Disclaimer: All characters are retained by Cartoon Network and its partners.
Notes: I normally write for the Hannah Montana section but haven't found any inspiration to continue any of my chaptered stories, or create one-shots. And, coincidentally, one of my friends requested I write something for Total Drama Island/Total Drama Action, with her favorite non-canon pairing Noah/Heather incorporated into it, so here it is :) I watched a few of the earlier episodes of TDI, and a few of the TDA episodes, and was fairly surprised there's a small character development in Heather. With that note in mind, I have to admit I'm not entirely familiar with all the series or its characters but I'll try to write them as appropriate as I can.
This is also AU, as in alternate-universe, so TDI/TDA never happened, and all the characters attend the same high school. Reviews would be greaaaat, and enjoy? :)
Chapter One
Inquisitive and thoughtful
She was the challenge he'd been waiting for
A reminder that creativity runs deep like secrets
-Circles, All Time Low.
---
It was on a Thursday afternoon when Noah Daniels discovered two things that irked him more than inadequate literature: tardiness and…
Heather Harris.
He didn't know much about Heather. Besides her rather questionable reputation, that is. He had heard of her name mentioned before -- in between the noisy hallways of his school, or as incoherent whispers from girls and boys alike.
They were more or less all about the same redundant things: Heather was ruthless, malicious, and, on top of that, fairly good-looking. A dangerous mix. She had a dim-witted best friend he'd seen before -- always applying makeup on during class instead of taking notes -- and she had an equally, if not more, attractive boyfriend he wasn't ever fond of.
What none of the rumors or mentions had covered was her surprising failing English grade. Or that he was specifically requested to tutor her.
Or that she liked to run twenty-minutes late to their very first tutoring session their English teacher, Mrs. Letburg, had arranged between the two.
Suddenly the aforementioned girl appeared under the threshold of the school's library with her calculating stare sweeping over the muted room, eventually lowering toward Noah's seated form. She inhaled sharply, mumbling something to her pretty blonde friend, gave her perfect boyfriend a quick kiss, and sauntered to his table, a look of complete and utter disdain painted vividly across her features, and his quirked eyebrow rose even higher. She sat in the opposing seat across from him with the impending snarl never leaving her lips.
"Let's get this straight, geek-ward," she began only to be quickly intervened.
"Don't pretend you don't know my name," he snipped, his eyes falling effortlessly back onto his opened book. "I'm running for senior president next year, remember?"
"I don't remember loser's names," she scoffed, retrieving her own literature book from her yellow purse and placed it imprudently on the table.
Noah rolled his eyes. "If you don't recall, the morning announcements informed us election results will be revealed tomorrow."
"And it's a sure thing that neurotic -- not to mention, completely unfashionable – girl, Courtney, is going to win."
"And your reliable sources are?"
"She's our junior president this year and her gross delinquent boyfriend, of course," answered Heather. "He'll somehow rig the votes. Anyways, I didn't come here to talk about your pathetic defeat in the school election polls."
"Correct. You came here because of your evident inability to read the text in books and retain easy details and plot points," Noah derided, his eyes still resting lethargically on his book. He could feel the heated anger rising from her body.
She stiffened in silent rage, her clenched fists giving way to her outwardly composed appearance. "I've got much better things to do than sit around and waste myself on a book. And I'm in honors."
"Drinking alcohol at parties and threatening to ruin other girls' lives aren't perpetual hobbies that'll get you very far in the future," he replied heedlessly. "And I'm in AP. What's your point?"
"My point is that I'm not as stupid as you think I am, nerd. And I didn't come here to talk about my eccentric life compared to your boring one. In fact, if daddy's insistence that I have good grades wasn't such a pain in my rear-end, I wouldn't even bother talking to you." she sneered. "So consider this a privilege."
"I'm reveling in it as we speak," he assured dryly.
"You just had to be top of Mrs. Letburg's class, didn't you?" frowned Heather.
Noah flipped a page of his book, drawling, "I suppose, for once, applying myself in school is a problem—having to tutor to you and all."
"Whatever. I don't need this now," she hissed.
"No, what you need is a grade that isn't a D- in English," he finished. "And, coincidentally, because you can't get it by yourself, you need my help."
Heather's jaw clenched. "I can ask for someone else, you know."
"Oh please," he sighed dismissingly. "Like anyone else could handle your prissy attitude and that snob quality you carry around oh-so-well. I'm all you got left." He paused to check his watch and returned his eyes back onto his book. "Would you look at that, tutoring session time is up. See you tomorrow."
She grinned cruelly. "Tomorrow? What a shame. Tomorrow's a bad time for me."
"What?" he questioned, his eyebrow arched and defined. "Can't make it to your tutoring session on Friday because you'll be too busy partying and throwing up alcohol all over the place? Pity. I thought you'd be able to sustain your liquor a little more."
"As if I'd tell you why I can't," she hissed sharply in response, tossing her hair promptly over her shoulder before huffing. "But, whatever geekboy, you can think whatever the hell you want about me—"
"Oh, I don't need to think, I know." he informed bitingily.
Heather's eyes narrowed. "You 'know', do you?" she seethed in challenge, crossing her arms across her chest while lucidly leaning back into the plastic chair. "Then, please, by all means enlighten me with your already formed assumptions of my life, twerp."
He peered upwards from the book's text, meeting her flaring eyes with his and he smirked. "Well, for one, I know your twiddle-dumb blonde friend isn't really your friend. In fact, she's the farthest thing from it. You just keep her around so you can simply maintain and control her position in your little high school kingdom."
Pausing only momentarily to punctually close the book in hands, he continued his analysis without falter, "yes, that blonde friend of yours is just a pawn in your little game when you very well know she could be a princess. Because, even if this school thinks you're attractive, you know your friend's better looking. So you agreed to be friends with her when you noticed she was becoming a threat; that she could undoubtedly knock you off your prominent Queen Bitch pedestal and take over.
"You're just all about your appearance; your 'alpha female' necessity. I know it. Why else would you be dating your pretty-boy boyfriend who looks more at himself in a mirror than you? You're well off, you don't need to think of your future, and, therefore, your life lacks any real problems. You just fabricate them to make yourself look interesting. You're just an image and that's all." he concluded dispassionately, that crude corruption to his grin growing.
Heather's lips curled at a cruel angle and he suddenly swallowed in confusion. She didn't look the least bit fazed at his ruthless nit-picking.
"You said that this school thinks I'm attractive," she smirked. "Which I can't say is wrong. But tell me, nerd, you're a part of this educational building like the rest of us—so does that mean you think I'm attractive too?"
Noah leveled his counterpart with a glare and shoved the literature book toward her. "Please, you're as shallow as a puddle. I'd never be interested."
"I didn't ask you if you were interested in me," she sneered amusingly. "I asked you if you thought I was attractive." She took her textbook, shoving it in her large purse before throwing its strap over her shoulder as she rose to her feet. "Of course, you don't need to. I know what you think. In fact, I can read you as well as you think you can read me."
"You're mocking me," he observed tonelessly. "Which is funny -- in a pure hypocritical kind of way -- considering everything I said about you was true, wasn't it?"
She chose to ignore his question and instead pressed, "you'd like to know what I think of you, don't you?"
He wasn't able to respond, his reply dying in his mouth when she began scathingly, "I bet you have a big family, like six brothers and sisters, and you're the middle child. And you busy yourself with being an uptight smartass because you think you'll stand out; that you'll go somewhere in life, and your parents will 'appreciate' you more than the rest of your overachieving siblings. You just want to be noticed and, no matter how hard you try, you're not."
"Oh, trying to dig deep, Queen Bee?" he leered, the usual sarcastic edge equipped to his voice. "I'll commend you on your effort, but you didn't even scratch the surface. However, because you at least tried, I'll let you off this Friday. Go ahead and attend all your social gatherings over the weekend, but tutoring will resume on Monday."
"Jeez, I'm so thankful," she mocked. "And a bit surprised—you're not giving up on me yet?"
"I don't expect a lot from you, but I know how far my limitations can go. Don't assume you'll lose me anytime soon," replied Noah.
Heather's lips thinned. "I'll see you on Monday then."
She left without so much as a goodbye while Noah remained in his seat, allowing himself to return to his book.
Well, that went well.
More Notes: To clear up any possible confusion: yes, Heather's blonde friend Noah referred to is Lindsay. No, Daniels and Harris aren't Noah and Heather's real surnames. And when we have class elections for my school, we have separate presidents/representatives for each class year, and elections run through the middle of the school year. So if you're freshmen you run for sophomore president, if you're a sophomore you run for junior president, and so on.
Anyways, I hoped you guys enjoyed the first chapter despite Noah and Heather's incidental… 'dislike' for one another. They'll get over their prejudices soon enough… I hope, at least. More TDI characters will be introduced as the story progresses, and reviews would be pretty amazing. :)