A/N: Yep, I’m back and random again! I should just write a multi-chapter story already; I’ve written so many one-shots for this fandom it’s ridiculous. Anyway. This was fueled by my need to write something, and my newfound love for Jon McLaughlin’s music. This is a little bit of everything, and the ending is an alternative to the “Legally Blonde” ballad. Lyrics are from Jon McLaughlin’s “Beautiful Disaster”, which also inspired my Hairspray vignette collection, check that out if you want…

She’s given boys what they want

Tries to act so nonchalant

Afraid they’ll see that she’s lost her direction

She never stays the same for long

Assuming that she’ll get it wrong

Perfect only in her imperfections

She’s not a drama queen

She doesn’t want to feel this way

Only seventeen, but tired

She would change everything for happy ever after

Caught in the in-between, a beautiful disaster

She just needs someone to take her home

Elle flopped down on her bed one summer afternoon, school finally out, homework and classes forgotten. This was supposed to be the greatest summer of her life, she had thought; her parents were taking her to Italy, she had plans with friends. Everything was supposed to be perfect, until that morning had happened.

“Hey,” Elle said, smiling as she leaned up to kiss her boyfriend of a year, Craig, on the cheek. He was a senior, giving Elle an automatic social upper hand over the rest of the juniors. He was everything Elle had wished for, and she had spent the year being the envy of the junior girls.

“Oh, hey.” Craig replied, pulling away before she could reach him. He took her hand in his, pulling her to an abandoned corner of the hallway.

“Aren’t you glad school’s over? Gillman’s physics final was like hell; I’m so glad that’s over with. How were your finals?” Elle asked, bubbling with excitement only seconds after the last bell.

“They were…fine. Look, Elle, I need to talk to you.”

“About what?” she smirked up at him dreamily, thinking about how lucky she was and not really paying much attention to what Craig was saying.

“…I mean, my future is at stake here, and if I’m going to focus at Columbia I can’t have any distractions.”

“What?” she honestly hadn’t been following up to that point, but it didn’t sound like it was going in a good direction.

“Elle.” He paused, looking her in the eyes, and her smile faded, “I have to move on. What we had was fun, but it wasn’t…substantial. I have a future ahead of me, a good college, a career plan, and I can’t…you don’t fit in to it.”

“You’re…you’re breaking up with me?”

“Elle, I’m sorry. It’s just…this wasn’t real. It was fun, but…you never thought we were…serious, did you?”

Her face fell, and she kept the tears from flowing down. “No, of course not. Enjoy college.”

She stalked off, walking as quickly as possible to the door.

She loves her mama’s lemonade

Hates the sound the goodbyes make

She prays one day she’ll find someone to need her

She swears that there’s no difference

Between the lies and compliments

It’s all the same if everybody leaves her

And every magazine tells her she’s not good enough

The pictures that she sees make her cry

“Elle, honey, you need to come out of there sometime.”

Serena’s voice came through the door, and Elle sighed and stood up from her bed, opening it to reveal her Delta Nu sisters, bearing gifts.

“Here’s Elle, and Town and Country, and your favorite, Vogue!”

Margot bounced around excitedly as she handed over the magazines, and Elle forced a smile in response.

“Thanks, girls. I’ll read them now, I’m sure they’ll make me feel better.”

She knew they wouldn’t, but the Delta Nus weren’t used to seeing their president upset, and she felt the need to reassure them even when she felt useless.

“Well, we’ll come back later, then, give you a chance to read those.” Pilar said, then gasped, “Oh! And there’s a party tonight, that would be fun, right?”

Elle smiled, “Yeah, maybe.”

“Well, see you later!”

All of the Delta Nus, hyped up on Red Bull, waved and scampered away, leaving Elle to shut the door and retreat back into her dorm. She sat down on her bed, opening Vogue, glancing at the articles and pictures of beautiful supermodels. She moved on to Town and Country, stopping when she saw a picture of a familiar-looking man with his arm around a stuffy, serious-looking woman.

“Peyton Huntington and his bride, Muffy Vanderbilt.” Elle whispered, running her fingers over the glossy page. “This is what Warner wants me to be.”

This is what he wants, Elle thought, If I’m not good enough for Warner, then I’m not good enough for anyone…

She noticed, staring at the picture, that tears were falling onto the magazine. Tears that fell onto the printed pages, tears that she didn’t know she had left to shed.

She would change everything, everything,

Just ask her

Caught in the in-between

A beautiful disaster

She just needs someone to take her home

‘Cause she’s just the way she is

But no one’s told her that’s okay

“I can’t do this anymore.”

Elle threw clothes into a suitcase haphazardly, not bothering to fold them.

“Elle, what are you talking about?”

“Thank you for believing in me, Emmett, you did your best with…with a hopeless case.”

Emmett grabbed her arm to stop the chaotic packing, “Elle, what are you talking about? A hopeless case? What happened?” He noticed her tear-stained face for the first time since he’d entered her dorm and added, “What’s wrong?”

The tears seemed to form in her eyes again and she managed, “Callahan hit on me. He kissed me, he fired me. There’s no reason for me to stay.”

“Callahan did what?!” Emmett fumed, all the pieces falling into place. Elle was leaving Boston, and all because of a pompous jerk.

“Elle, you can’t do this. You’ve worked so hard for this, I can’t let you go. Everyone on the trial needs you, Brooke needs you, I need you…”

“Don’t you get it? I was never good enough for this! Callahan gave me that internship because he liked the way I look. I never had any real talent, and I’m never going to be good enough! I don’t belong here! I’ve spent the last six months being something that I’m just…that I’m just not!”

With that, she broke, dropping the clothes she had been holding and falling into Emmett’s arms. He pulled her into him, wishing he could take away the pain Callahan had caused.

“Elle, he was wrong. Whatever he told you, he was wrong. You deserved this, you are a great lawyer, and I can’t let you walk away from this because of one terrible professor.”

“But I’m not good enough!” She cried, her voice hoarse and muffled against his chest.

Years of feeling inferior, years of feeling like she was a complete and utter disaster with no future other than one as a Victoria’s Secret model or a fashion designer, years of thinking she would never be good enough for anyone, had finally caught up with her, and Emmett only pulled her tightly into him, running a hand through her hair and down her back as she clutched the lapels of his suit jacket.

“Elle,” he said, rubbing her back soothingly, “You are perfect exactly as you are.”

She would change everything, everything

Just ask her

Caught in the in-between

A beautiful disaster,

She would change everything for happy every after

Caught in the in-between

A beautiful disaster

She just needs someone to take her home

She just needs someone to take her home