You - A Dave Franco Fan Fiction

Chapter One - "Have a nice day."

The halls were filled with sounds nothing different to that of the usual. Mobiles ringing, lockers slamming, the wheels of a skateboard rolling on the worn vinyl floors, a teenage squeal, the clacking of heels and the squeaking of sneakers, a cat whistle from one of the guys and a giggle from a group of girls. Nothing changed, and nothing ever would. Even the location of two particular students was almost always guaranteed.

Scarlett Anderson was the "perfect teenager." She got an A+ on every assignment she submitted, was part of 6 different sporting teams, the captain of 3, was the president of 2 out of the 4 clubs she was in, was never home beyond curfew and volunteered at the orphanage every Sunday. She had wavy blonde hair reaching below her mid-back, the bluest of eyes and the perfect figure, legs all the way up to her neck and curves in all the right places, yet an innocent kiss was as far as she'd ever gone with a guy, despite her reputation being the schools "it-girl." It was as a result of her perfectness in every field that you knew where she would be when on school grounds and not in class, and that was in a teachers office. Mornings for Scarlett consisted of walking effortlessly through the halls, her posse of wannabe's following closely behind her, with at least two teachers spotting her and poking their heads from behind their door, calling after her to join them for a cup of tea and a quick chat. They were often about the excellent grade she achieved in her recent assessment, or an upcoming school event in which they thought her to be the most appropriate person to oversee the affair. This morning, it was Mr Henley, teacher of 12th grade English, his office located next to room 14b. 

"Scarlett, your exposé on a recent medical cover up in a small Australian hospital is absolutely wonderful. I was hit with such shock and distaste of the matters at hand that I found myself ringing the local news department of the suburb in which the hospital was situated just begging for more information. It really was an outstanding piece of work. You should be congratulating yourself." Mr Henley, well, let's just say that the majority of the school believes him to still be a virgin at the age of 39. 

"Oh really?! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. I was a little apprehensive about how it would turn out when I began writing it, as it is such a complex, and often sensitive, subject but I really wanted to challenge myself, you know? Having your praise means the world to me. I cannot thank you enough." Scarlett smiled, politely sipping the lemongrass tea in which Mr Henley had just brewed.

"Don't thank me. It was all you. Now listen, I was hoping that you would give me permission to have it published in the local newspaper. You will be given full credit, and many a commendatory comment. Would that be something that you would be interested in?"

"Of course, Sir. As long as you think it is worthy of such a thing, it wouldn't be anything but a fantastic opportunity." Scarlett continued before taking yet another sip, this time catching between her lips the odd tea leaf Mr Henley had let slip through the filter, using her fingers to remove the leaf with disgust when he turned away for just a brief moment. 

He turned around, and she smiled again, returning to normal. "Wonderful. I will have it posted to them by the end of today. You better be heading off then. Can't have you late for class and jeopardise your perfect attendance record. Thank you for joining me. Oh, would you like me to pour that tea into a take away cup for you to continue drinking on your way to class?" 

"No, that is perfectly fine, I wouldn't want to trouble you. Thank you, again, for your kind words regarding my paper. I'll see you tomorrow, period 5. Have a nice day, Sir." Scarlett waved before exiting the door and sashaying off to her class.

Dave Franco, now he is a different story. In his opinion being the schools star quarterback, a.k.a bad boy, was a difficult task that needed his undivided attention. It was his duty to maintain such a reputation that the label had earned from the schools long line of rebellious leaders since 1903, which included a house party every Friday night, putting his "extra-curricular activities" before classes, showing off a different hickey each morning, with pictures being sent around of himself and the unseen girl from the night before, and ensuring that his biceps were at a high level, if not their best, in order to bed a different girl the next night. Having to uphold such standards meant that there was no way such a ruggedly handsome young man, his brown hair matching his eyes, and his big, bushy eyebrows, could achieve anything above a D-, and that was pushing it. There just simply wasn't enough time. It was the yells produced from the halls, each morning that he entered the school doors, that gave him away. As much as the attention excited the boy, he didn't so much like the teachers yell that came with it. One would think he'd be used to it by now. 

"Franco. My office." This time, it was Ms Jenkins, also known as the Wicked Witch of South Port High. "Now!"

Dave high-fived one of his mates, a slight smirk appearing on his face, before making his way over to her office. His entry was followed by the words, "good morning Miss. Who do I owe the pleasure of inflicting pain upon for having me seated with you on this fine morning. Or is it simply your wish to have the pleasure of my presence in your soulless room of confinement?" 

"You're treading on thin ice young man. Take one more step and you'll find yourself in a situation even a young one like yourself would not wish upon the greatest of criminals." The Vice Principle said, sternly.

"By criminals, do you mean yourself Miss? It must be hard knowing the number of lives you have placed a deep sever in due to your permanently damaged ability to express kindness." The smirk was yet to leave the boys face. 

Ms Jenkins remained calm, forcing herself to avoid hitting the boy with the cane like she would have if it had been 40 odd years earlier, even though the temptation was tremendous, seeing the wooden stick still had a place in her cupboard beside her desk. "Look, Dave. I want to have a serious conversation with you this morning. It is not something that should be taken lightly. You have exactly 104 days left of high school, and after that I am assuming you are wishing to go to college, am I correct?"

"Yes, Miss. But what does that decision have to do with you?" She saw his smirk falter slightly, yet it was only a brief moment before it returned in its entirety. 

"Well, at this stage, Mr Franco, you aren't graduating senior year. You are failing over half of your subjects, and getting dangerously close to doing the same for all of them. Normally, if a student is looking to fail, we speak to their parents first, hoping they are able to do something about it, but I know that for you this would not be of any aid. You have to be the one to take initiative and lift your game. You're a good kid Dave. It pains me to admit it, but more often than you think I have seen kids that appear to be the same as you, and there is little that can be done about it, but you aren't that kid Dave. Your mother wasn't, your brother wasn't, and you may think you are, but I want you to take a good, hard look at yourself, and realise that you don't have to be, and hopefully it will be before the school year runs out." Something about the mention of his brother and mom really freaked him out, it always did. 

"If that is all Miss, I hope you don't mind my departure. I have better things to be doing write now, including sticking pins in my eyes and eating a deadly scorpion, but thanks for your input. Before every action in which I will take in my life, I'll ask myself what you would do, and then do the exact opposite." Dave moved towards the door, turning around to sarcastically add, "have a nice day," before walking out. 

Ms Jenkins placed her head in her hands and sighed, "boy, does that kid need a miracle."