Meant for each other?

-39-

A knock on her door startles the girl out of her thoughts. Thinking about the past had made her wonder about Cara. She knows nothing about her, and where she is, getting in touch is a nightmare.

"Come in," the brunette calls hoarsely, surprised at the sound of her own voice.

The door opens quickly and the dark haired girl that Karlie had just been texting walks in. She smirks, pulling the cylindrical bottle from her binder. Karlie almost laughs, her eyes holding some light for the first time that evening. She was surprised at Kendall's tactics but appreciated the effort nonetheless.

"You okay?" Kendall queries as she hands her friend the bottle.

The brunette can only lie- "I'm fine, Ken. Just need some extreme caffeine so I can revise tonight." She hopes her swollen eyes and mottled skin don't give the game away as she manages a grimace towards Kendall. "Thanks."

Still uncertain, Kendall hovers. "What happened after English?"

"Oh, that," Karlie sighs. She had forgotten the events that had led to her current situation already. "I was forced to apologise, and then she touched me and I kicked off. Literally everyone is pissed off with me now." The brunette rolls her eyes to pretend she doesn't care.

Kendall, doubt still plaguing her, just smiles lightly. "Good luck studying then babe," she says as she goes to leave.

"Thanks Ken." And Karlie means it. Her demons come out to play again as she waves goodbye to her friend. There's no stopping Karlie's deceit: she lies to anyone that cares for her. Her need for a pain reliever outweighs any friendship she could have. It still doesn't stop her opening the litre bottle of vodka and drinking it though.

Dawn is peaking through the curtains when Karlie realises her actions come with consequences. She hurts. Her back aches. So does her head. Normally, after vodka she feels hazy. Instead, her vision blurs, her legs refuse to move and she is sweating even though the temperature has yet to creep above 5 degrees.

Her thoughts drift to America. She wants to go home. England was never meant to be a permanent solution and although Karlie was happy here, that happiness had dissolved gradually. Cara left, and now the brunette has messed up her relationship with Taylor. Miss Aldridge can't stand her either after the broken window fiasco. She thinks it's time to go home.

"Karlie," Miss Aldridge addresses her student distantly, "what can I do for you?" She hasn't seen the girl since she gave her a bollocking for breaking the window in the girl's dormitory. News of the incident with Jess Hall had reached her unsympathetic ears and she'd merely sighed and promised to deal with it. Not even a day later, Karlie has appeared in her office demanding that they talk. From looking at her disciplinary records Lily can see that Karlie's behaviour had been improving. Yesterday was a huge setback. On top of that, she'd also received an email from an upset Taylor saying that Karlie had completely closed her out: their only link to the girl's thoughts shot down like an enemy plane.

Karlie invites herself to sit down. "Please just hear me out?" She begs.

"Okay," Lily agrees.

"I've caused nothing but trouble since I've been here," the American starts, "You're bored of it, I'm stopping your school being a quiet place for sheltered, rich English kids. Most of your staff hate me. Agreed?"

"Karlie, I-"

"You don't need to protect my feelings," Karlie replies in an assuring tone, raising her eyebrow at the headmistress.