Lost and alone with no hope of finding herself again, April Driscoll attempts to navigate her way through the last two years of college.
{season three - season four}
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Cook had gotten arrested. He'd gone to prison after beating the shit out of some kid at a party.
At least that's what Freddie had said. April let out a breath as she sat in the rec room, her wrists burning as she glanced at the familiar faces that seemed so strange to her now. They were distant memories of normal life. Happy, smiling, blissfully unaware of the monsters around them trying their hardest to break through the skin. April could see it. The ugliness hidden behind the happy smiles on her peers' faces.
Effy had come back as well, the Stonem girl returning just a day after April had tried slitting her wrists. April stared at the elusive girl sitting beside Pandora who looked sadder than when April had been forced to comfort her at her pyjama party. Freddie had explained that Thomas had cheated on Pandora with some girl. April didn't have that much of a connection with Thomas or Pandora to be that invested in their drama. The same with whatever drama was going on with Emily and Naomi, the redhead being a lot colder to Naomi recently. JJ and Katie seemed just the same as always. Mental case and a bitch.
April sighs leaning back in the coach. Everything had gone to shit since that girl jumped. Since the blood-splattered angel fell from that balcony and cast a dark curse on their happy, fairytale summer forcing them to face reality.
"Well, howdy-fucking-doody." Cook announced his presence loudly, sweeping into the room, all conversations ceasing as he walked in, Effy giving him a short hello.
"Hi, Cook." April waves unbothered by the clear tension in the room.
"Hi. I just swarmed by, really, to see how deep everyone's rolling. See who's up for a pint and a poke? JJ? Panda?" Both JJ and Pandora shake their heads, April now could see the bruises on JJ's face. Who would beat up JJ, even if they were paid to do it?
"No? Why?" Cook asks him.
"Just don't want to." JJ refuses to accept Cook's invitation.
"Naomi, what about you? Bring your lady, make it a threesome." Cook laughed, Naomi shaking her head, avoiding looking at Emily beside her, just enough space between them that it was clear they weren't talking, "What's up with you two? Black guy? Anyone?" Cook looks around the room.
"Aren't you scared, Cooky?" Pandora blurted out.
"Of what?"
"Of going to the blimmin' chokey!" Pandora said, confused by Cook's nonchalance at the possibility of going to prison. Cook shrugs, shaking his head at her.
"We'll come." Freddie raises his hand, speaking for him and April, who just gave him a quick smile, her mind still wandering a bit.
"Nah, you're all right." Cook looks at JJ noticing his bruised face. "What happened to you?"
"You don't remember?" JJ asked, April looked between them in horror. Cook had beat JJ? What had JJ done to Cook for him to hit him in the face?
"No, remember what? Who fucked you?" Cook asked, but JJ just looked away from him as Professor Blood walked in.
"Ah. Finally. The famous Mr Cook. Hi, Dave. Dave Blood. We have met before, in fact, but take my card. We should powwow." Blood said pressing his business card into Cook's pocket.
"What?" Cook asked in confusion.
"I can see that this college has failed you, Mr Cook. And I am deeply sorry. But that is ten years of willy-nilly policy and red tape nonsensery for you. So unfortunately, since you've been implicated, as it were, by the law, you have been automatically... expelled. Expunged. Excommunicated. And I'm going to have to ask you to... scoot off." Blood told him, the tension in the room growing more awkward with each word.
"Or what?" Cook challenged.
"Well, or Jonathan here will escort you with, er, you know, extreme prejudice." Blood told him, gesturing to the rough well-built security guard behind him.
"Dude... Jonathan can kiss my arse. Unless he's tired of licking yours, that is. Jonathan?" Cook said, causing scattered laughs of amusement.
"Yes, that is tremendously amusing. Nevertheless, you are going to have to abrogate and egress from the premises." Blood said, calmly. Annoyingly so. Johnathan steps forward.
"Don't touch me." Cook warns him. Johnathan grabs him by the arms. "Get your fucking hands off, pussy!"
April hadn't been paying much attention until she spied a can of pepper spray in Professor Blood's hands. April tenses at the sight and the sudden movement of the can of pepper spray being sprayed in Cook's face.
"What the fuck are you doing?!" April shouts as the rest of the room braces at the clear violent actions of Professor Blood.
"It's an incident, certainly. Reasonable force utilised in self-defence. Defence. Luckily, it's all over now and, er, you can all go back to normal. Good morning." Blood said calmly and smugly as he walked out of the room.
Freddie steps forward. "Cook, are you all right?!" Freddie asked.
"Fuck off, you!" Cook shouts back as Johnathan handles him out of the room. Freddie glances at JJ both communicating silently their shared thoughts about their best friend. April sat biting her nails in thought.
Everything had gotten so fucked since that girl jumped. Everything was just wrong. Everything was shit and April wondered if the group could handle it at the end of the day. Would they withstand all the bullshit until the end or would they be doomed, just like the dead girl?
Destroyed, separate and broken at the end of it all?
A/N: Thank you guys for 5k views. I can't actually believe people like this book. Your support means the world to me and is the only motivation I have for getting these out as much as possible. Thank you for your comments and your patience as well. April is a character dear to my heart because most of her inner monologues do come from my personal experiences dealing with anxiety and depression, so thank you.
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Kira x
Ps: If you haven't done so already today. Go hug someone you love and tell them how much you love them. I'll go first; 🫂❤️
