Costa Crew: One More Shot

Prologue: June 8th, 2022

Rebecca 'Becky' Hidgens glanced at her watch anxiously. She would say it wasn't like her friends to be late, but that would be a lie. It wasn't like Hannah to be late, that much was true. Ted and Charlotte would surely be arriving at any moment, and Paul had probably turned back because he'd forgotten his phone or wallet or something.

The school car park was packed with boys in suits with their hair perfectly styled, and girls in supposedly beautiful dresses with their faces caked in makeup. All of them stood in groups, either talking or posing for photographs. It was no wonder Becky stood out, alone in the outskirts of the crowd, wearing blue denims and a Gryffindor hoodie, complete with a sign on her back which read "just graduated". 

"I thought you weren't coming?" asked a sweet, phony voice. Becky sighed. Amelia Murphy had once been her best friend. They had stuck together through thick and thin, good times and bad…until their third year when Becky was singled out at the prizegiving for the best exam results in their year. And become leader of the school orchestra. They had both always excelled in school work and music. The difference was Amelia had been content until Becky started beating her, then she showed her true colours, trying to put Becky down. But Amelia's new attitude had only driven Becky to work harder and rise higher, angering Amelia more. Now Amelia was accompanied by Lisa Beck and Lisa Kleinman, girls who shared Amelia's hunger for greatness but whose lives seemed to revolve around helping Amelia ruin Becky's life.

"Yes, I'm dressed in the most casual clothes possible because I'm going to prom," replied Becky sarcastically. "If you must know I'm meeting my friends here and we're off to have a good time."

Amelia pretended to be shocked. "I was just asking, no need to get so defensive," she said. "And you really shouldn't be so patronising of prom, the staff and pupils put a lot of hard work into it."

Four years of biting her tongue came out all at once for Becky. "I'll have you know it's not prom I'm patronising, it's the pressure people like you put on looking good and being cool. I don't want to spend my last night of high school in an uncomfortable environment surrounded by people who have treated me like dirt on their shoe for the last four years, by which I mean you and your drones, I want to spend it with the people who have accepted me for the weirdo I am and who I will have a good time with. It's likely that tonight is the last we'll ever see of each other, so I've got two pieces of advice for you before we part ways."

Amelia and the Lisas snorted, but gestured for Becky to continue. "If you want to make friends in life, I'd recommend not showing them who you really are, because for me it all went downhill when that happened. And if you're trying to reach the top, try working hard instead of bullying everyone that's ahead of you."

Becky could see Paul Houston standing nearby, watching the girls bicker, and Charlotte and Hannah getting off the bus, so she left Amelia standing dumbfounded and went to join Paul, who wore jeans and a Hufflepuff hoodie, as well as the same sign that Becky wore.

"I wondered when you'd finally have it out with Amelia," he commented. "Surprised you kept a lid on it for four years."

"You what?" asked Becky, dumbfounded. Once Becky, Paul and Amelia were the most iconic friend group in the school. After Becky and Amelia's fallout Paul and Becky had remained the best of friends, but he hadn't really acted any differently towards Amelia.

"Oh come on," he said, "you didn't think I'd noticed how she treated you? I didn't want to get involved because...well…don't take it personally but girls can be kind of… well… mean."

Becky nodded. "Too true. It's always this long, drawn-out battle of wits. Guys just throw a few punches and all's well."

"Amelia troubles?" asked Charlotte Monroe, strolling up with Hannah Perkins. Like Paul, Charlotte wore a Hufflepuff hoodie. Hannah was in a Ravenclaw hoodie and they both wore the signs on their back as well. Paul would always be her best friend, but Becky treasured her friendship with these two. They had rescued her from a life of living in Amelia's shadow, and because of them Becky had been able to embrace who she really was: an awkward nerd.