The bell rang to signify the end of school. Students swarmed the halls as they made their way outside. They didn't have a care in the world. They weren't charity cases.

Marie remained in the stall as the bathroom filled with girls all chatting and laughing. Marie stayed quiet, staring at the floor. In fifteen minutes, the halls would empty. Then she could go home. Her mind went through all the different possibilities of how to never return to this school. She considered running away, pretend to be a hobo, but she knew her dad would miss her. And she doubted it would last long.

Her dad always left for work before her, so she could pretend to get ready and simply not come. It might work for half a day, but the school would find out and report it to her dad.

Maybe she could fight the social experiment, say it wasn't working. Force them to send her to a school she was qualified for.

The halls emptied. Marie waited another fifteen minutes for good measure. Her phone was buzzing like crazy. It was texts from Albert, Abe, and Billy, all giving her encouragement. Abe kept assuring her no one would remember this tomorrow. Albert promised the song wasn't nearly as bad as she thought. Billy texted her that the song was awesome, a beautiful proclamation of human nature, a work of art, and she shouldn't be ashamed of it. The thing was, Marie knew Billy meant every word of his compliment. She wasn't sure how to take it, since Edgar was included in his list of brilliant people.

The texts turned to them asking where she was and if she was okay. Marie ignored all of them. She didn't want to talk to them, or anybody. She dreaded going home and facing her dad. He'd ask about her day, and she wasn't prepared to give him a believable lie.

Marie took a deep breath and left the bathroom stall. It had been silent for a while now. She glanced in the mirror and saw her whole face was a mess. Marie grabbed a few paper towels, put a bit of water on them, and wiped the make-up off her face. What was the point of hiding her zit if she belted from the top of her lungs about it?

The mirror reflected an inadequate Marie, both inside and out. She wasn't pretty, and she wasn't smart. In her eyes, she saw the internal struggle of her self worth. The little confidence she had was squashed by lunch time. Maybe she was destined to flip burgers and wait tables the rest of her life.

The wet paper towel crumpled in her fist and she threw it at her reflection. She stormed out of the bathroom and left Presley High, for what she hoped was for good. She was a block away when she realized she didn't have her backpack or her lunch box. She left both in the cafeteria when she ran away after her song.

Her phone kept buzzing with texts. She pulled out her phone, ready to turn it off, when she realized her dad was calling her. Her breathing turned ragged. She wasn't sure she was prepared to have this conversation, but she didn't want to worry him. She stared at the pavement as she walked, the autumn sun beating down as she flipped open the phone.

"Marie?" her dad asked, sounding nervous. "Are you okay?"

No matter how well she prepared, hearing her dad's voice almost made her crack. She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Yeah. Fine. Why did you call?" Her nonchalance almost sounded believable.

"Because I'm home and you're not here."

Had she really waited in the stalls that long? "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." Her voice cracked at the last word, and tears sprang to her eyes. She already sang a song, but she hurried to the metro station just in case.

"Marie?" Her father sounded afraid. "Are you okay?"

Marie felt like she'd chewed her lip clean off. She closed her eyes as more tears raced down her cheeks. She tried to hide them from the curious and sympathetic metro goers. "I'll... see you in a bit. Just getting on the metro. Can't hear very well."

It was partially true. She took a deep breath to steady herself as she closed the phone. She was about to drop it in her pocket when she felt it buzz again. She looked down and saw a text from Sophie.

Ug. My parents are on one today.

Marie stuffed the phone back in her blazer pocket, feeling sick to her stomach. She wished this day never existed. She wished she and Sophie could text in a carefree way about their upcoming slumber party and complain about her parents.

She spent the entire metro going over everything she would have to say to her dad. She practiced it quietly, trying not to let the tears overwhelm her. She couldn't sob in front of her dad. She had to be strong.

He was waiting at the door, a look of concern so deep on his face that the rickety dam she kept trying to nail back together broke completely before she entered the apartment. She couldn't smile and pretend everything was alright. Everything was not all right. She covered her face as she sobbed. Her dad put an arm around her and ushered her into the apartment. They sat at the table.

"What happened? I got a call from Presley High saying you missed your last two classes of the day. Are you feeling alright?"

Marie fumbled her way through the story. She had to tell him about the freshman test announcement, because she didn't tell him about it before. She attempted to tell him about how she performed at the freshman test, how she butchered it, how she embarrassed herself in front of a cafeteria full of laughing students. She could never return to school. She didn't know how much of it her dad got since Marie couldn't stop crying.

By the time Marie finished her story, she still had a steady stream of tears running down her face, but she stopped making weird choking noises. She kept her face covered, embarrassed about how she acted in front of her dad.

Her dad gathered her into a hug, and she buried her tear stained face into his shirt. "Marie, I don't care what a freshman test says about your intellect. You are incredible at science! I know you'll be recognized all over Musical Land for your contributions there!"

Marie pulled away and dried her eyes. "I have to survive high school, first."

She finished almost four weeks of her freshman year. How was she going to make it the rest of the year, let alone another three?

Her dad about said something when there came a knock at their apartment door. A flicker of confusion flitted through his eyes. No one had called from below. Marie turned away to try and dry her eyes. Was she loud enough for one of the neighbors to hear her? Her dad got up and walked to the door. After looking through the peep hole, his body seemed to stiffen.

"Dad? Who is it?" Marie asked.

Instead of answering, he opened the door, and Marie felt everything inside her seize up. A woman with brunette hair in a tight bun stood there, holding a brief case. She wore a business suit and an attitude of someone Marie didn't want to cross.

Marie swallowed as she slowly stood up, then glanced at her dad. She had no idea what to do. He frowned, and Marie noticed a small bead of sweat forming on his forehead.

"May we help you?" he asked.

The brunette stepped into the apartment.

"You are Marie Curie and her father, Vlad?" she asked.

They both nodded.

"I am an agent from the Singing Enforcement Agency. I heard some disheartening news about Marie Curie from her high school, and was asked to bring her in."

Marie's pulse quickened and found herself needing every oxygen molecule in the immediate vicinity.

Her dad inched closer to Marie. "What have you heard?"

"We have a print out of the song she did for her freshman test." The brunette pulled out a paper from her briefcase and handed it over to Marie's dad. "If you read the lyrics, you will know why we need to take her in."

Marie felt tears come as her dad glanced through the lyrics quickly.

"I mean, they're certainly...creative." Marie turned away, not wanting to catch his eye. "But she finished the song. Marie did nothing illegal."

The lump in her throat threatened to strangle her.

"Nothing illegal, certainly. But it is a jumbled mess with no rhyme nor reason to them, Vlad. This is concerning for us at the S.E.A. We must bring Marie in."

Her dad put a hand on Marie's shoulder. She hugged herself, still staring at the ground. She didn't know if she was allowed to say anything.

"What will you do?" her dad asked.

"We'll run some tests to make sure the chip is working. If it's not a faulty chip, we'll reassess and see how best to help your daughter. Her education is our greatest concern."

Marie swallowed nothing but air as she focused her attention on her dad. She felt helpless. The S.E.A. were right. She was an awful singer and needed help. Her dad didn't look convinced.

"I'm coming with her while you do these tests." He wore a prominent frown. "I don't think there's anything wrong with her singing."

The brunette looked at him as though he was joking. "If you insist."