A/N As promised a new multi-chapter story. A High School AU! I've wanted to write one of these for House, for ever so... I finally did, and here's the first chapter. Read it, and enjoy.
Disclaimer: When pigs other than the one that hangs from my ceiling by fishing line fly I will own House. Which isn't now if you were wondering.
The rain had finally stopped, but that didn't make the moving boxes any less soggy, or the things inside any less wet. The tarp hadn't helped at all. Remy knew that they should have rented a U-haul. But according to her dad there wasn't enough money.
Remy Hadley was currently moving into her third house of the year, and out of her second, well that was actually an apartment. She and her father had moved a total of six times since her mother had died two years ago, and she was getting sick of it.
She was sixteen, and every time, except the first she had to change schools.
She heaved her stack of boxes up attempting not to get the front of her shirt wet. The teenage brunette looked up at the sound of her father's shouting.
"How many times have I told you? Don't slam the door!" He tore the bright blue tarp off of the bed of the truck, where it had been covering their boxes, the last of the things from their old house.
Having moved so many times Remy was down to five mid-sized boxes of things. Mostly clothes, and sheets, and other things of that sort.
The rough movement of the protective barrier to their things caused the drops, and small puddles of rain water to coming pouring off and into the bed of the truck. Some hitting Remy and the stack of three moving boxes she held. To which she let out a small huff of frustration, just loud enough for her father to hear.
"What are you complaining about now?" He attempted to fold the big sheet, dampening himself horribly. The thing made his tall lanky form look almost comically thin. He was barely bigger than his teenage daughter, but that was were the similarities stopped. As her father had reminded her so many times, and not in the nicest ways most of them. Remy got her looks from her mother.
He attempted to look tough with his truck, and all the yelling. But he was still an accountant at heart,and the nerd attributes that came with it shone through. Even if he had lost, or as he claimed, quit his job over a year ago.
"We should have gotten a U-haul or something. It's all soaked." Remy turned to their new house, a little one story thing, with barely any yard, and no drive way. Squashed between two bigger homes.
"How many times do I have to tell you, there's no money. You should be glad I still have enough to feed, and cover your skinny ass." The brunette flinched at the last comment. There was really no money left. He didn't even feed or clothe her, what her mother had left behind in social security, and life insurance did.
Remy pulled out her key, smooth, silvery and new, just made by the land lord. She stuck it in the lock, and turned, opening the door. Hoping that maybe this house would be the last. At least for a while. At least until she got done with high school, or turned eighteen.
XxXxXxX
It was early, really, early in the morning. Remy lay flat on her back. Playing with the strings of her pajama pants. Twisting, turning, tying, untying. Pulling until the waist band was uncomfortably tight. Then loosening them.
While her mind wandered, to all of the possibilities of what this new school could be like. They were in Princeton New Jersey, actually closest to her original home that she had been since their second move. That is still she was still far from that place. Far from where she had grown up, where she had lived with her mom.
The thought of her mom didn't sting as much as it used to. She wondered if it did for her dad. She actually didn't care, her dad wasn't the man he used to be. Not the man that had taken care of her when her mother no longer could.
She rolled on her side, staring at the blank wall. She rolled over again. To stare at the other wall. The room was really empty except for her bed, and the pile of boxes, opened with things spilling out of them. She had been living here for three days, and still the room didn't feel anymore like home.
Remy let out a huff, she knew she needed to sleep. But she could swear there was a whole flutter of butterflies in her stomach. She pressed her palms to them. Curling her fingers tightly and leaving bright pink lines behind on her stomach. As if she could open herself up and release the metaphorical creatures.
She guessed she must have fallen asleep, because she woke up to the blaring of her alarm clock. Sitting on the floor next to her bed, she nearly fell out of it trying to reach the irritating mechanism, and turn it off. Then she sat up, running her fingers through her tangled hair, and taking in her room, in the faint light of early morning.
Today was her first day at East Princeton High School.
XxXxXxX
Remy rocked back and forth slowly, barely noticeably in the plastic chair in the main office of her new high school. She hoped this was the last one for a while. She needed something solid.
She slid her thumbs down the inside of her suspenders, pulling them away just slightly from her body. Before letting the snap back, over the front of her plaid blue and purple plaid shirt, buttons up to the top three buttons. Loosely tucked into her skinny jeans. Tapping her converse rhythmically to a tune stuck in her head. She ran her fingers through her hair. Looking around at the somewhat empty office. She was fidgety.
A secretary sat behind a desk doing something with a lot of paper. She turned to the other secretary, who was working on her computer. Her eyes traveled to a teenage honey blonde, sitting off to the corner. Doodling in a notebook. She didn't seem to be in trouble. Maybe an office worker?
"Remy Hadley?" A voice jolted her out of her thoughts. Her father was already standing and going to the woman who had called them. She stood, the butterflies from earlier back full force.
"Hello, I'm Ms. Hawthorne, I'm the guidance counselor. I'd like to first welcome you to East Princeton." They entered another office inside of the main office. Lead by a, about mid-thirties curly red head. With a couple papers in her hand. She sat down behind the desk. Smiling warmly, and setting her papers down.
"Hello Ms. Hawthorne. I'm Joseph, and of course this is my daughter Remy." Mr. Hadley made a small gesture in Remy's direction, who stood awkwardly next to him. She really was amazed at how her father could put up that face, and talk to people as if he was still the same man he had been before her mother died.
She smiled back a Ms. Hawthorne. Pulling her hands from her pockets, and offering the guidance counselor her left.
"Hi, nice to meet you." The red head took it a gave it a small firm shake. Before scooping the papers back up from her desk.
"This is you schedule." She handed Remy the one on the top. Then her father the other. "And this is her emergency card, just information we may need, in case something happens. Although, hopefully nothing will."
Remy scanned over her schedule. Nothing to major, she did notice her advanced classes, the same as her last school. She then looked back up at Ms. Hawthorne, for the first time noting the Ms. Not Mrs. or, Miss. As she caught sight of her name plate.
"So, are you starting today?" She asked, sitting back down behind her desk, scanning over the surface of it. Which Remy noted was spick and span, not the usual clutter that you'd find on, just about any desk. Remy glanced at her father, really not wanting to. He just gave her a pointed look.
"I guess." She shrugged, shoving her hands back into her pockets. Not sure what to do with herself.
"Well here's a pass to your second period class." The guidance counselor said, while scribbling on a small square of paper. "I hate sending you into things like this." She handed the young brunette the pass. "But we don't have much choice, I would have loved to show you around if you had gotten here earlier. You know what! I'll have Amber show you to your classes!" She stood up and ducked out the door of her office.
"Amber? Could you show Remy to where her classes are? She's new." Remy cringed at the word, new, she'd come to hate it, and what it meant to the other kids over the past four schools. The honey blonde Remy had noticed earlier stood in the doorway.
"Of course." The blonde leaned against the doorway, looking at the new girl. With a bit of interest, with that usual stand-offish-ness that Remy had gotten used to. She was new, it was the middle of high school, this girl wasn't looking for friends.
"Well I hope to see you again, Mr. Hadley, or maybe not... I am the guidance counselor." Ms. Hawthorne smiled at Remy's father. He nodded, then gave Remy a look. She glanced away, then he left, with a simple, 'have a nice day.'
"So, my classes?" Amber smiled at that. A weird smug smile, Remy wasn't so sure about this girl. She followed the blonde out of the office, a little behind her. She was wearing a skirt, just a bit too short than Remy wasn't sure she'd deem appropriate for school. But didn't mind. Watching the blonde's long legs.
"Yeah, can I see your schedule?" She asked slowing and reaching out a hand. Remy quickly flicked her eyes up from her examination of her guide. She didn't exactly need rumors about her sexuality fluttering around on the first day. "Woah, you have a lot of advanced classes." Amber looked up at the Remy. They started to walk with more direction as the girl planned out the best route to show Remy her classes.
"Remy Beauregard Hadley?" Yes, Remy didn't like this girl.
"Actually, you can just call me Thirteen." She fell into step with the other girl, as they walked to the stairs.
"Thirteen?" She asked with the same amount of sneering sarcasm as she had Beauregard. "Why?" Really, really didn't like this girl.
"Just a nickname I picked up." Remy shrugged. "It's a long story." She added at the arched eyebrow of the mini skirted girl.
"Okay, Thirteen, here's your Economics class." Amber pointed to a closed door. "It's pretty boring, but he doesn't give much homework." She shrugged, and kept walking.
"And your AP Biology." The tour went on, but Remy stopped listening to Amber's comments. Just where her classes were. Why was it that these attractive girls usually ended up as total bitches?
Finally they reached her Calculus class, and Remy left Amber. The butterflies in her stomach calmed, and she was hoping to get through the day easily, or the week, or possibly the rest of the year?
XxXxXxX
"Have you seen the new girl?" Gregory House asked leaned against his palms, elbows on the lunch table. Studying the brunette he had just mentioned, who was sitting at a table across the cafeteria. Jabbing at her food, stirring it around.
"Yeah." Lisa Cuddy, his girlfriend responded. Looking up at her boyfriend with a raised eyebrow. "Why?"
"I don't know, there's something about her." He stated. Glancing back to look his girlfriend in the eye.
"House, you can't use people like puzzles. Lisa, you need to buy him a jigsaw puzzle, or Tetris, or I don't know, clue. Something to keep him busy while you're not." James Wilson stated from his place around their lunch table.
"I don't want to use her like a puzzle, doesn't she look, I don't know different to you? There's something about her..." House gestured to the brunette, who was keeping her eyes down and trying not to draw attention to herself, the first day in the cafeteria.
She had learned not to try to sit with people, either let them come to you, or sit at their table before they get there.
"She's in my biology, honors English, Calculus class. I mean, me and Cameron are the only ones in that many advanced classes..." House trailed off. Looking absentmindedly for the blonde he'd just mentioned.
"Yes House, we know, you're very smart. Hate to break it to you, but you're not the only one." Eric added to the conversation. Glancing back and forth to his friends and the new girl all the same.
"But she's smart, and hot. There's got to be something else there. Ow!" He yelled out at the end, as his girlfriend punched him in the arm.
"I'm smart and hot." She stated.
"And you're dating House, obviously something's wrong." Amber chuckled out.
"Speaking of smart hot, messed up girl's, where's Cameron?" House leaned back in his seat looking this way and that for the missing member of their circle.
"Her and Chase are fighting again." Eric stated into his lunch. Nervously rubbing his jeans as he divulged the proof that his best friend's relationship was obviously dissolving further, and faster than the others had thought.
"I think I should go find her." Lisa stood, her eyes flicking back to the brunette in the corner. As she thought of her best friend fighting with her on-and-off boyfriend.
The brunette's steal blue eyes flicked up to meet hers. A challenge written all over her face. From the raised eyebrows, to the teasing smirk. The way she looked through her bangs at her. Lisa felt a bit intimidated. Lisa Cuddy did not get intimidated, especially not by new girls sitting all alone in the corner of the cafeteria wearing suspenders.
Remy knew they had been watching her, and talking about her, little did she know that it was actually good for her.
Little did she know that if Cuddy didn't have to go find her best friend and make sure that she was alright, and hadn't broken up with her boyfriend, or worse been broken up with. That she probably would be walking over there to invite her to her table. Even if it was to sate her boyfriend's need to figure out a puzzle. This girl puzzled her a bit too.
A/N Ta-dah! So this is of course just the beginning, it will get much, much better. I have a plan, and there will be Camteen. But I have to lay the groundwork, and I have to make sure people want to read it. So tell me if you do. Tell me if you want me to go on. No point writing it if you don't want to read it. (But I really really want to write it. So tell me you want to read it.)