At the time, I was still struggling with deflecting compliments. (It's a girl thing.) I was specifically trying NOT to say, "It's nothing special." Even though that was my first reaction. I hadn't yet gotten to the point where I could honestly say, "Thank you," and mean it. Teenaged girls are pretty messed up. I suspect teenagers in general are pretty messed up, but I can only personally confirm the life of a teenaged girl. We're desperate to be noticed, and then horrified to stand out from our peers in any way. Fortunately, we can grow out of that stage. Not that everyone does -- but they can.