Chapter Text
Susan woke up in a bad mood when the alarm went off. She went to the bathroom and fixed her hair, trying not to make her bangs look too forward
She walked towards the kitchen and her mother was drinking coffee, her eyes fixed on the floor
"Where's Sam?" Susan asked
The woman didn't answer. That bitch hadn't spoken to her in a long time. Maybe she never would have done it again
Who cared anyway...
Susan took a piece of toast, put jam on it and put it in her mouth, going back to her room to put on some decent clothes
She wasn't sure what to wear. She wanted to dress the way she used to, but that didn't change the fact that she was a girl, right?
Fuck it, She was gonna miss the bus
She took black shorts, a coffee-colored shirt, white socks and black shoes. Well, now she looked like a snob daddy's girl, not what she really wanted
Quickly, Susan slung her backpack over her shoulders and ran to the bus, which coincidentally had an engine failure that day. For nearly half an hour, all the boys and girls on the bus were stranded in the middle of nowhere while the driver tried to fix the problem
Charles chuckled as he ate a chocolate bar. Susan wondered how he managed to eat and not vomit while the bus was moving. She decided not to ask any questions, since they were still and it would have looked like a stupid question
"Oi, Bobby, can we put some music on?" Charles asked from the window
"Sure buddy" the driver simply replied from outside
Some boys stood in front of the radio and began to watch the various stations, each one more boring than the others in their opinion. Finally, a girl stopped at a station that was playing The Chordettes new song. "Mr. Sandman" rang out throughout the bus as the kids sang out of tune and danced in their seats
Susan hated all of this
After a good hour of delay (that half hour was now in their imagination) the kids got off the bus and headed towards their classrooms
Susan and Charles were walking down the now less crowded corridor when a voice familiar to them (for different reasons) called out
"Woodings! Brook!" Principal Gray
Susan rolled her eyes. They turned and saw the principal with a girl next to him. She was a small girl, but everyone around Susan looked small, slim, with a pink dress and well-groomed hair
Now, talking about snob daddy's girl
"This is Thompson, the new student. She'll be in your same year and you'll share pretty much every class. Would you mind giving her a tour of the school?"
Susan rolled her eyes again. It was OBVIOUS that they would, especially since that was clearly a rhetorical question. Charles nodded cheerfully, his eyes shining. The thought of helping always made him feel like a better person
With that, the principal left without saying a word. Well, at least this time he hadn't dragged them into his office for another fight. Charles was often the victim and Susan the knight in shining armor
The new girl stared at them for a few seconds, then smiled. Charles smiled back, and the two immediately began talking. Without realizing it, Susan was falling behind, so she took a little jog to catch up
They showed her everything, while she was saying things about herself. She talked a lot if given the chance, that was for sure: The information Susan decided to remember about this girl was that her name was Linda, she had moved there a few weeks before even though her parents had planned for the summer and that she liked magazines. Household magazines apparently. How cliché
Linda suddenly turned to Susan and looked her over. Susan felt a little uncomfortable, although she tried not to show it
"Isn't your hair a bit too long for a boy?"
Susan stopped walking. Charles followed. Linda looked between the two, confused
Damn. Susan should have known those clothes weren't right, but they were so comfortable. And frankly, skirts bothered her. Her legs always ended up red and the bruises burned
How she wished she had clothes that made her... Look different from who she was. Change her body without actually doing it. If it had really been possible, it would have been like a dream come true
Charles stiffened and looked down. It was as if he hoped Susan wouldn't do anything stupid, and she had done stupid, but valid, things many times
"I'm a girl, blondie" Susan replied bitterly
"Oh" Linda simply said
The two stared at each other for a few seconds and Susan was sure she had scared her with her look, because the other slowly backed away. Charles tried to change the subject, taking Linda by the arm and telling her that they still hadn't seen the art room, which in his opinion was the best. Slowly, the two walked away, and Susan remained standing in the corridor
~
Why did Susan often end up in the principal's office? Simple. Either Charles got into trouble, or someone bothered her. She didn't want to use her hands to tell people not to bother her, but they didn't listen. She herself hated doing it, but she didn't have infinite patience either
While she was walking, minding her own business, let's be clear, a guy pushed her against a locker with his gang of goons laughing at her
"Watch where you go, tranny" He smirked
Susan growled-
"What's with this behaviour!" Someone scolded
Susan looked over and saw Linda standing straight, her arms crossed and a pout on her face. This move had probably had its effect, because all the henchmen of that pain in the ass were left open-mouthed and with red faces
The boy stared at Linda in amazement for a few seconds, then snorted
"I'm just-"
"Mistreating a lady like this is very impolite"
Susan's eyes widened. Charles must have explained the situation to her, or maybe she was just clever
The boy chuckled, but it was clear he didn't know what to say. A simple debate is all it takes, and people like him go down
"A... Are you serious right now? That's clearly a boy!"
"In that case..." Linda walked over to Susan and put her arms around her arm "... I want this good looking boy to accompany me to the cafeteria"
Susan made no move to object when Linda put her arms around her. To her surprise, the girl's skin was cold, but very soft, like a pillow
Linda looked up and smiled with her teeth "Could you take me to the cafeteria? I still don't remember the way"
Susan stood there dumbfounded for a few seconds, then nodded repeatedly and the two of them left. Linda hadn't let go yet
"You didn't need to..."
"Don't worry, that's fine by me. Charles told me, but I had already figured it out on my own when you corrected me"
Oh boy, so Susan was right twice over! If only this thing had also applied to the subjects she hated and that, for some reason, she couldn't understand
"And did you see that "boy"? Ugly like an ape" Linda laughed
Susan chuckled "Right, he's such a piss"
The two walked like this through the corridors. Two girls. Different, yes. But who would still learn to know each other better now
"What's your name by the way, blondie?"
"Linda Thompson. You?"
"Y'know, others-"
"I don't care about others. What's your name"
"Susan. Susan Woodings"