TITLE: The Upper School
AUTHOR: Danielle
SUMMARY: AU. Buffy's POV on her life throughout middle school to high school and dealing with normal teen issues, sex, friends and of course, of beloved Angel.
RATING: PG for now, some cursing…
DISCLAIMER: All Joss Whedon's, expect the school is based on a real school, but all names are changed for privacy (inculding teachers)
DEDICATION: To my Willow and Xander, and especially to MY Angel!
FEEDBACK: Would love some!
AN: After many questions, I will make this clear, this is not my life. Many things Buffy goes through are things I have went through, but many are also my friends. If you have any questions on this, feel free to email me.
8th Grade- Trimester One- September, 1998
Eighth grade. I see it as, one more year until we are in high school. Five more years until I'm out of this hell! See I just came back from my vacay (you know the new cool word) from London. London, that's where my grandparents are, I love my grandparents. They're they best. Really. They buy me whatever I want. They even got me; get this, leather boots. I was so happy. And today, for the first day of Eighth grade I'm going to wear my new blue tight shirt, because I can wear it now. I lost 20 pounds. Go Buffy! I even got some light highlights. Yes, I'm still brunette but the blondeness is so getting there.
I got these cool jeans with little slits at the bottom. Totally awesome! And I'm wearing my new and improved boots, well not really improved but new. I bet no one in my school got cool boots… from London! Who's laughing now?
"Buffy!"
I groan and look one more time in the mirror. Eyeliner check. Lip gloss check. Bronzer Check. Mascara Check.
Okay… breathe, breathe, breathe and breathe. I slid my arm down my hair and smile in happiness. When I was in London, my grandmother took me to this hairdresser and he straightened my hair. As in permanently for a whole year!
I take hold of my new purple bag pack and walk slowly down the stairs until I see my parents and Dawn at the table.
My father looks up and whistles and even Dawn says I look good. I must really look good. And then once I sit in my dad's Volvo that's when the panic sits in. My heart is beating a million miles per hour. And I swear it's really beating through my chest… My new skinny chest! We drop Dawn off at the Lower School and I start to take deep (painful) breathes. My dad looks at me like I'm crazy and just maybe, I am.
Once we reach the Upper School and my dad pulls into the second lane, he stops the car once it reaches the sidewalk to cross into the school; I climb slowly out of my dad's car and take hold of my bag. I slowly pass the guard and this feeling is starting to build inside of me. But I know it's not panic. It's excitement… I'm excited to go to school?
I flash my ID to the black guy who is the new security guard. It's funny because I go to a private school and I don't really associate with other people. Everyone I know is white and Christian. I don't know any Spanish people if that's what you even call them, I don't know Islamic people or Arabic people or is it the same thing?
I shake my head and start turning to the left into the seventh grade hallway when it finally hits me… I'm not a sevie anymore. I'm an eighth grader. When it finally hits me it's like getting banged against the wall. Like a ton of bricks falling on your head… just it didn't hurt as much as that possibly does. I turn to the right and walk down the five steps. I slowly walk into the Eighth grade hallway. And I swear to god it went silent. Or maybe it's my own imagination… I hope not. I walk in with a confident smile. I look so much better than Darla and Cordelia.
No body is running up to me and saying how much they missed me but I don't really care. I didn't really stay in touch with anyone during the summer. Not even Willow and Xander. Not even Angel. Not that I would talk to Angel over summer. Cause I don't like him. My locker number is 415. My code… I look at the pink sheet they had sent to me during the summer. 30-33-31. Wow that's a hard code to remember. I lay my bag on the floor and start spinning the small black dial to the correct numbers. I feel someone staring at my back and turn around and there standing across from me is Percy, Penn, Hogan, Groo and Ford… checking my ass out!
I smirk at them and turn back around to my locker and put all my books in them. I start putting the pictures of 7th Heaven and ER on my locker. There is going to be a new show the WB. Someone's creek. Sounds cool… and of course I'll check it out. Like I have something better to do.
My homeroom is in room 204 and I hope this year I'm going to have friends in my homeroom just like I had last year. I turn around and the guys are still staring at me. I want to stick my tong out at all those people that told me I was ugly. See… I'm not. I laugh in my head and look for Willow or Xander or someone. But I don't see anyone. All I see is this girl in tight blue jeans leaning against the locker at the way end of the hall. The fact that I see her is amazing. And here was me thinking I needed glasses.
I see another new kid and he has brown hair and is leaning just like the other kid against the locker. There leaning together and maybe they know each other. I shrug my shoulders and look way but the five minute bell rings and I start walking out of the eighth grade hallway and towards the homeroom.
I smile inwardly… meet the new and improved Buffy Summers. The hot one.
I walk into the homeroom and site myself in the back. I see Sunday at the other side and I don't even say hi to her. Or pay attention to her presence. I see some people walk in. Dorks like Jonathan and Andrew. Freaks like Warren and Fred. Amy and Jesse walk in and I smile at them as they sit down. I see Percy walk in and sit in the front. I watch as Larry sits near him. I see the new kids walk and how they site near Sunday but just like me don't even look at her. And then my heart stops dead in my tracks. Darla, Drusilla and Cordelia all walk into the homeroom. Great…
Darla looks me up and down and then looks at Cordelia and then the impossible happens. "Hey Buffy."
I try to act all cool and everything but inside I was thinking… OH MY FUCKING GOD SHE IS TALKING TO ME! "Hey Darla."
"Why don't you come and sit with us?" She says and the moves forward towards where Percy and Larry where sitting. I site frozen in my seat and look at Amy and Jesse who are looking at me with a funny look on their face.
"What?" I ask them but all they do is shrug and look at me expectantly. Like I know what to do!
Darla looks at me with her perfect eyebrows rose, "Are you coming?"
I look at Amy and Jesse and they shrug at me again and I slowly get up from the chair that I am sitting in and walk towards where the people who I had cursed at all summer. Once I sit down in one the blue chairs I look back at Amy and she has disappointment in her eyes. I look away and then see the face of the new kids. They are looking at me funny and I smile weakly at them. They look at me and then they look at each other and smile at me. My eyes widen and I hear them chuckle and then I look back at the popular kids.
"…freaks. Just look at what they are wearing. Don't they have any respect for school policy," Darla was saying.
I wanted to tell her 'don't you' but all I did was laugh. And then I guess even for everyone deep down all anyone wants to be is popular even if it means… I look out the door which is still open and I see Willow and Xander pass and look at me confused. I shrug my shoulders at them and I turned my head to hear what Percy had to say about Jonathan and then when I turned back to the door I see Angel walk and my eyes widen. Angel…
He smiles at Jonathan and Andrew and slaps them high five and then walks towards us. Us? He sits himself between Percy and Drusilla. I forgot that Angel was so popular.
"Hey Buffy," he says. I smile at him and then I see Darla look at me funny. They start talking about something and I look at me nails. Cordelia looks at me and to give her the benefit of the doubt she was always nice to me.
"Did you hear about the new show on WB?" she asks me.
I nod my head and smile. "Yeah. It sounds really good."
"That guy looks really hot, don't you think?" she says as she crosses her legs.
"But the girl in the commercial doesn't look that pretty," I respond.
"I know… both the blonde and the brunette."
"Buffy," Darla snaps and I turn my head towards her.
"Yeah."
"Don't you think Willow and Xander are the biggest geeks ever?" she says smiling at me slyly.
I probably looked like a deer caught in headlights. I see Angel look at me with his eyebrows scrunched and then everyone around me waiting for my answer. "Yeah, huge geeks."
Angel looks at me with a disappointed look and I just looked away. How could I have just said that! The best thing that ever happened to me… expect maybe my weight lost and my new hair and clothes and… Everyone gives up the only thing they have to be popular. I feel tears well up in my eyes and excuse myself to the bathroom.
I wipe my eyes with a napkin I found in my pocket and look in the mirror at the new and improved Buffy. What a joke. The door opens and the new girl walks in and smiles at me. "Hi, I'm Faith."
"Buffy."
THREE WEEKS LATER
I walk down the main school hallway in my new Seven jeans and my Michael Stars shirt and my Juicy jacket that I had bought with Darla when we went shopping last weekend.
"Hey Buffy," someone shouts in the hall.
"Hey Buffy," someone else shouts.
I walk down the hallway with my head held high when I hear a small sound behind me, "Hey Buffy."
I turn my head and see Willow behind me. "Hi."
I smile tightly at her and we walk down the hallway. "So what's up?"
I look over at her and shrug. "The sky."
"Buffy!" I turn around and see Drusilla walking towards me and I look at Willow.
"I guess I'll talk to you later." And I walk off.
TBCThanks so much to everyone who gave me feedback! I'm trying to respond to everyone but just lately I have been super busy, but thanks! Oh, but to newmin, yours sort of confused me, because it is based on a private school here in America… if that answers your question, email me and let me know.