Chapter 14: First Day

After learning everything from Batman, Stevie spent the next few days trying to process all of the information. Even though she wanted to know exactly what happened with her past and family, it didn't provide any relief. If anything, it made her more confused and more unsure of herself. This person that she created for herself was becoming unraveled, and she wasn't sure what to do about it. Since she had been rescued from the Shadows, her family became the team and her name became Stevie. But now….now she was closer to finding out the truth about everything. Her real family was not the team, and most likely her real name wasn't Stevie either.

What would she do when she finally found her family, found her real name and identity? All of these things made it hard for her to get through the days. She had gone back to mostly staying in her room and avoiding contact with the others. Each day felt long and she often spent time alternating between crying and sleeping.

The rest of the team members hadn't bothered her at all since the other night, either. She wasn't sure how to feel about that. Most of her wanted to be alone, which was why she hadn't done much but stayed in her room. But another part of her wished they would check on her, to at least know they cared. And even though she knew deep down that they did, it still hurt. All of her emotions were so confusing and she didn't know exactly what she really felt or what was just overthinking. And to make matters more confusing, Batman had told her that to try and get her more adjusted to a normal life she was going to start going to school.

Stevie couldn't remember the last time that she went to school. At the Shadows, she had kept up with some basic schooling, but she knew she had to be so far behind the others her age that it made her anxious at the thought of trying to join others. The only saving grace was that she was going to have one familiar face be her guide. She would be attending with Wally at the high school he attended.

The decision on which school she attended was narrowed down pretty quickly - M'gann and Connor were a much higher grade than she was and it would make it difficult for her to fit in with the two of them. They were also new to school and adding another person that was unfamiliar with the high school scene might draw too much attention, especially given the fact that Stevie still needed to be careful about the Shadows.

Batman didn't want anyone to know about Robin's school because it would reveal his identity, and Artemis got into Gotham which required a scholarship. So that left Wally's school, Keystone High School, and it would be easier to get on with Wally since he would only be one grade above her instead of two.

She would be posing as his cousin, Stevie West, who had just moved to the area. It would make her presence around him much more understandable and less odd to onlookers. It wouldn't make sense for him to start talking to the new girl a grade lower than him. The thought of attending a normal school with normal, ordinary kids, didn't make her relieved to be integrating back into the world. It made her nauseous.

The entire night before the start of term, she couldn't sleep. She had been through hell and the thought of school scared her. It was a constant battle between her anxiety and trying to tell herself that she was being irrational. Wally would be with her every moment he could, and she would only have to be away from him when she was in her classes. But how was she supposed to feel normal at school when she was everything but normal?

These were the thoughts that kept her up that night, but all too soon, it was the morning and she needed to get ready. Black Canary had kindly brought her a whole pile of new clothes that weren't as ratty as the spare ones she had been borrowing. But with so many new options, her overwhelmed mind settled on the first thing she could find - a white tank top with a graphic design on the front and a black pair of jeans.

Wally agreed to spend the night at the cave so they could head to school together and he would continue to do so until she felt comfortable enough to zeta by herself.

The door suddenly banged open as Wally came catapulting inside, sprawled out along the floor, and stopping right at the edge of her bed. For a speedster, he always seemed accident-prone and tripped over his own feet more often than not.

"Ungh," he groaned, rolling onto his back and peering up at her as she stood over him. "Are you ready?"

"I am but….you're still on the floor," she pointed out.

He pushed himself to his feet, grinning down at her. "Not anymore! C'mon, Stevie."

Without waiting, he moved to leave the room, leaving her to try and catch up as she snatched her backpack from the floor and followed after him. Since they were already running a little behind, they snatched a couple of snacks and fruit from the kitchen before they headed to the zeta tube. She suddenly didn't feel hungry halfway through her banana, and she handed it to Wally just as they were disappearing into the light.

They arrived seconds later in the small closet of an abandoned bicycle shop in the middle of town. According to Wally, it was only a few blocks away from school and they would walk the rest of the way.

With each step closer to school, her anxiety increased. All she could do was tightly clutch her backpack straps and hope she didn't look as lost as she felt. Between everything going on in her life, she felt like she would spontaneously combust. She wouldn't be surprised if she did have a meltdown….

"Hey, Stevie?"

Wally's words snapped her from her thoughts and she realized they were just a block away from their destination. The brick building loomed ominously, drawing a pang of nausea to her mouth.

Wally moved in front of her, blocking her view and drawing her attention.

"You're so totally gonna nail this, alright?" he tried, scratching the back of his head.

Stevie tried to speak, but all that came out was a pained grunt.

"School can be rough, I won't lie. But I promise I'll be around every chance I get. No one will mess with you if I'm around," he assured, pausing to flex his muscles with a smirk and drawing the smallest of smiles to her face.

He was awful at reassurance, but the fact that he was trying made her stomach untwist and she gave a short nod.

"Alright, let's get going before we're late. After school, you and I are ditching homework and playing Super Smash."

The thought of something to look forward to after what would most likely be a rough day was what pushed her through the doors. None of the team had bothered her much since the day Batman told her everything, and it felt so good to have someone that would talk normally to her, like a fog was clearing from her mind.

The halls of the school bustled with activity. Students trying to get into their lockers, or chatting with friends, others rushing to classrooms while teachers ushered everyone in the right direction…..

Stevie turned just in time to see that a few guys had come over to greet Wally, and her stomach sank. This was it. He would go off with his friends, forget about her, and she would be left to try and find everything for herself….

"Hey, guys this is Stevie West, my cousin," Wally said, giving her a shoulder bump. "She just moved into the area so she got assigned to our school."

Her eyes jumped to the two males across from them. One of them towered over the rest, with almost shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes, dressed in jeans and a red flannel covering a t-shirt. The other was about Wally's height, and his blue eyes and shaggy blond hair contrasted sharply compared to the other.

"Sweet. I'm Jake," the blond said, extending his hand to her. "And this is Mikey."

She used all of her strength not to tremble as she shook his and then Mikey's hands. Okay. This wasn't so bad. Maybe everything would be okay here….

"Don't wanna cut it short but I should help Stevie find her locker and class. I'll see you in homeroom!" the redhead exclaimed with a wave, his hand tucking to her arm to guide her away.

The tension eased from her bones as they moved away and Wally mumbled under his breath about directions as they maneuvered through the halls. Everything was very overstimulating, but the fact that she had gotten past the first few steps felt huge. She was doing it. And she was not collapsing from anxiety. Maybe it would be okay after all? No one was even looking at her, so she wasn't standing out like she thought she would.

Her friend left her at her locker after showing her where her first class was. She fumbled with the combination lock, trying a few times before actually getting it, and then proceeded to dump most of her school supplies inside. She wasn't sure what she would need most of it for, so she pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket to check.

Batman had written her a small list of her classes, what supplies she needed for each, and what each supply was used for. Scanning the list, she spotted her first class, which was Geography, and pulled out all of the supplies she would need for the subject. A notebook, a folder, and her writing utensils were what he listed. That wasn't too difficult.

Stevie took a deep breath and headed down the hall to get to her first class. She noticed that a lot of the other students were staring at her as she passed and it made her feel on edge. Why did they need to be looking at her like that? She quickened her pace.

Finally, she made it to her class, keeping her head low and picking a seat at the very back of the room. She got her things set up on the desk, taking another look at the list and tucking it in the corner of her desk. Not a moment later, a bell rang loudly, causing her to jump.

The girl that sat down in the seat next to her snickered and Stevie felt her face flush.

"Alright everyone, settle down!" the woman at the front shouted above the chattering.

Everything got quiet and the woman moved on.

"I'm Mrs. Green and I will be your geography teacher for the year. I'm going to do a role-call and then we will go over some important basics for my class. Alright! Anders, Joseph?"

A student near the middle raised his hand and called back, "Here!"

Stevie listened to a few more names before she tuned out, going back into the worries of her mind. After this hour, she would have seven more to go, and that seemed so intimidating to her.

"West?"

It took her a few more calls to realize that the teacher was talking to her.

"West, Stevie?"

Her hand shot up, much too quickly, knocking over her notebook. "Here."

There was a collective low laughing from the others and she swallowed thickly, feeling her heart begin to beat more rapidly.

"Alright, now that everyone's paying attention… I'm going to go over the rules for this class."

Stevie ducked her head, feeling embarrassment wash over her. She was never meant to do something like this. Everyone else was going to laugh at her and say that she was weird. How was she supposed to blend in? Especially now that everyone was laughing at her and giving her odd looks.

She forced herself to pay attention to the teacher, trying to remember all the rules and expected behavior for the class, but she couldn't focus. Her hands found one of the pencils on her desk as the teacher was passing out packets for their first assignment. Anxiously, she twirled it to try and distract herself, but she dropped it - and her new packet - at the same time.

The girl next to her leaned over to pick it up and she realized that her list had also fallen. The girl looked at it, her eyebrows shooting up and stifling another laugh.

"What are you, a child? Do you not know how to use a calculator?"

A few other people burst out laughing and Stevie quickly snatched the papers from her, feeling as if everything was crashing down around her. Stomach tightening, she slouched in her seat and ducked her head.

This was not happening right now. It couldn't be. She couldn't breathe, her palms were getting sweaty, and the notebook on her desk was getting blurry. She couldn't even hear what the others were saying, but she knew - she knew - that they were still making fun of her; the noises rattled her skull.

She was vaguely aware of the teacher trying to get everyone to quiet, but it was muffled by the roaring of blood in her ears, spreading across her face in crimson embarrassment. Even as the teacher continued to speak, she could hear the echoed whispers of the judgemental teens. With each passing second, it got louder and louder, pulsating in her skull and bringing a sharp throbbing across each temple. Stevie tried to massage the side of her head, but it did nothing.

"Do you think she's mentally challenged?"

That was all it took for everything to explode around her. The sharp pain in her head increased so much that she bent over, letting out a loud groan and clutching her head. She had never felt pain this intense before. Even the experiments at the League couldn't compare.

She couldn't think. She couldn't breathe. And the last thing she remembered before everything went black was her body crumpling out of her seat.

When she woke, everything was blurred. Her body ached fiercely, and she still had a dull pain in her temple, but the sharp pain from before was gone. She barely registered voices and the fact that she was laying down and not sitting up. And she wasn't in the classroom, either.

Blinking the bleariness from her eyes, she recognized the orange hair of Wally next to her, and someone else leaning over her that she didn't know. Instinctively, she jerked away from the unfamiliar face, pushing herself up despite the groaning of her muscles.

"Miss West, can you hear me?" the woman asked, hands raised in uncertainty.

Right. She was Stevie West. Pushing through the ache in her body, she gave a tight nod.

"I'm the school nurse, Miss Weatherby. I'd like to ask you a few questions so we can get this sorted," she said kindly, though concern tugged at the corner of her eyes. "Mr. West, can you give us some privacy? And check to see when her parents will be here?"

"I think I should stay with her," Wally protested. "She doesn't know anyone here or anything about this school."

"While that may be the case, I think for her confidentiality, it would be best if you stepped out."

He opened his mouth to argue once more but cut himself short when he saw Stevie give the smallest shake of her head. The last thing she wanted to do was bring more attention to herself after whatever just happened. All she wanted to do was shrink into nothingness.

Wally let out a short sigh and turned to leave, pulling out his cell phone to presumably contact Batman.

"Alright, Miss West. Can you tell me what happened? Mr. West told me that you have a history of migraines…?" Miss Weatherby questioned.

Stevie swallowed the dry saliva coating her throat, sitting up a little straighter. "Yes, miss."

Whatever lies Wally told, she would go along with because she didn't know what else she could do.

"Okay. And in class, you had one of these? Can you tell me what you remember?"

"I just…had a bad headache come on suddenly," she said, forcing the trembles from her hands. She couldn't act afraid. She had to act as if this was normal.

"Does stress and anxiety worsen your symptoms?"

"Yes. I think….new school…," Stevie trailed, trying in futility to wet her dry lips with her dry tongue.

"I see…. And do you have prescribed medication for these migraines?" Miss Weatherby prodded.

Stevie nodded. "I just forgot them at home. First-day jitters."

She let out a forced laugh, trying her best to ease the tension, but Miss Weatherby seemed too stoic. There was no way she could read that expression.

There was a knock on the door, and then it cracked open to reveal Wally once more.

"Her parents are going to be here as fast as they can, but they are a bit far. They suggested I bring her back to my house so she can rest while they make their way back," he informed.

Miss Weatherby didn't seem thrilled with the idea, but she sighed and nodded. "Alright. Why don't you two wait here until they arrive?"

With a short nod, Wally took his place next to the exam bed she was laying on. Everything was starting to come into clearer focus, but she couldn't shake the achiness in her bones. What had even happened? Was it just the stress of the bullying? And now that she had passed out in her first class on her first day…. She was never going to hear the end of it. There was no way she could do this school thing. Not after this.

Her breath hitched in her throat when she felt pressure on her shoulder and she glanced over to see that Wally had reached over to squeeze it in comfort. As goofy as the redhead was, she was extremely grateful for his ability to be serious in this situation. She had a feeling they would become much closer friends after this….

It took roughly ten more minutes for Wally's 'parents' to arrive. He got the phone call that they were there and she got shakily to her feet to leave the building for the day. In the car parked in front of the school was Black Canary, dressed casually.

No words were spoken and the two of them entered the back seat of the car. Despite feeling much better, Stevie couldn't help but notice the churning of her stomach as they neared the zeta location to get back to the cave. What was Batman going to do about this? Was he going to kick her out? Or would he continue to force her to go to school? Or even worse, would he lock her up away from the others?

These thoughts running rampant in her mind came to a screeching halt as she was sucked through the zeta tube. The airy sensation only made her feel more sick, and when she appeared on the other side, she collapsed to her knees as the nausea crawled up her throat, bringing with it her breakfast.

Stevie huddled on the ground, retching long after everything escaped her stomach. Canary had bent down to run a soothing hand along her back and hold her hair out of the way. When she finally felt like she wasn't going to heave anymore, she leaned back on her heels, shivering as beads of sweat dripped down her forehead.

"Come on, let's get you to bed," Canary murmured, lifting her by the arm and tucking her to her side.

Wally watched helplessly but she didn't have the energy to say anything as she was led to her room. She noticed Batman from the corner of her eye, but by the time she put her head on the pillow, the energy seeped from her body. Curling into a ball, she trembled and shivered, trying to fight the clamminess shuddering across her skin. What was happening to her?

A/N: *sheepishly slides in* hi all. I know it's been like 10,000 years. I'm so incredibly sorry! I've been dealing with a lot of mental health stuff as well as a really shitty workplace so my energy and will to do anything, even the things I enjoy, has been in the negatives. I've also recently published something and am working on publishing some of my own novels so most of my writing has been original works. That being said, I needed a bit of a break from creating a new world so here I am! I'm truly sorry for the delay and to whoever is still here, thank you so much for sticking around. I know my updates have been so inconsistent. You guys are amazing. As always, I hope you liked this chapter, and please leave me a review to let me know what you thought! I like to hear your thoughts and they motivate me to keep writing! Until next time xoxo