Realistic or Modern Westbrook

[KingofAesir]

Sawyer​

Sawyer had known the answer to the question before she even asked it. It was just fun to mess with JJ. A test of how far she could push without actually getting on the brunette's nerves. But, back to the matter at hand. Sawyer shoved her hands in her pockets and focused her own eyes out into the crowd. Redhead. Redhead. There. Sawyer opened her mouth to inform JJ that she'd spotted Ava when the person she was looking at turned around to reveal...a man. A man in a dress. Sawyer paused, quiet for a moment, reminded of someone who's left them a long time ago. She shook her head and went back to scanning the crowd.

"Ava. Just to talk to her uh-huh." Sawyer said, a sarcastic twinge to her voice, "What are you and Ava gonna talk about? No, wait, let me guess." Sawyer tapped a finger against her chin, "The weather? It's a cool 70 degrees outside and...oh, oh we're getting reports of a dangerously hot zone in Westbrook, Maine." She laughed at herself and had the smarts to step a good foot away from JJ to avoid being hit, "Sorry, sorry, couldn't resist. But I don't think she's here, and neither is Grace. I wonder what's taking so long." As if on cue, her phone vibrated in her pocket and she when she pulled it out she was greeted by a text message from Grace. Sawyer grinned when she opened it and promptly shoved it back in her pocket.

"Nevermind. I've got a rendezvous to attend. My lady." She bowed to JJ and turned to scamper off to the science lab. What she found there was disheartening. It was empty. No Grace in sight. Sawyer frowned and pulled out her phone to text Grace a 'Where r u?'. She lifted herself up onto a table to wait for a reply. A few minutes went by and Sawyer's frown grew deeper. She pulled up Grace's contact again and pressed the call button this time. It rang, and rang, and rang, and 'You've reached Grace-' Sawyer hung up the phone and tried again, and again to no avail.

"What the hell?" It wasn't like Grace to just not answer. Sawyer dropped to her feet and tried another number, Ash's this time. No luck. Although this wasn't uncommon, it was still weird. Sawyer just kinda stared at her phone, unsure what was going on. Something was up.

She tried again.

Soap

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Aaron​

The more Maisie spoke, the more Aaron unwound. This was fine. He was fine. Even as her eyes dropped to his lip, and his breath caught in an not entirely unpleasant way, he repeated this to himself.

Of course, then she asked if she could read it, and a moment of brief panic hit him, though he did his best to keep it from showing.

The song came to an end, and Aaron tried to push away the disappointment he felt as Maisie pulled away. It wasn't his fault- Really, it wasn't.

Still, as he nodded along to Maisie relaying her plan of action- See, it really wasn't about him- and Maisie kissed his cheek- And didn't that make the effort of breathing a battle- he found himself saying, "I have a few I could share."

He gave her a smile, and as he watched her go, he hoped that was enough.

Casper​

Casper was in line for the bathroom not because Casper had to pee, but because the idea of running into anyone else was unbearable, and the easiest way to avoid that was to be perpetually in line. No one could talk to you if you were in line for the bathroom, right? And when everyone was so focused on their bladders, who would point out the redness of Casper's eyes and the tracks tears had taken down his cheeks? No one. Well, it was probably already no one. It wasn't like anyone particularly cared for Casper besides maybe Aaron.

And there was reason number two for Casper to be in line. If Casper were honest with himself, he'd admit the light tremor in his hands was from anger, and the scratching at his neck an effort to alleviate it. He wasn't used to the emotion, and if he stayed out here, well... No one would could get hurt from it. Right?

As long as he couldn't direct it, it would just drift away, harmless, and then Aaron and Casper could get back to their daily lives, as sad and treacherous as that felt.

Maybe Casper really wasn't best friends with Stu. Surely if he was, he wouldn't be fighting the urge to yell and scream and hurt, right? The stone in his stomach grew heavier.

And then, of course, someone had to go and speak to him. And of course it had to be Maisie. He wiped at his face on instinct, not turning to face her as he-

An idea bloomed in his head.

Why should Aaron get to run around with friends when Casper couldn't? That wasn't fair, and... Fair's fair, right?

"I'm not," Casper admitted. "And-" Casper bit his lip, fingers curling in his hair. This was right. This was fair.- "There's something I need to tell you." He fought the urge to preen at how resolved his voice came out.

Soap​

 

[PenguinFox]

Well it was prom. The past few months had been quite difficult for Ian Evans. Nova up and disappeared, though he figured it had to do with her dad, still it would have been nice to have received a warning. Then again perhaps she wasn't able to. He had no idea how long she would be gone but he was going to wait for her. No matter what. He refused to give up on her, and if he had to he'd go to Seattle himself and find her. There were so many things that he was uncertain about in life, but one thing he knew was that he deeply cared about Nova, hell he might have even fallen in love with her. There was some weird things going on between her and Jace, but she had never actually expressed to him how she felt about it. If she chose Jace than obviously it would hurt but Ian would accept it. Her smile was the only thing that mattered to him.

In addition to his girlfriend's disappearance over spring break his band flew out to Westbrook to visit, with some news. They had not stopped trying to get signed with a label, and had even recorded a bit of Ian's singing to try and keep him a part of the group. The main purpose for the band getting together in Maine was so they could all be together in a video call. A label was willing to give them a shot but wanted to hear the group together rather than piece-mealed. They had spent most of spring break practicing, but as fate would have it, it was to no avail. The label decided they didn't like Ian, or at least the fact that he was on the opposite side of the country as the rest of the band, and gave the group an ultimatum; ditch Ian, or lose their signing. Despite Ian's insistence on the huge opportunity they would be passing up his bandmates were like brothers and wouldn't leave Ian behind. They ended up turning down the ultimatum. The last words the bandmates said before boarding their plane back to California was 'We'll be waiting for ya buddy. We'll make it big then.' But Ian knew better. Clearly he was the problem. They never got anywhere with him and then once they have an opportunity to be successful without him it slipped through their fingers because of him.

The only person Ian could even normally talk to, his sister Sierra, wasn't around enough to talk to. When she was around she was with her new girlfriend that she had met at the gym. Sure he was happy for her, but day by day he could feel himself slipping further and further into the darkness. Eventually it would be too late. Yes, needless to say these past few months had been extremely straining on the mental health of Ian.

Now, it was prom night and without Nova it seemed Ian would be going alone. Strangely enough he was being dropped off by Sierra. It was strange because she was also going to prom. Her girlfriend just so happened to attend Westbrook with Ian so his sister was going to a high school prom as a college student because she was a date. He was ready to go, was only waiting on Sierra, who was still trying to decide on a dress. He wanted to call out for her to just pick one and be done with it already, but he said nothing. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he had actually spoken. It must have been a couple days now. Over the course of the past few months his grades had started to decline and he had become more reserved. He didn't eat as much either. He knew these were self destructive habits, but at this point he was tired of caring. Maybe even tired of existing

Finally his sister came out of her room. She was wearing a dress that was very reminiscent of Ione Skye's in the movie Say Anything, complete with a flower in her hair. The faintest of smiles came across Ian's face. At least someone was happy. "You look amazing sis." his voice was crackly and hoarse from lack of use. "Now c'mon let's go." and with that the siblings set off for prom

When Sierra's station wagon finally pulled up to the school Ian very slowly made his way inside, head facing downward for most of the way. "I'll text you in a few hours so we can leave!" his sister called out to him as she made her way over to her date. Ian gave her a lazy wave of acknowledgement without even looking back and headed straight for the gym. Despite his current state he admired the decorations. Everything was very well done. Had he been his normal self he would have found everyone who worked on it to give them compliments. Instead he stuck the outskirts of the crowd and leaned against the wall, just watching everyone move. It all seemed to blur together, Ian was barely even there. He might as well get comfortable because this was likely how he was going to spend the rest of the night. Why did he even come here? Just to give the lamest, and least believable excuse that he was alright? Who that knew him could honestly believe that he was actually alright? Who was he fooling? Well, apparently everyone. That's the thing about high school, everyone is so wrapped up in their own shit that they don't notice anyone else, even if they should. Just a few hours of this and then... Ian's thoughts wandered, creeping into dangerous, but not unfamiliar territories. What a statement he could make on prom night...

~

Sierra had been dating Jasmine for a little while now. They had met by happenstance at the gym and really hit it off. They became gym buddies, spotting for each other, making sure they stayed in their routines. Then they became good friends, until finally they grew closer and started to date. Sierra was more than thrilled to finally have more people to really talk to and be close with besides her brother. Most people at college that wanted to talk to her didn't really want to talk to her. It was incredibly tiresome. When Jasmine asked Sierra to go to prom with her she was a little hesitant about it, after all she'd be a college student going to a high school prom. That's weird right? But Jasmine was eventually able to win her over on the idea. Sierra really couldn't pass up and opportunity for a party, especially with such good company.

The night of prom came and Sierra was still stuck on two choices of dress. Her and Ian were probably going to be late because of her. Finally she just said screw it and went with the simpler, less wedding dress looking option. It was a simple white dress, conveniently suited to the prom's theme, that she always paired with a fake flower she would tuck behind her ear. She got dressed and headed out of her room. Ian complimented her dress and while sincere, he sounded off. The Evans sister had noticed that lately he had been acting kind of strange but couldn't quite place why. Was he uncomfortable with who she was dating? Probably not, he didn't really care about who she dated. Perhaps his depression was getting a better hold of him? But he had always come to talk with her about it before, so it couldn't be that right? Even if he did somewhat stop telling her things that were happening in his life recently. Even if it was coming up on the anniversary of the incident. He would definitely still come talk to his sister about what was going on if it was bad. He always had and always will.

The siblings took Sierra's old handed-down station wagon to the school, only slightly speeding for being late. Once parked in the parking lot Sierra handed Ian the spare key for her car, in case one of the two of them somehow was unable to drive tonight she wanted both to have keys, just in case. She doubted there would be alcohol here, but better to be safe than sorry. The pair hopped out of the car and headed up to school where Sierra spotted and Jasmine, her breath catching in her throat. She was absolutely stunning. They had both planned on wearing white, but Jasmine's dress was far prettier than Sierra's. Her face flushed a little in embarrassment. She walked quickly over to her girlfriend, face red, but grinning wide. "Hi, sorry I'm late I uh-...wasn't sure which dress to pick..." she looked downwards awkwardly before looking back up to meet Jasmine's eyes. "You look amazing." she said before leaning in and giving her a quick peck on the cheek. "Shall we head in?" Sierra had to admit she was still nervous about people staring and judging, but it would be manageable as long as she had Jasmine's hand in her own.

~

Sean felt relief as Jackson admitted to also being nervous. Though if it was perfectly normal then why did he still have this tightness in his chest? Well, it probably takes a while for the physical signs of stress to fade, or at least that's what he reasoned. When his sister's date looked up the stairs, Sean's own gaze followed. Seriously what was taking so long? Tallulah was never really one to worry much about makeup, and Sam was only one person, yet it felt as though they were putting on the makeup for an entire circus of clowns.

After a moment Jackson asked for a bathroom to wash of engine grease. Sean couldn't help but chuckle, he'd been there before. Not while also in a suit, but still he sympathized with his struggle. He pointed around the corner in the direction of the exit to the garage. "There's a small bathroom over there. Top drawer under the sink has pumice soap in it. That'll for sure clean you off. My dad always keeps a bar handy."

As Jackson left to wash his hands Sean heard movement, finally, from upstairs. It seemed the girls were finally done. The pair of girls made their way down the stairs and he let out a low whistle. "Well aren't you two gorgeous. It's about time. Jackson's here, he's just washing his hands." he looked to his sister as he continued. "When he's done, you'll do your thing and take pictures for dad, then we'll all head out. Sound good? Good." Mr. Woods unfortunately had gotten stuck at work that night so he couldn't be there for his kids as much as he hated it. They assured him it was alright though and they would be responsible that night. Lulu obviously promised to take lots of pictures, but that was a given. Lulu already had her polaroid in her purse ready to go. She couldn't wait to see the look on Jackson's face when he saw her and her dress. He always had a way of making her feel special.

​

Daniel Reaving Gomenesigh Mentions; txlos

 

[Soap]

Maisie

Maisie frowned at Casper's words as she leaned against the wall, she was going to press for more information before he continued. She'd like to consider him as a close friend about now, they've spent more time together than she has with anyone else if she's being honest. "Oh... okay, what's up?" She had to admit she was curious, he was shy to an extent and Maisie couldn't wrap her head around it that he'd actually want to tell her something.

She just hoped it wasn't a secret.

She doesn't do well with secrets... unless their her own.

Yeah, she knows it's a big problem.

"I'm listening."

mikaluvkitties​

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper​

Casper felt like he was on fire, and again he told himself he was doing nothing wrong. This was fair, and right, and really, if Casper didn’t get friends, Aaron shouldn’t, either. And what Aaron had done was bad. Surely Maisie wouldn’t want to be his friend if she knew, and that made Aaron a liar, didn’t it?

He looked down, still tugging at his hair, then, again reminding himself that Aaron deserved this- That really, Maisie deserved to know- leaned up to Maisie’s ear, close enough she could likely feel his breath, and whispered, “Aaron’s the reason Stu went to the hospital.”

Once he started, he found he couldn’t stop. “He… He beat him in the bathroom… bad. I came in, and… he just… kept kicking. I think he would’ve killed him… It was really scary.”

Soap​

 

[Dede]

The Westbrook Wolf threw his arms around the two as Caleb turned the camera on them. ‘. . . Say Kit Kats!‘ he said. Yes, of course he was going to say that.

He, too, gave the biggest smile he could muster, stretching his lips till his jaw began to hurt. And then, rather excitably, he asked to see the photo and – oh. . . he kind of forgot he was wearing the wolf head. So there was a snout where his smile ought to have been. Embarrassment.

‘I really like what you’ve done to this place,’ he told Tatum. ‘I wish the gym was like this all year round.’

He nodded at her instructions, asked for the directions then promptly waved farewell.

‘Bye Tatum, bye Caleb! Thanks for the picture. . . oh, and drink responsibly!‘

So now the lone wolf was on the move again, picking his way from one end of the gym to the other, howling as he went. Oooowhoooooooo. (If only one could get David Attenborough to narrate his great migration.) The wolf greeted a couple hoomans along the way, remembering all the time not to eat them. Um, not that there was any risk of that happening. The Westbrook Wolf was a friendly wolf, whose diet consisted solely of nuggets and kitkats. Rest assured he was perfectly harmless.

When he finally got to where he needed to be, there was a guy standing smack in his spot. ‘Hello hooman—!!‘ the wolf said as he clobbered the guy from behind. Much too soon. Because the guy turned out to be someone he knew, and that someone he knew turned out to be Jace.

Oh no.

He pulled back immediately. He had just, very accidentally, and very awkwardly, hugged his archnemesis Beanie Boy.

Soap Elf_Ruler Winona

 

[Winona]

Jace


He hated social... things.

So as luck would have it and in a very Jace fashion, he was in an unassuming corner of the gym, with cup in hand. His shoulders were hunched up, he was awkwardly looking around. And he was just... wow, was he an awkward mess.

Nova texted him and Jace's gaze scanned the message. He bit his lip, trying to think over how to reply, when suddenly something fluffy, gray, and small tackled him in a hug, causing Jace to drop his cup of punch that was definitely not tainted with cheap beer all over the floor in front of him. It splashed against the paints and dresses of a few people, but they were too distracted by their horny teenage hormones to notice. Thank god, because he didn't want to be punched.

He turned to see who had so rudely had decided to hug him, and came face to face with none other than the Westbrook Wolf.

Oh no.

"Ummm... hi? Where's the candy?"

Dede​

 

[Winona]

Principal Nona


For some reason, Drake wasn't up here right now to announce the prom king and queen -- but that was fine. That could come after Nona's big announcement. She hadn't originally been planning to make this announcement here tonight, but alas, she was being forced into. Hatred for Martin bubbled up inside of her.

Still, she forced a smile onto her face as she stepped up onto the stage where the DJ was playing music from. He silenced his music, and all the dancing and happiness from the night stopped as the students paused to look up at their principal. She walked up to the microphone in the center of the stage, taking in a deep breath.

"Hello, students of Westbrook." She began. "We will be announcing the Prom King and Queen shortly, but first, I would like to share something with you all. As you may know, this has been a... rough year." At least none of the students had died while Nona was principal, but that was a different story completely.

"The school board and I have discussed it, and we have decided that it might be best if there were a few staff changes. So I have resigned and instead, will be principal at Westbrook Elementary." A much better idea, in her opinion. What was the worst that a bunch of booger-eating children could possibly cause?

"So I would like to present Martin French."

Dede

PenguinFox Soap txlos 0k_mang0 mikaluvkitties KingofAesir DrabberRogue Gomenesigh High5ives Elf_Ruler​

 

[Soap]

Maisie

Maisie stiffened slightly as he leaned in closer, curiousity had took hold of her while her mind wandered to how secretive it really was if it meant he needed to whisper it to her, but nevertheless, she allowed Casper to say whatever he needed. Anything he needed to get off his chest shouldn’t be anything too big right?

She wasn’t expecting his words.

And Maisie didn’t expect to be somewhat involved in this due to her... feelings for Aaron. It couldn’t be true. “I... Are you sure?” She didn’t believe him. Of course she’d heard about Stu because by this time, well, who didn’t?

But Aaron would never, and the thought alone of him... hurting someone like that— Aaron wasn’t capable of hurting anyone in her eyes, he couldn’t be. She crossed her arms and leaned away from Casper. “N-no, he wouldn’t hurt Stu. That doesn’t even make sense, especially not...” because what he went through, who he was, and as soon as she thought it her brain had gotten to work on finding the lies that she’d told herself and the truth that dared to come out.

And she didn’t mean Aaron’s possible fight with Stu, Maisie meant her own truth she tried to cover up.

It kept replaying in her mind, there wasn’t anyway he’d actually hurt anyone on purpose. Right? He was sweet, and understanding and... he got her and not many people did, not many people she knew had made her feel that way, but maybe Maisie hadn’t gotten to know them as well as she thought she’d did.

And that’s the only thing that made enough sense of all this.

Who even was Aaron?

“Sorry, Casper. I... I need to go.” Where was she going? Maisie doesn’t know.

She found herself at her locker, unfortunately, the only thing running through her head was Aaron, so much of him in-fact she’d forgot her locker combination.

mikaluvkitties​

 

[Dede]

‘Oh. . . I slipped,’ he said dryly – coldly – unapologetically.

Yes, he slipped. Yes, that’s what happened. No way he’d hug Beanie Boy on purpose, or by any accident short of slippage. Because he was still angry with him, as he had been for months. Very angry.

How very angry? Pretty very angry, actually. On a scale of one to ten? Eleven. Maybe twelve. In fact, the longer they stood there the verier angrier he got. And all that veriest angriest pushed steam out of his ears, which got trapped under his furry costume, and made him sweat, turning him into a de facto baked potato.

Still, Westbrook Wolf is a friendly wolf.

Westbrook Wolf is a friendly wolf.

Westbrook Wolf is a friendly–

Under no circumstance must Westbrook Wolf eat a hooman being, no matter how much he dislikes said hooman.

So, at length, the wolf cooled his blood, remembering his pledge of friendship to all hoomankind.

‘Someone stole the Kit Kats,’ he said with a shrug, then pointed demandingly at the floor. ‘You’re in my spot.’

Principal Nona took the stage as the music stopped. The initial screech of the microphone made the Westbrook Wolf turn to the source of the sound. Then she started talking, but he wasn’t really listening to her. In all fairness to him, nobody ever listened to Principal Nona.

‘T. . . that video,’ he said emphatically, turning back to Jace. 'Why'd you have to go and do such a crummy thing? Or was it Theo? . . . It was him, wasn't it?'

Winona

 

[Winona]

Jace


Things were happening on stage, but Jace was too focused on the awkward conversation at hand to think much of it. Or pay any attention. Things were going okay, and then Stu's next question just caused him to panic. Like a deer in the headlights.

"I... yeah," Jace sighed, deflating as the memories of what had happened flooded back. He'd tried so hard to avoid thinking about it, but it was pointless. "It was Theo. And it was stupid. I just... I thought he was my friend and maybe something more, and I was so wrong. He turned on me as quickly as he turned on you."

And so had Nova, but Jace had forgiven her. Mostly. He was still a little put-off by what had happened.

"But we never released that video of you peeing on my flowers." At least, Jace hadn't, but he couldn't be totally sure that Theo hadn't. But Theo hadn't been at school when the incident happened, so how would he have leaked it?

"I'm sorry. You were my friend, too, and I totally abandoned you. I should've been there for you when you got hurt in the bathroom and everything else. I'm... really sorry."

Dede​

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper​

Casper's heart sunk as Maisie spoke, but as he pulled back, he nodded, eyes soft. She seemed hurt, and it was hard to tell himself this was for Maisie too when she wasn't taking it well. He wanted to say something, and he even began to open his mouth to do just that... only to have her speak again. He clamped his shut.

It felt like forever when she was quiet again, and Casper bit his lip, waiting for her to process whatever she needed to and respond.

And then she was leaving. He watched her go, then dropped his gaze. A moment passed, and he began to sniffle. That hadn't felt nearly as good as he'd thought it would.

In fact, it hadn't felt good at all.

~`*`~​

Aaron​

Aaron waited. And waited. And waited. He grabbed a table, he got some punch. He saw the principal announce she would be resigning, which he didn't care about period to be quite honest.

That was when he decided it was probably time to get out of here. After all, he was in no mood for a speech.

So he left the auditorium, and went to the bathroom line... Only to see Maisie wasn't there. He didn't jump to conclusions, though- He waited some more.

Of course, once people he'd seen get in line exit, it was time to admit she wasn't there. He fought back a frown, corralling his face into something more neutral, even if his worry was making it hard. He'd done this for years, and he could do it for years more, regardless of Maisie.

So he started looking around the school, shoving down any worries that rose to the top of his mind, any concerns that felt like they might drown him. She was fine. She couldn't possibly not be- It hadn't been long enough for something bad to happen. Really.

He almost didn't stop when he finally saw her.

She was at her locker. Of course she was at her locker. Why hadn't he gone straight here from the bathroom? For a long second, he was quiet, watching her. One thing was for sure- She definitely didn't look okay.

He steeled himself, expression falling to that almost bored, in control look it favored so heavily as he slowly stepped closer.

"Maisie?" he asked, then paused. What else should he say? The silence made Aaron's skin crawl, but as he tried to move his eyes away from her hands, he forced out, "Is something wrong?"

Soap​

 

[Elf_Ruler]

Tatum had been grateful for Caleb’s longer arms it would make for a better selfie, but she was glad to see that Stu was doing his duties and to her views enjoying himself. Of course, she wanted everyone to enjoy themselves. “Kit Kats!” she said and smiled with Caleb and the Wolf. She thanked the Wolf for his praise on her design and wished him a farewell before turning back towards Caleb. She carefully took her phone back and looked at the picture of all of them, “This one’s a keeper.” A smile played on her lips. Her attention was cut short as their principal made an announcement. She never really paid any attention their principal. Tatum was a good student and smart enough to not ever get caught so she never really had an interaction. Sure, the bullying had been out of hand but even getting an adult involved wouldn’t really fix the issue. They were teenagers and they were a dramatic bunch of people.

She leaned over to Caleb, “This speech from Nona wasn’t on the agenda for tonight.” Her eyes were looking for either Grace or Ash because they were both supposed to be in attendance at the moment. She figured they must’ve been running late, they both were busy girls and she knew they wouldn’t miss this event for the world, mostly because she knew that Grace would show up if only to judge how the décor looked. That didn’t bother her because Tatum had partially taken the full weight of the job from Grace, so the critical view wasn’t a big deal. Anyone would be critical in the same situation. She sent a message to Ash and hoped she would receive a response soon.

As soon as she hit send her phone went off not from Ash but from her childhood friend, Brayden. He was letting her know he was going to be staying at her place. He had gone through some troubles, so his parents had sent them to her place. Tatum was excited that she would get to hang out with one of her oldest friends, but she was still worried about Ash. Her eyes were darting around the gym waiting for either Ash or Grace to show up.

Interaction(s): Soap
Mention(s): Dede Winona

 

[Daniel Reaving]

Jasmine
Her eyes lit up when she spotted Sierra rushing up. Letting out her breath of nervousness now that she had arrived. Smiling brightly as she looked over Sierra in all her beauty. Letting out an anxious giggle as she wrapped her arms around Sierra. “You’re fine! I understand.” She said softly before her cheeks flushed pink as she felt sierras lips against her cheek. She happily returned the show of affection before nodding to Sierra. “You to Sierra.” She said softly to her as she stood a little closer to her. Letting her eyes look over Sierra again before she smiled some more. Moving to sierras side and entwining a hand in hers as she nodded while taking a step closer to her. “Yeah.” She said softly




Jackson
Jackson had just started washing his hands when he heard the girls coming out. Mentally cussing as he rushed to finish up and dry his hands off. Quickly exiting the bathroom he walked back to the small group. Coming up behind the girls His eyes immediately set on Talulah a look of admiration slipping over his face as he slipped up behind her. Smiling brightly as he slid his arms around her waist from behind in a hug. “Hello princess.” He whispered softly into Lulahs ear before accompanying the compliment with a loving kiss against her cheek.

PenguinFox​

 

[Dede]

Martin

​

Martin waited his name to be called and sure enough it was. There was something symbolic or prophetic about the way he marched up that stage, as if an old chapter in the history of Westbrook High School had been closed, and a new one opened.

Martin could not help but feel a sense of victory as he took the microphone from the despicable Principal Nona. Let’s be honest, nobody really ever liked that woman. All the parents he'd talked to were wondering how she'd ever got the job in the first place.

Fun fact: Nona in Latin means 9. Which meant that Nona didn’t give nine fucks about anybody. She never cared about the school or the students or their parents. She was pretty much useless in all quarters.

‘Thank you, Mrs. Nona,’ he said. ‘My name is Dr. Martin French—’ Yes. Rub it in.

‘It’s my pleasure to be with you here tonight. However, I won’t be attempting to bore you with a long speech, as I know you’re all keen to put your academics behind you tonight, and just enjoy the music. I know, I was young once.'

‘But I look forward to working with all of you and seeing you back in the next academic year,’ he said. ‘I’m sure it will be a great year for all of you – well, certainly for the most of you.’

He said this as he turned back suggestively to Principal Nona. She was surely going to run Westbrook Elementary to the ground, but hey, at least she was someone else's problem now.

Winona PenguinFox Soap txlos 0k_mang0 mikaluvkitties KingofAesir DrabberRogue Gomenesigh High5ives Elf_Ruler

​

 

[Winona]

After Martin had stepped back, Nona took her place back by the microphone. "Thank you, Mr. French. Let me say that we are delighted to have you on board as our newest literature teacher." She smiled over at the newest teacher, then back out at the crowd. What a whirlwind this had been.

"And without further ado, allow me to invite my replacement up here." She really didn't need any kind of introduction, and had even asked to introduce herself once she was on stage instead of Nona doing it.

The replacement approached the stage, her head held high. Her heels clicked along the wooden boards. Disgusting. They would need to update this immediately, provided that the board gave them enough funding. But she was charming, and had managed to secure this new job without much question.


She stepped up, giving Nona a pitiful smile, before turning to the students.

"Hello, everyone. I am elated to be your new principal and I look forward to bringing Westbrook to the height of its former glory. There will be some new rules laid out, but we can get to those later."

Oh! How rude of her -- she hadn't even introduced her!

"How rude of me -- I haven't even introduced myself. My name is Elise Summers."

"And I will also be announcing the Prom King and Queen." Yes, she had stolen this from that little drug-head. Well, not stolen, because he wasn't even anywhere to be found.

Elise took the envelope, carefully opening it up and pulling out the winners.

"The Prom Queen will be going to my own daughter, Ashton West." A smile came to her face. Maybe her daughter wasn't such a mess after all.

But... she wasn't coming up to receive the crown.

Winona PenguinFox Soap @txlos 0k_mang0 mikaluvkitties KingofAesir @DrabberRogue Gomenesigh High5ives @Elf_Ruler​

 

[Dede]

Although he was very angry at Jace, he decided to hear him out. And the more he listened, the more he believed him. Jace was crummy, but he wasn’t Theo-level crummy. Neck Tie never trusted that Theo; he didn’t know what Jace saw in him. He was a bully plain and simple, and a dickhead, meaning there was a dick where his head ought to have been. And dickheads do dickish things. You can’t have one without the other -- it was kind of a package deal.

Certainly Beanie Boy’s apology caught him off guard. He’d been so mean to him before, and suddenly he was. . . nice again? It was confusing. So much so his head started hurting. But an apology was an apology, and his heart wasn’t made of stone.

Rather it was made of chocolate.

‘I’m still mad at you,’ he said.

Then quietly he leant in and gave Jace a hug. It was an awkward one. But Jace probably wouldn’t mind it. He was gay anyway.

‘I’m sorry, too. . . sorry I called you a homo,’ Neck Tie said. ‘But you’re still a homo.’

Now his own Dad was on stage, making some announcements he already knew was coming. Followed by Elise.

Neck Tie sighed. Next year was going to be hell.

Winona

 

[Winona]

Jace


Yes, he was relieved when Stu forgave him, and returned the awkward hug. His cheeks turned red when Stu called him... a homo. God, that was a whole thing in and of itself, and Jace wasn't sure he had the energy to even think about it. Maybe he was just plain gay, but who the hell he even knew anymore?

Elise took the stage, and Jace couldn't stand to look at her or hear her voice. "Hey, uh... you wanna leave? This whole prom experience kind of sucks." Jace admitted. This wasn't at all his kind of forte, and he doubted that Stu was having much fun, either. Going stag just sucked.

Jace headed out of the gym, with his best friend following after him. This was like the good times, the old times. He was so happy, and he couldn't wait to tell Stu that he was going to be moving after graduation. Jace couldn't wait to be able to get out of this town.

But then, his phone rang before he could. It was his dad. Strange. Jace answered it, a smile still on his face, but it faltered just as quickly as it had arose. He ended the call, looking at Stu for a moment in shocked silence.

"Ash is... she's in the hospital. With Grace."

Dede​

 

[Dede]

Neck Tie

Although the Westbrook Wolf had a noble duty to do, it wasn’t every day you won your best friend back, so of course he wasn’t going to say no. He was happy to tag along wherever Jace wanted to go.

He hated prom and wanted out anyway. He’d just have to explain it to Tatum later why the Westbrook Wolf mysteriously disappeared. That shouldn’t be too big of a deal, considering Tatum had been pretty nice to him so far. Anyhow, he seriously doubted anyone would notice that he’d gone missing.

Jace’s phone rang, Neck Tie stood about and waited, taking the opportunity to remove his wolf head. Which meant he now got a better look at Beanie Boy. The look on his friend’s face didn’t bode well. You could tell easily whenever he was panicking. He’d go pretty pale then he’d start stammering. Very typical Jace.

But then he heard what Jace was saying, which made him worry too.

‘W. . .what? What happened to Ash?’ he said.

He immediately thought she might have been sick or something. He hoped it wasn’t as serious, at least not as serious as Jace made it seem. The good news was Grace was there at the hospital with her, probably to keep her company, so that was good.

Still, they should probably visit, right?

Winona

 

[KingofAesir]

Sawyer​

Sawyer didn't know how long she'd been trying to get a hold of Grace. She was getting increasingly more worried every second that Grace didn't answer or show up in the science lab. It never once crossed her mind that Grace could be ignoring her because she wouldn't do that. Not to this extent. Sawyer had begun pacing and had been for the past fifteen minutes, constantly lifting and lowering the phone from her ear. She was in the process of calling again when a Tweet chimed on her phone. She glanced at it and her heart dropped into her stomach. Hospital. Crash. What the hell?

The second Sawyer got an answer back to her question about her leg being pulled, sawyer was out of the door. She ran back to the gym, found JJ and told her very frantically what was going on.

"I'm going to the hospital. I think Grace and Ash were in a crash. I'm sorry." Sawyer gave JJ a quick side hug and turned to escape the gym. She was in her car and flying out of the parking lot in a second. Her hand tapped nervously against the steering wheel as she drove. Thoughts swirled about in her head that weren't very pleasant. She didn't even know the full extent of what had happened, or if Grace was even hurt, but she wasn't about to sit by at the prom with that possibility hanging on her mind.

 

[Soap]

Maisie

"Zero, seven, zero, eight." She seemed confident for a split second before the lock had to decide to not give in, Maisie shook her head and kept muttering the same numbers. That's always been her combination, it doesn't make sense. None of this makes sense. And here she was trying to break into her own locker for some damn cat earrings that gave her a sense of ease, a comfort when she needed it and yet she couldn't even get to that.

Maisie was so caught up in trying to keep Aaron out of her mind, the sound of his voice had only reminded her of what Casper had said, she flinched slightly and let the lock fall back onto the locker with a thud. Only now realizing that her locker was to the left of it. "No, no. Nothing's wrong." Her hand lifted to her bare earlobe only to remember once again, instead wringing her hands together in an attempt of occupying her mind.

That was a lie. Everything felt wrong.

She didn't want to believe Casper, and maybe that's why her words slipped out faster than she could even think about saying them.

"Did you hurt Stu?"

Maisie silently prayed that it was just a weird accident, because Aaron wouldn't-- he would never.

mikaluvkitties​

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Aaron​

It occurred to Aaron in a vague sort of way that Maisie had jumped when he had spoken, and maybe that alone he could have brushed off, letting him kid himself a second longer, but now she was wringing her hands in some kind of attempt to calm herself- Right? That had to be what that meant, didn't it? Aaron could barely pay attention to the words she was saying as his heart threatened to beat out his throat.

Of course, then she spoke again, and that was fixed. Now he just wanted to throw up in general as his heart dropped to his stomach.

He looked up to her, and there was something fragile with the way he looked at her, scared and vulnerable in a way he'd never willingly allow. He'd been afraid of this, of course.

Questions waged war inside him, fighting to be heard, things ranging from He just wouldn't stop to You have to understand to You were never supposed to find out.

Of course, all that came out for a long moment was silence, eventually broken by, "Who told you?" He fought the urge to wince as his voice broke over the words.

Soap​

 

[Soap]

Maisie
Maisie watched him carefully, but the way he turned to look at her said everything she needed to know and suddenly she felt her breathing quicken, shaking her head at the thought of Aaron doing such things to a boy who most likely didn't deserve it. What did he even do? Why would Aaron hurt him if it wasn't in self defense? If it was, Maisie would've noticed, that week there wasn't a scratch on his face. At least it was nothing she noticed, he seemed fine, perfectly even. How was he okay with what he had done?

Who told her? That's what he had to say for himself? She scoffed in disbelief, shaking her head. "... does it matter?" Maisie swallowed a lump in her throat. It didn't. And she wasn't going to rat Casper out, he trusted her with that, and at this point Maisie wasn't even sure what Aaron would do if she told him, images of him hurting Casper-- or anyone had started to make her more than upset.

"Why?"

If he had a good reason, then surely it wasn't anything to worry about. Maybe... Stu threatened him? Hurt him in a way she couldn't see, maybe...

maybe she just didn't want to believe it.

mikaluvkitties​

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Aaron​

The silence seemed to drag on an eternity. It was almost enough to make Aaron twitch, but thankfully, the more time Aaron had, the more he could calm his frantic heart, come to a false sense of acceptance, push his face into neutrality.

He straightened without thinking about it, finger tapping once against his side as he gathered his thoughts and laid out his case, even if it didn't matter. Even if he were to be truthful, to actually try to defend himself, she still wouldn't care. She'd still spit in his face, and call him awful names.

After all, hadn't Drake done just that?

Aaron had just wanted to help, had just wanted to stay friends- And he wasn't even getting the girl.

He kept the bitterness at bay, forcing out with practiced evenness, "I did it because I was bored. That's the only reason anyone does anything, right? He was there, I was in the bathroom... It was easy enough. Hell, I even kind of liked it."

It hurt to say the words, but it would be easier this way. A cleaner cut. She wouldn't care about him, would likely actively avoid him... And he could go back to being alone. That wouldn't be so bad, would it?

He very purposefully did not think of how nice it had been to smile for her.

Soap​

 

[Soap]

Maisie

"Because you were bored?!" The words fell out of her mouth with haste. She couldn't believe what she was hearing but Maisie couldn't ignore it anymore, instead of admitting it he was making it worse and none of it was making sense. Was he trying to hurt her? Trying to push her away? Her heart started to slam against her chest but she took another step forward. "No, I don't believe that. You're lying. Why are you lying?" Did it matter why he did it in the first place? "I thought that... I thought you were different. After--" After what? Because they talked?

Her eyes started to water but she ignored it, hardly even trying to blink those tears away. After Aaron admitted to being hurt in the past and yet, he's the one who did it to someone else? "You know what it's like, why would you inflict that onto someone else?"

She placed her hands against his shoulders and pushed him, it was weak-- not even enough to make him move an inch. "You liked it? You liked hurting him?" Maisie yelled, searching his eyes for any sort of confirmation.

"Hurt me." She said, her tone dropped so low it could be considered as a whisper, she took another step closer, their faces inches apart as the tears she tried to hold back decided betray her, "Do it." Maisie's voice was hoarse and the all the fight had left her voice without her consent. Aaron wasn't even physically doing anything to her and yet, it felt like everything inside was breaking. Maisie didn't want to see it anymore, she didn't want to think about Aaron being capable of hurting someone, because what stopped him from... hurting her?

mikaluvkitties



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