As soon as Dailey switched on her computer, she knew something was wrong. It was taking longer than usual to load up, and three little black dialogue boxes flashed across the screen.
'He's hacked me,' Dailey thought. 'Of course he has.'
Luckily, she'd deleted the awful pictures and didn't have anything else too incriminating on there... unless...
When she opened her emails, she found a new message from Drake. Inside was a screenshot. She didn't have to open it up to see it was the dreaded naked shots. Clicking through, she found something different to the images of her peach flesh.
She enlarged it to find it was a message exchange between herself and the guy she'd paid to write her college admissions essay. The one that had landed her a place at one of the best colleges in the country.
"Shit, shit, shit," she muttered. This was way worse than the threat of
When Toni arrived at school, she had a fully formed plan and steely resolve, but it all melted away the second she saw those cat-like green eyes flash in her direction. He walked past her, making a beeline from some poor kid. Some hapless victim he'd deemed worthy to suffer at his hands.The guy saw him coming, but like a deer in headlights, he froze and cowered as the bully ploughed over, kicking up the grass as he stomped over the field to interrupt the game of catch.The victim's friends scattered in all directions as if knowing from experience it was better to look the other way than to get beaten up along with their comrade."Oi," Toni shouted, storming over with the huge strides and attitude of a superhero. She imagined herself as a badass character in a movie—some leather-clad heroine who'd just pulled up on her motorcycle and whipped off her helmet, letting her long dark hair free to blow in the wind.
At lunchtime, Dailey had planned on sitting with Toni. She'd been looking forward to it. But she saw Drake waving his index finger in her direction, beckoning her over.She slouched over to him, dragging her feet, and looking down to indicate her lack of interest in playing whatever game he was planning."Chop chop," he encouraged, clapping his hands.His friends exchanged glances and whispers, confused by her presence in their tight-knit group of weirdos. Their clique usually hung out and ate lunch in the courtyard by the steps, far away from everyone else, a fact she was glad for today."Get on all fours," Drake demanded.'Why?' Dailey wondered in a panic. 'What are you going to do to me?'When he began to click his fingers repeatedly in her face she complied, tutting as grit and stones lodged into the soft flesh of her p
Toni glanced about the room, at the stark walls and windows with cream blinds that looked as though nobody had dusted them in the last ten years. It was nothing like her last school. Well... except for the fact the mentality of the people was pretty much identical. The segregation of popular kids, the cool kids, the nerds, and the freaks. Glancing to her left, she spotted the guy Dailey had told her about. She couldn't see much of his expression because his long, dangly black hair covered his face. Normally, he'd be just her type; dangerous, weird, and twisted... but she had the distinct feeling her only friend in this hell hole would end up falling for him, meaning he was off limits. She felt the life drain out of her as Tommy took a seat beside her, scraping his chair and table loudly as he pulled them closer to hers. Something about his energetic personality was draining to Toni. Just watching him fail to sit still for five seco
Toni didn't know which was worse—the smell or the humiliation. She'd seen kids thrown in dumpsters a couple of times, and while she felt bad about failing to intervene, she never imagined she might end up on the receiving end.What if nobody came to let her out? Would she end up in the garbage crusher?Morbid thoughts about being squished to death prompted her to call for help when she heard voices in the distance. Screw the embarrassment. She wanted to live.
When Dailey arrived at the beach it was beginning to get dark. A group of kids had created a bonfire and were currently feeding it sticks. Some weren't dry enough. They crackled and hissed as they burned, releasing a foul-smelling acrid smoke into the salty air.Dailey watched, keeping to the grassy shore when she spotted Sam by the keg. He and his friends filled red plastic cups with beer and joked together, perving not so discreetly on a couple of scantily clad girls from the year below.'Already moving on to someone new,'Dailey thought.'Typical.'She tried to tell herself it didn't matter—that she was done with him—but seeing him still hurt. He hadn't even spoken to her about the images, probably assuming he'd simply lost the files. This could only be a good thing. She hated him, but she also still loved him and always would. Getting him involved in the mess with Drake would o
Dailey couldn’t stop thinking about the quote Drake had chosen to leave her with. Did he somehow know she was desperately lonely? Maybe. Or maybe it was just a fluke.With her friends and boyfriend gone, she had nobody around to confide in. Yet, it surprising how little her mentality had changed. Her friends didn’t talk, only gossiped, and her boyfriend and been someone to make out with rather than a legitimate partner.‘I’ve been very lonely for a very long time,’Dailey realised.As she walked to school alone, she saw Toni and smiled, rushing over to say hi. The first time she’d seen Toni, Dailey had expected her to be scary and antisocial. She was happy to find out how wrong her judgement had been as the girl ran over and hugged her.“How’s it going?” she asked, meaning the Aaron situation.“Nothin
"I decided today is the day," Aaron said. He leaned so close his chest was pressed up against hers. Toni could feel the hardness of his muscles and the warmth of him as he breathed down her neck.Instead of melting, she stared at him with defiance, determined not to take any of his crap."Today is the day you quit," he clarified."Why?" Toni asked, feeling brave. "Because Drake is getting involved?"Aaron flinched ever so slightly at the mention of that name."What did he do to make you so afraid of him?" she asked, not in a taunting way, but genuinely interested."I ain't scared of him," Aaron scoffed, curling his lip as he licked his teeth. He shook his head. "We used to be mates is all. Not that it's any of your business.""It is, actually," Toni said. "My friend is at his house right now and honestly... I don't trust him."&nbs
"May I have a drink of water, please?" Dailey asked. She sniffed away tears and wiped at her face before taking the glass of water.It was tepid and tasted different to the water from her tap at home, but at least it cleared away the awful film coating her mouth."So... tell me," Drake said, taking the water from her hand and placing it on the table. "What was that little outburst all about?""I... I..." Dailey fumbled, unsure of what to say, what he wanted to hear. Not sure of the truth."I just want you to like me," she cried, throwing herself into his arms. She clung to the fabric of his black hoodie, snuggling her head into his chest. "I'm sorry for all the times I was a bitch to you. I'm sorry. Please stop hating me.""I don't hate you," he told her. "I'm indifferent to you."That was so much worse than hate."I like you,