The rest of the week went by, and summer was over. Today was Milagra's first day of her senior year, and it was also her first day of school in a whole new country. She was all dressed up, and she joined her parents for breakfast. "Buen día," she smiled.

"Buen día, mijita," Rodrigo smiled back. "Are you excited for your first day of school in the United States?"

"Sí, Papi," Milagra smiled.

"You know, Mila, if you still need a theme for your party, I might have an idea," Violeta said.

"Dígame," Milagra said.

"I remember when I was younger, my friends and cousins and I would get together for a princess party," Violeta said. "When we were in high school, we all dressed like our favorite Disney Princesses."

"Wow, sounds like fun," Milagra smiled.

"Sí, and since this is your party, the princess you dress like doesn't even have to have the actual title," Violeta smiled. "She can be a princess in spirit, like Mulan and even Mirabel."

"Oh, I love the sound of that," Milagra beamed. "¡Quiero hacerlo!"

"Okay, we'll get the house decorated for the party once enough people agree to come," Rodrigo smiled.

Milagra was really looking forward to the party, and she knew just what character to dress up as.

Later that morning, many students of Tanglewood High School had arrived. Some of them were excited to be back, others not so much. There were three popular girls and one mean but unpopular girl who was desperate to be part of the popular world.

"It feels great to be back in school," the leader of the popular girls smirked. "I seriously can't wait to show off my new outfit, my new shoes, and my new purse."

"And I look forward to seeing them, Zooey," the unpopular girl said.

"A new year means new fabulous clothes and accessories," the Asian girl said.

"Senior year is going to be the greatest school year ever," the third popular girl said.

The three popular girls looked at the unpopular one, who said, "Ever."

Then the girls turned to see Violeta's car pull up, and inside the car, Violeta gave Milagra a kiss. "Okay, mija, have a good day," she smiled.

"Okay, Mami," Milagra smiled back. She got her stuff together and got out of the car. She was just about to enter the building when the four girls came up to her, blocking her path.

"Who's she now?" Zooey sneered. "What's she doing here, and why is she dressed for a Mexican rodeo?"

"Yes, this is Rosewood City, New Mexico, not the country Mexico," the unpopular girl scoffed.

"I just moved into the country from Colombia," Milagra said awkwardly.

"Oh, a foreign exchange student," the unpopular girl sneered. "Gross, what kind of skin disease do you have to make that thingy on your body appear?"

"Excuse me, but this scar happens to be from an appendectomy from two years ago," Milagra snapped.

A nearby boy's voice rang out, "Don't listen to them."

Milagra turned to see that the voice belonged to a boy who looked about four feet tall and was wearing a mask. The mask didn't really surprise Milagra since the Coronavirus pandemic is only barely over.

"Bunty and the popular girls have nothing better to do with their lives than to find excuses to harass people," the boy continued.

"Doesn't surprise me," Milagra sniffed. "Wouldn't be the first time I dealt with muchachas like these."

Bunty and the popular girls were insulted by what Milagra and the boy said.

"Well, would it be the first time you've seen what Ramiro has on his face?" Zooey asked angrily.

"Claro que no," Milagra replied. "The Coronavirus pandemic has been going on for less than three years now, so millions of people are still wearing masks today. You think that's completely new and shocking?"

Ramiro appreciated Milagra defending him, but he knew that she didn't quite know what the popular girls meant by that. "Zooey's not talking about my mask, señorita," he spoke up.

"Then what is she talking about?" Milagra asked.

Ramiro was a little embarrassed to let Milagra know what was wrong with him. "It's a little embarrassing," he told her.

"Show her, Ramiro," Zooey smirked.

"Yeah, take the mask off and let her see," Bunty chimed in.

"Okay," Ramiro gulped.

Ramiro took his mask off, and Milagra saw that he had a cleft in his lip—it was small but big enough to be noticeable.

"Oh, you have a cleft," Milagra sighed.

"You're a smart girl, aren't you?" Ramiro smiled. He was relieved that Milagra wasn't freaking out or showing any disgust at his cleft.

Bunty and the popular girls were surprised at Milagra's sympathy toward Ramiro. The girls went beside Ramiro and looked at Milagra like she was crazy, which freaked her out a little.

"Um, chicas, you want to tell me what's on your mind?" Milagra asked the girls awkwardly.

"Why aren't you freaking out, girl?" Zooey asked.

"Yeah, have you even seen anything like that?" Bunty asked.

"I've clefts worse than this," Milagra replied.

"You have?" the girls gasped in unison.

"Sí, my father is a cleft surgeon," Milagra replied. "At the hospital where he worked, the chief resident would let me paint pictures to display, so the patients would have something to look at to calm their nerves before their operations."

"You paint?" Ramiro asked, pulling his mask back up. "So do I. Where are you from?"

"Colombia," Milagra replied. She extended her hand to Ramiro and said, "Milagra Martinez."

Ramiro shook hands with Milagra and asked her, "¿Martinez? Your father wouldn't happen to be Dr. Rodrigo Martinez, ¿verdad?"

"Sí, es verdad," Milagra confirmed. "So, you've met him?"

"Not yet," Ramiro replied. "I have an appointment with him after school today."

"Oh, so you're going to ask him to fix your cleft?" Milagra asked with a smile on her face.

"I can only hope he can," Ramiro said. "I was supposed to have my last operation two years ago, but my surgeon died from Covid—and my family has had trouble finding a good doctor who'll take our insurance and getting the money we need to pay for the surgery out of pocket."

"Aw, I'm sorry," Milagra apologized. She found it really unfair how Ramiro couldn't get the help he needed because of money issues.

Suddenly, the school bell rang, meaning it was time for the day to start.

"Well, there goes the bell," Milagra said. "Any way you can direct me to room 222?"

"I'm on my way there myself," Ramiro smiled. "I'll take you there."

"Gracias," Milagra smiled back. She and Ramiro went on their way to their homeroom, to the popular girls'—and Bunty's—shock.

"Was that girl being nice to Ramiro despite his petite height and the split thingy on his face?" Zooey asked.

"Well, she's from a different country, so the girls there are obviously different," Bunty pointed out. "Remember, she has that mark thingy on her tummy."

Zooey knew that Milagra said she was from another country and that the girl had a scar. "You know, for once, Bunty is right," she said.

Bunty was proud of herself for saying something that Zooey agreed with, and the other two girls agreed, too.