Guess what?

As you can tell, I'm rewriting All We Are.

I apologize for being away for a long time. I was busy, and completely uninspired for ideas for my last attempt at a story, Turn Out the Lights and What Are You Left With. I did attempt to write something for valentines day, but I had some difficulties with it and kept on putting it off.

It's still sitting in one of my folders unfinished :)

BUT-
I recently realized that my original ideas for All We Are, weren't all that bad, but what I had up made me cringe.
So, I'm deleting it and completely re-doing it.

I did make a few changes, however. So if you've read it the old one, I would recommend reading what I post here if your still interested.

My goal is to get most of this story finished and then to post a new chapter each week.
Meaning I have a lot of writing to do :)

But anyway, sorry for the length of this AN.

DISCLAIMER: don't own. and this goes for all chapters posted in this story.

RATED T FOR MINOR SWEARING AND SAFTEY

Chapter One: The Beginning is the End

"Congratulations!"

Claire Lyons carefully prodded her way through the crowd of fresh graduates and their over-emotional parents. Numerous mothers were sobbing while snapping pictures with their small expensive cameras while the fathers were usually standing back looking all proud. But it wasn't an embarrassing sight, really. Or at least, they had the right to act like that.

It wasn't everyday your child graduated from high school.

And Claire's parents were acting the same way, if not worse. Judi Lyons hasn't stop crying all morning, and although she insists she's just sad about having her daughter "leave the nest" and go off to college Claire's pretty sure those are tears of joy. Because with her out of the house she can finally turn her bedroom into a yoga center/tea room/whatever for her and Kendra Block to hang out in.

It's kind of like they can act like teenagers now that their own teenagers are out of the house.

Jay Lyons hasn't displayed any emotion besides smiling for pictures, but Claire caught him flipping through old photo albums the night before. When asked about it, he simply said, "I wanted to reminisce about the time when I had hair".

Todd, Claire's younger brother, acted like he was glad she was leaving so he didn't have to deal with, quote, "those teenage girl hormones" end quote.

"Claire!" someone knocked into her from behind and enveloped her in a hug. So far, all she could see was a mass of red hair in her vision, but it was enough to know that Dylan Marvil was currently attempting to suffocate her.

"Hey Dylan," Claire said. "Where is everyone?"

"Don't know," Dylan released her friend and took a quick scan of the crowd. "I was looking for them myself. But can you believe it? We've graduated!"

"Yeah, high school. But college is another four years for most of us," Claire reminded her.

"I think we can do it." Dylan was offered an internship at The Daily Grind, where her mother hosts. But she turned it down and decided to fend for herself of at Dartmouth University in New Hampshire. Claire was proud that her friend chose not to rely on her mother for a good career.

"Yeah, maybe we should go find Massie," Claire suggested.

"It's too crowded, it'll take forever." Dylan raised the bottom of her graduation gown until she could get her cell phone out of her pocket. "I'll just text her."

Claire waited patiently as Dylan sent out a text to their MIA friend. Seconds later, she received a reply.

"She's said she's sitting on the front steps with Alicia and Kirsten," Dylan snapped her phone closed. "Let's go."

Claire followed Dylan as they weaved through the crowd. On their way over, Claire noticed fellow graduates Becca Wilder and Liz Goldman posing for pictures with their relatives, which reminded her that she hadn't seen her family since they were dismissed from the diploma ceremony.

The front steps to the Westchester High School were in plain sight once the crowed thinned out, and sure enough there sat Claire and Dylan's three missing friends wearing robes identical to theirs, with the exception of one having the valedictorian collar.

"There you guys are," Dylan and Claire took a seat on the step.

"Yep, here we are," The brunette girl with the striking amber eyes who had spoken was none other than Massie Block. Having a reputation for being "alpha" of their grade, Massie is perceived as being bitchy and fake. Claire herself even though so, but that was before they became friends. Massie is actually down to earth and insightful of other's feelings, but she had, as what most therapists would call a 'trust issue'. When meeting new people or talking to those outside of her circle, she closes up and brings on the cold front.

But throughout the years, Claire has noticed Massie improve on her people skills. She isn't as focused on material things like she used to be, and she can now talk to who she used to call an LBR for ten minutes without insulting them.

A personal record.

"How did you guys like my speech?" Claire's other friend and class valedictorian Kristen Gregory asked. Kristen was literally a grade A overachiever. For the past four years she hasn't scored anything lower than an A minus in every class, earning her a pretty much full ride to Yale. To pay for the rest she juggled a part time job at the Slice of Heaven (a pizza parlor where they've been eating at since the seventh grade) and soccer practices for a team she also captains.

Claire was almost certain Kristen could be the president if she wanted to.

"It was so moving, I almost cried," Alicia Rivera said in monotone. The majority of the student body describes the exotic raven-haired knockout simply as ambitious. Having schemed her way to her spot as captain of the cheer squad, it was no wonder most of the girls in their grade were a little weary of her. Not that Alicia minded. Minus present company, she preferred to spend her time with the males of Westchester High School.

But it's not as if they minded either.

Claire rolled her eyes at Alicia's sarcastic gesture. "Don't listen to her Kris. It was fantastic. I swear I could hear my mom bawling from my seat in the front row."

"I thought that was Kemp sneezing," Dylan joked, causing the group to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Derrick Harrington seemed to appear from thin air as he took a seat next to Massie. He landed a kiss on her cheek before slinging his toned arm around her shoulders and pulling her close.

"Bleh," Dylan made a face. "PDA, god. You'd think you two would have some class."

"And you'd think you'd be used to it by now," Josh Hotz, who was usually never far behind his blonde friend, leaned up against the railing with his own graduation gown flapping in the wind.

"Hey," Kristen stood up, her face glowing, and hugged her boyfriend.

"PDA" Dylan coughed.

Laughter went around the group, and the two separated. Blushing, Kirsten hoisted herself up to have a seat on the railing but not before frowning at Dylan.

"So where are Kemp and Chris?" Claire asked Derrick.

Kemp Hurley and Chris Plovert were the other two boys who hung out with Josh and Derrick. The two of them were notorious perverts, but as they've matured they haven't attempted to put a camera in the girls locker room as much as they used to, having them always being found out by the P.E. teacher Ms. Watts.

"Chris left right after the ceremony with his family because they wanted to have an early family dinner, and Kemp went with Griffin to get a keg for some kind of party thing tonight," Derrick explained.

"Sounds like loads of fun," Claire said, although she didn't sound too excited.

"Oh come on Claire," Massie said. "You haven't been to a party since last year."

"Not true," The blonde argued back. "I went to your start-of-school thing."

"Yeah, that I had to drag you out of your house to go to," Massie pointed out. "I mean, I'm sorry but you just can't not live your life becau-"

"Okay, okay I get it," Claire stopped her friend from continuing that sentence. Bringing up that part of her past would be too painful.

A sorrowful silence fell over the teenagers after that. All of them knew what Massie and Claire were talking about, and it was painful for them too.

"So, who's in for a last slice of pizza at Slice of Heaven?"

The seven of them soon found themselves huddled in a booth (still in their graduation attire), clinking their cups full of root beer and seeing how fast they can eat a slice of the specialty.

For them, what was to come is their beginning- their chance to start over and make something of themselves.

But it was also the end. The end of attending a familiar school and seeing the faces they've grown accustomed to over the years. The end of worrying about the best way to catch somebody's attention. The end of high school.

I won't lie,
Reviews would motivate me to write faster :)