Chapter Text
The sun is shining bright. It's only spring, but the late May air in the classroom is heavy and warm. All the windows in the classroom are down yet it does nothing.
The heat makes her dissociate more. Dreading the coming future that waits.
Sam Witwicky, or can she even call herself that, dreaded this assignment and presentation for the Witwicky family genealogy, and what comes after makes her anxious. To find herself in the shoes of the very protagonist of a movie she watched excitedly in her childhood, but entertainment and becoming, or should she say, living in the world of the very entertainment film that is down to kill her in a minimum of a decade from now terrified her. Sam glances at the current classmate who is presenting their own genealogy report in mild envy to have a normal life, and empty eyes as she gauges how much time she is left with to look over her notes before her turn.
Aside from the plot, she’s not stupid enough to put her cursed great-great-grandfather’s glasses on ebay for extra cash. But she was wrapped in a tricky scheme by her current father to work for her first car, to learn fun life lessons and responsibility. Her mom eagerly encouraged the plan.
The tired brunette just wanted a small and quiet life, she doesn’t want to spend her second life in some long intergalactic war with unresolved issues and death looming over her. Or being too close to the government in general. (Wink wink cemetery wind.)
Most importantly, it's been so long since she saw all the movies, she doesn’t even remember half the stuff that goes around here. The girl only knows that all current technology is based on the decepticon’s leader, in custody of the secret government, and decepticons have been on earth for so long, meddling with the world. It feels like she’s on the government’s watch list. Sam probably is, except it's probably in the form of decepticons eyeing her entire bloodline for clues to find Megatron.
She looks down at her disorganized items laid in front of the desk. The cursed glasses that led her great-great-grandfather to insanity reflected off the warm afternoon’s sunlight. The cracks on the lenses, if seen close were symbols she would never ever understand and get heavy migraines from looking at them long term. She couldn’t believe this small thing would flip her and her parent’s livelihoods within the coming week.
Unless Sam flips off at fate.
There is a round of claps as the current classmate ends their presentation.
Her teacher writes a lazy note on the grading paper, then flips through the pages to call the next. “Alright, next up Witwicky, do your best.” He sounds out tired, wanting to get this over with. Sam can’t deny the same feeling as she scrambles up her items and materials.
*
Thanks, studious, gifted, slave driven past life self, Sam got an A +. In fact, her teacher was so intrigued at her tragic family report of the unfortunate fate of the failed Arctic explorer, he wanted to keep it for next semester. Who knew her history teacher had a heavy interest in the history of Arctic exploration.
Sam looks down at her complete report card disgustingly. The world around her feels like a fast blur, high school students eager to escape the building and enjoy their delightful Friday, while Sam has to think what she’s going to do to get out of this predestined fate of hers.
Get the yellow car and go along with what fate planned for her? Although that is already so out of shot from canon, and Sam is a girl in this, it's a double whammy. Plead to her teachers and counselor to give her a lower grade? She’s going to be looked at weirdly, and her public anxiety would kill her for that. Sam doesn’t even know how she went through with the presentation in front of her classmates, she’s always been the quiet and smart kid, somewhat sociable but only if someone talks to her first. She doesn’t even have many friends.
Speaking of friends, Miles and Mikaela are right behind her, looking over her shoulder to look at her report card.
“No way you passed Mr. Burnaby’s class with full marks.” Miles says in distaste as he snatches her papers, leaving her pathetically leaning against her own locker with a tired look ready to just go to bed.
“Where’s your presentation board?”
“My teacher stole it from me.”
“Soo… Does this mean you are getting your first car?” Mikaela says slyly, excited about what her friend would get. Eyes glinting mischievously, totally not planning to ask to borrow it for a joy ride while Sam is strapped next as a shotgun. Sam shudders too all the times Mikaela would barge into her old job Burger King to pester her on what kind of car she should get, even offering free “maintenance help” whenever.
“I don’t need a car…” Sam sighs quietly.
“But you have a full driver's license,” Miles states in a matter-of-fact. “Mikaela here is still a L, and you know I failed my theory twice.”
“Besides, we can stick Miles into the trunk and go to the mall. No cops need to know about this.”
“It's true, I can still fit in the lockers, and I love being squished in tiny spaces.”
For a moment, Sam just looks at him worried, meeting his blank crazy eyes full of honesty. She shudders again how she ended up being friends with the main cast Megan Fox in all her glory being insane about cars and supporting role John Robinson. It takes a moment to find words back to her mouth.
“If I do get a car, it's going to a Toyota Previa-”
“DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT GETTING THAT EGG SHAPPED CLOWN CAR!!”