Bold, Bitter, Black.

Author's Note: I wrote this piece to achieve my goal of getting scored a 10 on word choice. This scene in narrated by a blind man who wants more than anything to be able to see again. Let me know how you like it!

As I sit on the hot, dry sand of Pewaukee Beach, I can hear the sound of laughter coming from the children around me. A cool breeze blows against my skin as the night grows older and the sun begins to tuck away until morning. I try to think back to the last time I watched the big, golden mass of fire hit the clear, blue waves of the lake creating even more color and immensity to the already beautiful image. But I can't recall it. I can't see it. It has been far too long since the last time I had opened my eyes to absorb the natural beauties of our world. The wonders of an unforetold future that we take advantage of day after day. Suddenly, the "ooo's", "aww's" and gasps of amazement coming from  people around me sends me plummeting back into reality. A lady next to me nudges my arm and in an anxious tone of voice insists me to look up and experience the astonishing sight they all are watching. But when I do, when I open my eyes and aim my face towards the sky, all I see is bold, bitter, black. 

From Rags to Riches

From the beginning to the end of the book Pretty Little Liars, by Sarah Shepard, Hanah Martin changed herself and her image so drastically, classifying herself a dynamic character. She started off as an overweight, insecure, bullied seventh grade girl but once meeting, befriending and falling under the influence of Ali DiLirentes, her whole life began to change.

Once Ali identified and expressed to Hanah that her weight effects the way people see her and her popularity status, Hanah decided to re-invent herself. So after Ali's passing, Hanah ocuired a sever case of bulimia. With this, she lost so much weight she went from being unquestionably the largest girl in her school to being one of the skinniest. And because of her dramatic change of weight, Hanah also dropped multiple clothing sizes forcing her to have to buy a completely new wardrobe. With her mom's credit card and help from her new best friend, Mona Vanderwal, Hanah proceeded to purchase the entire Louis Viton store and every Chanel handbag on the market.

Now, with her new look also came a new attitude. As her apperence changed her popularity grew, and as people began to look up to her, she started to look down on them. Because she was forced to live in Ali's shadow her whole life, Ali's old and bitter attitude was beginning to rub off on Hanah. She then proceeded to claim her role as alpha and rule the school.

Now, as you can see, one summer changed Hanah a lot. It brought her a new look, new friends and a new attitude. This same occurrence happened in the book Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson. On the last day of school, main character, Melinda Sordino, called the cops on an 'end of the year' high school party after being sexually assaulted there. Melinda's image changed a lot after that one summer, too. She was neglected by all of her old friends who thought she called the cops due to the amount of under aged kids drinking alcohol at the party. She also became quieter; much, much quieter. Getting a word out of Melinda was as rare as an honest politician. And her nervousness and anxiety caused her to form the habit of biting her bottom lip leaving huge scars in its place making her look much less appealing.

The difference, though, between these two characters was that Melinda went from being one of the most popular girls in school to being the girl who didn't have anyone to sit next to at lunch and spent her weekends sitting in her bedroom alone. On the other hand, Hanah had gone from an over weight, bullied child to a popular, beautiful teenager. She changed herself for, what she thought was to be for the better. But, what she didn't realize was that even though she may have been becoming a better version of herself, it negatively impacted others.

The way she saw herself was just like the way Ali had seen herself; superior. One big change in Hanah's attitude, as stated before, was the way she saw others. She would act as though she were greater than them which made them feel inferior. Many people were intimidated of her, especially her old friends. Hanah's change influenced their lives as much as it did hers. They began to loose their confidence and feeling of importance when Hanah would put them down. And as she acted cruelly to them, they began to act cruelly to each other. All four girls lost a great amount of respect for themselves after Hanah started to act this way.

Her whole life, Hanah Martin wanted so desperately to be popular, look beautiful and feel good about herself. But, during this book, when her wishes were fulfilled and her prayers were answered, her change wound up leaving her with an empty feeling inside. And it kept one question constantly weighing on her mind: Was all of this really worth it?