Chapter Text
5:45
RING
Courtney groggily opened her eyes to her alarm clock ringing incessantly. She quickly shuts it off, ensuring she does not disturb her parents. That would be bad.
Today was the first day of her junior year at Wawanaka Prep. The summer was fun, but it was time to return to work. She would consider her summer to be successful. She got her dream internship at the local law firm despite her lack of experience, and she found time to hang out with her friends. These past two weeks, however, had to be her absolute highlight of the summer. She snagged a prestigious spot at Camp Boulder as a CIT and had a blast. Courtney can’t wait to be an actual counselor next year.
Courtney grabbed some random workout clothes and quickly changed. She pulled her short caramel hair into a tight ponytail, grabbed her running shoes, and headed out the door for her morning jog.
Her class schedule was packed this year, to say the least. All of her periods were filled with APs and strenuous extracurriculars, plus she was the captain of the tennis team, the president of the debate club, and the class president. Nothing that she couldn’t handle.
Once Courtney returned, she quickly rinsed off in her shower and started her seven-step skincare routine. Her phone buzzed next to her in the middle of her retinol serum application.
Hotties
Bridge: guys wtf do I wear
Gwey: a thong
Bridge: omg thanks gwen you are so helpful!
Gwey: yw!
Hottie #1: ngl with your hippie ass closet i would go in a thong
Bridge: stfu
@courtneysatella help me.
Courtney Satella: We purchased a blue floral dress in July, remember? That would be cute.
Bridge: O right
Fashion icon
Gwey: why am I lowkey scared for school
Hottie #1: everything scares u
Gwey: says the girl who would NOT swim with us at the beach and screamed during SPIDERMAN
Hottie #1: none of you guys looked cute with your hair wet, and that was scary lindsay screamed too.
Hottie #2: dojt ve scated gen! Hou have been yo dchool so mant rimes.
Gwey: jesus u cant type, but thanks!
Hottie #2: np gwemu 😀
Hottie #1: what r u scared of gwen, ur seventeenth body might get u preggo??
Gwey: haha
Hottie #1: ikr
LeShawty: would yall stop typing ur notifications keep making me mess up my lipstick.
Hottie #1: then turn off notifications tf
LeShawty: fuck off
anyways wanna see what im wearing
Bridge: YES
LeShawty: One Attachment
Bridge: SO CUTE
LeShawty: TYSM CUTIE BABES
Courtney chuckled at the exchanges as she finished up on her makeup. Nothing too drastic, just a bit of blush, mascara, and lipgloss to highlight her natural beauty. She shook her head to add some volume to her hair, then she went to get changed.
Courtney has had her outfit picked out for two weeks, which might seem excessive, but she likes being prepared. She changed it several times because she also enjoys being perfect. It’s a great combination.
“Courtney, sweetie, are you almost ready? I made you breakfast!” Courtney’s mother calls from the kitchen. Courtney sighs, fastening her favorite cross necklace to finish off her outfit. She turns to look in the mirror, quickly glancing to ensure she looks okay.
Her outfit consisted of an olive green cardigan over a white tank top, a black mini skirt under, and lace socks with her black loafers to complete the look. She looked professional, clean, and, most importantly, perfect.
“Yes mom I’m coming down!” Courtney grabbed her bag and headed downstairs. Her mom, a hotshot lawyer, president of the board of trustees at her school, a tennis player, and her caring mom.
“You’re going to wear that?”
“What’s wrong with it?”
Courtney’s mother ignores her, sipping her black coffee from her tumbler. Courtney looked down at her outfit, thinking it was perfectly fine until she was downstairs. There was no time to change, so Courtney straightened her skirt and fidgeted with her cardigan until it felt right again.
“Let’s go, you will have to drink your smoothie in the car,” Courtney’s mom states, quickly moving to her car.
“I thought you said you made me breakfast?”
“You aren’t satisfied with a smoothie? It’s eight in the morning. How much do you want?”
Courtney scoffs, “It’s my first day of school, doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
“Oh please, you’re sixteen, you have been to school plenty of times, today being no different. Now get in the car and be grateful I made you anything at all.”
Courtney shut her mouth, recognizing the resemblance of what Lindsay said to her mother. She sipped the smoothie, tasting the combination of berries that her mother decided to include in the concoction.
Courtney’s mother pulls out of the long driveway. Courtney takes her mother’s silence as a queue to quickly text Bridgette before her mother interrogates her.
Bridgette Summers:
Courtney Satella: I’ll be there in five minutes, where are you guys right now?
Bridge: near the tables next to the doors.
we r hard to miss. linds decided to go neon for the first day of school
Courtney Satella: Typical. See you soon!
Bridge: Pooks ♥️
“Who are you texting?
Courtney looks up and quickly turns off her phone, knowing how much her parents disapprove of her friends. They aren’t “worthy” enough, according to them. That’s why the only one they have ever met was Bridgette in fifth grade, and even then, they sent her home crying. Courtney never let anyone over at her house again.
“A tennis teammate; they were wondering when practices are today,” Courtney lied, knowing her mother would approve of the person.
Her mother sighs, “I don’t understand why you guys can’t email. Texting is so juvenile and all the grammar is lost. You better not turn out like that.”
Courtney turns on her phone again, seeing her grammatically correct texts staring at her.
Perfect, according to my mother.
The car lurches to the side as Courtney’s mother finally enters the school. Courtney looks around for her friends, quickly spotting the neon-clad Lindsay that Bridgette was talking about.
“We are here; be your best self,” Her mother says, kissing her as Courtney opens the door to get out.
“Bye, Mom,” Courtney shuts the door, ensuring the Porsche is entirely out of the drop-off line before she heads over to her friends.
“HI COURT!” Lindsay shouts, running over to her and giving her a big hug. Courtney is not sure the airhead knows her name, but Court works. Courtney returns the hug.
Lindsay was dressed in a bright pink shirt, the shirt stopping right above her belly button. She wore a light wash pair of flare jeans, completing her look with a pair of platform Converse, matching the color of her shirt.
Courtney breaks the hug to walk over to the other girls. She is, surprisingly, the last one to arrive.
“Hey babs,” Bridgette exclaims, giving a little finger wave before coming over to hug Courtney. She took Courtney’s suggestion, as she was wearing the light blue floral dress with her favorite pair of Birkenstocks. The necklace that Geoff got her on the boardwalk lies on her neck.
“Guys I have only been gone for two weeks, what’s all the ruckus about?” Courtney asks, laughing slightly. She sits down and takes a glance at her watch.
8:29, I have 15 minutes.
After seeing everyone dress in t-shirts and have unbrushed ocean hair for the entire summer, Courtney was shocked to see everyone in their best attire. Gwen, LeShawna, and Heather were on their phones, but the first two put down their phones as soon as Courtney sat down. Heather seemed preoccupied, tapping her acrylics angrily on the phone as she scowled.
“We just missed you, that’s all; you were barely on your phone all summer!” Lindsay says while sitting down, putting a lock of blonde hair behind her ear. Heather slams down her phone, putting on a semi-fake smile, failing to mask her apparent anger.
“What’s wrong with you?” Gwen asks, a smirk subconsciously appearing on her face.
“I don’t remember it being your business, gothie, but if you are so greatly concerned, my tennis coach sent me a diet plan he wants me to follow for the next couple of months, saying it will ‘make me more successful,” she does air quotes when she says that, “and I think it’s completely bullshit. I already have offers, what the fuck is this going to do?” Heather finishes her rant, collapsing to the back of the seat.
“Why does he want you on a diet, your skinny as fuck.” Bridgette says, taking a sip of her iced coffee.
“Ask him, he’s psychotic. I’ve tried to leave him several times but my mom says he will do my best. Whatever.”
Courtney looks down at her feet the entire time during this conversation. She has always played tennis, just like Heather, and it has always been a competition. They would battle it out for first or second place at every tournament, always the last two standing in the finale. They were sworn enemies for several years before Courtney told her mother she would like to do the sport in college. Courtney’s parents were furious, wondering why she would instead focus on a stupid, smelly sport rather than her academics.
Courtney does not remember saying that she cared more about tennis than her grades, but she dropped it, and since then, Heather has been the queen of the club and best friends with Courtney. Even though Courtney quit tennis, she still remained good at it, and now she and Heather were co-captains of the tennis team this year, despite many seniors complaining. It still made Courtney sad, thinking about the future she could have had.
Courtney looks at her watch again, seeing that ten minutes have passed since she has sat down. “What do you guys have first?”
“Something I’m skipping, for sure. I’m definitely not awake yet,” Gwen says, leaning forward to put her hands on her head to further prove her point.
And that is why you have never met my parents.
“Oh come on, it’s the first day of school, you can’t be that tired yet. I have AP Lang first, and I have no idea where that is, so I should get going soon.”
“How many APs are you taking this year?” LeShawna asks out of curiosity. Courtney takes a quick second to count.
“Seven.”
“Jesus, you’re not taking a study hall?” Heather exclaims, looking shocked. Courtney shrugs, not knowing what the big deal is.
“Well, I’m taking one honors class this year, and it’s art, so you know I’ll end up at Havard,” Gwen states, putting her bag over her shoulder as she prepares to leave.
Everyone soon stood up to grab their bag, knowing that the bell would ring, and headed to their classes. Courtney followed suit, mindlessly walking through the halls, thinking about her morning interactions.
Heather is being forced to go on a diet? She’s literally one of the skinniest girls in the school and the prettiest. It’s so weird.
What was my mom saying this morning about my outfit? It looks good. Was it how I looked? Plus, the smoothie comment, hello?
If Heather has to go on a diet, I can just drink a smoothie for breakfast. Mom was right, after all.
Courtney suddenly stopped, realizing she reached the classroom she needed to be in. She took a deep breath, pulled down her skirt, and entered.