Title: New Beginnings

Rating: PG-13

Summary: JT and Emma, the new freshman at Pittsburgh University, meet up with the experienced sophomores Paige, Spinner and Craig. (General, Drama & Romance)

Disclaimer: I don't own the "Degrassi" characters. But I own the story and all other characters. And if I quote something, I will give proper credit.

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Chapter Five: Coming Clean

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Oh, and in the reviews, someone had asked if Alexia was the same person that Jay dated. It's not. This is a totally new character that I made up from my imagination. Lol Read and enjoy!

ALSO... I just realized that even if I type in italics, it doesn't show up on here. I thought it did. So if there is anything in ' ' those quotes, they're thinking it. And if there's " " in the ' ' then it's just an expression or something. I'm sorry about that. Just try to deal with it the best you can. Thanks.

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Paige and Emma got back to the dorms around five thirty.

"Emma you're back! I just heard about this awesome party tonight. You feel like going?" Faith said, all jumpy like a little kid in a candy store.

"Hah, yea, I'm already going actually, this is my friend Paige, I went to high school with her. Us and the guys including JT are going tonight, would you like to join us?"

"Oh I'd love to! That would be great considering you're the only people here that I know so far." She smiled.

"Great, so what are we waiting for? The guys are going to be here at seven thirty so Faith, you hit the showers while I help Emma pick something out then I can run back to my room and get myself ready." Paige said, sounding like a drill sargent giving orders.

Faith ran into the bathroom while Emma went through her suitcases to find something.

"I don't think I have anything worth while." She said reaching the bottom of her bags.

"Let me see, there's got to be something in here." Paige said getting up and looking for herself. A few minutes later she squealed with delight. "I found it!" She gave a big grin. She was holding up a pair of super low-rise jeans with a silver belt and a cute design on the back pockets, along with a pair of black pointed toe heels, and a black halter top made out of lace.

Emma's eyes grew wide. "Woah. I don't even know how that shirt got in there. There's no way that I can wear that! People will talk!"

"Em hunny, this is college. Wait til you see what other girls do actually wear. You'll feel like an Eskimo compared to them! ...Here, Faith is out of the bathroom, go in, get clean, and get dressed. Oh and have your hair be sleek and perfectly straight. I'll be back at seven fifteen for any last minute changes. See ya soon!" She called, closing the door behind her.

"Wow! Is that what you're wearing tonight?" Faith said, eyes wide. "You're gonna look hott." She said giving her a wink. "Hurry up in the shower, I need to get in there and curl my hair."

"Okay okay! I'll hurry!" Emma called over her shoulder. 'At least my hair is already straight, I won't have much work to do.' she sighed.

At six thirty, Emma returned to the main room while Faith rushed into the bathroom and began curling her hair. Emma's was already perfectly straight and blow-dried. She pulled out her make-up bag and mirror, sat down at her desk and began to apply her make-up.

Emma applied a mixture of blue eyeshadow, mascara, powder foundation, a tiny amount of blush and pinkish-red lipstick. She took out her diamond studs in her ears and put in silver hoops. She also put on a silver chain with her 'E' charm. Last, she put on her watch and rings. Emma got up and looked at herself in the full length mirror hanging on the back of the bathroom door.

'I don't look like myself...' she thought. Her jeans showed off every curve and her top came just above her un-pierced bellybutton. Her stomach was flat and showed off her ab muscles she got while working out over the years. The deep V dip in her shirt came down to just the right spot where her necklace hung perfectly, not showing too much, but leaving something for the guys to 'wonder about'. Her face was just blank, no smile, no frown, just... blank. 'If only Manny was here. She would totally flip. "Oh, what happened to the tree hugging only cares about animals and the rainforest girl?" ...Oh she still supports it and stuff and does her share. But this Degrassi girl grew up.' A big sexy smile took the place of her blank expression. 'Hello to the new me.'

Faith came out of the bathroom with her hair in bouncy tight spiral curls. She was wearing the same short denim skirt but with a pair of black stiletto heeled boots that came just above her knee. She had changed her pink polo shirt and put on a red and black striped tank that came lower on one side. Her makeup wasn't too heavy, but you could tell that she had a very thin line of eyeliner and mascara on. Her grey eyeshadow made her green eyes stand out even more.

"Wow! You look great!" Emma said. "JT isn't going to know what to do."

"You think? I mean all I know about him is his name. And before I say anything I might regret, I'd just like to get to know him better." Faith said, checking her reflection in the mirror.

"That's totally understandable. He's here on a basketball scholarship. I've known him since I was a kid, he's a good guy." Emma replied.

"Ooo basketball huh?" She laughed.

At seven fifteen, Paige came back. She was wearing a dark brown suede skirt and a white shirt with the sleeves torn. The skirt matched her UGG boots perfectly. Paige's hair was wavy and had that 'just got out of the pool' look to it. She looked at both freshman and nodded in satisfaction.

"Wow guys! I'm impressed! You're gonna knock em dead tonight." She said as she walked over to the mirror to fix her necklace. "Speaking of which, there is going to be alcohol there. This is a college party after all. The drinking age here is 21 but they won't card you. If you want to drink, that's totally up to you. Just know your limit. Oh, and keep an eye on your cup at all times." She added.

"Hah, I used to drink here and there at high school parties so I should be just fine." Faith said.

Emma's 'oh I'm not so sure about this' face came into view. She wiped it off and walked into the bathroom, muttering something about a mark on her jeans. 'Drinking... Okay Emma, you've done that before. At Ashley's graduation party. I didn't get drunk. Just a buzz.' she checked her reflection in the mirror. 'You're only 19 girl. Snap out of it. I came here to start a brand new life. I'll be damned if the old me stops the new me from enjoying it. ...Great... Now I sound skitzo. I'll just avoid it unless someone offers me something. Then I'll just be careful and be aware of how many I drink.' She dabbed some perfume on and headed back out; just in time for a knock on the door.

Paige got up to answer it.

Craig, Spinner and JT were standing under the doorframe.

"Hey hunny." Spinner said, wrapping his arms around her. "You look amazing. As usual." He said giving her a kiss. Spinner was wearing a pair of jeans and a green tee.

"Okay you two. Get a room." JT said walking in. He too, was also wearing jeans but he had on a white beater with a black button down shirt.

Spinner and Paige rolled their eyes. "The party is in walking distance so we don't need to take cars. Oh, and Em, Faith, the directions are on the desk. Don't wait up!" Paige called as she dragged Spinner out into the hall, closing the door behind her.

Faith was looking at the directions when JT first saw her.

"Wow..." He said, still looking at her.

Faith laughed. "Well thank you. You don't look so bad yourself. Shall we be going? Maybe you can tell me a bit about you."

"Just as long as you tell me about you." He said offering his arm, which she gladly accepted.

"See you guys later!" JT said, escorting Faith out.

It was now just the two of them. Standing alone, in a dorm room. Craig had been standing in silence. Watching. Just watching. He watched Spinner and Paige, the two love birds, making it look so easy. He watched Faith and JT. "I would kill to have a girl look at me the way Faith just looked at him. She barley even knows him. And the way he looks at her. It's amazing. They are definitely going to make a great couple soon." He thought to himself.

"Craig? ...Sorry, I'll be out in a minute. I dropped my contact, I'm trying to find it." Emma called from the bathroom. 'Yea, clumsy me.' she thought. 'He must think I'm still a high school kid.'

"Don't worry about it, take your time." He assured her. "And no, I don't think you're still a high school kid."

Emma looked up so fast it was a miracle she didn't give herself whiplash. She found her contact and walked out to the main room; almost tripping when she saw Craig.

"I didn't say that out loud. How did you know I was thinking that?" Emma asked; totally confused.

"Oh, Hah, well I've known you long enough to get an idea of what you're thinking. And, from what I can see," He said, looking at her outfit from head to toe, "you've definitely matured over the summer." He finished, almost choked up, trying to give her a smile. 'I've never seen her look so- so- gorgeous. She looks like a completely different person.'

'When did he get even more good looking?' She thought. He was wearing a pair of jeans, construction like boots, his leather jacket, and a baby blue collared shirt underneath. His brown eyes were huge and somewhat glowing. Emma smiled. "Well, thanks. I think. Anyways, we should get going. The others are going to be wondering where we are." She said grabbing her purse.

"They are so wrapped up in each other they probably won't even realize we're not there." Craig said. "You don't really want to go tonight. Do you?" She asked, her voice dropping as she put on her jacket.

"And see Alexia all over some totally random guy? She'll spot me there and just say oh he's a friend and to go get her a drink. People think I'm clueless. But I'm not. I know what she does and I know why she keeps me around. Paige and Spinner think if they say one more thing that I'll never talk to them again. And I feel horrible about that."

"Then why are you still with her if you know that she's a tramp?" Emma asked as she sat down on the edge of her bed.

"I- I don't know; actually." Craig answered, her. "I guess it's because I'm so used to it. I forgot what the freedom feels like."

'Well then let me show you.' She thought about saying that and planting a kiss on those oh so wonderful lips of his. 'UGH! Don't Em! You'll ruin everything!'

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you need to get over that and just tell her to go away or something. You deserve much better than her. You're smart, funny, honest, and a million other things. Just wait, you'll find the girl of your dreams when you least expect it. Probably when you're not looking for her." Emma said, patting him on the back.

"Yea, you're probably right. In every case." He said, cracking a smile.

"Well, are you ready to go to the party, make a big scene and dump an upperclassmen? To some people, it'll make you seem pretty cool."

"Hah, well then let's go for it!"

'Uh oh... Well, this is going to be one interesting night.' Emma thought, walking by Craig's side out the door.

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Ahhh! I'm so excited about this and the upcoming chapter! Lol Let's just say that I hope you keep reading because it's about to get good. =) Oh and keep up the great reviews!

Oh! And the part about the tree hugging rainforest girl, that little part goes in quote to Punk Rock 101 Thanks for the idea! Lol

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