The grayish light of early morning dawned into Kim's room to hit on the messy pile of clothes in the corner that she kept meaning to get to. The entire house was silent, and she reveled in the remaining two minutes that she would have before the alarm would shrill it's little head off forcing her to come out of dreamland and into the real world. Today was particularly painful as it was the first day of going back to school. As if that was not enough, she would be new this year and she knew it would be hell trying to settle down.

Right as she was beginning to stir and trying to get up, her peace was suddenly disturbed by the incredibly loud sound of someone banging on her door.She tried to ignore it, but the person who seemed ready to break down the door would not give up. Reluctantly, she dragged herself out of bed, her feet hitting the soft carpeted floor with a little thud and walked to the door.She opened the door to reveal her frazzled looking father looking back at her. "Dad, What's wrong?", she asked pulling the door open and tousling her hair. Apparently he needed help finding a tie since he had to go to work soon. After she had settled him out and seen him off to work, she went to go get ready for the day.

Soon enough, she was showered and ready to go. She trudged downstairs to go wake up her brothers so they could get going. About an hour and a half later, they were all ready and she got their lunches and they were out the door. The day had been relatively easy so far even for her family, there had been no early morning meltdowns and everyone had gotten out the doors on time, she thought to herself as she drove down the road that led to her new school. thankfully she'd remembered to map quest the address the night before so she knew exactly where she was going.

After a little while, she was pulling into the parking lot and parked her car. She got out, grabbing her bag and walked into the school. She looked for signs that might help direct her, and barely managed to find the main office, so she could manage to check in and get her locker.

For Natalie Cardew, her car was kind of a big deal. It’d been a birthday present, and an expensive one at that, and she’d been so very sorry that it had ended up crashed in a ditch at one point and that she hadn’t been allowed to drive it for three months. The points where that got incredibly difficult were often when she just needed to get away, go for a drive and clear her mind, and wasn’t able to.

Obviously, that wasn’t so much the case anymore, she had her Jaguar back, she had less scrutiny and she had a little bit of time to get to school. Always the early riser, she showered, dressed and had breakfast in practically no time at all, and finally resulting in Natalie pulling into the school car park, dressed in a sweater and jeans, for the cold, finished off with matching shoes. If it got that hot, she could just take the sweater off and make do with the cami. Grabbing her bag once she’d parked, Natalie stepped out, the cool morning air immediately rushing all around her.

She decided to get out of the cold and into the warm building, moving towards it in a not slow, not fast, but brisk walk, as the faintly pouring sunlight picked out the natural highlights in her hair as she continued reviewing the contents of her bag to check everything she needed was how she needed it. Gone were the days when she really couldn’t give a damn about homework, but in all honesty, she didn’t actually mind; it was nowhere near difficult for her, she found most of the stuff easy.

Walking over to her locker, she opened it up, put her bag in it and hung her coat up all in one fluid motion, as if on autopilot, before her indefinable pale eyes scanned the timetable taped to the back of the locker door; English first. It brought a smile to her lips, she did like English, creative writing especially and so, she actually put some effort into the work set rather than just relying on natural brilliance. She slid her bag off the top shelf again, softly rifling through the contents to fetch out the book and file needed for the class before she shut the locker.

(((OOC: Approachable
Not the best thing I've ever written, but :shrug:
Josh coming later when I've got time )))

The first day of school following a blissfull winter break... The thought alone made the first sound coming from the newly awoken Matthew, a sigh, moments before he threw the covers aside and stood from his bed. Usually, he really didn't have that much of a problem with school day mornings, but there was just something about the very first one after a long line of comfortably lazy holiday ones that made it feel so much more difficult. Perhaps it was the knowledge that there were months and months of school work ahead of him - whether he would do it himself, have someone else do it for him, or simply just leave it undone altogether, was beside the point - or maybe it was the effort he knew it would cost him to get back into the routine of things. When one was already in it, everything usually ran rather smoothly. It was getting there, getting back into the routine of things, that was the real chore.

Starting his usual morning procedure, he padded off to the adjoining bathroom for a quick shower, followed by dressing in the outfit he had spent some time deciding on last night - a pair of dark wash jeans, light colored striped shirt, and a dark gray jacket to protect his slender frame from the cold - fixing his hair to make sure the set of soft chocolate locks looked nice and casual (which ironically took him longer than having it look intentionally styled), and then heading downstairs for a glass of orange juice and a couple of pieces of toast, before finally grabbing his bag and heading out the door, to his beloved silver Maserati.

Ten minutes later, he sauntered confidently up the stone steps of the main entrance, and through the doors of Brooklake High, graciously aiming a small but charming smile at every head that turned while keeping an eye out for any of his friends, ready to get back into the game of portraying the much envied perfection of school royalty, to a wider audience then the last couple of weeks had provided. Not that the audience was ever a small one, but there was still a bit of a difference between his circle of friends and family, as well as the guests and crashers of the occasional party, and the entire school student body.


(((ooc: Approachable. )))

As light came streaming in through her window and piercing through the thin blue curtains that her mother hadn't changed since the 5th grade, Lila lamented the conclusion of her winter break. Not simply because the holiday season was her most cherished time of year, but also because it meant she no longer got to sleep in. That was probably what she would miss the most--those beautiful, delightful extra hours of delicious sleep. She had to force her emerald eyes open with a concerted effort, peering around her silent bedroom with refreshed curiosity, as though somehow it being the first day back to school would have changed the room's appearance. There was no change, however, and the only subtle difference was her messenger bag slung expectantly over her desk chair.

Lila begrudgingly drew herself out from the warmth of her covers and rushed over to the closet, quickly seizing a pair of black stockings and paired them with an unnaturally comfy jersey babydoll dress, over which she pulled a charcoal sweater and a white cashmere scarf that hung loosely around her slender neck. Finally, for the utmost of warmth and comfort, she secured a pair of ankle-high boots with a soft lining to warm her cold feet. She ran a brush through her increasingly long chestnut hair and watched the soft waves settle around her shoulders, satisfied when the tangles had been freed. Never one for excessive makeup Lila grabbed her chapstick and applied it with a smile, and moved over to her desk to grab her backpack and books.

Breezing downstairs with a half-forced, half-genuine smile, Lila greeted her mother and planted a gentle kiss on her cheek before grabbing her quick breakfast and darting out the front door, yelling a muffled goodbye over her shoulder before the door slammed shut. She had expected the cool air that quickly spread over her face and brought a new chill to her body, and she had expected the faint dread that had begun to set in as soon as she had truly reconciled herself to the idea that she was on her way to school again for the first time in weeks. What she hadn't expected was the tiny bit of anticipation, the gladness to be returning, that began to creep into her awareness as she approached the school a miraculous ten minutes early. She eyed the mammoth of architectural beauty before her with renewed wonderment, as though she had never seen the striking attractiveness of their school before. Lila drew in a breath and let a tiny smile settle over her lips as she ascended the front steps and entered the warm and bustling hallways, making her way to her locker at the opposite end of the front entrance.

She moved swiftly among the masses, never really having to stop or be stopped by anyone in particular. That was one of the benefits of being the wallpaper of the social realm--you were always there, but people were so used to you and you had become so unnoticeable that you completely faded into the background. Unlike most of the 'popular crowd' Lila wasn't assaulted every five seconds by another so-called friend or adoring fan, nor was she acknowledged with fear as many of the troublemakers were. She merely existed, and that was enough.

Yet from the sea of people one head of gossamer hair stood out, captured her eye as very few could. She was almost certain to whom it belonged, and that thought both excited and deterred her. He was moving toward his locker, the same one that he had abused over and over again for the past year; it was a real miracle that it was still as intact as it currently was. Lila debated moving past him and not disturbing him, for she above many others knew that his moods were subject to violent and abrupt changes, and if she caught him in a bad one...well, no need to reflect on that. As she was about to pass him, she merely tapped lightly on his nearest shoulder so that by the time he turned to glance in the direction she would have already passed him. Suppressing a chuckle, she melded back into the flow of students so easily that it would have seemed as though she had never moved away from them. Mere seconds later Lila escaped the rush of people to dart out to the side where her locker resided, several rows away from the blonde-haired boy's was, and she stared at the dial for a long moment.

Well crap. I can barely remember my combination, she thought with annoyance, the look of frustration clearly registering over her delicate features as she continued what seemed to be a staring contest with her locker.

((Eeric coming laters. :] ))

Marie-Elisabeth Normandy had never been a morning person. She would prefer sleeping until noon to having to get up and go to school. But she was a person who was into her appearance and would never show up looking anything less than her best. It was almost unthinkable for the Captain of the Cheerleading Sqaud and half of the school’s most infamous couple not to look prefect at all times.

With that, and the fact that she had cheerleading practice that afternoon in mind, she carefully took her uniform out of the closet and laid it out on her bed. She got dressed in a pair of strappy platform shoes, jeans, and a stripy tank top. Realizing it was going to be cold outside she grabbed her favourite white sweater and pulled it on too. Surveying her outfit with satisfaction she quickly did her hair and makeup, pausing only to grab her cheerleading outfit and her book bag before dashing out to her car .

She was actually looking forward to getting back to school, and had decided to come early in order to see if she could catch Josh before class. Thankfully it didn’t take her very long to cover the distance from her house to school and it seemed like no time at all before she was pulling up to the school parking lot and locking her car as she made her way to the building.

Walking through the halls to her locker, she noticed there seemed to be quite a few new students there. “Great” she thought, spinning the dial on her lock “Watch there be a bunch of ugly girls who try to try out for cheerleading. As if I’d actually let any of them on”. She grinned as she swung her locker open and hung her uniform inside, admiring the picture of her and Josh at the winter semi formal dance. She glanced in the mirror next to it and pulled out her lip-gloss and reapplied it.

“Now to find Josh” she though, shutting the locker and slinging her bag over one shoulder.

Approachable


(((OOC: Haha, you have no idea how odd it is for me to have someone getting ready for HS and not put a uniform on...yeah I wore one...:P)))

((just a little side-note that's completely irrelevant: wow! I'm loving all these cars! xD We certainly have some well-off students at Brooklake, haha. Lila doesn't even have one, she has to walk...anyway, yeah! Great intro posts everyone, I'm thinking we have till the end of today to get to class and start class tomorrow? Anyone want longer/shorter?))

(((OOC: I vote for a tad later too. Just to give other people time for stuff)))

((Okiedokie! You know I just have a weird thing about not wanting to make you guys wait around for stuff, haha. Then maybe sometime tomorrow we'll get class started. No rush! Thanks for the input! And Atropa, I can only imagine, haha. xD ))

Josh’s day moved around a lot like clockwork.

First was the abysmal torture of the alarm clock at 5 o’clock in the morning, screaming at Josh to wake up until he finally gave in; snoozing wasn’t an option except on Sundays. Then was the jogging for God only knew how far and how long, in the cold or the heat, come rain or shine. Habits, in the eyes of Daniel Brennan, were non-negotiable. The schedule was fixed and Josh hadn’t had a say in it for years.

However, once that was over, he showered and dressed in a white ribbed Calvin Klein sweater and pale jeans, half compensating between the cold weather of the outside and the warm interior of the school building. Life was all about compensation these days, actually life had always been about compensation. After that was breakfast, and always the allocated, predetermined stuff, regardless of how it tasted, before he departed for school, finally not dictated in how he was to go about that.

He always took the scenic route, rolled down the windows regardless of the weather, feeling the breeze run its fingers through his luscious soft brown tresses, as he took the twists towards and away from the school building before finally turning to move decisively towards the school. And he had a designated parking spot, a lot like having a temporary star in the Hollywood walk of fame, into which the car was skill fully parked his Lamborghini before he exited and locked it, moving briskly inside the school building from the biting cold.

Once inside the building, the first thing that caught his eye was the familiar locks of gold falling down the back of slender, petite frame as she shut the locker and slung the bag over her shoulder. Marie-Elisabeth. Of course, it made sense she always got to school before him, given that Josh liked to drive around aimlessly before he actually made his way to school and hence, regardless of how much earlier than her he set out, he always arrived later than her. Ever the gentleman to his lady, in fact, to anyone who was a lady, Josh couldn't just go about his business without attending to her first and so, stuffing his keys into his jeans pockets, he silently made his way to her, her back still turned away from him.

Close enough to her to smell the soft, sweet scent of her shampoo wrapping the air around him, he slid his muscular arms around her dainty waist, pulling her closer against him in a warm hug, his head momentarily buried in the groove of her neck, planting a swift kiss before he let her go, stepped away and leaned back against one of the adjacent lockers.

"Morning," he shot her a devilishly perfect grin, that ever present hint of vulnerability still stored within them, as his grey-blue eyes fell loosely over her beautiful face. Josh knew Marie-Elisabeth, being a cheerleader, being Prep, probably wasn't the most innocent or good-natured person he'd ever know, but to him, she was sweet. And that aside, wasn't he just meant to go out with her anyway? There wasn't really a grand choice about it, right? The quarterback always dated the head cheerleader, that was the way things worked, wasn't it?

(((OOC: Hope that works for you, Robyn )))

(( ooc: i agree lol - all the cars =O nice though .. Hayden's family is mega rich but she is learning so what you gonna do lol ))

Hayden had a resonable sleep last night and awoke not feeling a tired at all. I mean she didn't love school but she loved her friends and cheerleading. But she would never get her hopes up upon her new school 'Brooklake'. Hayden never got her hopes up due to transferring from city to city .. .. to school to school. This wasn't because of bad behaviour but for the reasons of her parents. Her father owning a successful multi-national business led to them moving to different cities, maybe countries and Hayden being the new prep girl every year.
This is our home now, we are living here permanently, were the words that consistetly lied through her parents teeth. Hayden never knew whether to believe if she would actually end up living here permantently. But the facts seemed truthful, they live in a gerogous mansion, the mansion has been done up and her mother and father made friends and had regular dinner parties, etc.

Even though these points were a reasonable possibility that Hayden would live here permanent, she still would not get her hopes up. So with that she sat down infront of her mirror, applied make up and curled her long wavy curls pushing her fringe, up of her face. She then decided to skip breakfast and quickly put her clothes on. She pulled her grey tights up her leg, throwing a multi-coloured pattern dress on. She quickly threw her lip gloss, mascara and mirror in her clutch bag alongs side her phone and a pen.
She run down the stairs quite excited, "Well im off to school", she said in a scurry.
She quickly slipped her pink pumps on grabbing her grey cardigan on the way out. She closed the door and stopped rushing, she only rushed because of her mother's nagging about the way she dressed. Hayden knew she looked a bit girly today because of the pink pumps but she knew first impressions are everything and left for school.

A quarter of the way there, Hayden was lost. Luckily for her, her dad pulled up in his convertible austin martin db9 with the roof up of course. They drove quickly to the school, "Thanks dad, i got so lost. I mean like how would of i knew where to go. I dont live here, i live everywhere", she said purposely towards her dad.
"I know we have moved everywhere alot lately...", he dad replied.
"Alot isn't the word", Hayden impled.
"... as i was saying but i mean it when i say, we are living here permanently", he said sincerely.
Hayden accepted the point clearly and arrived at the school, closing the car door behind hr. "Bye dad".
She turned towards the school, and gulped. I dont know anyone ran through Hayden's head. This wasn't usually a problem Hayden had, but she a prep over reacted at times.

With that Hayden walked towards the entrance, opening the doors she noticed a lot of people in the corridors talking. She turned a few heads due to her beauty but mostly because of the fact she was new. Her heels clogging on the floor didnt help with people looking at her. She walked slowly not knowing where to go, what her lessons was or to be honest - where she was.

(( ooc: she is also approachable and i need to finish it off a little-ish ))

(( Its edited now lol))

Lorene couldn't help but mutter curse words as her dad pulled away with a hurried wave, leaving her in a deserted car park, outside a closed school. It was 6:24am... Not only was she ridiculously early but it had started raining too and the only bit of shelter she could see was behind the tail iron school gates. More muttering Ensued.

Two minutes of “deep” thought concluded in Lorene decided that not only was going over the gates a good idea, but her only option. No way was she freezing her ass off until the grounds keeper turned up, she thought as she fed her shoes through the bars in preparation. She definitely wasn’t dressed for climbing anything, her dad’s frown of disapproval annoyingly chose to replay in her head at that moment but it wasn’t like anyone was around anyway she thought as she began climbing up a tree to help her get herself over.

It wasn’t until Lorene was sitting on the adjoining wall to the gate that she realised that she hadn’t thought about how she would get down. She considered how much her skirt would break her fall but even she knew that it would only reduce the possibility of her shattering both her ankles by about 0.01%. Any time to further contemplate was robbed from her though, as a passing speeding car startled her enough to fall.

“F***!” She screeched as she landed hard on the wet concrete. She dusted herself down, reached for her shoes and discovered the gaping cut in her knee caused by her less than graceful fall. She pulled the scarf she wore around her head and tied it around her knee to try and stop the blood, put her shoes on and made sure her skirt was still covering her knickers.

Once she had fully composed herself, she decided to take a little tour of the school grounds to pass the time. The limp her knee gave her added a swagger to her walk that put most rappers to shame. By the time she arrived back at the gates, students were filtering in. Her sights locked in on a moody blonde with a headband, scowling away in a somewhat convenient corner.

“Cigarette…” she announced to no one in particular, her eyes wide like a jealous toddler who had spotted another kid with an ice cream.

“Hey kid!” She yelled in a vain attempt to get his attention. Her lack of specifics resulted in everyone in range of her voice looking at her expectantly. She sighed and took to her feet, hobbling awkwardly, as she saw him walking away. She finally reached him as he approached a locker that looked like it had definitely seen better days.

“Erm.. hi!” She said brightly as she tried to catch her breath, he didn’t look amused by her cheerfulness, “You couldn’t spare a cigarette could you?”

(Shall have Adam up in a little bit and I'm the same slytherin girl:P)

Katie, unlike many smart people, did indeed think of herself as a nerd. A short lived obsession with teenage fiction led her to think she perfectly fit the stereotype- she loved learning, she enjoyed school- except for the people that were horrible to her, another stereotype- and she could have gotten straight A's with no work whatsoever, yet she still did the work.

So, in her nerdly glory, she awoke a full hour before school and packed up her bookbag. Slinging it onto her back she went into the garage to look at her much beloved bike. or she would have if said bicycle didn't have a tire slashed. Her jaw dropped and she was all set to ask her mother to let her stay home, but as she went back through the garage door she gritted her teeth. She wouldn't let those idiots get to her. She wouldn't! Especially since it was just as likely to have been wear and tear as a slash. "Yeah right." she thought gloomily as she patched the tire.

Bike repaired, she hopped on and pedaled like a deverish to get to school in time, arriving in a slightly sweaty but irrepressibly cheerful state. She grabbed her back pack off the handlebars and walked up the steps navigating quickly to the hallway with the sophomore and junior lockers. She dug in her bag for a moment- and a single moment only, her bookbag was impeccably organized- and pulled out her number and combination. "394," she mumbled to herself, finally finding the locker towards the middle of the hallway. The person in 393 hadn't arrived yet, and the person in 392 apparently had the same locker as last term, it was really banged up and messy. He was standing right there so as she dialed in her combination she said cheerfully, "Hi! So I guess we're locker mates? My name's Katie."

She shoved her bag into the locker and offered a hand to shake. "There was that so hard Katie? You just gotta be nice to people!", she told herself encouragingly, smiling cheerfully all the while.

[i]((OOC: Hope that works for you Atropa?
Also, about her locker changing, its from the end of last semester to the next semester. Some schools change lockers at the semester, so it makes sense I guess.
And Loren will come soon))

((ooc: whatever works for you guys ))

Kim had already been to the office and had signed in and done all the necessary things that she had to do.Her schedule had been assigned and she'd gotten a locker already. So far she had been impressed by the order in which things had been dealt with. She, for some reason, had thought that it would take a while for her to get settled but she was up and running in about a half hour, now all she had to do was figure out how to work her locker combo.

Pushing back a strand of hair into the loose side ponytail that she'd done for this morning. She pushed out of the door and headed into the now crowded hallway. It had certainly filled up since she'd come in a short while ago. It was way noisier now, there were girls shrieking and jumping up and down, the shouting was often punctuated by little snippets about their summers.She headed down to the block of lockers looking for her particular one, Number 393. Soon she got there and noticed that she had two people next to her who were talking. She didn't want to disturb them so she began to work her lock.

She was pleasantly surprised to see that the locks were the exact same as her other school and she picked it up pretty quickly. Once that was over with she put her stuff in her locker and checked her schedule for her first class. It was English and like she predicted, she had no idea where it was. She looked up to see a guy standing in front of her coming down the hallway and thought she'd ask him for directions. She didn't even think twice before going up to him. "Hi, I'm Kim, I kinda need directions for class", she said putting on a smile and putting out a hand for a shake.

[[Hope it's okay that she took that locker, if someone else has it, i'll be willing to change it]]
[[ Atropa, this goes for Matthew ]]

((I had no idea what this was, and then discovered it was basically a form of writing So I'm taking a shot at it!))

Name: Katherine (goes by Kat) Sabler

Age/Class: 17/Junior

Clique: Skater

After School Activity: Drama Club

Brief History/Personality Description: Kat comes from a separated family. Her brother is locked up, her mom gone, and her Dad is her one and only family at the moment. She usually keeps to herself and doesn't bother other people. There is the random occassion when she will talk to random strangers, but mostly to her friends. Kat usually hangs out at the local skate park. Her desired profession is to be a graphic designer, and not to do actual work.

Anything else you might want to add: Kat is a new student, having just moved from Chicago, and hates Drama Club. Her dad wanted Kat to "get involved", and is now forced to go. She drives a dark green used Jeep, and loves anything spicy to eat. Kat does often break the law (like underage drinking and trespassing), but has never gotten caught yet.

Picture:

(not enough posts yet *sigh* remove the space between the http and the rest)

http ://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp281/Royale4747/Kat.jpg

Hayden was still walking down the hallway slowly, with people looking at her. People might have thought she was stupid because she was so pretty, but this wasn't the case. Hayden was in fact really smart but never liked to draw attention to herself because she was smart. Her pink pumps clogged on the hard floor which still made people turn their heads. She thought maybe the pink heels were a bit much because it was a stereo-typically girl colour. She didnt care though because her outfit was mainly based on colours that were girly but not bright and in your face. She thought grey would make her look alot smarter. The thing with Hayden is that she is really smart - but as stupid as it is, she gets easily distracted by clothes.

She walked past a few people talking by the lockers, she heard the name 'Katie' at one point and went to introduce herself but she didnt have time. She still had to find her classes only once she had found the office where she would be briefed on everything as she is completely new. The newbie.

At the office she was quiet, with her hands holding her clutch bag tightly by her chest. She glanced at a mirror briefly and turned back to it to perfect her hair. She was quite vein in how she fussed around with her hair, she was shocked by a woman, "Hi".
Hayden was completely oblivious to the woman, so the woman spoke up again. "Hi, can i help you?"
"Oh hi, uhhh...", Hayden said still confused, "...I'm Hayden Alba, im a transfer", she said softly.
"Oh alright, take a seat. One moment", the woman said kindly.
The woman fussed around on the computer and phone a little while Hayden sat on a near by chair with her legs crossed, and she was filing her nails with a nail filer. People still looking at her because of her beauty, she ignored it as no one particularly interested her liking for the moment. She was used to attention always on her so she was oblivious to this at times.

She continued to file her nails and blow on them now and again.

(( ooc: approachable anyone ))

Violence begets more violence. Such is the way of the world; a lesson taught, though probably not yet learned, to J.D. by his very own locker. Having abused it various times and for various reasons over the last year, mostly as an outlet for the young man's bad temper, the dented locker door now actually required a bit of brutal force to swing open. This, however, being an unknown fact to most of the other students, J.D.'s morning procedure to get the darned thing open still attracted the attention of some who had nothing better to do than to be nosey. Heads turned, whispers passed between heads kept close together, and if one looked close, one could probably catch an eyeroll or two as well. Though granted, there were some exceptions; other people who knew better, either through experience or pure gut instinct, and who would go about their business as though the brief but familiar slamming noise was just another sign that everything was normal. Those people, J.D. had decided, were the smart ones, as they obviously knew what was good for them. Unlike some other idiots, two of which stood a bit further down the hall and caught J.D.'s eye as they were just shaking their heads at him, which in turn earned them a glare that immediately sent them on their way.

And the glare probably would have lasted for quite a while, had someone not chosen that very moment to have it replaced by slight surprise, quickly followed by ever so brief confusion. Someone had just tapped him on the shoulder, but when he instinctively turned to see who it was, there was no one there, causing him to turn back, expecting to see one of his friends there instead, as no one else would probably dare to pull that kind of trick with him. But, as it would turn out, there was no one there either, and with brows furrowed with annoyance, J.D. quickly scanned the hallway for whoever had just placed themselves first in line for a beating.

However, as soon as he caught sight of the person he immediately knew was the culprit, all such thoughts dissolved into thin air, and, lo and behold, his surly expression actually brightened a bit with a slight smile. Lila. Her back was turned, and she didn't even give a glance over her should to acknowledge neither him nor the fact that she had been the one to tap him on the shoulder, but J.D. still knew it was her. He'd watched that slender frame with the silky auburn hair flowing around her shoulders and down her back enough by now to recognize it anywhere.

Slamming the locker door shut again, without having retrieved or even dropped something off, he was just about to follow her, when the girl apparently occupying the locker two numbers up from his decided that, for whatever reason, she wanted to make his acquaintance.

"Hi!" she said while holding out her hand, far too cheerful for J.D.'s morning mood. "So I guess we're locker mates? My name's Katie."

Silent at first, with the smile now gone from his features, J.D. simply looked at her for a couple of seconds, with a deadpan expression where the slight amusement had been moments earlier, as though he was almost waiting for her to realize her mistake. When she didn't, his gaze wandered to her outstretched hand, and then back again.

"J.D.", he said, finally deciding he might as well be civil and not bite the head off of the first person to speak to him, though he half expected to see that hand of hers retreat fast as lightning when it would dawn on her who she was indeed speaking to.

Few people spoke to him, unless they were his friends. Though little did he know, that it would seem this Katie person was starting something of a new trend, as only moments later another girl stopped by his other side. Well, what seemed like it used to be a girl at least, but now looked more like some kind of injured exotic bird, hobbling around in a bright display of multicolored hair and a rather... creative outfit, to put it nicely,. Not that J.D. knew much about fashion, but he did suspect tutus weren't exactly in style...

"Erm.. hi!", she beamed at him, with a smile almost as bright as the rest of her appearance. "You couldn’t spare a cigarette, could you?"

Causing yet another expressionless stare on J.D.'s part at first, one of his eyebrows then ventured slightly upwards in a look of mild skepticism, and he glanced over at the first girl, as though he was beginning to wonder what on earth was going on. Twice in less than a minute? What, did he have 'I care' tattooed on his forehead or something all of a sudden? 'Mr Congeniality'? What was with people this morning?

However, despite his rather anti-social attitude, at least when it came to people outside his own circle of friends, J.D. never really had been entirely opposed to helping out a fellow smoker... even if they did come asking him from out of the blue. But that didn't necessarily mean he'd be all smiles and pink fluff in return neither.

"Yeah, alright, I 'spose", he finally said, and then, while retrieving his pack of cigarettes from his inner jacket pocket and holding it out for the girl to take one, glanced towards Katie and muttered to himself; "Jesus, who do people think I am? Ned freakin' Flanders?"

(((ooc: Sorry for the double post, but they were both too long to fit together, I think.)))

Matt Sidle was one of those people whom you would rarely see walking alone, especially when in school. Regardless of whether it was recess or in class, he always seemed to be surrounded by friends of some kind; real friends, girlfriends, pseudo-friends, or wannabe friends, there always seemed to be someone just dying to share his company. Some because they actually enjoyed it, others because they were expected to, and others yet because they were hoping some of the popularity would rub off on them, that they would turn cool by association. For if one wanted to be deemed officially cool, at Brooklake as well as pretty much any other high school, the approval of the preps was a must, and there had been times when a simple 'hi' being uttered by a prep in passing had contributed to a bit of a heightened status for the occasional lucky one.

Though there was also the possibility that people being drawn to Matt was that by seeking his company they wanted to take themselves out of the running for being the next unsuspecting victim of the preps' headgames. With Matt, however, there really were no such guarantees. He enjoyed being adored, yes, but if someone got a little too clingy, well, then they might all of a sudden find themselves a bigger target than any other clueless drone. There had even been others within his own clique that had been subjected to such treatment, simply for managing to somehow displease him enough to want to pay them back and put them in their place.

So, all things considered, it was not entirely surprising that within two minutes of setting foot on school property, Matt found himself in the company of two other students - a girl whom he would have to label a prep wannabe, and a boy with the honorable title of 'almost friend' - who approached him for a bit of a chat. Matt, however, was still on the lookout for his 'real' friends, and so soon cut the conversation short by excusing himself, saying he had to stop by his locker before class, and slipping away before the two had a chance to suggest that they could accompany him.

Peace didn't last long, however (when did it ever?), as not thirty seconds later, another girl stepped out infront of him, apparently wanting his attention.

"Hi, I'm Kim", she said with a rather pleasant smile - one that seemed genuine enough and not forced just for the sake of smiling - and held out her hand for an introductory handshake. "I kinda need directions for class".

Giving her the quick once over, thereby establishing that she was quite pretty and obviously had a decent fashion sense - unlike some, just a few feet away, who in their bright blue tutu, of all things, almost made him want to gouge his eyes out, and thus earned themselves an ever so brief glance of 'what the h*ll where you thinking?' - Matt then flashed her a charming smile in return.
This might be interesting. In more ways than one. For not only was she pleasant to look at, she also posed the question of motive for approaching him. Sincerely lost and in need of directions, or just using the first excuse she could think of to approach him? He couldn't recall seeing her before, so she really just might be new. But then again, the school was filled with students he never paid attention to, so who knew?
So, hmmmm.... Maybe he should just put it all to the test then? And maybe have some fun in the process. Because really, it was just so simple. How could he resist?

"Matt Sidle", he said, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze and a shake, making no effort to hide the twinkle in his eyes.

With her not knowing what was going through his mind, she would probably think he was flirting. And, well... Even though he was just about to mess with her, he probably was.

"Which class are we talking about?" he asked, while tilting his head to see what her schedule said. "English?"

Same as him. Excellent. He'd get the answer to his question almost straight away, and he'd also get to see the result firsthand. Well, part of it at least.

"It's easy", he said. "A bit of a walk, but easy. You just follow the hallway and go past the stairs. Then you make a left, and then another left. Go past the bathrooms, and you're there. second door on your right."

Turning his gaze back to Kim after having pointed this and that way while describing the route, he gave her a look as though silently asking if she had gotten it all, while managing just beautifully to supress an amused smile at the though just passing through his head; 'Give the nurse my regards'.

Adam had never gotten too much use out of his alarm clock. Without fail, every morning his parents would wake him with their arguing before his alarm clock could and today was no different. He groaned frustrated, rubbing his eyes as the harsh sunlight filtered in through his blinds. A mid morning nap seemed like it would be an inevitability, great impression to make on his first day…

By the time he had managed to drag himself out of bed, his parents’ fight had escalated: his mum was screaming hysterically, something had been thrown and had shattered against the wall, booze probably, what a waste, he thought with a sigh.

To avoid being dragged into his parents dumb drama, Adam had to lay low in his room until the coast was clear. After drawing a rough map of how to get to his new school on his arm, he got out his beloved acoustic guitar and played a little bit to keep himself occupied till he heard:

“You know what? I don’t need this bull****!” His dad yelled before slamming the front door.

“Don’t you DARE walk away from me!” His mum wailed and chased after him, slamming the door behind her just as loudly.

Peace finally, Adam thought with a small smile. He figured he had 20 minutes maximum before one of them returned so set about getting ready. Before he left his room, he spied his little cat Macaroni at the foot of his bed still snoozing away obliviously.

“Dumb cat,” He muttered jealously and headed into kitchen/war zone to clean up the glass he had heard before there were any drunken accidents. The strong stench of whiskey confirmed that alcohol had been wasted; his parents definitely were strange alcoholics. He swept up the glass, mopped up what had spilled, put the kettle on for whoever lost this battle and filled Macaroni’s bowl up and headed to the bathroom but not before stealing the last 3 cigarettes out of a box left carelessly on the kitchen table and a bit of spare cash. He figured he’d earned it, doing his best to keep their crappy little hovel at least liveable.

By the time he’d finished showering and had got dressed, his mum was back, sat at the kitchen starring vacantly at the peeling painted walls, nursing a cup of tea. Though his instincts pleaded with him to make a quick exit, his conscience wanted to make sure she was alright.

“Morning mum,” He said, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek, before going to get a glass of milk.

She sat there unmoving for about a minute before responding quietly, “Morning darling, hope we didn’t wake you…”

He doubted anyone within a 10mile radius hadn’t heard them but he kept that thought to himself. “Y-you ok mum?” He asked sceptically, knowing the answer could range from “I’m fine” to a 3-day rant in which she divulged everything to him from money troubles to their sex life… He shuddered.

She sighed wiping her tear stained face, “I’ll be alright, but you’re going to be late, hurry up!” She said with forced cheerfulness.

He wanted to push the issue further but she was right, if he didn’t leave now he’d be late so downed his milk, then went to grab his car keys instead but discovered they were gone, “…where are my keys?” He asked, again not sure if he wanted the answer.

His mother’s shoulders clenched up “That prick!” his mother scathed, “He ‘lent’ his car to someone, I told him to leave yours alone! Where’s my phone?! ” She bellowed and got up to rummage around the kitchen, causing more mess.

He sighed, “I’ll take my bike, don’t worry about it,” He said heading back to his room and wheeling his bike out.

She gave him a tired apologetic smile as he headed for the front door, “You’re such a good kid putting up with us Adam, what did I do to deserve you?” She asked with a slight chuckle.

He smiled weakly and shrugged but not before wondering himself what the hell he had done to deserve such selfish, moronic parents….

“Make sure you talk to people, no one likes a moody git!” She called out after him.

Following the little map he’d drawn on his arm resulted in him arriving in reasonably good time, though he feared his hair had suffered as a result and he had forgotten his mirror as well. BAD DAY!

Dejectedly, he sloped off to find his locker. Keying in the combination, he deposited his hair spray, hair gel, two combs and his glasses (why he took them anywhere, he didn’t understood as he’d rather suffer and strain than use them…) and prepared to go in search of his first class when he caught sight of a brunette girl, 4 lockers down, staring at her own locker intently. He remembered his mum’s words earlier, this girl seemed nice enough, so he plucked up the courage to casually say “Hey, I’m Adam.”

Natalie liked plot and plan in her head. Not necessarily malicious things, these days such tendencies were consciously banned, but she liked to plan things anyway. It was a good enough habit and it didn’t let opportunities go to waste when they presented themselves. However, these days, such plans also had the mild habit of taking her down the routes of what was right and wrong, where, before, the question would have been ‘could she get away with it’? In a sort of a way, how the might have fallen.

In any case, she wasn’t exactly oblivious to what the ‘mighty’ got up to even if she no longer was among them and fallen comrade or not, their mind warping antics really did continue on like they all thought they were Derren Brown. The one in question here was Matt Sidle currently gleefully dissecting the ego of some poor new kid.

On so many levels, Natalie did not like Matt. Initially, there had been a point where Natalie moved to Brooklake and was suddenly, for the first time in her life, friendless and was in line to be taken in by Marie-Elisabeth and her cronies. However, having already danced that dance, and evidently such that she wasn’t going to be the reigning queen again any time soon, Natalie has somewhat politely declined. After that, she’d made the rather dense mistake of overestimating Matt’s sincerity and hence, things were soon put right.

Matt Sidle was quite twisted in the head… and currently doing nothing to set that idea right as he directed the poor girl towards the nurse’s office rather than English. Well, well, the Christmas cheer was truly gone. Now, while Natalie had turned from the darkness, she wasn’t exactly an avenger of the underprivileged and so as Matt got his kicks, she made no move to counteract them, well, not unless something made her feel like it anyway. All she did instead was to simply raise an eyebrow at him, as she leaned back comfortably against her locker, her pale eyes clearly speaking one thing in utter sarcasm:

Making friends already?

(((OOC: Approachable still )))

Marie-Elisabeth had been fairly certain of who was coming up behind her before he had even gotten there. Nobody else, with the possible exception of her ex-boyfriend and still good friend Matt, would dare come into such close proximity without asking first. And of course the snuggles were a dead giveaway.

She smiled as she felt Josh embrace her from behind, glad she had chosen to use her new mango scented shampoo that morning. It had cost more per bottle than most people spent of groceries in a week, but it did absolute wonders with her hair. And it was obviously well worth the effect. She couldn’t help a giddy smile appearing on her face as he kissed her neck before her let her go to lean against one of the lockers. She really was one of the luckiest girls in the school to have him as a boyfriend, regardless of the fact that it seemed set in stone that the Head Cheerleader dated the Captain of the Football Team.

“Morning” he said with a grin and she grinned right back. “Good morning to you too” she said, while admiring his outfit. He did always look so very good, and even better in that football uniform of him with those tight pants. “I was just thinking about you you know” she continued, sliding over to stand next to him “I’m glad we have all our classes together this semester”.

Though every fibre of Lorene’s being wanted to say “you know from this angle, I do see a slight resemblance…” she decided against it. This guy’s presence seemed to make most people take keen interest in their shoes when they walked past.

To be honest, Lorene saw her chances of getting a cigarette as slim to none. Most people were pretty tight fisted with theirs so she was pleasantly surprised when the grumpy blonde gave her one with no fuss, “You’re a gent!” Her smile increasing further, “I owe you one,” she called back as she skipped (as best she could) back outside to smoke it quickly before class started.

Had she be able to walk properly, Lorene would have probably missed that brief cold glance that seemed to say, [I]”How dare you have defy the great Abercrombie and Fitch gods!”[I] from some preppy boy who she assumed ‘owned’ this place. She smirked as she passed him, “No need to stare, I know my skirt is awesome,” She said loud enough for him to hear, head held high and sauntered out through the double doors.

She found a quiet corner where she was sure no teacher would find her smoking and sunk down to the floor. She delved into her bag and lit up. She wasn’t particularly fond of this brand but people dumb enough to completely forget to buy cigarettes couldn’t be choosers.

Her knee was still killing her and her scarf was now completely bloody. She remembered seeing a nurse’s office somewhere, she’d hobble there after she was done.

One of the things why Josh was very good at things was that he knew exactly how they should be done. He was the school’s star player because he knew the rules inside out, he knew exactly how to play to perfection within them. He was the perfect son because he knew exactly what his father wanted and why. He was a great boyfriend because he was almost selflessly considerate and because he was a complete gentleman. He was a complete gentleman because he knew the rules of chivalry.

He knew the rules to just about everything that had rules and he didn’t break them, not because he was a goody-two-shoes of any sort, but because he’d just never had any conviction to. He did gain contentment out of making other people happy. And in the few instances where he had broken the rules – though, the phrase applied could only truly be ‘cracked the barrier of the rules’ – he almost had always moved into a grey area rather than go over to the black… he had to want it bad enough and there were few things in life where things got to such desperation before he could have them.

That was quite possibly one of the many reasons why his relationship with Marie-Elisabeth had endured the stresses of teen time. She had always struck him as the kind of person who’d always go for whatever gave them contentment, to always get what they wanted and Josh was only too happy to make her happy.

“Good morning to you too,” Marie-Elisabeth grinned back at him, her eyes casually surveying his appearance to give it her approval, the slightest tinge of lust in her eyes. Josh was somewhat shy, and despite all the adoration he usually received, if it was from the right person at the right time, he’d so easily blush.

“I was just thinking about you, you know,” she revealed as she sidled up next to him with that feminine grace she possessed, Josh’s eyes softening at her admission. “I’m glad we have all our classes together this semester.”

Moving slightly to match her movements as he shifted to his side, his shoulder leaning against the locker so that he could face her properly, his eyes for no-one except her, his actions indicative that he was dedicating his entire attention to her; the little things that Josh did that made others feel special.

“Hmmm, I don’t think my report card would agree,” he contemplated before a mischievous grin broke out and he carried on, paying a her rather sweet, though slightly indirect compliment, the sparkling light in his eyes attesting that it was indeed a compliment. “I think I’m going to be very distracted.”

(((OOC: Yep, Bella would cringe and die over this Hope this works for you, Robyn )))

((OOC: Gah! I keep wanting to type Natalie instead of Katie! Darn you Alissa for using one of my favorite names! Meant in the nicest way possible of course))

Katie was not a very adaptable person. She tended to decide on a path to take socially and then blunder full speed ahead until something halted her momentum. The vast majority of the time, it was an insult, but a look or even a cold tone of voice was enough to send her equanimity crashing down. She had learned very quickly not to let it show, but it generally cast a pall over her day.

This guy seemed unequivocally to belong to the category of people that were all cold looks and social brick walls. He stared for a moment, as Katie held her hand out awkwardly. An instant passed, Katie's beatific grin did not waver. Another instant passed and Katie had the uncomfortable mental sensation of crashing into a brick wall. The only thing that she did was let her hand drop a bit- still in easy grasp, but not quite so... random- and her eyes darkened a bit, as they always did in situations like this. Those that didn't know her well usually assumed it was anger, and some that were a bit closer thought it was sadness, but in actuality it was nothing more than mindblowing confusing. Had she done something wrong? Was her semester now doomed from this point on?

Finally he glanced at her hand, making a tiny blush rise onto her cheeks, and looked at her for another few seconds before saying, still completely deadpan, "J.D."

The J.D? Fancy having a locker next to him. Katie made it a point to never form opinions about people without evidence from her own eyes. The amount of gossip that even she heard about this guy was impressive, to say the least. Not wanting to seem judgmental she let her hand drop back to her side, slowly and casually, like she was reacting to the fact that he hadn't shook it, rather than the name. It was much more the former than the latter, but Katie was realistic enough to know that there were elements of both. She was about to ask blandly about schedules, see if she needed to get hers jiggered a bit, when another girl walked up and asked, with the same obnoxious level of cheer Katie had just demonstrated, "You couldn’t spare a cigarette, could you?"

Katie's eyebrows shot well into her hairline at a ridiculous rate of speed. Not only did this girl, who was wearing a fluffly tutu skirt, smoke apparently, she went up and asked random people about it? What kind of weirdo? More importantly, Katie did not want to associate with druggies. She had a bit of a sheltered worldview- druggies and nondruggies.

And apparently her lockermate was one of the former. He offered the girl a cigarette from his pocket, while Katie watched wide eyed and in shock. Many things would make Katie pause and reevaluate the situation, seeing stuff like this happen right in front of her was paralyzing.

Finally she managed to squeak, "OK, nice to meet you, bye!", and she considered that her voice didn't get too obnoxiously high to be worthy of much praise. She slid smoothly into the flow of humanity going down the hallway and finally arrived at her class before she realized she hadn't even picked up her books.

Face already burning with humiliation she stomped back to her locker and grabbed her bag. As she slammed the door loudly some guy stared at her obvious discomfiture and she growled at him, "Just shut up.", before stomping back down the hallway.

She decided not to go to class until the bell rang, overachieving was one thing, but being a bubbleheaded-bag forgetting overachiever? Not worth the trouble. She found a water fountain and took a drink, which cleared her head a bit, and stood up to survey the hallway again. No one she recognized, or would want to talk to. There was the head cheerleader and quarterback, and Katie supposed it would make sense to ass kiss a bit, but she didn't feel like it was necessary. Winter cheerleading tryouts were this afternoon, and Katie, with complete lack of pride, knew that she was one of the best dancers in the area and among the best gymnasts. It would be a snap to make cheerleading, she was so good.

Still didn't give her anyone to talk to. Glumly she walked down the hallway in a state of complete social moroseness.

((OOC: Approachable))

<SilverSurfer> So yeah, school starts 2morrow 4 me
<YelloMelloDawg>Haha, sucks 2BU silver
<YelloMelloDawg>Dude, isn't it 700am your time now?
*SilverSurfer has signed off

Loren clicked the button on his laptop to turn it off and spun around on his chair muttering expletives under his breath. He really didn't want to be late to school, if he was late than the drama club advisor might say that he couldn't show up to meeting today. That would not happen.

He glanced down at himself, gray T-shirt and lurid pants, good enough. Drama kids were supposed to stand out, and what better way to do that than with adorable butterfly rhinestones?

His house was a five minute walk from school, and he hadn't bothered bringing his back pack home over break. All that was in it were binders he could clear out the class before he needed a new binder.

Arriving at school he stopped by his locker to pick up his bag and wandered down the hallway. He knew exactly where his class was, but that didn't mean he wanted to show up early. Heavens forfend the marvelous Loren Dasen look dorky!

Prowling around the halls, his maybe a bit too tight butterfly pants drawing him a few undoubtedly admiring stares he scanned the crowd of students for someone he knew, anyone to while away a bit of time with. Finally his eyes lit up as they fell on the person he most wanted to see after a long break. The incomparable, the incredible, the gorgeous Natalie Cardew.

Loren had had a burning crush on the girl ever since he first met her in sophomore maths. She was beautiful, she was intelligent, she didn't seem to be insane, what more could a guy want? Uncharacteristically for Loren he hadn't asked her out yet, preferring to savor the silent adoration he felt for her. And silent it was. Loren almost never kept anything secret, so on the rare occasions that he did, he suspected that no one would ever guess that the honest and outgoing Loren Dasen could be hiding something.

Of course, there wasn't any need for secrecy, as once the silent adoration started getting old he would ask her out in an instant, or if the oppurtunity presented itself, but until then he didn't want to risk what had happened with every other crush he had asked out: inexplicably they all winced or screamed. He didn't have much of an explanation for it.

He walked over to her and said with his usual boundless cheerfulness, "Hey Natalie! How was break?" He smiled widely and leaned comfortably on the locker. He wasn't really aware of it, but from most of the rest of the hallway the fluorescent lights made his butterfly decaled pants shine. He did hear the burbling laughter, but assumed that several someones were cracking jokes as they walked by. Only possible explanation for so many people laughing as they went down the halls, at least so far as Loren saw.

((OOC: Wow, I didn't mean for him to sound creepy... And Alissa, hope thats ok with you?

Sorry for the double post, but is a bit long to have in one, I think.))