Disclaimer: I do not own the members of The Breakfast Club
John was called to Vernon's office midway through first period. Of course, he was immediately blamed for the little slip up that took place at Shermer High, as with every little slip up. Usually, however, every accusation was completely appropriate. While Shermer High School wasn't completely delinquent free, mostly every act of bad character that was worth mentioning was on John's record.
"You have five minutes to tell me how to take it off." Vernon warned, glaring at John, and seething with anger. It amused John that someone like Vernon thought he was actually intelligent enough to tap into all the school's computers and pretty much put them on lockdown, with added Vernon-hump screensaver. True, John was wittier than the average criminal, and he had an immense vocabulary for his age to prove for it, but he wasn't a computer genius by any means. John Bender had never even turned on a computer; that would have involved him showing up to his computer class maybe once in his life.
"Take what off, Dick?" John asked, smiling and leaning back in his seat. Vernon didn't know it, but by saying that John was clever enough to hack into the school computer system and cause havoc that not even a paid hacker could diagnose, was probably the biggest compliment he'd ever gotten. He was half tempted to claim that he, indeed, had done it, just to encourage any further thoughts of him having the know how.
"You know damn well what, Bender," Vernon said upon standing up and closing the door to his office, signaling that he meant business, "you're going to take it off of every computer, and you're going to do it by third period, or I'm going to add a two month suspension to the four months worth of detentions you're already getting." Vernon threatened, changing John's attitude about taking credit for Brian's handiwork.
"While I appreciate your benevolent suggestion, do you really think I did whatever it is you're talking about if it has to do with computers? You're looking for someone with a pocket protector." John corrected, slanting an eyebrow. The only time he'd ever even touched a computer was when he had knocked the one off the desk in the library, and he knew Vernon knew that.
"Listen to me you little prick, I know you had something to do with this, and you can bet that I'm going to find out how, and when I do, you'll be a ghost here." Vernon threatened, pointing a threatening finger at John, who in turn let out a sigh and looked down at his hands as he played with his gloves, uninterested in Vernon's empty threats. There was no way he could pin this on him, and both of them knew it.
"I'm shaking." He answered in monotone. Sarcasm, of course, was one of the key points to John's method of pissing Vernon off. It showed that he didn't care about Vernon's power, and that he had absolutely no respect for him. It drove the principal mad; John Bender was the biggest blip in the crazy dream Vernon had of everyone at the school loving and looking up to him, and every sarcastic remark just made it worse.
"Fix it Bender." Vernon demanded, entering the point where he was too pissed to make anymore threats. The day John Bender turned eighteen and could drop out of high school was practically marked on Vernon's calendar. He was tired of all the games; John had gotten to have his little fun and now he was going to remove it, or Vernon wasn't waiting for him to leave. He was prepared to kick the shit out of him right then and there.
"I don't know how." Bender replied, actually telling the truth to Vernon for once in his life. Of course, even if he did know how, he'd accept expulsion before he undid the greatest prank ever to be pulled at their humdrum high school. At Shermer High, someone spilling milk on themselves in the cafeteria was traditionally considered newsworthy. John would never just undo the most exciting thing that was probably ever going to happen, no matter what Vernon threatened.
"Fix it!" Vernon ordered again, this time with more authority and control in his voice. He had thought he made so much progress with the little asshole in the closet that Saturday. He'd starred at him blankly, speechless, practically the whole time. He'd taken in what Vernon had said, and actually thought about it. What the hell had happened to all that? He'd broken down the infamous John Bender, only to watch him return to his same asshole self that same week at that fucking bonfire. And now he suddenly had computer skills?
"I don't know how," John insisted in a more annoyed and persuading voice, finally lifting his head to look at Vernon, "I'm not the only one who could have done it; the world is filled with assholes." He explained, amazed that Vernon still legitimately thought he had the capabilities of pulling the prank. He'd been in the office a good fifteen minutes already and realization still hadn't struck.
"You think you're so clever John? You think pulled one over on old Mr. Vernon? You haven't won anything Bender. If you don't fix it, I'll have a trained professional do it, I would just highly suggest you do before I find proof that this was you and I give you so many detentions that they'll carry over to the summer, now do I make myself clear? Or should I tell your sister knock some sense into you?" He asked, earning himself a cozy position under John's skin.
John hadn't talked to Nina at all since he found out she was dating his principal. He had partly assumed that she'd already used him. Taken all the money he was worth, told him she was no longer interested, and then sent him on his way like she had done with every other man she'd ever been with. In fact, Vernon had long since extended his period with Nina; John had figured it had to be over. She was probably staying with him longer than planned just because she knew it pissed John off.
John lifted his head and glared at Vernon. Richard had managed digging his way into the center of his biggest enemy's family. He could attack John from the inside now, and as long as he had that power, Nina could probably take a shit on his mantle and he'd do double flips backwards just to please her. She wasn't just a pretty girl to him anymore, she was his key.
"That's right," Vernon said with a smile, inching himself closer to John's face, "she absolutely loves me. I treat her like a little princess and she adores it. You know, I think sometime within the next couple months, I'll even propose to her. Would you like that John?" He asked, putting his hand on his shoulder.
"Don't fucking touch me!" John shouted as he leapt from his seat and pushed Vernon back, making him stumble, "you really think I give a shit who that cunt dates? And as for as expelling me goes, fucking do it, you think I'm not out of here as soon as possible anyways?" He asked, causing such a commotion that he could be heard by everyone in the library and hall outside the door.
"Sit down." Vernon ordered, pointing a finger to the chair. While he loved the little outburst of anger, he had to remember where he was. He wasn't about to lose his job over a little shit like John.
"Go fuck yourself." John replied before he prepared to make his exit, knocking over a desk with multiple stacks of paper and Vernon's personal office phone on top. He had decided to add one more goal to his list of life changes; destroy Dick.
John had elected to skip the rest of the day; maybe even the week too. What was Vernon going to do; suspend him? The sooner that asshole got fed up with him and kicked him out of that fucking school, the better. Next time, John thought he might just bring a bat to the computer monitors instead of some stupid virus and save himself the wait.
Of course, when John showed up home from school early and ran into his father, good old Joe Bender had assumed it was because he intended on smoking pot and had given him a quick right fist to the jaw before descending in his room to drink and pass out. While no major injuries were subdued, aside from a slightly swollen jaw, John decided to risk the chill of winter rather than risk waking his father up from his drunken stoop.
John put out his half finished cigarette as he watched Andrew slowly make his way over to him. There was a wide smile on the jock's face; obviously he had heard about John and Brian's little prank. The whole school had to have heard. He wondered how many of them actually had given him credit for it, and how many were smart enough to figure out that John Bender wasn't smart enough to pull it off alone.
"Brian gave me a call last night." Andrew shared, practically making John laugh. He was aware that the nerd would probably follow his advice to call Andy, in fact he most definitely would, but he thought he at least had the tact to wait a few days. The kid was hopeless. He probably rambled like a woman for a good hour as soon as Andrew had picked up.
"Yeah, well he probably has a hard on for you." John said in monotone, receiving a confused look from Andrew. He rolled his eyes, of course the school jock wouldn't take the hint that John was trying to throw to him. It was like he'd taken too many fucking throw downs to the mat or something.
"What crawled up your ass?" Andrew asked, fully aware by now that if John was answering any statement with an annoyed sarcastic remark, he was more than likely pissed about something. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to hide his smile while using sarcasm to make everyone else's lives hell.
"Why, you jealous?" John asked, before he actually considered taking the statement back. The last time he sarcastically suggested steamy actions with someone from that fucking detention, he'd gotten his very first experience with a gay kiss. He was fully prepared to take precautions to make sure it was also his last.
"Yeah, right. Brian said you that you told him you said you two weren't friends." Andrew stated, as if John really needed a summary of the day before. He was there after all, unfortunately, and he didn't need anything about his encounters with Brian brought back to the surface. After all, none of it happened.
"You're point?" John asked, preparing himself for a friendship speech from the super jock who'd found himself. If the new Andrew was going to go on power missions and tell John what was wrong and right, then Bender preferred the old one. At least the old one wouldn't have been caught dead on John Bender's territory, especially not when he was clearly not in the mood.
"You know my point. That's fucked up. You can't just be friends with every one of us except him. Now we've all been leaving him out, and I think if we're all gonna be friends with each other, we need to be friends with him too." Andrew pointed out. John rolled his eyes; he should have never told the dweeb to give Andy a call. He should have known that the two couldn't keep their friendships to themselves and away from John, as if it were fucking Ebola.
"Why should I?" John asked, not buying into the whole "let's all be the best of friends" idea Andrew was trying to sell. If Brian and himself couldn't be friends with each other without bringing it over to John, then John didn't need to be Andrew's friend either. Not if it was going to overcomplicate his life. Fuck, like his life wasn't already overcomplicated.
"Because, you matter. I was wrong, you do count, and it makes a hell of a lot of difference to that kid if you're friends with him, alright? So just stop being a little asshole and talk to him." Andrew scolded, watching Bender as he swallowed hard. When in the hell did the school criminal start mattering? The short speech surprised John and Andrew both.
"Look, I never said the kid couldn't hang with us, okay? So un-bunch your panties and quit with the 'save the dorks' campaign." John lied as he lit another cigarette. He'd be damned if he was going to let the school jock know he'd gotten to him.
Clair was probably the very last person John would ever expect to see at his place of employment. It wasn't that she wasn't the type of girl to visit the guy she liked at his job, because it was completely the opposite. Girls like Clair loved getting dressed in some cute outfit just to show up at their boyfriend's job and watch as all his fellow workers commented on how lucky he was. However, John's case was different. John didn't work at the roller rink or some hamburger house; he worked in a dirty, stinky automobile shop. You could almost smell the car dust and oil as far as you could hear the annoying buzzing noises of the machinery.
Yet there she was, cautiously walking up to the busy mechanics, in search of John, with a basket filled with what had to be some type of baked good inside. The sight of her in such a grungy place made all the workers immediately stop, as if synchronized. Most of the girls who showed up at the shop were ghetto trash with uncombed hair, too much makeup, and not enough clothing. Not Clair. She wore an innocent white dress to match her innocent prom queen look.
"John, ain't that your girl?" Mike asked to the still shocked John. All he could think to do was nod his head and watch as the smiling girl slowly paced over to him. He ignored the dropping jaws of his co-workers, most of them jealous that it wasn't them with a beautiful girl walking over to them, and thinking up things to say when they teased him later.
"What's in there?" John asked, pointing to the basket. Clair laughed, when John's curiosity got the best of him, he had the ability to forget that he was an asshole and truly sound inquisitive, all without his normal threatening tone of voice. It was exactly the reaction she had hoped for when she threw the small sheet of clothe over the basket and walked out the door.
"Blueberry muffins. I made enough for everyone. I figure you boys were hungry." She said with an enormous smile, trying to remember all the debutante training her mother had put her through as a child. It was important to her that she be perfect for John. His father and mother were nothing but shit, but that didn't mean he had to be. She liked reminding him of that, all while still keeping herself, of course.
In an instant, every worker was surrounding Clair. John was officially their favorite co-worker. Nobody else's woman stopped by with sweet treats for everyone, unless it was the occasional whore who found the need to sleep with everyone at their man's workplace. The muffins, however, filled their stomachs better than any other girl, and one didn't have to worry about any infections when eating them.
"To what do I owe this pleasure?" John asked after all the other men had left, muffins in hand. Clair wasn't the type of girl to risk her signature brand shoes being screwed up at some shop just to bring some boy muffins. She wanted something else; he could read it on her face.
"Nothing, I just thought you might be hungry," Clair said before a pause, her voice suddenly getting quiet, "and I was wondering what I am to you. I mean, I consider you my boyfriend. Am I incorrect?" Clair asked, inquiring the question that had been bugging her ever since she slept over his house. He'd mentioned one girl one guy. Did that mean he was her guy?
John was quiet, and it killed Clair. He looked down at his feet, swallowing hard and trying to decide on an answer. Honestly, he wanted her to himself. He'd been infatuated with her ever since he'd first seen her in the detention, and she'd proven to be nothing but good for him.
But he was John Bender. He couldn't have a girlfriend. It just wasn't who he was. It would mean settling down, and he didn't like to settle. Settling was for people who knew what they wanted, who'd stabilized their lives enough to introduce something new into it. He couldn't be the type of guy who bought her flowers or thought of sweet things to say to her. His mind ran merely on insults and jokes. Clair Standish needed someone who would practically worship the ground she walked on.
"I don't know." He said quietly, not looking up to her. He could never be the boyfriend type, it was completely opposite of everything John was, but at the same time, he couldn't tell her that he wasn't. That would mean her walking away, maybe even completely out of his life forever. The tiny spark of normal that had entered his world would be just a memory, and he'd be nothing but the school criminal just as soon.
"What do you mean you don't know? I'm either your girlfriend or I'm not. I'm tired of wondering. It's nauseating, and if you think I'm just going to keep kissing you if we're not going out, you're wrong." Clair said, her face red and flustered. She'd gotten exactly the reaction she was afraid of. Of course, she wouldn't be able to just stop kissing John, but it would kill her every time she did if they were just two people. People would call her a slut. That wasn't who she was, no matter people's expectations.
"I don't know, okay?" John asked, annoyed now. It wasn't like Clair was new. She knew John Bender by now. She knew how cynical he was, she knew he would probably never be able to afford expensive birthday gifts, or say the right thing to her, or even get too fucking close to her, compliments of his father, without suddenly becoming uneasy. She knew about his scars, and she knew his deep need to hide those scars, even from her, so why did she even have to ask for the answer to her question?
"Stop it! You do know, so tell me! What am I to you John? Am I your girlfriend, or am I some piece of ass?" she asked, finally losing it. Was it possible she had gotten so close to someone like him, someone who didn't let anyone close, yet she was still nothing to him? Honestly, she wasn't even a piece of ass. A piece of ass would be a step higher. She'd thrown herself at him, and he'd stopped her. So what, was he repulsed by her?
Clair and John both starred at each other. It was like a hard object coming into contact with an unbreakable wall. Clair wasn't going to let it drop until he answered, and he wasn't prepared to answer. It was a double edge sword. If he was her boyfriend, he'd have to completely change who he was just to accommodate that, and he couldn't do that. He wasn't the type of guy who got whipped by some girl. If he said no, she'd be gone forever, and that was even worse. He wasn't prepared for any of the outcomes.
"Right. I figured, you know, why don't you just forget it? Goodbye John." Clair said as she quickly turned away, not about to let a shop full of ghetto boys see her cry. After all, it was John who had told her that showing weakness in his parts was a fatal mistake. Right before they had all been jumped and she had found herself with some thug licking her cheek, all for her weakness. She wasn't going to show that to anymore bad boys again.
"God you drive me fucking mad," John said, watching a pissed off Clair spin around to glare at him before he swallowed hard, "you know, I've never actually had a girlfriend before." He said, his tone of voice suddenly changing when he saw the tears pricking in Clair's eyes. He had a feeling that the shop boys were never going to let him live this down.
"Do you want me to tell you all the things I never did before I met you?" Clair asked, creating such a list in her mind and realizing that before she met John, she lived a very sheltered life. A risk free, pristine, no fun life filled with everyone else's expectations, with the exception of one little slip up that had landed her in detention.
"Yes." John said with a cunning smirk, earning himself a girly slap in the arm, followed by a smile. They both knew what was inevitably true; John had broken Clair out of her pristine little shell and turned her almost as risky as she had mellowed him down. While he quit dope, she'd started drinking. While his dirty jokes were dying down, she'd thrown herself on top of him, fully anticipating sexual actions. They helped each other find a medium.
"John, I mean it. I can't keep throwing myself to you if we're not dating. I mean do you have any idea what a tremendous slut that makes me?" She asked, once again lying. She'd keep throwing herself at him as long as he was within walking distance from her. His answer only made a difference in how much she wanted to throw up after she was done running to him, giving him anything he'd want without ever having a relationship to show for it.
"Hey! There is nothing wrong with a tremendous slut!" Mike yelled, forcing smiles to break on both Clair's and John's faces despite their attempts to hide them, and a month ago, John might have even thrown an amen to him. But things were different. There was something wrong with a slut; Clair wasn't one. She could never be if she was ever still going to be her.
"I have to get back to work, and I'm pretty sure Mike is undressing you with his eyes, and only I get to do that. If I say yes will you leave?" John asked, clearing his throat and trying to hide how uncomfortable he was. He was ninety percent sure he was making a huge mistake, but he ignored the obnoxious voice pecking at the back of his head. After all, percentages were for dweebs.
"For today." Clair said with her cutest smile was she pressed herself against John, holding the last muffin in her hand. He tilted his head to kiss her before she quickly threw the muffin to her mouth, taking a tiny bite and exaggerating how good it was before handing it to John and taking off.
"Tease." John yelled, smiling to himself before taking a bite of the muffin.
a/n:
emerald penguin: lol the very first time i saw the breakfast club i thought, yeah, that kids gay. lol thanks for the review
Ghostwriter: I remember you reviewing another one of my fanfics a couple years ago! Glad to see you're still into BC fanfics, thanks for the review!
blahblahblah: that song is love. that's because it's not on fictionpress. I wouldn't be allowed to publish it on fictionpress, because the breakfast club is copywrited, but i appreciate you looking! thank you for the review!
freedomfighter43: ditto. this story isn't on fictionpress, because i'd be violating terms by using John Hugh's characters. If you're referring to the authors note at the end of chapter one, what i meant is that i write my own stories now, not fanfics, but not specifically related to this story. sorry for the confusion, but thank you for looking! I'm glad you enjoyed this story enough to find it elsewhere! and thank you for reviewing! also, it just came to my attention that i kind of...put down the wrong username for my fictionpress account. it is actually mychemicalpocky, not tehemocow. i honestly don't know what i was thinking, sorry if that contributed to the confusion!
