Death Trap: Season 5 of Greenhouse Academy

Do You Trust Me?

I had a dream last night. Of that. She was in pain, sprawled across the floor. She was there... and then she wasn't. She was with me, then not with me. I'd told her so many times to stick to the plan. But she hadn't. Nobody could help her. Nobody could save her. She was still, unblinking. Motionless. Gone. And then she was playing ball, and we were both laughing.... before the authorities got up in my face, demanding answers. "Talia? Talia!" 

I woke up, seeing a six-foot tall boy leaning over me, looking extremely concerned. "You were crying," he mumbled. "Just wanted to make sure you were good." I smiled, slightly embarrassed at my state in front of Daniel. Okay, I might have had a tiny little crush on him... Make that a BIG crush. It wasn't new: I'd crushed on Alex Saltzman, now my ex-boyfriend, and Damon before him. Damon was a middle school relationship... it ended within a week. But for some reason, I felt like this was the real deal. I had a crush on Daniel Hayward. "It's okay, Daniel," I replied, getting out of bed. "Just a bad dream." He nodded, relieved. "Thanks for looking out for me though. You're a great friend." Daniel patted me on the back. "Thanks, T." With that, he walked over to Parker and Alex, both of whom were now teasing Daniel about something. 

I dragged myself into the changing rooms, taking a shower and getting changed into an oversized off-the shoulder Eagles shirt, denim shorts and packed a microfibre jacket with a colourblock purple, matte grey and yellow design. I styled my curly black hair into a messy hair-flip, put in my contacts, added a lick of mascara and some lipgloss, giving myself a smile in the mirror. I looked great. Ready for the day. 

(I do not own the artwork)

"You ready to go?" Sophie wasn't looking so bad herself. She'd donned denim overalls, paired with an Eagles tee and combat boots. "Yeah, sure," I smiled. I could feel Daniel's eyes on me as I left. Just as the door was closing, I pivoted and winked. I didn't get to see Daniel's reaction... But I'd figure it out. Eventually. "We've got rock climbing first," Sophie began, looking at her Louie. "Then I've got yoga, and meditation after that..." I looked down at my own Louie. Rock climbing, and then it was gym for me-I was hoping to fit in a workout today. Drama extension after that... and then free period. I was hoping to play some ball. Or heading up to those video games in the clubhouse. I'd decide later.  "T? You there?" Sophie was waving a hand in my face. I blinked suddenly. "Um-yeah, yeah, just looking at my timetable..." I trailed off, before pulling myself together. "Let's head to Rock Climbing."Sophie nodded, and we began our walk down to the new rock-climbing facility. 

"Welcome, Eagles!" Coach Davies stood in the centre of the facility, hands on his hips. "Today, we're going to be doing something a little different." Whispers spread across the room. "We'll be performing trust falls." A collective gasp came from all the Eagles. "You'll climb to the top of the wall and then close your eyes and let go of the wall. Your partner must catch you before you touch the ground. The moment you hit this blue padding," Coach Davies pointed at the mats laid down all around the area, "you and your partner have been unsuccessful in completing the exercise." A ripple of excited chatter overpowered Coach Davies' voice. "Now get geared up, all of you." 

I made my way over to the gear, donning a helmet. I walked over to where all the girls were getting their gear, only to discover none of the sizes fit me length-wise. "We'll just tighten up one of the bigger sizes!" Sophie assured me, guiding me over to where the guys were slipping into harnesses. "Just how tall are you?" Sophie asked, looking up at me. I laughed. "Five eleven. 178 centimeters." Sophie's eyes widened. "Wow, your parents must be huge!" I smiled. "Well, Mom and Dad are average. Dad's more on the short side, actually." Sophie's expression was to die for. "But my Gran and Gramps-well, they were both over six feet, in their prime" I explained. Sophie smiled before peering curiously at the harnesses. "None of these will fit you," she sighed. "I think I can help there." I turned around to see Daniel Hayward calmly holding a harness.

"You're just about as tall as me, so I figured you'd need a harness from my end." Daniel smirked. "Sophie's a shorty. And so is Parker." Sophie made a face. "Ugh. Whatever." Sophie turned and sashayed away. Like, literally sashayed. "I'm telling you, you've made friends with a diva." Daniel said, chuckling to himself. "She's learnt it from Brooke, eh?" Daniel added,still smirking. "I can hear you, you know!" Sophie yelled. "See?" Daniel pointed at Sophie. "I see it." We were still laughing when I was putting on my harness.

"Now, I've assigned partners. Just check the list I've sent to your Louies." Coach Davies closed his Louie. I opened mine up, finding the list. I looked up and down the list, trying to find my name. It just... wasn't there. Strange. And Daniel didn't have a partner.... "Coach Davies, i dont have-" Coach held up his hand. "I must have left you out. That new Drama teacher told me last week that you wouldn't be at this session. God, she's so disorganized!" Coach Davies took a moment to compose himself. "Since you're not on the list and Daniel doesn't have a partner, I'll be asking you to work with him today." Daniel smiled at me. "On that note, why don't you two start us off? Let's get you buckled up, Talia..." I looked at Daniel. "Please... catch me." I remembered when Harper and I went rock climbing and her carabiner had snapped and she'd fallen.... She'd thankfully survived the 30-metre fall, but had broken several bones. But she'd still died. For real. "I will, Talia," Daniel said. "But-what if-" Daniel held a finger to my lips. I went cross-eyes looking down at it. "Do you trust me?"