Chapter Two

"Marissa, honey, you're going to be late for school!" The devil in Gucci called from downstairs. Dark blonde locks fastened in a sophisticated, sideways, low pony-tail shone like fresh honey in the light of day, loose strands enveloping a face that always seemed mask-like. She stared at herself in the mirror; this sixteen year old girl trying to understand how she was supposed to function properly in a world that was forcing her to be a woman. The pair of eyes which stared out at her held in them something that she felt shouldn't be looked at for too long, except she had trouble turning away. This pained, forlorn expression staring back at her chilled her skin and sent her hand diving into her purse, pulling out the thin flask of Absolut she kept there. Taking a swallow or two of the clear, alcoholic liquid she tried to calm herself. There was still an entire day to deal with. The sound of footsteps in the hall made her shove the flask back into her purse.

"Marissa, I've been calling you for five minutes, what are you doing?" Julie Cooper inquired of her daughter, standing in the doorway, elbows jutting outward due to the way her hands rested on her hips. The teenage girl at the vanity continued to stare at her reflection, reaching for her cake of blush. A placid look overcame her features, the kind that closed her soul's windows to the world. There was a different feeling replacing the fear and loneliness of moments ago. Brushing the pale pink colour onto her cheeks, the girl could feel the bubbles in her blood as it began to boil. "Marissa?"

"Look, Mom, just because I don't answer you doesn't mean I'm deaf, ok?" Marissa snapped suddenly, the anger surfacing as she tossed down the cake and grabbed her purse. She reached for the cream coloured Dior fedora that rested on a hook attached to the vanity's mirror and whirled to face the demon that gave birth to her. This fake redhead who wore too much make-up and called herself powerful was the epitome of everything the teen despised. She could care less about Julie Cooper's feelings. Oh, wait, scratch that. The whore had no feelings. "What? I'm leaving," she added, her voice clearly betraying all the fury which coursed through her veins.

"I just want to remind you about the Welcome party at the Cohen's tonight. Please try not to make a scene like your father's farewell. The last thing we need is for these newcomers to feel uncomfortable," Julie stated calmly, although her daughter could feel the sense of caution which had latched itself to her mother's tone. Marissa paused beside her mother in the doorway, staring the woman down with a look that suddenly displayed all the hate she felt. They rarely spoke anymore, except when one of them wanted something of the other. Marissa ordinarily demanded for cash and Julie usually informed about an event. It was a dangerous thing to mention Marissa's drunken tantrum which had taken place at Jimmy's farewell party. Somehow the fact that Julie had decided to walk the thin ice gave Marissa a sense of triumph over her mother. She was in control at the moment.

"Whatever. If Dj can make it, we'll be there," Marissa informed finally, removing her heated gaze from the face which fuelled her rage. She placed the fedora onto her head and moved past her mother, heading towards the stairs.

Julie turned and watched her daughter descend to the main level of their monstrous home. Realizing that she had been holding her breath, she let go a lengthy sigh, leaning against the door frame. Jimmy had abandoned her with unstable offspring. It just wasn't fair. He had obtained freedom of fatherly duties by cavorting down to Maui while she was stuck with an alcoholic for a daughter. Your child wasn't supposed to loathe your being; they were supposed to confide in you, look up to you. Marissa did none of those things. What Marissa did was purposely humiliate her mother with any tactic she could come up with. Julie was constantly searching for ways to help her daughter; to fix her up and return her to a more pleasant state. Mrs. Cooper-Nichol was not an individual who gave up easily.

Harbour School was bustling as usual on a bright and sunny Tuesday morning. The weather had decided to take a turn for the best at the start of the week which sent the meteorologists into a corner to regroup and reassess their weekly forecast. It was clear that such outrageously warm weather was a complete fluke for January, but the students who lounged around the campus had collectively chosen to take advantage of the abnormally scalding temperatures. With five minutes left before classes began, the masses had cleared the halls in an attempt to either cool themselves off in the lounge with some ice coffee, or soak in as much heat as possible before being shut in a stifling classroom. It felt just like summer break, except for the tiny fact that they were all still in school.

"I know this is California, but now I'm regretting wearing my Miss Sixty's today, whew, did someone order a scorcher?" Summer wondered aloud as she strolled alongside a more pensive than normal Marissa. The brunette brushed a few strands of her lengthy hair out of her face and gave a faint sigh, her gaze drifting over her aimlessly wandering schoolmates. "Ok, Coop, what's wrong with you? This surprise El NiƱo isn't the only thing being weird today," she added matter-of-factly, pausing to lean against a railing. She regarded Marissa for a long moment, waiting for her friend to snap out of her daydream and snap back into reality.

"Oh, sorry Summer, I'm just a little pissed at my mom this morning," Marissa replied, looking sincerely apologetic as she fixed the fedora on her head, leaning back beside her best friend.

"A little? Uhuh, sure, I don't think you're capable of being just a little pissed at her, Coop. What did she do? Put a lock on the liquor cabinet?" Marissa gave the other girl a hurt look and then shook her head slowly.

"Real funny, Sum. Actually, it's not so much my mom today, it's really that party tonight that the Cohen's are hosting, you know what it's for right? Someone really did buy my old house, someone else is moving in there," Marissa said, turning to face the school grounds as she gripped the railing tightly. She had loved that house, more so because it held mostly decent memories. Mostly ones which included her father before all of Newport discovered he was drilling holes in their bank accounts. His motives were honourable though, which was the underlying reason why Marissa couldn't stand her mother. Julie had blamed her husband for his grave error, but in truth it was all her fault. It was Julie, Caitlin and Marissa's fault, really, and the tall sixteen year old always felt numb when she thought about it. He had always been her anchor.

"Coop, it's a good thing that someone bought your old house. I mean, isn't that how your dad escaped going to jail?" Summer asked, furrowing her brow and looking generally confused. She thought this had all been resolved the previous year. Besides, Coop's dad was currently lounging on a huge yacht in Maui; clearly he wasn't really bothered by a bunch of random people moving into his old place.

"I know, but I just assumed that he sold the house to, like, the government or something, not an actual family," Marissa confessed with a slight shrug. The truth of the matter was that she was actually afraid to meet the new family. She was afraid that she would see an element of her old life there somewhere which might just drive her further over the edge. Summer gave a small pout and wrapped her arms around her best friend in a warm hug.

"Cheer up Coop; at least it's a party. There'll be so many people there that you can meet these home wreckers and then get lost, no worries," the shorter girl stated with a smile. Marissa's lips might have turned upward slightly, but there was still a bitter feeling in the pit of her stomach which didn't seem to have any intention of subsiding. She wanted to trust Summer's judgement and as the bell rang for class, Marissa continued trying to convince herself that it was probably all for the best.