"The plan is simple, Beth. You start at the school and get close with the girl."
"What happens after that?"
"You invite her back here and then we take her, her dad has more than enough money, there's no way her won't pay up."
Beth nodded, looking up at the man in front of her. "Ok,"
"But wait until she trusts you, ok? Don't just invite her over in a few days. Really get her to trust you so that if something goes wrong it's easier for you to convince her you were nothing to do with it."
"Ok, and is there any time limit to this?"
"No, boss knows this is a lengthy process, just don't drag it out, the last thing you want is for him to be mad at you."
"I know, Paul. Who is this girl, anyway?"
"Alison Hendrix." Paul handed Beth a small, rectangular picture. "Daughter of millionaire Michael Hendrix, he owes the boss money and had refused to pay up so now we make him."
"And what happens to the girl?" Beth asked distractedly, looking down at the photo of a girl who was dressed in all pink. So much pink.
"Well, you've seen what happens when they don't pay up, Beth."
"Yeah, no. I know, I just thought we would've went after the dad when that happened but whatever. When do I start?"
"You've been enrolled in the school and start tomorrow."
"Ok, and will you be here most of the time or?" Beth asked, indicating around the tiny, one bedroom apartment she had been put up in for this job.
"No, you have this place to yourself. You just call me when you're inviting her back here and we will be here waiting for you guys."
Beth nodded, running her hands through her hair and yawned.
"And if she doesn't want to be my friend?"
"Then we take her through brute force but that's a last resort." Paul answered. "Any more questions before I head out?"
Beth shook her head.
"Ok, prepaid phone. You use this and only this when contacting me and Alison, ok?" Paul insisted, raising his eyebrows as he threw the phone at Beth
"Yeah."
"Right, call me if you need anything."
"Will do." Beth agreed, falling back onto the sofa with a groan as Paul left the house.
Beth studied the picture in her hand. The girl was pretty, probably around seventeen or eighteen with long brown hair and bangs that covered her forehead.
If there was one thing Beth hated was stuck up, obnoxious rich kids so she just hoped Alison wasn't like that, she wasn't sure how long she would last if she is.
Beth sighed, throwing the picture onto her sofa and heaving herself up, walking over to the single bed that was pushed up against the wall with just a thin sheet over it. "Paradise." She murmured to herself as she fell down on top of the sheets and closed her eyes.
She had seen enough movies and tv shows to know that the new kid at school was never popular or was picked on. She wasn't to worried about the latter, she could no doubt kick anyone's ass who tried to embarrass or humiliate her but the whole people talking behind her back thing got her, she wasn't very good with that sort of thing.
Beth decided to go about things with the shy approach, which she would be more comfortable with anyway.
She stuffed her hand into the pocket of her zipper as she entered the school building, her backpack hanging off one shoulder and her motorcycle helmet clutched in her other hand.
Beth could feel everyone staring at her but she ignored them and turned left into the school office.
"Can I help you?" The woman behind the desk smiled.
"I'm Elizabeth Childs, I just started today."
"Ah, ok." The woman nodded, reaching along her desk and picked up the small stack of papers that had a sticky note with 'Elizabeth Childs' scribbled on it. "This is your schedule, your locker number and combination, and a map of the school."
"Thank you." Beth smiled.
"Your locker is just down that hallway, the sixth row on your right."
Beth smiled politely, looking down at her schedule as she walked away. Chemistry first, science was always something she was good at when she went to school before everything went wrong. She still got tutored with this guy Paul had hired but only important stuff like math and English.
Beth easily found her locker, putting in the combination and pulled it open. She didn't know why she had gone to it, she didn't have anything to put in it yet other than her helmet but she figured it would be good to know where it is.
Beth heard a loud, booming laugh from down the hallway that made her push the door of her locker open a little more and look in the direction of the laugh. Her eyes landed on the very person she had been ordered to spend time with. Alison Hendrix. She was standing in front of what Beth assumed were her friends who was leaning back against the locker, Alison laughing carelessly at something her friend had said.
Beth had to take a moment because that picture Paul had given her did not do Alison justice at all. She was a lot prettier in person, her hair seemed a lot longer and her smile was just... Captivating.
Beth took a breath and stared into her locker for a second, readying herself before closing it and walking in the direction of Alison.
She put her hands in her pockets and bowed her head like she had done before, walking and 'accidentally' banging into Alison's back causing the other girl to drop her book, clearly startled.
"Shit, sorry." Beth apologized, lifting her head to look at Alison.
"Watch where you are going next time." The girl snapped, crouching down to pick up her books.
"Uh, let me help you." Beth tried to help her but the girl shook her head.
"Don't bother."
Beth was taken aback by the attitude, having not expected someone so pink to be so bitter. "Fine. Jeez."
Beth turned on her heels and walked back to her locker, intent on taking the map of the school back out since there was no chance of Alison showing her around.
The bell rung just as she reached her locker but Beth wasn't worried, if she could be late any day it was today. She opened her locker, pulling out the map before closing it, jumping when her eyes landed on Alison. "Fucking hell."
"Charming." Alison muttered deadpan.
"Well, what do you expect with you sneaking up on me."
"I didn't sneak up on you." Alison grumbled, rolling her eyes. "I'm sorry. For back there."
"No you're not." Beth disagreed, grinning slightly as she leant her shoulder against the locker.
"No. No, I'm not. You should really watch where you are going." Alison agreed, her lip curving up into a smile as her hand came up to touch her cheek.
"Well, it got your attention so, so far, I'm thinking me banging into you isn't such a bad thing." Beth raised her eyebrows, biting her lip flirtatiously, only just managing to keep a grin off her lips when Alison's eyes dropped down her mouth.
Bingo. That gave her everything she needed to know how she was going to play this thing.
"We're late.
"We are. I have chemistry, don't really know my way around this place, though." Beth mumbled, looking down at her schedule with a frown.
"Senior chemistry?" Alison asked, peering over to look at Beth schedule.
"Yeah."
"I can show you." Alison offered taking Beth completely by surprise, hadn't it been less than five minutes ago Alison was snapping at her?
"Uh, you don't have to, I'm sure I'll find it eventually."
"I'm going there anyway, I don't mind." Alison smiled, nodding down at Beth's schedule. "Can I see it?"
"Yeah, sure." Beth turned her schedule towards Alison.
"You're in everyone of my classes." Alison murmured, looking up at Beth through her eyelashes.
Beth smiled, raising her eyebrows in mock surprise though she knew that that probably wasn't a coincidence at all. "No way."
"Mm." Alison hummed, smiling up at Beth with a coy smile. "Looks like you're stuck with me all day."
"Lucky me." Beth replied flirtatiously, her eyebrow raising slightly as the corner of her mouth tipped up.
Alison sucked we bottom lip into her mouth to try and hide her smile, holding the schedule back.
"So, who were your friends?" Beth asked as they began walking to class.
"Those girls weren't really my friends, they are daughters of my dad's friends. I sit with my real friends at lunch, down in the science labs."
"Oh." Beth muttered, not entirely sure what that meant. "And what's your name?"
Alison looked a little taken aback at first but recovered quickly. "You don't know who I am?"
"Should I?" Beth cocked her head to the side and frowned lightly.
"No, I- I'm Alison. Alison Hendrix."
"Alison?" Lauren asked, trying not to sound conspicuous, like she already knew the girls name.
"Yeah. What's your name?"
"I'm Elizabeth Childs. But you can call me Beth."
"Well, Beth Childs, chemistry is just in here." Alison smiled at Beth, gripping onto the strap of her bag as stopped outside the class that, thankfully, the teacher hadn't arrived at yet
Beth watched her for a couple of seconds, allowing her eyes to slip down Alison's body before rushing to catch up with the girl. "So, Alison, why did you sound so shocked when I didn't know who you were?" Beth asked.
"It's just- Everyone around here knows who I am." Alison shrugged, sitting down in her seat in the front row.
Beth arched her eyebrows playfully, resting her fists on the table top. "Well, someone needs to get their ego in check, huh?"
"You must be Miss Childs?" Beth glanced up at the teacher who had just entered and nodded. "I'm Mr Russell. If you want to take a seat just at that table there I will get you a text book."
Beth moved to the table in the second row, dropping her bag under the desk and falling down into her seat.
"So, you're new?"
Beth looked over at the boy sitting next to her, rolling her eyes lazily. "Well, have you seen me around here before?"
"N-no, but maybe..."
"Maybe nothing. It's a small school, you would've seen me around before." Beth shot back, she wasn't here to make friends, especially not one who was shamelessly staring at her chest. "You keep staring at my chest and I'll put you on a hospital food diet, clear?"
"I-I wasn't..."
"Here's your textbook, Elizabeth. We are on chapter three so you haven't missed much."
Beth nodded, smiling up at the teacher as he turned to walk away. Beth's eyes fell to the textbook as she tried to find the chapter before looking up, her eyes landing on Alison who was in the front row and a few desks over from where Beth was. She had one leg crossed over the other, her foot bouncing along to whatever song was in her head as she chewed absentmindedly down on her pen.
Beth probably should of looked away when Alison's head slowly began to turned, her eyes not moving from the teacher until the very last moment but Beth knew how she we going to play this now. What better mode of trust is there than love? She was going to get Alison Hendrix to fall in love with her.
Alison drew her eyes away from the teacher to look at Beth over her shoulder, her smiling just barely visible.
Beth lower her head to look at Alison through her eyelashes, a slow grin spreading across her face.
Alison bit down on the top of her pencil, grinning back at Beth before turning back to face the front.
Beth spent the remainder of the class staring at Alison, she didn't need to listen, she knew most of this stuff already. When the bell eventually rang Beth jumped to her feet, planning on leaving to call Paul but Alison grabbed onto her wrist.
"Beth."
Beth grinned to herself, forcing it off her face as she spun around. "Hey, Alison."
"Do you need me to show you to your next class?" Alison tilted her head to the side, lightly chewing in her bottom lip.
"You don't have to, I could probably find it fine, I don't want to bother you."
"No," Alison insisted a little to eagerly. "No, I don't mind. I mean, we are in all the same classes, anyway."
"Ok, then lead the way, tour guide." Beth said, walking slowly by Alison. "So, what's with the 'they are not my friends just daddies friends daughters'? You guys seemed friendly."
"Were you watching us?"
"You." Beth corrected, holding onto the strap on her backpack. "I was watching you, not them."
Alison grinned at that, her fingertips brushing against her own cheek as she cast her eyes down to the floor. "I feel like they're are just spies for my dad, you know?"
"No. Not at all."
"It's like, everything I tell them gets back to him. And I need to be the perfect little daughter for daddy." Alison spat bitterly.
"Well, you seem perfect from where I'm standing, what's different from him point of view."
"A lot of things." Alison said, glancing up at Beth who lightly shrugged.
"It's always the pretty pink ones that have the big secrets." Beth said, making sure to catch Alison's eyes before continuing. "But they also tend to be the most fun."
Alison bit down on her lip to contain her smile, looking at her feet as they entered the classroom. "You can sit next to me if you want. My ex used to sit there but he moved when we broke up."
"Why did you guys break up?" Beth asked, throwing her bag under the table and sat down, her eyes watching Alison as she took a seat beside her.
"He was a rich jackass with to much money and an ego to matching." Alison shrugged, opening her books and looking up at the door just as a group of three boys entered.
"That him?" Beth asked, noticing the way Alison's face dropped.
"Yeah, the one in the middle."
"And why does he look so mad at you?"
"I dumped him. Without much of an explication, really."
"Was there a reason?" Beth asked.
"Yeah."
Beth eyed Alison but it was obvious by the fact that she wouldn't meet her eye that that was as much as she wanted to say.
"Ok. Why is he trying to eyeball me?"
"He probably thinks you're hitting on me."
"Then let's make the little punk jealous." Beth grinned, sliding her arm across the back of Alison chair and leaned over to whisper into her ear. "Just go with it, ok?"
Alison nodded, though Beth could tell that everything in Alison's body was telling her to pull back.
"Ok, laugh like I said something funny."
"How about you say something funny? You gotta work for this, Childs."
"Seriously?" Beth pulled back a little to look Alison in the eyes before sighing. "Fine. Did you hear about the Italian man who died? Yeah, he pasta way."
"Fuck you," Alison laughed, covering her face with her hands and shaking her head.
"What? That was a good one!"
"I should hit you. The police would understand."
"You laughed and as far as I'm concerned, that's one to me." Beth grinned lopsidedly, "You have a cute laugh."
"I laughed because I felt sorry for you."
Beth shrugged, pushing a strand of hair behind Alison's ear that had fell loose when she laughed. "A pity laugh is still a laugh."
Alison smiled, turning her head to look Beth in the eye. "You obviously don't have people laugh at your jokes often."
"Oh, I didn't tell you, I'm a stand up comedian."
"The people obviously clap when you get off the stage."
"Ouch."
"Miss Childs, yes?" Beth lifted her head to look at the woman standing in front of her desk.
"Yeah."
"I'm Miss Henderson, here is your spanish textbook. Now, if you can stop hanging all over miss Hendrix and allow me to get on with my lesson that would be great."
Beth reluctantly drew her arm from the back of Alison's chair, moving to face the front of the class and smiled sweetly up at the teacher. "Fire away, miss."
"You're trouble, aren't you?" Alison murmured, looking at Beth from the side of her eye.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Beth shot Alison a grin before opening her textbook at the page the teacher had written up on the board.