"Curnen's already helping me. So is Coby once in a while," She replied. "And Miguel. He's cute. He might be young, but he's smart."

She leaned against the counter casually.

"I mean, I'm not saying no forever, but I'm finally somewhere where I'm not running from aliens or FBI or dealing with weird alien crap and I want to relax." She explained. "Besides, I already had an offer to go to New York back home from the songs I've written. I might not be Alanis perfect right now, but I know what I want to sing about."

For Maria, music was one of the clear aspects of her life. She had a hard time making decisions on everything else, but music came naturally.

"I know I'm a kid and 'I've got lots to learn'," Maria said with finger air quotes. "But what's wrong with my perspective right now? My beliefs at my age are just as valid how I want to express them now then if I graduate in a year, you know? But for your information, I happen to read those kinds of things for fun. I just don't see the need to sit down and write an essay on it."