Melinda Sordino is starting high school with a terrible secret and without any friends. At an end of summer party, Melinda was raped by a senior. Dazed and drunk, she called the police but left before they arrived. Now everyone thinks she called the police to break up the party. Everyone is mad at her, including her group of good friends from middle school. Melinda has told no one, not even her parents. She carries the burden of this alone, confused and inwardly tortured. Once a happy girl, she is now depressed, withdrawn and hardly ever speaks. She doesn't pay attention to how she's dressed and she bites her lips and nails until they bleed. Her grades are terrible. Her parents think she's going through some awful phase. Only Melinda's art teacher, Mr. Freeman, recognizes a talented, creative, yet troubled girl.

In art class, everyone is...