Thank you for beta'ing, A Star In My Universe! Happy birthday, MinervaSnape394! Have a great one!
Warning: sexual harassment, racist slurs, and violence.
"I need to speak to you in private, Lorna," Alex murmurs, starting to get up.
"About what?"
"Come on."
Lorna follows Alex outside of the station and around the back. "Okay, go."
"You're acting a bit too calm about this whole thing. Why?" At Alex's question, Lorna freezes and starts trembling with fury.
"I told you, I ain't done nothin'!"
"I never said you did...but P doesn't hate you as much as they do the rest of us. They haven't hurt you physically or tried to start drama between you and the other girls."
"P sold out Nicky for selling drugs when she wasn't actually doing shit at the time! That affected me! I worried about her all the time!"
"Yeah, big whoop...it was more that they wanted to see if we were all being treated fairly. You alone, have never suffered at the hands of P. They're always putting me down for loving Piper and attempted to cause a rift between my mom and I with the heroin I had, they ran under Flaca and slut-shamed her, and they had Daya take the fall for the ogre so she could get into a meaningless argument with Blanca!"
"That ain't my fault...P has even said I'm their favorite...I dunno, it's weird!" Lorna protests, feeling tears swim in her eyes. "You can't be such a bitch to me about that! I didn't ask for them to...love me or whatever!"
"Maybe not...and I would buy it that you couldn't stand Piper, and P liked you for it, but Flaca and Daya harbored resentment for her, too...and I was mad at her for playing with my heart the way she did, but P is mean to us equally. They love you the best!"
Lorna scoffs. "I'm not sure what you want me to say about that! It could be 'cause I was nice to all Piper's bully victims...they like that I got a good heart."
Alex presses her lips in a thin line. "Were you filming the video? I know you went out there to search for her that night."
"No!"
"Really? You seemed to be too comfortable with what Charles...CO Ford showed us. It was as if you'd already been there, seen that...and don't try to give me bullshit about P sending it to you and only you, because no matter how many times someone watches something so horrifying that's happening to their friend, they're going to be very upset."
"Well, I apologize for not crying like you were! Everyone copes with death differently!"
"You didn't need to get that upset, but you were acting like we were watching some boring documentary...I might have even seen you grin. Let the good times roll, huh?"
"What?! I wasn't happy!"
"Oh, and let's discuss how you randomly iced out Pennsatucky...like someone needed to be the scapegoat so nobody would point fingers at you!"
"You three agreed with me!"
"You also tried to murder a human being. I know you despise her because she's with Christopher, but that doesn't mean she needs to die. Thankfully, we were all there to stop your wild ass!"
"No, I said this before...I had to make her back down...I wanted her to know I wasn't playin' around."
"The police won't see it that way."
Lorna sighs as paranoia starts to settle within her. "Piper made me like this!" She's wondering if she really did do or witness something, but just can't remember because she'd disassociated.
"It's just the way you are. Anyway...if you can recall being near that place where Piper was taken, you should tell us."
Lorna bristles. "Don't interrogate me no more!"
"If you are P or working for them, or killed Piper later on in the video, I cannot forgive you...ever!" Alex says angrily through gritted teeth. "It's your last chance to tell me the truth!"
"I'm not associated with that in any way, shape, or form."
"Liar!" Alex hollers at Lorna and stomps off, leaving her on her own to cry silently against the wall.
When Lorna goes home, she just sits on her stairs and mulls over everything Alex had said to her. A lump grows in her throat again and she begins sobbing quietly while hugging herself. Nicky walks down the steps and takes a spot beside her, resting her arms atop her thighs and letting them hang off her knees. "Hey, kid."
"Hi." Lorna sniffles and rubs her eyes free of wetness, but the tears don't seem to stop.
"You should come back on the squad if dropping out upsets you so much that you're ruining your makeup."
Lorna shakes her head no. "It ain't that...Alex got so pissed at me tonight...she...she just said shit...and it really hurt me inside. We had a bit of a brawl. I'm not gonna say much else."
"Okay...I'll help you two work things out-"
"No, that's...that's not necessary, but thank you anyway. We'll go back to bein' friends soon."
"I was gonna take a shower, but I'll be here with you instead." Nicky scoots closer to Lorna and holds her close.
"I thought you were mad-"
"I am, but I'll get over it eventually. Ya know, I gotta let you do whatever you want, even if I think it's pointless."
"Thanks." She breathes in and out shakily.
"Piss-cuntella got here early, I couldn't do it!" Blanca tells Red as she and the other girls come into the backroom. Everyone groans in disappointment. "Even when Diablo took me on his Harley, we still couldn't get to school fast enough!"
"I think he would notice a big mess first anyway," Nicky informs her.
"Does that mean I shouldn't try again later?" Blanca asks. "No, he doesn't really look at the ground...he wouldn't be expecting it!" she answers herself.
Daya's phone buzzes in her pocket and she takes it out. Lorna, Flaca, and Alex must have gotten the same text, since their eyes widen in astonishment, but Daya's message under the picture is more personal. A shock goes through her system when she sees Gloria and Aleida in a full-on makeout session at the Sparrow Tavern with Red, Diane, Theresa, Juliana, Franny, Norma, and Claudette giggling or simply smirking in the background. Oopsies, look what I came across...Mommy's cheating, you better go tell her boyfriend before I send him a letter about her little affair! You have until midnight to break the news. -P
"Yo, I don't mean to interrupt, but some white girl's dad saw Gloria and Aleida kissing...what was that about?" Flaca wonders out loud. "I don't remember her name."
"I don't think we ever..." Aleida trails off.
"Wait, when the fuck was this?" Gloria wants to know, and Diane chuckles awkwardly.
"We were all getting drunk and I dared them to kiss," Red admits. "It was before Aleida met Leon that very same night."
Daya breathes a sigh of relief. "Ohhh," the girls murmur through a laugh.
"Is that her?"
"Yeah, that Morello chick was out on the streets all night. Her fatigue made her weak, besides losing a lot of blood!"
"I wonder how much sleep she got!"
After the gossiping boy and girl pass them, they look at Lorna quizzically. Nicky is the only one who knows the truth, but she makes herself appear to be just as puzzled, to respect Lorna's request to keep it a secret. "Please tell me that's just a stupid rumor," Maritza begs.
"It is," Lorna assures her. "I would never do something that silly! Bye!" After hugging Nicky and Maritza, she runs off to her first period class. She and Alex are still ignoring each other, and it makes Nicky want to lock them in a room together so they can talk out their problems.
"Hey, Vause, what's your issue with Lorna?" Nicky asks.
"I don't feel like discussing it. Let's get changed before the hulk catches us not ready yet!" They do as Alex recommends and hide themselves as best they can when Dixon and Humps walk through the locker room like it's nothing, wolf-whistling at every girl they see, especially the naked ones. Nicky and Alex conceal Maritza so Humps can't get to her, and they cover her mouth with their hands so he won't hear her whimpering through her panic attack. She's absolutely frozen with fear. Dixon spanks both Nicky and Alex's butts at the same time, making them jump.
"It's better if you grab 'em," Humps says. He pinches their bottoms and Nicky shivers, flashing back to what Pornstache had done to her, but somehow keeps the bile down. Alex appears to be just as disgusted.
Piscatella stomps in after they leave while twirling a metal bat like it's a baton, and tears Nicky away from her friends. They're screaming at him to leave her alone, but he throws her down so she lands hard on the floor, luckily on her hands and knees, so her head doesn't crack open-but it's so painful that all she can do is cry. "Stupid junkie!" he growls at her. "You're such a waste of my time!" Alex, Maritza, and Allison attempt coming to her aid, but he blocks their paths with the baseball bat. "I was hoping to hear a bone snap somewhere inside your body."
"I'll do anything to make you stop bullying me." Nicky sobs, crawling to the bench to help herself up. She staggers on her own two feet while backing away from him.
"It's refreshing to see Stalina's face when she notices you're injured."
"Why do you hate us so much?"
"You're all troublemakers, plain and simple. A heroin addict shouldn't be stepping foot on the street! Oh well...tomorrow will be a new day."
Nicky gulps and watches his hand clench around the neck of his bat. "Meaning?"
"You'll be begging for me to smash your face into the pavement and let you bleed out. No more questions! You four dirty cunts are now late! March into that gym now, and not a word to me or each other!"
They silently do as they're told.
"I been thinkin'...we should split the cash. You don't gotta spend money on me," Flaca tells Maritza while they're taking Alana to the cafeteria's backroom on their way to their classes, as Lorna follows them. Alana has yet another bloody nose, and the wad of Kleenexes she's holding doesn't help. Piper had thought it was hilarious and pathetic, but her friends always felt sorry for the poor, accident-prone girl who couldn't seem to stop bumping into things.
"No, no, it's my treat."
"Okay, then thank you! Where were you thinking of going, and when?"
"How about bowling and then ice cream at Friendly's tonight?"
"Yeah! That would be super awesome!" Flaca exclaims.
"You're going out, just the two of you?" Lorna wonders out loud.
"Mm-hm," Flaca and Maritza say in unison.
"Oh, enjoy yourselves!"
"Thanks!"
"Jesus, what happened to you?" Red asks.
"Dodgeball, I didn't even see it coming," she responds. "Ow..."
Red sighs and looks at her in concern. "Go to the backroom, I'll see if it's broken."
"Thanks..."
They leave her with Red and meet up with Nicky, who's staring at her bared teeth and touching each one with her tongue in the bathroom. "What are you doing?" Lorna wants to know.
"I got a toothache and my teeth are ugly! Look at 'em, all yellow and stained...girls are gonna start to wonder why they allow me to eat 'em out...let alone be attracted to my smile!"
"That's the warning sign of them rotting from repeated drug abuse and smoking. Maybe you could ask Red to take you to the dentist and have you get Chiclets?" Lorna suggests. "I hear they make your breath smell fresh and minty, and they're beautiful and white!"
Nicky puffs her cheeks out and exhales. "Thanks for the idea! I just hope Red's loaded! Otherwise, I don't wanna bug her about it. Uhh...we should go to Woodshop, come on, Flaca! Lorna, Maritza, you gotta head to English!" She exits the bathroom, takes Flaca's wheelchair from Maritza, and pushes her down the hall to their next class.
"That's kinda hot that you ride on the back of your boyfriend's Harley," Lorna tells Blanca at lunch. "What I would give to do somethin' like that...I'm not sure if Christopher's into motorcycles, though."
Alex rolls her eyes internally, but she opts not to say anything, since she can't think of one nice response. "I love it," Blanca murmurs while squeezing Diablo's shoulders and pushing his wheelchair into the end of the table where they're going to sit with Maria and Yadriel. "So, what do you guys think, should I dare my cousin Anton to eat the goldfish that I won at a carnival when I was almost three?"
"Twelve years? The average lifespan of a pet fish is five to ten," Nicky informs her.
"Yeah, well, I guess they do really good with nothing to eat except Fruit Loops."
"Wow!" Maritza exclaims.
"Tal vez no deberías dejarlo acercarse a tu pez...¡ese tipo tomará cualquier reto!" Diablo tells Blanca.
Maybe you shouldn't let him near your fish...that dude will take any challenge!
"Oh, sí...¡gracias, mi amor!" Blanca kisses Diablo and Lorna squeals.
yes, thank you my love
"I adore your PDA so much!" she gushes.
"You would," Alex mutters.
"Yeah, he thinks I'm cute, even with the extra toe on my right foot."
"Aw," Lorna coos.
"Did you really live on a Greyhound bus for a year?" Daya wonders out loud.
Blanca nods. "I wanted to get away for a while...and Maria encouraged me to come back home."
"I gave her a nice makeover like she wanted me to...even though she didn't need it," Maria says.
"That was real nice of her," Flaca comments.
Maria and Blanca stroll confidently through the hall, holding hands, after Maria loses her baby bump and Blanca has two eyebrows and a full head of straight hair that's slightly curled at the ends. They're dressed very stylish with makeup, jewelry, skirts, blouses, and boots instead of frumpy, like they just rolled out of bed. Everyone they're passing is shocked, boys catcall at them while girls appear to be jealous. Some new students compliment them and ask them to join their group and be the leaders. Alex and Lorna glance at each other for a split second in amazement, but then they're not able to stop gaping at the two transformed girls. Alex can't believe her eyes.
"Is that really Blanca?" Lorna asks.
"Well, she's with Maria...I assume so, yes," Alex responds.
"Wow, she looks great!"
Flaca and Daya go to the girls' locker room together, already in their red and blue uniforms, and Ouija walks ahead of them. "Yo, did you notice how far Alex was sitting from Lorna today? What do you think happened?" Daya asks.
"I'm not sure...I hope they resolve things soon! It's annoying when there's drama within our group!" Flaca responds. "Hey, I'm so glad our classes are gonna be together today!"
"Me, too!"
Flaca has Mr. O'Neill, while Daya's teacher is Mr. Donaldson. Mr. O'Neill is funny and the whole school is well aware that he and Maritza's Earth Science teacher, Ms. Bell, are dating, and while Mr. Donaldson is strict, he's also reasonable and shows that he has a good heart. He makes sure to go easy on Daya since he knows she's pregnant. She still has to do the exercises, but she can take her time running. He allows her to walk fast around the gym or the track, as well. Last year, Daya used to have a pervert physical education teacher with glasses who always touched her until Piper got him fired. It was the best thing Piper ever did for her.
"Did you and Maritza set up your teachers together like in Clueless?" Daya wants to know.
Flaca giggles. "Nah, they got together on their own, but that would've been cool!"
Everyone but Flaca is doing laps, circling the track, when Mr. Donaldson lectures Cindy for being lazy because she's going as slow as Daya. "I'm with child, just like her!" she insists, pointing at Daya.
"You need a medical statement from a doctor! Pick up the pace now, Miss Hayes!" he orders.
While he isn't looking, Cindy grumbles, "Of course you're preggers, every Spanish girl is," and pushes Daya to the side as she runs past her, and Daya stumbles to the ground. Her arm shoots out in front of her so she doesn't fall on her stomach.
"What the fuck is wrong with you, she's pregnant!" Flaca yells from next to the bleachers.
Ouija gets Daya back to standing. "Are you okay?"
Daya groans while brushing herself off. "Yeah, I probably got a bruised knee or whatever, but I'm fine."
"Mind yo beeswax, skinny bean!" Cindy hollers at Flaca.
"Alright, that's an extra five laps for you, Miss Hayes!" Mr. Donaldson shouts at her.
"Fuckin' bitch deserves it," Pidge mutters from behind Daya.
"I almost did a bad thing last night!" Suzanne tells Lorna while holding her head and making her eyes bug out. "Thank heavens Maureen was there!"
"What happened?" Lorna wonders out loud.
"We were babysitting her favorite kid, Dylan, together, when he tried to call his dad so he could go home. Suzanne didn't want to let him leave. She continued playing dress-up with him and chasing him around the house and he tried to exit through the fire escape, but I caught him just in time!" Maureen explains. She rubs Suzanne's back soothingly. "We did have to scold him for dialing nine-one-one because there was no emergency...but he was safe!"
Lorna gasps. "Oh, that's good, I'm glad he's okay!"
"I don't like when children run away from me, it's not nice!" Suzanne pouts. "I'm Employee of the Month of September at Super Emporium, and that means I'm a people person! Dylan should admire me!"
"I'm sure he does, but he was probably tired, that's all," Lorna assures her. "Congratulations, by the way!"
Suzanne grins. "Thank you!"
"We know, but rejection hurts," Maureen says.
"It doesn't seem like he did it because he doesn't like you!" Lorna insists. "Kids may have more energy than us, but they get bored easily-"
"I was keeping him entertained!"
Lorna sighs in defeat. "I dunno, then."
"I shot a nurse for making fun of my sixth abortion, before I got arrested for the prank, but I got away with it because Boo advised me that if I wanna commit a crime, I should do it in private, so I did. Later when I told her, she said she was only teasing. At the time, I didn't know she was such a jokester!" Pennsatucky reports to Nicky. "I don't do that shit no more, 'cause I ain't on meth."
Nicky is about to respond, but Humps interrupts their chatter. "So the process of Lingchi is simple...they'd kill the person by cutting off one part of them at a time. By Wikipedia's definition, it's the death of a thousand cuts, a torture method used in China. Does anyone know when it was banned?"
Nicky raises her hand. "Nineteen oh-five."
"Good...I wish it were still popular, though, and in America, too. Someone come up to the front...the little whore. You're as hot as the tiny, spicy Mexican you're always hanging around." He clutches Lorna by her wrist and forces her up and has her face the class. Nicky starts to get up. "Stay in your chair, Nichols. I never told you to move!"
"Don't you even think about touching her!"
"Be glad it's not you."
Nicky scoffs. "You're grosser than the shit I gotta pick up with the litter picker!" Her heart breaks as Lorna just stands there, trembling and whimpering in his grasp.
He fondles each part of Lorna that would be chopped off, and Nicky rummages through Lorna's purse, not planning to stop until she finds the brunette's perfume bottle. "I'd strip her naked and draw on her with a black sharpie, exactly where I would slice. The breasts and butt are first since there's a lot of meat there, and then digits and limbs. The ears are next, then the eyes, nose, and mouth. Then, I'd hang her up by her hair and leave her there to die. She'd go quickly, since she'd be a bloody pulp." The class looks close to gagging and throwing up, and when he starts to unbutton her shirt, Nicky sprays Lorna's perfume right into his eyes.
"You stupid whore!" he snarls while Nicky takes a shaking Lorna from him.
"I thought I was gonna be prepared like cattle before they get slaughtered and turned into beef!" Lorna cries as she and Nicky shoot out of the room at top speed.
"That would never happen! He was just being creepy and gross...he'd fail to act on it!" She hoists Lorna up on her back when it the Italian falters in her step.
Alex twirls the blue tips in her hair around her fingers as she watches the tall trees leaning in the wind from outside her Geometry classroom. She squints when she thinks she sees Lorna's hands on Nicky's shoulders and the brunette's legs hooked around the blonde's waist. She feels guilty about what she'd flat-out accused Lorna of doing. There's just no way she'd really hurt her friends like that or let them get murdered. She would intervene.
When the bell finally rings to signal the end of the day, she, along with the rest of the school, boycott detention. It's not as if the shmucks will seek out each and every student and successfully find them, because it's impossible. After-school activities are being held at people's houses. She passes Lorna and Nicky, who have just finished talking to each other before cheerleading and continues on her way to where Flaca is waiting for band practice at their teacher's apartment. She's surprised when Lorna starts walking with her, towards the bus stop.
"Hey...where are you going?"
"I thought we weren't speakin' to each other...you were giving me the cold shoulder."
"Well, I'm sorry...I'm just so determined to figure out the mystery, that every little thing appears suspicious. I should've never treated you like that! It wasn't fair of me."
"Thanks..."
Alex puts her arm around Lorna. "How come you're not with the squad?"
"I dropped out. I'll tell Christopher once I see him!"
"Had to slip that in there, huh? You think he'll really give a shit?"
"Don't sound so exasperated! It'll make him be mine forever, you'll see! Ain't nobody, not even you, gonna change that!"
Alex raises her eyebrow at her smaller friend. "We just don't want you to get hurt."
Lorna scoffs. "Oh please, the only person who's hurt is that stinky Angela Cooze-nick! God, I'd hate to be her her right now!"
"Same."
"Yay, I got a strike!" Flaca cheers as her pink ball rolls into the pins, knocking all ten down.
"Aw, lucky you, I can only get more of 'em down with the stupid bumpers!" Maritza complains.
"Maybe that's because you're mostly paying attention to recording us bowl!"
Flaca's wrong though, because Maritza can't stop thinking about how tight her ass would look in her jeans if she were bending over to retrieve a ball, and the fact that she has so much cleavage. Besides, she's beyond exquisite under these purple lights and her shimmering jewelry, red lips, and blue streaks in her hair make her absolutely ethereal. "How about you help me?" She knows perfectly well how to bowl, but she wants to feel Flaca's arms around her, with the taller chick's warm breath tickling the back of her neck.
"Okay, I will." Flaca hands Maritza a six pound green ball with holes big enough to fit her thumb and middle and index fingers. They head to the lane together, Flaca rolling along as Maritza walks with her. "So what you gotta do is kinda kneel down. Flaca guides Maritza to a squat. "That's how you can judge where exactly to aim. Then pop back up...and let the ball go right down the center of the lane by making sure your wrist is straight." Flaca positions Maritza and has her arm swing forward. The gentle touch of Flaca's hand on the back of Maritza's is enough to make her melt. "One last tip, tell yourself and imagine that the pins are the people you hate the most."
"Alright, thanks, girl!" Maritza imagines the pins being Humps, Dixon, Piscatella, and Arturo as she sends the ball flying into them, achieving a perfect strike. "Yes! I totally killed 'em!"
"Whoo!"
They go to Friendly's and sit across from each other at a red booth, and Flaca props her casted leg up and on Maritza's lap. Maritza thanks her lucky stars that Alex isn't there since she wants Flaca all to herself. They look at the menu, and Maritza can't help but peer over the top of hers at Flaca.
"What? I got a zit on my face or somethin'?" She pulls out her compact mirror from her purse. "Shit…"
Maritza blushes at having been caught staring. "Nah, nothin' like that…you're just so beautiful tonight."
Flaca beams and rests her chin in her hand. "Thanks…you're super pretty, too."
"Thank you."
Diane comes up to them. "What can I get you girls?" she asks.
"I'd like an orange sherbet ice cream on a brownie with a topping of whipped cream and rainbow sprinkles, please," Flaca orders.
"Can I please have cookies and cream ice cream topped with cookie dough, whipped cream, and rainbow sprinkles?" Maritza asks.
"Of course. It'll be ready in about five minutes or so," Diane says pleasantly.
As they wait for their desserts, they talk about everything and nothing while giggling. Later, they gobble their treats down. "Mmm!" they exclaim in unison.
"I had fun with you!" Flaca tells Maritza as they go into Diane's car. Alex's mother is going to take them to Fahri's apartment, where Alex had invited all of her friends for dinner and a movie. It's perfect because then Maritza can lean into Flaca's good side to get comfortable on the couch.
"Me, too!"
"It totally sucks that Lorna and Nicky are missing out 'cause of stupid volunteering!"
"I know, right?"
They get there just as Gloria is dropping off Daya. "Your friend has a nice place," the older Latina says to Diane in passing, and then she hugs everyone. "I saw a glimpse through the window."
"Oh, thanks, I'll tell him you said so!"
"Hey, girls!" Daya greets them happily as she wraps her arms around them.
"Hi!"
"Have fun, you three! ¡Adiós!" Gloria calls out.
"¡Gracias! ¡Adiós!" they shout after her.
Maria and Blanca are already there, helping Alex and Fahri set out plates as he announces that dinner is prepared. The girls follow Diane into the kitchen and she hugs her daughter and Fahri. They eat their broccoli rice casserole while Alex, Diane, and Fahri converse and include Flaca, Maritza, Daya, Blanca, and Maria in on it. Fahri appears to be sympathetic of the fact that Flaca was run under by a car, which has caused her to be in a wheelchair. Then they watch an action film, 2 Fast, 2 Furious. Maritza would've preferred a rom-com, but she does like the cars zipping all over the highway. As she snuggles with Flaca, she gasps as an epiphany appears into her head. "Ohhh...my god!"
"What?" Flaca whispers.
"This dude's been real good friends with Alex and Diane for years, right? Blanca said it had to be somebody familiar…he's totally kind and respectful...are you thinkin' what I'm sayin'?" she asks in a hushed tone while squeezing Flaca's hands in excitement.
"Yes!" Flaca squeals under her breath. "Holy shit, we gotta tell Lorna!"
Lorna is doing her homework diligently when her phone plays a ringtone. Her heart sinks in disappointment when she sees it's not Christopher. "Hi, Flaca."
"Hey, girl!"
"Why are you speaking so quietly?"
"We're in the bathroom and we don't want nobody to hear…but Operation Land Gloria Her Prince Charmingis underway!" Maritza says cheerfully. "We found our candidate! It's Fahri!"
"The man we met at the Sparrow Tavern?"
"Yep! He's close to Alex and Diane, so it's not like he's a stranger, and he's nice and handsome! He's also exactly Gloria's age. Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!" Flaca explains happily.
Lorna smiles. "Oh, that's great! What's the plan for gettin' 'em together?"
"We gotta think, but it don't need to happen til October ninth. That will have been exactly one month, and we know that 'cause we looked in Flaca's call log…we got Arturo arrested, so we counted from there."
Someone knocks on her door to the tune of shave and a haircut, two bits!
"Cool...um, hold on…" Lorna puts her phone down. "Who's there?"
"It's Nicky!"
"Sorry, I gotta go!" she tells Flaca and Maritza and then quickly gets her key and the blue friendship bracelet she'd crafted for Nicky out of her desk drawer. She unlocks her door and lets Nicky in.
"Hi, how was NA?"
Nicky rolls her eyes. "Ah, the usual…serenity prayer and then it works if you work it!" she recites with what Lorna can tell is faked enthusiasm. "It's said at the end of each meeting. I'm three days sober, which is like nothing. Alex, Tricia, and Daya's mom are doing so good, they don't even need the twelve step program! I can't go too long without a cig and heroin's my best girlfriend!"
"I can't quite grasp how anyone could be addicted to smokes or smack, but that's kinda like how nobody gets my attraction to Christopher, so we're the same in that way. Uh…I got a little creative, by the way...this is for you." She presents Nicky with the gift and slides it over her hand and onto her wrist.
"Best friends forever," the blonde murmurs to herself as her fingers skim over the white beads with one black letter on each of them. "Hey, thanks, kid. I, uh...I appreciate this. Really!" There's a hint of sadness in Nicky's eyes, and Lorna doesn't understand why.
"You don't like it."
Nicky grins. "No, I love it! I mean something to you, so…yeah, I'm extremely grateful."
"You sound so melancholy."
"It's just that nobody's ever done anything out of the blue like this for me before, unless it was a bribe…so if you're trying to make up for the cheerleading thing and get me to forgive you for leaving the squad-"
"I would never do that to you," Lorna assures Nicky. "I'm always genuine. I don't buy people's love…or friendship!"
Nicky sighs and plops onto Lorna's bed. "Alright. So…I asked Red to take me to the dentist to get Chiclets, but they're booked solid until next week. Since the whole procedure takes numerous hours, I've gotta be out for the whole school day. How awkward would it be if I had Mrs. Kuznick working on my teeth?"
"Very! I hope you don't get her!"
"Me neither."
"I suppose we can't skip detention this time, otherwise they'll ruin our weekend!" Diane overhears Allison gripe. She's sitting with her fellow teachers, Frieda Berlin, Susan Fischer, Artesian McCollough, Berdie Rogers, Eliqua Maxwell, Francine Dennis, Erin Sikowitz, Rhea Boyle, Shelly Ginsberg, Wanda Bell, Scott O'Neill, Felix Rikerson, Joel Luscheck, and John Bennett since Charles is handling an emergency at this time.
"Where is Mr. Donaldson?" Mr. Hayes roars suddenly, getting everyone's attention. "I'd like to discuss an issue with him!"
John stands up. "He's in a meeting, but I could-"
"No, I need to speak to him, not you or anyone else at this table!" Cindy's agitated father bellows. "He's being unjust. One of his students is getting away with too much because she's pregnant like all fifteen year old Mexicans are, and my daughter, Cindy Hayes, got in trouble for making a racist comment! She wouldn't have had to say anything had the school been fair on their policies of people who decide to make sports harder for themselves by getting-"
Daya hides her face in shame, and Cindy leaves the cafeteria immediately. Diane feels sorry for both girls, and Daya's friends squeeze her hands in support.
"Mr. Hayes, would you like to talk about fairness? Why don't you discuss that with Mr. Piscatella, Mr. Dixon, and Mr. Humphrey, because they're the worst out of all of us. Lunchtime is not the appropriate setting to be going on a rant like this! I will need to have you leave, sir," Mr. Bennett calmly orders him.
They breathe a sigh of relief as Mr. Hayes finally walks out of the cafeteria.
"The buffoon I've told you about before, Mr. Hayes, comes in, ranting about how Daya shouldn't go slower than her peers because she's with child. It was in the cafeteria, so we all heard it, Daya included," Aleida's best friend reports to her.
"What do you expect me to do about it, huh? He should be yelling at Bennett for getting my daughter pregnant!" Aleida tells Gloria sharply.
"Then march up to him at the parent-teacher conference tonight and tell him that! Your kids are in the same Physical Education class! Surprisingly, though, Mr. Bennett stopped him from taking his ruckus any further. I guess I shouldn't be too shocked, because this is Daya we're talkin' about here."
"Aleida, hi...I am so sorry about what Mr. Hayes said, as if we didn't have enough motherfuckers in our lives!" Diane exclaims when Daya's mother walks into the school with Gloria.
"Yeah, Gloria told me...I fucked up my daughter!" she admits with a heavy heart.
"Fix it, then!" Gloria recommends.
"Where is she? I'mma talk to her right now."
"She should be with Flaca, getting out of gym class."
"Okay, thanks, girl." Aleida searches for Daya around that area.
"So, Mr. Hayes spread his bullshit about you around and you never told your motha?" Aleida questions Daya.
"Why would I confide in you about anything?" Daya asks while stepping into her jeans and putting her shirt on over her head and her arms go through the sleeves. "You'll just tell me I shouldn't have been a slut to cause people problems, or...whatever!" She pulls the shirt down over her torso.
"I ain't gonna do that no more, alright?" Aleida's eyes glisten with moisture, and Daya is stunned to see her being this emotionally affected by the situation. "I truly apologize for being so mean to you all these years. I promise...I'll be a better mama from now on." She sniffles and chokes out a sob. "I'm really sorry, Daya. You're my daughter...and ain't nobody gonna make you feel bad about yourself. I was so awful...but I wanna work on being closer to you..." Aleida hiccups mid-sentence as tears roll down her cheeks, and she wipes them away. "In order to do that, I gotta...I gotta be a good person. Ya know, a...a motha you can count on and all that shit."
Daya swallows the lump in her throat at her mother's speech, and she and Aleida embrace. "Thanks, Ma..."
"Yeah, yeah, you're welcome." After a few moments, they let each other go and Aleida storms up to Mr. Hayes. "Yo, I dunno who the fuck you are, but if you got a problem with the school, you talk to Caputo or Mr. Donaldson about it and deal with what they say, but leave my daughter outta this! She's not getting privileges, they're called accommodations, and it's not only her fault that she's got a baby on the way. Plus, it ain't your business! You got that, you nasty-ass fuckhead? Huh?"
"Sure...I apologize, lady."
"Yeah, you bet I'm a lady! You just the tramp, but plot twist, we ain't together! I so pity your wife! The bottom line is, if you're lookin' for a scapegoat, it ain't Daya."
"I understand." He turns to leave, but Aleida pulls him back.
"Oh, I'll decide when we're done here!"
Daya and Cindy look after the scene in astonished silence, and Daya smirks at the way Aleida is snarling at Cindy's father. "Hey...I'm sorry for my daddy's behavior. He yelled in front of me and my friends, too, and it's none 'a his bizz-nizz if I have beef with you," Cindy mutters, motioning for Daya to uncertainly follow her out of the locker room. "He goes off on tangents...my mama, brothers, sisters, and I can't stand it. It makes her wanna kick him outta the house sometimes. He's one of the reasons I wanna be Jewish and live with Ms. Ginsberg or somethin', but I'll miss the rest of my family too much. Ain't nobody really can comprehend that except my boy, Martin."
"Okay...I appreciate your apology, but you were very rude to me yesterday and you could've hurt my child. I cannot put myself in danger like that."
"I know...I feel bad, a'ight? I shouldn't have shoved you or called you that slur. I guess I'm kinda...jealous of you."
Daya chuckles bitterly. "Are you for real?"
"Well, with the way your mama's setting my daddy straight...now I never met her before, but man, you're lucky she doesn't care that you got a bun in the oven! If I had a supportive mama like yours-"
"My mom is so lenient that she expected me to get knocked up and she doesn't think I can do anything else!" Daya blows up at her. "Her ex was the same...and she always took his side over mine, even when he was being a violent piece of scum. The man she's dating now, just happens to be a good guy. The first time she'd been really nice to me and proved it...was just now. Like...she's gradually kinder each day, but it'll take me a while to completely trust her."
"I really am pregnant...but nobody really buys that 'cause my pluscious curves hide it, and I don't want this kid...I'd only be no more than an occasional playmate to 'em, but 'cause of my religion, I can't abort it."
"Oh, wow...uh, yeah, you can, but you don't need to tell anyone about it."
"You gonna give me the cash for it? I don't got zip! I need to at least let my mama in on the big news eventually...she'll be pissed as hell, but hey, I'm bein' honest. Only thing is, I dunno how to tell my religious freak parents that I got knocked up!"
"Maria's starting a support group for teen moms, if you ever wanna join. Maybe you'll get some ideas there."
"I'll think about it."
Since Caputo couldn't suspend all of the students for skipping school and the punishment that followed, they're all having detention in the large gym. "Last year, there were many fights in school instigated by the sadistic asshole teachers," Maria warns Nicky and Maritza as the girls walk inside the large room. "I have no idea why not anymore, but maybe they're just saving it for a bigger audience, like here, for example. Diane's supposed to be in charge, but Piscatella took over and physically forced her out of the room. Stratman and Humps made a bet and demanded that Suzanne and Maureen have a go at each other since Maureen was willing to, and Suzanne beat her up so bad that Maureen was in the emergency room for months, being treated for elephantiasis. Ouija, Blanca, and I pulled Suzanne off before she could kill Maureen. So yeah...be careful!"
"Shit, that's fucked up," Nicky says distastefully.
"We don't gotta worry about it this time, because one half of 'em ain't here, and we would just flat-out refuse!" Maritza declares.
"Since you all like to team up against us, we will divide you!" Piscatella suddenly booms. "Apes, burnt rice, and terrorists, follow me to this side. Dirty Mexi-hos and other Mexican'ts with Mr. Dixon. Chaps, Little Hiroshimas, and every single person with the same skin color as the ugly kitchen commie, Mr. Humphrey will take you." He passes the girls and glares at them. "Separate, now!" Piscatella grips Alex's tattooed forearm firmly and jostles her. "Your stupid chocolate-dipping mother should realize that she's not ever going to be the leader of this!"
"I think she got the idea last year," Alex snaps. "Besides, parent-teacher conferences are today."
"Good, she better have. I'm not sure what exactly either of those nigger lovers know." His evil eyes pass over to Daya as he releases Alex. "Tell those cunts to keep their public displays of affection in private."
They nod quietly and then the area is quickly split into three sections. The girls have to sit on the bleachers while doing their homework. It's not too horrible if they don't ever look up to see Humps leering at them. The trouble only starts when Lorna sheepishly comes into the space. Nicky has a terrible feeling in her gut that Humps will treat Lorna as his little plaything, because he does that.
"Finally took drugs, huh, Morello?" she asks teasingly, hoping to distract Lorna from the hungry look on his face. "Maybe that's why you were being Looney Tunes Lorna on Wednesday?"
Lorna flips her off. "Mind your beeswax!"
Nicky scoffs while folding her arms across her chest. "Well, it looks like the snitch got herself into trouble too, eh?"
"Hey, fuck you, Nichols!"
"Hey, chill, kid, really, how did you wind up here?"
"Stop breathing in my face, you're giving me secondhand smoke germs."
"She was inflicting violence on another student...chick drama! Careful with that one, she's fiesty!" Humps cuts in.
"Nicky, I think that's enough," Alex mumbles.
"She's a fuckin' bitch!" Angela yells. "She actually tried to kill me!"
"Oh, shut up, Cooze-nick!" Lorna hollers. "I wouldn't have done nothin' if you'd stayed away from my boyfriend in the first place!" Christopher kicks Lorna from behind, and she growls while standing up. "Excuse me?" She yanks Angela by her hair and throws her down, but several girls catch her before she can fall too far. Humps guffaws, and Christopher appears to be livid. "Don't attack me outta nowhere, you cunt!"
"You fuckin' asshole!" Nicky bursts out at Christopher and goes to punch him, but Larry and Pete stop her.
"You don't like each other?" Humps wonders out loud. "Why don't you battle it out? Use your fists. My little Betty Crocker seems to want to!"
"No, that skank's not worth it!" Angela shouts as Polly and Christopher help her back to a sitting position.
"Call me that one more time, and you'll see what happens!" Lorna screams at her, but Nicky and Alex hold her back from going up there again, and they move her away from Christopher and Angela entirely.
"Okay, let's see...Doggett! You seem to have a lot of anger towards that lipstick freak...so go ahead. Get her."
"I don't feel like it. She's not that bad, okay?"
"You're ugly anyway, I'd rather see hotter girls fight. Last year's was pretty boring...a fuckin' retard and a Cabbage Patch doll. It may have been better in a mud pit, but I needed that twenty dollars. The only streetwalking dago who wears whore lipstick...you can fight anyone you want in here. I'll keep it a secret!" He licks his lips as he directs his sneer towards Nicky and Lorna. "Nichols...you and Morello like to argue so much...let's see it get physical!"
"I ain't a prostitute, and it was just a banter," Lorna mumbles. "I don't wanna hurt her! We're real good friends."
"Yeah, just leave us alone!" Nicky snaps.
"Oh, don't tell me you're scared! Shortstack is powerless! You'll win...easily!"
"I'm not afraid of her...or you! Also...I'm the only one allowed to call her that because it's our inside joke!"
"What's the problem, then, ditz? I'm challenging you to a brawl with the insane dwarf. I wanna see a fight. You're in detention for being fuck-ups, let's see you fuck each other up. I'll record it so my buddies can see it, too! Contestant number one, come on down!"
Nicky laughs at how stupid he's being. "Fine. I can handle this! It's probably all just talk, anyway!"
"Come on!" Bob Yoders urges Lorna. "It's like babes wrestling, but live!"
"No, I don't wanna, quit pushin'..." She yelps when Alexi Bendahli grabs her by a lock of her hair. "Knock it off..."
"You like your hair pulled, I thought!" Christopher says.
"Only by you!" Lorna answers him.
"Let's go, Lorna the Whore-na!" Kristy Lars eggs her on while she, Tammy Hills, and Jody Ocker pull Lorna down the steps and shove her towards Nicky. Alex tries to stop them, but they easily avoid her.
"You can't sing for shit!" Paulie Jamin insults her.
"Shut the fuck up!" Lorna shrieks so loud that it shatters Nicky's eardrums. She stumbles back a few feet and then staggers back up to Nicky.
"Fight! Fight! Fight!" the white supremacists begin to chant, and then the rest of the students, except Nicky's fellow cheerleaders, Alex, and Pennsatucky join in.
"That's it, play on her temper!" Humps says. "Let it out, shortstack!"
"Guys, that's enough!" Nicky screams. "We're not going to hit each other, but if you want a back-and-forth squabble for your own entertainment, then that's cool. It could be a nice way to work out issues between us."
"Yeah, give it up!" Alex puts in.
"This is ridiculous!" Ella grumbles. "Don't be so mean."
"Less bla-bla-bla, more fists!" Angela calls out. "This bitch needs to go down!"
"Cut it out!" Caitlin and Tia shout at her in unison.
"You really should not have quit cheerleading!" Nicky punches Lorna's upper arm playfully. "That dumb Christopher doesn't even love you!"
"He does, too!"
"Can it with the lying to everyone including yourself, Morello! Don't you see that most of them think you're a lunatic? I dunno, maybe you are, and that's not your fault...but the whole reason I decided to be on the squad was you. What, I'm not...I don't mean shit to you?"
"Of course you do...and I am not what you just called me!" Lorna hisses through her gritted teeth.
"You're sure acting like it...your world revolves around him!"
"Yeah, duh, because he's my boyfriend!"
"It seems like you forgot about your friends!"
"You know I didn't, so cut it out!"
"Cut what out?" Nicky fires back.
"You're picking a fight with me for no reason!"
"This is going nowhere!" Humps kicks Lorna in the side, and she whimpers in agony as she falls to the floor. "I'm going to kill her if you don't express your true feelings," he threatens Nicky in a dark tone of voice as he holds a knife to Lorna's throat. "You are angry with her! You want to murder this brainless twit-bitch!"
"I'm not like that, man. Let her go, please..." Nicky begs, starting to tremble involuntarily. He strokes the side of her face with his weapon and closes his other hand around Lorna's neck. "Take...take me instead..."
"I really don't care. You'll beat each other to death anyway." A sinister chuckle escapes his snakelike lips. "Strip down to almost being naked and then you'll be ready. Battles make people sweat. Think of the Gladiator. I wanna see some girls gone wild!"
Some of their audience watches in horror as Nicky and Lorna remove every bit of their clothing except for their undergarments. Humps wolf-whistles and claps, along with the douchebags in the crowd, and a few girls, namely the ones who were taunting Lorna, laugh out loud.
"Do your worst," Lorna rasps out as the color begins to drain from her face. Nicky sees that goosebumps are forming on the brunette's skin, and she feels a shiver run through her own body. It's from both being cold and scared for their lives.
"No, this is coming from someplace deep inside me that I've kept buried because I didn't want to start drama, but I think you are batshit crazy!" she confesses and smacks her upside her head. Lorna's eyes turn black, her nostrils flare, and her mouth sets into a thin line, but Nicky stands her ground. "If you are seriously that mentally ill, I can get you some help, but you're ignoring us!" Nicky holds onto Lorna's shoulders and shakes her. "You actually believe that Christopher is in love with you, but guess what? He's not! He never will be! You can't even take rejection like a fucking normal person! Cry into your best friend's arms, eat ice cream, and watch a chick flick or some shit...anything but...flying off the handle at his real girlfriend like a...a psycho!"
All of a sudden, Lorna explodes. "How dare you? Enough of this!" She rams her foot into Nicky's crotch, making her keel over in pain, and then she does it a few more times until Nicky collapses to the ground, wheezing. Her heart is thumping so hard, almost out of her chest. "Damn you! Enough!" She realizes shit just got real, and she definitely had said too much, but it was so Lorna could survive. "You're such a rude bitch!" Some of the crowd, including Humps, is jeering as she tries to stand back up and brush herself off, but Lorna pounces on her, straddling her sides with her knees on Nicky's arms so she can't jerk Lorna off of her. The small fists start flying into her face and she can hardly breathe or see anymore. Her vision goes dizzy, she turns away to vomit her guts out, her nose and mouth fill with blood, and she's on fire. She can't even cry because she doesn't want to use her energy to do it. If her heart wasn't broken before, it definitely is now, and if she were to die at this moment, she'd take the opportunity.
"Oh, fuck, this isn't happening!" Alex squeaks through her ragged breaths. She, Pennsatucky, Brook, Ella, Caitlin, and Tia rush down to Lorna over an unconscious and battered and bruised Nicky from the chin up, and pull the short Italian off of the blonde.
Lorna sees what she's done and immediately begins sobbing. "No! No! I didn't mean it, I'm so sorry!" Her whole body is quivering and her hands are covered in blood.
"I know," Tia whispers while she and Alex rub her back in soothing circles.
"Oh my god, is she...did I..." Lorna can barely get the words out.
Pennsatucky shakes her head no and continues giving Nicky chest compressions. "She's got a pulse...she just needs a trip to the hospital. Someone dial nine-one-one!"
Ella and Caitlin are already doing it while Brook and Pennsatucky assist Nicky back into her clothes. Alex shoots daggers at Humps. "This is all your fucking fault, you sicko. Don't think I won't be going to my mom about this one. Ohhh, she is going to drag you to hell and back!"
"It's your friend who threw the tantrum. How would I know she was a two-year-old at heart? Detention's finished, and I won another twenty bucks!" He exits and a few minutes later, the gym divider curtains go up.
Right away, the Latinas and Poussey come running over. "Holy shit, what-" Blanca stops herself mid-sentence when they see Nicky flat on the ground, unmoving with a blood-smeared face. "¡Dios mío! Who did this to her, Humps?"
Lorna takes a deep, shuddering breath and wails loudly. "He made me attack her," she mumbles. "I'm a bad person...I should be...I should be condemned...for what I did..."
"He wanted to pent up her anger by getting Nicky to be too blunt," Tia explains.
"Fuck, that is so twisted, I'mma get Red and everybody!" Maria says.
Lorna scoots over next to Nicky and strokes her hair softly while dabbing her face with a tissue. "I'm so sorry, hon...I'll clean ya right on up. Oh my goodness, I don't think I'm ever gonna be able to forgive myself for what I done to ya...no matter what, I should never have gotten that upset." The others kneel around them and she sniffles a few times while holding Nicky's limp hand in her own, fiddling with the bracelet on the blonde's wrist. "I don't know what the fuck is wrong with me...I got issues, you're probably right. Normal people don't abuse their friends like this..."
"Humps manipulated you...he messed with your mind...badly," Ouija tells her.
"Yeah, this so was not your fault," Flaca agrees.
"I did it, though..."
"Lorna, you never wanted to!" Alex states.
"I'm just like Arturo!" Lorna cries. "I...I hurt someone I'm supposed to...to love!"
"You are nothing like him!" Maritza tells Lorna. "Nobody pressured Arturo into hitting Gloria, he did that on his own."
"Well, why did I listen to...to Humps? I hate him!"
"He tricked you both into clawing at each other!" Tiff answers. "I don't think either of you had much of a choice."
"Look...Suzanne has attacked me before under Vee's instruction and it's part of her mental illness. There could be a possibility that you have one too," Poussey chimes in.
"I ain't delusional like everybody says!" Lorna denies.
"I would love to shoot him in the dick," Daya mutters.
Lorna manages the smallest of smiles. "That would be nice."
Maria returns to the gym with Red, who immediately starts bawling while getting down on her hands and knees. She gathers Nicky in her arms and rocks her like she's a baby. "Oh, sweetheart!" Gloria and Aleida are behind her, and they help the girls console Lorna. Red begins pushing her hands into the center of Nicky's chest and counting to thirty. "Breathe, damn it!" she shrieks frantically. There's still no response, so Lorna gives her mouth-to-mouth. It doesn't help.
"There's just too much blood blocking her airways, and her heartbeat is very slow! What...what have I done?" Lorna sobs.
Thank you for reading and reviewing, L.M. Ermington, cornedout, and A Star In My Universe!
