"Girl Meets Creativity"

(primrose's outfit for this part of the chapter)

Primrose had always been artistic, her creativity blossoming in every form she encountered. From a young age, she could be found with a paintbrush in one hand and a sketchbook in the other, capturing the world around her in vibrant colors and intricate designs. Her imagination knew no bounds, and she often transformed mundane objects into extraordinary works of art. As she grew older, Primrose explored various mediums—watercolors, charcoal, digital art—each one a new adventure that fueled her passion. She found solace in the act of creation, often losing track of time as she immersed herself in her projects. Her room was a sanctuary of color, filled with canvases, supplies, and the soft sounds of music that inspired her work.

Primrose's artistic flair extended beyond the canvas; she was learning to be a fashion designer and believed she was much better at it than anything else she tried in the artistic realm. unique outfits that reflected her personality and vision. She would sketch elaborate designs in her notebook, dreaming of fabrics and patterns that would bring her creations to life. Primrose's eye for detail and color was exceptional, allowing her to blend textures and styles in ways that seemed effortless.

At school, she often wore her own designs, attracting attention and compliments from her peers. Each outfit was a statement, telling a story of its own, and Primrose took pride in the individuality she expressed through her clothing. Friends and aquantences would often ask her for fashion advice, and she found joy in helping them discover their own styles. So because of the fact that her school was cutting the art program, Primrose felt a wave of frustration and sadness. 

Art had always been her lifeline, a way to express herself and connect with others. The thought of losing a space where creativity thrived was heartbreaking. Primrose knew that she couldn't let her passion and the passions of her fellow artists fade away quietly. She wanted to do something about it. And she had a feeling so did Maya, who constantly expressed her frustration about this situation. Like in the middle of class. 

"The dark ages-"

"They're cutting art class and you want to talk about the dark ages?" Maya questioned, obviously upset about this whole thing.

"The dark ages was a time of cultural deterioration." Cory continued.

Maya stares at him. "What does that have to do with me?"

"The dark ages was the decline of the creative spirit of an entire continent." Cory explained.

Maya furrows her eyebrows, her lips forming into a pout. "What about me?"

Cory turns to her. "The dark ages is when they cut art class at this middle school right now. And you, Maya Hart-" He points at Maya who nods. "Yes, you, Maya Hart, the one I'm looking at right now, can't paint anymore."

"You know, a good teacher lets the student get there on their own." Maya said to him.

Riley raises a purple paint coated hand. "Daddy?"

Cory turns to his daughter with an annoyed expression. "Riley, if you put another purple cat on our fridge, I swear, I'm moving to Brooklyn."

Riley gestures to her nose. "Scratch my nose. I won't be dry until math, and Mrs. Kravtiz scratches my nose like she doesn't want to."

"Well, she probably doesn't. Normally people don't want to scratch someone's nose." Primrose mumbled, smiling a bit when she heard Farkle chuckle.

Cory steps over to Riley, scratching her nose. Riley smiles, pointing at him. "That's like a daddy would."

Cory steps back to the front of the class, pointing at Farkle. "So...Why were the dark ages dark, Pippin?"

"People lost interest in art and music because it was taken away from them." Farkle responded.

"Well, I don't want that for Maya." Lucas speaks up. "I want Maya to be happy." Maya looked back at him with a bit of surprise.

Zay points at Lucas with a smirk on his face. "Hey, Maya, it looks like Lucas here is gettin' all fired up on your behalf."

"Thank you, Lucas." A small smile tugs on Maya's lips while she shrugs her shoulders. "But it's just an art class."

"I feel bad." Lucas continues. "They're taking away something you're very good at."

"You've never said that to me before." Maya shook her head.

Lucas nods. "I've said it."

Maya keeps denying that he said that to her before until Lucas interrupts her. "You're a great artist, Maya."

"Well, he's lookin' at you now." Zay quipped.

Primrose leans over, slapping him on the arm. Zay looks at her with raised eyebrows. "What?"

Primrose rolls her eyes. "Just shut up."

"Fine." Zay grumbled and leaned back in his seat.

"Bay window. Bay window in five hours." Riley demanded, looking at Maya and at Primrose.

"Okay."

****

(primrose's outfit for this part of the chapter)

Primrose skipped on meeting Riley and Maya at the bay window since she had some homework to do, but was glad that Riley and Maya filled her in on what she missed out on. They had face timed her earlier that night explaining to her they made Riley's uncle Jonathon, who's the superintendent, watch the art room being cleaned out since they thought he was the reason all of these music and art classes are getting cut. It turned out that he's not the reason.

Primrose headed over to Topanga's early the next day. She knew that the rest of the gang would eventually get there, but she just needed some time to herself. She sat on one of the chairs where she and her friends normally sit at, drawing a outfit design that was her assignment for her home economics class. That class was getting cut, too, because it involved with art, and apparently it wasn't as important like science or math.

She never realized that she wanted to be a fashion designer until the day she got her yearbook and found out everyone thought that she was going to have her own fashion business. At first she was offended by the fact that everyone assumed what she was going to be when she grew up.

Now after looking more into it and even job shadowing her mom a few times she has always been wanting to be a fashion designer, she just never thought about that kind of stuff in her future.

"Prim, are you okay?"

She stops drawing and looks up when she feels the seat dip beside her, signaling her that someone had sat next to her. A small smile tugs on her lips when she saw it was Farkle and he was looking at her with concern. He knew how much art meant to her and how talented she is with fashion. He didn't want her giving up on her dreams just because a few classes are getting cut.

"I don't know." She admits after a few moments of silence. "But I know I will be."

Farkle nods, glad that she didn't lie about how she felt. He looks iver at the outfit design she was working on with an awestruck expression. He always thought she was so talented, he didn't know how she could draw like that. "Wow, that looks really good."

"Thanks." Primrose smiles as she looks at her design. "It was for my next assignment in my home economics class." She shrugs. "Even though that class is getting cut, I still wanted to finish it."

"I'm glad you did 'cause it turned out amazing. Just like all of your designs do." Farkle commented, locking eyes with her and the two smiled at each other.

A comfortable silence fell between them as Farkle watches with admiration while Primrose puts the finishing touches on her design. They didn't even realized how much time had past until their friends walked in and took their seats, each of them equally sad about what was going to happen with the music and art classes.

"I mean, you all are harder to watch than usual." Zay was the first to break the silence between the group. "I mean, all broken and pouty and stuff."

"Thanks, Captain Obvious." Primrose sarcastically commented, setting her closed sketch book on the coffee table.

Zay rolls his eyes at her and stands up. "Lucas used to call me and tell me about you guys. You were legends."

He starts with Farkle. "The genius who's loyal and kind."

He looks at Primrose. "The sarcastic yet caring and creative brunette-haired girl."

Primrose smiles over at Lucas. "Awe, thanks." Lucas wasn't for sure if she was being sarcastic, but he figured she was being genuine. He nodded and smiled back at her.

"The blonde beauty." Zay turned to Maya.

Maya chuckles lightly. "Lucas talks about himself like that?"

Zay shakes his head. "He was talking about you."

"Oh." Maya said. She looks at Lucas with wide eyes as a look of realization forms on her face. "Oh..."

"He said you were all full of fire." Zay said. He points at Riley. "And the pretty brunette who never gives up on anyone or anything. And no sacrifice is too big for her friends. But you've all given up. Where's your fire? Because I don't see any of it."

Zay walks over to stand next to where Lucas was sitting. He crosses his arms. "You know what, Lucas? These aren't the people you told me about."

Lucas sits up, turning to look at him. "Yeah, expect you've been here long enough to know that they are."

"Einstein once said we cannot solve our own problems with the same thinking we used when we created them." Farkle stated.

"Yeah. We need a different kind of thinking." Lucas sighed.

"Well, what's another way to think?" Maya questioned.

"Outside the box?" Primrose tilted her head to the side with confusion. A small smile tugged on her lips, happy that she got Maya to chuckle a bit.

"We're trying to save the creative arts." Maya nods. "Why can't we start thinking creatively?"

Riley smiles, pointing at Maya. "There's my little artist."

****

"I'm asking you to slow down before the final votes becomes final." Mr. Turner said to the school board. "Once these cuts are official, then art, and music, and dance, and drama-they're gone. I mean, is that really acceptable? It's not too late to do the right thing here. Thank you, Chairperson Sanchez."

"Thank you, Superintendent Turner." Chairperson Sanchez smiles. "That was a lovely, impassioned speech. Let me see if it changes any of the numbers," She pretends to be thinking, looking behind her before she looked back at Mr. Turner. "No, I'm afraid not. Our next speaker is Isaiah Babineaux."

Zay walks towards the microphone and smiles. "Hello, Chairperson. Thank you for seeing me."

Chairperson Sanchez nods. "You're welcome, Mr. Babineaux. We are happy to see a young representative of our school community, who is, I trust, going to address us with great respect for our process."

Riley and Lucas move to stands beside his right side while Maya, Farkle, and Primrose stands beside his left side. A grin formed on Zay's lips. "No, that's not what's going to happen."

"We couldn't reach you with logic, so we decided to think, differently." Zay informed the school board.

Chairperson Sanchez didn't seem happy about that. "Oh, super."

"Okay, wait a second. What exactly are you going to do?" Chairperson Sanchez questioned the group.

"Bomp, bomp, bomp, bomp." Lucas started while snapping his fingers and the group joined him.

"Ba, da, da, da."

"Bomp, bomp, bomp. Ba, da, da."

While the girls and Farkle continue to sing, walking to the back, Zay and Lucas stayed up front.

"Oh, Mr. Friar." Zay said to Lucas.

"Yes, Mr. Babineaux?" Lucas looked at him with smile.

Zay smiles. "I like this room."

Lucas nods. "It is a nice room."

"So, what do we do to a room if we kill the," Zay starts to say and Lucas finishes his sentence. "A-R-T-S, Arts?"

"We do this." Zay responded, walking over to a painting on the wall and takes it down.

"Gentlemen, what are you doing?" Chairperson Sanchez asked them, looking at the group of friends with confusion.

Lucas turns to her. "The same thing you're doing to us." He replied, taking the painting in front of him down while the rest of his friends took all of the other paintings off the wall and sets them on the floor. Now the room looked dull and boring.

"Not as interesting a room anymore. Get the picture?" Zay questioned, looking at the school board.

"That's a very colorful scarf you're wearing." Riley noticed, approaching Chairperson Sanchez.

Chairperson Sanchez nods. "Thank you."

"May I?" Riley gestures to the scarf. Chairperson Sanchez looks at her weirdly, but hands her the scarf. Riley then stands in the middle of the room up front, holding the scarf above her. "A dance in the loss of purple."

After the dance she moves off to the side next to where her other friends were standing as Maya walks up to the microphone. "My name is Maya Hart. This committee relies on charts and graphs. I have information to add to them."

"Please share it with us, Ms. Hart." Chairperson Sanchez said.

"You want numbers? The United States ranking in math, science, and reading has done nothing but drop for the past 50 years." Maya explained.

"Your proposal?"

"Get rid of 'em." Maya answered.

Chairperson Sanchez furrows her eyebrows. "Cut math, science, and reading?"

Maya shrugs her shoulders. "Why not? We stink at 'em. But you know what we're number one at? Movies and music! People all over the world are inspired by our creativity. But hey, I don't wanna get rid of anything. You started it."

"My hands are tied." Chairperson Sanchez told her.

"Yeah, it's so funny." Maya shook her head. "Everyone keeps saying that, but they're not. Look at 'em. Your hands are free. You just think they're tied."

"I'm afraid you're out of time." Chairperson Sanchez sighed and Maya walked over to her friends. "We got a long list of speakers on the list today and we need to be getting back to them."

"Topanga Matthews." Chairperson Sanchez reads. Topanga gets up from her chair and goes over to the microphone. She clears her throat, opens her binder and then closes it. She smiles. "I yield my time to these children."

"Uh...Cory Matthews."

"Yield."

"Gabriella Kossal?"

"Yield."

"Yes. Super weird. Okay, wouldn't now be a good time for an adult point of view?" Chairperson Sanchez questions.

"Yield!" Every adult in the room beside the school board answered.

"Oh, come on!" Chairperson Sanchez groaned.

"The adults have failed them." Cory speaks up, turning to glare at Jonathon Turner. "Especially our superintendent Mr. Turner."

"Matthews!" Mr. Turner looked at him with offense.

The group started singing again as Lucas and Farkle walk to the front. "Oh, Mr. Farkle."

"Yes, Mr. Freakface?" Farkle asked him.

"Although you are a scientist, we have been told you have great creativity." Lucas replied.

Farkle nods and smiles proudly. "Why, yes. I sing, and dance, and am the greatest Pippin the stage has ever seen."

"I love Pippin." A chairperson commented.

Zay walks up to the two boys. "May we see some of it, please?"

Farkle shakes his head. "No, you may not! There are no longer plays or concerts in this school. Instead, I shall preform for you a list of prim numbers."

He then moves to stand in front of the microphone and started listing prime numbers. When the crowd started booing Chairperson Sanchez interrupts him. "Okay. Okay, I think we get your point, Mr. Farkle."

"With all due respect Chairperson Sanchez, I don't think you do. And like I said, I can also do this." Farkle then started tap dancing and the crowd started cheering. The crowd booed when he moved back to the microphone to say more prime numbers.

He tap dances again and the crowd cheered again. "Creativity feeds science, science feeds creativity. That's what you're missing because you're not thinking creatively. Thank you."

Farkle went to stand off to the side while Auggie went up to the school board, asking if any of them had kids at home, and if they did they should take their creations off the fridge because it had to do with arts. At hearing this the school board looked crushed.

Lucas then steps up to the microphone with an amp and looks at Maya. "Ms. Hart, I am told that you can sing."

Smiling a bit, Maya nods. "I can warble a tune."

"Would you do us the great honor?" Zay asked her.

Maya walks over to the microphone and starts singing once Lucas started the music. "Once, I had a dream. A dream that had just begun-"

Zay sneaks over, taking the mic from its stand while Lucas turns off the amp. Maya apologetically smiles. "Sorry. No more music."

Lucas takes the amp to the back and then moves to stand next to his friends along with Maya as Primrose walks to the front. "Hi, Chairperson Sanchez. I'm Primrose." She grinned at Chairperson Sanchez, who didn't look amused.

"I bet you're wondering why I'm wearing this trench coat." Primrose gestured to the long beige colored trench coat that stopped at her ankles.

Chairperson Sanchez stares at her for a moment before she nods, shrugging her shoulders. "Yeah, I guess I am."

Primrose unbuttons the trench coat, revealing a dress that she had made for her next assignment in her home economics class. She takes the trench coat off, sending a thankful smile as she hands it off to Farkle. The dress she wore was knee length, it had spaghetti straps, and it was two shades of purple. The top half being a light shade and the bottom a darker shade. The fabric on the top half was decorated with two butterflies on the stomach part. The dress looked like there was supposed to be a trail of butterflies from the bottom half that went up to where the other two butterflies were at.

(this is what I was thinking the dress would look like, but it would be light and dark purple and it wouldn't have butterflies on the bottom half)

"You see, I had to make this dress for an assignment in my home economics class. I obviously had a lot more planned for this dress because now it just looks unfinished." Primrose gestured to her dress. She turned around, showing the crowd her dress, smiling a bit when some of the crowd 'oohed' at the dress.

She turns back to face the school board. "The assignment was to create a piece of clothing that has something you love on it. I chose butterflies because each of them are unique and beautifully colored."

Primrose forms her lips into a tight line, folding her hands out in front of her. "But since home economics is involved with arts that class is also getting cut and I gave up on finishing."

"Students are going to be giving up a lot more now that you guys are cutting classes that they actually love. Classes that help them make it through science and math and reading because let's face it we all hate them." Primrose explains. "Thank you." She said before walking back over to stand next to Farkle, smiling at him as he handed her trench coat back to her.

Zay walks over to the school board, holding the microphone. "Chairperson Sanchez, with respect you seem uncomfortable. Could that possibly have to do with your background?"

"I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about." Chairperson Sanchez replied and Primrose noticed that she indeed look uncomfortable. She didn't blame her though. Primrose would be uncomfortable, too, if she was in her situation.

"Oh, let me be specific. Where did you do your undergraduate work?" Zay questioned.

"Princeton." Chairperson Sanchez answered.

"Oh, good school." Zay nods. "Good school. What'd you study?"

Chairperson Sanchez shakes her head which makes Primrose tilts her head to the side, wondering why she wouldn't answer the next question. "I don't see how any of these questions are relevant to today's presentations."

"Oh, you were an art major!" Zay exclaimed dramatically and the crowd gasped.

Chairperson Sanchez sighs. "Yes, Mr. Babineaux. I have a degree in studio art."

Riley steps forward. "A dance in which I graduate with the degree of studio art at Princeton University, but then my hands are tied." She went to start dancing but was stopped by Chairperson Sanchez.

"I don't have to see that one. I lived it."

"Does it hurt a little?" Maya inquired, walking to the front, now standing beside Riley.

Chairperson Sanchez nods with a pained smile on her face. "It does. Especially since one of the paintings you took down was mine."

Farkle, Lucas, Primrose, and Zay go to stand beside Riley and Maya. "Chairperson Sanchez, got a favorite book?" Lucas asked her.

"Bridge to Terabithia."

"Unread it." Maya told her.

Zay was next to ask a question. "Favorite movie?"

"The Wizard of Oz."

"You better unwatch it." Primrose chimed in.

"Well, you've just kinda taken my whole childhood, haven't you?" Chairperson Sanchez asked the.

Maya tilts her head to the side. "When does it happen?"

Chairperson Sanchez furrows her eyebrows. "When does what happen?"

"When does it happen you stop being able to think creatively?" Maya questioned.

"When do you get your hands tied?" Riley added.

"We don't want that happening to us." Lucas informed the school board.

"You went to a great school." Zay points at Chairperson Sanchez. He then gestures to the rest of them. "I'm sure all of you did."

"You're very smart. But you know this is the wrong way to think." Maya voiced. The group turns around and begins to walk away, but stops when Chairperson Sanchez spoke up.

"You didn't ask me who my favorite artist is." The group turns around to face her. "It's Picasso." She looks at Maya. "Do you have a favorite artist?"

Maya thinks for a moment before she replies with, "All of them." She smiles. "Everyone who ever tried. Including you."

For a second there Primrose thought she saw Chairperson Sanchez begin to smile. "You know, Picasso painted a masterpiece called Guerinca. Adults going to war on horses with swords. Except for one horse who was horrified at what the adults were doing."

"He's horrified because he knows it's wrong. I've always loved that horse." This time she smiles for real. She points at the group of friends. "And when I was as young as you I made a promise to myself that if I ever go to war, I would never forget Guerinca and the horse that knew better. Thank you, Ms. Hart. For reminding me."

"No. Thank you." Maya responds. "I love learning about art. Would have never known about Guerinca if someone didn't cared enough to teach me."

"Superintendent Turner, you have been requesting all along that we remain patient." Chairperson Sanchez said to Jonathon Turner who now stood up.

"We're all teachers here. I think we can appreciate the value of a good lesson." He voiced.

Cory stands up and points at him with a grin on his face. "Turner! My man!"

Jonathon groans and looks at Chairperson Sanchez with annoyance. "Would you tell him to stop?"

Chairperson Sanchez speaks again while Cory sits back down. "I can't promise immediate solution, but I can promise that we can try and think differently. To think as creatively as these students. Thank you all for coming. This meeting is adjourned."