A/N: Part III of Smells Like Teen Spirit begins! Now that the cast is getting older, the storylines will likely get darker, especially since this arc takes place during S6.

Very heavy trigger warning for depictions of bulimia in this chapter. Feel free to skip this chapter if you find this kind of content too disturbing.

POVs: Katie and Clare

On the morning of her first day of high school, Katie Matlin groggily got out of bed and got ready. Marisol wanted them to meet up by seven thirty in front of the school and she would certainly be pissed if she was late. They had to enter Degrassi as grade nines together.

After showering and picking out a fresh new pair of jeans, a red blouse, and brown flats for the day, she headed downstairs to see that her parents had cooked a big breakfast for her and Maya. There were pancakes, waffles, bacon, omelets, sausages, French toast, and fruit slices. All very fattening looking foods.

"Good morning, Katie! Your father and I wanted to celebrate your first day of high school by making you this nice breakfast. We're both so proud of you!" Her mother gushed as she wheeled in at the table. Her father made her mother a plate and placed it in front of her.

"And I'm just here," Maya commented dryly as she poured herself a glass of orange juice.

"Oh we're proud of you too, Maya. You're starting sixth grade today, before you know it, you'll be in high school soon," their father assured her.

"Hopefully not at Degrassi," Maya replied. With school shootings, STI outbreaks, teen pregnancies, drug overdoses, and catfights, Katie couldn't blame her sister for not wanting to attend Degrassi. It was a cesspit of drama and incidents. She kinda didn't want Maya there either, but unless Maya got into that prestigious art school she wanted to attend in the future, she was most likely going to attend Degrassi with her. After all, she heard worse things happen at Lakehurst.

As Katie fixed her plate, she felt a little ill looking at the food. There was so much of it, who knows how many calories she was about to consume? She couldn't afford to gain a significant amount of pounds when she was not only still doing karate but trying out for the junior varsity soccer team. Even as she was putting only small portions on her plate, she still felt like she was committing a major grievance against her body.

There had to be something she could do to feel better about this.

Another school year, and Clare was looking at how she looked in the mirror. Except she was not wearing a school uniform this time. Instead, under Alli and Jenna's suggestion, she was dressing "normal".

Her two friends had taken her shopping over the summer, and she was overwhelmed by all of the clothes they were throwing at her. Her friends' taste in fashion was way different than hers. She felt uncomfortable at the idea of wearing off shoulder tops, mini skirts, heels, and tank tops. However, she did find some jeans, dresses, and skirts that didn't show too much skin while shopping. Today, she was wearing a white sheath dress with a red and pink floral pattern. Along with some flats and her hair being down, she was going to look nice for her first day of eighth grade. She wondered if K.C. was going to like it.

At the thought of her crush, she blushed. A whole summer had passed, and her feelings for K.C. never wavered. In fact, she feared that they actually got stronger. Despite knowing that her parents wouldn't approve of guys like K.C., she still fantasized about them being together. She was turning fourteen next year, her having a boyfriend shouldn't be too controversial.

Plus, her father would be too wrapped up in his mistress to care.

Finding out that her dad was committing adultery against her mother felt like the biggest betrayal in her life. Him cheating with a woman from their church felt like an even bigger betrayal, and she was questioning everything about her faith. If her parents, who raised her and Darcy to be perfect ladies of Christ, couldn't even have a marriage without cheating, what did that mean for her and her older sister?

Clare looked down at the tube of red lipstick Alli had bought for her at MAC despite her protests. Red wasn't supposed to be for good, unmarried girls. Her father had always taught her that red lipstick, red nail polish, and red shoes were for "ladies of the night". Well, she was going to try something different this year.

If her father can step out on her mother, then she could wear red lipstick and date boys who stole forks and hotwired cars.

When they got to school, Katie got out of her mother's car and bid her and her sister farewell. As expected, Marisol was waiting for her on the steps wearing a sleeveless yellow tie shirt and white designer jeans. She was wearing brown kitten heels with a gold buckle on each shoe. Her black hair was in curls. When Marisol turned around and saw her, her face brightened up. "Katiekins!" She greeted her excitedly when Katie approached her. They then shared a warm embrace as people walked past them. "Grade nine, can you believe it?" She questioned. "We're finally high schoolers!"

"Yeah, I can join the Degrassi Daily now!" Katie replied. She was going to try to talk to the club's president Liberty Van Zandt today. She admired Liberty for being goal oriented and ambitious even while pregnant last year.

"And I can finally join the Spirit Squad!" Marisol declared as they began entering the school. "Goodbye Pep Squad, hello high school cheer team!"

"You're not going to miss the Pep Squad even though you formed it?" Katie questioned while holding up a sheet with her locker number on it. Her locker was by the cafeteria.

"Of course I am, but it's in good hands. Alli will be a great captain!" Marisol assured her while looking at her locker number. "We do have the same locker number right?"

Katie looked over to Marisol's paper. "Looks like it!" She answered with a smile as they approached the lockers. Marisol immediately opened hers up to start decorating.

"Hopefully this school year ends up way better for me, than junior year. Seventh and eighth grade just consisted of failed relationships," Marisol said as she put up a mirror to look at herself in.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you're going to meet a wonderful guy, Marebear," Katie assured, thinking of her new boyfriend, Jake. Despite not being into sports as much as she was, they still did plenty of vigorous outdoor activities this summer and she found that she felt much more relaxed around Jake than she was with Drew. Jake was very chill, a little too much sometimes, but he was caring and a good listener. She figured that was all she needed at this point.

"I hope so," Marisol replied before turning to look at her. "Now Katiekins, surely you can look a little nicer than that," she said to her.

"What? These are the best first day of high school clothes I could pick out!" Katie argued.

"The top is nice, and the jeans are passable but you need something to add some more flair to your look," Marisol explained as she eyed her critically. Then a thought popped in her mind. "Oh I know!" She said as she reached into the front pouch of her book bag. She pulled out a tube of cherry red lip gloss. "Put this on!" She ordered.

"Oh I don't need to wear lip gloss, Mare," Katie replied while shaking her head. She still wasn't much of a makeup girl.

"Nonsense, I'll put it on for you," Marisol insisted and Katie sighed.

"Fine," she replied, giving in. Her best friend gestured for her to poke her lips out, and she complied. Then Marisol smoothly applied the lip gloss to her lips. Katie licked at the taste. It really tasted like cherries.

"Don't eat it!" Marisol sharply scolded her as she applied a second layer. Just then Jake walked up to them.

"Well, well, if it isn't my girlfriend, Miss Matlin?" He greeted her playfully before looking down at her lips. "Wearing snazzy new lip gloss."

"You like it?" Marisol asked him.

"It's hot. Red's a great color on you, Katie," he complimented before leaning in and kissing her on the forehead. Katie smiled at the romantic gesture. She guessed she could wear a little makeup if Jake liked it.

After Marisol finished decorating her locker, the three of them began walking to their homeroom classroom together. Jake wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Unfortunately, their homeroom teacher was Mr. Perino this year so there wouldn't be any talking once the bell rang. At all.

"I have a feeling this is going to be an amazing year!" Marisol said cheerfully.

"Amazing I wouldn't personally wouldn't use, but interesting yeah, most likely," Jake replied.

For Katie, interesting would be the word she used as well. If everything went well, she would have three extracurriculars this year plus being grade nine representative. Thankfully, Marisol had no interest in holding that position, so she had a real shot. She wasn't going to make the same mistakes she did last year with the eighth grade presidential election. The hard part would be keeping her boyfriend by the end of the year. While she was never going to do drugs again, so cheating wasn't going to be an issue, she still knew that Jake was going to have expectations of her. Which is why she was motivated to keep her food intake at a reasonable level.

Because she was positive Jake wouldn't want a big girlfriend.

Clare didn't even get to make it far from her mother's car before she was swarmed by both of her best friends. Alli grabbed one of her arms and Jenna grabbed the other.

"Why Clarebear, is that red lipstick I see you wearing?" Jenna asked her in shock. "I can't believe it!"

"And not just red lipstick, but some eyeshadow. Is the universe about to explode?" Alli added teasingly.

"Guys, don't be so dramatic," Clare said while rolling her eyes as they walked up the front steps of Degrassi. "I just wanted to try something new, that's all."

"Believe me girls, I was expecting to see pigs flying outside our window when she came downstairs," Darcy dryly commented, and Clare scowled at her sister.

"Don't you have a boyfriend to meet up with?" She questioned just as Spinner walked up and wrapped his arm around her sister's shoulder. They shared a quick kiss. "Hey Baby Edwards," Spinner greeted her cheerfully after pulling away from Darcy.

"Hi Spinner," Clare greeted back. Spinner was always nice to her so she had no issues with him, but he did seem a little rough around the edges…

"Notice something different about Clare today, Spin?" Darcy asked with an impish grin while gesturing to her. When Spinner leaned in to get a closer look at her, Clare felt the urge to run and hide. She didn't like being put on display like this.

"Yeah, she put on a little makeup. You look great, Clare," he complimented her warmly, "You should wear red more often, it brings out your eyes."

"Thank you Spinner," she replied, blushing profusely.

"Welcome, now let's head inside!" Spinner said before leaving with her sister. Clare turned to her friends, who were giggling, with a critical look.

"Is it really the end of the world if I start wearing makeup now?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"We're just joking, Clare. We actually like seeing you act more like a normal teenage girl instead of a nun. You look hot," Alli answered as they all began walking again. "When K.C. sees you he's going to be absolutely gobsmacked."

"Yeah…," Jenna agreed in a slow, unsure tone. It threw Clare off.

"What's wrong Jenna?" Clare asked her friend in concern.

"Nothing," Jenna answered quickly as they finally entered the building. Clare decided to let it go for now.

Katie looked at the options in front of her for lunch. There were burgers, pizza, chicken tenders, chicken nuggets, and sandwiches as always but there were also salads. She picked up a chicken salad and water for herself and checked out.

This year, her and Marisol unfortunately had different lunch periods so she was without her best friend. But she did have Jake, who waved for her to sit at a table with him and some friends in the middle of the cafeteria. The friends she recognized as Eli Goldsworthy and Mo Mashkour. Smiling, she walked over and sat next to Jake at the table. She and her boyfriend shared a quick kiss.

"Hey everyone," she greeted as she began digging into her salad. She wasn't going to eat the whole thing as she already ate too much at breakfast. Instead, she was going to eat as little as possible to not gain extra calories. She cut up her chunks of grilled chicken into tiny pieces and put one into her mouth, chewing softly.

"You're not putting any dressing on that?" Mo asked her in confusion.

"Dressings are fattening," she answered as she put a piece into her mouth. It was cold, and a little tasteless but she supposed it was for the better. If the salad tasted really good, she would be tempted to eat the whole thing.

"I'm sure a few extra calories won't kill you," he replied as he looked her up and down, but Katie ignored the remark. She knew what her limits should be.

"So is Marisol still going to be a part of the Drama Club?" Eli asked.

"As far as I know she is," she answered. Marisol had told her that this year, she was hoping to get a lead role in the latest school production instead of playing some side character. Katie couldn't gauge much of Marisol's acting skills yet but she figured that if she could get her dad to buy her almost anything, than it must be good.

"Well tell her that if she wants to get a big part than to maybe show up to auditions on time," Eli dryly replied. "We're doing a Winter's Tale this semester and we need people to actually take this seriously. Last year's play was terrible."

Last year, the school did A Midsummer Night's Dream and the lead actor in the play had to be replaced due to fooling around on stage and somehow spraining his ankle. The result was a replacement who was terrible at acting and couldn't even read his lines right.

"I'll tell her," Katie assured him while looking at Eli's clothes. He was wearing a red and green striped t-shirt with a black vest that eerily reminded her of Freddy Krueger, or maybe that was the point. His jeans were black and his boots were too. She could see that he was wearing eyeliner.

It's been almost two years, and she still couldn't believe that Marisol had her first kiss with this guy.

She didn't see K.C. at all during morning classes, and the more she had to wait to see him, Clare's anxiety went up. She didn't know what K.C. would think of the makeup she was wearing. Would he like it? Consider it slutty?

Clare took a seat next to Connor for grade nine Advanced English. She was just beginning to get her notebook out for class, when she heard a male voice. "Clare?" The voice asked her. Clare looked up and felt her heart beat rapidly in her chest when she saw that it was K.C. He was wearing his beanie, t-shirt, and baggy jeans as always.

"Hey K.C.," she greeted with as much strength in her voice as she could. This year she was going to try to be less shy around boys.

"I like the lipstick," he complimented, and she could feel her cheeks burn against her will.

"Thanks," she replied in gratitude as the bell rang for class to begin. K.C. smiled warmly at her, and she smiled back.

Maybe she could get used to wearing more makeup.

During gym class, Katie looked at herself in the mirror after getting out of the shower. For the first day, they just played a light game of Capture The Flag. Her team won due to her getting the most flags from the other team.

Looking at her body, Katie supposed she looked fit enough. There wasn't any visible fat on her body, though that could of course change if she wasn't careful. She needed to find a convenient way to get rid of any unnecessary calories.

In the stall behind her, she could hear someone vomiting violently. Then there was a sound of a toilet flushing. The stall door opened up, and a girl stepped out.

"I'm sorry, I get sick on my period," the girl apologized before grabbing a towel and wiping her mouth. She then hurriedly left the bathroom.

An idea popped into Katie's mind. It was dangerous but she was sure that if she only did it every once in a while without anyone noticing, it wouldn't spiral out of control.

After her last class ended, Clare walked around to find K.C. She decided that since she was feeling a new burst of confidence, that she was going to confess to K.C. that she liked him. Considering how well he took her appearance, this should go well.

She found K.C. at his locker, laughing about something with someone.

That someone was Jenna.

Clare tried not to let her confusion show as she approached them. "Hey guys," she greeted them. There was a bad feeling in her gut.

K.C. and Jenna stopped talking to each other, and immediately looked at her like they were deers caught in headlights. "Hey/Hi," they both greeted her back at the same time.

"What's going on with you guys?" She questioned.

Jenna looked at K.C. "I think I should explain this to her," she told him.

"Cool," he replied before quickly leaving without even sparing her a second glance. Now it was just her and Jenna in the hallways.

"Clare," Jenna began, and she could detect nervousness in her tone, "Um, so here's the thing. Me and K.C. spent a lot of time with each other over the summer at this youth program and we got really close. He asked me to go to The Dot with him after school," she explained.

Clare could only stare at her, but inside she was feeling nothing but rejection and embarrassment. "So you guys like each other?" She asked, despite knowing the answer.

Jenna's eyes were apologetic. "I'm sorry, Clarebear. Please don't be mad at me. I didn't think he would like me back," she said.

"It's okay, Jenna. I'm not supposed to be dating boys yet anyway," Clare assured her, and she couldn't help the tightness in her voice.

"Are you sure?" Her friend asked in worry.

"Positive," she answered before turning on her heels and walking away from Jenna.

The betrayal she was feeling right now was almost palpable.

Later that evening, Katie was eating the chicken parmesan her mother cooked. Both of her parents were closely watching her to make sure she was actually eating her food.

The food was good, as almost always was the case with her mother's cooking. Only Marisol's mother was a better chef. Under her parents' watch, she was even eating the breadsticks, which were warm and thick. After eating her dinner, Katie could very well say she was full and could eat no longer.

"I'm going upstairs to take a shower," she announced as she got out of her chair and put her dirty dishes by the sink. She then headed upstairs to the bathroom.

As she approached the toilet, Katie could feel herself getting second thoughts about what she was about to do. If her family or Marisol found out, they would be worried. But this was necessary. She had already eaten so much today and who knows how many unnecessary fats she put into her body. No, this needed to be done.

She leaned over the toilet, put two fingers down her throat, and threw up her dinner into the toilet.

A/N: Poor Clare. Not even in this fic is she going to have an easy time with love :((((((. And poor Katie, this is the only the beginning of her trauma.

Special shoutout to Phrankster for always supporting each chapter of this fic so far!