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October 12, 2022 Hawkins High School
The moment she had first gained consciousness into the world, Joan felt like she didn't belong in the skin she possessed. From her first word being actually a sentence-long-event far past the age of first words - her parents and doctor labeled her on the spectrum - to the way she belted out random songs in the hallways, Joan never felt like she belonged.
"Y-you could talk this entire time? Why didn't you say anything?"
"I had nothing to say."
Her existence felt itchy like an electric current rushing through her veins constantly and it only dulled down when she was doing something, anything, everything. Joan needed to move, to think, to feel that weird fuzzy thing on the wall that the other girls sneered at in disgust. Her brain ran constantly and her notebooks were filled with stories of a near terrifying magnitude.
"An overactive imagination, she's six, it's normal for kids her age."
"Honey, she wrote about someone being murdered..."
Joan lived for chaos because that was the only way to calm the electricity in her veins. Her ears were always plugged with music blaring through her eardrums to break up the silent hell, a chewed up pencil in hand to keep her teeth from grinding, and a bouncing leg to release the pent of energy.
"Wanna see me jump out the window and see what Ms. Thompson says?"
"Joan, we're on the second floor!"
And today was no different for the girl as she sat at the head of one of the lunch room tables, scribbling away in her notebooks like maniac. It was almost complete and it would be complete by 3:15pm today which was only a few hours away. It needed to be perfect, the best, well polished and-
"Joan?" A hand landed on her shoulder and Joan jumped in shock, looking around in a panic to see a familiar face - or well three - behind her. Joan tugged one AirPod out, her music pausing as she scowled.
The other two seniors in her group besides Joan were Ryan and Bryan, and the two were twins in everything but family and looks. Blond hair dyed green versus raven hair, they shared the same braincell amongst one another, finished each other's sentences unnaturally well, and did everything together since birth. The two were annoying little shits, but Joan didn't mind their company.
The weirdos were born a day from each other.
And Harry was the sophomore little sibling of Ryan, who joined the club at Ryan's polite threat, not that he really needed threatening. He was fine with joining, not like he would make friends anywhere else with his weird glass eye.
"What the hell, Bryan?!" She snapped out and slammed the notebook closed violently. The boys only snickered, each taking a seat at the table and setting down their lunches in front of them. "You know better than to sneak up on me, you jerk!"
