Other side of paradise (Jason Dean x reader)

𝐓𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧

JD made his way into the empty library, not even the librarian was inside. There was only one student inside, Heather Duke.  And she was the exact person he needed.  After you fled from his house yesterday, he made a bit of a realization.  So, he made a little plan.  And this time, he knew he couldn't recruit Veronica because she'd know what he was up to.

JD took a seat at the large wooden table, directly across from Heather.  Then he dropped an old, unflattering photo on the table.  It showed two little girls smiling at each other, holding flowers.  It wasn't hard to tell that these two were good friends.  Heather looked up from her copy of Moby Dick, and gently set it on the table so she could pick up and inspect the photograph.

"Me and Martha Dumptruck?  Where did you get this," Heather asked.

"Oh, I just had the nicest little chat with Ms. Dumptruck.  We got along famously.  Kinda scary though, how everyone's got a story to tell... want to see the canoeing shots," JD asked.

And with that, JD held up a small paper packaging bag.  Inside were countless more photos from when Heather was Martha's best friend.

"What is this, blackmail," Heather questioned.

JD smirked, and nodded at her.  So far, so good.

"I'll give you a weeks lunch money!"

"I don't want your money, I want your strength," JD informed her.  "Westerberg doesn't need mushy togetherness - it needs a strong leader.  Heather Chandler was that leader, but..."

"But she couldn't handle it," Heather finished.

"I think you can.  Moby Dick is dunked.  The white whale drank some bad plankton and splashed through a coffee table... now it's your turn to take the helm."

"What about the photographs?"

Here it came, the reason for this whole interaction.

"Oh, don't worry.  I'll ask you to do me a favor.  It'll be one you enjoy, and you'll get the negatives and everything back then.  But in the meantime, strength."

JD smiled.  This had gone even easier than planned.  He knew that practically everyone had hurt you.  He also knew that he wasn't just your hero.  Villains were everywhere, so he knew that he was the hero of the story.  And so long this all went well, no one would be able to hurt you anytime soon.

JD stood up, stretched a little, and reached in to an inner pocket of his coat.

"Here's a little gift," he told her. 

Then he pulled out scrunchie.  But it wasn't just any scrunchie.  This one was bright red, and it had been taken such good care of that even though it had been almost five years since it's original purchase, it still looked brand new.  It was soft, and somewhat fuzzy without being fluffy or velvety.

But the most important part: it once belonged to Heather Chandler.

JD dropped the hairpiece on the wooden table, and Duke immediately grabbed it, held it up close to her face, and began to inspect it.  She knew who it belonged to and it's importance.

"From Heather to Heather," JD said.

Heather quickly pulled her hair up, and tied it into a ponytail with the scrunchie.  JD smirked at her reaction, and exited the library.  He was walking through the hallway when he found Veronica and you standing in front of Chandler's locker, your sister reaching in and rooting around through the remains.

"This is a bad idea," you warned Veronica.  "The police closed this thing off for a reason."

"Quit being such a pillowcase," Veronica said angrily.

She began to look through every little thing, scrunchies, color coded bracelets and earrings, magazines, and she pulled out a strip photo.  It was four images of her and Heather on their vacation to the beach that summer.  They had taken these photos at a mall where the two got matching shirts and shoes, and actually became genuine friends.

JD watched as Duke ran past him, hid behind Veronica, and covered her friends eyes with her hands.  You watched Duke, so you didn't notice the boy watching you just down the hall.

"Guess who," Duke giggled.

"Heather," Veronica sighed.

She removed Duke's hands and turned around, and saw Duke.  She was holding herself far taller and straighter than before, and she was wearing a new kind of confidence.  Then she noticed her hair and the red scrunchie.  Veronica saw it, and rushed off.

"Sorry, she's been a bit off recently.  The death of her best friend messed her up," you tried to explain.

Then you jogged after your sister.  You knew she didn't really like you, but you didn't need anyone else around you committing suicide.  And if Veronica was alone, you didn't know what she'd do.  It was just better not to take chances.

Duke watched the two Sawyers' and their hasty exit.  Maybe she would've asked what was wrong, if it weren't for the fact that she had to be a strong leader now.  She looked into the locker, and found a nice pair of earrings.  So, she grabbed them, closed the locker, and strutted off.