Soul Survivor

Jimmy is changing rapidly, in looks & in attitude; it seems that the effects of the shooting are really catching up with him now. Manny is withering into a small shell, changing from the social butterfly to the dark, punkish, outcast. Alex's home life is getting worse by the minute, & her actions are putting her in danger. When they start their own mysterious clique, it will start the wildest love triangle since Crashuella.

Disclaimer: Even though the characters may be a little Out Of Character, but in this story, I do not own degrassi or its characters.

Jimmy's Prolouge: Losing touch

Grade 12 was supposed to be the year for a certain boy named Jimmy Brooks, but over the harsh & long summer without the company of Hazel, as she was traveling with her family, he realized to things.

-He & Hazel were growing apart…

-& he was tired of his life.

It wasn't as if he didn't want to live, but his current life, with the whole popular crew, with Hazel--it just wasn't working anymore. He was tired of being expected to be strong because he was Jimmy--everyone's rock, the person everyone bitches to when they fuck up their own lives. He was tired of it. He just wanted to be Jimmy--the normal high school boy who didn't have money, who didn't have popularity, who didn't know Spinner. He wanted to have all this drama lifted off him--with Paige & Matt, Craig & his illness, Marco & his plethora of problems, he was just tired. He wanted this weight off him, & it was gonna end today.

Jimmy rolled into school as various people waved to him. He smiled warmly, but there was so much pain behind it. He had to find Hazel as fast as he could, to end all of the pain, for her & him.

He had finally found her. She was at her locker, wearing a purple t-shirt, some jeans, & some matching heels. She faintly smelled of vanilla & ocean breeze, & her bright smile was on her face as she turned towards Jimmy. He stopped right in front of her & she bent down & hugged him.

"Hey. How was the trip?" Jimmy asked. He tried so desperately to sound interested, but he knew he wouldn't be.

"It was great! I took a ton of pictures. I'll show them to you at lunch." Hazel said with a wide smile. She had missed Jimmy so much--but not the Jimmy that sat before her.

"Look, Haze…." Jimmy tried to start, but he looked up at Hazel, & she had a look on her face that spelled, 'Please don't end it first, let me.'

"I already know." Hazel said quietly as a single tear ran down her face. "Don't tell me."

"I hope you can understand." Jimmy said as he looked away from her now dark, depressed face. He couldn't stand to see her like this, but it had to be done.

"I do. It was gonna catch up with us one of these days." Hazel said with a straight voice, even though she was crying uncontrollably.

"I…I have to go. See you around." Jimmy looked towards the floor & started rolling past her as she spoke the words he knew he would hear soon enough.

"It's not 'see you around'. It's goodbye." Hazel spoke quietly, but it was loud enough for him to hear. He shook his head & rolled away.

That, was when Jimmy Brooks' life changed forever.

Manny's Prologue: Inner Self

Manny was tired of being known as the 'School Slut'. She was tired of being reminded of the mistakes she made with Craig & Peter. She was tired of her friends, the spirit squad, everything. She looked into the mirror, & for the first time, she felt pretty without looking loose, according to her father. A smile tugged at her lips. That was the first smile she made all summer. She was depressed over the summer, which led her to write songs. She stopped running after the dream of being an actress, & started chasing to be a singer. She wrote more & more, until she had three notebooks full. She had a new notebook now, a purple one. She knew she would write some new songs, & would use up three of them by the end of the year. This year, she was just gonna observe the drama at school.

Manny walked into school & everyone looked at her as if she was mad. But it wasn't like grade 9. She was wearing a black hoodie, with black faded jeans, & some white tennis shoes. She had her hair straightened & with hoped earrings in her hair. She had her nails painted black, & she wore some black eye-liner. She looked towards the floor as she walked, but she met with a pair of feet with two metal plates underneath. She sighed as she looked up & her eyes met Jimmy's deep brown pools.

"Hey. Sorry for being in the way." Manny said as she shoved her hands in her pocket.

"It's okay. Um, you look…different." Jimmy said as he looked at Manny, completely covered for the first time.

"Yeah, I guess so." Manny said as she rolled her eyes a bit, which showed her lightly shaded eyelids.

"Um, you got Kwan for homeroom?" Jimmy asked. Manny sighed as they started to walk down the hall together.

"Yeah, I do. So what if I did?" Manny asked as she looked down at him, her hair falling in her face.

"You wanna walk together?" Jimmy blurted out suddenly & Manny smiled again.

"Um, we already are." Manny said as she raised an eyebrow at him. He laughed a bit as they turned into the classroom.

Looks like Manny had someone who understood her after all.

Alex's Prologue: Broken Home

"What? I can't get that money until next week!" Alex yelled to the man at the door. The man didn't even bat an eye; he just cleared his throat & sighed.

"I'm sorry Ms. Nenez, but If you cannot give me the rent money by Friday, I'm going to have to kick you & your mother out." The man replied as he started to walk away. "Have a good day." He replied.

"Yeah…I will." She said bitterly, then slammed the door. She walked to the couch, which her mother was lying on, recovering from a hangover.

"Guess what ma? We're gonna be kicked out in four days, if I don't get any rent money. And you're just sitting here! You good for nothing…" She cursed herself as she picked up her book bag & walked out of the door, slamming it behind her.

"Ms. Nenez, I would like it if you weren't late for my class." Ms. Kwan said sternly as Alex sighed & waved her hand.

"Okay, okay, sorry." Alex said as she looked around at the tables for somewhere to sit. She saw Jimmy & Manny sitting in the back table & sighed again.

"It's better than nothing." Alex thought as she walked to the back table & sat down.

Alex's is about to have more than rent money for problems soon enough.