I came to your fictionpress account from your Fanfiction account, and I have to say, I really relate to your story, and your experience. Infact, this was something I really needed to read, so I knew I could relate to someone on this kind of issue.
I recently came back from a trip to Ottawa with my school (Middle school, sadly not as cool as you) and it was a long, fun bus trip, with acapella renditions of Don't Stop Believing everytime there was a silence of more than thirty seconds. The second night, for dinner, they took us to the Hard Rock Cafe and... I don't know. They weren't serving drinks or anything, obviously, but the music was near defening, and... y'know what kind of lyrics are popular these days. Two friends and I managed to convince a parent to take us to Starbucks, with was fun, and we just hung out there until it was time to go back to the hotel. It was nice.

Oh god... heh heh... sorry to bother you with that story ^.^; I just kinda wanted to share, y'know? Anyway, your writing is absolutely brilliant, fanfiction and essay, and I hope you enjoy it, because I enjoy reading it. Thank you for being awesome :)