Conflicted Identities (Ackley Bridge)

Chapter 1

*This fanfiction contains elements of the TV series alongside self-manufacured content. It is not supposed to be a direct re-telling of the events in Ackley Bridge, and certain areas have been changed to suit the storyline. Enjoy!*

Nas

Management had always been a strong and effective trait in the life of Nasreen Paracha. Her daily routine, whilst not being overly monotonous- rarely deviated from the structure that she had given to it. Nas ensured that she kept up appearances in all areas of her life, whether this be completing her classwork to a high standard in order to impress the teachers at school, or simply hanging out with her best friend Missy Booth next door- typically consisting of devouring copious amounts of Missy's Nana's chocolate supply. Every element of Nas' life was kept separate from one another. She and Missy attended different schools, despite being next door neighbours. Her mum worked as a lunch supervisor at a nearby Islamic primary school, and her dad was always "away on business"- although Nas frequently questioned the nature of such 'business'. Teachers liked her, she had a fairly close group of friends at school, and she had achieved outstanding GCSE results last year, earning her a spot in all of her first choice A-Level subjects. All in all, Nasreen Paracha's life wasn't easy, but it suited her perfectly. That was so, until a ground-breaking announcement shook the culturally divided community of Halifax, West Yorkshire. Government budget cuts had finally took their toll, and plans were to be finalised for the merging of the town's two secondary schools. To an outsider looking in, this may not have seemed such a great issue. However, for the citizens of Halifax, this new school signified the forced integration and cultural convergence they had so hoped to avoid. The school was to be named Ackley Bridge College, and pupils from both pre-existing schools were automatically granted a place. Whilst the concerns of the majority focused purely around the supposedly contrasting values of the Muslim community in comparison to the white British population, Nas had far deeper troubling thoughts racing through her mind, circling around and around until she was dizzy with confusion and nauseous with guilt. She feared facing her inner self more than any white pupil could possibly fear sharing a classroom with an Asian pupil and vice versa. She toyed with these thoughts for what seemed like an eternity. What would Ackley Bridge mean for Nas?

Missy

Missy Booth had made a decision, albeit with great reluctance. Despite being on the brink of eighteen, Missy had dropped out of sixth form in order to run around after her hopeless alcoholic of a mother, and simply to escape the pressures of school life in general. She spent her weekdays working a dead end minimum wage café job, and most of her weeknights either searching for her wandering mum, cooking dinner for her Nana and sister Hayley, or flicking through magazines with her closest and most loyal friend, Nas. They would gossip and laugh until Nas' mum called over the fence for her to come home for the night. Missy appreciated the time spent with her best friend, and had longed for them to spend every minute chatting. She guessed that was partly why she'd abandoned school when given the chance to. The girls' in her year were either complete bitches or just plain boring. Plus, Corey Wilson would never leave her alone, which was extremely irritating. However, Missy's plans to remain at the café soon changed once she heard that her old school had closed and Ackley Bridge was set to open in the coming September. She'd first heard the news from Hayley, who had bounced through the door completely ecstatic to be joining her own best friend, Nas' sister Razia- for year 12. Missy had quickly phoned the administrative team and made plans to return to sixth form. Even though she would be a year behind and therefore stuck with her sister, Missy was determined to gain qualifications alongside her lifelong BFF. Therefore, it came as a shock to Missy when Nas didn't reciprocate this enthusiasm, instead choosing to respond with a soft smile and a shrug. Missy assumed that Nas was just feeling a tad nervous, she'd heard some of the rumours circulating about the way girls dress and act at Nas' school- most of them opting to wear hijab and base a girl's value on her romantic or sexual reputation, rather than the more socially liberal stance taken by the students at Missy's old comprehensive. Oh well, a new start would hopefully be for the best, and no amount of casual insouciance could hide Missy's excitement for the approaching term.