Deviating from the Norm (A "Freaks and Geeks" Fanfic)

Chapter 17 - Jenna Is A Punk Rocker

Author's note: So I did switch around the timeline a bit in this chapter as well. I will further explain this in the story notes for this chapter. 

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"I think that guy died," I said as Nick collected a few cans of cola behind me.

"Who?" he asked as we both turned around to face one another, Nick peering behind me towards the front counter. "The old guy in the leather jacket buyin' the prono mag and bottle of rye up there?"

"No, nimrod," I laughed as my friend's gaze hardened, making me believe he recognized something. "The guy on the cover of that magazine the cashier was reading. I think he was in some punk band or something. OD'ed. Saw it in the Chippewa Chronicle the end of last year."

The article stuck out to me because, under an image that mirrored that of the magazine held by the female clerk at the front of the store, I found the headline to be shocking and tasteless for our virtuous, if not overly conservative, little rag. 'Good riddance to bad rubbish: Punk band frontman Darby Crash dead at 22,' the article title read. The viciousness of the first five words alone made the whole thing stick in my head far longer than it should have.

Ken and Daniel were at our heels in no time, Nick's long arm stretching passed me to hand Ken his beverage.

"Is that, uh," Nick began, keeping his eyes glued on the cashier with her long, spiked hair as she continued deal with the customer at the counter, appearing more irritated that she actually had to do her job than anything. "Is that Jenna Zank?"

The name sparked a hint of recollection in my head, much as her face had when we first entered the 7-Eleven. I couldn't help but feel like she looked kind of familiar, like she went to our school or something, and Nick's mention of her name all but sealed it as fact. After all, she seemed like the right age and everything, but I didn't recall seeing anyone with a completely punk outfit (chains, chokers, studded wristbands on both arms, insane ear piercings, heavy make up punctuated by jet-black lipstick covering her lips) roaming the halls of McKinley.

'Oh yeah,' both Ken and Daniel said in unison with Daniel adding, 'Didn't she drop out?'

While we all busied ourselves with stuffing a can of pop into whichever pocket it would fit in in our attire (five-finger discounts at the convenience store were a near-daily routine for us), Nick confirmed the rumor and instantly set my mind at ease as to why I both recognized her but could not remember seeing her at school any time recently.

"Why would you drop out and stay in Chippewa?" Ken had asked, laughing midway through his question. "That's crazy."

"She used to be so hot!" Nick commented in a whisper, a sly little smile grew on his face as he continued to stare at our former classmate.

Ken grinned even more and pointed to him for a moment. "Yeah!"

"She still is," Daniel defended in as serious a tone as one could commit to, causing me to chuckle in amusement.

"Yeah, if you like clowns," Ken replied, and my laughter lingered on.

We all snuck out of the store a minute later, but from my quick glances, it seemed Daniel could not stop staring at Jenna as we all made our exit. His wondering eye knew no bounds.

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With just over two months left in the school year, there was a certain buzz of excitement in the air that only summer break could bring about. I was only mildly enthused by the idea of the end of school, because I knew that I would have to make a decision one way or the other about football beforehand. The longer we had in school, the less I had to think about it... and that time was a luxury I was running out of.