Chapter 2: My... Friend?
"This is bullshit," Hannah hissed, pressing the ice pack against her throbbing knuckles. She glared at the principal, Ms. Anderson, who stared back, her expression a mix of disapproval and something like… pity? "Seriously?"
Ms. Anderson adjusted her sleek, black hair. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Hannah. Will your mother be joining us?"
Hannah's gaze dropped. "She works the night shift. She's asleep." Then, she lifted her chin, her usual composure returning. "Just get to the point, Ms. Anderson," she said, her voice laced with sarcasm.
Ms. Anderson sighed, leaning forward. "Hannah, this brings me absolutely no pleasure." She lowered her voice, placing her hands on the polished table. "If you'd come to me immediately after that video..."
"Oh, so this is my fault?" Hannah interrupted, her eyebrows arching.
Ms. Anderson's lips tightened. "The video? Of course not. But the way you handled the aftermath leaves much to be desired." She stood, her gaze unwavering. "Hannah, we all have our problems. Yours is that your peers have the luxury of acting on impulse. You don't. The only way for you to get ahead of them is to be smarter. And I thought you were smarter."
Hannah's jaw clenched. "I am smarter."
"Then you wouldn't have sucker-punched Sara's golden boy," Ms. Anderson said, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips. "Impressive, by the way."
Hannah waited, her eyes narrowed.
"So, I'm placing you on behavioral probation, along with mandatory community service. And if you have any further altercations with NK, the headmaster, I'll have no choice but to revoke your scholarship." Ms. Anderson's voice softened. "Today, you let your anger control you. From now on, I want you to channel that anger into getting what you want."
Back in her room, Hannah played the recording Sage had sent. "Hannah, we all… NK would never do such a thing. But punching him has put us all in a tight spot. He's like family. I think we all need the summer to process. See you next year."
Tears streamed down Hannah's face. "So much for believing women," she whispered, staring at the photo of her and NK. Why would he do this to me? she thought. It's a classic Icarus story. I flew too close to the sun, and then my boyfriend leaked my sex tape.
She threw the picture against the wall, the glass shattering. "I hate NK! And I hate myself for letting my guard down!"
She stood, wiping her tears. "Ms. Anderson was right. I need to channel my anger. And that's exactly what I'll do. Peaking in high school is cringe anyway. I'm not done yet."
---
Forty-five minutes later, Stephen stared out the window of her car, approaching camp.
"Stephen, I'm so delighted you want to go to camp this year," a woman's voice said through the phone.
Stephen, with golden-brown hair, rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, Mom."
"I can't believe you actually agreed to go to tennis camp. Maybe you'll finally make some real friends."
"Oh, Mom, that's rude. What about Mia, Andrew, and Lisa?"
"Your pet lizard is not a friend, Stephen," her mother said, her tone laced with disappointment.
Stephen sighed. "Hello, Mom… bridge… I can't hear them." She grinned mischievously, pressing the accelerator.
When she arrived, the camp was already buzzing with energy. She sipped her drink, watching the garden filled with people. My entire life was about to change because of her, she thought.
She spotted Hannah, playing chess alone under a tree, her expression unreadable.
Hannah Lipitin.
Stephen smirked. She doesn't know it yet, but we're about to become besties.
---
"Whoa, is that Hannah Lipitin? Oh my goodness, how could she even…" two girls whispered before a volleyball knocked their phones down.
They glared, then froze when they saw Hannah approaching.
Hannah smirked. "Sorry," she said, the word dripping with sarcasm. She walked away, leaving the girls fuming.
---
In the washroom, two girls, one in a pink robe and the other in a blue robe, chatted.
Stephen, brushing her teeth, glanced at them in the mirror.
"How did you get the video?" the girl in the blue robe asked.
The girl in the pink robe smirked. "I'm not revealing my sources."
"It's embarrassing that she's our age and she's working here," the blue-robed girl muttered.
"The more embarrassing thing is that everyone's seen her sex tape," the pink-robed girl added.
Stephen's eyes flickered to them for a split second, then returned to her reflection.
"Are you listening to us?" the pink-robed girl asked.
Stephen looked behind her, then back at them. "No," she said, walking out.
---
Later, Stephen walked to the lemonade stand where Hannah was sitting, tapping her phone. She paused, then approached.
"It was Marble who posted the video," Stephen said.
Hannah looked up, her expression blank. Who is this? she thought.
"She sucks. She's mean," Stephen continued. "She's like… Bitchasaurus Rex."
"Who are you?" Hannah asked, her voice flat.
"Stephen," she replied.
Hannah glanced at her. "I don't need your pity," she said, returning to her phone.
Stephen shrugged and walked away.
---
Moments later, chaos erupted.
Hannah watched as Marble was dragged away by security guards.
"This is insane! I don't even do cocaine!" Marble yelled.
"Don't you think I'd know if she was doing coke?" her partner shouted.
"Just awful," Hannah murmured, nodding to herself.
Marble broke free, turning to Hannah. "I knew you did this, you insufferable…!"
Hannah smiled apologetically. "You think I framed you?" she asked, her voice soft. "Babe, are you on drugs lately?"
"I don't do cocaine! I don't even know what it looks like!"
The guards pulled Marble away.
"Take care, hon. We'll miss you," Hannah said, turning to the crowd. "So sad. I really hope she gets the help she needs."
As she walked away, her eyes met Stephen's across the courtyard.
Stephen gave a subtle nod. Hannah hesitated… then nodded back.
Maybe, just maybe, this summer wouldn't be a total loss.