This one shot is set right after the incident of the rock in Season 1 with the exception that in this timeline I assume Effy was still at school by the time Effy came back.

Did you think we'd be fine?

still got scars in my back from your knife

-Bad Blood, Taylor Swift

The crowded hallways of the school silenced as the entrance opened and then the whispering began. A short brunette walked in her heels clicking authoritarily. She was dressed in a short black skirt and a cheetah print top which showed quite a bit of cleavage, just like she liked it.

'breasts, girl, you should try it'

'I never try'

She shakes her head to get rid of the memory, she was so naive back then. She readjusts her sunglasses on her head and makes sure not to fidget with the bandaid that covers the stitches on her head. The whispers get to her for a second so she straightens up and walks with more determination.

I'm Katie Fucking Fitch a-

"Katie!" All whispering halted. Students parted like the Red Sea as a girl dressed in punk rock clothing made her way out of the crowd towards her. Compared to Katie she looked far from put together, her long brown hair was messy, her mascara was slightly runny, and her plain white tank top and black shorts looked like they had seen better days. Despite all of this she had an air of power about her that led people to jump out of her way when she walked down a hallway. Her striking blue eyes usually twinkled with mischief or teemed with darkness. Today, however, she didn't exude the same power as usual. Her voice was almost desperate as she called out to Katie and if the people in the hall didn't know better they would say they could have sworn her eyes were watery. They would later pass it off as a trick of the light.

"Effy." Katie's tone was short and clipped merely acknowledging Effy's existence and making it clear that she did not have anything to say to her. The anticipation hung in the air with the other students they had been expecting this confrontation. Everyone had heard of what happened, how Effy smashed a rock over Katie's head and now she had ten fucking stitches. The silence was heavy and in that moment it seemed almost as if Effy was the shortest of the two girls.

"Katie, I-" Before she could give any more of an explanation a loud slap echoed all through the hall. Students gasped but everyone seemed frozen in place.

Venom practically oozes from Katie's tone, "Clear?"

"Clear" Effy spits out holding the side of the face and meeting eyes once again with Katie. Every sign of weakness had disappeared from her gaze, iron stare back in place she refused to be the one to walk away first. The shorter brunette had no such qualms she pushed past Effy and her clicking heels could be heard all the way down the hall.

"What the fuck are you all looking at!" she shouted at the crowd of people that had gathered and just like that the spell was broken and everyone returned to their own lives. Everyone except Effy who was still standing in the middle of the hall facing the opposite direction, hand on her cheek. If they didn't know better people would say they swore they saw tears streaming down her face.

—

Effy was sitting on the front hood of a black car smoking a cigarette and staring at the Fitch house across the street. I'm such a fucking coward. She stares down at her phone where the single text from Tony is glaring up at her, Don't be an idiot. Fix it. If only she could bring herself to cross the street and knock on the door. Thats when she hears fast steps and giggling coming down the street. Shit.

A bubbly red head is pins a slightly taller blonde against a car they're making out. Effy knows she should run or hide or do anything else but keep sitting frozen on the hood of the car directly across from Katie's twin but she can't seem to make her body follow orders.

"Ems… Ems.." Naomi is staring right at her while Emily tries to resume the make out session, "Emily!" Shit. Emily turns around and locks eyes with Effy who is now looking like a deer in headlights.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Emily quickly advances towards her and Effy's mind luckily starts working enough for her to jump down from the hood of the car and toss her cigarette. "Emily I-"

"That was a rhetorical fucking question." Suddenly Effy found the family resemblance much more obvious. Things had come a long way from her being the doormat twin, "Don't you think you've hurt this family enough? How dare you show up here after what you did to my sister? Don't you have any logic left in that fucked up brain of yours? or are you just too damn drugged up to care"

Effy took a step forward looking like she was about to say something and thats when the punch came. Naomi stepped forward and restrained Emily who pulled like her life actually depended on ripping out every tooth on Effy Stonem's ridiculously attractive face.

"Fucking go!" Naomi spat at Effy who had recoiled in to herself at the Twin's punch. And Effy ran. This time, she didn't cry, didn't complain, just ran until her lungs felt like they would collapse into her chest and her legs felt like they had been run through a meat grinder and then she collapsed there on a sidewalk on some unmarked street not bothering with how the cement scratched her knees on the fall or how hard the ground was under her head. She closed the one eye that wasn't already swollen shut and the world went black.

—

Effy was so fucking over all of this. She was tired of apologising, tired of being alone, tired of looking for a flash of leopard print every time she turned into a hallway, tired of the gawking stares in the hallways and tired of the disappointed glances from the people who used to be her friends. Even Panda who had been her friend since the day she met Effy at her old school had stopped talking to her. And above it all she had to deal with a black eye curtesy of the youngest Fitch twin. I really need a cigarette.

She steps out the front entrance of the school and leans against the grimy yellow wall. There are a few students in a group quite a bit further down the wall and they don't even notice her presence as they continue talking and laughing about something Effy was sure took the intellectual capability of a toddler and that was an insult towards toddlers.

She'd have to be lying if she were to say Cook's offer wasn't tempting. He had texted her the day before. Lets get out of this town. She felt bad for the boy she knew he was in love with her. She was Effy Stonem everyone was in love with her. She thinks she will never be capable of that type of love. She thinks of Freddie then how he was the closest she ever was to being… close. Of course she fucked it up she's fire and she destroys everything she touches no matter how hard she tries for it to be a loving caress. I should get out of here save everyone the pain. All I know how to do is hurt people. She wants to leave but theres something keeping her here. She could leave at any moment no one would care people would probably be relieved but she can't. She tries to figure out whats keeping her here and she pictures leopard print and bright red hair.

As if she had been called on by the memory Katie steps outside at that exact moment. A thousand different explanations fly through Effy's mind at once. I'm Sorry, I was on shrooms, I didn't know what i was doing, you had everything and i had nothing, you were choking me, the bugs were coming, my monsters acted up once again, i was lost and you found me, you have always felt like home, i want to leave but i can't, i would do anything, i couldn't breathe, i miss you most… all that came out of her mouth was "Katie wait!"

The shorter girl turned and as soon as her eyes met the other girls she started dashing back inside. Effy jumped forward and grabbed at her shoulder holding her back and turning her to face her. The older girl was taken aback by the cold look of hate in Katie's eyes for a second but she knew Katie and she knew the vulnerability she hid right bellow the shallow surface of bitchiness. How could she not? She too had the same defines mechanism.

"Listen, I know i do not deserve a chance to explain myself but i truly am sorry for hitting you over the head and for sleeping with Freddie" The surprise washed over Katie's face for a moment this was the longest strand of words she had heard the mysterious brunette put together. However the surprise was quickly replaced by new found anger and then a bitter amusement.

"You actually think this is about Freddie don't you." She let out a dark chuckle, "I fucking looked up to you, you know. All of this time i tried reaching out to you and all you did was throw it in my face. This is not about the rock or you fucking my boyfriend. This is not some silly trivial matter of jealousy, Effy, this is about me realising I fucking deserve better. I did nothing but try to be your friend and all you did was spit in my face. So yes, i got with Freddie to get back at you but i did fall for him in the end didn't I? And thats not even what bothers me. Effy, you ran me through mud and blood. You ruin everything you touch and now you've fucked it all up. So please do everyone a favour and just leave. Fuck off and never come back, save everybody the pain."

Effy felt every word like a knife but she figured she deserved it. Her own thoughts about leaving being echoed back at her felt like being hit over the head with a rock. This must be what Karma feels like. With a final steel look Katie ripped her arm from Effy's grip and went back inside the college. The tall brunette picked up her bag from the ground and gave herself only a second to look at her school one last time and consider everything she'd lost. Then, she too turned away but in the other direction and walked off while sending a resolute text back to Cook.

Lets go.