Happy birthday to me! Yay lol

Daya, Blanca, Nicky, Shani, Cat, Flaca, Maritza, and Karla went to lunch together and joined the rest of their clique. Piper wasn't there yet, but she probably would be soon. Alison, Poussey, and Franziska waved at them and hugged Karla, Shani, and Daya. Alex and Taystee were there too, but really only felt comfortable greeting their fellow survivors in the same way. Zirconia was also present, but quickly made a beeline to where Ouija, Pidge, Maria, Alana, Stephanie, Michelle, Lorna, Janae, and Cindy were sitting.

"How was dinner with your parents?" Daya asked Poussey and her girlfriend.

"Fabulous, they suspected nothing was going on between Poussey and me!" Franziska informed her, and the couple grinned in unison.

Piper came up to their table. "This spot is reserved for me, Daya, Poussey, Franziska, and Alison only." She gestured towards Blanca, Flaca, Taystee, and Daya. "There's no room, especially with Taystee's large butt, Blanca's unibrow, Flaca's emo face, and Daya's big mouth. Sorry. As for the rest of you, it's just too crowded...and Cat's a child!"

"Hey, what's your fuckin' problem?" Poussey asked roughly as Brook and Tiffany came up to them, interested in the upcoming drama.

"Are you trying to start something?" Daya asked, getting up and glaring at Piper.

"Honey, I believe that you were the one who said you didn't mind your mom being at the party," Piper shot back cattily.

"Okay, okay!" Alison tried to calm the rising tension while Taystee's stomach growled with hunger. She was ready to binge. "Piper, I can't sit with you if you're going to exclude them."

"Yeah, and I'm with Franzi," Poussey agreed. "Taystee, as well. She's my closest friend."

"I'll switch between your groups," Tiffany said.

"Me, too," Brook chimed in. "We're just gonna stay neutral."

"Let us know if you want to leave Piper," Cat said over her shoulder and the thirteen girls attempted to find an empty area to eat. There just wasn't one, but there were quite a few with one person. It made Taystee's heart ache. At least she had a friend and a bunch of other girls by her side. She spied Crazy Eyes-or Suzanne Warren-all alone, glumly pulling out her paper bag lunch from her backpack. The girl looked up and there was a hopeful glint in her eyes. She pointed at them slowly.

"You guys are Piper-less?"

"We're taking a break from her because she refuses to be near Blanca, Flaca, Cat, Taystee, and I," Daya said.

"Sit with me? My girlfriend Maureen isn't here, so...and Cindy and Janae got fed up with me since I annoyed them in class and all."

"Sure!" Alison said.

"This is like, one of the best days of my life, you don't even know," Suzanne said giddily as the girls take their places at her table. "She's probably going to roast you later, though."

"Oh, don't worry. We both have a fireplace we can throw her into," Shani joked and pointed at herself and Daya.

Poussey snorted out loud and shouted, "Burn, literally!" They were laughing, but none of the survivors joined in.

"Oh no...sorry, chicas, we were just kidding," Karla said and Shani helped Nicky into her seat.

"Okay..." They seemed to believe that. Taystee sure did, because Poussey would never do anything bad to anyone.

Alex took out her Barbie lunchbox, opened it, and took out her water bottle and a container filled with a mix of rice and chicken. On top of it, was a little encouraging note from Diane. Happy first day of school, baby! Have fun! I love you. xoxo, your mama. It made her tear up a little. Taystee's heart swelled for her. She had almost forgotten that she saw Blanca get pushed to the ground. She noticed Blanca, Maritza, and Flaca each had a note containing something written in Spanish with a few drawn hearts on their matching Dora the Explorer lunchboxes. It was probably something similar to what Alex had received. The four of them had incredible mothers.

"Aw, your mom is so cute! My mommy does that on bad days, too," Suzanne said.

"That's really nice," Karla said, and the others nodded their heads in agreement.

The survivors all shoveled their food into their mouths at top speed and simply grinned. Daya had salad, Poussey brought spaghetti, which she said was her dad's cooking, Karla was eating cheese fries from the cafeteria, Shani feasted on tater tots and a hot dog with ketchup, and Suzanne munched upon a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. They just chewed in silence while occasionally glancing at each other. Taystee wanted all of their food, but she knew she couldn't have it just yet.

"Hey, I almost forgot...I got you another movie," Poussey told Blanca while pulling it out of her backpack. She placed The Sound of Music on top of Blanca's closed lunchbox. "Alison and I recorded the movie and put it onto a blank DVD with the one scary scene edited out. We worked on that all day on Sunday. It's from her, too."

Blanca swallowed a bite and gave her a silent smile. She held up a finger and typed on her phone, Thanks, I love it :) and let Poussey see the message, which Taystee read over her shoulder.

"Here we have the mama's girls in their natural habitat!" a jerk announced loudly, and everyone chuckled.

"Diaz let her mom be at the party and she didn't even want a party, according to Piper! Same with Washington, her mom actually let Mrs. Reznikov walk down and Washington didn't even blink an eye! Of course, the scaredy-cat had her mom up there, too!" someone else jeered at them.

Blanca lowered her gaze to the table, appearing ashamed as Daya and Poussey stood on top of the table.

"Yeah, maybe we are mama's girls! You'd think my mom and Red are cool, too, if they helped rescue your best friend from a hellhole she'd lived in for the last nine years!" Daya exclaimed, getting people's attention.

"It's pretty badass if you ask us," Poussey chimed in. "As for the party, Daya didn't invite anyone except for her real friends. You were all in her house as uninvited guests, which was beyond rude. Also, if we catch anyone being mean to our new friends, you'll have to answer to us."

Taystee noticed that Lila and Aleida were having lunch together and they looked proud of their daughters upon hearing their words of appreciation. Red was watching the scene play out from behind the cafeteria's counter and she wore a pleased expression, too.

Suzanne started clapping slowly and then Blanca, Karla, Flaca, Maritza, Shani, Nicky, Taystee, Alison, Franziska, and Alex joined in. Brook and Tiffany at Piper's table applauded, too, as did Ouija, Zirconia, Maria, Pidge, Alana, and Michelle. Diablo and another boy he was sitting with stood up and cheered, "Go, moms!"

"They brought us all into this world and they can just as easily take us out of it," Daya said before jumping down from the table.

"Your mom will always be there for you," Poussey put in and then mirrored Daya's actions.

"At least she's supposed to be," Nicky mumbled.

"Damn right," Shani murmured.


In their Physical Education class, Piper purposely smacked Daya on her forehead with a volleyball during a match while Coach Jones wasn't looking. She tried to make it seem like it was just an accident, but Daya sensed their feud was getting serious. "Try that again, white bitch, and you'll see what happens!"

Piper laughed. "You fail at like, everything, even giving presents."

"Okay, what is your problem with me and Blanca?" she asked sharply.

"She's a snitch, and you're a mama's girl, just like Poussey!"

Daya retaliated by shoving Piper a couple of steps back. "You're a two-faced bitch!"

Piper hit her back and then Daya pounced on her. They rolled around on the floor while their class chanted, "Catfight, catfight!" over and over again.

"Okay girls, break it up, that's enough!" Coach Jones hollered and then blew her whistle. "Get off of each other now! I'm calling your mothers!"

Piper kicked Daya away from her and stood to her full height. "You're such a spoiled brat," Daya hissed at her while brushing herself off. "I have a pounding headache from you. We're supposed to be friends!"

"You just don't know how it works with me. You'll learn, though. I don't like people with fiery personalities."

Daya groaned and got herself up. "Go fuck yourself."


Carol strolled through the door of the principal's office to find Piper and Poussey sitting in front of Mr. Caputo. Aleida was next to her daughter, and she gasped when she saw Piper's mother. Carol took her spot on the other side of Piper.

"Fighting is not tolerated at this school. Your daughters will both be suspended for a week, and then have detention for the rest of the month," Mr. Caputo said.

"How did the fuck all this happen?" Aleida asked while rubbing Daya's back soothingly.

"Piper threw a volleyball at me," Daya grumbled while holding an ice pack to her bruised forehead. "She started it, so she should be punished, not me!"

"You got back at me and slammed me down on the floor!" Piper yelled, pointing her finger at Daya.

"You shouldn't have provoked me!"

"Piper, why did you hurt Daya?" Carol asked sharply.

Piper pretended to get emotional and sniffled dramatically. She thought of something sad, like gaining weight and turning into a combination of Two-Ton Taystee and Crazy Eyes, to make tears come out of her eyes. "She...she betrayed me, Mommy...she got my party canceled."

Daya rolled her eyes. "Stop it. That wasn't supposed to be a big party and it was hosted by me, not you! Surprise, you ain't the queen."

"You ruin everything! I hate you!" Piper cried and kept fake-sobbing into her hands. She rocked back and forth while wailing loudly like Blanca did most of the time. "Mr. Caputo, please...it's her fault, not mine. Let me off the hook and give me another chance. I won't lose my temper next time, I swear."

"Miss Chapman, you and Miss Diaz are in trouble and you need to face the consequences. You're lucky nobody was sent to the hospital or killed."

Piper held her breath. She wasn't going to let it out until she got her way. She'd been doing this trick since she was five years old and she'd gotten quite good at it.

"What the hell..." Daya muttered.

"The fuck you doin'?" Aleida asked.

"Piper, you're making a scene," Carol said sternly. "You need to quit that little game you play with me. It won't work with Mr. Caputo."

Piper didn't give up.

"Come on, you're scaring me! Piper Elizabeth Chapman, stop that right now," Carol hissed. "Your face is turning purple. If you breathe and then just accept your penalty, Daddy and I will throw you an amazing sweet sixteen party...something to do with men carrying you into the room for your grand entrance. How's that?"

Piper was only twelve now, but she'd been planning the big event for years. She blew out a huge gust of air and the Diazes just stared at her, open-mouthed. Her mom and Mr. Caputo looked grateful. She smiled. "Okay, but none of the help can be in the pictures."

"We can arrange that," Carol said.

"You all can go home," Mr. Caputo dismissed them.

"She is unbelievable!" Daya said loudly to Aleida as they strolled to her mom's car. Piper knew that Daya wanted her to hear that, but she didn't care one bit.

"I know, sweetie," Aleida murmured.


When her mom came to the school at five to pick her up, Flaca gave her, Maritza, and Gloria, big hugs. She skipped alongside Theresa to their car.

"So, how did my little Marisolita Fajita enjoy her first day of school? Were the kids nice to you? I mean, besides your fellow survivors...I know Cat was."

"Yeah, but they just pity me. I ate lunch with her, Daya, Karla, Alison, Shani, Poussey, Franziska, Suzanne, and the girls I was...captured with."

"They wouldn't eat or play with you each time they hung out if they only felt bad for you, they'd just say hi to you in school and that would be it. You can also tell by how they act towards you when you're around them."

"It's only been day one, Mamí. They'll go back to Piper soon, I just know it!"

"I doubt Cat will. They're genuinely sweet girls, though. Didn't you have a great time with them on Friday night when it was just you twelve?"

"Cat wasn't there, but yeah." Flaca nodded, not wanting to tell her mom about what Piper had said about her Wednesday Addams look. The other girls seemed much friendlier than Piper, so she just agreed with her mom.


Adarsh was taking the day off from work since his dad's heart condition was acting up, so it was just Diablo and Leon helping each other with the building of the restaurant and his wife's salon. The only problem was, Diablo was having difficulty concentrating thanks to the fact that it was Haluk's fifth day in juvy and he still hadn't visited him. He's beyond disgusted at what Haluk did to the girls. He didn't know that one of his former best friends could be capable of violence. There were videos of Haluk and Stratman both using them as personal punching bags, and yet, Flaca and Maritza loved Stratman way more than he deserved. He wasn't sure if any of them felt the same way about Haluk, but he hoped not. Diablo drilled a hole where Leon told him to and then he thought about how badly he wanted to do this to Haluk. He hammered a nail into what would be a window sill and he grunted loudly while doing so.

Leon must've sensed something was up because he asked Diablo, "What's wrong, son? Are you tired?"

Diablo put the hammer down. "I just want to talk to Haluk one last time because I'm officially ending our friendship, but apparently, I have to go with an adult and my adoptive ma's at work. Man, I used to think he was so nice...but all this time, he was abusing those poor girls, along with those other dirty monsters!"

"I could accompany you," Leon offered. "We'll leave soon, but only if your mom's alright with it."

"Thanks, boss!" Diablo shook his hand. He texted Reba. Is it okay if I pay Haluk a visit in juvie and Mr. McDonald comes with me? All I want to say is goodbye to my ex-best friend forever.

Reba's reply came in a minute later. Sure, sweetie, but be careful.

"She said yes!" Diablo told Leon.

"Great! Let's go, kid."

Leon drove them to the Horizon Juvenile Center. He patted Diablo's back for good luck as they went inside the building. A guard led them to the visitation room after taking their names. The announcement for Haluk Bayat to come to visitation sounded over the loudspeaker and then Haluk slowly walked to the table that Diablo and Leon were sitting at. His red-rimmed eyes were sunken in and he shuffled his feet. He took a seat and grinned widely upon seeing Diablo. "What, no secret handshake? That's fine," he said somberly. "At least you bothered to see me…Vasily hasn't spoken to me since he punched me in the face."

"Not so tough now, are you, buddy?" Diablo asked sardonically.

"How are they...you know...the girls?"

"They're afraid of their own shadows, especially Blanca, thanks for asking. She doesn't speak to anyone but her mom, Gloria, Karla, Aleida, Red, and her fellow survivors. She flinches when anybody gets too close to her. You and your pals completely destroyed her and the rest of the survivors."

"Oh no, not me, Blanca and I loved each other very much."

Diablo's hands clenched into fists and he gritted his teeth. "I just want to let you know that you and I aren't friends anymore, prick!" he said angrily in a hushed voice. "How could you keep something like that private? We were best friends, dumbass. You, me, and Vasily, but now you're out! Best friends share everything with each other. If I saw someone being held against their will, I'd tell you and we'd go to the police or I'd take care of it right away."

"I was six!" Haluk protested.

"Yeah? You couldn't go to your mom?"

"I did, she thought I was talking about a movie when I said I saw something really bad!"

"When I was six, I made it clear what I was saying and I damn well would've told my mom and led her to the house and we'd call the police while we rescued the girl."

"Sorry, I'm not perfect..."

"Yeah, you have no decent qualities whatsoever! It's fucking easy as shit to simply say, 'no, Mommy, really, I saw a little girl who's trapped in an isolated house in the woods and there are bad men hurting her,' and she would've believed you in an instant!"

"I didn't know," he said with feigned innocence.

"I'm not buying it this time! I hope some seventeen-year-old kid kicks your ass in here! I won't feel bad for you at all! What the fuck kind of boy hits girls?"

"You have no proof, don't accuse me of what I didn't do!"

"You didn't want to let Vasily see your phone. If there really was nothing on there, you would've just told him to calm down and then given him your phone."

"He invaded my privacy and sucker punched me motionless for a minute, not even having proof that I did anything! What kind of a friend are you, sticking up for an asshole like that? It's like, of course I'm not showing you anything if you do that!"

"We both saw you beating Blanca into a bloody mess on your phone, asshole!"

"I thought she was one of Piper's lackeys! She could've fought back, but she didn't. The men were clapping and egging me on...I felt powerful, like nothing could stop me. In school, you know, I was bullied...but hey, when I was done, I looked down at Blanca and I felt so guilty. Sometimes, she'd scare me and pass out. They all would."

Diablo shivered at that. "You're saying you imagined it, but you're not legally insane. I know you did it because they look similar to anyone else in the real world that bullied you before and you got off on being all tough because you didn't get to be like that in school. Even if you did have a mental disorder, in your 'good' body, you should have told someone when you were old enough to understand."

"Since I was six, I was under Piscatella's influence!"

"That's no excuse! You lived a normal life until you were six, so I think you would know the difference between right and wrong like I did at that age. I came out of a bad childhood knowing how to treat women."

"I was too scared to say anything when I realized that what they were doing to the girls was awful."

"You make me sick, a few of those poor girls think you're a great guy! You're just like the rest of those psychos!"

"I am not! In fact, when I get out, can you help me pick out a ring for Blanca? She should have something shiny and gold. I've fantasized about our wedding since she agreed to be my girlfriend. She would be such a dutiful wife and a gorgeous bride. Remember, I'm not the one who's tried to kill her before. I never was. She forgave me each time."

Diablo didn't answer. He got up from the table, banged on it, and shook his fist at Haluk. He was so mad and he wanted to throw up all over Haluk's disgusting face. Leon put his hand on Diablo's back when the guard went over to them to escort him out, but he walked away without force. Leon had to jog to catch up to him. When they get outside, Diablo yells so loud that his body shook, he spat on the ground, he went into Leon's car, and he slammed the passenger door shut.

"I really need a punching bag, Mr. McDonald," Diablo stated when Leon got in his car and started driving them back to the construction site. He slammed his fist into his palm. "Trying to trick me into thinking he has uncontrollable delusions...the only thing in his future is a restraining order and a black eye if he touches any of those girls again."

"It is infuriating," Leon agreed. "When I thought of my wife in that house and working for every one of those bastards, I wanted them all dead. Do you just want to go back home and get your rage out? I can give you your pay for the day."

"Yes. Thank you again, sir."

"You're welcome. Son, just call me Mr. McDonald or even Leon."

"I will."


Vasily took his headphones off when Yuri stormed into their bedroom with his face beet red. "Tamika is so selfish! Sometimes, I think Piper's bitchiness is rubbing off on her."

"Dude, I thought you and Tamika were cool now. You were defending her, Karla, and Blanca when those idiots were all over the place at school."

"That wasn't for her, V. It was only so Blanca wouldn't be bothered anymore. Tamika just so happened to be with her, a little ahead of Karla, who's one of Tamika's friends."

"Okay, I don't know what Tamika did that was so terrible. Did she infect your computer with a virus that you can't get rid of or something?" Maxism asked.

"Nope. Man, I wish I had a room all to myself."

"Do you want us to leave?"

"Duh. Get out."

Yuri's younger brothers scoffed. "Fine."


"Okay, since we're both here, I'll ask you first, and I want a clear answer. Why is it World War Three between you and my son?" Galina asked Tamika.

"He and Joy broke up and he's taking it out on me."

"Sometimes, it's easier to be rude to a person you love rather than the one who really hurt you. It doesn't make it right, but that's how it is."

"So, should I just let him be a fuckhead?"

"Of course not, and I don't appreciate you calling him that, young lady!" Galina scolded her. "He's my child. I can throw you out on the street anytime, watch out."

"Sorry," Tamika grumbled.

Rolling her eyes, Galina continued. "You need to be patient with him. Don't rile him up and certainly don't you dare tell him that he's not really your brother, because that is totally uncalled for," Galina advised the girl. "If he's the one with the broken heart, why are you instigating the drama instead of simply being there for him?"

"I try to be nice, but he treats me like I killed his cat every time he sees me...except for when he kept people away from me, Karla, and Blanca."

"Maybe just give him space. Let me tell you...I pushed people away when your father betrayed me, but do you know what they never did?"

"What?"

"They weren't ever cruel towards me. Yuri is my son and your brother figure as much as Vasily is, sweetheart. That means that you need to show him kindness just like you do with Taystee. I know you're a compassionate girl. Didn't you lash out at your friends and family after your breakup?"

"Yeah."

"Were they mean?"

"No."

"Exactly. They held you when you cried, but when you wanted to be in your room with nobody bugging you, they just waited until you went to one of them."

"I know."

"You think about how you're going to be a more understanding person while I talk to him, okay?"

Tamika nodded. "Thanks for getting that into my thick skull, Galina."

"Anytime."

Galina went upstairs and tapped her knuckles against Yuri's bedroom door. He didn't answer after a few knocks, so she opened his door a crack. "Can I come in, buddy?"

"Do what you want, I don't care." He paused his computer game as Galina walked further into his room.

"I noticed that you haven't really been hanging out with Joy lately."

He scratched the back of his head and tried not to look pained, but Galina knew he was. "It's just been a hectic week."

"She was here the night those girls were rescued and ever since then, she hasn't come near you. Even at school, I don't see you at the girls' table."

"So, I want to have guy time with my pals. What's the problem? Don't spy on me!" She saw that he was starting to crumble.

"I'm not, Yuri...I'm a concerned mother. I'm not leaving until you tell me why you're so sad."

"I thought Joy and I were made for each other, but she ended things, are you happy now?" he croaked and her heart cracked in half for him. He sounded so broken.

"Honey, I'm so sorry..."

"No, we're super smart and good human beings...how could it have not worked out?" He sank down onto the bed with his head in his hands and Galina sat next to him and placed her arm around his shoulder. She could feel him shaking with anguish.

"It doesn't matter how similar you are. Sometimes, two people just don't connect in the way you want them to. I can promise you right now, though, Yuri, that it gets better. You're still young. You have, oh, seventy or maybe even eighty years left on this earth. You have so much time to meet all kinds of new people and maybe one of them will be your soulmate. Look at me, I'm forty-five and I haven't lost hope. It took me a few months to get over Dmitri, but I did, eventually. I cried every night and blamed myself because I never saw it coming." Galina brushed a tear away that was dripping down her cheek. "I was busy with work, taking care of all you kids, and making sure the bills were paid on time. That's what I focused on...and slowly, I began to forget Dmitri. I let him back into my life when he wanted to try things again...but then with all our problems, we had to separate for good. The points I'm trying to make are that while it's difficult to move on from a relationship, there are ways to do it and you'll find yourself surprised at how much you've healed from heartbreak."

Yuri faced Galina and sniffled. "I just...I don't know what I did to turn her off. What was the final straw?"

"It's not always you. It's the other person, who for some reason, loses their passion for continuing the relationship."

"You don't have to hate her, Mom. She's one of Tamika's...best friends." He gulped.

"Oh no, I could never...unless she was awful to you about it, of course."

"She wasn't."

"I'm glad. One more thing, Yuri...you can't make the stink eye at Tamika when she tries to help you. She seems to be the only one you're attacking."

"Mom, she verbally abuses me!" he protested.

"I had a conversation with her about that."

"She better apologize!"

"I'm sure she will. Why don't I let you get all of your emotions out and then when you're ready, I'll take you guys, Vasily, Maxsim, Nicky, and Tricia out for bowling and Mexican food. The girls are probably sick of hanging out with just Lida every day."

"Okay. We can all go next weekend."

Galina and Yuri hugged each other tightly and she kissed the side of his temple. "My poor baby boy," she murmured. "I love you. You're so strong and you can do this."

"Mom," he said back in a wavery voice. "I love you, too."

An hour later, Yuri walked downstairs with Galina. Tamika immediately went up to them.

"Sorry for being a bitch."

"Good! Hey, Vasily, Maxsim, we're going out for family night ten days from now!"

"Sweet!"


A week of Daya not being able to attend school because of Piper was infuriating to her friends, but they were glad Poussey was back now. She turned to Franziska. "So, what did your parents say?" she asked when everyone was sitting down at the lunch table. Blanca, Karla, Flaca, Maritza, Shani, Alex, Daya, Alison, and Taystee sat with them, too, since Piper was eating far away from them, with the White Power Group.

"My mom accepts us as a couple, but my dad is upset. He thinks this is all because they left me for so long, I needed someone to hold onto after hearing about what happened to the girls, and that I'm mistakening a close friendship for love."

Daya rolled her eyes. "That's ridiculous!"

"She's...she's my girlfriend," Franziska confessed after they dropped Poussey off at her house.

Her parents were quiet until they'd been home for an hour.

"Straighten yourself out, young lady! You're twelve years old and you shouldn't be thinking about this gross stuff!" Jürgen Mertensacker yelled at Franziska.

Amelia hugged her daughter, who was crying a bit and looking down at her pillow with shame. "It came as a shock to me too, but at least she wasn't ripped away from us for seven years or blown up on the battlefield by terrorists like a lot of our friends were! You know what's sick, the fact that you're homophobic against your own daughter! You were there when I gave birth to her, but you don't love her!"

"My dad stayed at a hotel to get his thoughts together. He's still there now."

"Wow, I'm sorry, Franzi," Poussey said. "Hopefully, he'll come around. We're just thankful Amelia and my parents are on board with it."

"My parents can't ever find out I'm a lesbian...like, they'd ship me off to some straight conversion camp or something," Shani muttered. "Or worse..."

"I just hope my dad doesn't end up doing that," Franziska mumbled.

Poussey sent her girl a sympathetic smile and squeezed her hand. They kissed and then Franziska noticed Lorna watching them and wrinkling her nose.

"I'm sorry, are we making you feel uncomfortable?" Poussey wanted to know.

The brunette shrugged and went back to eating her food.

"How did you know you loved each other for sure?" Karla asked them.

"We can't spend a minute without each other and when I look into her eyes, it's like seeing an angel."

Poussey blushed. "Yeah, pretty much. I've never had a significant other as good as Franzi."

"Oh, well...we feel that way about each other too," Flaca said while sliding her arm around Maritza's waist and pulling her closer so she could kiss the small Latina's temple. Maritza smiled shyly as her cheeks turned red.

"Aww, best friends turned lovers," Franziska cooed.

"You girls are so cute together!" Poussey pointed out.

Lorna stood up with an annoyed expression on her face and walked away from their table with her lunchbox and backpack. She joined Suzanne, who started talking to her.

"Does she have an issue like Jürgen?" Alison asked. "She just gave us the silent treatment." Off everyone raising their eyebrows, Alison added, "You know what I mean, not even using her phone to speak to us or smile as a reaction to something as happy as new romances."

"I'll go have a conversation with her," Daya said. "She just needs to be taught that we accept all kinds of sexualities. Remember, even though she hadn't been stuck in a room as big as a closet for half of her life, only two days, she lives with a very strict Catholic family. There's a lot of social cues she doesn't pick up on."


Another day, when the survivors all chose to sit together at a nearby table since Zirconia was eating with Diablo, Karla noticed Anders Harding standing way too close to Blanca while she was trying to eat. "Stupid, hairy, skin-and-bones bitch!" he yelled and then he and his douchebag friends on the football team started laughing like hyenas. "Why don't you go to the jungle and fuck a chimpanzee while scarfing down a banana?"

"Good one, huh, chalupa?" Kasey Sankey shouted. "That's my man!" She, Brandy Epps, Helen Van Maele, Jennifer Digori, and Stella Carlin all started cheering for him. Piper just pecked Stella's cheek, but doesn't join in on the taunting, much to Karla's surprise. Then again, the entitled WASP is wishy-washy.

Blanca scooted away from Anders. Karla, Shani, Alison, Poussey, Franziska, and Daya went over there so they could help defend her. Blanca's fellow survivors were doing their best to prevent Anders from coming any closer to Blanca by blocking her with their bodies. but Karla could tell they were scared to be around him, too. "Leave her alone, man!" Diablo shouted threateningly.

"Oh no, not my girl," Karla muttered, quickening her pace. Her friends had to run to keep up with her.

Anders reached around Nicky, poked Blanca's unibrow, swiped at her chest, and she screamed bloody murder. "Check this out, she's barely got tits!"

Immediately, Karla sat next to her and gave Blanca a cautious hug, as not to frighten her, but comfort her instead.

The rest of the girls watched Diablo in shock as he shoved Anders away from the table roughly. "When a girl shows that she doesn't want to be touched, you respect that," he said, prodding his finger into Anders' chest. "You are also never allowed to make fun of a girl's weight or appearance in general. Get the fuck away from her, or you and I are gonna have a shitload of problems, starting with your balls!"

"You really wanna fight the whole team, Pablo?" Anders asked, jamming his fist into his palm. "She's not really worth it. She doesn't even like our gender! How sexist is that?"

"I can beat up the racist quarterback!" Diablo swung his fist into Anders' face, which made Alana's ex-boyfriend stumble backward a few feet. Karla wished he'd crashed to the ground instead.

"I enjoy watching that cooze get his ass handed to him!" Lorna commented.

"Me, too," Alison concurred. "Asshole pulled off my hijab once."

Anders pushed Diablo into the table, and Diablo accidentally knocked Blanca's lunchbox off of it, and spills food all over both her and Daya.

"Jesus, you dickhead, watch it!" Daya exclaimed while picking food off of a distressed Blanca. The girls quickly led Blanca away and the survivors followed them. Blanca sat at Karla's table and buried her face into her folded arms. Franziska gave Poussey some money to buy Blanca chicken and rice since she barely ate any of what she brought from home before it splattered all over her and onto the floor. She could only eat those foods. The rest of the girls she was in bondage with didn't have much to share with her.

Diablo hit Anders one last time before Gloria got in between them and held her hands up. "Boys, stop it immediately! What is this all about?"

Diablo held his jaw in pain. "He was making fun of Blanca and he put his hands on her chest."

"Anders, go to Principal Caputo's office!" Gloria commanded. "I'm letting him and your mother know about this one! You're not allowed to touch a student without their permission. That classifies as harassment."

"What about Diablo? He's the one who threw punches first."

"That isn't your business. Diablo is like a son to me and he only harmed you because he was protecting Blanca, who you were bothering."

Anders stormed out of the cafeteria angrily. "This is just not my day!"

"Meh-meh-meh-meh-meh-meh!" Nicky mocked him while the other girls, minus Blanca, giggled. "That'll show him! Why are straight white boys without sisters or gay siblings with disabilities so...moronic?"

"They're not the minority and they have their heads too far up their asses to see reason!" Shani answered. "They think they can overpower like, everyone in the world, but there's limits! Plus, he's a bigot, so...yeah."

Alex chuckled and Poussey gave Blanca her lunch. "You got that right!"

Blanca ate slowly while the rest of the girls chatted. Karla held her hand as a calming gesture.

"Piper missed quite a scene," Taystee commented, and everyone nodded their heads yes in agreement. The blonde had gone to the bathroom just before the drama began.

"Maybe someone got it on videotape," Flaca said.

"Oh, we should do that!" Maritza suggested excitedly. "Record drama and stuff, it sounds fun!"

"Yeah!" Flaca told her cheerfully.

Alana gave an exasperated huff. "I don't know what I ever saw in that doofus!" She laughed and then Karla joined in, cracking up so hard that her belly hurt. The others soon followed suit. Even Blanca was giggling a little, but she was mostly looking at Karla.


Seeing Blanca battered and bruised on Haluk's phone haunted Diablo every day. He wanted to be her friend and keep her safe but he had no idea how he'd go about doing that if she was scared out of her wits when he was nearby. The rest of the girls she was held in chains with, didn't seem as afraid of him as she was.

"I was adopted three months after a girl at the park told me to run away from my abusive foster home when I was five. Strangely, I never saw her again after that. I did, however, see a little girl in the news, who resembled her," he was telling Vasily as they walked to the construction site. He'd gotten Vasily some work there.

"What's that on your face, cooties?" a little Hispanic girl on the swing next to Diablo asked.

"No, it's none of your beeswax!"

She blew on his black eye. "They didn't go away. Gross!" She punched him in the chest and he flinched. There was a bruise right there from Linda Ferguson, his legal guardian.

"Ow!"

"Come on, I didn't hit you that hard, suck it up!"

"My foster mom does a better job than you!"

Her voice grew serious and she asked, "What about your real mamí y papí?"

"They're in jail."

"You gotta run away and live with nice people," she advised him.

"I'll do that then."

"I think I've met her before," he said.

"Who, Blanca?" Vasily asked as Leon approached them.

Diablo nodded. "I knew those pictures of her as a kid that were all over the news y Señor y Señora Flores' walls looked familiar. How could I forget her? She had chocolate-colored eyes, so full of life, and long, frizzy black hair that bounced when she ran around the park."

"You can't be positive, though. Did you get each other's names?" Leon wanted to know.

"No...but my mom told me that I would always brag about rescuing her."

Five-year-old Diablo took notice of a gigantic, dark-haired, bearded white man walking around with a dark look in his eyes, watching all the children."What's that creepy guy doing?" he asked his new friend.

"I dunno..."

The stranger came their way behind the girl, and Diablo asked her, "Where's your mamí y papí?"

"Mi mamí is working, but mi papí is over there!" She pointed to a bench where a man was playing with another small Latina.

Diablo took her hand and led her to her daddy.

"What are you doing?" she asked naively.

"That guy was following you around and I can tell when someone's bad. Stay with your daddy, okay?"

The girl nodded.

"She needs protection if the girl in Ms. Flores' pictures is the same one from my memory. It was the first time I saved someone. My mom congratulated me, 'way to go, champ!' and I hadn't been praised before like that by anyone. I also remember punching Litvack last year. Nobody hurts my mom!" Diablo had also cheered when Yuri swung his fist into Mendez's face for slapping Red's butt.

"Wow...do you think that bastard was the same one who took Blanca?" Vasily asked.

"It could've been. Hey, today while you were doing a makeup test, I clobbered this guy who kept taunting her at lunch. I could've kicked his ass, but Gloria got involved. I wanted to kill him."

"Hey, at least you got a few hits in," Vasily said.

"You remind me of myself when I was a kid...chivalrous and all that. It's not dead, you know," Leon pointed out.

"Yeah...did you ever beat up someone for a girl?"

"Oh, definitely! I always protect Aleida, my female friends, Daya, and then when she came into mine and Aleida's world, Christina."

"Joy's weirdo ex Stratman was bugging Lida one time, so I karate-chopped him," Vasily put in.

"Awesome!"

Thank you for reading and reviewing, VeraRose19 and Juliette45!