Title: The World through the Eyes of a Basket Case
Author: TWBasketcase
Chapter Summary: Well this one is gonna be a long one, which I'm sure you don't mind. We have the prom campaign, Saturday aftermath, Bender being a wise ass and a job interview. So we got some action ahead, kids…here we go!
A/N: Thanks for all the marvelous reviews from my last few chapters, guys! It is greatly appreciated when you send your feedback, good or bad, because then I know that I am not writing for myself and that you guys take the time to read my story. This chapter goes out to all of you who faithfully read and review each chapter…you know who you are!

Chapter 27 – Full Speed Ahead

"Hey hun! How are ya doin?" Michelle asked as she approached me in the parking lot of the school. She had her hair tied back today and had a pair of sunglasses perched on top of her head. She looked stunning, like always.

"I'm fine, how are you?" I asked, readjusting the strap of my bag higher on my shoulder.

"Meh, okay I guess. I was just wondering how you were…Saturday was pretty wild." She folded her arms over her chest as we walked together towards the school.

I shrugged, "I'm fine; everyone may have snapped and gone off the wall…but we all realize that it's just away to release our anger. Strange way or not it works with us."

She nodded her head, "I understand that…I just don't think I ever experienced something that strange. You guys are getting into trouble one minute, talking about your friendships the next, then ripping each others heads off, then laughing again…"

I smiled, "Yeah but that's usually the way things work with us. Things don't really surprise me much anymore."

We stopped in front of the doors and I tapped her arm; she spun around to face me and I pointed over my shoulder.

"Oh my god."

I nodded my head and laughed.

"That's what you guys did when you left?" She said with her mouth hung open, staring wildly at Vernon's vandalized mustang.

"We didn't do it…Claire did."

Her mouth dropped open wider and then she fell into a fit of laughter as we walked through the school entrance. "How much did you guys have to pay her?"

I shrugged, "Nothing…it's me and John you are talking about, she did it with little protest." Her laughter became harder; so much in fact that a few heads turned our way. I stared at my feet; I hate when people stare. She caught her breath and put a hand on my shoulder, "You guys are too much."

I nodded in response, "So anything special going on today?"

She nodded her head, "Yeah actually there is a school assembly for the prom candidates. Me, Ashley, and the two other girls running have to make our speeches. And Vernon is going to be releasing details about the prom…the cost, the theme, that sorta thing."

I nodded, "That should be interesting."

"To say the least," she agreed. She stopped at her locker where Brian was waiting and she gave him a hug. She pulled open her locker door and discarded her bag in it and grabbed her books. She gave us a brief smile and we continued walking towards my locker.

"So when is the assembly then?" I asked.

"During second period…hey Andy!" She called waving him over. He was walking down the hall with one of his teammates and smiled as he approached.

"Hey guys, how's it goin?" He asked giving me a small kiss on the cheek.

"Fine," I replied, "You training today?"

He nodded, "For the most part…I'm gonna go to the assembly though. It'll be a nice break."

"How's your knee feeling?" Brian asked.

He shrugged, "Okay I guess…hurts after a couple of hours though."

I shook my head, "Well don't work so hard then." He gave me a playful smirk as we continued our way down the hall. The hallways are packed with kids and a lot of them are standing in groups chatting away together. I remember about two months ago when Bender, Brian, and I walked down this same hallway; we were nervous and anxious about what would happen with Andy and Claire and we declared that no matter what happened the three of us would stick together. I remembered how I was wondering how everyone could be so oblivious to our anxiety and I wondered how they could all be so ignorant. That was then.

Now these groups in the hallways – about half of them anyways were mixed with all sorts of different people. Jocks, princesses, freaks, geeks, drama club kids, rebels, band members, all together. It is definitely a nicer environment with people opening themselves up, but at the same time there is some groups – one in particular – who are still acting the same way as always…mean, ignorant, and selfish. But I guess time doesn't change everyone.

We approached my locker just in time for the bell to ring to signal first period. We parted our separate ways and decided we would meet in front of the library and go to the assembly together.

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"Hey Allison, are we meeting up with everyone?" Asked Claire chirpily as she approached my locker.

I smirked, "Why are you so happy?"

She beamed, "I'm glad that you asked; my dad and I went apartment hunting on the weekend!"

I nodded, "So how did it go?"

She squealed, "Amazing! I found this cute two bedroom; it has all hardwood floors, a kitchen, and a bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub! Oh my god it was just so cute I could have died!"

I laughed at her as I closed my locker door and we turned to walk in the direction of the library, "How much is it?"

She shrugged and mumbled something I couldn't exactly hear. "What was that?"

She bit her lip, "$800."

My eyes widened and my jaw dropped, "EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS!"

She sighed, "Yeah but all the utilities are included! This is the eighties Allison, things aren't exactly cheap anymore. Besides its in downtown Chicago, what do you expect?"

I frowned, "Claire I realize what year it is but do you honestly think that you need something so expensive?"

She shrugged, "Well it's going to be the two of us isn't it?"

"Yeah I guess I can come but if I don't get this job then I don't know exactly what I am going to do for groceries and stuff let alone rent."

She formed a tiny smile, "Well I did pull some strings…"

I cocked an eyebrow, "You're dad is going to pay the rent?"

"Just until I'm out of school and I have a job."

I shook my head, "You're something else you know that?"

She laughed, "I do what I can." We approached the library and Brian, Andy, and John were already waiting for us.

"Took you long enough, jeez," Bender complained.

I scrunched up my face, "Yeah I bet you are just dying to get inside."

He grinned, "Why do you think that Brainiac here brought his book, huh? With the gummy bears in my pocket and all of the dork's notes I can have a grand old time fucking people up during their speeches."

Claire rolled her eyes, "Some how I knew there was a catch."

Andy chuckled, "Let's go inside and get a seat already, okay?" We nodded and made our way into the gymnasium. It was already pretty full but we managed to find a few chairs near the middle of the room. Andy sat on the outside, I sat beside him and John was in between Claire and Brian. Brian is a little nervous looking, but he also looks pretty excited. He is probably nervous about John throwing shit at Michelle while she is up there. Ha! After a few moments the gym was pretty much entirely full and Vernon had took the stage.

Bender stood up clapping as the gym went silent, "Go Dick!"

Vernon glared at him, "Sit down Bender!"

John nodded his head and waved to everyone and sat down. He really is like a child sometimes when he is in public. I laughed at his antics and then looked back at the stage. Vernon was straightening his tie and tapping the mic, "Test…test…can you all hear me okay?"

"On with it!" Bender yelled. Claire looked over to him and hissed, "Do you have to be like that?" He shrugged and grinned. Andy let out a laugh at him; I nudged him in the ribs with my elbow, "Don't motivate him!" He pursed his lips together and then resorted to laughing with his head turned in the other direction.

Vernon cleared his throat, "Okay everyone, we are gathered here today,"

"Damn this sounds like a funeral or something…" Bender sighed. It was only two minutes in and he was already getting fidgety.

"…To discuss the Senior Prom of 1984. This year's theme will be 'A Mid Summer's Night Dream'. You do not have to dress accordingly."

Bender sighed again, "I'm glad someone reminded me why I am not going…" Claire cut him off by smacking him in the gut, "Damn princess, you don't have to get violent…"

"Shut up!" She hissed quietly. And again Andy was laughing at him. I shook my head and watched the stage again.

"The date of the prom will be June the first…approximately three weeks away. It will be twenty dollars per ticket. I expect you all have done some preparations, and are excited but I must discuss behavior and rules."

We all looked at Bender waiting for a smart ass remark but luckily he was so bored already that he was staring off at the ceiling. I smiled to myself and looked back to Vernon.

"First things first…there will be no alcohol allowed on school property…" He was met with a chorus of groans and moans and he smirked, "If anyone is caught with alcohol or is found intoxicated the police will be called and you will be sent home. Same rule applies with narcotics."

Bender groaned, "This man takes the fun outta everything!"

"Also we do not want any sexually explicit activity going on in the gym or on school grounds. If we catch you acting inappropriately then you and your date will be sent home.

Now onto the prom queen candidates; we have four young ladies running this year and you will vote for your representative the night of the prom. They will come up here today and tell you why they want you to choose them and you may vote on your accord. So without further ado, your first candidate, Melissa Thomas.

A very short girl walked out on to the stage; she had naturally red hair (not as vibrant as Claire's but red) and a lot of freckles. She wasn't pretty in a super model kind of way, more of a naturally pretty kinda way. But as soon as she opened her mouth I lost all of my attention to how pretty she was. She was overly enthusiastic and automatically I realized she must be a cheerleader.

"Hellllloooo Shermer!" She squeeled. Bender widened his eyes at the girl, "Oh man this one is just asking for a paper airplane in the eye!" He said excitedly as he grabbed Brian's notebook from his grasp.

"I think you should vote…for me! As your prom queeeeen!" She began giggling and did a small flip and cartwheel routine for the school. Definitely a cheerleader. I feel sorry for her…honestly I feel embarrassed.

"I believe that I can add that extra bit of energy to our prom to make it fun! And we all like fun riiiiiigght?" She clapped her hands looking for crowd agreement but she just got silence. That is until John had something to do with it.

"Sit down loser!" He yelled and tossed a bunch of paper balls at her, as well as his saliva-drenched gummy bears. She tried to ignore him…that is until one hit her right in the face. He burst into a fit of laughter as she squeaked out, "Vote for me." And then ran off the stage. Everyone applauded. What a spaz that one is; and as far as I can tell Michelle has a good chance at this.

Vernon walked back out looking a little disheveled; kinda like he just got held up or something…he didn't even notice what just happened but whatever.

"Okay great…thank you Melissa…and now we have Juliana Patten…Juliana!"

She walked out very briskly and stood perfectly straight at the podium; disgustingly perfect…in a strict kind of way. She seems like the kinda girl who you would love to hate.

"Hello I am Juliana. I want to be the prom queen…" Her voice was incredibly monotone and already the sounds of it make me want to fall asleep. She droned on and on about how to make the school a better place…I thought this is a prom campaign? Not the god damned student council elections…

I looked around the room and noticed that is a great deal of students actually sleeping through this; I looked over at Andy who was drifting off, "Wake up!" I whispered and grabbed his arm to look at his watch…man this is gonna be a long one.

"I believe this school needs a tasteful and classy prom queen. Every year we see our prom queen with very revealing dresses and a lot of sexuality. We need class…we need taste…we need someone wholesome…"

"We need tranquilizers to get through this crap…NEXT!" Bender yelled following a long yawn. He didn't even bother throwing anything because the school was so quiet from boredom that she probably heard him from the front of the room.

She eyed him carefully, "We need people who don't abuse drugs and alcohol…a good inspiration for our students…"

"I said NEXT!" Bender interrupted again. Everyone was beginning to laugh at his antics and sadly if people are gonna laugh then they are asking for more from him. I feel sorry for this girl too suddenly.

She held her ground though, and for that I was impressed, "Vote for me as your Prom Queen on June 1st, and you will see a…"

"Snore-fest?" Bender yelled again, "BORING!"

"Classy performance and a classy individual. Thank you." She walked off the stage holding her chin high. That's a pretty confident girl if you ask me.

Vernon came back out with a very weirded out look on his face; he looks so confused by what just happened that it actually made me laugh out loud.

"Er…okay…that was interesting. Thank you Juliana. And now, Michelle Manning."

Michelle strode out confidently to applause from the crowd. A lot of people know who she is because she is on student council, dance and prom committee, as well as an activities organizer. Michelle is popular because of her personality, not who she associates herself with.

She took the podium and grinned happily, "Hello Shermer!" and with that one greeting she got loud cheers for a response. "I'm running for your prom queen this year and I have a purpose. I'm part of a group of friends who are looking for equality and peace between the students here. My first instinct to run as your prom queen was for entertainment. Now I have a reason. I want to run for everyone; everyone who was ever teased, bullied, felt like nothing, everyone who was too scared to stand up for what they believe in. If you vote for me as your prom queen you are voting for everyone…the entire student body to stand up together and have one night of fun and peace for everyone. I will take that crown and use it as a sign of unification amongst all of us. This is not a popularity contest and I indeed will show you that." Another eruption of cheers blew through and she smiled again, "So vote this year; not for me to be your queen, but for me to be your representative…stand up for the cause!"

She received a standing ovation; which she deserved. I felt proud of her; in fact even Bender made no wise crack about it. Which is a good thing, ha! She walked off the stage confidently past Vernon. After a few moments Vernon let the silence over take the gym.

"Thanks Michelle…and here is your last runner, your student council President, Ashley Young."

I rolled my eyes and looked at Andy who was leaning his head against his hand. Claire glared at the stage while Bender was preparing his ammo. I looked back at the stage and I was surprised at what I saw. She came out in a formal dress…and a very revealing one at that. It went down to her ankles but had two slits up the side up to her middle thighs, and it also had a plunging neckline. She had curled her hair and wore it down. She had cat calls coming from left and right and she probably just won over about 85 of the male population's votes. Damn her.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen!" She actually got quite a reaction…either equal too or louder than Michelle's.

"Prom time is here again and you guys need a queen!" She smiled seductively and raised her hand to motion silence to the applause. "I'm everything you will need for a queen – outspoken, popular, beautiful, and most of all a hell of a lot of fun and looking forward to turning this prom into a huge party!"

Applause erupted throughout the entire gym…well by passing anything Michelle got. As she began walking off the stage Brian and John began throwing the paper balls but to no avail. The sounds were deafening; even Bender's screams of 'slut' were not heard. We all sat back in our seats and looked at each other. I think that they have this won.

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I flattened out the wrinkles in my denim skirt and reached up to smooth down my hair. This is my first job interview and for some strange reason (maybe it was because of earlier) I didn't feel very confident. I feel like everything is outta place and I'm going to go into this record store and get laughed at.

AH! What am I talking about! I need to stop reverting back to my old self conscious ways! If I go in there acting like a freaking basket case then I will never get this job. I rearranged the handle of my bag and let out a deep breath…you're gonna do good…you're gonna do good…you're gonna do good…I shook my head and approached the record store. It was a two storey building with brown bricks, posters plastered all over the door, and a large sign over the door the said, 'Speed City Records'. I took another deep breath and pulled open the door; there aren't very many customers, and it kinda had this old closet feeling about it. I looked around the rows and rows of records and postered walls until my eyes settled on the counter.

I approached the counter slowly and looked behind it to see a man crouched down grabbing something from underneath.

"Excuse me…" I said quietly. He jumped back slightly but gave me a huge grin otherwise. He looked like he was in his late twenties; he had very bright green eyes and a bit of stubble on his chin; he had long black hair with blonde tips and it was all done up in dread locks; he had his eye brow pierced and to top off the funky wardrobe he had on very tight leather pants with a sleeveless Doors T-shirt tucked into his pants. He seemed like a very interesting yet approachable person.

"Are you Allison?" He asked enthusiastically.

"Yeah I am…are you the store manager?"

He gave me a huge grin and shook my hand, "Yeah my name is Eddie…I only have one other staff member right now and I'm working ridiculously long hours, I'm looking for the first interesting person with musical knowledge to help me out. You my dear look like a very interesting girl."

I smiled at his flamboyancy, "Well I hope I can be of some help."

He grinned back easily, "Well why don't we go take a seat in the back room and have a chat?"

I nodded and he led the way – with a bounce in his step – to the back room where a table and two steel chairs were set up. He seems like a very nice person; even with his rugged appearance he just had this happy go lucky vibe about him. I took a seat in one of the chairs and watched as he gathered up some papers from what appeared to be his desk.

"So why do you wanna work in a record store?"

"Well I love music…that's a given. I'm not really interested in working fast food or something boring and miserable like that."

He smiled, "I know what you mean. Working in a place like this is great because you have the opportunity to dress the way you want and be yourself. That's what I like about my staff – unique and an individual."

I smiled, "Well I don't think we'll have that problem, Eddie. I have my own way of doing things but I have no problem following directions."

"Good…that's good. So why don't you tell me something about yourself."

"Well, I'm still in school I'm going to be a senior next year. I'm a vegetarian as well…"

"Really?" He asked excitedly, "Me too!"

"I haven't eaten meat in years; I think its senseless slaughter sorta. I don't hate people who do eat meat though; it's just something I do."

"Well I think it is a very interesting personality trait, my partner is the same way."

I cocked an eyebrow, "Partner?"

"Oh," he gushed, "My partner, boyfriend, whatever you wanna call it."

"You're…"

"I'm gay, but it's not something that I am ashamed of, that's just me. I hope that wouldn't make you uncomfortable."

I shook my head, "No that doesn't make me uncomfortable, you have the right to like who you wanna like. I've just never met anyone who is before."

He smiled, "Well that's fine too. I'm glad you think that way about people."

"What way?"

"That people have the right to like who they wanna like…it's a great way of thinking."

I smiled at him and he smiled back; he was really comfortable to be around and we had a lot in common. If I get this job it will probably be really fun.

"So what kind of music are you into?" He asked interestingly.

I hesitated, "Lots of stuff," I admitted easily, "I love AC/DC and Van Halen, Led Zeppelin, but I also like The Smiths, The Cure, Depeche Mode…even Prince."

He raised his eyebrows, "Well that's a variety…I love the sixties personally…The Doors, CCR, Zeppelin is good too…I also love The Grateful Dead."

I smiled, "Hippie?"

He blushed slightly, "Somewhat…"

"That's cool…I find it very interesting."

"Great! So have you had any work experience?"

I folded my hands in my lap and sighed, "No."

"That's okay, I don't mind training. All the job really consists of is using a cash register, restocking the shelves, closing the store, and cleaning up afterwards."

I nodded, "I don't see a problem with that…"

"Great well then welcome to Speed City Records, Ally!"

TBC

End notes: About the prom queen thing…where I live we don't have prom queen campaigns…come to think of it I don't even think they do that at all in Canada, so I tried my best. I think it was fun but whatever. And with the job thing, it is relevant. I was thinking about doing a sequel to this story when its done (that is if people want it) that takes place about four years down the road. I have all these plot bunnies in my head for it. So whatever but it's all relevant and it will all come together in the end. So I hope you all enjoyed this chapter please feel free to drop me a line guys! Thanks!

Kristen