Chapter Text
“Who the hell does she think she is, telling me I have to come in after school to do make-up lessons? She’s not even an actual teacher!” Nicole blew the smoke of her cigarette out into the space between her and her blonde best friend. “She even threatened me with detention if I didn’t come in! Like, what the fuck!” She threw her arm up and leaned back against the wall of the bathroom. “Not only that, but it’s for the easiest class ever. It’s a throw-away elective, the same way art would be. So why the hell does she think I care about her little drama class when I don’t even need it to pass and graduate?”
Jecka rolled her eyes as she took a brief drag off of her own cigarette, blowing the smoke out and watching it mingle with the smoke Nicole blew before dissipating in the air. “She’s a tantrum kid, Nicole. Once a tantrum kid, always a tantrum kid. Anyways, she treats it that way because, to her, it’s not just an elective. Didn’t she mention how she like… wanted to be an actor or do theater or something as like, a job?”
“Probably? I don’t know, I ignore it.” Nicole admitted as she glanced over at Jecka. “Even if that’s her ambition and goal for her life, that doesn’t mean that’s my goal. Why do I have to be punished for her choice?”
“Nicole, what even is your goal? You’ve never once talked about anything you’ve ever wanted to do outside of dying before you reach thirty, so. Like. What is it you’re trying to do for the twelve years between us graduating and you dying?” Jecka stared at the brunette in return. “If you just say killing yourself, I’m never going to stop saying that’s not a job or a career or a goal to have.”
“I don’t know! Why would I think about something like that? What’s the point in planning ahead for the future when you’re not sure the future is even coming? If it’s not me that’s going to end my own life, it's going to be one of the dozens of rapists, pedophiles, and murders that we have to interact with on a daily basis every time we come here.” She mentioned as she sighed, putting out the end of her cigarette against the tile floor of the bathroom. “I guess if I had to think of something, maybe a musician… Either that or I could be a lot like Chris Hansen.”
“You mean, that ‘To catch a predator’ guy? You’d want to do that? I thought your entire goal was to get away from predators and pedophiles, not put yourself in situations where you’re directly confronting them.” Jecka sighed as she put her own cigarette out, standing up more straight now. “These all sound like completely awful ideas. Well… that one does. I have no idea how talented of a musician you are. I’ve never seen you touch any of the guitars you have sitting in your room.”
“You never asked.” Nicole shoved her hands into her jacket pockets, glancing at the duo’s reflection in the mirror. “Besides, if you did ask, all you’d want me to play is MSI and I refuse to play any of their songs on my guitar.”
“You’re the biggest hater I’ve ever met. And I used to hang out with preppy girls who believed if you didn’t like Paris Hilton or, god forbid, you didn’t like Katy Perry or some other pretty woman that is only known for being rich and her looks.” Jecka rolled her eyes and shook her head slightly. “Do they just sit in your room for looks then? Are you like, trying to use the same method Crispin does and just pretend you’re some deep, misunderstood music type hoping it’ll help get you guys or something?”
“God, if you ever compare me to him again, I’m following my dad’s example and blowing my brains out in front of you. Then you can try to live like me and see how well you do.” Nicole watched the semi-shocked expression roll through Jecka’s facial features for a moment, then remembered who she was talking to as Nicole continued. “No, I can actually play them. You never asked me if I could. And besides, if you did, I’d tell you now. It’s like… I don’t know, a weirdly intimate thing? No one’s ever seen me play them. Ever. Not even my mom.” Nicole glanced over directly at Jecka now, who was standing there with her arms crossed. “What?”
“Really? That’s what you consider intimate? Not the fact you spend so much time half-dressed around Emily and me, or that you sleep in the same bed as another girl, or that you never date guys and only hang out with girls? Not the fact that the closet you’re in is nearly as see-through as Ari’s? Is it you playing guitar in front of your best friend, or really, anyone, is where you draw the line?” Jecka watched as Nicole just stared at her, seeing no lack of understanding dawning on the brunette’s face. “You know what, never mind. Are we still going to hang out today once you’re done with whatever Megan is having you do? I don’t feel like having to make last-minute plans and try to find someone else to hang out with if you’re going to have to leave me hanging after this.”
“No, we’ll still hang out. It’s the weekend, which makes this even more annoying that she’s trying to pull this bullshit on a Friday. What normal teacher makes their student come in after school on a Friday of all days?”
“Well, it’s Megan and not your actual teacher, so…”
“I know. I am absolutely going to make her regret making me come in today.” Nicole started to smirk slightly. “And I think I know how I’m going to do it.”
“Every time you have that look on your face, I say to myself ‘Nicole couldn’t possibly do anything worse than what she’s already done! I have no reason to worry!’ and then you do something extremely unbelievably fucked up that I should have worried about the entire time.” Jecka sighed as she turned and started walking towards the bathroom door. “Just promise me this isn't going to land you in jail or that Megan doesn’t become as much of a school shooter threat as Jeffery is. I can already barely handle one insanely unstable nerd, I don’t want to add one who’s also actually capable of snapping and shooting up the school.”
“Nope. It won’t be anything like that. But, I know Megan well enough to know this will eat at her more than almost anything else I could do. Well… except maybe one. But, I’m saving that idea in case she decides to be even worse to me than she already has. So!” Nicole made her way towards the door behind Jecka. “Can you lend me a cigarette for later? It’ll be a part of the plan.”
“It’s my last one!” Jecka whirled around on her toes, glaring into the pools of oceanic blue that locked onto her.
“Please?” Nicole asked, meeting the golden glare.
Jecka froze for a moment, the clear sign of conflict on her face. She finally, begrudgingly, reached into her pocket and pulled out the pack, handing it over to the brunette. “I am only agreeing because I don’t think you will ever say please to me again in any existence we ever meet in, ever.”
“And this is why we’re best friends.” Nicole grinned as she slid the pack into her jacket pocket. “I’ll buy you another pack once I’m done dealing with Megan.”
“You mean you’re going to steal money from your mom so you can then give me said money and then I have to go buy my own pack, which translates to I’m buying my own pack of cigarettes with money you stole.” Jecka turned once again and waved her hand. “Whatever. Just call me when you’re free and can leave. I’ll come get you and then we can go to your house or something.”
“Have fun doing whatever boring thing you’re going to have to do without me in the meantime while you have to wait for me,” Nicole responded, the sarcasm practically dripping off of every word, which caused Jecka to flip her back the finger as she made her way out of the bathroom. She made sure the pack Jecka had given her was safely tucked away and she had everything she’d need. Once satisfied, she made her way to her next class. After all, she had a couple more hours to figure out how to make this the best possible payback towards the tantrum kid…
— — — — — —
“There you are. It’s about time. I thought you were just going to skip and take the week's worth of detention instead.” Megan crossed her arms, standing at the the front of the classroom near the desk where their normal teacher would sit, had the teacher not been gone. “I’m glad you actually used common sense and came in this afternoon instead.”
“Well, it was much easier to put up with one shitty afternoon doing this than it would be to deal with you for an entire week,” Nicole responded, making her way into the room. If she could be literally anywhere else right now, but here she was, giving in to the brunette’s demands that she’d come in and do… whatever. It was this or she’d have detention. That fucked with her entire week if she got it. And that would ruin plans with both Jecka and Emily. Bigger headache to have to deal with those two being pissy with her than it was to deal with Megan for an hour at most. “So what exactly did you make me come in for? Are you really going to make me read lines and pretend to actually care about acting in front of you so I can be free and not have to deal with this anymore?”
“No. I’m going to have to do a scene with me to make up for the fact that you refused to do one earlier during the actual class. And I thought after school would be a better option since you seem to be so very distracted with interrupting everyone else’s scenes.” Megan watched as Nicole rolled her eyes. “Don’t think I still won’t give you detention if you decide to make a big deal out of this, Nicole.”
“Are you even actually capable of giving me detention? I’m pretty sure that’s a teacher-only thing, not a teacher's pet or substitute thing.” Nicole returned with a slight smirk, sitting down at one of the desks near the front of the room. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen or heard of a substitute teacher giving someone a detention. Isn’t it a ton of paperwork or something?”
“Well, I’m not a substitute teacher. I’m a stand-in. There’s a big difference.” Megan glared as she watched the blue-eyed girl prop her feet up and lean back in her chair. “You’ll fall if you lean like that.”
“So, you have even less authority than a substitute but twice the power trip. Got it.” Nicole ignored the other comment as she continued leaning back, her hand snaking its way into her pocket and gripping the pack Jecka had given her earlier in the day. “What’s the point of this Megan? Do you actually enjoy seeing me so much that you made me come in? Or did me not caring piss you off that badly? Because I’m going to care even less now when you’ve made me come in after school on a fucking Friday of all days.”
“I’m doing it because I care about whether or not you pass this class. Because, believe it or not, people care whether you pass electives or not. Maybe not you, but colleges care. Teachers who spend their time getting the requirements to teach you this class care.” Megan walked over, rooting around for something that was either in or on the teacher's desk. “And, I’m pretty sure your mom would care a lot to know how her daughter is fairing in school,” Megan smirked as she triumphantly held up a slip that contained both Nicole’s actual grades along with her mom’s cell number on it. “It would be so very easy to call her and have a chat with her since I know you don’t actually tell her what you do here when I overhear you and Jecka’s conversations.”
“Threatening me with blackmail is really hard to take seriously when you’re trying to use it in the same sentence as you admitting that you stalk and eavesdrop on me,” Nicole mentioned, deciding now was as good of a time as any since she was already pressing the brunette’s buttons. Might as well call the other girl's bluff. She pulled out the remaining cigarette and lit it, lazily dragging the smoke and blowing it into the air above her. “I thought you were into guys and dating Hunter? Did you suddenly switch sides and become another pedo stalker like most of the guys in this school? Or, did you just hang out with Ari too much, and being gay is rubbing off on you?”
She watched as Megan’s lips pressed into a tight frown. “You know you can’t smoke in school, Nicole. Cigarettes are already gross. Don’t bring in your white trashy bullshit into my classroom.” She continued to stare the blue-eyed girl down. “And I don’t stalk you or Jecka or any other girl in this school. It’s impossible not to hear your conversations half of the time when you purposefully talk loudly to make sure everyone hears how much you hate everything and everyone.”
“Relax, it’s only one. Plus, what did you call it? Method acting or something? Getting into the mindset of the character and into the role by acting as if you were the character themself?” Nicole smirked slightly further. “You also didn’t answer the second half of what I said.”
“Hunter and I are taking a break. No, I have no ‘switched sides’,” Megan used her fingers to form air quotes. “Because there is no sides to any of this, you just always want someone to argue with regardless if you’re actually wrong or right. And even if I have been spending time with Ari, that’s none of your business anyway.” Megan had her defenses up about something, Nicole could tell. Or, Megan had seen Nicole fuck enough people over that she knew not to tell Nicole anything that was remotely private, to begin with. After all, it only took sending a boy's dick pic to everyone in school once for people to realize you shouldn’t be trusted with private matters that no one else needed to know.
“I’d say that’s pretty convenient of a cover for you to be secretly hooking up with the only girl who is very obviously a lesbian.” Nicole waved the bright orange end of the cigarette around in the air, drawing out little circles with the smoke as she watched the disdain spread further and further along Megan’s face. “I’d ask which one of you does all the work, but with how much of a control freak you are and how timid Ari is, it’d be like asking what color was the sky.”
“Even if I were hooking up with Ari, who wouldn’t be my type if I was a lesbian, I still wouldn’t tell you. Regardless of how many times you asked and poked and prodded to find the answer. Because I know you well enough to know not to tell you of all people shit like that.” Megan shot back in return. “And, it would be much healthier than whatever you and Jecka have going on.”
“Well, there’s nothing going on between me and Jecka, so.” Nicole raised an eyebrow. “I mean, unless you’re interested. We’d probably charge you slightly less than the guys. If you hadn’t dragged me in here with the threat of blackmail and detention. For that, I’d almost be forced to charge you double rather than cutting you a discount…”
Nicole had to hold the small laugh back she had inside as she watched the disgust on Megan’s face twist into that of frustration and anger. “Still happy with this idea of being the teacher? I do this with every teacher I have that makes my life any harder than it already is, so. Another average day for me. But you, you already look like you’re ready to snap.” Nicole started to stand and then sat once again, this time on the desk itself rather than the accompanying chair. “What’s wrong, Miss Megan ? Not going according to the strict plan you had of me coming in here and going ‘I’m so sorry for not paying attention in class! Please don’t tell my mom I’m nearly failing, I’ll act in whatever scene you want me to!’ You should probably have had a couple of backup plans or something, that way I’d actually be nervous instead of whatever this is.”
Nicole watched as the look of frustration melted away and Megan was smiling and smirking once again. “Nope. I planned for you to try to do this. I just also happen to enjoy acting and knowing that, if I acted like I was running out of patience, you’d be more likely to think you won. That you’d be able to walk in, press my buttons, then walk out as if nothing ever happened. Not this time, bitch.” Megan smirked. “Now! Before you go on some big lecture about how I’m a bitch and I can’t do this again, let’s get this started and over with so I can also go home to my own plans that you’re proceeding to fuck up by trying to make some big deal out of this.”
Seeing no immediate way out of her predicament, Nicole sighed, the smoke leaving her lips with the breath she exhaled. “Fine. Whatever. What shitty acting scene do I barely have to do so you’ll chill the hell out and say I passed for the day and we can both go home and enjoy our lives?”
“Well. I thought I’d be nice enough to at least let you pick the scene. It’s the only way I’ll be able to get something out of you where you may not actually half-ass the entire thing or just outright blow it off.” Megan offered, though even Nicole could tell the other girl either was bullshitting her way through or had something in mind and was just taunting Nicole further. But, Nicole counted on this. If there was one thing you could do that was potentially worse than pissing Nicole off… It was giving her free reign and choice of how a situation could potentially play out.
“ Actually. There was a scene or an idea that I had that I thought would be perfect. After all, you do want to get the best acting experience out of me, right?” Nicole mentioned, snuffing the cigarette out against the desk and ignoring the grimace on Megan’s face, Nicole pressed. “I mean, we don’t have to do it this way at all! But, if you want to make it the best performance possible so that we both can go home, I think it’d be perfect!”
She watched as Megan’s face lit up slightly. “See, now we’re actually getting somewhere.” The other girl mentioned. Nicole wanted nothing more than to desperately wipe the slight grin off the other girl's face and destroy that smug tone. But, she had to wait. Give it time, set everything up. “What was your idea?”
“Well, I thought maybe we could do a scene where it happens to be a couple. They’d been out, minding their own business, when suddenly the couple was jumped and robbed! One’s been fatally wounded, the other trying to enjoy their last moments with their partner before they pass away.” Nicole smiled as innocently as she could.
“Isn’t that kind of morbid? Of all the things you could potentially act out, you want to do a death scene?” Megan crossed her arms once again, the brunette starting to straighten her posture. “You’re not going to get out of it by being the person who’s dying just so that you don’t have to act, Nicole. If that’s the scene we’re doing, then I’m going to be the one who was injured… What even is the injury?”
“Fatal stabbing!” Nicole added and then nodded. “Of course! I didn’t have any intention of not giving the best performance possible! Otherwise, we’d be stuck here all day! Besides, think how great it’d look on your acting resume to have someone who dislikes acting and theater as much as I do suddenly doing such a strong scene that it’d move anyone watching to tears!”
Megan bit down on her fingernail slightly in thought. “It would look really good… Both from an actor's perspective and from a director's perspective…” There it was. Nicole’s way in.
“Exactly! So, let’s do the scene and then we both can go home! Right?”
Megan thought about it for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah... Alright, I think this could work then!” Megan took a few deep breaths. “Alright. Are you ready, then?”
“As ready as I ever could be, Megan,” Nicole responded, the sarcasm and scrutiny dripping on her words but coated in the fake essence of care. “Just start us off and I’ll jump right in, in character.”
Megan nodded and closed her eyes, taking a few more breaths. For a moment, Nicole debated on turning and leaving while the other girl had her eyes closed. It would be WAY easier than to go through with her plan. But, it gave Megan the chance to blackmail her if the other girl was serious about it. This way, she knew Megan would be too shocked to do anything for at least a week or longer. If at all. Sometimes, the little extra effort was completely worth it…
Megan nodded once, then reached down to her side with a sudden urgency, collapsing herself in a controlled manner towards the floor so that she was propped on the same side she was holding. Even if the other girl was as annoying as she was… She was an ok actor. Nicole would never admit that out loud, ever. But, when Megan wasn’t speaking, she played a decent near-corpse.
“Nicole! I don’t think… I have much time…” Megan croaked out weakly, sounding like she was genuinely dying. “Come closer… So that we can spend… my last moments together…” Megan reached a hand out towards the blue-eyed girl. Under normal circumstances, Nicole would laugh, walk away, swat Megan’s hand off to the side, and call the other girl an annoyance. But, she was here to perform. And that’s what Nicole would do.
Nicole reached out and took Megan’s hand, interlacing her fingers with the other girls. She knelt down with such urgency that it even surprised Megan for the briefest of seconds. “No, no, no, no! Don’t say that, my love! It will be ok, I promise!” Nicole cried out, the desperation in her voice sounding almost too convincing. “We’ll get you to the hospital! The doctors will be able to stitch you up and everything will be ok! I can’t have you leave me yet!”
Megan reached up, clutching Nicole’s shirt with her other hand weakly. “There’s no time… Please… Just hold me close... Let’s enjoy these last moments, ok?...” Megan choked out, the girl forcing fake tears into her eyes and a weak smile across her face. “Think about… all the time we spent together… how amazing each moment was..”
Nicole had a hard time competing with fake tears. It would probably be the one area of acting that she wouldn’t be able to match Megan with. She couldn’t even cry real tears at the worst moments of her life, let alone try to force fake tears in a situation that made her want to laugh more than anything. Still, she had to at least try to make the scene as believable as possible… Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to make her plan work and this would all be for nothing. She took a minor breath and thought of whatever ate at her most. Accessing the most self-deprecating parts of her mind and her emotions. She blinked a few times, willing the tears out of her body until one fell and landed on Megan’s cheek. The remainder dripped down Nicole’s face slowly.
The sight was so convincing that Megan stopped for a moment, staring up at Nicole. “Wait, Nicole, are you-”
“I can’t think of a world without you in it… Don’t do this to me, please…” Nicole whimpered out. If she was watching this from out of her own body, even she’d be impressed with herself. “I don’t want to lose you… We still had so much planned! We were going to get married and start a family! You had just gotten promoted to your dream job! Don’t give up on us right now! We can still make it, just hold on a little longer, please…”
Megan reached up, now cupping Nicole’s face and wiping the tears away. “Don’t lose yourself for me… Live every day for the both of us, my love… I promise you, I’ll wait for you… And if there’s another life after this one, I’ll find you in that one… over and over again, I’ll find you…” Megan forced another weak smile, forcing herself back into the scene once more after the sudden surprise Nicole had given her.
Nicole sniffled, wrapping her other arm around Megan and bringing the other girl in for the tightest hug she’d given anyone in her entire life. She wanted nothing more than to barf that she was hugging Megan this tightly, or really, anyone this tightly, but especially the tantrum kid who was ruining her weekend. “I’ll find you… I promise I’ll find you…” She choked out, her voice cracking as she pulled away from Megan enough to look the other girl in the eyes. “I promise, I will…”
“I know you will… I know…” Megan trailed off, closing her eyes and hanging more limply in Nicole’s arms, not fully dead weighting but enough that Nicole was somewhat still holding Megan up. Perfect.
“Ok, that was actually… really good Nicole, wow, I didn’t exp-”
Nicole leaned down, cutting Megan off by kissing the other girl deeply. She felt Megan stiffen in shock as Nicole held the kiss for a few moments, then pulled away and dropped Megan on the floor. She stood, turned on her heel, and started walking towards the door. “There, I did your scene. Hope it lived up to your expectations, Miss Megan .” Nicole smirked back and raised her hand, her middle finger rising above the others as she walked out of the classroom. Her other hand went down, grabbing her phone and speed-dialing Jecka. It only rang twice before the blonde answered.
“God, that took forever. Are you finally done?” The blonde asked, unable to see the smirk that was still on Nicole’s face as the brunette was striding towards the exit doors.
“Yeah, I’m done. I have a pretty good feeling I delivered a performance that Megan will never forget.”
“Can we… not do the cryptic message shit for once? Please? I would like to just have a normal weekend where we ignore everyone and get high and hang out. I don’t feel like having to analyze everything you say hoping that you’re not trying to tell me you killed someone or that you secretly did something extremely fucked up and I may get roped into it.”
“Nope. Nothing cryptic about this. I did exactly what she wanted me to do and now I’m done. How long will it take for you to get here?” Nicole asked as she stepped out into the late afternoon sun, walking towards the parking lot.
“I’m already here. I didn’t feel like trying to talk to you while driving so once it passed the thirty-minute mark, I came back and sat here in the parking lot.” Jecka honked the horn of her pink Hyundai. Nicole whipped her head around until her eyes settled on the ugly machine.
“Are you ever going to get your car repainted? It is such a massive eyesore.” Nicole asked as she walked towards the vehicle. She saw Jecka lean over, flipping Nicole off and closing her flip phone.
“Let’s go, bitch!”