Maria has had a hard life. She was abused by her biological father when she was younger and has had to watch her single mother struggle financially.
She is outgoing and positive in spite of everything she's been through. Her motto is why dwell on something you can't fix and feel sorry for yourself when you can strive to make your tomorrow better? She finds it easy to talk to those older than her but struggles when it comes to those her age or men she finds attractive, as she feels she is always being judged and looked down upon. She is insecure and self conscious about her looks because she feels she is plain compared to the teeny bopper girls she's surrounded by. In reality she is gorgeous and more real than any of the other girls.
She puts her heart on the line when it comes to love and has been hurt by more than one guy who she thought she could trust. She has spent her life trying to impress guys....now she's ready for a guy to impress her. She believes that looks aren't everything
Derek is her first real boyfriend and she knows that with him, it's real
Maria is polite, smart, mature, courageous, outgoing, funny, charming, loyal and faithful