*SMALL ERROR, UPDATED*
To sophiecampbellbower – No, Magnus won't be like that, don't worry. He actually doesn't really have that much of a role in this fic. And I actually love Alec 10 times more than any other characters, and I hated making him like this, but I can't help it. But he MIGHT change…. Stick around and find out…..
Summary - AU - When Clary, a teenager, becomes a victim of cyber-bullies, she and her mother move to a new place. However, her traumatic past haunts their lives. Starting over at a new school, romantic interests and the poignant lessons from an eccentric history teacher draw them out of seclusion until they realize confronting a hurtful past is essential to ensure a brighter future.
CLARY
I'm home, after a long first day. There had been no "incident" today, so I wasn't worried anymore about everyone knowing me. Well, not as much as before.
"Honey, can you help me out a bit?" Mum's in the laundry room, emptying out the last of our stuff.
"Sure! Coming!" I keep aside my algebra homework and go and help her out.
"So? How'd it go today?" I sigh. I knew she'd ask.
"It was just school."
"Come on, tell me about one class."
"Okay, um, history was good."
"Really? The teacher seems kind of eccentric." Eccentric didn't really cover it. He was full on WEIRD.
"Yeah, he was."
"Okay, look, it's not perfect."
"Duh." She ignores my remark and my eye roll.
"But we're lucky. You know it's hard to find a position in the middle of the school year."
"So does that mean we're lucky that the previous drama teacher died?" It's her turn to roll her eyes.
"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." I smile, thinking of all the times she's told me this, and then of History, when Simon said the same thing. And then it hits me. Why Simon looked familiar. He looked like Rebecca, my once best friend. I go into another flashback. The worst one. The one where I lost my best friend.
"I thought we were best friends. What's your problem?"
"Rebecca what….?"
"I can't believe you stabbed me in the back like this. I trusted you."
'Rebecca I don't know what…."
"Of all the people I can't believe you went and did that."
"I didn't …."
"Get out of my sight, loser."
"Honey, are you ok? Clary? Say something." Mum's voice pulls me out. I shiver, ready to burst into tears.
"I'm fine." She catches the quiver in my voice.
"Another flashback?" I nod, holding back tears. She comes and gives me a hug. And for once, with this selfish, selfish mind, I'm glad I'm not doing this alone.
JOCELYN
I'm back at work, and getting out of the car. I've settled into my routine now, so I know that Luke's van would be pulling in in about five minutes. We'd formally met a few days back, and despite his queerness, he was a nice guy.
"Hey." He's come early.
"Hi," I say, pulling out my stuff from the car. We usually walk up to the school together.
We walk up the slope in silence. Suddenly, I trip over a rock. I don't fall, but all my stuff does. I curse myself inwardly. Clumsiness ISN'T one of my genes, and I don't want a nice guy who I've just met to think otherwise. I bend down and start picking up my stuff.
"WHOA. What. Is. That." Luke is looking down with amazement in his eyes. I see him looking at the dress I'd put in in the morning, to check out whether my Olivia would fit in it or not. It was a pretty dress, deep blue with sequins, but I didn't see why it looked so amazing.
"It's just a dress. I got it to see whether one of my students could use it for the play." He's still staring at it with that same look.
"Wow, you've taken such good care of it."
"Thank you?" I don't know how else to reply to that. By now, we've reached the school, and we part ways at the doors.
-
CLARY
"Hey, pick it up!"
The "popular" guys are back to what they do all the time – bullying others. I sigh as I look at them as they torment others. This has become a daily routine here – me, sitting under a tree at the edge of the grounds, not very far away from the people despise; watching them, but not being able to do anything because I need to "keep my head down." I resist the urge to go and slap each one of them and their ugly little faces, and put my stuff down. I look around at the campus. It's huge compared to my old school. It has three buildings, and a lot of empty space and gardens. There is something which I presume is an amphitheatre on one end, that is facing a grey-stoned fort which seems to extend forever into a forest behind it. I make up my mind to go explore it sometime. I hear a few more shouts from the table.
"You've got to give them some credit. They DO know how to have fun." I look up and see Simon there. He's been trying to talk to me ever since I ran away from him after history, and I've been trying to avoid him. Not that I have anything against him, it's just people in general. But he's not going to give up. I sigh internally and look up at him. He sits down next to me.
"So….. You don't want to get noticed around here, do you? You barely talk, you're out of the class the second the bell rings, you literally avoid everything that's alive, you wear those plain clothes even though you really want to wear better ones, and you hide your face all the time with that hideous hoodie."
What. WHAT.
"Are you stalking me?"
"No no no no no. Don't get the wrong idea, I'm not a creep or anything, I'm just good at reading people. My friend and I used to have little competitions all the time about who could guess everything about a random stranger, so I'm kinda good at this now. I know everything about everyone here, but you're new. So I took a shot. How right am I?"
I stare at him.
"I'm not hitting on you. You're not my type, frankly."
I stare at him.
"Are you serious? Did EVERY guy in your old school have other intentions when he spoke to you? I am NOT interested in you." OK then. Maybe he's serious.
"I believe you, fine. But for the record, my hoodie is NOT ugly." He's nice enough, and I need a friend here. In fact, he reminds me of myself before the INCIDENT.
"Point noted." He smiles at me. The most genuine smile I've ever seen. And from this moment, I know that I have a friend here. How genuine that smile really was, I don't know. I guess I'll find out.
That day goes by pretty well, until we get to history. I go to the class with Simon, only to find an empty room. There's a message scrawled on the board – class cancelled. Huh. There is no substitute either. Mr Graymark must have become unexpectedly sick.
"Oh yeah, that happens a lot. Like, at least once a month. Usually he leaves us assignments though."
"But they don't have a substitute?"
"Nahh. Mr Graymark doesn't like substitutes, and Ms Penhallow usually lets him get away with holidays like that. Some illness, I guess. But, as you've seen, his teaching methods are – "
"Eccentric?"
"Yeah, you could say so. Let's just call them – different. But the last time we had a substitute, it was CHAOS. He tried to teach us about some war, and NOT A SINGLE PERSON could pay any attention. Ms Penhallow tried lots of times, to find a substitute who'd be able to teach like Mr. Graymark, but, well, he's one of a kind."
"Cool." I smile at Simon.
I've figured out that we have a lot in common – both of us love the same books, the same TV shows, and both of us are into video games. He is also into a lot of tech stuff, while I am into art. He has even offered to showcase some of my paintings in an online exhibition held by his uncle. It would be pretty big for me. We sit outside, and he shows me the basic layout of the website.
"So there was this virus on the site, and my uncle couldn't figure out where it was coming from. So he called me and – "
"WHOOPS." Someone comes and shuts the laptop. It's Jace. I feel like ripping his head off, but I contain myself.
" Looks like SOMEONE will need to do everything all over again." I smirk to myself, getting the satisfaction of knowing that Jace IS actually just looks, no brains.
"Looks like SOMEONE didn't pay attention in middle school when we were taught about to AUTOSAVE. Too busy looking in the mirror?"
He looks at me first with disgust, then confusion, and then something that I can't make out. Was that… pity? No. it couldn't be pity. I push that out of my head.
"Whatever." He walks off. What is his deal?
"So, Simon, tell me more."
A/N: Yes, I know it's really short, but at least it's something! I promise the next update will be in a week. My terminals just got over so I'm kinda free now. Please review and tell me what you think!
-ExterminateTheButterflies