The Life Changing Walk | Teen Ink

The Life Changing Walk

April 20, 2017
By Morganoneill BRONZE, Morristown, New Jersey
Morganoneill BRONZE, Morristown, New Jersey
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

The last block bell rings as school comes to an end for the week and people are rushing out of class, wanting to get outside to enjoy the warm spring day. Jamie is a sophomore at Calabasas high school in Los Angeles and she is tall skinny with  long blonde hair. Jamie never had friends, and she just wants to drop out, with the countless times she has been bullied. When she is walking home she sees an old couple laughing and holding hands.


“I wish that could be Mom and Dad, but no there always is a screaming match”. She approaches her gray tall house with a white picket fence and a black door with lots of steps leading to the door, she can already hear the yelling that is already taking place. She opened the door and her mom and dad stop fighting and her mom follows her to the mud room. 


“How was your day? Anything new or exciting?”


“When is something new or even exciting in my life? The same thing happens every day.


I get up, brush my teeth, get dressed, suffer at school, then come home to you two yelling at each other about how much you hate each other. It’s dumb I do not want to go to school, I don't want to hear you and dad yelling at each other, I just want to do something in my life where I can feel good about myself.”


Her parents froze in the middle of the argument, with her dad just about to walk away.


She turned around looked at her parents  “I wish I had different parents, and lived somewhere else” she walked away leaving the room filled with utter shock and disappointment.


Her parents stood there finally realizing how much Jamie is suffering. The constant yelling and bullying that is non-stop in her life are making her more and more want to change her life around. Her parents constantly yelling at each other for absolutely nothing are the reason for Jamie's headaches, and her aggravation. Her brother is at college, so there is no one for her to talk to, her parents would rather fight and get drunk all day then be good parents, and be there for Jamie. Jamie needs a change and it needs to be quick.


She’s laying in bed thinking about how she can turn her life around to make it enjoyable. She sits is her tiny twin bed. The lightbulb in her mind went off, she sprung out of bed grabbed her computer and searched Modeling agencies in Calabasas. She scrolled up ad down, and there it was Ellen's Modeling Agency. She paused for a second to listen to the fight that is occurring downstairs… again.


“Our daughter's life is a mess, she's the outcast in school, and she has no friends. We need to get her help.”
She rolled her eyes and said to herself “if anyone needs to help it's you two.”


After her normal school day, she came home and opened her computer once again, seeing the agency on the screen. She emailed the director asking if they could meet one day coming up so that they could meet, and see if Jamie was good enough to be a model there. She anxiously  waited and waited refreshing the page over and over again. As she waited, she looked up all the models she could think of, and studied their poses, clothing, and makeup. Makeup, something Jamie thought was a waste of time and only for girls who care too much about themselves. She wanted to see what she looked like with it on though. So she decided to sneak into her mom's room, and she explored her bathroom, looking for the makeup looking in every draw, and the last place she looked she finally found it. She looked at all the products, and slowly shut the door.


“Do I actually want to do this? It is not going to do anything for my life.” She tried out some mascara, then foundation, and the more things she found, the more stuff went on her face. She finally finished and stepped back.


“Wow… I look so pretty” she twirled around in the mirror and just observed herself for ten minutes.


On her sister's way home from the mall, she was involved in a fatal car crash. She was on the highway, listening to music and singing out loud, when the car to the left of her coming out of an intersection went through a red light, and hit Kelsey's car. Kelsey flew out of her seat, and through her windshield. She was rushed to the hospital, where she was in a coma. The family prayed that she would wake up, but she did not. Jamie and her family took the death of Kelsey the worst way, and everyone started to lose it. The parents blamed each other for her death. Jamie lost her sister, her best friend, her role model, and the modeling agency lost their top model. Long black hair with brown glittery eyes, and a smile that would lighten the room, and the town's most beautiful girl, is how everyone remembered Kelsey.


Her life has been a secret most of her life, no one knew about her, who she was, what she was like, so she certainly was not going to tell people now. Jamie wore a light pink dress with a jean jacket and sandals. She decided that with one week left in school, she would look her best. She spend house getting ready, she got up at five, and spent two house putting makeup on, doing her hair, and finding the perfect outfit.


She looked at herself in the mirror, she twirled abound and smiled… “I look so pretty”. 


She walked to school, smiling from ear to ear as she knew today would be a good day. After multiple classes, the bell rang for the students to go to lunch, and Jamie went on her daily walk around campus. There was a new student at the school, he was tall, tan, blue eyes and blonde hair. He was trying to find his way around, but wasn't getting anywhere, as he would make the same circle.


Jamie walked up to him and said, “Hi I'm Jamie in a sophomore here. Do you need help? You look a little lost.”


He looked at her for a minute and stuttered. “Um hi… yes, I do need help I have no idea where I am going.”

 


She asked where he wanted to go, and he said nowhere special, he just was trying to figure everything out.

She showed him around, and they talked they shared stories and they laughed. 


“By the way my name is Tyler.”


She smiled and said “I'm Jamie”  Tyler stopped her as they were close to the science rooms.


“Thank you for showing me around, I really appreciate it. Let's get dinner some time.”


Just as Jamie nodded her head and was about to say something, he said to her,  “you are stunning.” She smiled and turned around. Jamie was blushing, and she skipped, to her class, happy as can be. 


The next day was Jamie's big day, she had her meeting that could either change her life or keep it the same. Jamie and her mom drove thirty minutes to a white tall building. After the parked the car, and her mother finished writing an email, she opened the door, and they both headed for the building.


They walked in, and they lady waiting at the door proudly announced… “Ah, Jamie my darling. We have been anxiously waiting for you! Come in, come in”. They entered the building, and they looked around. They saw pictures of Kendall Jenner on the wall, Chrissy Teigen, and other famous models.


“Wow, its beautiful in here. I love it”. Jamie said as the lady opened the door that leads to the rooms.


She took Jamie on a tour of the building, and Jamie was speechless. She wanted to be apart of this business so badly, but will she get the job? She walked into the meeting room and sat down next to her mom. On the other side of the big brown, neatly organized desk was the president of the organization.


With Jamie's file in her hand, she placed it down and said, “you are beautiful.”


Jamie smiled and politely said “thank you” back.


The lady stood up and went over to the whiteboard… “we definitely would like to have you apart of our company, but we also have another opportunity for you. We were given the opportunity to put one of our models in the Victoria Secret Fashion show! Would you be interested in that?”


Jamie’s jaw dropped and she moved her hair out of her face showing her glowing smile.


“Yes most definitely. Thank you so much!” Jamie said as she smiled at her mom.


“Perfect. So come here everyday after school just to practice photo shoots, and fix your runway walk. You can meet our crew tomorrow, and we will pair you with another model so that she can help you adjust to how we run our facility. I thinking more along the lines of Gigi Hadid. She's so nice and funny, you will love her!”


“Are you serious?” Jamie's smile was from ear to ear lighting up the room. She was in in complete shock that they hired her and better yet, she is going to walk in the Victoria Secret Fashion Show. Jamie and her mom left the building both extremely excited for the new chapter of her life.


“Mom I'm so excited! Let's call Dad and tell him.” They dialed the phone number of her father, and he did not answer.


“Well, Iguess it doesn’t matter to him”. Jamie said looking out the window.


“I don’t understand. He put me through hell the last two months, and he can't even answer his phone, fake his excitement, I do not care, just be somewhat happy for me. Yea but that is clearly impossible, everything is about him.” Jamie thought to herself, annoyed with her father.


The next morning she arrives at school and finds Tyler. They found each other at lunch and he came running up to her and said “Hey Jamie! How was the meeting yesterday?”


“Omg, you aren't going to believe what happened. I got asked to walk in the Victoria Fashion show!”


“That’s awesome! I'm definitely coming when it happens. I'm so proud of you.” Tyler said pulling her in for a tight hug and then they continued to walk around the campus.


Tyler walked Jamie home from school, and they two went inside for lunch.  The warm cheesy Mac and Cheese awaited them. They did their homework together and when they finally finished they sat on the couch and watched TV. Jamie’s phone rang, and it was her brother. With a glistening smile, she answered and she caught him up on the news she got yesterday from the modeling agency. He stopped in the middle of his sentence, and he told Jamie to turn on channel five. She grabbed the remote from Tyler's hands and quickly changed the channel… there it was, her headshot, it was over, everyone found out her secret.


She hung up the phone and sat down on the white couch in the living room next to Tyler. She started sobbing, it was supposed to be her secret that she kept from everyone, but that was all ruined as of two minutes ago. Tyler told her it was fine, and that it was not a big deal. The thing that Tyler did not understand, was that she did not want people knowing because she did not want them to become friends with her because who she is now. She was wanting friends all her life, and they were always mean to her, so why should she be friends with them now?


She returned to school the day after the news came on that told Jamie’s story. Some of the girls in her grade said things to her that made Jamie beyond mad.


“Hey, congrats Jamie that's awesome! Wanna get coffee sometime? Or oh my gosh we are so proud of you!” Once Jamie heard the things that were said to her, she rolled her eyes and continued to walk around the school pretending not to hear them.


Tyler was there for her every step of the way, he attended every photoshoot she had, he attended all the meetings, and he stayed with her at school so she did not have to hear what everyone had to say.


A couple months passed, and it was the big day, the Fashion show. She woke up at four A.M. to get ready for the biggest event of her life. She had a driver pick her up from her house, the car honked its horn and Jamie took her luggage and Tyler grabbed all the extra bags, and they ran down the front stairs. The white stretch limo awaited them with the driver opening the door. They sat at the airport playing games, watching the planes come in, then finally the announcement they were waiting for.


“Flight I12 going to the Dominican Republic, passengers now boarding.”


They arrived at the beach, the water was clear blue and the event was being set up. They stopped for a second, and then someone tapped her on the shoulder.


“Hey, Jamie! Welcome to the show, I’m Gigi, I've walked in this show for a few years now, and I’m so excited you are here!”


“Hi. I'm Jamie and this is my best friend Tyler he's staying with me while we are here.” Jamie said in complete shock.


“One hour ago Gigi Hadid was a famous model that is impossible to meet, and now I am meeting her, and sharing room with her… better yet, I am walking with her in the fashion show.” Jamie said to Tyler and they picked up the bags and continued to walk. Tyler was in the hair and makeup room with her, and calming her nerves and getting her excited.


“Two minutes. Everyone finish the finishing touches!” the man said coming into every room. She was all ready, and she heard the music playing… time to walk off the old times, and come home with a new outlook on life.
After the show was over, they had a party on the beach with celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, the Kardashians, and much more.


“I am a completely new version of myself. Walking In the show changed my life for forever.”



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