Fandom: IT (au)
Pairing: Stan Uris x OC
Song Prompt: What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction
Warnings: insecure Stanley, pennywise doesn't exist in this 😌
Word count: 1031

You're insecure

Stanley Uris wasn't flamboyant or extravagant or interesting as he believed his friends were. We wore basic colours, his hair never changed from their tight curls, he has cautious and not adventurous, and he still enjoyed bird watching.

It was like a 60-year-old man had possessed his 13-year-old body.

He never used to mind about his appearance of his interests before she came to school.

Ziggy Lloyd was new to town, and it clear to everyone - even the town's hermit. She stuck out like a sore thumb.

Every day she wore some new and exciting. Never a dull colour donned on her clothing. Her hair was never the same, always a new style or new colour. Her makeup, though light, was still bold enough to stand out against the other girls in school. She loved music, especially David Bowie. She grew up with his music thanks her extravagant parents, hence her name.

She was the polar opposite to Stanley. In no world would either of them even consider being the other's friend, yet here Stanley was - overthink his entire personality for a girl he hadn't even said hello to.

Don't know what for

Although they hadn't had a conversation yet, Ziggy was still aware of who he was. At first glance, he did blend in, unlike herself, but he was still intriguing to her.

She noticed that he was becoming more and more reserved and shy when he brushed past her in the hallways.

She couldn't understand why though.

You're turning heads when you walk through the door

Stanley didn't think much of himself. He didn't think he attracted any attention in school or out.

But he was wrong.

Whenever he'd passed by, Ziggy would watch. At first, it was out of curiosity, then it turned to worry, until it finally reached its awe-struck stage.

She's only been at Derry High for a few months but she had already developed a small crush on the bird-loving boy.

One day, Ziggy finally had the confidence to talk to him. Yet, when she approached him at his locker, his back turned to her, she froze up.

She had never been anxious or scared before. Yet the simple idea of talking to Stanley made her nearly vomit from anxiety.

Her doe-like eyes raked over his outfit then her own. Maybe she was overdoing it. He never like a girl as weird as me.

Don't need make-up to cover up

The next day, Ziggy went to school yet everyone though she hadn't turned up.

They're wasn't any blinding colours. No cute make-up. No amazing hairstyle. No Ziggy.

Instead, it was Ziggy with a filter. Her once bright clothes had been exchanged for a simple white blouse and dark red skirt. Her usual colourful Nike trainers were now pure white converse sneakers. Her pink dip-dyed hair was now back to its naturally light brown hue. Her simplistic make-up was now replaced with trendy make-up, to fit in more. Her bubbly and bright smile wasn't as bright that day.

It wasn't Ziggy at all. And people were confused. They missed it. Especially Stanley.

Being the way that you are is enough

That lunch break, Richie was talking about Ziggy's new appearance with his friends.

"So what do you think of the downgraded Ziggy?" Richie joked, watching the basic-looking girl eating next to her friends.

Stan glared at Richie. "She hasn't downgraded, Rich. She's just...changed," Stanley hesitantly reasoned yet Eddie still scoffed.

"You're telling me that you prefer this Ziggy over the cool Ziggy?" He questioned his friend.

Stan remained silent for a second. "Well, I don't know. It's not about the way she looks, right?"

Bill shrugged. "Y-yeah, but she isn't the s-s-same, personality whi-s-se-"

Richie cut Bill off. "B-B-Bill's right. I saw her taking hell from Bowers! She never takes his shit!"

Stanley furrowed his brows as he looked over at the solemn-looking girl. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"It's still rude to say it's a downgrade, though, Richie," Mike added, taking a bite from his apple.

Bev nodded. "Hmm, she still looks nice though," she said as her eyes scanned over Ziggy's outfit.

"But, it's not Ziggy," Stan muttered.

———

It was now Biology and Ziggy and Stan shared his period, yet they sat on opposite sides of the room.

That day, Mr Avary had prepared a project that would take all lesson. A project that would be completed in pairs. Usually, Mr Avary wouldn't be bothered about making a pairing list and would just let the person you say next to be your partner, however both Ziggy and Stan's partners were sick that day. So by default, they would partners for the next hour.

For the first 15 minutes, they completed their assignment in relative silence, only taking when only necessary.

That was until Greta began teasing Ziggy from behind about her new appearance.

"Hey, Ziggy?" Stan asked, when Greta grew bored and went to the toilets for the remainder of the class. Ziggy hummed, not looking up from the instruction list as she continued the experiment. "Why did you change up your appearance, if that's not to much of a personal question?" He fumbled.

Ziggy sighed, her hands and eyes still focused on the experiment. "I...I just did. I felt a bit insecure yesterday, but today I felt even worse. It's weird, I know. But I felt like all eyes were on me the day I tried to fit it."

Stan nodded. It was true. Everyone was talking about Ziggy - some with positive opinions, others with negative ones. It must have felt exhausting for her.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I think you look nice with whatever you wear," Stan shyly spoke.

Ziggy blushed, finally looking up at the boy beside her. "Really?"

Stan nodded with a hum. "I like colourful."

Ziggy grinned. "So do I."

THE END