AN: Hey, this is my first ever Degrassi fic. Inspired by the CD of the same title, The Reason by Hoobastank and in fact at the begining of each part is some lyrics from songs off of that CD.
As of right now, the pairings in this are going to be: Marco/Dylan, Paige/Spinner and Ellie/Sean; others will be formed and others will be broken.
Disclaimer: I do not own Degrassi: TNG or Hoobastank
Part 1: Destination
So why does there only have to be one correct philosophy?
I don't want to go and follow you just to end up like one of them
And why are you always telling me what you want me to believe?
I'd like to think that I can go my own way and meet you in the end.
- "Same Direction"
----------------------------
There was an incessant knocking.
Paige Michalchuk blearily rolled over to spare a glance at her alarm clock. The glaring red LCD
numbers shined a bright 1:42 AM in her dark room. Too asleep to really comprehend what had
awaken her, she made to roll back over and fall back into dreaming.
Another round of loud knocking disturbed her once again.
Making the connection that someone knocking on their front door at almost 2 in the morning was
never a good thing, Paige shot up in bed and fumbled to her door.
As she made her way out of her room and into the hallway, she was met with her equally tired-
looking brother. Dylan Michalchuk looked as if his eyes were hardly open as he stumbled
alongside his sister en route to the source of their wakefulness.
The siblings met eyes for a brief moment; Paige arched her eyebrow in question and Dylan merely
answered with a silent shrug.
The knocks were quieter; it seemed like their visitor was about to give up. At the foot of the
stairs, Paige and Dylan were met by their parents as they emerged from their first floor bedroom.
"Dylan? Paige?" their mom asked, worry creeping into her voice; she also had decided that any
late-night visitor wouldn't be bearing good news.
"Dunno'" Dylan answered, stifling a yawn but he was the first to reach the front door and undo
the deadbolt.
Paige was hit by a blast of icy air as the open door revealed a shivering Marco del Rossi on their
front stoop; a beaten looking duffle bag rested at his feet.
He met four sets of shocked eyes from beneath a fringe of black hair, "I had no where else to go."
------------------------------------------
Breakfast felt odd to her as she slid into the padded dining room chair. Paige rubbed at her eyes
and stared at her brother from across the table.
"You're eating Lucky Charms?" she blinked. "What happened to your Corn Flakes health reign?"
Dylan looked nonplused as he steadily shoveled the offending cereal into his mouth. After a
swallow, he replied. "I felt the need for an OD of sugar."
"Well they're mine, so pass them here." Paige grabbed the box from Dylan and poured herself a
large bowl.
They both ate in silence for a few minutes before Paige felt the need to break it. "Where's....?" she
trailed off as Dylan's eyes shot up.
"Still asleep."
"Is he going to school today?"
"As far as I know, no. He was exhausted."
Paige nodded and ate a few more bites. "Why did he come here? Why not go to Ellie's or
something? She's like his best friend."
Dylan seemed to space off looking at the Lucky Charms box. "Well, I'm sure it was because her
apartment is across town and ours was the closest house he could walk to at 1 in the morning."
"You take the romance out of everything." Paige muttered dryly but turned serious once again.
"Why did he leave his home?"
Dylan adapted a very Paige-like 'duh' look. "Why do you think? He finally came out to his
parents. They didn't accept it and kicked him out." he grew thoughtful. "Though, I should have
known that would have been the response he would get from when I first met his parents."
"Yeah, I can see that."
They both lapsed into silence for another stretch of time.
"What did you and mom and dad talk about after they sent me back upstairs?" Paige interrupted
the quiet again.
"'She says prying...'" Dylan mumbled under his breath.
"Hey, I have a right to know. He is my friend too."
"They just wanted to know more what was going one between us and whatever. And they said
that he could stay with us for as long as he wanted."
"That's good. What is going between you two?"
"'She says prying again.'" Dylan grinned quietly and stood to take his empty bowl to the sink.
Paige sat back in her seat and glared at her brother. "Well?"
"I need to go get ready for school. You should too, I'm not sure if we'll have enough time for all
your make-up preparation." he effectively dodged her question made to run up the stairs.
But he was met by a groggy looking Marco.
Dylan stopped at the base of the stairs and grinned even more widely. "Hey, I though you'd sleep
the whole day through."
Marco just ran a hand through his hair and muttered, "...school."
"Hon, you can afford to miss one day." Paige pointed out from her spot still at the table.
He shrugged slightly, pushing past Dylan to join Paige at the table. "We have Miss H's wildlife
test today, remember?" he took in the table's contents and his eyes lit up at the box of cereal that
was open on it. "You guys have Lucky Charms? May I have some?"
Paige nodded quietly and met her brother's gaze while Marco busied himself with getting some
breakfast. Dylan mouthed three words to her.
He's ignoring it
--------------------------------------------
Emma Nelson stared blankly into her locker. It was five minutes until the bell would ring,
signaling the start of her first class. She knew that she needed to grab her book report as Kwan
was expecting a presentation as soon as that bell sounded. But all of her carefully planned notes
and words were gone in the instant that she opened her locker door.
There, taped in the inner wall, that was usually hidden by a hastily thrown coat or over shirt, was
an old picture of herself and Manny.
Staring at the picture like she had never seen the two girls before, she felt a sudden deep emotion.
In the whirlwind of her break-up with Sean, Snake and cancer, and her growing feelings for Chris,
she never had the time to completely grieve for the loss of her best friend.
Manny had shared a lot with her over the years; from grade school throughout their junior years,
they had stuck beside each other. But inevitably change took its normal course. While Emma had
felt her mind grow and expand which each new crusade or obsession, Manny reveled in the
growth of her body and sexuality.
Now it seemed like physical proof that sex and intelligence weren't as compatible as people would
like to believe.
She wouldn't lie to herself, she had been raised with the feelings of feminism and the idea that
Manny had turned herself in the very embodiment of the threat to free-female thinkers
everywhere, grated on her nerves. She had literally turned herself into an object for boys and
Emma knew that she looked down on people like that.
It was painful to realize that she had begun to look down on her best friend.
In reverse, Emma had to admit that Manny had begun to look down on her as well. In a sick way,
Manny saw herself far more mature that Emma was; more womanly in the ways of the world.
Yet, what she wouldn't give just to play dolls in the backyard of her home once more with
Manny. What she wouldn't give just swoon over their favorite TV stars or love letters passed
around.
Reaching into the locker to retrieve her book report, Emma grimaced as even her report reminded
her of the rift that had grown between them. She had chosen a book about an adopted girl's fight
to find her birth mom.
It forcibly reminded her of the chance that Manny never gave the baby that she had. Her mom had
found herself in the very same situation, yet she didn't view her pregnancy as a mistake. Even if
she would have given Emma up for adoption, she'd still be alive.
Maybe that's why she had felt so strongly about abortion, it could have been her. Once choice and
she wouldn't have her life.
Abortion just became one of the many things Emma and Manny now disagreed on.
Sighing she quietly closed her locker door and trudged off to first period English knowing that
she would have to look her former best friend in the eyes as she recounted the story of a girl who
was granted life at birth, even though it seemed to have resulted from a mistake.
And it would be a very familiar mistake, in Manny's mind.
-------------------------------------------
Ellie had known she was going to be late for school five minutes before she had even gottendressed that morning. Elation and tardiness had come in the form of a long-distance call from
Kabul.
Her dad sounded tired yet happy over the crackling connection. Though some words had been
lost in translation, Ellie managed to get across that she loved him and learned that he was being
transferred to an American base in Kuwait for several weeks and then he would be home.
Though she had been late too many times before, Ellie wouldn't ever pass up a chance to talk to
her dad. His calls were rare and she cherished each one. But she made a valiant effort not to be
too late today.
She was in luck that she arrived only a few minutes after the first bell, when everyone was making
their way into classrooms, which meant that she had at least two minutes to get to her locker and
across the building to her history class.
As she raced pass clumps of dawdling students, she barely avoided colliding with Emma Nelson, a
Grade 9 and her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend. She tossed a quick sorry over her shoulder, but the
other girl was too immersed in her thoughtful stride to her own class.
Up a head she saw her best friend Marco del Rossi walking slowly with his...(just?) friend? Dylan
Michalchuck and usually she'd slow and walk the rest of the way to their shared class together,
but Marco and Dylan were engaged in an intense conversation that she didn't particularly feel like
disturbing.
Yet the fact that he wasn't rushing to class was surprising to her; Marco was the most studious of
all of her friends and was never late.
She managed to reach her locker in record time even though that meant several close calls and
one impatient shove to a Grade 8. To her faint (and pleasant) surprise, Sean Cameron was
slouched against the metal row of lockers, giving off his usual 'don't mess with me' air.
"Hey." she smiled breathlessly as she finally slowed.
"Hey," he gave her a quick kiss on her cheek as she was already moving to grab her history text
from underneath a feathered black boa (why was that in there anyway?) and a month old Snickers
bar.
"Why are you late?" Sean asked, not perturbed by her slightly dismissive actions.
"My dad called this morning." she managed a bright smile from underneath the boa as she
rummaged for the illusive book.
"Cool, what's up with him?" Ellie had to appreciate his interest in her dad.
"He's been transferred to Kuwait, then he'll be home in about five weeks."
"Kuwait? That's still in Middle East right?"
"South of Iraq, actually. But infinitely better than Afghanistan." giving up in her quest for her
history book, finding only her missing algebra homework from two weeks ago, she straightened
back up smiling at Sean. "I might as well borrow Marco's book when we are in class."
They both turned to glance down the quickly emptying hallway in time to see the elder
Michalchuck wrap his arms around the younger boy. Ellie adverted her eyes as smirked slightly.
Yet it dropped from her face as she caught a faint look of disgust cross Sean's.
"Don't you start." she preemptively warned.
Sean raised his hands in silent defense and then quickly wrapped them around her body and pulled
her close. "I've got to get to Kwan's." he whispered, "I'll see you at lunch?"
She nodded and allowed him to steal a quick kiss before he left in the other direction. Sighing, she
turned to see Marco walking towards her sans Dylan. She might as well be late with him; they
were both going in the same direction anyways.