Classic xreader rules. y/n: your name, etc.
a/n: trigger warnings: underage drinking, hints at domestic abuse
Y/n's point of view
I never really considered myself a loser, but due to the lack of friends I had that's what I was labeled. I never really had any friends. I mean, I talked to Michael Mell and Jeremy Heere, but we weren't close. I didn't mind having no friends in real life since I had books (and maybe some alcohol I slipped out of my foster parents' stash).
It was a horrible morning to be alive. I had drank a little too much in my pity party yesterday, and I had a terrible hangover. My head aching, I tiredly climbed on the bus. I sat in the seat I usually did: on the right side of the bus, three seats behind the front of the bus. Usually, Jeremy sits by me and we talk, but today I just waved my hand for him to be quiet.
"Hangover?" he asked.
I nodded silently.
"That sucks."
We sat there silently for the rest of the bus ride. Finally, we got up, Jeremy shot me one of his classic I'm-too-nervous-about-everything-but-oh-well smile. "Feel better."
"I'll drink the pain away," I replied with a shrug.
"Y/n..." he began, but I cut him off.
"See you later, Jeremy."
"Y/n, our lockers are right by each other. You know that we're walking the same way...right?"
I rolled my eyes and sighed. I walked along with him but kept my nose buried in my book. People always say I'm going to walk into something, but I don't know what they're talking about. Peripheral vision exists, people.
I hear people talking but ignore them. We were practically at our lockers, which are, like, two lockers apart, when we see Chloe and Jake standing in front of them. They were probably in between one of their many, many breakups and makeups. Jake walked away nonchalantly, and Chloe stared at us. "What are you staring at?"
Jeremy began stuttering immediately, but I interrupted him. "You're standing in front of our lockers, idiot. Get out of the way."
Chloe rolled her eyes but moved out of the way.
I began shoving books in my backpack when I hear Jeremy's tormentor. "Hey, don't touch me, tall-ass!" he shouts. I turn to stand up for Jeremy but find that I can't find my voice. Why is it that whenever Rich Goranski is around I suddenly get all nervous and sweaty and Jeremy-like?
I swallow down my anxiety as I push Rich off Jeremy. "Hey, shortie, leave him the crap alone."
He pushes me back. "I'm not short."
I snort. "Yeah, okay, Goranski."
"Need your girlfriend to save you tall-ass?"
"She's not my--no I don't--I mean I--I don't," Jeremy stutters. I roll my eyes at Rich.
"We're not dating, idiot. He should be so lucky."
Rich ignores me and glares at Jeremy. "You wash that off, you're dead."
Jeremy and I stand there for a minute before we realize we're almost late. "See you fifth period, Heere."
"Bye, Y/n."
I actually don't show up to fifth period due to my Tylenol deciding to not work anymore and a sudden urge to vomit in the girls' room for an hour. So, yeah, it's been a pretty average day. At lunch, I shoved earbuds in, ignoring everyone. I sat down at my usual table, not seeing Jeremy or Michael yet, and began to read.
"Whatcha reading?" said a voice that caused my stomach to seize up.
"Jane Eyre," I replied, not showing my nervousness. "You've probably never heard of it."
"Yeah, I have. We read a section of it in English in freshman year, remember?"
I shook my head at him. "You didn't go here freshman year."
He grinned at me. "Ah, L/n, so you don't know everything."
"What do you want, Goranski?"
He said nothing for a minute, staring at me. I stared straight back. It wasn't a romantic staring-into-each-others'-eyes kinda thing, more like I'm-going-to-stand-my-ground kinda thing. Finally, he said something. "You know, you'd actually be kinda pretty if you tried."
Shock filled my face. Was this some sick insult? Was it secretly a compliment? Did Rich Goranski just compliment me? "Excuse me?" I said, confused.
He smirked. "See you later, L/n," he said as he stood up, brushing my shoulder as he walked past. I sat there for a moment genuinely confused as Jeremy and Michael sat down.
"Hey, Y/n," said Michael. "What did Rich want?"
I looked at the kind boy in front of me, still utterly confused. "I don't know."
Michael cocked his head. "Um, okay?"
I returned to my book as the boys started to talk about Christine, Jeremy's massive crush, or human evolution or something.
"Signing up for the play," Jeremy said. This caught my notice. I've always secretly loved drama, but I've always been to shy to actually try being onstage, although I have been on stage crew for the school play for the past few years. Mr. Reyes even asked me to be assistant director this year. I never took Jeremy for one to care about theatre, though.
"I was gonna say getting stoned in my basement, but--" Michael, I'm hurt. You didn't invite me? I prefer getting drunk alone with a good classic novel, but I'll take getting high with Michael any day.
"No, I mean, look who's signing up for the play."
I glanced over to the play sign up sheet where I saw Christine writing her name. Oh, that makes more sense. Jeremy watching Christine sign up for the play, not Jeremy signing up for the play. Ha, can you imagine?
To my surprise, I saw Jeremy walk over to the sign up sheet. Slowly, he reached for the blue ballpoint pen and wrote his name. Well, I'll be damned.
"Gay!" Rich shouted, causing the populars to erupt in laughter. "I like gay people," I heard Chloe mumble.
I sigh, returning to my book. Some things were never gonna change. Rich was always gonna be the asshole I had a hopeless crush on, Jeremy and Michael were always gonna be the losers, Christine was always gonna be the center of attention, and the populars were always gonna look down on us. It's the way it always had been for my whole life, and it's the way it always would be.
Then again, miracles do happen.
