Chapter Text
Luz Noceda is not a morning person.
In reality she doesn’t really know what kind of person she is. Nobody really does at seventeen. But one thing that has always been true for her is that she hates mornings - she knows that much.
With one lethargic groan, she rolls out of her bed, mindlessly making her way to the bathroom. Despite having a vendetta against the early hours of the day, Luz still follows a routine, though she doesn’t always follow it strictly. As she would every morning, she lazily turns on the taps, revelling in the steamy hot water that spouts from the shower head. It is one of the only things in the morning that she actually enjoys, taking a few minutes every day to just relax - a few minutes of peace before a busy day. Luz gently massages the shampoo into her hair, feeling the way it foams in her locks. She breathes in a deep sigh before-
“Luz, mija has visto mis llaves?” Camila barges into the bathroom, causing Luz to let out a loud scream.
“Mamá! Sale de aquí me estoy duchando!” Luz screeches, her hands quickly reaching out towards the shower curtain, clutching it close to her chest to hide her body. Shampoo suds begin to drip down her body and the curtain in white clumps.
Camila waves a dismissive hand, rolling her eyes, “Ay hija no es nada que ya no visto. I made you in my body! You are created from me! Now, have you seen my keys?”
“Have you checked the couch?!” she feels her cheeks begin to flush red, her patience beginning to run thin.
Camila sighs, “Si ya vi.”
“Your purse?”
Her mother looks down that the purse draped around her shoulders, unzipping it before beginning to search through its contents. After a few seconds she pulls out a keyring with a row of brass keys attached to it, shaking them in the air.
“Lo encontré!”
“Por fin!”
“Gracias Luz!” Camila looks down at her watch frowning, “I’ve got to go now, or I’ll be late. Portate bien cariño.” She blows Luz a kiss before exiting.
“Mamá! La puerta!”
Camila sheepishly returns and begins to shut the door, but before she could fully close it, she pops her head in a final time, “And don’t forget to start looking at universities!”
“Mamá!”
The door closes with a satisfying click and Luz lets out a curt groan before returning to her interrupted shower.
The Noceda household is incredibly hectic, which is odd considering that it’s just the two of them, but Luz wouldn’t trade it for the world. It’s hers and she loves her mother more than anything. Luz knows that even though she’s overly-dotting and at times critical, like most mothers are, she always means well. They didn’t always get along, having a couple of arguments here and there, but that’s expected. At the end of the day there’s always this persistent love. And Luz is grateful for that.
It doesn’t take her long to finish her shower and to get dressed. Logically that means that she would be on time for school, but oddly enough time seems to always pass her. When she turns to see the electric alarm clock on her nightstand, the bright red numbers read:
7:20
“Shit, shit, shit.” She curses under her breath.
Luz runs down the stairs, collecting her rucksack that haphazardly hangs on the banister, unzipping it as she hops around the house. She collects the stray books on the living room coffee table, frantically shoving them into the unzipped bag. After packing everything she needs, she collects her shoes from the entrance, struggling to put them on as she rushes out the front door, almost tripping over her own feet.
The sun beams down on the neighbourhood, bathing the yellowing trees in warm hues. Luz pulls the ends of her jacket together as a chill runs down her back. Despite the sun being out, it didn’t stop the nippy breeze that passes by her, typical of early September weather.
Hexside High, isn’t far by any means, it’s within walking distance from the Noceda household (as everything is in their small town of Gravesfield, Connecticut) but that doesn’t mean that she’s not going to be obscenely late. She sees her neighbours coming out their houses to collect their daily mail, one even waves at her before heading back inside. Gravesfield is a small town, that not many people know about, near the ‘Sleeping Giant’ hills. The people are mainly friendly, and the community is small enough that nearly everybody knows everybody. Luz waves back at the neighbour before she begins to pick up her pace, her casual stroll turning into a slight jog. Her mamá is going to kill her if she gets another late detention.
By some miracle Luz manages to get to class moments before the morning bell rings. She lets out a long, dragged-out sigh, slumping into her seat, ready to start the long day.
She doesn’t hate school by any means, but school definitely hates her. Its not like she tries to but, trouble always seems to follow her, or rather (at least to her teachers) she’s trouble itself. Luz is no stranger to being dismissed from class or being sent to the principal’s office, her ways of learning considered ‘disruptive’. Her mother always tells her that she’s a ‘good kid’ but she finds that hard to believe when the label of ‘trouble’ follows her everywhere she goes in this journey of academia, weighing her down, shackling her like a ball and chain. She has good grades, even excelling in some subjects, but that doesn’t help when all anybody thinks she’s good for is nothing. What’s even worse is that now that senior year has started, everyone around her seems to know what they want to do in the future, choosing universities, careers… all things Luz hasn’t figured out yet. It becomes lonely and confusing. She has the drive and the compassion but no direction to focus that energy to. They are all going to go somewhere, be somebody while she… In the end she just feels left behind.
With a brief sigh, she lazily places her hand beneath her chin, the words of the teacher blurring in her mind as she watches the hands of the clock, ticking down the minutes.
♡︎
“You know there’s a plant that’s exactly like the one from Mario.”
Luz closes her locker shut after shoving her books inside. Behind the locker door is her best friend, Willow Park. She’s talking animatedly about all the different plants she learned about over the weekend, her eyes glistening with passionate glee. Alongside being a massive botanical nerd, Willow is also the badass captain of the Hexside Banshee’s roller derby team. At first glance, she doesn’t seem the sporty type, with her soft features and rounded glasses, but Luz knows that beneath everything, she has muscles that would make a weightlifter weep, and an aggression on the rink akin to a rabid dog. But currently, outside her locker, Willow has a sweet smile, one that definitely does not belong to someone who had once gotten a foul for knocking someone’s teeth out.
Luz quirks a curious brow before asking, “Which one? The fire flower?”
“No.” Willow raises the magazine clutched in her hands, folding the page before showing it to Luz. “The piranha plant. Look.”
Willow shoves the magazine closer to Luz’s face, pointing a finger to an ugly looking plant. Surely enough the tear drop shaped plant has leathery red skin, with white filaments lining the petals like teeth.
“Holy shit it does look like the piranha plant!”
Willow beams, retracting the magazine, flipping through the pages with her thumb, “I know right. It’s called the ‘Hydnora Africana’. Apparently, you can eat it with cream, and it can even cure diarrhoea!”
Luz wrinkles her face, “Lovely.”
“I told you botany is cool!”
“I never said otherwise.” Luz counters, watching her friend’s eyes widen as she sees something behind her. Willow happily waves at the newcomer, welcoming them into the conversation.
“Hey Gus!”
“Hey my dudes.”
Luz and Willow both raise an eyebrow.
“Dudettes?” Gus groans, “Ugh, I don’t know. I was just trying something out.”
Luz snorts, “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you call anybody dude.”
“Like I said, I’m trying new things!”
Gus Porter is Luz’s other best friend. He’s a few years younger than them but was able to skip a couple of grades due to him having a huge brain. Always a fanatic of the theatrics and spectacle, he has found his place within the drama club, taking his role as a ‘dedicated thespian’ a little too seriously.
“Anyways,” Gus casually leans against the lockers in attempt to put on a cool façade, “What are we talking about?”
“Willow was telling me about her diarrhoea plant!” Luz snickers.
Willow pouts, rolling up the magazine before hitting Luz’s shoulder with it.
“Ow!”
“I knew you were making fun of my plants behind my back!”
Luz rubs her shoulder, “Gus!” she whines melodramatically, “Willow’s hitting me again!”
“Willow.” He reprimands. “What did we say about hitting Luz?”
Willow sighs, “No hitting Luz unless she really deserves it.”
“And did she deserve it?”
“Well I-“
Gus wraps an arm around Willow’s shoulders, calming her down with a gentle ‘Shhh’.
“I think Willow here deserves an apology.”
“What?” Luz shrieks. “I didn’t do anything wrong!”
A smug smile grows on Willow’s lips before she lets out a false weepy sigh, “An apology would cure my aching soul!”
Gus looks at her with an expectant expression, as if it’s saying, ‘Go on’.
Luz looks at her friends, her gaze flickering between them. She sighs. Putting on the most heartfelt tone she has, she begins her half-assed apology, “I’m sorry Willow for making fun of your poopy plant.”
“Willow?”
Willow huffs, rolling her eyes, a smile on her lips, “I guess I accept your apology.”
It’s not long before Willow starts another tangent about a different plant as Luz and Gus attentively listen to her ramblings. At some point Luz’s attention shifts from her friends, her focus now on the group of girls that stride down the hallway.
Luz smiles smugly, “Is it me or did Boscha get bitchier over the summer?”
Willow and Gus turn their heads, following Luz’s eyeline. Walking down the hallway in her expensive clothes and perfectly manicured nails, a permanent scowl on her face, is Boscha. She’s a tall girl with long strawberry blonde hair, her holiday tan skin always rosy around her cheeks, almost making her look pink. Even though they don’t have a set hierarchy like they do in cliché high school films, Boscha’s the closest thing they have to a queen bee. Being the star player of their rugby team has its perks, and Boscha makes sure to take advantage of that, it also helps that her parents are quite possibly one of the richest people in Gravesfield.
“I don’t know about bitchier, but she definitely got buffer,” Gus deducts, “Damn what are they feeding that girl?”
“It’s scouting season that’s why.” Willow explains, thoroughly examining the red headed girl. “She’s probably training for some university scout.”
Willow and Gus begin to go into ramblings, theorising about Boscha’s training and dietary plans. Their voices begin to blur in Luz’s mind, turning into background noise, as Luz’s eyes zeroes in on the girl next to Boscha, the one and only, Amity Blight. As always, she walks with confidence, her posture perfectly straight and stiff. There’s this air of elegance that follows her everywhere she goes, but that’s expected from the top student. Luz had always seen her face in the school’s trophy case, both from her academic and athletic accolades, and it amazes her how somebody could complete so much in such a short time span. She’s everything Luz is not. There, however, is something different about her, something about her presence that isn’t the same as it was the previous summer.
“You’ll be there, right?” Willow’s voice fades back into her conscious, but her thoughts are still stuck on the girl who just passed them.
Luz’s mouth moves without thinking, “Her hair changed.”
“What? Who’s?”
“Amity’s.” Luz pauses whilst Willow turns around to see the pair of girls who are fading into the crowd. “It used to be green before the summer but now its brown.”
Luz has always remembered Amity Blight having voluminous curls that were dyed a brilliant shade of green. She was unmissable and unforgettable. But now her hair is long, slick, and a warm shade of brown that’s almost like the autumn leaves.
Luz doesn’t know how the impossible happened, but someone had dampened the flame that was once Amity Blight.
“Oh.” Willow hums, “I didn’t notice.” A moment of silence passes between them before Willow shrugs, “Anyways, like I was saying before, you are coming to my game, right? Boscha’s not the only one fishing for scouts, mama needs a scholarship. And it would mean a lot if you guys come to my games.”
“Are you kidding? Of course, I’m gonna go, I wouldn’t miss it for the world!”
“Count me in too!” Gus pipes in.
Willow beams, wrapping her strong arms around her two best friends, “I love you guys so much!”
“I love you too!” Luz and Gus reply simultaneously, their own face’s beginning to mimic Willow’s.
High school may be its own certain hell, but it can’t be all that bad if she has her friends along the way.
♡︎
Luz slots her key into the door, her body instantly groaning the moment she enters her house. Her bones feel like they’re made out of lead, each movement becoming a chore. Slowly she comes to the realisation that she will never get used to the long hours of school. Or long hours of anything, staying in one place is just way too boring. She kicks off her shoes by the entrance, shoving them rather messily in the corner with the toe of her foot, so that her mother doesn’t tell her off.
The lights are all turned off, which is odd considering that it’s a weekday and Camila usually arrives home before Luz. She doesn’t think much about it at first, her mother could be lounging in the living room, in the dark, just to save up on the electricity bill. But before she can pop her head in the living room to check for Camila’s presence, her phone begins to buzz.
Mama <3:
-Sorry bebe, I’m being held back at work. Hay moro de habichuelas en el freezer.
-Puedes poner lo en el stove. No uses el microwave!!
-Cuidate amor !!
Luz frowns at her phone, her mother always overworks herself and doesn’t really know how to rest. Usually this would culminate in an argument, but instead Luz settles on a:
Luz:
-Okay mami.
-I love you. Llamame cuando sales <33
With a sigh, she pockets her phone, muttering something under her breath about her mother being a workaholic. In a swift motion, Luz slings her rucksack on the banister, her body instantly slumping after removing the extra weight. Feeling her stomach begin to grumble, Luz stretches her body and groggily begins to make her way to the kitchen.
She doesn’t fully understand why they have a microwave if her mother hates them, but there it stands on top of the fridge, pristine, and never been used. Camila has always claimed that it has no health benefits, the tiny box letting out radioactive waves with each usage, taking out all the nutrients from the food. Luz sighs, bending down to open the white door of their freezer, taking out the leftovers that have been preserved in an old ice cream tub.
Luz kicks the door shut, beginning to open the cupboards to look for a saucepan. In a couple of minutes, she has already started to heat the saucepan with half of cup of water or so boiling before she chucks in the frozen rice. With a wooden spoon, she begins to stab at the frozen slab until it starts to break down. After a few minutes, the water has completely evaporated, the once frozen rice now revived and fluffy. Luz grabs a bowl and begins to pile the rice into it, filling it to the top, deciding that she’s more than starving. In one hand she holds the bowl, whilst the other searches the utensil drawer for a spoon.
They don’t have a dining room in their small two-story house, only a four-person table in their kitchen. Usually most times than not, the Nocedas opted to eat their dinners in the living room, huddled around the coffee table, deciding that it’s more comfortable - either they would sit and talk casually on the couch, or they would watch whatever teleserie Camila was into. No matter what dinner was usually reserved for the two of them. Usually.
Luz is halfway into shoving a spoonful into her mouth before her phone begins to ring. She ignores it first, deciding that whoever is on the other side of the line can wait until after she’s done eating. There’s a brief moment of silence, and the naïve part of Luz believes that they got the message.
RIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNGGGGG
She lets out a groan and her other hand reluctantly reaches out to answer. Her eyes widen when she sees who’s calling. Quickly she shoves the spoonful in her mouth, trying hard to swallow before answering.
“Hwreow?” her words are muffled by a mouthful of rice.
The line is silent for a moment.
“Hey kid, short notice, but I need you to come in.”