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rainbowfic2016-08-31 10:55 pm
kay_brooke) wrote in rainbowfic2016-08-31 10:55 pm
Olympic Gold #1, Ruby #7
Name: kay_brooke
Story: Unusual Florida
Colors: Olympic Gold #1 (medal), Ruby #7 (fairest of them all)
Styles/Supplies: Canvas
Word Count: 800
Rating/Warnings: PG-13; no standard warnings apply.
Summary: Amy needs to win.
Note: Constructive criticism is welcome, either through comments or PM.
Her middle school in Millinocket had nothing her old school did. No academic clubs. No language clubs. No band or choir. No extracurriculars except for a couple sports teams Amy wasn’t interested in.
She’d gone to a private school previously, where she’d been in Spanish Club, Junior choir, vice president in her class’s student government, and taken dance classes. She’d just gotten on the tennis team and started learning to play piano when everything happened and her family had to move.
When they moved, that all stopped. Her new school didn’t offer any of the things she had done at her old school. There were dance classes at the community center, which Amy wasn’t allowed to go to because they weren’t for kids. Amy missed her old school. She missed her old friends. Most of all, she missed having anything to do that wasn’t classes or sitting in her room reading. It made her feel like nothing.
So, during her seventh grade year after she learned about her new school’s only achievement award--”Most Well-Rounded Student,” given to one graduating eighth grader every year--Amy set out to win it. It was something to strive for, and it made her forget for sometimes whole hours at a time how much her life sucked.
She tried as hard as she could in her classes, to get better grades than everyone else. She got on the editorial team of the school paper, even though she hated working on the school paper. She persuaded her history teacher to hold in-class elections on the basis of teaching about U.S. government, which wasn’t exactly student government at her old school but as close as she could get. She ran her own campaign and won president, mostly because no one else was really interested, but Amy figured all that mattered was that it looked good to the teachers. She tried to volunteer to serve punch and cookies at PTA meetings, but got told students weren’t allowed to attend.
Still, as eighth grade graduation drew nearer, she thought she had made a big enough impression to get the award.
It was a slap in the face when Lindsay Sloane won instead.
Amy had no idea how it happened. Lindsay had good grades, it was true, but not as good as Amy’s. Lindsay didn’t work on the school paper. Lindsay hadn’t even tried to participate in the mock election, and she certainly hadn’t shown any interest in helping out the teachers, at least as far as Amy knew.
It was infuriating.
“Let it go,” her aunt told her, with that always present undercurrent of exasperation. Amy hated the way it felt when her aunt talked to her, because she knew she was just barely being tolerated.
Besides, she couldn’t let it go.
It gnawed at her, eating away at her insides until the last school day of the year, when she figured she had nothing to lose because she was starting high school in the fall and she’d never have to deal with her middle school teachers again. So she went to Mr. Anderson and asked him why she hadn’t won the Well-Rounded Student award.
He blinked at her for a second like he had no idea what she was talking about, then said, “I believe Miss Lindsay Sloane was chosen this year.”
“Yes, I know that,” Amy said impatiently. “I want to know why I wasn’t chosen.”
Mr. Anderson harrumphed at that, and Amy felt his shock at her brazenness, but she didn’t care. That award was hers, damn it. And she waited, because she was going to get an answer out of him no matter how long she had to stand there.
When it became apparent to him she wasn’t going to leave, he said, “Well, I really shouldn’t be discussing the particulars of our decision. But Miss Sloane had excellent grades, she was a pitcher for the school softball team, and she regularly volunteers at the soup kitchen downtown.”
Amy stared at him, aghast. Had this whole thing come down to sports? And volunteering at a soup kitchen, which wasn’t even a school activity? “But I helped edit the paper and won president in U.S. history.” Which sounded so pathetic now, when said out loud.
Mr. Anderson nodded. “You showed great initiative this year, and that wasn’t unnoticed by the teachers. But it is an award for most well-rounded student. That goes beyond academics.”
So it had come down to sports. Ugh, this town. This stupid, stupid town. So much for striving to achieve anything. She might as well just sit at home and rot. “Fine,” she bit out. Then she remembered her manners and said, “Thank you,” before turning on her heel and stalking away.
kay_brookeStory: Unusual Florida
Colors: Olympic Gold #1 (medal), Ruby #7 (fairest of them all)
Styles/Supplies: Canvas
Word Count: 800
Rating/Warnings: PG-13; no standard warnings apply.
Summary: Amy needs to win.
Note: Constructive criticism is welcome, either through comments or PM.
Her middle school in Millinocket had nothing her old school did. No academic clubs. No language clubs. No band or choir. No extracurriculars except for a couple sports teams Amy wasn’t interested in.
She’d gone to a private school previously, where she’d been in Spanish Club, Junior choir, vice president in her class’s student government, and taken dance classes. She’d just gotten on the tennis team and started learning to play piano when everything happened and her family had to move.
When they moved, that all stopped. Her new school didn’t offer any of the things she had done at her old school. There were dance classes at the community center, which Amy wasn’t allowed to go to because they weren’t for kids. Amy missed her old school. She missed her old friends. Most of all, she missed having anything to do that wasn’t classes or sitting in her room reading. It made her feel like nothing.
So, during her seventh grade year after she learned about her new school’s only achievement award--”Most Well-Rounded Student,” given to one graduating eighth grader every year--Amy set out to win it. It was something to strive for, and it made her forget for sometimes whole hours at a time how much her life sucked.
She tried as hard as she could in her classes, to get better grades than everyone else. She got on the editorial team of the school paper, even though she hated working on the school paper. She persuaded her history teacher to hold in-class elections on the basis of teaching about U.S. government, which wasn’t exactly student government at her old school but as close as she could get. She ran her own campaign and won president, mostly because no one else was really interested, but Amy figured all that mattered was that it looked good to the teachers. She tried to volunteer to serve punch and cookies at PTA meetings, but got told students weren’t allowed to attend.
Still, as eighth grade graduation drew nearer, she thought she had made a big enough impression to get the award.
It was a slap in the face when Lindsay Sloane won instead.
Amy had no idea how it happened. Lindsay had good grades, it was true, but not as good as Amy’s. Lindsay didn’t work on the school paper. Lindsay hadn’t even tried to participate in the mock election, and she certainly hadn’t shown any interest in helping out the teachers, at least as far as Amy knew.
It was infuriating.
“Let it go,” her aunt told her, with that always present undercurrent of exasperation. Amy hated the way it felt when her aunt talked to her, because she knew she was just barely being tolerated.
Besides, she couldn’t let it go.
It gnawed at her, eating away at her insides until the last school day of the year, when she figured she had nothing to lose because she was starting high school in the fall and she’d never have to deal with her middle school teachers again. So she went to Mr. Anderson and asked him why she hadn’t won the Well-Rounded Student award.
He blinked at her for a second like he had no idea what she was talking about, then said, “I believe Miss Lindsay Sloane was chosen this year.”
“Yes, I know that,” Amy said impatiently. “I want to know why I wasn’t chosen.”
Mr. Anderson harrumphed at that, and Amy felt his shock at her brazenness, but she didn’t care. That award was hers, damn it. And she waited, because she was going to get an answer out of him no matter how long she had to stand there.
When it became apparent to him she wasn’t going to leave, he said, “Well, I really shouldn’t be discussing the particulars of our decision. But Miss Sloane had excellent grades, she was a pitcher for the school softball team, and she regularly volunteers at the soup kitchen downtown.”
Amy stared at him, aghast. Had this whole thing come down to sports? And volunteering at a soup kitchen, which wasn’t even a school activity? “But I helped edit the paper and won president in U.S. history.” Which sounded so pathetic now, when said out loud.
Mr. Anderson nodded. “You showed great initiative this year, and that wasn’t unnoticed by the teachers. But it is an award for most well-rounded student. That goes beyond academics.”
So it had come down to sports. Ugh, this town. This stupid, stupid town. So much for striving to achieve anything. She might as well just sit at home and rot. “Fine,” she bit out. Then she remembered her manners and said, “Thank you,” before turning on her heel and stalking away.
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Thanks for reading!