as everyone else here, going to school," Teresa snarked.

"Oh, a foreign exchange student—that's so hottie hot hottie," Iggy smirked.

"Where are you from?" Holly asked.

"Mexico, specifically Guadalajara, the capital city of the state of Jalisco," Teresa replied.

"Mexico has states?" Macy asked.

"Well, the United States isn't the only country with states," Teresa chortled.

"Well, welcome to Amber Bouquet," Antonio smiled. "I'm Antonio."

"Nice to meet you," Teresa smiled back.

Macy noticed the book in Teresa's hand. "What are you reading?" she asked.

"My favorite book, In the Time of the Butterflies," Teresa replied.

"No, it's not," Becky sniffed. "That book is Een el teempo dee las mary-posas."

"En el tiempo de las mariposas, Becky," Antonio corrected her. "It's a Spanish copy, and that's the native language of Mexico."

"Countries have languages?" Iggy asked.

"There are about 6,500 languages in the world," Teresa said.

Becky was very jealous of Teresa's beauty and intelligence. "Oh, so you think you're prettier and smarter than me," she glared.

"Oh, a hottie hot hottie and a smarty hot hottie," Iggy smirked.

"What do you mean, Becky?" Teresa asked.

"I'm the most popular girl in school, so I'm supposed to be the prettiest and the smartest girl in school," Becky glowered. "But you're destroying all that."

Teresa was thrown off by how petty Becky was. "Becky, we haven't even known each other for very long, and I haven't even been at this school for one lousy say," she scoffed. "In fact, that bell hasn't even rung yet."

At that moment, the bell rang.

"I stand corrected," Teresa said. "I'll see you around." Then she made her way into the building.

"Okay, Becky, what's the matter with you?" Antonio glared.

"What do you mean?" Becky asked.

"Teresa is only here for two lousy minutes, and you insist on bullying her the minute she gets here," Antonio frowned.

"I'm just reminding her that I'm the prettiest, smartest girl in Amber Bouquet," Becky claimed.

"You're not jealous, are you?" Antonio asked.

Becky was offended by that question. "Quoi? Jealous? Moi?" she asked defensively. "Why would I be?"

"Because it's obvious that she is prettier and smarter than you," Antonio sniffed.

"No, she's not," Becky snapped.

"You don't even know Spanish," Antonio reminded her.

"Well, maybe not, but she doesn't know French—and anyway, nobody is allowed to be better than me," Becky whined. "I'm the best!"

"It doesn't matter how good you are," Antonio frowned. "There's always going to be someone better than you." Then he entered the building, leaving Becky dismayed.

Later, the school day was officially starting. The students were in their designated homerooms, and Becky was talking with her friends.

"It can't be true—it just can't be," Becky huffed. "There is no way any girl in this world is prettier than me. I'm the most popular girl in Amber Bouquet. Teresa just won't accept that."

"She must've been the most popular girl in her Mexican school to believe she could be popular here," Macy surmised.

"Quite the understatement," Holly said.

"Well, she's in a new country now, so she's going to have to accept that she's not allowed to be popular here in any way," Becky scoffed.

Suddenly, Principal Hollister's voice was heard over the PA. "Good morning, boys and girls, and welcome back to Amber Bouquet High School," he said cheerfully. "Now I'm sure many of you are wondering what this year has to offer, and one of our literature teachers, Mrs. Rauch, has a special announcement for all the literature classes."

Mrs. Rauch said over the PA, "Good morning, students. I would've waited to tell each class this announcement and let the other literature teachers tell you, but I figured say it here would save us all the trouble. Last year's Hispanic Heritage art fair really inspired me, and I've been waiting all year for this. Each student in a literature class will do a special book report on a classic Latin American book. You'll each hand in a typed copy of your report, and you'll give a presentation in class. When you report to your literature class, you'll see a list of classic Latin American books on the chalkboards. But remember: no two students can do a report on the same book. You can even dress up as you give your report. All reports are due September 16th—and the student who gives very best report in the whole school will be asked to read their book out loud to everyone in school on September 20th."

Many of the students had no idea what to think—a big report given on the first day and due in a few weeks? This was huge. Becky was sure this would be a good way to get back at Teresa. Meanwhile, Teresa herself wondered what Latin American book she would do her report on. She wasn't sure if she wanted to do hers on her favorite book.

Soon enough, the school day officially started, and Becky was in her first class: ballet. During class, Becky told her mother about Teresa.

"She goes to this school now, and she thinks she's smarter than me," Becky whined. "Now she's out to steal me spotlight and my title as the most popular girl in school."

"Nobody has the right to steal my daughter's spotlight," Mrs. Clancy frowned. "I'd like to meet this Teresa for myself."

"Good," Becky smirked. "In fact, Mother, I know the very perfect way to get revenge on her."

The rest of the morning went by, and now it was time for lunch. Teresa had her book with her, but she didn't know why she was even carrying it—she was getting sick and tired of reading it. Antonio could tell that Teresa was getting tired.

"What's wrong, Tere?" Antonio asked. "Tired?"

"I'm not tired of being in school, but I am tired of this book," Teresa admitted. She placed the book back in her locker. "I've read it 100 times alrady." She got her lunch and closed her locker.

"Well, hopefully, this big book report will be a great excuse to read a different book," Antonio told her. "After all, Mrs. Rauch says no two students can do a report on the same book, so hopefully someone else has already chosen In the Time of the Butterflies by now."

"Espero," Teresa said.

Teresa and Antonio made their way to the cafeteria. On their way, they passed Iggy, Becky, Holly, and Macy.

"Hello, Teresa," Becky said.

Teresa jumped at the sound of Becky's voice, and she turned to see the brat smirking at her. "Hola, Becky," she said.

"So, what book are you doing your big report on?" Becky asked.

"I don't know yet," Teresa replied. "I don't have literature class until 6th period."

"Oh, what a coincidence," Becky chuckled falsely. "I have literature class during 6th period, too. I know just what book I want to do my report on."

"That's good to know," Teresa said awkwardly.

"Well, Teresa, maybe you should do your report on moi," Iggy declared proudly. "After all, my report is going to be on T-O-O-U."

Teresa was utterly confused. "Your book report is on what?" she blanched.

"You," Iggy told her. "Oh, Teresa, for someone who came from Mexico, you sure are bad at understanding Polish."

"Iggy, I speak Spanish," Teresa said. She and Antonio continued to the cafeteria with Iggy, Becky, Holly, and Macy following them.

The group made it to the cafeteria, and the twins' mother was there.

"Oh, look, there's Mother," Becky pointed out. "Oh, Mother!"

Mrs. Clancy went over to the group and said, "Yes, dear?"

"Mother, this is the girl I've been telling you about: Teresa Flores," Becky said. She turned to Teresa and said, "Teresa, this is our mother, the dance teacher, Lorelei Clancy."

But the very minute Lorelei saw Teresa, she gasped and stared at her in shock. It got so quiet that you could hear a pin drop, and Teresa was really freaked out as Lorelei looked at her carefully.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Clancy," Teresa said awkwardly.

"Yes, it is, and it's interesting to meet you," Lorelei said in a very creepy tone. "Let me tell you that I've really been looking forward to meeting you all morning."

"You have?" Teresa asked.

"Yes, and apparently, you probably think you're prettier and smarter than my daughter, and I'm not going to stand for it," Lorelei said.

Teresa was shocked to hear that. "Okay," she said.

"Becky happens to be the most popular girl in school, and you've been ruining that her entire life," Lorelei sneered. "You're always making her look bad."

Teresa was seriously thrown off. "Always?" she blanched. "I only met Becky at the airport the day I moved into town, and I've only been at this school for half a day."

By now, Lorelei was seeing red. "How dare you talk to me like that?" she growled. "Let me tell you something, Teri. You're really not as pretty and smart as you think you are, and you're especially not as popular as you think you are. In fact, you're not even meant to be popular or smart or pretty, and you obviously don't belong..."

"Lorelei Clancy!" Principal Hollister's voice rang out angrily.

Lorelei froze in shock, and she turned to find Principal Hollister behind her, and he was livid. "Principal Hollister, I'm so glad you're here," she said.

"So am I," Principal Hollister glared. "What's going on here?"

"Talk some sense into this girl," Lorelei ordered. "She's a serious troublemaker."

"What happened, sweetie?" Principal Hollister asked Teresa.

"I was just minding my own business when Becky introduced me to her mother, and then Lorelei yelled at me for being pretty and smart," Teresa frowned.

"Why?" Principal Hollister asked.

"Why?" Becky repeated. "Why? Can't you see?" She pointed to Teresa.

Principal Hollister looked at Teresa, but he didn't see what the problem was. "Can't I see what?" he asked.

"She thinks she's prettier than me," Becky said. "She's always doing this to me."

"Always?" Principal Hollister blanched. "She's only been here for half a day."

"That's what I said," Teresa spoke up.

Becky and Lorelei were feeling nervous now, but they didn't want to let Teresa win.

"Yes, but that doesn't...," Becky tried to say.

"Rebecca, Lorelei, are you jealous of Teresa because she's beautiful and smart?" Principal Hollister asked.

Becky and Lorelei were shocked at being asked such a question, and in public, too.

"Us? Jealous?" Lorelei scoffed. "Now why would we be jealous of Teresa?"

"You were just yelling at her in front of half the school over something she wasn't even doing, and your daughter just tattled on her to me for having brains and beauty," Principal Hollister replied.

Becky and Lorelei were in boiling hot water now.

"Is that so?" Lorelei smiled nervously.

"Both of you in my office pronto," Principal Hollister frowned.

Becky and Lorelei walked to the office, leaving Iggy, Holly, and Macy alone. The students were shocked and disgusted at what they'd seen, but nobody was more disgusted than Teresa, who had no idea what that was even all about.

"Don't worry about them, Teri," Principal Hollister said. "I'm going to take care of this once and for all."

"Good because if my grandfather were here to see that, he'd have murdered them," Teresa said.

"Okay, dear, I'll see you around," Principal Hollister chuckled. Then he went off to take care of Lorelei and Becky.

"Sheesh, does Lorelei do that to every pretty new girl who enters this school?" Teresa asked Antonio.

"Not really," Antonio said. "She's always made fun of girls for the way they looked and told them to ask Becky for beauty tips, but I've never seen her talk to a girl the way she did you."

"I've never seen a teacher yell at a student like that at all, much less over something petty," Teresa said.

"Maybe Mr. Hollister is right," Antonio surmised. "Maybe Becky and Lorelei are just jealous of you because you're beautiful and smart. They do like to pretend that Becky is the most popular girl in school."

"Pretend?" Teresa asked. "So, Becky isn't really as popular as she acts like it?"

"No, and her ego is more fragile than glass," Antonio said. "Nobody in Amber Bouquet likes her because she has absolutely no inner beauty."

"Well, my abuela used to say that a pretty face means nothing when you have an ugly heart," Teresa said.

"Isn't that the truth?" Antonio agreed.

In Principal Hollister's office, he was scolding Lorelei and Becky for what they did. "I know during your time here in Amber Bouquet that you've been making fun of girls for how they look, but what you did today was a serious disgrace," he frowned. "You both should already know by now that we don't tolerate that kind of behavior. You know that we're supposed to stop bullying, not teach students how to bully."

"I'm sorry," Lorelei said innocently. "I don't know what came over me. Something about the way Teresa looked really set me off."

"Well, you should already know by now that there's more to life than being pretty, let alone the prettiest," Principal Hollister frowned. "Lorelei, we live in the real world, not the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Let me tell you something: if you display that kind of behavior again, especially to Teresa Flores, not only will you be fired, but Iggy and Becky will be expelled."

"Yes, sir," Becky and Lorelei chorused sadly.

Becky was dismayed at being punished for being upset over losing something important to her, but she still had a chance to get revenge on Teresa.

Later, it was time for 6th period. Teresa entered Mrs. Rauch's classroom to find 30 different Latin American novel titles written on the chalkboard, and each one was in a different font. Teresa stood with Mrs. Rauch in front of the class, and Becky sneered at her while Iggy smirked at her.

"Hello, boys and girls," Mrs. Rauch smiled. "I hope you all had a wonderful summer. Now before we get started, we have a new foreign exchange student joining us. If you haven't met her already, this is Teresa Flores, and she just moved into town from Mexico. I'm sure you'll all make her feel welcome."

Mrs. Rauch led Teresa to an empty desk in front of Iggy, who was sitting next to Becky.

"Okay, folks, you're my last class of the day, and these are the last of the Latin American book choices," Mrs. Rauch said.

"Oh, Mrs. Rauch, I know which of those books I want to do my report on," Becky smirked.

"Good to know, Becky," Mrs. Rauch sighed. "What'll it be?"

"I want to do my report on my favorite book, In the Times of the Butterflies," Becky smirked.

"Good to know," Mrs. Rauch said flatly. She wrote down the title next to Becky's name, and she erased the title from the board.

Teresa was relieved that she didn't have to do her report on In the Time of the Butterflies, but she was suspicious. This morning, Becky knew nothing about the book, and now she was saying that it was her favorite. Teresa was sure that Becky was trying to get revenge on her for what happened, but Becky didn't even know that she did Teresa a favor. The other students continued to pick their books. Antonio chose Paradiso. Iggy chose Kiss of the Spider Woman. Holly chose How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents. Macy chose Rayuela. Teresa was the last student, and the last Latin American book on the list was Pedro Páramo.

"Okay, Teresa, you're the last one, and it looks like your report will be on Pedro Páramo," Mrs. Rauch said.

"Okay," Teresa said. She was glad that she was going to do her report on a different book, but she had never even heard of Pedro Páramo. She wondered if her parents had a copy of that book.

Later, it was 7th period, and at this time, Teresa had acrylic painting. She thought about the book she was supposed to do her report on when Becky came up to her.

"So, Teresa, what's this Pedro Páramo book about?" Becky asked.

"I don't know," Teresa admitted. "I've never even heard of it."

"Oh, dear," Becky said sarcastically. "Now how can you even do your report if you've never even actually read the book?"

"Well, Teresa can always do her report on me," Iggy said proudly.

"Don't try to be funny, Iggy," Teresa sniffed. "I'll just ask my parents and grandfather if they have the book."

"Well, I do hope there's a copy for you somewhere in Marigold City," Becky teased.

"Or you could do your report on me," Iggy smirked.

"Enough of that, Iggy, please," Teresa snapped. "I'm a girl, not a toy."

"Iggy, if you could please report to your chair and leave the nice young lady alone, it would be much appreciated," the art teacher, Ms. Fedor, snapped.

"Yes, ma'am," Iggy sighed. He retreated to his chair and left Teresa alone.

Soon enough, the bell rang, dismissing the students for the day. Teresa got her stuff from her locker, and she was about to go out to the parking lot when Lorelei, Becky, and Iggy stopped her.

"Hello, Teresa," Lorelei said.

"Hola, Mrs. Clancy," Teresa said awkwardly.

"Call me 'Lorelei'," Lorelei told her.

"I chose her favorite book for my report, Mother," Becky said sweetly.

"Oh, is that so?" Lorelei smirked.

"And she's stuck doing hers on a book she doesn't even know, Pedro Páramo," Becky continued.

"Well, it's too bad you're stuck doing your report on a book like that and not your favorite, right, Teri?" Lorelei teased.

Teresa didn't like how the Clancys wouldn't leave her alone, but there was something to make them stop. "To be honest, I don't know what Pedro Páramo is about, but Becky actually did me favor," she said.

"She did?" Lorelei gaped.

"I did?" Becky screeched. She couldn't believe she did Teresa a favor. She wanted to sabotage her, not help her.

"Sí, I've read In the Time of the Butterflies 100 times, and I'm sick of it," Tersa admitted. "Pedro Páramo is new to me, and this book report is a great excuse to read a new book." Then her watch beeped, alerting her. "I have to go now. I have to go see the doctor. I'll see you all tomorrow." Then she went off, leaving Lorelei and the twins shocked.

"I can't believe it," Becky scoffed.

"I know," Iggy said. "She still doesn't want to do her report on me."

"No, Iggy, Teresa is happy that I beat her to picking her favorite book for the report," Becky huffed. "She's supposed to be jealous of me, not happy."

"Man, that girl makes me mad," Lorelei sneered.

"Me, too, Mother, but it's okay," Becky shrugged. "She's never even heard of her book, and I'm certain she'll never find it anywhere at all."

"Oh, I like the sound of that," Lorelei smirked.

"And if she doesn't find her book, she can always do her report on me," Iggy said proudly.

Meanwhile, Teresa made it to the parking lot and met up with her father. "Hola Papi," she smiled, climbing into the car.

"Hola, Teresa, how was your day?" Guillermo asked.

"It was okay," Teresa said.