[IC] Palm Beach Royals: Senior Year

[Sugar and Spite]

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Ariel Grey had been having a decent enough morning. Her father had left the house early for work this morning, leaving her to have one less thing to worry about. What she did have to worry about, however, was what to wear and how everyone would take the news of her and Kavi being back together. She had already let the Misfits know of the news, but the rest of the school still didn't know unless they had spotted them together over the very last bit of the holiday break. While the people who's opinion actually mattered already knew, Ariel couldn't help but wonder what sort of whispers would float down the halls as she walked hand in hand with Kavi. Said thoughts did nothing to help her anxiety levels as she worked through her morning routine and drive to school.

She was sure to text Kavi to let him know that it was more than okay that she couldn't ride with him this morning. While Ariel always preferred their car rides together over going solo, she understood the importance of making sure his sister arrived at school on time too. Plus family time was nice, right?

"Just take a deep breath," she whispered to herself, stepping out of the Impala. "What matters is that your friends -mostly - support you, and that you and Kavi are happy."

Scanning the school grounds as she walked across the parking lot, Ariel was surprised to see so many emotions on everyone's face.

Some were tired, others enthusiastic. Some looked ready to die, and others just looked.... 'meh'.

Bookbag over her shoulder, keys currently being shoved into her jacket pocket, Ariel made her way over to the part of the school grounds where you could usually find Kavi before school started.

Approaching the man of the hour, Ariel couldn't help but spot that he had company. Of course his chosen company would be none other than Little Miss Relationship Destroyer Extraordinaire April Foster.

While Ariel was happy that April and Santiago had seemed to work through whatever it was that they needed to work out, that still didn't give April permission to be around Kavi after what happened, much less handing him some sort of gift. Like what the fuck, bitch? What. The actual - fuck?

Okay. Calm down. You've not even been at Kings for five minutes. You're trying to be less of an angry person now, remember? Maybe it's a baby shower invite? No. Wait. The box is to big for an shower invite. Unless she and Santi are being extra, of course. But wait. Why would she invite him and not me? You don't get one without the other. We are a Duo. Dear fucking god, Ari. You're being dramatic. Shut the fuck up.

Walking up to the conversation, Ariel arrived just in time to hear April's apology. Standing beside Kavi, grabbing a hold of his hand as she laced her fingers through his, she gave April her best forced heartwarming smile.

"Oh don't worry! I'm sure we've all pretty much moved past that."

As Kavi began to act as if he was moving for the package, Ariel firmly squeezed his hand as if to say 'don't'.

"Mind me asking what's in the box," she asked, feigning a friendly tone.

While she had moved past the events of the Halloween party, Ariel hadn't exactly forgotten what had happened. For the time being, she was just doing her best to not be passive aggressive and work towards building a better, more healthy relationship with Kavi. Seeing he and April talking together on their first day back at Kings Academy did nothing to help that.

[Bee]

It was the start of her last semester at King's. Just a few quick months ago, it was only a year, but since then the time had dwindled down and it was only a matter of months before every senior at King's was out of there for good and forever. Nicole was rather conflicted about this prospect. On one hand, that meant she could go somewhere else! Meet new people, get new opportunities, see new things! That was the part Nicole was excited for. On the other hand, that meant she wasn't going to be seeing the peeps she already saw as frequently. No longer would she be able to see her cheerleading peeps on command. Her existing relationships were going to be harder and not the same once she graduated.

But, they had a long way to go. Nicole figured it was better to just enjoy the time they had now rather than dwell on the inevitable future. It was too depressing to think about how she wasn't going to be seeing a lot of these people for a long time after the spring. Taking a deep breath, Nicole had a pep in her step as she stepped away from her locker. A binder marked "ENGLISH" with sparkly letters and plenty of glitter and gold on it was held against her chest. The thing was, however, was that her next class was actually history but nobody bothered to notice and tell Nicole that she had the wrong binder. Nobody wanted to ruin her vibe!

Right now, Nicole still had some time to kill, so she wanted to see if she could find some of her cheerleading peeps and vibe with them until the bell rang. That was a good plan, right? Only thing was that she couldn't exactly figure out where anyone was. Such was typical for Nicole. A sea of people was not something Nicole could really sort through very well. At least, a sea of people in Nicole's eyes. It didn't help that her mind was on other things as well. Thinking about how acai was pronounced was still messing with her to this day. Nicole then found a rather familiar silhouette. Maybe that was someone from the dance team? Or it could've just been a stranger... that she could befriend! Only one way to tell. Nicole raised her hand, waving. "Hey!" She beamed, waving.

[Sugar and Spite]

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Sunshine was one of those people that went all out for the first day back to school. She had woken up early to do her makeup, shower, and brush her teeth. The young woman had posted a status to follow their dreams on Facebook, and uploaded the best of the cute pictures she had taken of herself this morning.

Why Sunshine was so excited, she didn't know. Maybe it was the fact that in a few short months, she would be graduating. They would all officially be adults, able to be truly free and live their lives however they pleased. Another thing that excited her was the possibility of see where things went with Shawna. Hopefully whatever their relationship evolved into, it wouldn't be something that would ruin their friendship. Fingers crossed and social media updated, Sunshine made the drive to school after saying good bye to her aunt and uncle.

Arriving at Kings, Shawna shot a quick text to Shawna before taking a seat at one of the picnic tables located right outside of the entrance.

Please tell me you're here. Don't leave me alone on our last first day. :( I'll be waiting for ya at our table. <3

[AlteredTundra]

Kavi’s morning so far had been, for the most part, uninteresting. Save for some breakfast in the cafeteria and brief conversations with some people asking about his winter break, it’s mostly been himself since his sister abruptly left their intense conversation about what was happening at home. Not that he blamed her. In a moment of reflection, Kavi understood just how hard it was for his younger sister to cope with. It also didn’t help things that he was being unreasonably cruel with her and expecting too much from someone who was processing some terrible news after less than twelve hours of hearing it.

As he strolled through the halls of King’s, his train of thought was entirely focused on the very situation at home and he didn’t feel his phone vibrate in his jacket pocket. He felt it, of course, but he wasn’t in the frame of mind to check it, which meant whoever texted him would have to wait.

Kavi’s walking brought him temporarily to his locker and he put some of his things in his backpack inside it -- mainly folders he didn’t need until classes a couple of hours from now. Once he closed it and began to walk to his first class, since he wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone right now, that plan came to a speeding halt as he heard a familiar voice call out to him. The voice was female and it carried, so how could he not turn around to greet his friend.

“April,” Kavi said, acknowledging her and her always-growing mini-foster inside her. He could have sworn she wasn’t this big before the break but those three weeks spent away from each other made it apparent that she wasn’t far from bringing that girl into this world (yeah, Kavi saw the story about the gender reveal). “What can I do for you?” He asked.

And in typical April Foster fashion, she sped right through her words, most of which Kavi wasn’t able to follow but once he adjusted to her speed, he got the gist of what she said. When she apologized about that kiss, Kavi couldn’t help but laugh. It was no secret that this kiss changed a lot of lives but mostly Kavi’s relationship life with Ariel. They had since made up, but it wasn’t public knowledge yet. The only people who knew were those closest to the two lovebirds.

“It’s okay. A lot of things happened that night--” Kavi’s response was abruptly cut short (what was up with that today?) as he both heard Ariel speak as she joined the two but his hand became locked with hers, making it abundantly clear that Ariel was, in a sense, marking her territory on the tree that was Kavi Salvador. “Yeah, we’re back together, so no harm done!” He smiled as he greeted his girlfriend with a kiss. “Hey babe, you look good!”

With his greeting complete, Kavi turned his attention to the box in question, which Ariel asked about. Kavi was kind of curious about that himself. “April was just about to tell me, I think,” Kavi said to Ariel.

Despite how much he wished she didn’t explain -- especially in the way April said it -- what she said made it clear to the young man what was in the box. Looking at the shape and how it seemed to appear gave Kavi ideas, but what April said about the kiss and damage in ‘more than one way’ was pretty obvious to him. “Oh you shouldn’t have!” Kavi smiled, though quickly retracted it from his face when he spotted Ariel’s glare/insecure hybrid expression. “I mean, this must have set you back a pretty penny.”

Oh, how he wanted to desperately accept it, but a few things were eating at him. Ariel’s feelings were what had been eating at him the most but also how he wouldn’t feel right accepting her gift. Again, Ariel’s feelings played a part in that.

[LovelyComplex]

How did they expect him to react?

With a jolly ol' laugh like his old man, accepting their happiness, as if he knew all along? As if their feelings, their happiness, mattered more than his hurt? His father could be mature, could bury his feelings, for someone else, pretending it didn't mattered, that he, his own goddamn self, didn't matter, but for Ryland? He wasn't like his dad — no matter how many times his mother says he's more like his dad than he realizes. No matter how much they tell him it'll all work out in the end. And, no matter how long they keep trying to give him value, give him purpose, and give him the benefit of the doubt... their efforts were meaningless. He refused to break.

Why should he act like he was okay with this? That he should've expected it a mile away and that those two, not telling him SHIT, like he wasn't their best friend or anything, wouldn't leave an impact? Even if they slipped, even if it was a matter of them "oops" forgetting, that was a horrible excuse and showed just how much he actually mattered to them. He would not change for his friends, for his parents, or for anyone! They shouldn't expect him to. And this rage? The fire that burns hot, an inferno that never seems to simmer, would destroy him from the inside out, until he was nothing more than the consequence of catastrophe.

He had his right to feel this way. To feel betrayed. Did everyone know that they were a thing besides him? How long has it been going on? Have they been lying to him for... god knows how long...? With his rage, he was trouble best ignored, and yet as he walked down the sidewalk, blaring his music in his ears, he could vividly picture his childhood. The sound of laughter, the breeze in everyone's hair, the endless crusades, and pure unadulterated joy. The melancholy of nostalgic memories cloaked his mind, centering his thoughts on the good, instead of the bad.

Before Ryland knew it, he had arrived at his new school, for his last semester of high school. King's Academy. At least the back of it, having went a round about way, because he was too caught up in his head. After climbing over the stonewall, connected to the back gate (y'know instead of walking through the gate like a normal person), he dropped to the school gardens, which wasn't too far from the football field. Perfect route to avoid anyone and everyone, including his friends.

Securing his hoodie over his head, his place of comfort, he walked forward, prepared to wage war if he needed to. Letting his feet lead the way, and avoiding the most populated area it seemed, the courtyard, Ryland headed inside the senior building, knowing this prior due to past visits. The corridor he was in, was seemingly vacant, besides the music streaming out of one of the rooms, which he'd assume was the music room. Red Hot Chili Peppers... not bad. Rather than follow the sound, he continued on his way, which was... he looked at his left hand, at the written scribbles that was his locker number, before grunting to himself.

He had gotten the school to send him his 'Welcome to King's' package during break, since he didn't want to get a tour from someone he didn't know, or he did know but it was far too long to spend with said person. He didn't want a tour, goddamit! For one, Rye wasn't a deer in headlights, he was a senior for fuck's sake. There was no need for someone random to teach him the ropes when he could do it himself. Plus, this was a rich school, and he went to a rich school prior. How different could they be? Besides size, obviously.

Striding forward, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, dodging all chatter, he glanced to his right, to see down another hall, and caught sight of a familiar raven haired princess. Stopping in his tracks, the sudden thought of her text message to him about her 'good news' covered his damage with Marisol and Sonny. From her figure, his eyes darted to the guy she closely stood next to, as she laced her fingers with his. Grinding his teeth, Ryland threw all thought out the window and walked down the hall with annoyance written all over his face. When he got closer, he saw another girl he didn't know well enough to put a name to the face, but she seemed familiar.

“Oh you shouldn’t have!”

Regardless of his lack of memory for April, and with little idea of what they were talking about, Ryland stepped in front of the two lovebirds, next to the speed racing queen, examined the situation, before shooting Ariel a deathly glare.

“I mean, this must have set you back a pretty penny.”

"Stop being modest. It doesn't suit you." Ryland interjected, locking his dark gaze with Kavi, as if it was a frosted dagger cutting right through his skin, before sarcastically laughing and turning his attention back to Ariel, "I'm so happy you've gotten your priorities straight."

[Bee]

"Bro what the fuck was that?"

Jack Goff was clearly not happy with what had just happened. That fuckin' bitch totally just meddled in his affairs and ruined everything that he stood for! All that work for nothing! He was greasing her up good and he was just about to make his move and get some good ol' loving! Then, there was Georgie! Why?! He couldn't understand, nor could his lackeys, apparently. He was leaning against a wall rubbing his temples, his frustrations clearly boiling over. What was it with her? He didn't understand why she had decided to go out of her way just to fuck with him. That was like... not cool whatsoever.

"Listen, bro, I think she just jealous." One of his lackeys, Chad, said. "Why else would she do that? Girls just don't be doing that for no reason." Chad had a point, but it didn't add up. "I mean, you've got a point, bro, but the girl hates me, bro!" Jack shrugged. "Bro, then she just a plain ol' bitch, bro. She better back off, bro, or she be catching these hands." Jack looked at Chad with a weird look on his face. "Bro! She's still a girl! Don't be touching girls unless they let you. You know that's not right."

"You're right. My bad, bro." Chad looked down at his shoes. Jack sighed, "Oh well, another one's gonna come eventually, right? Can't cry over spilled milk."

[Sugar and Spite]

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Neither one of them was seriously going to tell her what was in the fucking box?

Taking a second to look at the box again, it occurred to Ariel that she had seen boxes this exact size and shape multiple times. You could find them anywhere the contents of the box were sold. But why April was buying her man a PlayStation - Ariel didn't know. Ariel had been the one to break it, and she was planning on surprising Kavi with his gift on their date this Friday. She and Marisol had taken a trip to the mall where she had purchased it, had it gift wrapped - the whole nine yards. Leave it to April to screw that up too. She could replace the TV, sure - but Kavi had already taken it upon himself to fix that. So now her big plan for this weekend was ruined once again by April Fucking Foster.

I hope this bitches baby comes out Shrek green.

Unsure of her next move, Ariel stood their awkwardly looking back and forth between the other two people before an old, familiar face decided to make it's appearance.

It had been quite a while since she had seen Ryland, though they had kept in touch over the years and even had a certain thing going on for a while. She had sent him a text earlier saying that she had some good news, though she hadn't specified what said news was. Rather her friend would approve or not - Ariel didn't really know. Judging by the fact that he had just made it to Palm Beach to see her standing hand in hand with the guy that she had expressed possible hatred for a few times, called toxic, and was hung up over for months - he probably wasn't going to be happy. Add all of that plus his tone of voice and yeah - Rye wasn't happy.

"Rye!" she said, rather enthusiastically compared to his current demeanor. "This is Kavi and April." Pointing to each person respectfully as they were introduced, Ariel was almost certain that Rye knew who everyone was, but it couldn't do any harm, right? "And this is my friend, Ryland," she said more in the general direction of Kavi.

"You know that I'm more than great at making excellent choices," she said in response to his remark.

[Bee]

Apparently, they didn't see her because by the time she got there they just walked away and went somewhere else. Hm, Nicole probably just had a mistaken identity. Oh well. Nicole shrugged and went back the way she came, hoping that nobody important saw her little mishap. It wasn't like they were a rarity, but Nicole still understood that it hurt to be made fun of because she just straight up didn't vibe with that shit. She didn't like to be embarrassed as airheaded as she was.

Walking along, Nicole figured she'd better get to class. History was on the agenda, and she quickly glanced at her binder for whatever reason before heading out to her class. It was then whatever in that skull of hers put two and two together and realized a rather fatal discrepancy. That wasn't the history binder! Her english binder was blue with white accents! This one was purple with glitter and gold! No fucking way! She gasped to herself and made a little beeline back to her locker to avoid the embarrassment.

Opening her locker, the cheerleader quickly exchanged binders and made a quick sigh of relief. What would've been. It was almost better that nobody tell so that nobody would realize that she had the wrong binder. But, then again, she doubted people cared that much about what sort of binder she carried to her class, nor did anyone care that much about that schedule of hers. It was time for Nicole to carry on to class, and that was exactly what she was going to do.

[spooner]

_{Starring: Ariana & Max}

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Finding Max had turned out to be a lot easier than Ariana had anticipated. She'd half-expected to be running around the school campus like a headless chicken, going from place to place chasing after her breakfast worm. Thankfully a quick word with Evan Campbell had provided her with all the answers she needed. Apparently, her target had been at the lacrosse locker rooms all morning, doing something or the other with the equipment. Armed with this knowledge and that cocky confidence of hers, Ariana made a beeline to the male varsity locker rooms, spotting the young man just where Evan said he would be.

The brunette stared at Max for a few seconds, enjoying the view of his round posterior every time he bent down or squatted before announcing her presence. "Hey, handsome..." she called out to him, crossing her hands over her chest and leaning against the doorway.

Max, who had been busy putting away all of the equipment his father had paid for him to get the team, had almost jumped right out of his skin when Ariana had approached him from behind. He let out a little yelp and spin around. “Fucking hell, Ariana. What are you doing here?” He let out a little laugh as he tried to calm down after the initial shock.

After so many years playing games, she wasted no time digging straight into it this time around. "So I heard Kellie Anne's moved all the way back to California…" Ariana drawled, closing the distance between them until she was merely a few inches away. "That true?" she asked the blond male with a mischievous smirk, suggestively raising an eyebrow.

He looked down at her and put his hands on her hips as she closed in. Oh, we’re doing this again Max scoffed. “Yeah...and?”

The girl's expression hardened with the rather curt tone of his voice, and even with his hands on her hips, her whole body stiffened up as if ready for a dispute. "I was thinking that maybe this was the right time for us to finally take things up a notch. But with that nasty attitude, the only thing you'll be getting from me is the middle finger," she said haughtily, scoffing right back. If anyone was going to have an attitude, it was Ariana. There was no space for anyone else to do so.

Nothing much had changed it seemed. “Oh, is it time for that?” He lowered his voice to a husky whisper. He tilted his head slightly as he continued to peer down at her, ignoring the fact that she was giving him her usual sassy attitude. He tightened the grip around her hips smirking now. “I can do a lot with a middle finger...” he whispered, tracing his own middle finger up Ariana’s arm and still not taking his eyes off hers.

"Really?" Ariana challenged his smirk mirrored on her own face as she pressed her body to his, playfully stroking his chest. "You know, Max, there's something I've realized about you: you're all talk. You always talk a big game about all the extraordinary things you would do to me when you had the chance, but you never take them. How do I know you're not just wasting my time again?" she asked him, shifting her mischievous hazel eyes up to him and looking anything but innocent.

Max raised his eyebrows “I talk a big game, huh?” he said, grabbing the brunette’s chin, still staring her down. Without letting her answer he lowered his face to hers planting his lips on hers. The kiss was passionate, almost like he was proving a point.

Now that's more like it.

There was nothing that Ariana found more fulfilling than to have her pray tangled up in her little web after a long game of cat and mouse. Of course, a small victory was always enjoyable, but the war hadn't been won yet-- not until she had him groaning her name between the sheets of his bed.

The girl was kissing him with the same level of passion, one hand on the back of his head and using the other one to pull their bodies closer, shifting their position so he was now pinning her against the lockers. Max shifted his hand from Ariana’s hip down her thigh before lifting it up to his waist and slipping it under her short skirt. If she really wanted this to happen he would challenge her to see how far she wanted to go at this moment.

It didn't take a genius to know she was on board with the way everything was unfolding. Their kiss hadn't faltered at any time- only grown in hunger instead- and every one of his advances had been received with approval. Both of her hands were on his head now, with her fingers tangling themselves up in his messy blond hair. She would occasionally tug and pull on it teasingly, smirking into their kiss with satisfaction every time she heard Max's groans in response.

He pulled away from their kiss and stared down at her intently before removing his blazer and hastily unbuttoning his white school shirt and tossing it aside. Ariana was quick to follow his example, of course. Her pesky, navy blue uniform blazer with the Kings Academy logo was unbuttoned and tossed, followed by the once-perfectly dry-cleaned white school blouse. He grabbed his giddy partner and carried her over to one of the benches and put her down on her back before continuing to kiss her. The pair were now only slightly obscured from the locker room door by some of the lockers- but the risk they were taking would be worth the reward.

[Ejected]

_{Starring Archer | Kavan}

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A huge smile spread across Archer’s face as his boyfriend pecked him on the cheek. Archer almost hopped up from his seat and embraced Kavan in a tight hug. “God I’ve missed you” he whispered as he pressed his face into the boy’s neck as if he tried to merge with him. It was true he had really missed his better half since he had been keeping his distance while he had been holed up at the Castillo’s dealing with his stuff. He didn’t want to burden Kavan with all of his baggage so he had just told him some vague story about him needing to sort things out with Marisol, which wasn’t technically a lie.

When he finally pulled away Archer’s smile was just as bright “I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life!” he exclaimed as he put his right arm around the small of his boyfriend’s back and his left hand in his own pant pocket as they made their way into the main building. He nervously cast small glances at Kavan as they walked through the crowd; He really did want to tell him what had been going on in his life but maybe the morning of the first day of school wasn’t the best of timings.

“Sorry I’ve been kind of hard to get ahold of lately,” he began clearing his throat. “My brother is home from Harvard and you know it’s a little bit strained between us two…” he continued. “But you’ve got my full attention now!” he smiled tightening the grip around Kavan.

“Oh, it’s no problem,” Kavan said with a shrug, shooting his boyfriend a reassuring smile. “You needed your space, I get it. I actually got to spend more time with my own older sibling in the meantime… and let’s just say, I’m happy to finally be back.” Letting out a chuckle, Kavan paused at his locker and hastily entered the combination. It was when he started emptying the contents of his bag into the small space that he said, “Everything turn out alright with you and Marisol?”

Archer stood quiet as he let his heavy book hit the floor as he opened his own locker. “Uhm… Yeah, I would say so” he said as he too put away his plethora of books. Just keeping his french book in his bag but as he kept groping around he felt a foreign object at the bottom. He fished out a phone that wasn’t his own. He stared at it with a confused face for a little while and then a light went off in his head. It was Max’s phone which he must’ve grabbed by accident from his car.

“Shit I probably need to get this to Max. What’s your first class?” Archer asked looking down at his watch, there was still 20 minutes until class started. “He said he was going to put away his new equipment so I have to go to the sports building on my way to French, you wanna come with me?”

“Sure, why not?” Kavan said with a shrug of his shoulders as he closed his own locker and gestured towards one of the binders in his hand. “I have statistics. And it’s not too far from the locker rooms, so I should be good. It’s not like I’m too eager to do a bunch of math problems first thing in the morning, anyways.”

As the pair walked the emptying halls of King’s talking about everything from what reading they had done as of late to Mrs. Varma’s cooking. When they were closing in on the sports building Archer stopped and grabbed his boyfriend’s hands looking him straight in his chocolate eyes. “Hey… so there is actually something I need to talk to you about.” he began. The curly-haired boy looked over his shoulder before turning back continuing in a low voice “It’s about… something personal that you should know. Can you meet me in the library at lunch?” he asked.

Kavan raised a worried eyebrow as his boyfriend spoke, but managed to offer him an understanding nod in response to his request. He’d noticed that something had been a little off about Archer recently, but decided that it’d be best to wait until lunch to pry. “Of course, we’ll meet at our usual spot by the window.”

The boys then made their way towards the lacrosse locker rooms; pushing the door open, Archer popped his head in to see if he saw Max. The room was seemingly empty, but he spotted his cousin’s huge duffle bag so he stepped inside to find him. “Hey Max I have your ph- “ he began as he walked behind some of the lockers. His sentence could not be finished because he was met with something that made his green eyes widen in horror.

On a bench right behind the lockers was his half-naked cousin with his pants down around his thighs, two clean shaven legs wrapped around him some compromising sounds faintly coming to his ears. “Holy shit!” Archer exclaimed dropping Max’s phone as he walked away crashing into some of the lockers. “Oh my god, I’m sorry… what the fu-” he laughed shielding his eyes with one arm. Kavan peeked around the corner long enough to see what it was that Archer had started freaking out over; he simply turned his back and let out a stifled laugh in response.

The sound of a familiar voice coming from the general vicinity of the locker room entrance, followed by the sound of a body crashing against the wall of small metal doors had Ariana sitting up and turning around in record time. Frazzled, her wide eyes darted around every inch of the room, desperately trying to find the source of their untimely, inconvenient interruption.

Max turned around with a panicked look on his face frantically pulling his pants getting off the bench at the same time. Archer lowered his arm to see who the girl pulling down her skirt was.

"Archer?" Ariana asked when she finally saw the taller boy, nervously grabbing the blazer from the floor next to her and using it to cover her chest- not that she needed to. It was common knowledge that Warren's baby brother didn't share the same interests as he, but that didn't mean she didn't want some of her dignity back.

“Really Ariana?” he couldn’t stop laughing at the situation “First my brother, and now my cousin?” He turned back towards Kavan grabbing his arm dragging him out of the room with him. “Too bad I play for the other team or you could’ve had the whole set!” he cackled as he and Kavan left the awkward room behind them.

[LovelyComplex]

_{Starring Carter Newton and Chrissie McCoy
Collab with @Ejected}

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The moment Ariana Mossos sauntered away, hips swaying, with unassailable confidence, Chrissie’s smile vanished from her face. Her gaze fell to her lap, as she sat there, still and silent. No motivation whatsoever to go inside. To see him. How awful would that be? Shaking her head, trying to get these disheartening thoughts out of her mind (she couldn’t let anyone see her like this), she patted her cheeks, allowing herself time for an internal pep talk. After a minute or two, she turned her attention towards the entrance, only to catch sight of a familiar, annoying face.

Carter.

The boy that had her cousin’s heart. Just looking at him pissed her off. He was the pimple that wouldn’t go away, no matter how many times she tried to pop it. Gritting her teeth, she opened the passenger door, locked it, and gingerly closed it behind her. Putting on the most sugary-sweet smile, she pranced forward, taking fast steps to catch up with the boy.

When she finally did so, she called out, “Yo, CJ!” Keeping it ‘casual’, she threw her bag over her shoulder, approached him with conviction, and unrelenting force, before begrudgingly asking, “Got any big plans for our last months here? Life changing and actually going to make a difference?” Chris wasn’t here to make small talk, she never was, but she was here for something.

Suddenly hearing Chrissie’s voice pipe up from behind him was enough to make Carter roll his eyes in exasperation; he instantly found himself wishing that he’d followed Chanel’s lead and headed straight for his locker. For a brief moment, the young man even considered quickening his pace so that she wouldn’t be able to catch up, but he decided against it at the last moment. Instead, he slowed down so that she could fall into step beside him; the smile that was plastered across his face was nothing short of phony. “Always nice to see you, Chrissie,” Carter said, his tone hinting at sarcasm. “Of course I have a lot planned for this semester… you know, per usual. I’m actually helping a few people organize a climate change protest for next week. Maybe you’ll be able to take some time out of your super busy theater schedule to attend and… what was it? Actually make a difference.”

Rolling her eyes in response to his retort, Chris chortled in irritation, “Typical and predictable, I’ll pass.” She shook her head in disapproval, while acknowledging that was a strangely clever thing for him to say. “Believe it or not, Carter, actors are agents of change and theater, like film, like a book — hell, even like a song — can make a difference. But you wouldn’t understand.” Her green gaze scrutinized him, as she smiled widely, “And that’s okay.”

Dry and uncompromising, she studied him, while pushing a piece of hair behind her right ear. What did Stella see in him anyways? The only remarkable thing about him was his expensive taste and that wasn’t saying much. “I get it. I really do.” She didn’t, really. Protests rarely resulted in anything but making noise. Protesting was an illusion that made common people think they had power. That someone with actual power could hear them. Reality was simple. This world was a selfish place and some people were given diamonds, and others got squat. That’s just how things were and Chris honestly did not see the point in ‘protesting’ to get your ‘mission’ across.

“But that’s neither here nor there. Did you know Stella came back from Paree this morning? Mm, I’m so jealous of her. You know what poets say—” She clasped her hands together, pretending to make a wish, and gave a theatrical, dreamy pose. “—Paris is the city for love!”

“Oh sure, I couldn’t possibly understand,” Carter said with a roll of his eyes. Leave it to Chrissie McCoy and her patronizing attitude to swoop in and put a damper on what would’ve been a pretty great morning. In fact, Carter was just about to excuse himself from the conversation when the young woman mentioned the girl that he’d spent quite a bit of time thinking about over break; unfortunately enough for Carter, this person also happened to be Chrissie’s cousin. The young man couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at her final statement. “And what exactly is that supposed to mean?” he asked, feeling a slight twinge of jealousy as he spoke.

Treating him to a coy smile, not wanting to give too much away, just enough to play with the candlelight burning in his chest, Chrissie hinted matter-of-factly, “Let’s just say... something happened.” She looked into his eyes, determined not to falter. To show him how deadly serious she was when it came to anything revolving around Stella. If he was truly worth her cousin’s time, he would get over this obstacle, but it was her job to not make things easy. Love wasn’t easy and she didn’t think he was right for her. What did he have that Marcel didn’t? What made him so special, so unique, so… compatible? Falling in love was the easiest part, but nothing lasts forever, and she doubted Carter was any different.

The warning bell went off, signaling them it was near time to head to homeroom, and as a way to assert her dominance, she giggled, which was like an auditory and unwarranted hug, and dismissed herself, “Well look at the time, I’m so glad we had this chat.” Chris, who never used her fists in a confrontation, carefully threaded her words and spoke with an air of finality. She knew exactly what she was doing and had no ounce of regret. “I do hope you enjoy the rest of your day.”

Striding forward, taking the lead, she gave distance between herself and Carter. With each stride, her mind became more resolute, more clear of what she wanted. Looking over her shoulder, back at the boy who admired her cousin, she drawled her goodbye, “Until next time, CJ.”

"Uh... okay..." Standing with his hands in his pockets and his mind whirling, Carter watched in stark silence as she hurried down the hall; it was rare for someone to leave him speechless, and the fact that it had been Chrissie who'd done so made it even worse. Typically, Carter would've just shrugged off whatever it was that she'd said and continued on with his day; but as the young man began to make his way towards his locker, he couldn't help but replay her words over in his head. Stella was someone that he'd grown to care about, and whatever Chrissie had to say about it could never change how he felt about her. But it hadn't really dawned on him that maybe his feelings weren't reciprocated like he thought they were. Chrissie had been pretty vague about it all, but he couldn't help but wonder if Stella had found some fairy-tale level romance while on her trip to Paris; he couldn't help but feel a little bit jealous. And hurt.

But then another thought popped into his head as he slammed his locker shut and tucked his books under his arm: what if Chrissie was just making it all up? It was no secret that the two of them had a pretty complicated relationship; perhaps she was just trying to get a rise out of him? She was an actress after all, and a pretty good one at that (not that Carter would ever admit it), so of course her performance would've sounded convincing. "Whatever..." Carter said under his breath as he let out a frustrated sigh and began his journey to class. He'd just have to figure it all out later, whenever he got the chance to see Stella.

[ineffable]

---

Georgie was...not feeling well if she could say so herself. It felt sickening to have to walk through the familiar hallways without Sawyer by her side and the quick reprieve that she had had with Jack in the hallways had already faded by the time she reached the bathroom door. Without even knowing it, a stray tear leaked it's way out of her eye and she pushed into the bathroom, cutting the line in order to slam a cubicle door shut and start sobbing. She slipped her phone out of her pocket and was about to compose a text to Sawyer before she stopped and gave a wry laugh. The problem was Sawyer wasn't it? It was the absence of Sawyer that hurt the most. But she had to stay strong. She couldn't go out there and be not perfect. Georgie tried to paste a smile onto her face but she felt it wobble and she dissolved into even more tears, her body shaking as she tried to wait out the tirade.

After a few minutes in which she continued sobbing and the whispers she heard from outside the stall door echoed in the tiny room Georgie wiped away a few more tears that leaked out with the scratchy toilet paper in the stall and stood up shakily. She had to compose herself before she stepped out of the stall, apologizing quickly to the people standing in line in front of her before leaving and veering off in the direction of the exit doors which she promptly passed through. Georgie made her way over to the fountain and sat on the rim of it, putting her face in her hands and listening to the gentle rumble of the water falling into the basin underneath. It was quiet outside. There was no one to gawk at her imperfectness, at her crying over a harsh break up and being undeniably, less of the happy go lucky girl that she was. There was no one here to witness her being weak. And she needed that.

Georgie remembered the goodbye as well as the crying and the subsequent breakup from that. It had taken so long for her to get together with someone that she loved and who she knew loved her for her. He knew her insecurities, all of them and he still loved her anyway. But now he had moved away to stay with his grandparents for a while and eventually their problems had created an uncrossable gap between them. Her jealousy and her insecurity with her flaws had only created more problems. He was different with her, more sensible and gentle but obviously some times when they fought he handled it with the same coldness and intense anger that he normally demonstrated in real life. It was hard for both of them when they fought and she hated it. She hated that with her he had to be gentle and always sensible, responsible and on top of it. Didn't being in a relationship entail also letting the other person be truly who they are? Not just their best selves?

Georgie took a deep breath and rocked forwards on her feet, trembling slightly. It was her fault. All of this was her fault...yet again. She shook her head. She missed him like crazy and she had only pushed him away. She had pushed everyone away. She drew in a deep breath as she stood up from the fountain and landed heavily on her scuffed boots.

"I still miss you, Sawyer. I hope you know that" She whispered.

He would never hear her voice, she knew that but hopefully, somewhere out there in the big, huge world he'd know that a piece of her still yearned for his love.

[SpicyMeatball]

April’s heart raced a bit when Ariel showed up seemingly out of the blue. Inside, she’d really hoped that this entire conversation would have happened without Ariel’s presence at all. But, she was here now so it was something April had to roll with. As Ariel spoke, April grew even more uncomfortable at the totally fake warmth she was showing. There was no way in hell that any of the present company involved was over the events of that fateful night. April looked the girl up and down, lingering on her unsettling eyes for a moment before placing the large box onto the table next to the trio. And just as the brunette had finally composed her thoughts once again and was ready to speak, an unfamiliar face showed up and butted into the conversation.

April inhaled deeply and looked at the newcomer with an unimpressed gaze as Ariel introduced everyone. She couldn’t help but think Who the hell invited you? as she smiled with little effort towards Ryland, before turning her attention back to the Kavriel duo. “Now that we’re all super friends, I would like to first apologize to you Ariel. What I did was wrong, and while I didn’t know you and Kavi were a thing at the time it happened, I’m not gonna hide behind it as an excuse. I am sorry.” April wasn’t entirely sure what emotion to show towards Ariel with this apology, and after a rather lengthy mental debate with herself, she landed on a half smiling apologetic look. “I’d heard from someone that what I did had some rather physical aftermath, so I thought it only right to help repair that. It’s a PS4, plain and simple. And while truth be told I only came here prepared to give something to Kavi, I have a Starbucks card here that I haven’t touched. You’re welcome to have it Ariel. I know it’s not much in comparison, but I don’t really have anything else on me worth giving really.”

With another deep inhale to calm her nerves--Ariel certainly intimidated her to quite some extent--April dug the card from her purse and offered it out to Ariel before looking between the pair of them once again. “I don’t want to make either of your lives any harder, so do what you will with it. If you don’t want it, I’ll take it back, I just don’t know what else to do to show my apologies. Maybe Ariel being here was for the better. It gave April the opportunity to be straight with the two of them. What they did in response was out of her control.

April looked to Ryland after she had said her piece, but remained silent otherwise. She didn’t know the guy and right now her attention was on Kavi and Ariel. If he had something to say to her, she’d be surprised.

[AlteredTundra]

_{Sonny | Marisol}

When Sonny and Marisol had left his house, the drive was spent trying to gather themselves. After a brush with the grim reaper in a black and red pantsuit, Sonny welcomed the peace of the morning road of Crown Heights. Excitement fueled his fire and Marisol probably enjoyed the thrill of almost getting caught, but between his mother and Rye, Sonny needed some peace and quiet. The slowly paced traffic was just the downtime he needed.

As it would pick up after ten minutes, the rest of the trip was pretty smooth for the most part. Sonny’s driving skills definitely improved since the last time Marisol was beside him. The last time she was anywhere near the front seat of his truck, at least as far as he could remember, was right before winter break started. The Misfits had gone on their little cheat day down to Miami and decided to cruise all day. That was probably the moment before the big one on Christmas Sonny fondly remembered.

And that was probably the last time he and Marisol had that kind of day off when they were still just friends.

It still shook him to his core in just how much has changed. The dynamic between them was different, but also in a lot of ways, it has mostly stayed the same. Taking out the part about them having sex whenever they could, the way they were with each other was as though they were still just best friends. Because that’s what they were: Best friends. No amount of labels or intimate moments could change how close they were before the night of the Christmas party. No amount of gift-giving or close calls after nearly banging could ruin what was unmistakenly a friendship that came first and came before anything else in his life.

As Sonny parked his orange truck in the usual spot on the far right of the parking lot, which put them as close to the football field and bleachers (their go-to spot for quality best friend smoking time), Sonny took the key out of the ignition but didn’t move. He only sighed and leaned back into his seat. “Is it too late to ditch?” Sonny asked his girlfriend, holding her hand and squeezing it for comfort. “How difficult would it be to just drive out of here and, I don’t know, go to Disney World?” He laughed at his question but on some level, he was serious in his contemplation of ditching.

“Disney World?” Marisol repeated, letting out an amused laugh. “I never pegged you for a princess-loving, mouse-wearing little bitch,” she joked, shuffling in her seat so she could face Sonny and resting her head on the passenger seat header.

“Bitch please! I can fuck with Goofy all day. He’s my -- well, I can’t say what he is to me, but just know I will moo right along with that cow-dog!” Sonny proclaimed, both of them laughing hard until a nonspecific amount of time passed to where it was just awkward silence. “But seriously, is it too cowardly to just...not face Rye today?” He asked, somewhat sighing.

“Not really…" Mari admitted, letting out a sad sigh as her thumb gently grazed the back of Sonny's hand. "If Rye's reaction is the same one the others will have, then I'm not sure I want to face them either."

“I see what you’re doing,” Sonny stated, letting out his biggest sigh yet. His sudden realization about what he suspected Marisol was doing had worked (much to his annoyance).

It pained him because he was nearly at the point where skipping school was the only option, but if Rye didn’t see either of them at school, even if the hotheaded fool was happy, it would, in turn, make both he and Marisol look bad. Why couldn’t they show their faces? What happened to make them want to ditch? It was annoying and Sonny didn’t want to, but he saw no alternative.

“We have no choice, I suppose.” Sonny spoke after a few moments of silence. He squeezed her hand. “Let’s just do this -- together. And should the worst case happen, you can just take a swing at their car with your handy-dandy bat,” Sonny half-joked, “this time I’ll even record you and we can send it to Jackass!”

Marisol's loud laughter filled the inside of the truck. “You’re never going to let me live that down, won’t you?” she asked him with a grin. Knowing Sonny and the rest of their friends as she did, they probably wouldn’t-- unless she pulled an even bigger stunt. Not that she planned on it, of course. She’d been doing good on her meds and therapy, and things weren’t nearly as crazy as they were before. "As tempting as it is to become Lady Jackass, I wanna think I’ve grown past that. So don’t expect any more broken windshields or side mirrors from me.”

He chuckled, taking the keys out of the ignition, an act that was soon followed by a typical Sonny sigh. “I guess you have a point. We’re both past those immature moments that made us a pariah.” With that admission, he turned to look at her. “If you can promise me that neither of us will revert to our ugly selves at least until after we have lunch in exactly--” Sonny looked to his wristwatch “--four hours from now, then I won’t chicken out.”

"But you're already so fucking ugly. You don't have to revert back to anything," came Marisol's quick response to her boyfriend, managing a few seconds of a straight face before bursting out in laughter.

Sonny lightly punched her arm. “It’s what’s on the inside that matters, not the contrived conception of what societal beauty should be.”

"Okay, Archer, settle down with your philosophical preaching now," the girl said with a chuckle, raising her hands up in defeat. "As much as I love that you think that way, it defeats the purpose of the joke. You're supposed to laugh, remember?"

“Maybe he’s influencing me,” Sonny laughed, shrugging. He grabbed his bag from the backseat. “Let’s head into hell, I guess,” he spoke, dread in his voice and a reluctance in his delayed actions, but eventually, he opened the door taking one giant step out of the truck because, yes he’s not the tallest person, so the distance from the driver’s seat and ground wasn’t the same for someone who could reach their leg down without feeling the smack of their step in their joints.

If getting in and out of the behemoth of a truck was a challenge for Sonny, it was a whole damn project for Marisol. The shorter girl basically needed a stool to get on, and was only able to exit by taking a seat on the floor of the passenger's side of the vehicle and sliding down onto the pavement beneath her. Once safely in the ground, she grabbed her backpack, slung it over her shoulders, popped two pieces of gum that she'd grabbed from her container inside the truck before her exit inside her mouth and rushed to the driver's side.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" she asked Sonny, raising an expectant eyebrow up at him and crossing her arms in front of her chest.

He knew what she wanted. The slight pouting expression her lips made, the way her arms folded across her chest, the way those soul-piercing eyes waited with limited patience — yeah, Sonny knew what she wanted. Was he going to give in? Yes, of course, he was. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to make her intentionally wait for her reward. Miss Little ‘Give Me What I Want Now’ was going to linger for a few, long moments as he purposely, which also was in a humorous way, moved his face closer to hers, laughing as he gave her multiple little rabbit kisses.

“I lo-lo-love you!” Sonny said with laughter as his lips were still locked with Marisol’s.

If you were to tell Marisol a year ago that she’d be acting like those imbecile, loved-up, sickly-sweet vanilla couples you saw all over the school, she would’ve laughed in your face and called bullshit. There was no way, she said, you would ever see her all over some guy, hugging and kissing and being affectionate and putting up a Nicholas Sparks movie performance for poor, unsuspecting folks. And with Sonny Drake, of all people? You might as well have been high on hard drugs. But alas, here she was a year later: happily wrapped up in her boyfriend’s arms with her own around him, looking and feeling very much madly in love with the boy who used to be her best friend.

“Fuck, I love you more!” she somehow managed to cry out in between giggles and kisses, her voice muffled by Sonny’s lips on hers.

He couldn’t stop smiling and laughing and sometimes both happened, resulting in an accidental lip-bite that was one notch above teasing. “You know I’ll keep doing this until one of us wins, so I’ll be the adult here and submit to your will, mistress!” He kissed her again.

“As it should be!” she sassily responded moments after pulling away from Sonny’s lips, giving him one last kiss before unwrapping her arms from him and holding his hand instead. “Now let’s get going before somebody else walks in on us.”

He smiled at her one last time before doing the same as his lips quickly pressed against hers. Then the two, with their hands together and squeezing lovingly, made their way across the senior building's entrance with minimal fear in their eyes. If any existed, it was the heart-pounding anxiety of casually putting themselves out there. But, as Marisol would say to anyone who had something negative to say: they could all suck it.

[Venus]

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Julie opened her locker with a tired sigh. She had spent the night before speaking with her sister Iris, who was doing the Stockholm Fashion Week in Europe. This was becoming a regular thing now that Iris was making a name for herself in the fashion world: them only speaking over the internet. Julie spent most of the night going through her closet and getting rid of all of the clothing that was out of fashion and also just plain boring. It, in some way, was purifying, and when she was done, the closet was just as ready as she was to turn a new leaf and start anew.

The redhead grabbed her French book, closed the locker gingerly and leaned her back against the cold metal of the lockers, scrolling Instagram while she waited for Chanel. Suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder, a bright smile grew upon her face as she thought it was her best friend. But when she saw who was standing in front of her, the smile dissipated in a quick manner. You could see her blue eyes freeze over as she looked at the young man in front of her.

“Hey Julie! Do you have a minute?”

There was a lot that she would rather say, but now that she was ready for a new life, she decided to hear him out. “I do…” she said shortly locking her phone and putting it in her purse, before returning her attention to Santiago with an expectant look.

Okay, so she was willing to listen to him. That was good."Listen, I don't know if you saw, but Lils and I are having a baby girl..." Santiago began, laying the groundwork for what was probably one of the most nerve-wracking momenta of his life, right up there next to making things official with April and telling their parents she was pregnant.

The look on Julie’s face didn’t falter even for a moment as the boy spoke. “Yes. I am aware of your situation,” she said, waiting for him to get to the point. Did he really think she wouldn’t have known? That April would have kept that from her?

He'd hoped that the mention of her future niece softened Julie up a little, but it seemed that it had no impact on her mood whatsoever. Fuck. This was going to be harder than he thought. Letting out a sigh, Diablo continued. "See, ever since I found out I was getting a daughter, I've been thinking, and…" he said, taking in a deep breath and looking straight into Julie's eyes, hoping that she could sense just how serious he was about his next words. "I just wanted to say I was sorry… For everything. I know that what I did to you is disgusting. I was immature and stupid and an idiot, but it doesn't excuse my shitty behavior. I said and did things I'm ashamed of: things that if any man ever did to my daughter I'd be arrested," he admitted with a dry laugh and a shake of his head, digging his hands inside the pockets of his trousers.

"But how can I want a gentleman for Camila when I'm not one myself, right? I can't expect any boy to treat my little girl how she deserves to be treated when all I've done is the opposite? I wanna think that the best example I can give her starts with me. So here I am: trying to make things right. I know it's probably too little too late, but I just wanted to make sure you knew I really am fucking sorry."

Listening to Santiago’s speech was like an emotional journey for Julie. She started off angry, which then transitioned to interest, and then ended in indifferent understanding. She drew a sharp breath. “You’re right--” she began, lips pursed as she thought about how she should word her sentiment. “It is too little too late,” she continued. “It wasn’t only what you did Santiago… You forget I get catcalled by your cult of jocks because of what you said about me.” she crossed her arms in front of her before she kept going. “And, frankly, I find it kind of condescending that it took this growing-up moment for you to become a human being and stop being such a fucking cliché!” she remarked, eyes still blazing. This was something that has been years in the making: things she had wanted to say to him for ages. “So you mean to say… that if you would’ve had a boy… you would’ve continued on being the poster boy for toxic masculinity?”

Julie paused, her face softening just a bit. “But, sure… I do appreciate the sentiment and I will accept your apology-” she held up a finger. “-for April. She doesn’t need additional stress right now.” Julie commented, biting her lower lip.

Huh. Even with how curt Julie had been, that had gone a lot better than what the devil had imagined. He’d made sure to carefully listen to her every word, keeping respectful silence so the redhead would know she had his full attention. She was completely justified in feeling like she did, and absolutely right in some of her points. He wasn’t upset or offended at her comments, nor did he bother with excusing, arguing or putting up his actions to debate. He simply listened, nodded when it was appropriate and gracefully accepted the opportunity he was given.

"That's more than I can ask for," Santiago finally said with an understanding nod after a few seconds of solemn silence. "Thank you for hearing me out, Julie-- really. Lils and Mila are really lucky to have you on their corner."

The young woman stayed quiet before clicking her tongue. “I guess it’s settled then… Consider the hatchet buried. But know this, Santiago: we are not-- nor are we ever going to be-- friends.” She clarified before turning with a flourish, ponytail swinging as she spun around and walked away, leaving the young man to his own thoughts and company. She was clearly done with the whole situation.

[AlteredTundra]

It was strange for Stella to be back at school after such a long winter break. She was still on Paris time, so her body wasn’t able to reset itself like she had hoped that she would be able to. Truth was, her flight had been delayed a few times and by the time she finally did arrive, it was so late (or early depending on how one looks at it), she couldn’t skip today, not when so many people -- and especially one person in particular -- was dying to see her. So, she would force herself to meet them, regardless of how much like death she felt.

As she made her way to her locker and checked her reflection in the mirror that hung on the inside of her locker door, the brunette couldn’t help but lament on her conversation with Chrissie. In addition to looking absolutely dreadful, the way things were left between them, the things left unsaid, and thoughts left to linger about, Stella felt a rare emotion crawling inside her body. Her gut tightened the minute she thought about Chrissie, the minute she revisualized Chrissie’s voice as she told her about Paris, how she seemed to disapprove of Carter, how she wanted Stella to betray her feelings for Carter, how she wanted Stella to have a night that the brunette knew would have been magical.

And all of that made her...It made her...It made Stella angry. How could Chrissie suggest such a thing? How could she take something Stella had been dying to confide to her about since setting foot on that plane and counting the hours (at least those she remained conscious during) so she could talk to her? Stella didn’t have a lot of close friends. She was friendly with the vast majority of people but her closest friends -- the ones that remained at King’s -- they were in so few numbers. Mac moved back to California and Georgie, though she was great, she wasn’t Chrissie.

“Fuck!” Stella’s internal ire boiled over to the point where she shouted and slammed her locker shut, alerting some nearby and she collected herself immediately. Holding her shoulderbag close to her, Stella decided to make a beeline for anywhere that wasn’t near the prying eyes of those around her.

Her display of unusual anger was surprising in a lot of ways but mainly for Stella herself. She didn’t know what to feel in all honesty. She’s always felt strongly one way or the other, but it’s always been with a positive outlook on life and to others, too. Some saw it as being too cheery, which she totally understood but she never let what people like Marisol Castillo would say about her. She always viewed that everyone deserved a hug or a friendly smile their way. And it wasn’t like she had changed overnight, but that part of her was being run out of town by the unexplainable bitterness she couldn’t shake off. It was like everything was telling her to scream as loud as she could, say whatever came to her mind, and throw caution into the wind about how it made her seem.

At some point, Stella soon found herself close at the entrance and she saw Carter talking to Chrissie. Immediately her mind went to Paranoid City and all hell broke loose internally. Eyes squinted and she tried to focus on trying to hear them, but with the hustle from the other students nearby and everyone chatting, she couldn’t hear a single thing either of them were saying.

“What could they be talking about? Why are they even talking in the first place?”

Stella wanted to move closer, she wanted to see if there was anything she could hear and she almost did, but then Chrissie turned around and started walking in Stella’s general direction. In a cowardly effort, she turned around so her cousin didn’t see her. Even when the coast was relatively clear, she was overcome by existing emotions and her paranoia-curiosity that she had to go up to Carter, which she did and she made an effort to wave to him, smiling as she had always done.

“Hey, Carter!” She hugged him. “I hope your break was good to you,” she said, easing her way to her real motives. “So, uh, I saw you talking with Chrissie just now. It looked pretty intense. I hope she didn’t say anything that got you too annoyed.”

[NeoAJ]

As Shawna trudged towards the school, wondering just how she was going to find anyone else, her problem was solved for her.

Please tell me you're here. Don't leave me alone on our last first day. :( I'll be waiting for ya at our table. <3

With Sunshine texting her, Shawna breathed a sigh of relief. I guess if she’s here, she can keep me somewhat on the path towards not flunking out. At the very least, she’s a reason to actually show up instead of ditching and just smoking under the bridge or something.

The tall girl worked her way around towards the entrance, and it was very hard to miss her best friend. Sunshine was clearly giving the full effort for the final beginning. Shawna honestly felt a little self conscious for giving the bare minimum this morning, and being more concerned about making her tarts pop as opposed to her eyes. Still, Sunshine wasn’t the type to point that sort of stuff out. It’s part of why they worked.

Shawna gave a wave as she approached the table. “Hey Cookie,” she greeted, throwing in Sunshine’s alternate nickname just to change things up. Plus it seemed to make sense that Cookie followed Cupcake. “Did you really think I was going to leave you here by yourself?” Shawna held her hand over her heart. “I’m so hurt! ...Seriously though, I’m glad you texted.” She slung her bag onto the table and took a seat.

"I admit… it crossed my mind," she said making a frowny face and scrunching up her nose. "I wouldn't blame you for skipping the first day back. Aaaannnyway. How was the rest of your break?"

The tall girl let out a huge sigh. “Honestly? It did not compare to New York,” Shawna admitted. “I mean, I guess I was able to take some time for myself and try and think about some stuff. Even comparing where I am now to this point last year, it’s almost insane when you think about it. Of course, after that I just got high and watched Brooklyn Nine-Nine, so you know. It’s all a big circle.” She leaned forward on the table, resting her head on her fist. “I will say, I definitely feel a little more inclined to be here now than I did before the trip.”

Curiosity peaked and as clueless as ever, Sunshine just didn't want to up and assume that Shawna’s reason was herself. But if there was a chance - any chance - that the reason was what she thought, should she go ahead and get clarification? Butterflies in her stomach, Sunshine brushed her hair back behind her ear as she began to speak.

"New York was amazing. I'm really glad you were able to come with me." She took a deep breath, deciding how to word the rest of what she had to say. "Can I ask…." she hesitated for a moment, her voice slightly shaking. "What did that kiss mean? I mean, was it like a drunk induced one time thing or are we exploring possibilities or are we just gonna drop it and pretend it never happened?"

Shawna struggled to keep herself upright. She had to blink a couple times, as if to reset her brain. Sable was really going there…

It wasn’t like Shawna hadn’t thought about it. Indeed, she thought about it a lot, going over it in her head, even trying to get council from her friends about it just to gain perspective she clearly lacked in this situation. Chrissie was very pragmatic, wanting to make sure that this was actually about Sunshine and not just about replacing the emptiness in her life with just anything before ultimately backing whatever she chose and Ariel… Ariel offered clarity in her own way, distilling the situation to something akin to a flow-chart.

Do I like Sunshine? Yes, obviously. Is there potential to smash? Apparently there is. Do I think she’s pretty? Shawna blinked again, as if to confirm what her eyes were telling her. Yes. Yes she is. So I go for this, right? Devil logic confirmed?

Shawna cleared her throat. ”Um…” It should have been that simple. But she was clearly stalling. There was one tiny detail that was holding her back, and it was something she had been thinking about during the break. The one person complicating that kiss, and that was the other member of their autumn trio. The one no longer here.

It had been less than a month since Kellie Anne left to return to California. Less than a month since their relationship was capped. A part of Shawna still wanted to hold onto that hope that Kellie could break away from her family and come back to Palm Beach. That there was more time to figure out everything that happened after that day in her bed. There were still so many unresolved feelings there.

But Sunshine had been there almost as long. Through some sort of divine arrangement, she had been there. It didn’t take much to become Shawna’s best friend, not with the lack of contenders, but in a short time Sunshine had managed it. And she eclipsed it. She was here. She was looking out for her. She was keeping her sane and away from the spirals. Enough to keep her from doing something really stupid.

But what about Cupcake? Was it so wrong to want to take a shot at another relationship so soon after ending a previous one? There had to be some sort of math equation to calculate the right amount of time from the termination of one tryst to the beginning of another. Or did it even matter given what had already happened on New Year’s Eve?

The Shawna of 2018 probably would have driven herself crazy trying to come to a logical solution to all of this. The Shawna of 2020, though? The time was running out to think it through, so it was time to make a leap.

”Sunshine,” she started, trying to make sure she got the words right for both their sakes. No rough drafts here. “You are my best friend. You know that, right? I don’t think I’ve even been able to say that in the past, that’s how much I value the fact that we got to that level in such a short amount of time. You are fucking amazing.

...And that kiss? I can’t pretend that it didn’t happen. It confirmed too many things for me. Enough to know that it’s not just about drunk Shawna giving in to her lesbian side. That lesbian side is part of who I am. It was enough to know that I probably need some more practice at kissing, to be honest. And given that I just ruled your other two options out…” Shawna dropped her hand from her chin and placed it on top of Sunshine’s. ”It’s enough to confirm that door number two is the option I want. I treasure your friendship so much Sunshine, I hope we’re not jeopardizing that,” The brown-eyed girl stared into those orbs that seemed to match her own. “But I’m willing to bet there was more to that kiss than just a random-ass countdown. I think you know it too. So, I’m down to see just what it means. If you’re with me.”

Oh no. Hesitation. That wasn’t good.

But then again, Sunshine realized that she had just bombarded Shawna with a major question out of absolutely nowhere, which meant that while the other girl had to take time to sort through thoughts of her own - so did she.

It wasn’t as if Sunshine hadn’t thought about the kiss and what it meant practically for the rest of winter break. In fact - it had pretty much been the only thing she could think about. Did she mess things up? Would Shawna avoid her? Was Shawna still hung up on Kellie? (Not like it would really matter if she was, but Sunshine was trying to be respectful even if she did just jump the gun). Was it going to be something real, or was Shawna just looking for something more playful, or nothing at all? Did she just jeopardize whatever they had by being so blunt?

Once Shawna began to speak, Sunshine felt her heart speed up. Thankfully, the more the other girl talked, the more the thoughts slowed down in her own head.

”Yes, of course!” she blurted out. ”I know I’m worried about us potentially screwing things up too, but…” she bit her bottom lip in concentration, thinking of what to say next. ”I’m not going to say that I don’t care about that, because I do. But at the same time, I think that we would also regret not seeing where this could go. So yeah. I’m in.”

Shawna smiled, both at Sunshine’s confirmation and at the fact that she had successfully read another human being and made what definitely felt like the right call. “Well, at least if we both know we don’t want to fuck things up, we can both be aware of the situation in case things go screwy,” she offered. “Least I know I got someone who cares enough about me for that, huh?”

Sunshine laughed. ”Exactly. And of course we can both work at a pace that isn’t too fast or slow for either of us. I know that Kellie… I know there was something there between you guys, even if I didn’t know all about it. So while I don’t see it as me being in competition with her or anything - I still want to be considerate of any feelings that were or still may be there.” She paused for another moment, mildly regretting bringing up their old friend. ”And I know that bringing that up was probably a bad idea, but I feel like we should head into whatever this is with everything in the open so… yeah?”

Bringing up Kellie did cause Shawna to look away from Sunshine for a moment. The reason for her previous hesitation didn’t need to resurface that quickly. But Sunshine had a point. It was going to be a thing. If Kellie ever found out, it was probably going to be a thing. There would be questions. On both ends.

Shawna was visibly flustered, but she pressed on. “No you’re right,” she admitted. “And it is going to be hard. Kellie… she got so many of my firsts, you know? It’s hard to compartmentalize those feelings. But I have to be able to. If only to… well, break myself out of this cycle. Otherwise, I’m not going to be able to enjoy anything else.” She looked back at Sunshine. “And you are someone I definitely want to enjoy to the fullest extent. So I can’t promise I will be 100% all the time, but I will definitely give it my all.” Shawna was almost surprising herself with the kind of determination she was showing. It was something that she thought had been all but drained out of her. The heart and brain make a weird team sometimes.

”Good. I’ll try my best too, ya know? Now come on. We’ll be late for class if we don’t hurry.”

“Right, that shit. Knew there was some reason I didn’t want to come today,” Shawna joked as she got up from the table, still keeping her hand on top of Sunshine’s, not wanting to let go just yet as the two made their move towards the school.

[Sugar and Spite]

As he hit the keys on the piano to create the perfect t ih ne, Jasper found that he was no longer screwing up the song in any aspect. Not when it came to pacing, forgetting a note - not in anything. A small smirk creeping up to his face as the realization came to mind, the young man finished the tune with gusto.

Getting up from the piano bench, Jasper rolled his sleeves back down before heading outside to do some people observing.

It seemed as if this morning at Kings Academy was in full swing. People were getting things from their lockers, chatting and surprisingly... everyone was getting along. Figuring he should do some talking himself, Jasper quickly scanned the grounds for a potential target before making his way over to them.

[Ejected]

Before skipping off to find her best friend, Chanel took a quick stop at her own locker. In swift motions, the young woman input her combination, pulled the locker open, and began to unload the contents of her bag. She then took a look in the mirror that hung on the door, using that time to apply a little more lipstick and blot whatever shiny spots had appeared on her freshly beat face. "The fucking struggles of having oily skin..." the young woman muttered under her breath as she searched around the tight space for her setting powder. Less than five minutes later, and she was ready to go; she gathered the materials she needed for AP Literature and continued her journey down the hallway. The clicking sound of her platform heels echoed through the narrow space as she walked, her head on the swivel for the fiery redhead known as Julie MacMillan. Who she saw instead as she continued walking, however, was none other than April Foster, and if it weren't for the two people she spotted standing in front of her, she would've stopped for a brief moment to say hello.

Instead, the young woman sped up and continued her search, this time more eager to find her friend than before. And when she did finally spot Julie, it only caused the young woman more confusion. Why in the hell had she just finished speaking to the self proclaimed Candy Man himself? "Oh, you're definitely gonna have to spill the tea about... whatever the hell that was," Chanel said as she approached her friend and looped her arm with hers. "But that's gonna have to wait for lunch or something, cause we have to go. Like, right the fuck now."

And without warning, Chanel took off walking once again, this time with her best friend in tow; She walked surprisingly fast for someone wearing five-inch heels. "So you remember all that shit that happened with April and Kavi at the Halloween party, right?" Chanel said as she continued to push their way through the sea of students. She didn't stop practically dragging Julie along until the small group that had formed down the hall finally came into their view. "Well... I was thinking that April might need a little backup this morning. You know, just to make sure things don't go completely left. I mean, I'm sure she's got everything under control, but from the looks of it... that Ariel chick doesn't look too happy."

As Chanel finally took a closer look at the scene that was unfolding, her eyes suddenly landed on the box that April held in her hands. "Any idea what the hell that is in her hands... or who that other guy is?" It was only then that Chanel noticed the unfamiliar boy who towered over the rest of the group. "You know, it's been a while since I've had to punch a bitch, and I'll gladly do it for April and my future niece's sake."

[AlteredTundra]

Well, this just got awkward.

Between Ariel’s increased, if not justified, paranoia and maybe even some slight anger, Kavi couldn’t help but feel like that guy from the movie 127 Hours. The boulder crushing his arm was Ariel, the time limit until his demise was how long Kavi took to accept or deny the gift that April gave him, and the glimmer of escaping with his life came in the form of someone Kavi didn’t know. Even after Ariel said his name out loud, that did him nothing. But at least he had a name.

Meeting Ryland’s gaze, he didn’t know what to make of him in all honesty. He and Kavi stood on equal footing as far as their height and build were concerned, but Kavi couldn’t say that he was a fan of his attitude. Implying that Kavi wasn’t a good choice for Ariel got under his skin. Like, who the hell did this white bread bastard think he was?! If he had a problem with Kavi, maybe instead of using failed attempts at appearing friendly, he should speak his mind.

Going between all of his options, Kavi decided not to indulge Ryland’s childish behavior. He turned his attention to April, unintentionally shoving Ryland as he would much rather pay attention to her than give Ariel’s friend anymore of his attention. “In all fairness, I did deserve it. I’m just lucky that Ariel and I got the chance to really talk,” Kavi said, looking at Ariel, who was understandably watching April like the hawk he knew his girlfriend to be. “And, I’m sure that all is forgiven, right sweetie?” Kavi asked Ariel, hoping to get her attention.