Here's Chapter 7. Took a while and I must say it's pretty casual. More on high school things, I suppose. But I hope you guys enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Powerpuff Girls in any way, shape or manner as the rights belong to Craig McCracken.
-Buttercup-
JANUARY 15, 11:01 AM…
…
Everything hurts…
Everything burns…
But why? Why does everything hurt so bad? My head was swimming to try and find answers, but I couldn't even think straight. Waking up I felt a rough jagged edge ready to tear at the skin on my stomach and a haunting red smoke surrounding me. My body felt so heavy but it was like I was hanging from thin air. Where the hell am I?
Suddenly, I heard a small voice coming from the smoke.
"…Buttercup…"
"Blossom?" my voice was so small I could barely hear it myself. I tried to push the sharp piece away from me, but my limbs burned so much, I let go of my grip just as soon as I was about to get up, forcing the edge to go even deeper into my gut as I moaned in pain.
"…Buttercup…! …Bubbles…!"
BUBBLES!
Where is she? Why isn't she here!? I started to whip my head around in panic as my eyes adjusted to the red smoke. Why's everything so red? I couldn't find Bubbles anywhere.
WHERE ARE WE? I looked down to see myself lying on top of a broken wall and Mitch lying below me in a pool of blood as my heart stopped. I could hear the faint blaring coming from the ambulances, but they sounded miles away from the school.
"Mitch!" It hurt so much to speak, like sharp needles piercing down my throat.
But he never answered. I could see him lying still on the ground with his face caked in blood as his eyes turned an eerie bluish gray.
"MITCH!" I screamed as the needles dug deeper. But he just blankly stared at the black sky above us, the blood slowly trickling down his head and into the puddle that spread out beneath him. I started trembling with fear as I began to face the truth.
"Please…Please don't die…!" I sobbed. I never felt so useless in my entire life. He was my best friend, my only friend. And all I could do is sit there and watch him bleed to death.
"No!" I couldn't stop crying, the pain was so bad. I felt like I was burning from the inside out. Suddenly I slipped from the wall, landing on the hard cracked concrete like hot coals burning my skin in the empty room. Hugging my knees I cried silently to myself.
"It hurts…it hurts…"
"Somebody…" I started to fade into the dark. I'm still burning.
"Somebody…"
…help me leave this Hell.
Chapter 7: Changing One's Image
The following morning the apartment undergone its usual hectic course before the girls headed off for their second day of high school. Blossom finished the last of her toast and snatched her bag to run for the door before shouting to her sisters.
-Blossom-
"Buttercup! Bubbles! Hurry up we're about to be late!"
"Coming!" Bubbles finally came out wearing a light blue Lilly Pulitzer dress with low silver wedges and a silver purse to match her makeup and jewelry. Compared to her outfit yesterday, she looked like she did an entire makeover overnight.
"Bubbles, are you sure you want to wear that?"
She didn't seem to hear me as she twirled the dress around and marveled at how pretty (and expensive) it was."It's gorgeous! Why wouldn't I?"
"Yeah, it's really cute and all but," I lowered my voice to a whisper, "this isn't about what happened yesterday, right?" Bubbles looked confused, but when she spoke her voice sounded soft and fragile.
"Why would it be?" she quickly switched back to being elated and skipped to the kitchen. "Besides today's the pep rally and I really wanted to show out for the school, especially since I'm trying out for the dance team today!"
"Oh right! Did you make callbacks for cheerleading?"
She rolled her eyes. "I'm pretty sure I'll get in…" At the sound of the door slam, we saw Buttercup trudge through the kitchen with sweats and the look of death written on her face.
But that didn't affect Bubbles's mood. "Mornin!"
"Mm" Buttercup didn't seem to notice as she chugged a cup of milk. She obviously didn't have a lot of sleep last night, but then again none of us did. I considered dropping my question about last night, but if I didn't bring up it up now it'll never happen.
"Buttercup, did you smell something weird last night?".
She looked at me cautiously to prepare for a lecture. "No… why would I?"
"No reason." I tried to fix my backpack to avoid her gaze, hoping she wouldn't be too suspicious; I was really trying to get along with her today as a promise to the Professor last night. "Make sure you bring your medical forms for those classes."
She suddenly flung the pile of papers off the table. "Screw the paperwork! Why can't you do it?"
I paused in shock at her unexpected outburst but quickly regained my position. "Because those are your forms Buttercup. I don't have to do your work!"
"Last time I checked I was forced to go!"
"That doesn't mean you can go around snapping at everyone!"
"I can yell at whoever I want!"
"Why don't you stop acting like you're four and GROW UP FOR ONCE!"
"Blossom," we turned to see Gladys at the front door with a serious face. "Calm down and leave Buttercup alone. Buttercup we'll be leaving in ten minutes." I froze in shock as Buttercup shot a look in my direction before grabbing her bag to meet Bubbles and the Professor in the car. I waited until the door closed before turning back to Gladys.
"Why were you mad at me? She started it!"
"And I just ended it," she replied sitting on the couch with a stack full of papers. "Everything was closed once when you were reprimanded. Did you really think I'd confront Buttercup after all the times she's argued with me? I don't have time for another fight."
I raised my eyebrows in amazement. Gladys's only been with us for three days and she's already gotten used to how we act towards each other (our daily insanity). In fact, she's probably the only people I know that can keep Buttercup in check, and that deserves serious respect.
I stole a glance at Gladys as she was filing some reflections before looking back at the window. Despite how sudden everything was, she was always trying to make sure we were happy, giving us a sort of compassion that we haven't experienced in ten years. She was almost like an older sister to me.
"Blossom?"
"Hm?"
Gladys gave me a puzzled look. "Is everything okay sweetie?"
"Uh," What was I thinking? Gladys lied to us. Someone remembered. Not a crowd of people, but it was still somebody, and that would've meant the world to us if we could've known that sooner.
"- yeah. Just a little nervous for my second day." She gave me a warm smile in return before going into the Professor's room to look for some folders. I grabbed my bag to leave but I stopped at the door. Seeing her work so hard for us, I felt a bit guilty for lying to her before brushing my feelings off and ran to meet up with my sisters
She can't be trusted. And that's that.
"AND HERE THEY ARE! OUR LOVELY NEWCOMERS!" Mr. Harvey shouted
"I thought he introduced us yesterday," Bubbles whispered to Blossom.
"Don't waste your breath," she muttered.
Just then a knock (or rather a bang) on the door came from Buttercup, who took her time to get to class. Just as Blossom was getting ready to open it. Mr. Harvey suddenly looked alarmed.
"DON'T OPEN THAT!" as she stared at him, he responded back in a grave tone. "It could be a terrorist." With that he opened the door to find Buttercup glowering at him.
"And here's our ferocious renegade!" he exclaimed. As the girls took their seats, Mr. Harvey took his place at his desk to prepare for what he was about to say.
"Jokes aside let's have a serious moment here and talk about the fight yesterday." As expected from high school students, their attention peaked at the sound of the event, including the boys who witnessed the entire thing
"Now I usually don't interfere with my student's affairs, however I must show my dissent on such…"
Buttercup felt a growl escaping from her lips. Don't start today, dude, you'll regret it.
"…and encourage a round of applause for this girl 'cause I hate that spoiled bitch too!"
Instantly hoots and jeers roared within the classroom in reaction to the teacher's statement, much to the shock of the girls, but especially towards their troubled sister who expected nothing more than another lecture.
"Mr. Harvey!"
He turned to see Bubbles turning a bright red with anger. "Oh right, no profanity!" But he went right back to Buttercup's line of sight showing signs of being impressed, and perhaps even going so far as to show admiration. "You have my complete respect, sister. If I was your age, I would've taken her out a long time ago."
"Wait, but why do you hate her so much?" Blossom asked raising an eyebrow at her teacher's rant over the student.
Mr. Harvey curled two fingers around his chin in a mock thinking fashion."Maybe it's the hair color… No. That girl's a spawn from the pits of Hell. I'd fight her if I didn't get fired."
Boomer raised his hand. "Even if you got banned from the school?"
"Dude, even if I got banned from this city it still would've been worth it." Turning back to Buttercup for the last time, he barely concealed a smirk to conclude the conversation. "But the next time you wanna do something like that, aim for her throat so we can be spared from that jarring sound she calls her voice. Who knows? Might make it sound better!"
After the subtle sound of laughter receded from the room, Harvey sat back on his wheelchair for the next topic. "Now for your assignment I'll have separate pieces from the bleak, cynical, and terribly horrid broad we're forced to read in torment even though it encourages suicidal behavior…"
"Who's he talking about?" Blossom whispered to no one in particular.
"Emily Dickinson," a voice scoffed. Blossom turned to see the redhead from yesterday, but she never really got a close up to how he really looked. Wearing a red muscle tee, shorts, and his hair in a ponytail, the tan on his skin was clearly seen as it highlighted the sharp tone of his calves and biceps. She tried to examine him to get a bit more info. An avid soccer player. Midfield or Defense?
"… So in pairs you'll each have one poem, interpret it, blah, blah, blah, let's begin the torture."
"Partners?" Brick turned to the new girl expectantly. He already knew Butch would partner up with Boomer so he could get all the answers, and he had the feeling that her sisters had just done the same to her.
She smiled a set of glowing white teeth at the captain. "Sure! Brianne, but you already knew that."
"Brent Jones," he replied with a charming grin. Definitely a Forward.
However that was all they said to each other before going right into analyzing the poem, like they had read each other's thoughts beforehand. But around every once or so often, Blossom would catch Brent stealing glances at her when he thought she wasn't looking, making her feel apprehensive, uncomfortable, and yet at the same time intrigued.
After catching him staring for the twelfth time, she closed her notebook and locked eyes with the athlete as she raised her eyebrow in amusement. "Is there something on my face?"
Blossom couldn't help but giggle at the faint blush that flashed on his ears at the blink of an eye before returning back to its normal tan. Would she have caught that without her super vision? Probably not.
Brick almost sputtered at how sharp she was. He couldn't have taken more than a second's glance at her without his head moving an inch from the paper. Brianne was the first to ever catch him in the act. Not like he did it a lot though.
But she just looked way too damn familiar! The light copper red hair, porcelain face, the tied red ribbon…
But when he looks at her muddy brown eyes, it's as if all of his instincts were ignored. Like tying to complete a jigsaw puzzle with the wrong pieces.
With his gut feeling thawing at him raw, he couldn't take it anymore! It was either he got to the bottom of this, or admit to insanity. "Don't take this as being stalker-ish, but have I met you somewhere?"
Blossom's heart skipped a beat. She clearly underestimated him. The redheaded leader looked back at Buttercup and Bubbles, both unaware of how obvious they were the entire time they were here. She knew she should've chopped her hair into layers when she had the chance!
But for now the best thing she could do was divert his suspicions and plastered a blank stare to show mock confusion. "Nope! Never seen you in my life." She thanked God over remembering to place brown contacts. If she had came in with pink eyes, he would've put the pieces together before she could even introduce herself as Brianne.
Brick looked down, troubled with himself. His hunches were never wrong! It was like his senses were out of whack. But why would he feel so strongly about this girl when it's obvious she's never seen him before. I mean who forgets a guy with hair longer than half the girls in his grade? he scoffed to himself. With that logic, he would just have to move on from this, remembering that sometimes even mutants make mistakes.
"Let's go on with this poem! It seems pretty interesting…" Brianne said with another bright smile, except this time it seemed strained, almost tense and fearful instead of the cheerful grin she showed earlier.
Brick brushed it off, refusing to be embarrassed again.
-Boomer-
After Harvey's, it not like my day gets any easier. Not with Ms. Hertu.
She looked like Betty White except she was a lot skinnier and a helluva lot crazier. I only took the class for an easy A, and now I have to deal with her yelling about the Joys of Drama.
Why can't I just leave?
Oh right! Because Brick's being a jerk and has Cole watching me like I'll disappear off the face of the earth! I don't see what's so bad about missing ONE class, especially one this boring. Looking around the class I noticed the kids who made the same mistake as me in choosing this class, which wasn't really a lot. In fact, I could count the number of my classmates on my fingers.
But I stopped the minute she was in my line of sight. Man, she was pretty.
I like blondes. I really do. Except every one of them seem to have a problem at this school. Their nose is too big. Their eyes were too small. Too thick. Too thin. And a lot of times waaay too dumb. But she looked perfect. It was like I was staring at the sight of an angel-
"Brandon!" I looked up to Ms. Hertu glaring at me. Lady, it is not my fault your class is boring!
"It seems you're more interested in my new prodigy rather than the lesson?" she mused.
My face flushed in embarrassment as I stammered for an excuse over everyone laughing at me. Great. How was I even going to introduce myself after that? I'd be lucky if I even got her name!
Ms. Hertu looked satisfied and went back to praising Shakespeare. I tried to steal one more glance at her and fast as i could without anyone seeing me. What she's thinking about?
'Man, what a dork…' Yeah. She'd probably say that. Man, if I was like Brick or Butch, I wouldn't even be in this situation. They always get all the girls but I get… friendzoned. I mean it's not like I can't get a girlfriend or anything, but they're usually good friends that I can never see myself going serious with, so they all end in flings. Then again I should count my blessings; it is better than Butch's 'Hit-and-Runs,' I mean at least I can keep a girl for longer than a day. Besides, I don't really need a serious girlfriend right now.
But looking at her taking notes from the she-devil made me wanna talk to her, or at least introduce myself to her. Fat chance of that happening anytime soon. She probably thinks you're a stalker anyway.
Can't help it now. Might as well figure out a way to leave so that I can save face. The last thing I need is for her to see how humiliated I look.
-Bubbles-
"Where are we going?" I asked aloud
"I don't know. Becky told us to meet her in the courtyard." Blossom replied. I was hoping to myself it wasn't anywhere too crowded. Every time I walked in the hallways people kept staring at me like I was a freak show, all just because of what happened from before. I just hope this whole thing passes soon.
The courtyard where students enter the school is wide and spaced out with grassy fields by the buildings and surrounding the entire auditorium, so obviously it's filled with students setting blankets and tables out in the sun, but most of the kids sat by the fountain right in the middle of the courtyard. At around the back of the Auditorium we saw Becky lying in the shade under a tree singing softly to herself with the soft rhythm of her guitar.
"Come on Skinny Love just last the year…
Pour a little salt we were never here…
My my my… my my my, my, my…
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer…"
The notes sounded so beautiful, I came running over to see her. "Wow Becky!" When she looked up to see us, I only smiled brighter. "I didn't know you could sing like that!"
But instead of thanking me, she quickly shoved her guitar into her case as she rambled a bunch of excuses in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry about that! It's something I do to myself and no one was around so I didn't see why not and-"
"Why are you apologizing? It's great!" I gawked at her in shock. How could she be so embarrassed over singing?
"Yeah we don't mind." Blossom said as she sat on the shaded hill next to Becky before I joined them following Buttercup. Becky looked up at us doubtfully. "It's just Bon Iver, but you guys don't mind?" I shook my head furiously. "Of course not! Continue please!" She giggled at how upset I was and took out her guitar to sing again.
"I tell my love to wreck it all…
Cut out all the ropes and let me fall…
My my my… my my my, my, my…
Right in the moment this order's tall…"
As Becky was singing, we ate our lunch quietly under the shady tree. After being humiliated yesterday, everything felt so perfect here. No one staring at you, no one judging, and best of all no Princess. With the large cypress tree hovering over us and the hill bringing a slight breeze, this place was so much better than sitting in that overcrowded cafeteria, and I hoped I never had to set foot in there again.
But then Becky stopped the song and put her guitar away. "Hey Bree, what time is it?"
"11:55, why?"
"Holy crap we're late!" She suddenly grabbed her bags and ran off the hill. So naturally, me and my sisters ran after her wondering what happened to the happy feelings everyone had five seconds ago.
"L-late for what?! Becky!" I called out.
"We have to be in the cafeteria! Just follow me!" Perfect. And I was just starting to forget about what happened. When we ran inside the place was already filled with people. Trying to ignore the glances in our direction, I looked at my sisters for an answer on where we were even going to sit, but Becky was already pushing us towards this one table near the middle of the cafeteria on the first floor that was half-filled already.
When we finally got seated, I leaned in and whispered angrily at Becky. "I thought you said you didn't like being in the cafeteria!" I meant to sound a bit nicer, but I was a little mad about getting dragged back to the place where Princess ruined my first day.
"I don't. But that's not the reason I wanted you guys to come." She grinned mischievously.
"Then would you mind filling us in on what exactly you're planning." Buttercup grumbled
Just then I looked up to see student photographers setting up their video cameras on the second and third floor aiming for our area as music started to blow from the speakers by our wall banner. Suddenly dancers filled the middle of the cafeteria and pushed the tables aside to start their choreography.
I wanna dance without you…!
(Dance without you…!)
For once just let me lose myself…!
(Lose myself…!)
It was incredible! There was at least twenty people covering the center as they glided and moved across the floor like they were made up of water.
"The dance team planned their annual flash mob today. Figured it be the perfect way to introduce the new students to our extracurriculars. Plus I thought it'd be nice to see after what happened before." I turned to Becky and finally realized that she wanted to make our memories in the cafeteria good ones.
"How'd you know this was happening if it was a flash mob?"
"In order for them to do this, they need to let the principal, one assistant principal, and at least a third of the Journalism club know to film it, and I just so happened to be included from Journalism club because I was escorting the newbies," she explained. Blossom made sure to keep note of that to join Journalism later.
I wanna dance without you…!
(Dance without you…!)
Then a tan skinned girl entered the center doing a duet with a guy.
"I think that's the girl from my art class." Blossom said pointing to the tan girl.
"She's amazing…!" I whispered. Having light brown hair a couple shades darker than her skin, she moved like the music was flowing through her. Thinking back to my pasty white skin and flimsy ballet moves, I adored and hated her all at once.
For once just let me lose myself
"The one up front? That's the co-captain, Isabella Martinez. With her boyfriend, they're pretty popular around the school."
For once! Let me lose myself––
When the music ended the entire cafeteria cheered for the dance team as the co-captain stood in the middle of the cafeteria with a microphone.
"GOOD MORNING WEST COAST HIGH! Did you like our performance?"
The crowd yelled even louder as an answer. As our table clapped for the team, I looked down at my tray feeling ashamed. I couldn't even stand in front of my class and here she was in front of half of the school.
"Now we do this sort of thing EVERY YEAR as a chance to show our school what the dance team has in store for you guys! We all make up a part of the team in whatever way possible and always put it as our first priority, and for that reason we've been state champion for FOUR YEARS!"
The students shouted even louder at this as a light brown skinned dancer walked to Isabella's side.
"So if you want to get involved and be able to participate in all this, you can talk to either me or my teammate Joanne Micheals for more information on our next tryout position! THANK YOU AND WE'LL SEE YOU AT THE PEP RALLY!"
When Bella finished her speech, the crowd was roaring in applause. However she paid it no mind as she turned to her co-captain and best friend Joanne.
"How was it? Think we're getting any new recruits?"
Joanne rolled her eyes. "Bell, we have 5 months before anything happens. You can't tell now if whether or not we'll have a full room of people to join."
"We weren't able to get to everyone though." She said glumly thinking about all the people in the courtyard. There's only so much they could do in an hour.
"Who cares!? They'll see it on the announcements or something. Besides who sits in the courtyard when it's hot as hell!" Bella snickered at this. People find Joanne bossy, picky, and at times very mean, but these were the very things Bella like the most about her.
Before they could say anything else, Bella saw Brent walking towards her with his two brothers, but the first thing she noticed was the shadow across his face. She sighed, wondering which one of the boys pissed him off this time.
"Hey babe!" she exclaimed sweetly. "Did 'ya see our routine?"
But he said nothing as the shadow darkened on his face before saying the dreaded words.
"We need to talk."
-Brick-
After the Pledge and the National Anthem, Butch and I were in the front bleachers to be closer to the court when they call out our teams. I decided to make use of the time to try and encourage him to do a bit more in school.
"So, why haven't you thought of taking another language?"
"Why should I? I'm barely passing English as it is!"
"Has it ever occurred to you that your just too lazy to get shit done?"
"No. I'm well aware of that, which is why I'm not taking the class!"
"OYE, 'MANO!"
We turned to the voice and saw the two brothers calling out to us. Identifying more with their Hispanic side than their African American heritage, Donald and Tyrone Johnson speak twice the amount of Spanish than they do English even though they were born here, meaning you probably got a 1 to 3 chance of understanding them. Their personalities tend to mirror each other, and for that people often assume the two are alike, when actually it's the exact opposite.
Ty had small dreads going down to his mid neck in a ponytail and had some facial hair growing on his chin with a slight stubble. He was older by one year, and is the responsible one out of the two with a pretty good morale, which is ironic because he's the one who got held back a year, making them in our same grade. He says it was to make sure he kept his little brother in check on all his classes.
Donnie had small cornrows stopping an inch or two from his scalp and was a little chubbier than Ty. Unlike his brother, he was the crazier one and seemed to be like Butch's protégé, so whenever Butch gets into some serious trouble for something, I can almost guarantee Donnie would be right next to him hoping his brother might bail him out (sometimes I have the misfortune of finding all three of them in the Main Office). At times I wonder if those two were just separated at birth..
The two came running over at the sight of their friend before interrupting our conversation, but I figured it getting nowhere as it is.
Ty popped in between us as a smirk spread across his face. "So you want 'im to learn Spanish? Drop this guy down in 'Rico and he'll be fluent in three days, lo juro por Dios!"
Donnie came right behind him. "No way! Maybe three months. This gringo's dumb as fuck!"
"Haha. Real funny." Boomer suddenly emerged from the crowd behind us with a grim look on his face when he saw the two sitting by us, or more specifically Donnie. As expected Boomer and Donnie never get along, often leading to verbal arguments ad insults, but never a fist fight; or at least not yet.
"Hush flaco! You don even know what we just said!"
"Y-Yeah I do!" Boomer stammered. He was better off staying quiet.
"What does it mean then?"
"It means… it's… it's an insult and-"
Donnie busted out laughing at his ignorance and Ty just shook his head at my younger brother. "Cayate, you might save what's LEFT of your dignity," he muttered.
Boomer's expression darkened in frustration before stomping back up the stairs. I'd never admit it, but I feel sorry for him sometimes. First Butch makes fun of him, and now he has two more people to back him up.
…but that's not my problem. "He'll get over it." I said with a shrug.
"Hell, he HAS to get over it. I'm not sayin' sorry!" Donnie scoffed, but then again he never does to anyone except Ty, Butch, and myself (sometimes).
I looked up to see Bella training with one of her male partners as I gritted my teeth.
"The hells her problem!?" I snarled
"Who-? Oooh. Tu Chiquita," Donnie mused.
"What happened?"
"She's dancing with all these guys like I'm not even here!" I yelled. "How am I supposed to sit here and watch her grind on some pricks like she doesn't even notice me?!
Butch started to pout. "You poor son of a bitch… you have to watch your girlfriend dance with guys from the dance team… that are gay! Need a tissue?"
"It's not funny!"
"It is! You're sittin here actin like she's doing a strip tease for guys who'd rather be dancing with the guy next to them; besides with you sitting up front, I doubt they're gonna try to do shit."
As the music started, I crossed my arms with my cap over my eyes, refusing to watch any of that crap.
"Relax Brent, it's just one dance! Then you can go back to eating each other's faces in the hallways" "Oh c'mon, you can't pretend like you've never done that."
"I'm not you."
"That's because I'm one of a kind, bitch! Hey- Where're you goin!?"
The girls were sitting at the back of the bleachers just after the National Anthem finished. As she sat back down, Bubbles quickly turned to Becky to see if she could know more about the black haired wonder.
"You know Becky, you've been asking us about what we're like and all, but you never talk about yourself."
"That's true," Blossom agreed turning to her curiously ."Tell us something about yourself. Your music was great, are you a musician?"
The journalist raised her eyebrows in amusement. "Well, that's odd."
"What, that we didn't ask sooner?"
"No, that you even bothered to ask." The girls of course were taken aback over how bluntly she spoke, Upon seeing this, Becky tried to clarify. "It's like being a tour guide. Usually the new students I pick up are so eager to tell me about themselves and all the stuff they did at their last school that there isn't really any time to properly introduce myself. It's not like they care anyway."
"So, they were all cocky bastards." Buttercup scowled.
She chuckled softly at the comment. "No, actually they weren't." She began to lower her head as she avoided the girls' gaze, as if she were saying the next phrase to herself. "It's just that when you find yourself alone in this world, the first thing you try to do is create an identity from the pieces of the life you left behind."
"Take it from someone who's been there," she mumbled, confirming the idea that maybe they weren't the only ones with problems in the school. "By the way, I wanted to thank you for what you did yesterday. I know you did it mostly for your sister, but no one's ever really stuck up to her like that, and I think she's gonna leave me alone for quite a while after that."
Buttercup locked eyes with the writer for the first time, feeling a mix between wonder and pity. "Sure thing." She mumbled before thinking back to Harvey with a smirk. "S'not like she didn't have it coming."
"You'd think she'd learn the second time around that there are some people you can't mess with," Becky sighed.
"Second time? Thought you said no one's challenged her?"
"Actually there was one person, but I think I forgot yesterday. Apparently, she got her so scared Princess carried bodyguards with her for an entire week thinking she was gonna get shot at!"
The girls snickered at the thought of Princess going paranoid over being protected in the hallways. Needless to say, that would've been a sight to see.
"So what about yourself?" Blossom asked
Becky shrugged her shoulders dismissively. "Not much about me really. I traveled around a lot when I was a kid for my dad's job before settling down in Tampa, Florida for a few years. But by then I was so used to moving that I never really kept a close relationship with anyone. It wasn't until 3 years ago that my parents moved into Townsville, thinking such a big place might get me some more friends. But that hasn't happened yet."
"Any siblings?"
"One brother. But he's never really kept in contact with anyone from my family."
A silence between the four was filled by the loud clamor of those in the gym. Becky gave the three an apologetic smile. "Sorry I made this so depressing on you guys with my sap story. You were better off just talking about yourselves!"
"Don't say that!" Bubbles yelled, much to the shock of those around her. But Blossom soon joined her.
"Brooke's right. It's important that people know who you are! And for the record, I really appreciate you sharing that with us."
"Me too," Bubbles added with a shy smile
Before Buttercup could utter a reply, a lanky kid with dirty blonde hair came running over to the four waving a digital camera. "Hey Becks! Check out these shots I got of the school!"
"Hey Brandon!" Before she could stand up to hug him, he dropped the camera into her lap urging her to look through the pictures. For a few seconds, Becky's eyes started to widen as she passed through each photo. "Oh my God these are amazing! How'd you get these photos?!"
"I have my ways," he grinned proudly.
"Yeah I'm sure you do," she replied rolling her eyes. A few months back, she used to always press him on how he got these types of shots, but it didn't take long for her to realize that Brandon wasn't going to tell her his secret anytime soon. But so long as he kept giving her pictures like this, she could care less.
"Uh- HELLO? You just rudely interrupted a conversation here!" Buttercup snapped.
Brandon's face began to pale in fear. "Oh… S-sorry 'bout that." He turned to Becky looking dejected again. "Um you can give me the camera later then…"
"BREE HUSH!" Bubbles screeched before returning to her bright smile. "I'm sorry about my sister! She's gets a little cranky when she doesn't get enough sleep!" before Buttercup could protest, Bubbles quickly stomped on her foot and stuck her arm out to the individual. "I'm Brooke!"
Remembering the girl from before, Boomer met her hand in return and tried to act as calm as he could. "H-h-hey! My name's Brandon."
"So you're in Journalism?"
Becky snorted. "Not really. He never officially signed up, but he always gives me photos to put into the yearbook and has at least a quarter of his pictures covering the school hallways. He probably one of the best photographers here!"
"Wow," her blue eyes started to grow wide with awe. "So you're pretty artistic, huh?"
Boomer started to feel himself grow sweaty around Brooke. The longer he stood there, the more he could feel himself turning red and refused to embarrass himself for the second time around her. "W-well uh, i…it's nothing just…"
"Well if you don't have a lot to do later could you show me some of your pictures sometime?" Bubbles mumbled with the faint glint of hope in her sky blue eyes.
"Actually," Brandon looked up and grinned at the blonde. "Yeah - Yeah, I would really like that."
"Me too!" She beamed. After a momentary silence between the two, the lights started to fade as Brandon turned back to the girls. "Well the pep rally's about to start. I guess I'll see you later?
"How's about tomorrow-?
"-at four-"
"-in the park...?"
"R-right!"It's like she was reading my mind. "Well uh, see ya!"
Bubbles waved elatedly back at the photographer as he went back to meet with his brothers. Buttercup and Blossom looked at their sister with suspicion. The glow in skin the eager grin, and that small sheen of hope showing in her eyes were all signs of something way too familiar.
But Becky only giggled at Bubbles without ever taking her eyes off of the camera. "Wow. It hasn't even been a week and you're already crushing on one of the Jones Brothers."
"What's so special about them?" Blossom asked curiously.
"At the risk of making it sound like a cliché high school flick, the Jones Brothers are kind of like celebrities here. Harvey calls them the Jonas Brothers when they're together in the hallways. But ironically the only people who don't notice it is them. Well that excludes Blayke."
"Give us some details."
"I might as well tell you about all of them." She motioned towards the redhead at the front of the group of soccer players on the court. "Brent's the oldest and captain of the boys soccer team even though he's only a sophomore. Girls seemed to get crushes on him the most because he was like the three in one for them. Smart, athletic, and really cute, but that changed once he started going out with Bella the dance captain and made typical high school sweethearts. It actually came out as a surprise because before going serious with her, Brent had girls crawling for him."
"I lost all respect for our gender." Buttercup muttered.
She then pointed at the dark haired jock, who was sitting by the football players. "Blayke is the second oldest and is on the football team, travel MMA team, and the rugby team making him one of the most athletic. But he's also one of the big players in the school, even though people tend to consider him more of a manwhore than a real player. He can be really arrogant, to the point of where he's a complete jerk. But he's also the really aggressive one, so girls –and even some guys– try to keep their distance unless they're on a friendly status with him, or in the girls' case, a sexual status.
Then they turned to the skinny boy sitting on the bleachers alone as he watched his brothers on the court. "Then there's Brandon. For a Jones brother, he's not really that popular. Had a couple girlfriends here and there, but nothing serious. The only sport he played was baseball last year, but he was more into the arts if anything. So he dropped this year and went into photography. Rumor has it he's an incredible dancer, but he usually keeps that to himself, probably because he brothers make fun of him for that more than they probably do for photography."
She turned back to the three looking satisfied with the information she's presented. "And those are the Jones Brothers. Anyone else you'd like me to tell you about?"
"Wow Becky, you sure know you way around!" Bubbles exclaimed.
"I'm a journalist, I need to know who I'm writing to. Or in some cases who I'm writing about. Take your pick, I know pretty much everyone in this gym."
In a moment Buttercup saw Mitch sitting by the gym doors ready to leave once the security guard wasn't looking. He may hate her and goes out with a girl who wants her in the morgue, but he was still the same Mitch she met in Kindergarten.
"What about that guy over there by the exit doors?"
She turned silent for a minute before meeting Buttercup's gaze with a sad smile. "Every school has their future dropout."
Just then hip hop music blared from the speakers. "OhmiGod! It's starting!" Bubbles quickly shushed everyone's conversation and leaned forward to get a perfect view. If it was anything like during the lunch period, she'd want to see every part of it.
The dancers came out in white cargos and royal blue cropped tops designed with silver and black to represent the school colors as they started out the routine, but it was nothing like the one prior to the pep rally and made Blossom wrinkle her nose in disgust. THIS is what Bubbles wants to be a part of?
"Hey Brooke?" Bubbles looked at Blossom impatiently, unwilling to miss a second of the performance. "Are you sure you can join the dance team? They kinda look like…"
"Sluts, hoes, whores, strippers-"
"Thank you Bree, that was exactly what I thought of." Seeing her shocked face, Blossom tried to reason with her, dreading the idea of her actually performing something like this. "I just don't want to see you get hurt."
"Don't worry about it guys. I can do this!" Bubbles looked back at the dancers. It's not like she was clueless to that, and she could feel herself shivering at the thought of ever doing something like this. But after yesterday, people started looking at her differently. They all felt sorry for her, but now it seemed like her whole personality was decided at that moment.
People think she's weak, defenseless, pitiful… like a baby thrown into a jungle and had to be protected. And maybe some of that was true, but she didn't want her high school life to be like that! She wanted to be tough, she wanted to have confidence, she wanted to be able to throw away her old identity and make it into something she's always dreamed about.
She looked back at Bella, who looked so like she could own the school if she wanted to. She wanted to be just like her, and decided the best time to join would have to be now, otherwise she'd never be break out of stereotype, and her dreams about enjoying high school would end before it had even started.
3:30 – Dance room
Joanne Micheals sat facing the dance team as she led the warm up. "ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! LET'S STRETCH OUT THOSE LEGS! I don't wanna hear you guys complainin tomorrow cause I won't hear that!" Sitting behind a one sided mirror, the team started to groan in response. Most of them tended to think of her more as a drill sergeant than a captain.
To everyone's relief, Bella entered the room meaning the end to their torment. She crouched down to Joanne, who was doing the Butterfly pose at the moment. "Any news on Brandon?" she whispered.
"You thought he'd come?"Joanne snorted in response.
The light haired dancer groaned. Brandon's so sweet, but sometimes she wished he had a backbone and did what made him happy! Sighing defeat she turned to the team. "Okay guys. For the next few months we just gotta hope and pray we can pull through for the show even though we have a few holes in the team." Holes that I made… she thought dejectedly.
When the door opened the group turned to see their principal enter the room with his face looking unusually serious. "Oh! Good Afternoon Dr. Lee!" Bella greeted brightly. "Sup." Joanne mumbled rising up to meet her teammate.
"Who're the team captains here?" After Joanne and Bella raised their hands, he motioned towards the soundproof closet on the right side of the room. "May I please speak to you for a bit?"
About thirty seconds later…
"What do you mean you're cutting us!?"
"I said that I might resort to it, and it's with good reason."
"But-but…" Bella stammered, still in shock with the sudden news. "we've worked so hard! We've won championships for this school! We bring back trophies! Not some little plaques but giant, six foot tall, gold trophies! You can't just drop the dance team, it's not fair!"
"At least get rid of the cheerleaders! They can't do shit!" Joanne retorted.
"Jojo!" Bella snapped, reminding her of who's in here with them.
"Sorry," she mumbled.
Dr. Lee's features darkened in frustration with the two. "Those cheerleaders you just talked about never implied such sexual connotations like you just did at our school pep rally." The girls turned silent for a moment, Dr. Lee used this moment to continue on with his point. "When you go out there who do you think you're representing? What do you think our new students think about the dance team after seeing that performance? There are certain things you just can't do inside of a school uniform! It's not just about the dance team, it's about the entire school! And it's not the first time this has happened before!"
It wasn't, both of them certainly knew that. Once they got the point, Dr. Lee sat on the chair in the corner running his finger through his hair. He hates yelling at the students. "I'm not here to punish you girls. You've worked really hard, these awards covering this room prove that. But you can't keep doing this! And today's where I have to draw the line." As he made his exit, he stopped at the door for one final word.
"April 15 is the Townsville Youth Extravaganza, so you have just about three months to prove to me that you can be taken seriously as a dance team. If not, the dance team will be gone as of next year."
When he closed the door, Joanne finally snapped. "He can't do this!"
"Yes he can. And he's right." Bella didn't face her friend as she tried to make sense of the situation, her face paling and the news sank in.
"Okay Bells," the co-captain retorted. "so how in the hell are we supposed to come up with 2 hours full of new dances in three months! What the hell are we gonna do in THREE MONTHS!?"
Bella massaged her temples as a headache ensued. "I don't know Jojo! But what I do know is that what we say in here stays between us. It's bad enough that we're panicking, the last thing we need is to have everybody panic." Brent wouldn't panic. What would she do to see him here, but chances are Brent's probably losing his top over how she performed. Giving him space is the best thing she could do right now.
"How can you expect to keep this a secret from the entire team!?" Joanne screeched.
"I DON'T KNOW!" Bella yelled before composing herself. "But I am, okay? Or at least until I figure out a way to ease them into it." She walked towards the door, realizing the team's probably worrying about them being there for so long. "For now we're just going to go outside and pretend that it was just a little reminder or something."
Jojo scowled to herself. "And since when did I start taking orders from a sophomore?"
"You're just mad that people follow orders from me more because I'm friendly." The co captain huffed in response.
"Pfft! Friendly my ass…" she muttered as they entered the main dance room to everyone staring at them expectantly.
"What was goin on in there?" Kim asked.
Bella put up a little scowl of annoyance. "Dr. Lee just wanted to talk to us about our uniforms to make sure they're 'appropriate'."
"Then why'd it take you guys so long to get out?" the petite Asian narrowed her eyes in suspicion.
"So that we can REVISE the uniforms," Joanne said sternly, effectively ending the conversation.
"Guys seriously, it's nothing just a few tweaks here and there and we'll have new uniforms. The show's still gonna be okay." Bella hated lying to the team so much, but it was for their own good.
A knock on the door came for another visitor. Odd, Bella thought. The door's already opened since Dr. Lee unlocked it. "Hold on. Lemme get that." She expected a student with a message, or even Brent coming to yell at her, but saw someone she would later regret opening the door to.
-Bubbles-
Took me a while, but I finally found the room thanks to a couple nice students in the gym. After entering the hallway going around the gym on the second floor, it was either I turn left or right. Turning left like they told me, I found a large rectangular room connecting to the wall on my left across from the lockers. But the room had two doors. I sat there for a minute to try and decide which one to open.
Well I'm right handed, so maybe I'll get lucky with this one. Knocking on the door to the right, I could feel my heart beating right out of my chest and crossed my finger that things would go well.
When the door opened I saw the team captain from earlier who looked at me curiously. Even though she was a student like me, it felt like I was two feet from a celebrity. My legs felt all wobbly and it felt like I was gonna fall on myself if I didn't blurt out what I needed to say.
"U-um… are you-"
"-Isabella Martinez, yes?" She raised her eyebrows as she waited for an explanation.
"Well um, I came to see if I can try out and-"
"-Tryouts are at the end of June, so come by then. Goodbye." Before I could finish she was already turning to close the door to go back to practicing with the team.
"Wait!" I looked down to see my leg stop the door from closing before raising my head to see the dancer glowering at me in impatience. I knew I was pushing my luck to even go to summer tryouts, but it's be too late then to change anyone's mind about me being a big baby.
But it was more than that. Whenever I danced I felt something special, like whenever Blossom paints or when Buttercup plays a sport. It's something I feel on the inside of me that makes me feel… special. Like I matter for something instead of being afraid all the time. I remember when I was a little I used to stand outside of the Western Pines dance studio for hours just to watch them (they'd never let me go closer than five feet of the place though). It even got to the point where the instructor bought blinds so that she could ignore me standing there, my eyes glued on the ballet dancers, hoping that one day I could be in their spot.
And I finally get that chance today.
Even the school's dance studio looked amazing with a wide window coming off one side of the wall across from the one sided mirror on the other side of the room. What would I do to be in there!
It's now or never. I sucked in a deep breath and realized I wasn't leaving here until I got what I was looking for.
"I'm sorry it's just… I really, really want to join this group. It's the only group I've ever wanted to be in, and I promise after this I'll leave you alone!"
"Is she done talking yet?" someone groaned I tilted my head to the side to see the other captain looking in our direction with an annoyed expression.
But the captain in front of me stared at her toes, as if making a decision on if whether or not she wanted to let me inside.
Please say yes… "All I need is a chance."
After a while her shoulders sank in defeat and she stepped aside to let me in. "C'mon. I'll show you where to start." I was led into a room full of people staring at me, sending chills down my spine. I instantly looked down at the floor, if I saw these people any longer, I'd lose my nerve and end up right back where I started. Bella stepped in front of the group who never took their eyes off me, making me feel incredible out of place.
"Kay. So this is…"
"Brooklyn! Brooklyn Underhill."After seeing her dubious stare I figure I was probably a little too excited. "Riiight, and she'll be trying out today."
"Thought you said end of June!" someone called out
"We needed to fill in Sarah's spot anyway!" she snapped impatiently before turning back to me. "We'll start you off with a choreography you need to know by Monday, so I suggest you practice during the weekend. CJ, hit me up real quick… number one… No - on CD 4. We're good? Jojo, Jess, up front. Ready?"
The three began the dance with a series of pops to the rhythm before stepping out and dancing to the hip hop beat. Their moves looked so hard, first you're supposed to swing and flow with your whole body, mostly the curves; nothing like the graceful swings the girls did in Western Pines with their arms. Then it gets sharp and complex when the chorus picks up, almost making it look like they were robots.
Are you sure you can join the dance team? Now I wasn't so sure anymore.
When the song ended, hoots and jeers came from the dancers but the blue eyed captain kept her eyes on me. "Got all that-Good. Pretty basic, right? So that's what you'll need for next week. Now you show us some of your moves." She stopped when she noticed how unsure I was. "You knew you needed to make your own dance, right?"
"Y-yeah!" But I didn't think it'd have to look like that. "Do you want the CD?"
"CJ's got it covered, just tell him the song and we'll probably have it. It's only gonna be thirty seconds, so don't choke."
"No pressure," someone snickered, probably the dark skinned captain in the background.
As I took off my jacket I could hear the whispers coming from the team.
"The fuck's she wearing?"
"Is that a TUTU?"
"Jesus…"
"She looks like she supposed to be in a dollhouse!"
"It's Barbie life-sized version.
"This outta be good…"
I turned my back to them, but they just got even louder, like they wanted me to hear them. How can they be so mean when they haven't even met me yet?
Stay focused… Remember what Blossom told you… I straightened up and waited for the music. Who knows? They might even love it.
"My love…leave yourself behind…
Beat inside me… leave you blind…"
When the lyrics started I made slow graceful movements just like the ones I would behind the mirror of the dance studio. Arching my arms and back smoothly, I raised my leg swiftly to form a semi circle above my head and was about to go into the pirouette –
The music clicked off and was replaced by room full of people laughing at me.
"Sorry pigtails. This ain't Julliard…" the guy by the DJ set said while he was looking at me like I was five and started snickering along with the others. With my face to the mirror, I didn't even know how I was going to turn around at the group, knowing that I'm officially the laughingstock of the entire school. Nothing's changed.
How could they be so cruel? Everyone's still laughing at me, even when I tried my best! I felt the tears stinging my eyes but I couldn't cry. Not after yesterday. But I couldn't move an inch without bursting into tears. What would Blossom do? I wish she were here.
Just walk with you head high, politely tell them "Thank You for considering me", and walk out with a straight face… Yeah, she would say that. Closing my eyes I prepared myself to face the crowd.
"1…2…3." But when I turned I fell over my sweater and landed on my face, setting myself up for more teasing as the team roared in laughter. I couldn't stop the tears from slipping down my face and decided to get out as fast as I can. Grabbing my stuff I walked/ran for the door out.
"T-thank you for your t-t-"
"-You're in."
"…What?"I stood still just as I was about to turn the doorknob. Bella was leaning on the window frame with a deep scowl on her face. "Did I stutter? I said you're in."
The laughing stopped instantly as everyone turned to her. The co captain –I think her name's Joanna– stepped up front and motioned towards the closet. "Bell. Inside." When they shut the door I could hear a thing at first, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to use my super hearing a bit. It wasn't like I was going to try and make friends with these people anyway.
I strained my ears to get exactly what they were saying-
"…what the hell are you doing!"
"Saving our asses! You know darn well this team can't do anything but the dance moves we did at that pep rally. Besides you, me, and Kim, these guys are street dancers. They can't do anything else but street dancing, so don't expect them in tights anytime soon! Everyone who might've had a SHRED of experience LEFT Joanne. So when I saw someone with a different style, who might help us keep the team, and is handed to us on a silver platter, I said 'Why Not!'"
The yelling went on after that, but I had everything I needed to know. They needed me, so I was going to be on the team whether they liked it or not. But I never thought it'd feel so bad. It's almost as if I stole the spot from someone else.
The girls came back to face the team and prepare for what they had to say. "We came up with a decision." Bella sucked in a deep breath. "We need to fill Violet's spot and-"
The team yelled all at once over what she just said in anger. Out of the corner of my eye I saw some of them making gestures at me like I was a big joke. While Bella tried shouting over them, Joanna was silent as she glowered at me, and I wondered if it was better if I just left right now.
"Listen! We could use a different approach to dance. Who knows?" She looked down and the floor and started to mumble the next words. "She might teach use a few things…"
"Hell No." Joanna growled with the icy glare never leaving me. The dancers yelled even louder making furious gestures at me, like they didn't care I was right there and listened to every word.
"I'm not dressing up in that goddamn leotard!"
"What the hell's a leotard?"
"Who Cares!? I'm not wearing any of that shit!"
"Why'd you pick her anyway?"
"Does she even know how to dance?"
"She ain't even supposed to try out til June!"
"Does that mean my sister Nelly can try out tomorrow?"
"She can't be in the show!"
"Of course she can't be in the damn show! What's she gonna do?"
"The closest Barbie's getting to that stage is if she passes out flyers."
"Does she even know Plies?"
Bella looked helplessly at the team. There's no helping it. If that girl stayed any longer soon they were going to target her next, making sure she left here soaked in tears and never came back.
She turned to the shivering girl with a stern face. "Leave. You have to leave now. Things are gonna get ugly here real quick, so I'll text you more info."
"B-But you don't know my n-number-"
"JUST LEAVE!" she bellowed, losing every shred of patience she had that day.
The blond girl quickly took her stuff and left for the door. The Colombian dancer wouldn't be surprised if she didn't come back after how she just yelled at her. But if she didn't she might even be doing her a favor; the dance team certainly wasn't for anyone soft.
But she had bigger problems. Out of her two years here, she never saw the dance team so angry, and all for the same cause. They looked like an angry mob ready to castrate the girl. She turned to Joanne for help, but she was nowhere to be found, it was almost like the empty space spoke for her.
She'd have to deal with this mess herself, after all it was pretty much her fault. With nothing else to say, and no one else to turn to, she'd just have to tell them the truth. Before she started, Bella closed her eyes and shook her head at how quickly things deteriorated in her team. Just 20 minutes ago they were like one big happy family, and now this.
What have I done?
Okay so more OC's were introduced this chapter, and I need to set the record straight. I do not want to go into stereotyping any races unless if it's my own race that I fully understand the stereotype of. The reason for Donny and Ty was because I wanted to have a multicultural background for everything and trust me, they won't be the only OC's with an ethnic background. But if throughout my story I may sound a little stereotypical towards one race or if you felt a little sensitive, just send me a polite PM and I'll certainly alter or erase the offensive phrase used the minute I have time.
Some Hispanic slang terms I used:
'Mano: short for hermano meaning brother. So in short, they're just saying 'bro'
Flaco: Skinny. It's just a nickname that can be of popular use in Hispanic speaking countries .
lo juro por Dios: 'I swear to God'
Cayate: Shut up
Gringos: non hispanics.
Songs by Order:
- Bon Iver: "Skinny Love"
- Skylar Grey: "Dance Without You"
- Sia: "My Love"
So with that taken care of, How was this one? I need feedback, otherwise something you may not like about my story won't get taken care of! And I know I didn't include the upcoming fight between Butch and Buttercup, but I just didn't feel like doing a long chapter again, especially with how aggravated I was last time. So next chapter will be more on them and will include the flashback for more detail. Until then follow, favorite, and REVIEW! :D