He's a Rebel

September 3rd, 1965.

This was it, the first day of what would be the last year of school for the senior's of Greenwall High. While most of the kids were dreading the fact that summer had come to an end and class was back in session, Veronica was awake and ready to leave before her mother had even gotten the chance to finish preparing breakfast.

Sitting at her vanity, Veronica hummed along to "Little Bitty Pretty One" echoing throughout her bedroom as she brushed her long dark chocolate waves. She hadn't noticed that her father was calling her name from outside her bedroom door.

"Ronnie? Honey?" Her father repeated, knocking once more before letting himself in.

Veronica's humming came to a sudden halt as she noticed her father standing there with irritation spread across his face.

"Hi daddy, s-sorry I didn't hear-"

"It's no wonder that you couldn't hear me calling over all of this racket," He grumbled, walking over her to radio and turning the radio off.

"Sorry..." Veronica winced, placing her hairbrush on top of her vanity.

"I often wonder if that music is corrupting the minds of you young children..." Her father sighed, rubbing his temples, "But... that's a discussion for another time. I came to wish you good luck on your first day of school before I head off to work."

"Thank you..." Veronica responded, clicking her jaw to the side, becoming irritated at the fact that her father seemed to be against anything that didn't have to do with God, Golf, and Cars.

He gave Veronica a warm smile before placing a soft kiss on her forehead, "Do you need a ride to school?"

She shook her head, "I'm walking with Cindy,"

Her father frowned and sighed, "You know... Cindy's father seems to allow her to go out with that David boy quite late-"

"What does this have to do with me?"

"I just worry you're going to get caught up with-"

Veronica rolled her eyes, "I can assure you that I have no part of whatever it is that Cindy does on her own time...it's neither mine or your business,"

"Have you forgot who it is that you're catching a tone with, Veronica?" Her father snapped.

Sighing a long and agitated sigh, Veronica quickly wiped the disdain from her face and smiled sweetly, "No, of course not."

"What's that on your face?" Her father asked, raising a brow and pointing at her in the mirror of her vanity.

Veronica closed her eyes, mentally kicking herself for forgetting to wipe her face after pretending to be Patsy Cline when "Crazy" was on the radio earlier this morning.

"Is that makeup?"

"It's just some lipstick and rouge, Daddy..." Veronica said in defense.

"I don't care what it is, I don't like it and I don't want to see you wearing it again. Where did you even get that garbage?" He hissed in disgust.

Veronica bit the inside of her cheek, "I borrowed some from Cindy..."

"I suggest this foolishness stops right now, or you will have to stop hanging around that Cindy Smith immediately." He scolded, "Now, go wash your face and go apologize to your mother for being late for breakfast."

With that, her father stormed out of her room, leaving Veronica sitting there nearly in tears. She was tired of being treated like a baby. She kept her grades up, helped her mother around the house, never missed curfew because she never goes out to begin with, attends Sunday service religiously, and yet she gets in trouble for the dumbest things.

Veronica wiped her lips, "Soon I'll be far, far away from here..."

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"Your old man is a real drag," Cindy laughed as Veronica told her about the morning she had as the two walked to school.

"He's insane is what he is..." Veronica grumbled.

"It's a bit of makeup, it's not like you came home with ruffled up hair from climbing in the backseat of some boy's Cadillac," Cindy giggled, lighting up a cigarette.

"Cindy!" Veronica exclaimed, wide eyed at what she was witnessing.

"What?" Cindy asked, exhaling a cloud of smoke in Veronica's direction.

"You're smoking cigarettes?!"

"Good observation, bookworm." David teased, catching up to the two girls and cutting in between the two of them to wrap his arm around Cindy's shoulders.

Veronica rolled her eyes at the greaser and made a disgusted face as David and Cindy locked lips right in front of her.

"Shut up, Greaser." Veronica snapped back at David.

David smirked and turned his head over at Veronica, "Where's your glasses, Ronnie?"

"I don't need them anymore," Veronica mumbled, waving the cloud of smoke away from her face.

"Gee, you don't look have bad now that you don't have that extra set of eyes takin' up your face," David complimented her, causing her to roll her eyes yet once again. "Nah, I'm serious! You look different, nosebleed."

"Don't call me that... and... don't compliment me, It's just... weird." Veronica growled.

"I forgot about that! Nosebleed!" Cindy giggled, recalling exactly why Veronica was nicknamed that after all.

"Getting used to seeing without my glasses and running into somebody who wasn't watching where he was going and ending up on the floor with a bloody nose isn't something to laugh about," Veronica sighed, reminiscing about the time her and Johnny Rickett collided accidentally--Well, Johnny's elbow and Veronica's face-- collided.

"That's what happens when you stagger into a fight, Nosebleed." David chuckled.

"That's why idiots like you two shouldn't be fighting in the hallway!" Ronnie retorted.

"Ah, me and Johnny were just messin' around, we didn't think someone would get hurt!" David defended his actions.

"Yeah, yeah... whatever..." Veronica sighed in defeat.

"Speak of the devil, look who it is leaning against the hood of his new car," Cindy cooed, nodding towards Johnny, casually leaning against the front of his shiny apple red 1960 two door convertible Oldsmobile.

"Daddy finally give you his car?" Cindy mocked as the group approached Johnny.

Johnny smirked and threw his cigarette down to the ground, "Well, well, if it ain't the witch who stole my boy's heart."

"Kiss my ass, Johnny." Cindy teased.

"Half the town has," he quipped causing Ronnie to giggle.

Johnny turned his attention to her and nodded up at her, "Who's ya friend?"

"...It's me, you idiot." Ronnie glared at him.

"Pointdexter? No way! Where's your glasses?" He asked in disbelief at what he was seeing.

"None of your business," She growled.

Johnny smirked, "Ah, there she is. Still a feisty bit-"

"You kids better put them cigarettes out before I call your parents!" Mrs. Jenkins yelled, coming into view. "Get to your classes! The bell went fifteen minutes ago!"

"Shit..." Veronica muttered, digging through her books, trying to figure out what her first class was.

Just as she was about to say goodbye to Cindy, her books were pushed out of her arms. Her mouth fell agape as she watched both her books and a bunch of her papers scatter all over the ground. Her eyes darted up at a smirking Johnny Rickett.

"See ya around, Nosebleed." He winked, leaving her standing there dumbfounded.

To her surprise, Cindy didn't stay back and help her like she normally would. Instead Cindy mouthed "Sorry Ronnie" before taking off and following behind Johnny and David. Ronnie sighed and clicked her jaw to the side before kneeling down and picking up her books and papers. She should have known better than to even so much as speak to Johnny Rickett. He's been terrorizing her for years, of course he'd do something like this when she was already late for her first class.

She couldn't help but feel alone. Her best friend was starting to stray away from her now that Cindy and David started going steady. Her parents were always jumping down her throat whenever she even slightly did something they didn't approve of. Her siblings were all grown up and moved away or away at college. Sure, she had some friends from school, but none of them wanted to hang around her outside of school. She was a loner, and she knew it too.

"Nice of you to finally join us Miss. Stewart," Her English teacher, Mr. Brock, welcomed her as she strolled into the class twenty minutes late.

Veronica smiled awkwardly and nodded at the teacher in acknowledgment. Her eyes scanned around the room, noticing the only empty desk was the one in front of Johnny's. She sighed in defeat... could this day possibly get any worse?!

"Since you and Johnny were both late today, all partners were assigned already... looks like you two are going to have to partner up for this assignment." The teacher announced as she took her seat.

"Damn it... spoke too soon..." She mumbled under her breath.

Johnny groaned, "You're really pairin' me up with her, Teach?"

"If you have a problem with the partner you're with, perhaps you shouldn't have been tardy, Mr. Rickett," Mr. Brock smirked, making the rest of the students giggle and snicker at the two of them.

"This is bullshit," Johnny grumbled, leaning back in his seat.

"This is bullshit," Ronnie mimicked him, receiving a kick to the back of her chair from Johnny.

"Get out!" Mr. Brock shouted, pointing at the door. "That kind of language will NOT be tolerated in my classroom!"

"Yeah? Well your classroom blows, fuck this," Johnny licked the back of his teeth and stood up, "We haven't even been here for a whole half an hour and you're already settin' us up with some bullshit book report?"

"Get. Out." The teacher hissed, puffing his chest as Johnny brushed by him and left the classroom.

"And YOU!" He shouted, pointing at Veronica, clearly enraged with Johnny's outburst of disrespect, "I want the first five chapters read and a summary of at least 2000 words written up and handed in by Friday morning!"

"B-but!" Veronica stuttered.

Mr. Brock held up a hand and shook his head to silence her, "You can thank your partner for this!"

Great, just when she thought things couldn't get any worse... she get's paired up with HIM of all people. Then his smart mouth goes and gets them both stuck with a pile of homework that she will have to do all by herself because let's face it... he wont help.

Yup, things definitely can't get ANY worse.