BORN TOO LATE, back to the future

ii. not the prima donna

➳ 𝕤𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕤𝕖𝕝𝕖𝕔𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟: 𝕪𝕒𝕜𝕖𝕥𝕪 𝕪𝕒𝕜 𝕓𝕪 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕒𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕤

『 NOVEMBER 2nd, 1955 』

THE BANNERS now hung to announce the school dance in just a week from now sent Donna to roll her eyes in distaste over the frenzy her friends seemed to be set into. Already planning on theming for their dress attire, she was more preoccupied on how the she was gonna get her D in English up to a C- in time to even be able to attend the thing.

It was one thing to have to convince her parents that there wasn't going to be anything improper occurring at the dance. Hearing about it caused for her mother to give a standard lecture on the possibilities that could occur if she were to go and the girl had more so a week to convince her otherwise. The grade just served as leverage for them to keep her home would she not be able to raise it up.

Betty was the only one who knew of this and pulled the young girl aside. Seeing her completely worried over the situation she only tried to smile with ease. As most of the girls did whenever something was out of place between any of them. "Don't worry, I'm sure you can bring it up. It'll be fine."

"So does that mean you'll help me?" Donna asked to look to her hopefully.

She immediately laughed over the suggestion to shake her head. "Are you kidding? I don't know anything that Emily Brontë was trying to spell out. I just remembered the plot from the film," Betty explained beside her.

Blinking twice over the reference to await some sort of explanation following after, Dona looked to her guilty. "Well can you at least explain that to me?"

Her friend heaved a deep sigh to tighten an arm around her shoulder. "Look, just go ask someone to write the paper for you. You've got some spare cash from your allowances, right? Or the bit your parents don't make you send out on Sunday mornings?"

"But—" Donna looked around for a moment before speaking to her in a low whisper over the scandalous act she was a suggesting. "That's cheating."

"Do you want the grade or not Donna? At this rate you probably won't even graduate if you keep it up and it's only November," Babs reminded her harshly. The rest of the friends turned to the spectacle that had begun and looked to the mousy brunette worried as she began to frown with her gaze drawn towards the floors of the high school.

Exchanging a look between them, Babs was the first to speak instead. "What are you going on about? What's wrong with your grades?"

Trying to draw the attention away from herself and back towards the superficial gossips her friends were sharing, Donna shone a smile over to them in an attempt to pretend she wasn't completely worried over her situation. "Nothing! It's nothing, really!" She spoke to have her tone become overly high-pitched and mentally took note to have to repent for such a sin as lying. Still not budging over trying to get her friends to speak of something else, Donna motioned over to Babs eagerly. "So you were just talking about that new dress up in Ruth's?"

︒✿ཾ∘∗✽ᜒࠬ.

PEEKING THROUGH Lou's café after-school, the crowd of usual students filled the booths already despite classes having just ended a few minutes ago. Donna continued to look around worriedly over finding herself in this situation and felt as if she was going to be struck by something over doing something that was only meant to benefit her in the long wrong. "Lady Walsh!" She jumped over being called suddenly by the doorway for Goldie to look to her in surprise over her anxious behavior. He chuckled under his breath over the sight as she tried to compose herself. "What are you trying to pull that's making you act like that?"

She continued to brush off the situation with her friend and tried to look past him through the booths. Having always spent her Saturday mornings in here, Goldie always tried to sneak to her to help with some of her homework whenever Lou wasn't able to catch him doing so. They'd become close over the interactions often hanging out outside of the establishment despite the very notion her mother would have to see her hanging around by herself with a boy. "I'm looking for George McFly. Have you seen him?"

"You, clean-cut and polished lady looking for George McFly?" Goldie tutted under his breath over the assumption he made over watching her timidness further increase. "You're paying him to do your homework for you, aren't you?"

"Goldie, I wanna go to the dance alright? It's my last year, it was bound to happen at some point," She rationalized to him, though this was more for herself in order to ease the guilty nature she still felt over all of this.

He nodded understandingly to motion over to a booth the greasy haired boy had been sitting in. "He's in the booth just over there writing." Lou called up behind him to bring him away from the conversation as he shined one last smile over to her. "Surprised about you, you know."

"Don't hold me against it, alright?" Goldie chuckled over the statement to grab the tray of drinks sent out for him to carry while Donna slowly made her out over to George McFly. The young boy continued to write rapidly in a journal of sorts to have her notice the various pages scattered around him. Each accompanied with its own messy handwriting left her puzzled on how anyone was meant to make out what he was going on in the written words.

Watching him take a sip of his chocolate milk instead of noticing her presence, Donna coughed nervously to gain his attention. He looked up to her stunned and nearly spilt his milk to have Donna grow guilty over the exchange. "Oh! I'm— sorry," She apologized as he attempted to compose himself again. Donna shone a smile over to him nonetheless as he looked to her stupefied. "I'm Donna. We have English together?"

He blinked to her silently as she awkwardly stood outside of the booth. Realizing she was waiting for him to allow her to sit across from him, George grew sporadic in his behavior again. "Right, sorry. You can sit if you like." Donna nodded, brushing down her skirt to sit across from him while he nervously tried to smile over to her in an attempt to seem sociable. Only really knowing her by acquaintance over the rest of Lorraine's group made him more confused on why the definition of purity was speaking to him. "I'm George—"

"McFly, yea. I know who you are," She spoke to already feel as if the other teens in the café were watching her go about this suspiciously. Seeing him only surprised over saying this, Donna cut the pleasantries to go about asking why she even showed up here at all. "You've got an A in English right?"

He nodded and tilted his head over to her. "That's right?" Without her having to voice what she needed after asking this, George chuckled under his breath. "You need me to write a paper for you? You, but you're Donna 'Mary' Walsh? Isn't that against some sort of code?"

"Look I wouldn't be here if I wasn't desperate," Donna spoke to him and took out her bag, "I heard you charge and I've got the money. It's just. . . this next paper could really boost my grade and I don't wanna screw it up."

Before she could take her petty cash, George raised a hand to stop her from doing. Seeing him slowly shake his head he looked up to her watching him expectantly. "It's— It's fine. Don't worry about it," George spoke as she slowly lowered her bag, "Could you, y'know, put in a good word for me though? To Lorraine?"

Trying not to laugh over a girl like Lorraine falling for someone like him, Donna only nodded over this instead of ridiculing him as he was already doing her a huge favour. "You think you could get it to me by Saturday? Before it's due on Monday?" George nodded silently and continued to write in front of her. She beamed excitedly to jump out of the booth pleased. "Thanks McFly!"

♡༉ A/N
🥺 i'm sorry if the story development seems slow, but i wanted these first three chapters to be a primary basis of Donna's character prior to meeting Marty to emphasize the point on him impacting her to question more of the norms of society than she already had been before. much love to everyone reading so far and see you soon, xx
~J.S. 💋