NeoAJ

Rosefell High.

Savannah Payton || Rosefell High

Name

Savannah Lynn Payton

Nicknames

Sav, Savvy, Payout

Age

18

Gender

Female

Sexuality

Homosexual

Relationship Status

Single

Label

The Outlaw

Appearance Details

• Hair: Savannah is usually seen with her long hair allowed to fall straight down with all colors in view: the dark brown at the roots, the bleached blonde that makes up most of her hair, and the dip-dyed neon pink strands at the front.
• Eyes: Brown
• Height: 5'8"
• Body Type: She has a slim build that she makes look bigger through her wardrobe choices. A tough front is necessary to survive.
• Clothing Style: Savannah sticks to low-cut tanktops and camisoles over a rotating cast of ripped-up jeans. Her trademark, alongside her hair, is her black leather jacket. This jacket is her pride and joy. She will switch up on occasion with other jackets, but this is her standard look. It's how people know who to go to for more illicit acquisitions.
  
  She usually accessorizes with two or three chain necklaces.
• Makeup Wise: She favors dark eyeliner, eyeshadow and mascara to emphasize her eyes. It lets people know when she stares at them that she is not to be trifled with.
• Scars, Tattoos and/or Piercings: Savannah has multiple piercings. Both of her ears are pierced and she will usually wear a pair of hoop earrings in there. as well as a right helix piercing with a small ring. She also has a nose piercing, with a ring in there. Tattoos are next on the list.
  
  She has a couple of long scars on her back and a large puncture scar on her right shoulder. She doesn't like talking about them.

Personality Traits

Savannah has three levels of trust, and they determine what level of Savannah you have to deal with.

The first if Savannah is ambivalent to you. You'll get a somewhat surly, standoffish sort of woman who isn't keen on talking to anyone she feels is going to waste her time. She'll improve to politeness once it is clear the conversation will mean something in some way to her, but she will still be somewhat defensive. She didn't get to where she was by talking too much. No nonsense is what you get.

The second is when it becomes clear you are a waste of Savannah's time. She will get belligerent. She does not suffer fools, and she certainly does not suffer snitches or lowlifes of a similar level. She will hit them. She will threaten them. She relies on the reputation she has built to make sure that it doesn't come to that very often, but if it does, she will not hesitate.

Once trust is gained, and this will take multiple interactions, Savannah is a very loyal friend. That same attitude that is used against her enemies allows her to defend her allies. She is a very good listener, and is always willing to offer the insights she's gleaned through all the tough experiences in her life to try and help with any problems that her friends come to her with. Of course, some problems are easier to solve than others. But she's always going to give it her all to fix things. Even if they involve illicit activities.

Biography

Savannah Lynn Payton was born to single mother Samantha Payton on August 30, 2002 in Spring Valley, Texas. Samantha was a teenage runaway after her father and mother reacted poorly to her attitude one time too many. She spent a couple years working the streets around Austin, the largest city she could get to, until someone lied to her about protection and her daughter was born nine months later. Didn't even have a name for an attempt at a DNA test. Too many pseudonyms.

Once Savannah was born, Samantha took a job at Wal-Mart to try and make things as normal as possible for her baby girl without running the risk of leaving her alone. But big box stores don't offer the same kind of money. So she slowly started working herself back into the escort life. A rotation of men started appearing in Savannah's apartment from time to time. Some of them were kind and offered gifts. Some of them paid her no attention. A few were complete assholes. Savannah usually had the magic words to make them go away for good. But not without a mark or two left.

In order to get out of the house more, Savannah started falling in with kids in similar situations, running around with a preteen gang led by an older girl named Alexis. At first they were nothing more than a pack of brats. Loitering, some petty vandalism. When it moved to shoplifting though, Savannah enjoyed that. Soon she upped her game from lifting candy bars, to opening up unlocked cars and taking the contents. Anything to try and impress Alexis, who she had developed a schoolgirl crush on. She went to far though went she opened up an Audi S5 only to find the keys still inside. A 13-year-old that could say she's driven a car was too tempting to ignore. And so she made the fateful decision to start the car. The ensuing 38-minute joy ride resulted in her plowing into multiple hydrants, lamp posts and a pair of pedestrians. When she finally crashed into the side of a convenience store, stolen goods on her possession and an open wound on her upper shoulder, the police weren't taking her lightly. She was sentenced to three years in the Travis County Juvenile Detention Center for her impressive array of crimes.

The time in juvee was boring, but it didn't end up putting Savannah on the straight and narrow as much as it did for Samantha. She realized all the time with this rotating cast of men in her line of work wasn't good for her or the kid. So while Sav did time, Sam finally went to school, got a CC degree in massage therapy, and by the time her daughter was free to move about the county, Sam decided to move her around the country. She had been talking to a man online for over a year and was in her feelings with him despite the age difference. And the distance difference. So not only was Savannah going to have to reset her connections on the outside, she was going to be doing it far away from home. Downtown freaking Ohio.

Samantha was confident that Christopher would be the man that both of them needed, but Savannah has been resistant. Even as "Chris" as made a bunch of overtones and been an all-carrot, no-stick kind of father figure. The engagement was announced on Valentine's Day last year, as if Savannah didn't need another reason to barf on that holiday. But, she has proven successful in building a relative network of connections in her short time in Columbus that she has some semblance of what she had going for her in Texas. So she has a role to fill at Rosefell. Even if more "Chris" types are on their way this year.

Family

Mother: Samantha Payton // 37 // Massage Therapist // FC: Jaime Pressly

Mother's Fiance: Christopher Manning // 55 // Bank Manager // FC: Stephen Colbert

Misc.

Emma Mackey | FF4DE1

• Savannah is a smoker. She's been trying to scale back a little bit since marijuana offers far more than tobacco, but she's still averaging a quarter to a third of a pack of smokes a day. Usually when stressed out by her step-father.
• She does have a vehicle, with her "good" behavior earned her a gift from her stepfather upon receiving her license. However, she's not thrilled about driving a 2012 Kia Soul. The boxy tiny thing does not match her aesthetic.
• Her favorite music is female-led alt and punk rock. She thinks she might be good enough to be a singer herself, but she wouldn't last long in a band that didn't share her ideals.
• Quickest way to earn her trust? Know her likes and when she's in a mood, offer to grab some. These likes include food-court Thai, sour gummy worms, those rolled-up Doritos that are kinda like smokes, and smokes.
• My favorite thing about Halloween right now is that it's a hell of a lot warmer than it is right now.

Paramount

Indy Adams

_{(FC: Mia Healey, Dialogue Color: 42B5AE)}
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

F O R T H E R E C O R D

| | N I C K N A M E (S) | |

• Indy (Technically her name is Nicola Diana Adams, but no one calls her that.)
• If someone manages to get close, and no one has yet, they might earn the privilege of calling her Nic.

| | A G E | |

18, born August 21

| | G E N D E R | |

Female

| | S E X U A L I T Y | |

Pansexual

| | R E L A T I O N S H I P S T A T U S | |

Single

| | O C C U P A T I O N | |

Student. She has no desire to work at the moment.

| | C L A S S I F I C A T I O N | |

Senior

____________________________________________________________

A T F I R S T G L A N C E

| | I N D E P T H A P P E A R A N C E | |

Indy looks like the typical girl you would see lounging on a California beach in the middle of the day. Her hair has been bleached blonde partially by the sun and partially by... well, bleach. Her moss green eyes turn almost teal when gazing at her beloved ocean with the sun reflecting off it. She stands 5'6", but makes her presence felt with her toned, slim body. She has both her earlobes pierced, as well as a daith piercing on her left ear.

When informed her new school had uniforms, Indy was not pleased as uniforms were not her forte. She had the luxury of being able to wear what she wanted whenever she wanted, so she did her best trying to work with what she had. She's never had to do a tie, so it's worn rather loose, and the skirts are not comfortable, so her black stockings come up to mid-thigh to minimize contact. She does take luxury with her rotation of earrings and occasional headbands, but that's all she can do with the limited time she's had to assess the situation.

On casual days, Indy sticks with what's comfortable. Shorts that rarely come down to mid-thigh, tank tops for warm days, jean jacket over the tank top on slightly cooler days. Her jewelry collection is impeccable given her travels around the worlds, and she will rotate necklaces and earrings depending on where her mood takes her.

| | R E P U T A T I O N | |

Indy hasn't had a chance to stay in one spot for too long to make friends, so she is an unknown quality. She did have a brief stay in the Bay Area when she was 12, while her mom was lecturing at Cal-Berkeley, but the year after, she was whisked away again. It's made her reticent when it comes to trusting others because she had no clue whether it was going to last past eight months before she was on the move to a new locale. She's anticipating rumors and hearsay given she's fresh meat, but she's got a strong streak of self-reliance that no academy is going to crush. Especially not with her goal of being completely done with school so close. So she'll use the air of mystery in her favor. At least for now. Maybe something else will happen that will convince her she needs to abandon this lone wolf streak to survive. After all, no woman is an island, especially not in the sea.

____________________________________________________________

O F F T H E R E C O R D

| | H I S T O R Y | |

Nicola Diane Adams was born in Cape Town, South Africa, the first and only child born to June and David Adams, married marine biologists who were studying sharks of the coast of the Cape of Good Hope at the time. She didn't get the chance to stay long enough to develop a local accent, as her parents' study ended when she was two. This began a pattern. Her parents would return to their home base in New Jersey for a brief period of time after a research period ended, but they wouldn't stay in Princeton for long before heading off to another location for a study. Nicola, or Indy as she was known by thanks to the South African pronunciation of her initials, went along for the ride as her parents traveled from Nova Scotia to Chile, Japan to Turkey, experiencing a bevy of cultures from around the world. However, one thing was constant: She was most comfortable on the beach.

Her parents handled most of her schooling given that she couldn't be expected to keep pace while switching from Spanish to Arabic to French to Australian, so her free time while one or two of her parents were busy with field work was to just lounge on the beach when she was younger, and indulge in beach bum culture when she got old enough to appreciate it. She seemed to be doing well enough with the courses that her parents didn't mind her spending her time on whatever sand they happened to be nearest to. Of course, Indy got better at hiding some of the other things she did while her parents were out on their boats, or giving late-night lectures. Until her junior year in Sydney, when her marks started slipping and a stash of Victoria bottles was found on the shores that Indy was known to frequent. Unsure what to do, June and David decided to take advantage of the offer that David had to become a tenured professor at Cal-Berkeley and try to settle their daughter down at one of the highly-rated local schools in the area.

Indy didn't take kindly to the news. Yeah, California was great the year that she had spent there before, and her brief time in school with other children her age helped cement Cali as one of her preferred places to live, but the more she heard about Marble Heights, the more certain she was that she wasn't going to fit in. Uniforms? Dorms? No nearby ocean without shuttles? This was not going to work. But she had just one year left. One year and she could then do whatever she wanted. Go back to Australia, or South Africa or anywhere that didn't have any uniform other than what was comfortable on the beach. That was the goal. She just has to figure out how to survive this year at the academy.

| | B E Y O N D M Y R E P U T A T I O N | |

Her relationship with her family was better before her enrollment. Now? Now it's a bit strained. She hasn't answered any calls since arriving at Marble Heights. She's also not that hard to figure out once people actually get to know her. She made friends very easily in the past. It's just a matter of if she wants to do that in this final lap of her grade school career.

____________________________________________________________

A C A D E M I C S

| | E X T R A C U R R I C U L A R A C T I V I T I E S | |

• Surfing
• Beach Volleyball

| | B E S T & W O R S T S U B J E C T S | |

| B E S T |
English
History

| W O R S T |
Math
Science

| | E X T R A N O T E S | |

Her room is decorated with artifacts acquired from her stops around the world, including a taiko drum, a boomerang, and various photos with sharks and other marine activity. Her beach bum photos are locked away elsewhere.

Rosefell High.

---

What the hell am I doing here?

Alina wasn't the party type. She was the solitary type. At least, she was the keep things to a close group of friends sort of person. So what was she doing at the home of Christian Barker with triple-digit numbers of people milling around and enough booze to drown an army?

Maybe this week was tougher than she thought. Granted adjusting to everything was never going to be easy, but it seemed to be so much easier for Niki. Even if they didn't really want to talk about what happened on the first day of school. And Cas? Cas had his own plans. He seemed determined to enact them.

So where did that leave her?

Maybe that's why DeShawn's text made so much sense. Even if Christian knew her well enough to know how she felt about parties, Dee didn't know that. So when the football player sent that text, asking if she knew about the bash and that she was welcome to come along with him vouching for her, is that why she was willing to accept it so easily?

She didn't know. There were still no answers.

So here she was, grabbing a beer off the table, standing in back amidst a random mishmash of Liberty and Rosefell students, trying to figure out what she wanted to do. Again, she didn't know.

Maybe the bottom of the bottle will know.

Rosefell High.

---

This. This was the element. This is where Melissa Elliott established her power. This is where she ruled as queen. This was her domain.

So nice of one of the new boys to set things up like this on their first weekend as a Knight. It boded well for their future.

Granted, she was surprised when Christian introduced himself to her during the week. Not only as one of the star imports from *spit* Liberty, but as someone who wanted to start the year off right. That was a sentiment she could get behind. Especially when he laid out his "party budget." Melissa couldn't remember the last time she had seen that much money in one wad of cash, all geared towards her own hedonistic desires. Word had already spread among the Liberty kids that Melissa was the girl to talk to in order to get things done. This was pleasing.

Of course, she wasn't doing it alone, that was her secret. Sure, she had the necessary ID, but she couldn't stash $1000 worth of booze by herself. So Alycia was brought in to begin filling up the minivan with the legally yet illegally purchased booze that Melissa had bought from about a 20 mile radius around the greater Columbus area to avoid suspicion. Christian had given her access to the place prior to the party in order to get the libations where they needed to be, so the two main Thorns ditched last-period English in order to get everything transported. Then it was back to Rosefell to properly contribute to another Knights victory to start the season. Of course, the Stars were always a lovely homecoming opponent. So Melissa knew this was going to be a perfect celebration on multiple fronts.

Upon arriving at Christian's castle though, that's when she fully realized what bringing all this money into the equation was going to do for the social life at Rosefell. This was no rinky-dink party by the lake. Good thing too, because the minivan would have probably been sunk at that point. No, this was all out. Melissa had only seen things during the day, so the full scope of the neon blast that would be greeting guests was just hitting her now. She almost regretted turning up in casual clothing, because there were so many more options she had to shine under such lights. It was like some sort of crazy rave.

Not her forte, but hey, a party's a party.

Upon her entry, she of course had to stop by to thank the host for graciously arranging such a shindig. Christian was being a proper curator welcoming the early guests and Melissa smiled as she arrived, grazing his upper thigh with the edges of her fingernails, pressing enough to make sure the point was made. After which she immediately headed back to where she assumed the regular drinks were being hidden. A few choice bottles were being kept for any... private parties she may have planned in the future, but she would be happy to enjoy some of her second-tier selections at this part. Rico and Colin were there, so she took the opportunity to make sure her usual fixer was still good.

"Colin darling!" she exclaimed as she claimed a choice cooler for herself. "How's my favorite Gallagher boy doing?"

Colin turned away from Rico, holding the bottle of tequila in his hand, and took a sip from it, his blue eyes keeping a fixated connection with the Queen of Thorns. "That depends," he said, flashing her a smirk, "you gonna let me get your time of day later or you gonna blow me off as usual?"

A look of mock offense crossed Melissa's face. "I'm hurt! How could you think I could ever forget the man who has been there every time I needed him?"

Colin mocked her attempt at mocking him. "Who is to say really? We live in a mysterious world, your highness."

All the Queen could do was smirk. "Well at least you got the title right."

He laughed and took a quick sip of the bottle of tequila. "That's not the only thing I can do right," he said, winking.

"Don't have to prove that to me, Colin," she confirmed. "Maybe if you can make to the end of the night, I'll have a bit more than the time of day for you, hmmm?"

"It won't be a maybe, that much you can take to the bank." He confidently stated. Colin knew he could hold his own when it came to alcohol. Unlike most of the lightweights at their school, he knew how to pace himself. "Just be sure you're ready for me when I do."

"Always am, Colin," Melissa said with a wink. "That goes double for you too, Tiger," she added for Rico. "Anyway, you know where to find me."

Melissa confidently walked away, booze in hand. This was her domain, and she reigned supreme. It was time to enjoy the spoils of her rise. There was no one who could wreck this night in her mind.

Paramount

Indy Adams

_{(FC: Mia Healey, Dialogue Color: 42B5AE)}
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

F O R T H E R E C O R D

| | N I C K N A M E (S) | |

• Indy (Technically her name is Nicola Diana Adams, but no one calls her that.)
• If someone manages to get close, and no one has yet, they might earn the privilege of calling her Nic.

| | A G E | |

18, born August 21

| | G E N D E R | |

Female

| | S E X U A L I T Y | |

Pansexual

| | R E L A T I O N S H I P S T A T U S | |

Single

| | O C C U P A T I O N | |

Student. She has no desire to work at the moment.

| | C L A S S I F I C A T I O N | |

Senior

____________________________________________________________

A T F I R S T G L A N C E

| | I N D E P T H A P P E A R A N C E | |

Indy looks like the typical girl you would see lounging on a California beach in the middle of the day. Her hair has been bleached blonde partially by the sun and partially by... well, bleach. Her moss green eyes turn almost teal when gazing at her beloved ocean with the sun reflecting off it. She stands 5'6", but makes her presence felt with her toned, slim body. She has both her earlobes pierced, as well as a daith piercing on her left ear.

When informed her new school had uniforms, Indy was not pleased as uniforms were not her forte. She had the luxury of being able to wear what she wanted whenever she wanted, so she did her best trying to work with what she had. She's never had to do a tie, so it's worn rather loose, and the skirts are not comfortable, so her black stockings come up to mid-thigh to minimize contact. She does take luxury with her rotation of earrings and occasional headbands, but that's all she can do with the limited time she's had to assess the situation.

On casual days, Indy sticks with what's comfortable. Shorts that rarely come down to mid-thigh, tank tops for warm days, jean jacket over the tank top on slightly cooler days. Her jewelry collection is impeccable given her travels around the worlds, and she will rotate necklaces and earrings depending on where her mood takes her.

| | R E P U T A T I O N | |

Indy hasn't had a chance to stay in one spot for too long to make friends, so she is an unknown quality. She did have a brief stay in the Bay Area when she was 12, while her mom was lecturing at Cal-Berkeley, but the year after, she was whisked away again. It's made her reticent when it comes to trusting others because she had no clue whether it was going to last past eight months before she was on the move to a new locale. She's anticipating rumors and hearsay given she's fresh meat, but she's got a strong streak of self-reliance that no academy is going to crush. Especially not with her goal of being completely done with school so close. So she'll use the air of mystery in her favor. At least for now. Maybe something else will happen that will convince her she needs to abandon this lone wolf streak to survive. After all, no woman is an island, especially not in the sea.

____________________________________________________________

O F F T H E R E C O R D

| | H I S T O R Y | |

Nicola Diane Adams was born in Cape Town, South Africa, the first and only child born to June and David Adams, married marine biologists who were studying sharks of the coast of the Cape of Good Hope at the time. She didn't get the chance to stay long enough to develop a local accent, as her parents' study ended when she was two. This began a pattern. Her parents would return to their home base in New Jersey for a brief period of time after a research period ended, but they wouldn't stay in Princeton for long before heading off to another location for a study. Nicola, or Indy as she was known by thanks to the South African pronunciation of her initials, went along for the ride as her parents traveled from Nova Scotia to Chile, Japan to Turkey, experiencing a bevy of cultures from around the world. However, one thing was constant: She was most comfortable on the beach.

Her parents handled most of her schooling given that she couldn't be expected to keep pace while switching from Spanish to Arabic to French to Australian, so her free time while one or two of her parents were busy with field work was to just lounge on the beach when she was younger, and indulge in beach bum culture when she got old enough to appreciate it. She seemed to be doing well enough with the courses that her parents didn't mind her spending her time on whatever sand they happened to be nearest to. Of course, Indy got better at hiding some of the other things she did while her parents were out on their boats, or giving late-night lectures. Until her junior year in Sydney, when her marks started slipping and a stash of Victoria bottles was found on the shores that Indy was known to frequent. Unsure what to do, June and David decided to take advantage of the offer that David had to become a tenured professor at Cal-Berkeley and try to settle their daughter down at one of the highly-rated local schools in the area.

Indy didn't take kindly to the news. Yeah, California was great the year that she had spent there before, and her brief time in school with other children her age helped cement Cali as one of her preferred places to live, but the more she heard about Marble Heights, the more certain she was that she wasn't going to fit in. Uniforms? Dorms? No nearby ocean without shuttles? This was not going to work. But she had just one year left. One year and she could then do whatever she wanted. Go back to Australia, or South Africa or anywhere that didn't have any uniform other than what was comfortable on the beach. That was the goal. She just has to figure out how to survive this year at the academy.

| | B E Y O N D M Y R E P U T A T I O N | |

Her relationship with her family was better before her enrollment. Now? Now it's a bit strained. She hasn't answered any calls since arriving at Marble Heights. She's also not that hard to figure out once people actually get to know her. She made friends very easily in the past. It's just a matter of if she wants to do that in this final lap of her grade school career.

____________________________________________________________

A C A D E M I C S

| | E X T R A C U R R I C U L A R A C T I V I T I E S | |

• Surfing
• Beach Volleyball

| | B E S T & W O R S T S U B J E C T S | |

| B E S T |
English
History

| W O R S T |
Math
Science

| | E X T R A N O T E S | |

Her room is decorated with artifacts acquired from her stops around the world, including a taiko drum, a boomerang, and various photos with sharks and other marine activity. Her beach bum photos are locked away elsewhere.

Second Horizons

---

Jet lag sucks.

That was the big lesson of the day. Not that the groggy woman in the Seattle Airport Marriott had anything to compare the experience to, but it was clear that being pent up in a metal tube for what amounted to an entire day was not good for her body. Previously, the longest flight she had ever take just took her from Sydney to Queenstown via Auckland for amateur competitions at Cardrona. Even then, there were enough distractions at the Auckland airport to keep her placated in between the short hops. But 14 hours over the Pacific just to get to Los Angeles. And not even the good part of Los Angeles. All she could see from the terminal was concrete and hucksters selling fake maps to stars' homes. She had exhausted her iPod and her laptop movies somewhere over Easter Island and couldn't sleep over the roar of the engines. By the time she made it to Seattle, she was so bushed, she had her flight into Bellingham pushed back a day just so she could try and get some level of sleep at the nearby hotel.

It worked a little bit, but it still didn't blunt the effects of traveling back in time a day and trying to behave completely as normal.

So Jessika Fuller managed to sleepwalk her way onto the plane that would take her up to as close to the Canadian border as the Americans would dare go. If nothing else, it was an easy run up to British Columbia should things go pear-shaped and she had to get out of the country. But that would mean leaving her boards behind, which she wasn't exactly keen on doing. She wasn't sure what this Second Horizons would have on hand for equipment, but she wasn't about to be using the stuff they reserved for the bunnies just hitting the hills for the first time. That would be no test of what she could do against the Americans who were surely up to some level of skill here.

And that was the point of the excursion. To test her mettle in a controlled environment before she had any dreams of going against the big guns around the world.

Although that would mean Jess really had to get used to this whole jet lag thing in a hurry.

Once her flight touched down in Bellingham, she was able to spot what she assumed was the ferryperson taking everyone to the camp. The logos on the shirt made things pretty easy to figure out. Plus the buses. But Jess was in no state for talking at the moment. Someone said her name and she nodded softly in an effort to expedite things. Anything that would get her to a place where more sleep would be on offer. Thankfully, the ride was relatively quiet. Not quiet enough to allow for some quick z's on the way, but enough that her head wasn't totally out of sorts. She was pointed in the direction of the blue cabin by the person who grabbed her name at the airport. She wasn't learning names at the moment. Names could come later when she might have a wallaby's chance in the outback of remembering them. Instead, she ambled her way towards her home for the next couple of weeks. There was talk of a bonfire to celebrate the first night, which sounded like it offered a much better chance to get used to things in the Pacific Northwest.

For now though, there was only one thing on Jessika's mind. Maybe if i just pass out fawr long enough, i won't feel liyyke a zombie. Solid plan. I'mmah do that.

Tonight. Tonight she would show the Americans what's what.

Rosefell High.

_{(A Collab Featuring: Melissa Elliot @NeoAJ & Billie Grey @HaleyTheRandom)}
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

Billie made her way across the school yard in just a few short moments. Walking through the door, she didn’t have to look very far to find her guide. The blonde girl from earlier stated that she was, indeed, Melissa.

”Awesome!” Billie responded with fake enthusiasm. ”Maybe now we can get things started?”

Melissa just stared at the brunette in front of her, demanding that things be started? Start what? She was started. This was her job.

“Um, sure! Are you looking for your tour guide? There should be Rosefell students around here to be offering you the full splendor of the school!” And if not, I’ll have their heads…

Looking Melissa up and down, Billie rolled her eyes. "You are my tour guide. Do you honestly think that I would speak to you if you weren't?"

A slight eyebrow twitch caused the tweezing job Melissa had done to waver ever so slightly. This girl had the nerve to speak to her like that? Fuckin’ Liberty bitches already starting to get on my bad side.

But it wouldn’t do well to get into a fight on the first day with these rich snobs, so Melissa did her best to maintain her practiced happy guide face. “I don’t know who you would speak to because I don’t know you yet, but that’s fine! It looks like things are clearing out here so I can show you all the sights that Rosefell has to offer. The sounds will come later. So, we can start now…” Melissa was trying to scan for a name tag but was coming up empty.

”Are you st--” Billie took a deep breath and closed her eyes, doing her best to gain back her composure. ”My name is Billie. Billie Grey. My email said that Melissa was going to be my tour guide, and since you’re Melissa…”

Her words trailed off, as she focused on her breathing. Detention on the first day would not be an ideal situation. Fiona would be disappointed. Best to grin and bear it.

Billie cleared her throat before speaking again. ”Now would be perfect, yes. But only if I’m not keeping you from anything else. I’d hate to impose.”

As her brain went through the contact list in her head to try and remember if there was another Melissa in Rosefell, which Ms. Elliott knew wasn’t possible after she drove Melissa Berg to transfer schools in sophomore year with her unique campaign to make sure she was the only Melissa of importance in senior year, she was forced to concede the point. Apparently Principal Jamieson was lying through his teeth when he said she wouldn’t have to get too up close to any Liberty students today. Bastard.

Still, she did her best to keep the visage intact. “All right, Billie. Like the singer, right? Well, I think things are starting to calm down a bit, so I can show you around the place. Is there anywhere in particular you’re interested in? The cafeteria? The gym? Where the lockers are?” How bout a one-way ticket out of my sight?

Arms crossed, Billie glared ever so slightly as Melissa brought up Billie Eilish. Ever since the singer had rose to fame, Billie couldn’t hear the end of the jokes, analogies, and other dumb shit high schoolers came up with. With another deep breath, Billie stated her requests.

”My first class is Biology with Mr… Osmond. I’d like to know where the drama class and auditorium is - My brother Nicholas is into theatre. And that’s honestly about it. I don’t really have time to worry about the rest at the moment.”

Well at least she knows how to get to the point. That’s good though. The shorter the tour, the more time I have to get back to Alycia and figure out what we need to do about all these Liberturds invading.

The prospect of a curt show around the school made Melissa’s smile a little more authentic. “You’re brother’s into theatre? That’s great! They did West Side Story last year, it was so good! I bet he’ll fit right in. And how about you? Anything you’re into from an extracurricular perspective?” Better not be fucking cheerleading, don’t need that happening with this type of attitude.

Billie shrugged her shoulders. ”Not really. Fiona got the musical gene, Nick the acting and theatrics, and I just got both of mom and dad’s anger…” Her voice trailing off, Billie observed the walls as they walked. ”I do like to grafitti things, but I doubt there’s a club for that. And I’m sure that if I managed to create one and get it approved that it would just attract the exact sort of people that I don’t want around. Perhaps I’ll try going out for student council. You guys do have a student council, right?”

As she attempted to keep paying attention to her unexpected tourist, Melissa kept getting distracted by just what the hell had done to the school without her permission. Whoever decided to barf silver and blue all over the place needs a good swift kick… followed by some more. This glitter is going to remain until the end of time. God damn it. It was enough to put a girl in a sour mood.

But she had trained for this. Years of working her way to the top of the high school food chain had prepared her to ignore even the most blatant, obnoxious things done to the halls. Billie hadn’t proven herself to be worth ignoring yet, although she wasn’t off to a fine start. Noting the anger issues she brought up unprompted though made Melissa’s radar go off a little though. She could be another Colin-type, and it was always useful to have people in her sphere who could do some dirty work.

“You would be surprised how much blank canvas is available around here for graffiti artists!” she responded, adding a little chuckle. “Although the student council in the past has looked down on it, so it might be a little hard to reconcile those two desires! But, there are new elections happening this year, so who knows? You could run and then make it so that there is funding for those kinds of art projects around the school!”

Unless Melissa had her say. While she hadn’t explicitly decided to run for student council president, it was another thing that would look very good on her resume, and if there were enough gung-ho wannabe future politicians kicking around, she wouldn’t have to do nearly as much work as would be expected. It would just be another reason to be in the spotlight and assert her dominance over the student body. And she did enjoy that.

“It’s going to be a pretty stacked field, but if you’ve got some fight in you, I’m sure you could make a very convincing run for a council spot!”

An eyebrow raised in curiosity as she took in Melissa’s words, Billie nodded her head. ”We’ll see. No offense, but Rosefell needs a little bit of a clean up, and something tells me you guys can’t afford it. Maybe instead of new paint, we can just graffiti it all. But not like… street art… more… refined. Blocky letters and school mascots.”

She could imagine the images on the walls. The bright Liberty red, the rose sigil on the knights armor… Maybe this project would be enough to keep her distracted from Callie ghosting her.

Maybe.

”Say, Mel, what’s your opinion of the teachers here? I know the education won’t be anything near what Liberty had to offer, but I’ll still be able to pass my finals, right?”

Melissa wasn’t going to say anything about not having the cash to afford repairs to the school. That was just a way of life in Rosefell. She knew that better than anyone. And if Billie wanted to spearhead sprucing up the school with some artwork, more power to her. As long as she did it right, which from the sounds of it, she had the right idea. Just needs to be in silver and red.

As for the teachers, well… the ones that still thought they were in Lean On Me tried their best, but you could tell which ones had abandoned all hope and settled into the routine of pouring Bailey’s in their coffee in the morning. “The teachers do their best with what they are given, but honestly, I wouldn’t worry about finals. A smart cookie like you? You’ll probably pass with no problems at all. I mean, our mascot is on track to graduate this year, and that guy… well, you saw him, right? If he can do it, you can’t possibly fail.”

Pursing her lips, Billie wasn’t exactly happy with Melissa’s answer. Did Rosefell just give up all hope and pass all of their students, regardless of grades and effort? Billie nearly shuddered at the thought.

”What some things that I should know about Rosefell? People to look out for? Where can I find the hotties? Give me all the dirt.” A playful smile spread across her face. ”I’m sure you have nearly all the tea.”

This conversation was overcoming a rocky start to play well into what Melissa thought she might have on her hands in Billie Grey. Clearly she knew how to identify the people at top of the pyramid. Melissa was a sucker for compliments after all.

“Oh Billie, I am the freaking Starbucks here,” she confirmed. “Let’s see, well the football team is a reliable source of hotties. I mean, of course it would be. Um… you know what, I’ll give you a hot tip. If you can get DeShawn Marcus interested, that guy can rock some worlds you don’t even know you have.” Part of the perks for DeShawn in keeping their relationship at the FWB level was that Melissa always made sure to put in a good word for him with other girls. He earned a package that was well above what Hunter got.

“If you need anything that may need to be acquired discreetly, you want to talk to Colin Gallagher. He is a miracle worker sometimes. And I have a booze hookup if needed.” There was no need to be subtle about things in this area of the school. None of the teachers roamed the halls in the drama wing aside from Ms. Sweeting, and she was usually in some kind of dreamland anyway. Helped her visualize the progression when it came to her art, she said. “In fact Billie, if you need anything, you just let me know and I’m sure I can find someone who can get it to you. Starting with some scarlet red spray paint, if you catch my drift.”

Confident that she had shown enough cards to the Liberty transfer to earn some level of trust, Melissa decided to see if she could use that to pump some information out of the dark-haired girl. “Now, what about your incoming class? Is there anyone I should be watching out for? Guys who look hot, but are scumbags? Someone who might be coming for my spot as head cheerleader? Just general bitches? What’s Liberty got coming?”

As Melissa rambled on about DeShawn, Billie pushed open the doors to the auditorium. It sounded like DeShawn was the sort of guy who didn’t like commitment. She could get behind that. Taking in the scenery around her, Billie tried her hardest not to grimace, but she could feel the disgust on her face. How was Nick ever to perform on such an unpolished, scratched up stage? And they way those curtains had faded.

Fucking hell. I’m sorry, bro.

”Have you ever watched any teen drama about rich kids at school ever? We’re kinda like that,” she said, half smiling as she thought about her classmates. ”Some of us have drug problems, some of us go to therapy, most of our parents are to busy with their careers to love us, and we all have skeletons in our closet - no matter how much we try and deny it. And we all treat each other like shit.”

As they exited the auditorium, Billie began to give Melissa the scoop.

”First off, you personally might want to look out for Miki Park. The Devil really does wear Prada, and he comes in the form of Miki. She was the self proclaimed Queen of Liberty. Huge bitch. Kinda excited to see how her transfer to Rosefell has been this far…. There’s Christian. He’s joining the football team here, I believe. Over the years he’s kinda been known as a protector of us girls. Dude is pretty honorable, kinda easy on the eyes. Way too fucking soft for my liking though. Marcos is one of the douche bags you mentioned. Goes through girls like candy. I hear he humiliated the absolute hell out of poor Juno back in the day. Aiden Howard is his right hand man, and his sister Liv totally makes my list of Liberty cuties. The Zabrecky twins are both gorgeous in their own way, but fairly… I dunno. They’ve always seemed bland to me. There’s also that gamer chick, Sam. Fiamma, the good-two shoes. Jackson the ice skater - I’ve never talked to him much. And finally, there’s Caspian Grey - a mysterious young man from very old money.”

Once Billie started rambling, it was hard to get her to stop. ”Those are the most noteworthy students that come to mind.”

“Slow down, girl! Damn! I gotta try and commit this to memory!” Bingo. Billie had the goods. And she gave Melissa everything she wanted. Including the tip on the bad guy. If those were all the noteworthy students coming over with Billie, she could bury them all, friend and foe alike. Especially this Miki Park that was mentioned. Queen of Liberty, eh? Well she should see me in a crown, then. Doesn’t matter if she wears Prada, she’ll be wearing claw marks if she tries to take what is rightfully mine. Cause I got no time to die. I’ve got my future to think about. So Miss Miki, hope your toney ass is prepared for me to blow your mind.

Melissa snapped out of her brief daze to confirm she got everything that Billie was offering. “All right, I think I got it all. Christian sounds like a nice guy, even if he is a bit soft. Sometimes those football players can surprise you with that sweet side. I kinda like it. You’ll have to point him out to me. Oh, and Miki. Gotta make sure she doesn’t try anything to disrupt what we have going on here at Rosefell. Or at least, what we could have going on, eh? I mean, I like what you’re putting down, Billie. And if you think any of those other students can help with that vision, then I am all ears.”

It was easier to maintain the sweet helpful veneer with how beneficial having Billie Grey all to herself was proving early on. Maybe Jamieson wouldn’t deserve a delivery of I-71 roadkill from Colin directly on his desk. “And if your first class is Biology… that’s going to be on the second floor, with the other electives. All the basic science is on the ground floor with the English and Math classes, but it sounds like you won’t need to trouble yourself with that!”

”Sweet,” she responded simply. The buzzing from her phone had caught her attention. Fiona was calling from college. ”Well, Melissa, you’ve been quite helpful. I’m sure I can find the rest from here. I really have to take this call.”

“Hey, no worries! It was my pleasure, Billie! Glad I could help, and like I said, if you need anything else at all,” Melissa leaned down and pulled a scrap of paper and a pen from her bag, quickly jotting something down. She mouthed, “Here’s my number,” not wanting to disturb the phone call.

Billie happily took the note, mouthing back ”I’ll text you” before turning to her call.

Melissa smiled and gave a wave before giving Billie some privacy on her call. As she walked away towards one of the stairwells where she conducted business, she was still figuring out what needed to be done to make sure these incoming Liberty kids knew their place. Ms. Grey was allowed a special place for her service, but for now, there was planning to be done.

Once in her “office”, she locked the doors thanks to a trick she learned from DeShawn during junior year. Confident she would not be disturbed, nor would anyone be able to hear her through the old concrete walls, she dialed her bestie. “Hey girl! … Good, good, you? … Really? Basketball player? Well, hold steady and don’t go head over heels for Payton yet! … Well, what did he tell you? … Aw, that’s too bad. Don’t worry I bailed you out … Because I ended up being a tour guide too … This girl, Billie Grey? … Yeah, like the singer. Anyway, she had the whole roster covered … Yeah, girl! So we need to put the word out … well, stay away from anyone named Marcos, he’s a skeezebag … Yeah, I don’t know. Also, we know who we gotta take out. Miki Park … I dunno, but she apparently thought she was queen bitch at Liberty, so she’s gotta learn how much she ain’t anymore … Same way we always do, Aly … Well yeah, get to the channels, and I dunno, we’ll figure something out. Maybe Friday … Well of course! First weekend of the school year, we’ll have some beverages … Then we’ll get more! … All right, well go back to Payton and make sure your new boo isn’t too lost … Uh-huh. Sure … OK, talk later, hun … Bye.”

As Melissa rested her head on the back of the wall between levels, her mind was still turning. She now knew her enemy. She had names. Now it was a matter of deducing and planning the attack. Nothing was going to stop her from executing what she had in store for this year. Certainly no "Miki".

Rosefell High.

---

Featuring: DeShawn & Alina

---

The wait for his Libertine lady had left Dee somewhat directionless. Without the person to give a tour, all he could do was simply wait for the bell. As he listened to the latest track from one of his favorite artists, he continued to casually scan the hallway from time to time hoping to see a sticker with Alina Zebrecky stuck to the breast of some face he had never seen. It wasn’t until all hope was lost and the last beat of the song had ended that in the silence, DeShawn decided it was time to leave. He turned towards a set of double doors, only for them to swing open violently and he almost collided with the girl powering through them.

”Hey yo, shawty where’s the fire? You ok?”

Alina had to shake her head for a moment. After what had happened in the corridor, it was probably a good move, but following the near-crash, she had to kind of reset anyway. There was a boy there, an admittedly very good-looking boy, but she didn’t want to base a first impression on that. At least he asked if I was OK. That’s one person in this school with manners, I guess.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m… no. Not really OK,” she admitted. "I’m kinda lost at the moment. Today has been a rough start.”

"I can see that.”

DeShawn took a step to one side to give the poor girl some breathing room. She was obviously a bit out of sorts and him crowding her with his great size was probably the last thing she needed. He refrained from putting a hand on her shoulder as much as he wanted to because he knew that personal space could mean a hell of a lot to someone. The linebacker didn’t recognize the young woman’s pretty face, she was obviously one of the new faces brought in by the school mergers.

"You know, there’s a little balcony just off to the side there. You’ve got a few minutes before the bell, why don’t you step outside there for a time and get your bearings. This place can be real overwhelming sometimes, especially when you're new. Trust me, that was me last year. A new school doesn’t really take into account your own self and your own personal shit.”

Dee pointed over to a set of double doors just off to the side of the hallway. The balcony was usually sealed for some reason or another but DeShawn had broken the lock a few semesters past with the intention of making it his own private Idaho but he has found himself sharing it with a few lost souls now and again.

Something told Alina she should be cautious with this offer that the boy was making, but he was also speaking a lot of truth. There was nothing really helping her situation here, it certainly wasn’t making anything any clearer. Some time outside would probably help. “I could use some fresh air. I could use a lot of things.”

As the gentleman led the way, she tried to think about what exactly happened and what if anything she got out of Cas. It seemed like he was looking forward to this as much as Niki was. So why wasn’t she more excited about this? If she wanted to make a change in her personality or reputation, this was the time to do it. What was stopping her? How can I change to something if I have no damn idea what I can possibly change to? What the hell am I supposed to do in this place? And then next year! What the hell. I don’t even know. Alina was however interested to see just how her unofficial tour guide was going to offer her this outdoor space.

It felt strange leading a complete stranger to his secret safe haven but there was just something in her eyes that was telling Dee that she needed something like this right now and if there was one thing that DeShawn couldn’t resist, it was someone in need. He almost had what one could call a compulsion to step into matters where one needed help, much to his own detriment. This had led Dee to more fights and conflicts than he would care to admit but he just could not help himself; the boy had a savior complex almost as big as his six two, two thirty frame.

The giant teen opened up the doors for Alina and took a step to one side. The balcony wasn’t anything special or inherently beautiful; in fact, it was probably if anything a little ugly looking. There were a few slabs of concrete and cigarette butts decorating some questionable looking plants and candy wrappers below the ledge that overlooked the city of Columbus. It wasn’t any kind of breathtaking but for what it was worth, it was some quiet.

"It ain’t much but it’s yours. Chill here for a time, get your head right, and when you’re ready I’ll see if I can’t get you where you need to go.” The linebacker grabbed a chair that was sat by the other side of the door and put it out onto the balcony.

"Name’s DeShawn by the way, DeShawn Marcus; welcome to Rosefell.”

The view paled in comparison to that which the patio at home offered, although the cigarette butts made it feel a little more like she was back in the sanctuary. Hard as Niki tried to hide that habit. But it was elevated away from the world below. The muffled sounds that could be heard were inconsequential in relation to the sounds of traffic, but it was something for Alina to focus on aside from the constant humming of her own brain.

The giant boy pulled up a seat, signifying he didn’t have anywhere else to be, which was good for Alina. She didn’t want to be anywhere at the moment right now, so this was as good a place as any. There was a slight breeze passing alongside the school, allowing the loose strands of her hair to be somewhat picked up in the winds. It was something to feel.

As the boy spoke and confirmed his name, Alina didn’t look back, but she did smirk. That’s pretty funny. Maybe this school felt like it had to make it up to me after… whatever the hell all that was this morning. Maybe it’s really trying to pull me into being involved in this place before I get out of here.

“If you’re the person I think you are, I think it’s your assigned duty to get me where I need to go, huh DeShawn? Because I’m guessing you’re looking for a girl named Alina to show around this place." She finally turned around. "Well, you found her.”

”Oh shit.”

Dee was shocked by the girl's admission; she was the girl that he was looking for! Damn; Lord above did work in mysterious ways. Faith was a big thing for D, there was a reason he had a rosary around his neck. He was not a bible thumper but he did believe in a power higher than himself. It was something that he had learned from his old grandma back in Baltimore. For Dee, everything had a purpose, everything happened for a reason and there was no such thing as coincidence. Thus this “chance” meeting with Alina probably had some deeper meaning than his dumb, probably concussion-addled brain could currently and properly comprehend.

"Well well well, Alina Zabrecky, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Shame it’s when you ain’t feeling your best. Imma be straight with you, girl. I’m more than happy to step outside and wait for you to get yourself correct before we get on with our pre-ordained tour but if you wanna shoot some shit, then yo I’m down. Sometimes a stranger is better than a friend.”

“Well if we’re going to be straight here, you didn’t have a chance of catching me at my best right now, DeShawn Marcus. Not at this point.”

The conversation with Niki on the ride over now played back in her head, how perceptions were made based solely on the names of their assigned tour guides. Right now, DeShawn was offering to be a lot more than she expected out of this arranged pairing. At least he was proving to be someone willing to listen and not just rush her around the school in an effort to be done with the task as soon as possible. Hope they are getting as much out of Hunter as I seem to be getting right now.

“And since we are being that straight, I’m fine staying here for a bit. I don’t know how much I want to be moving around at this point. Especially after we nearly put each other in the infirmary back there. But yeah, you’d think with basically all of Liberty moving over to this place, I’d have a lot more to lean on going in. But I don’t, and it sucks. And now I’m not sure how the hell I’m going to fix that.”

“Fairs. There’s not much to look at in this place anyway.”

DeShawn placed himself against the balcony, leaning back a bit whilst trying to not get whatever the damn hell that white stuff was on the railing on his brand new shirt. "All the classrooms have their name on the doors so you can’t really get lost. Your usual gear is on the first floor, maths, English, etc, electives on the second, cafeteria on the ground, and gym and field off to the back. There’s your tour.”

Number Forty Four had learned a long time ago in another life to keep his head down and his mouth shut. He was not known to anyone to be much of a talker but sometimes, people needed to hear his words because he shot straight in his own kind of way.

Now as far as your other thing; now I ain’t the type to wax philosophical, there’s better people than me for that but what I can speak on is experience. I was new here last year, didn’t know a soul. Like, it was hard to start. I’m a pretty motherfucker but would you come near me on a good day? Hell no, people be afraid and whatnot. So ya already got me beat on that. What I’m tryna say is you gotta look at all this like it ain’t no thing, cos it ain’t. You are a strong ass woman about to enter a new world and dominate. Ain’t nothing to fix. You don’t need no one to lean on cos they gonna come to you. I got a feeling, ya feel me?”

Maybe Alina could decipher that, maybe she couldn’t but he didn’t know how to say it any better. This was a strange new world she was about to enter and to feel alone was natural but time beset good fortune and friendship. Maybe Dee could be the helping hand for her this time around?

If nothing else, that was about the level of touring Alina expected, so it was nice of DeShawn to get it out of the way with ruthless efficiency. She didn’t expect to be riding that kind of wavelength with someone already, but it was nice to be able to have someone willing to work with her in this… state she was currently residing.

And it seemed like DeShawn had some level of experience with this sort of thing. She listened to what he had to say as he quickly confirmed that he was in her shoes just last year. But that was where their paths diverged.

“The people leaning on me are part of the problem, though,” Alina admitted as she continued to do likewise on the balcony railing. “And I haven’t been strong enough to keep them up. Plus, my main pillar isn’t around anymore, because she moved. So I’m coming into this trying to hold up a bunch of shit, and that was before this whole school switch, and I just don’t know, dude. I really don’t know how I’m going to keep going with this before everything just falls apart.”

Dee glanced down at the girl whom like so many he dwarfed in stature but who so obviously matched him in heart. Through the weight of her words, he could see that she was carrying a lot. Indeed in his relatively short time at Rosefell DeShawn had become a confidant and glorified baggage handler (in both senses of the word) for way too many of his newfound compatriots. Perhaps they were working with the assumption that the broader the shoulders, the more they could carry? Any which way it was painted, for a place that had nothing, Rosefell had a lot going on inside its walls.

"I don’t know what kind of stuff you’re carrying, girl but my two cents? If it’s getting too much or if you need to lighten the load then just do it. Don’t think on it too long. It ain’t your responsibility to be everybody’s Supergirl. Take today as the first day from a fresh start”

There was no way of knowing if anything he was saying was making any kind of difference; he didn’t know Alina from Adam but he hopes that just saying some of this out loud was some kind of help or therapy for her. He put a tentative hand on her shoulder and smiled.

"Do what you feel, not what they want”

What do I feel though?

That was the million-dollar question. It seemed like it had been so long since Alina even thought about such a thing. For so long, she defined herself as being able to protect those she needed to protect. One way or the other. So now that Niki was running off by themselves trying to deal with things, and Cas was stepping ahead himself, where did that leave her? What did she feel? What did she want?

She tried to think but was drawing a blank. The hand on her shoulder wasn’t half bad though.

“I feel like I still need to do a lot of work trying to figure that whole side of things out,” she told Dee. “Supergirl was kinda my thing for a while. Now? Now I guess I don’t know. Maybe I just need to try and figure that out sooner rather than later. Maybe some kind person can help point me in the right direction?” The question was meant to be rhetorical, but there was physical contact that Alina was pretty good with right now and if DeShawn wanted to continue offering up support in one way or the other, she was going to jump at the chance to have it.

Dee offered her a supportive smile; he felt like he had only really scratched the surface of what was going on inside of Alina’s head and yet in some strange way he felt like that was for the best. She seemed like the type of girl that probably needed to let out this kind of stuff in small doses, much like himself with much of his venting of frustration and feeling coming on the court with Jo, a party with Hunter, or a night with Melissa. Perhaps a balcony conversation with a stranger like him could be her way of getting the poison out of her system.

He glanced down at his watch and noted the time. Pushing himself back up to his full huge frame, Dee placed his other hand on Alina’s free shoulder for a brief moment before removing them both and placing them into his pockets.

"Well baby girl..” he began "Take a breath and get yourself correct. It’s day one...ish and imma get you where you need to go. So...where to first?”

Alina heeded the advice, taking in a deep breath of the outdoor air before planning on heading back inside for whatever Rosefell had in store. “Well, you did such a good job with the ten-second tour… let’s just go inside and you can show me the area. If there are any other hidden oases like this one around, I may need to know where they are in the future.”

She finally eased herself off the railing that felt like it was tethering to the world for a minute before DeShawn started talking. Another deep breath escaped her lips. “So lead the way through the promised land, DeShawn.”

Love Ahoy! [CANCELLED]

First vacation I've been on since Spring Break 2014, and it's a damn singles cruise. I'm going to be the only person under 40 on this thing, aren't I?"

As she sat in the rental A5 in the parking lot in Port Canaveral, staring out the windshield at the massive ship that sat in front of her, Crystal Powers was starting to feel some regret for signing up for this pleasure trip. But she didn't exactly want to go off the deep end immediately with all her newfound wealth. Whirlwind tours of Europe and Asia and New Zealand would surely beckon in the future, but a girl could get herself into a lot of trouble tackling that kind of trek. Especially a member of the "nouveau riche". So acting on a tip from her friend Samira, she signed up for something simple to start and get her mind out of her new duties. A simple cruise of the Caribbean for a week seemed like a great way to get some rest and relaxation. However, Samira failed to mention the whole "singles" aspect of her journey until she drove her amiga to the airport. Crafty devil.

So here Krista remained, getting the most out of the Audi she was paying the week for, but only driving for two hours. Debating whether she was rich enough yet to completely write off the cost of a vacation on the pretense that she didn't think there would be anyone worth knowing on this thing. "Probably can't start that kind of precedent with these things," she reasoned to herself. "I paid how much for this trip?" She sighs. "At least I'll get to go back to Cozumel... and see some of the islands... I guess I can just hole up on the deck for the majority of the trip. Try not to make eye contact... Hah... it won't be fun, but it'll be a week out of the New York winter." Having finally convinced herself, Crystal got out of the driver's seat.

After retrieving her suitcase, she walked up the gangplank, getting a bit of a sour look from the crewman on hand, who looked like he was ready to haul up without her. Crystal gave him an innocent look and mouthed "Sorry" as she tried to figure out which way to the VIP section where she could hopefully hole up for a moment to let the older folks have their fun and get the tour of the place until it was safe to come out. She heard enough cruise stories from Gram and Grandpa McLean to know that was their forte. But it wasn't hers.

Crystal wasn't going to have a choice though. Once she flashed that VIP pass, it was over. The crew was on her; taking her bag, giving her champagne, escorting her to the upper deck. There wasn't a lot she could do about it. Just try to quickly look over the package that she was given to figure out where her outfits were being spirited away to. Once she was on that sundeck though, at least one of her fears was being put to bed early.

"All right, all right, this isn't the AARP meeting I thought it was going to be... Guess Im'ma be the bull at the top of this hill...

Rosefell High.

---

It was so hard to maintain her composure. Not in the face of all the ignorant people that were laid out in front of her. No, it was in the face that knew her all too well. As Melissa tried to figure out what exactly she had to do in relation to her school-bound duties and exactly what she had to do in relation to the people who just knew how they needed to act, she was torn like Natalie Imbruglia. And it was really hard in the face of people that didn't deserve it. And yet, there would be a savior...

”You look fine as hell today, Queen. You get bored of ruling with an iron fist, you know where imma be at girl”

She knew indeed. She gave a soft bite as DeShawn passed by, knowing that he would know the kind of effect that a simple brush against the thigh would have on the head cheerleader. It was a look as if to say how game she was for a follow-up investigation of their particular experiences the night.

Deeee... just you wait, boy. Once I get done with this bullshit... we'll figure something else out.

People were dispersing in front of her, which made her job so much easier, so Melissa was free to roam a bit. However, her desire to end this necessary tour business led her to the area of the name tags. "Hello! Anyone looking for Melissa, please, look no further! I am here to help guide you if needed!"