Finding Me (A Joe Sugg / ThatcherJoe Fanfiction)

Chapter One

       Justin nudged my arm, “go on Ms. Senior Class President.” I stood up and flattened down my skirt. I could not believe this was my senior year. Everything I have lived for was waiting on this year. Now it is almost over and I would become an adult. Reality caught up to me and people were cheering my name as I carefully descended the school bleachers. All eyes were on me now as I retrieved the beautiful Spirit Drum. The drum was our school colors, blue and white, with embroidery and intricate patch work all over. Every year when a class wins spirit week, the class president gets to show their spirit by banging on the drum. The crowd always goes absolutely wild, and that is what I am hoping.

 

    Bang, bang, bang!

 

The senior class grew wild and I smiled the biggest smile. I loved the feeling of excitement and the feeling of all eyes looking at me while I’m doing something that everyone loves. Everyone got out of their seats and cheered for me and the loud banging of the historic drum. This was everything I could ever want. I was popular and loved, and that is all I could ever want in my life.

 

    Being senior class president is not always fun and games, which is why I am dating the hottest jock at school. Who? you may ask. Well, the six foot five inch football, soccer, and lacrosse star, Justin Vanderbilt. My image at this small school is dependant upon our image. His dad is the mayor of Lovell and there are only two hundred kids in the whole high school. You can say that everybody knows everyone else's business. That is what makes our relationship perfect; a sweet, caring, jock falling in love with a quirky, nerdy, class president.

 

My life is perfect.

 

    “Hey babe! Wonderful drum duty, can you believe that was your last time at a high school pep rally?” he kissed my cheek and lifted me up in a fairy tale sort of way.

 

    “I know! I cannot wait for college though, it will be so great!” I smiled at him and my imagination ran wild. I’ll meet so many new people and see new things and…

 

    “Hello?” Oh yeah, duh. Hot boyfriend in my face talking to me.

 

    “I’m sorry hon, can you repeat that?” How embarrassing.

 

    “I said, ‘I would like you to stay here for college.’”

 

What do you say in response to that? People in Lovell, Wyoming never left home. Ever. But I was different. The world excited me and I wanted to leave this little town behind. People who grew up with high school sweethearts would end up marrying them and raising a family all within five years of leaving high school. There was no way I was going to be a mayors wife and a mother of three kids all before I was thirty. Not only was it 2014, but we lived like it was 1960. Buildings were outdated; we were outdated. It wouldn’t be a crime to marry Justin and all his radiating hotness, but for what? We dated all throughout high school but I need to expand my horizons and venture out in the world by myself. I loved Justin, there was no doubt about that. But how was I to know if he was “the one”?

 

    “I’ll keep that in mind,” I said curling my fingers around his until we were holding hands.

 

   Like everyday, Justin walked me home (1,951 steps from the front door of the school to my house, I counted). Today was a beautiful day for a walk and when I stepped outside I cringed. This was really going to be over soon and I wouldn’t be here anymore. I wouldn’t walk these same steps or joke with Justin the way we always used to. Ever since sixth grade Justin has been walking me home and we bonded because of this experience. Three years ago we started dating because, why not? We were best friends and back then we wanted to be more than that. Our daily routine was always finished with a hug and kiss goodbye.

 

    “I love you,” he said in my ear, hugging the life out of me.

 

    “I love you too,” I replied. And in fact I did.

 

     My house was a quaint little house and was two stories high. The exterior was red bricks and resembled the barns that were along the same road of my house. There was no way my mom would let our house stick out like a sore thumb. Vines grew up the sides of my house and flowers bloomed all over. I needed to tear them down. Not only were the vines annoying, but they took away from the ‘Little House on the Prarie’ look. I stepped onto the now yellow grass and took it all in. In only a few days I would be gone. I put my key into the key fob and turned it to the right.

 

    “Hello? Mom?” I called, closing the front door quietly. Maybe mom was doing some meditation stuff. I left my keys in a little bowl on a table and tiptoed up to the stairs.

 

    “Baby girl!” she called from the top of the staircase.

    Oh crap.

 

    “Hey mom, why are you, um…”

    Naked. Absolutely, no restriction, stark naked.

 

    “Naked? Well, I read somewhere that being naked cleanses the body and the soul. You should try it honey, it would relieve some of your stress.”

    Oh hell no. Absolutely not.

 

    “Maybe someday,” I said freaked out. Ew ew ew ew ew!

 

    I went up to my room and continuously laughed at my mother. She was definitely different. Our whole family is ‘different’. Ever since my dad passed away from cancer last year, my mom has been crazy. She converted from her childhood belief of Catholicism to a Theravada Buddhist. Somehow she thought that by converting, my dad would come back and that everything would be okay. Not only is it not okay, all materialistic things were taken away from our lives. In my bedroom, for example, there is only a mattress, a blanket, a pillow, and a dresser. There are no mirrors hung around our house because it is ‘impure to be vain’. Along with the mirrorless walls, my mom painted all the walls in our house white, because it symbolized purity. That’s all what we need- purity. I felt like an insane person, just waiting for treatment, and I utterly disliked that.

    I had to get away. Somehow. I did not want to run away from my family, or my lack of materials, but I wanted to experience what I have been missing out on living a rural lifestyle. I want to live by my own rules, make up my own decisions, and do whatever I feel is necessary. At eighteen, everyone in a rural town has their lives figured out, but not me. I did not want to live the way my parents did, I did not want to live the way everyone lived around here. I wanted to live for me. At that moment, I figured out what I was going to do once I graduated- I was going to travel around. Maybe around the United States, or maybe to another country. That is what I want. Independance is the one thing that I craved right now, but I would have to wait ten more days to receive.