Under the Surface

Chapter 2: Danielle

"What's up!" smiled Danielle as she approached Bethany Davidson and Ava Norburn at their lockers in the busy and crowded hallway of Levell High. "Hey!" smiled Bethany, whilst Ava, being a more cheery individual gave a preppy "hey, hey!" to her. "OMG, Dani, guess what? Ava and I were in the bathroom when we heard Lisa Montgomery crying on the phone saying her period is late." laughed Bethany "Yeah, the girl is so stupid, I mean how hard is it to just use a condom?" added Ava. "Well, she could have, they're only what? 95% effective or sum?" replied Danielle, raising an eyebrow. "What? Shit!" said Ava shocked, as Bethany and Danielle laughed. "Calm down girl, you haven't got pregnant yet" smirked Danielle as she took books out of her locker. "My mum was bugging me about some history project we have to do? Apparently it's 40% of our overall grade. Totally sucks." she added. "Fuck yeah, forgot about that, what the fuck is it even on?" whined Bethany. "If I remember correctly I'm pretty sure we chose a topic that happened during the 20th century." replied Danielle, "Ava, do you know?" she finished. "Huh?" said Ava, smiling, eyes fixed to her phone. "OMG, do tell! Who are you texting?" smiled Bethany, giving Ava a slight shrug. "I went on this dating site, but it's like, not a normal dating site, it's for like young and incredibly pretty girls to go on to meet rich old dudes who legit pay them money for keeping them company...look!.." said Ava, as she started rooting through her locker and took out a Louis Vuitton wallet. "SHIT! Did some old dude give you this?" said Danielle, taking the purse and examining it. "Sure did, he's not even THAT old, he's like a dad age, not a grandad age, thank god! And I like older guys anyway so it's perfect!" Ava beamed. "Shit girl, be careful. That's that type of sketchy shit you hear on the news and then those girls get found in a dumpster behind Walmart or sum" laughed Bethany. "No, he's totally safe, we go to his bachelor pad, even though he's not a bachelor, he's married and got kids and all...LOL oh well!" smirked Ava. "Oh my god" laughed Danielle. "Ew he's a dad? That means he's got a dad bod and all?" laughed Bethany. "Oh my god, shut up. You're just jealous because all you have is Ty! I mean, why have a Ty, when you could have a man!" replied Ava, putting her Louis Vuitton wallet back into her locker. "First of all, Ty is not all I have, girl I could get any guy I wanted, Ty is easy, he's like a puppy dog, he does what I want...and I mean, anything that I want." Smirked Bethany. "Okay. Ew." added Danielle.

"Alright class settle down, please." shouted Mrs.Wilson at the top of the class, "Open your Shakespeare study guide please to page 36." Everyone got settled into their seats. "Damn Dani, looking fine today." muttered Nick as he slid into his assigned seat next to her, biting his lip. "Mmm, you wish!" she teased as she flicked her long, dark hair over her shoulder. Nick was the typical bad boy, but he was also one of her best friends. Sure, he had gotten arrested before for getting too, no, extremely drunk in public and verbally assaulted a shop clerk one time but underneath it all he cared for the people he loved. There were days not too long ago when Danielle Lawrence would have dreamed of getting that compliment from Nick Powell, but she's used to it now, being so popular. She went from having nearly only one friend, Lauren Sanders, who by the way, my mother is obsessed with for some reason, she thought, to having Bethany, Ava, Ty and Nick as her posse. It all happened that one night at Matt Phillip's party he had when his parents went away for the weekend. That day, Danielle went from a pristine little perfect girl, to this new, cool, popular and bad ass one. It all came about because of a lie really...everyone had gotten really drunk but this was Danielle's first time drinking and she was unsure what everything was, the brands, the strengths, the tastes and the alcohol percentages, she was a rookie whilst everyone else seemed like a pro. She remembered thinking, this is crazy, how do fifteen-year old's who attend Levell High know all about drinking?! Until she started talking to Nick Powell. He approached her, drink in hand, slurring his words and toppling over, he had his hand on her butt. The thing is, Danielle had a huge crush on Nick at that time and was overjoyed to finally get some attention, even if he was technically out of it at the time. Later on, Bethany, a girl that intimidated Danielle due to her bad behaviour and attitude approached little old Danielle and said, "You know, Nick thinks you're hot. He was saying it the other day in school." to which Danielle replied "Really? No way!" She couldn't believe it. Then Matt suggests they all play never have I ever. This was after Danielle had hung out with Bethany and Ava for about a half hour and they had a few shots of tequila together...her first time drinking but she would never let them know, she acted as if she knew what she was doing. But she got drunk. The never have I ever questions were risqué and sexual and every time a question was asked Danielle, being her newly drunk self with this newly weird personality that she didn't recognise drank every time to show that she had done this and that. So, she left that party with everyone thinking she was some crazy, wild and sexually experienced girl, when in reality she was nothing like that at all. This is what attracted and impressed Bethany and Ava and in return attracted Ty and Nick and a group formed from there. To this day, they'll never know that what she said she did was all a lie, but as of today she is 50% more experienced than that girl she was back then, except of course she has never done...it. You know...it. They thought she had though, and Nick was trying really hard but Danielle was too scared. Too scared he would know it was her first time and would out her to everyone and expose her as a liar, that would be humiliating. "Ty, off your phone please!" scowled Mrs.Wilson. "Why do we have to learn about some old dead guy's poetry. In all due respect Mrs.Wilson, if that's your name, nobody really gives a shit about this dude Shakespeare and his feelings." whined Bethany, whilst the class laughed and a few of the do gooders looked shocked for someone to use this kind of language, especially to an adult, especially to a teacher! But this is what Bethany does, she has no fear. "Excuse me Bethany...oh, if that is YOUR name. I do not tolerate that type of language in my classroom! You will learn what I want you to learn!" shouted back Mrs.Wilson, at this stage, the whole class was engaged because everyone knew Bethany well enough by now and they knew she wouldn't stay quiet. "'Scuse' me bitch. Don't you fucking talk to me like that. You're just sum old lady who never got a proper job and is now working as a teacher, teaching kids about sum old guy's poetry, like who gives a shit!" she yelled, shoving her table to the side as she walked up to the front of the class, her tiny 5'1 height making her still look intimating. At this stage, Ty got up and held her back because if you pissed Bethany off, you're going get it. She once punched a lunch lady because she specifically asked for no peas, but the lunch lady gave her peas because she didn't hear her. She got suspended for a week. She has never gotten expelled because her parents, or adoptive parents, are extremely wealthy lawyers and donate loads of money to the school. Danielle always thought maybe that's why Bethany can get so angry and pissed off, the fact that she's adopted and never got the closure of getting to meet her real parents...but by the sounds of it she sounds better off with her adoptive parents because apparently her mother was a drug dealer, Bethany was born in prison and now she is in the pristine and private Levell High School, an experience she would never have gotten if she didn't get adopted. "Bethany, get out, go to the principle's office immediately!" said Mrs. Wilson, looking a bit terrified. "Fuck you." said Bethany, taking her bag and leaving the classroom, not before slamming the door shut behind her.

"Ugh, thank god school is over! Felt like the longest day ever." sighed Danielle to Ava as they left their last period and headed to their lockers. "IKR? I need to relax. I'll text Ty, try get some weed off him, wanna join?" smiled Ava. Danielle hesitated then answered, 'Uh, sure." She has smoked weed before, lot's of times in fact since hanging with the four of them, but she always felt guilty about it, guilty towards her parents, who she did love, even if they didn't think she did, she just wished they would back off her a bit and let her do her own thing. "Cool, let's hang at mine, my parents aren't gonna be home til' later on." replied Ava. "What about our history project?" questioned Danielle. "Don't be a downer, babe. I just wanna relax, I've had a hard day." said Ava. Danielle couldn't help but internally laugh. A hard day? You sat there filling your nails in every single class we had. "You're right, fuck that!" laughed Danielle.

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"Ughhhh..this some quality kush" said Nick as he leaned back on the grass of Ava's huge back garden and closed his eyes while exhaling the smoke. "I only supply the best." smirked Ty, who took in a huge inhale and slowly released it, showing off his skills of creating circles of smoke. "Please, you're all such babies with your 'marijuana', Dani, your little bro is probably already smoking that shit, wanna step it up a notch?" smiled Bethany, as she took out a small baggie containing white powder inside. "Shit!" beamed Nick, who quickly broke out of his relaxed state and jumped up and crawled over to Bethany. "Give me some!" he added. He proceeded to neatly arranged the powder and snort it up, followed by Bethany, Ava and Ty. "Your turn." said Bethany to Danielle. "Oh, you know, I've done it...in fact I've done it so many times I feel I've out grown it, I'm over it, but thanks. Hey, more for you guys right?" Danielle lied. She thought weed was okay, since it was a plant...so technically if you really believed hard enough that it's a vegetable you'll start to believe that it is actually a vegetable and that it's organic and natural and comes from the ground and is good for you, but she would never do drugs, drugs. "Suit yourself!" replied Bethany, taking another snort. Danielle looked at her watch, it was 4:45...shit, her mom would be home soon. "Guys, I've to go, my mom will kill me, ugh she's such a bitch. Sorry. Oh Ava, can I use your bathroom before I go?" said Danielle, standing up. "Sure babe" said Ava, with her eyes closed.

Danielle climbed up the wide, wooden stairs up to Ava's en-suite bathroom...she needed to find something to get the stink of weed off her before her parents smelled it, although would they even know what it was? She opened the mirror cabinet above the sink and found a vast array of expensive body sprays and perfumes, all in different colours and package shapes, she spritzed a few random ones on trying to cover the scent, although now she just smelled like a piñata threw up on her, but that was better than weed.