"FAVORITE CRIME!" —
𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗶𝘅
★ . ! one heart broke, four hands bloody ¡ ☁️ʚ˚₊
[ episode three ]
Once the initial shock had worn off, the girls sprung into attention. Tabitha ran up the stage, urging Imogen that they had to leave. They walked out of the gym and back down the corridor.
"That did not just happen." Noa spoke.
"I've never ever seen a dead body before, except online." Mouse stated.
"The sound it wasn't like in the movies." Tabitha let out a breath. "Her bones..."
"Imogen, what the hell happened?" Faran asked, stopping the group in their tracks as they turned to face Imogen. Andrea stopped in between Noa and Tabitha, her playing with the rings on her hand. "What did you see?"
"I don't know, um... I saw Karen up in the rafters." She told them.
"So did we." Mouse nodded.
"She had a bucket." Imogen informed the girls.
"Like in Carrie?" Tabitha spoke.
"And there was someone else up there with her, a man in a mask. He pushed her." Imogen explained.
"A mask like from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre?" Tabitha questioned.
"I've seen that dude." Noa nodded.
"Me too." Andrea told them, thinking back to the protest at the beginning of the year.
"Same." Faran looked at them. "The text we all got from A."
"One bully down." Tabitha began. "Karen. It has to be."
"She didn't fall." Imogen stated firmly, touching the blood on her arm. "She was murdered."
The girls shared uneasy looks, before they decided they needed to go home. Andrea walked to her house in the dark, her hair still wet from the rain earlier and her happy mood successfully demolished. She yawned as she walked up her front yard and opened the front door. However, her smile was put back on her face when her father rushed towards the door.
"Drea!"
"Dad!" Andrea laughed as she hugged her father, the man lifting her off the floor slightly.
"Are you okay?" Her mother's voice cut through the reunion. "We just heard what happened at school."
"I'm okay." Andrea smiled weakly.
"What happened?" Lucas asked.
"I, um..." Andrea shook her head. "Karen Beasley, she's dead. She fell, jumped, I don't know, from the rafters."
"Oh my god." Jennifer froze for a moment before she brought her daughter in for a hug.
"I think volleyball will be cancelled tomorrow." Andrea told them.
"That's fine." Lucas stated. "You have nothing to worry about. Let's go watch tv."
Andrea walked up the stairs, going into her bedroom and changing into her pyjamas. She put on a pair of shorts and an oversized jumper. She wiped her makeup off before making her way back down the stairs. She sat on the sofa next to her father, leaning on his shoulder as he put on that 70s show.
Meanwhile, in her bathroom, Jennifer was taking her makeup off. She stood in front of the mirror, wiping the mascara off of her face, as she stared at herself in the mirror. She was then transported back in time to after Angela had jumped from the rafters. Her and her friends were sat in the pizza diner as Davie and Corey tried to convince them that they were fine and Angela's death wasn't her fault.
Andrea was half way through an episode of that 70s show when she felt her phone buzz from next to her. She picked it up to see a group facetime from the girls. Andrea sat up, turning to her father and telling him she'd be back in a minute before running up the stairs and into her bedroom. The curly haired girl grabbed her ipad, unlocking it and joining in on the girls facetime call. She greeted them all before they got right into what they should do about everything.
"Maybe we should tell Karen's dad." Imogen suggested.
"The Sheriff?" Noa looked confused. "No."
"I'm with Noa." Faran agreed. "The text from A was a warning to keep our mouths shut. Whatever the fuck A is."
"The guy in the mask that Imogen saw." Tabitha stated, "That we've all seen."
"You guys... what if Karen didn't frame us?" Imogen asked.
"What do you mean?" Andrea questioned.
"I mean, we assumed Karen put the razor blades in her shoes, the rat in her bag, but... what if she didn't?" Imogen explained, with a raised eyebrow. "What if A put the razor blades in the shoes, knowing we'd get back at Karen?"
"So A has been messing with us from the beginning?" Mouse wondered.
"No. No." Faran quickly disagreed. "Karen was a bully just like the text from A said. Imogen, you saw her up in the rafters with a bucket, and when Sheriff Beasley and the cops find it up there, they'll assume that, Karen was pulling to pull a Carrie on you, and she fell. That it was an accident."
"That's fine for them, but I know..." Imogen sighed slightly. "Kaen was pushed... by A."
"Then that's even more reason to keep the fuck quiet." Noa told them.
"Yep." Faran nodded.
"If we do what A asks, maybe it'll all be okay." Mouse said hopefully.
"Let's hope." Tabitha spoke. "And we'll see what happens at school. Night."
"Goodnight." Andrea waved as everyone let out their own various byes and hung up. Andrea let out a sigh as she dropped her ipad back on her bed, closing her eyes for a few moments before getting up once more and going back downstairs to her dad.
"Everything alright?" He asked as she sat down.
"Yep. Just fine." Andrea nodded, leaning on him once more and watching Jackie say something flirty to Hyde.
The next day, Andrea left her house with a sad smile. They were having an assembly for Karen that morning and Andrea really didn't want to go, but if she skipped school, her mum would have her head on a stick. She met Noa at the end of the street, wearing a pair of brown jeans and a white oversized hoodie. She had a pair of white converse on and a brown beanie the same colour as her jeans on her head. The two girls walked into school, meeting with the others as they made their way towards the gym.
Andrea sat in between Faran and Noa as they sat towards the back of the bleachers. Principal Clanton was talking at a podium with Sheriff Beasley next to him.
"Students, teachers, staff." The man began. "Karen Beasley was a beloved member of Millwood High's community. A daughter, a sister, a friend." The girls looked towards Imogen sympathetically. "To help us grieve and work through this tragedy, we've brought in a counsellor for the next two weeks. Karen will live on in these hallowed halls. She was an exemplary Millwood High student, the epitome of school spirit—"
Imogen suddenly got up as the Principal continued. She made her way out of the row they were in and down the steps of the bleachers before rushing out of the gym as quickly and quietly as she could. "The Sheriff will be working out of my office until further notice."
After the assembly, the girls all went to the library. They sat at the same table as they had in detention, waiting for Imogen to turn back up. Andrea sat on a chair on the corner of the table in between Tabitha and Faran.
"Guys, I just talked to Kelly." Imogen spoke as she sat down next to Noa.
"Oh my god, she's at school." Mouse stated, shocked.
"Which shows you how deranged that family is." Faran commented. "Like, take the day."
They all sighed, before Tabitha spoke up, looking over at Imogen. "Imogen, you don't look so good."
"I feel sick." Imogen answered.
"Deep breaths." Faran ordered. "You need to relax. We all do."
"That's our plan?" Tabitha questioned with raised eyebrows. "We relax?"
"We don't say anything to anyone." Noa reminded them. "Like we agreed. That's our plan."
"That's exactly our plan." Andrea nodded. "We keep our mouths shut."
They all hummed in agreement, before an announcement came over the PA system.
Would Imogen Adams, Tabitha Hayworthe, Faran Bryant, Noa Olivar, Andrea Watson and Minnie Honrada report to the principal's office, please?
The girls all shared looked of confusion before they grabbed their stuff slowly and made their way to the Principal's office where Sheriff Beasley was waiting for them. Andrea stood in between Faran and Noa, behind Imogen and Tabitha as Principal Clanton started asking them questions, the Sheriff stood over by the window.
"You work at the movie theatre don't you, Ms Hayworthe?" The Sheriff asked her.
"Yes, but thing is—"
"We didn't film what happened to your daughter." Imogen cut Tabby off. "In fact, I stopped it. You should be talking to Tyler Marchand. He filmed it."
"We spoke to Mr Marchand." Mr Beasley stated. "He claims you stole his phone, Ms Adams, is that accurate?"
Imogen glanced at Tabitha. "I mean... I took it away from him."
"And then one of you, or both of you, or all of you then took that footage and made some kind of fake campaign video to humiliate my daughter, correct?" The Sheriff questioned.
"We— We only did it because Karen bullied us first." Tabitha stated. "We were trying to get her to stop."
"But we're sorry." Noa spoke up.
"We all are so, so sorry." Mouse added.
"But you did invite your classmates to a screening of a video you edited that's been described to us as debasing, sick, humiliating. So which one of you has that video now?" He looked towards each of them. "Ms Hayworthe, given your interests, I'm assuming you made it."
Faran noticed Tabitha's breathing begin to get heavier, quickly began to talk, "Not to speak ill... of the dead, Sheriff, but your daughter was a bully. What do you think she was doing up in the rafters with a bucket? She was going to dump something on Imogen."
"There was no bucket in the rafters." Mr Beasley stated. "Or anywhere in the gym."
"No, I saw Karen with my own eyes. She had a bucket." Imogen defended herself.
"Then you were the only person who saw that." The Sheriff continued. "And we've spoken to many students and none of them mentioned a bucket. But they all talked about the video the six of you screened, with forethought, with malice, that so distressed my daughter that she took her own life! To me, that makes you murderers."
"Okay, we're done." Faran stepped forward angrily. "We aren't saying another word without our lawyers present or... at least our parents."
"That's certainly your prerogative." Principal Clanton said. "And rest assured, we will be bringing this matter to a disciplinary committee for hearing and judgement."
"By the way..." The sheriff started again, "you should lawyer up. Because I am going to do everything in my power to open a criminal investigation against you six."
"You know Sheriff Beasley, having a problem with six teenage girls as a fully grown man because of your own opinion on them is classed as prejudice and looks strange. Not to mention the questioning without our legal adults present. And the fact that it's your daughter, I'd call that a pretty strong conflict of interest. We could get you kicked off the case." Andrea shrugged, stepping next to Faran as she tilted her head to the side slightly. "Mix that with what I know about you and your secret fun times, I could fuck your life up pretty badly."
"Is that a threat?" He asked.
"No." Andrea shook her head with a small smirk. "That was a statement. One that I think you should think about very carefully."
The girls were then quick to rush out of the room, wanting nothing more than to be anywhere else. After that the girls went home once more, however this time she was met with her more staring at her disapprovingly.
"Andrea Watson!" Her mum exclaimed as she tried to walk past her. The girl froze as she stepped into the kitchen where the woman was stood.
"Hey mum." Andrea smiled.
"Don't hey mum me, sit your ass down right now!" Andrea did as she was told. "What in the world of hell were you thinking. This could get you kicked off the volleyball team, your grades are already slipping and you don't have anything to fall back on. I did not raise you like this, to make mistakes like this."
"I'm sorry—" Andrea tried to apologise.
"You're sorry!" Jennifer practically shouted. "Sorry isn't going to fix any of this, Andrea, okay? A girl is dead and you have motive to kill her. You have a whole future ahead of you, and you're wasting it. First on that stupid fashion designing dream of yours and now this—"
"Fashion designing isn't stupid." Andrea muttered.
"Pardon."
"I said fashion designing isn't stupid." Andrea stated firmly. "Fashion is the only thing that frees me from this terrible, unbearable amount of pressure you put on me. I try, mum, god, I try at everything to live up to the amazing Jennifer Watson and I can't do it. Haven't you ever made a mistake you wish you could take back, you were a teenager once, you have to understand. I'm not throwing my future away, I'm being a teenager, a sixteen year old girl, that's all I am. I made a mistake, but it's not going to change anything about my future, okay? I'm going to be fine, I just need you to back off a bit sometimes."
At this point Andrea was crying, the relief from finally saying what she's wanted to for a while getting the best of her. She wiped her cheeks as her mother stares at her silently. The woman doesn't say anything as she leaves the room, leaving Andrea alone. The young girl stared in the direction that her mother went in, nodding silently as she left out a breath that shuddered on its way out.
"I think mum's disappointed in me." Andrea stated to her father, who now stood in the doorway.
"She's not disappointed, she's just—"
"Mad. Annoyed. Angry. Upset. Like they're any better." Andrea scoffed with a shake of her head. "Why does she hate me?"
"Oh, she doesn't hate you honey." Lucas came over and knelt down in front of the seat his daughter sat on. "She just sees a lot of herself in you."
"What does that mean?"
"It means she scared for you. Your mother wasn't always the person she is now, and she wants better for you." Lucas explained.
"Better than this, than a loving husband and a family, and a fancy house and job that she loves. What is better than that?" Andrea asked, as her eyes began to water again. "And why does it feel like she doesn't want me sometimes?"
"Andrea, you are her greatest pride and joy." Andrea shook her head, muttering a small no. "Yes, she loves you, and she just doesn't want you to have the demons she has."
"So she becomes one?" Andrea sighed, her tears falling down her cheeks once more. "Dad, she is like my own personal demon, sent straight from hell to torture me. Sometimes she says things that make me want to shrivel up so the earth can swallow and I don't exist anymore because it feels like that's the only thing that would make her happy. I don't want to feel like that anymore."
Lucas stared at his daughter with frowned eyebrows before he leant forward and wiped the tears from her cheek, bringing her in for a head as he kissed the top of her head, "You are incredible, Drea, just the way you are, and your mum knows that, she just wants what is best for you. I love you, don't forget that though."
Andrea nodded, leaning away from her dad and giving him a weak smile. She got up from the seat she was in before making her way to her bedroom, changing into her pyjamas and getting ready to sleep the rest of the night away.
The next morning, Andrea got up out of bed earlier than usual so that she could leave the house without bumping into her mum. She put on a pair of grey cargo trousers and an oversized red sweater with a pair of red high top converse. She put her hair up in a claw clip before grabbing her school bag and making her way downstairs.
She picked up a banana and grabbed her coffee filled water bottle from the fridge as she made her way towards the front door, ready to leave the house. She had already brushed her teeth and put on her jewellery earlier and so all she needed to do was grab her housekeys. Andrea had just made it to the front door, opening it and about to step outside when—
"I don't hate you by the way." A voice spoke up, Andrea turning to face her mother, who stood at the bottom of the stairs. Andrea sighed, closing the door and facing her mother properly. "I love you, very much, bug. And I know I'm hard on you sometimes, but it's for your own good. I just want to keep you safe."
"I know." Andrea nodded with a soft smile. "It's just hard sometimes. I don't know what I'm doing but I'm just a kid, I shouldn't have to. I need to make mistakes sometimes, not ones like I did, but little ones, without fearing that I'm disappointing you."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay." Andrea smiled, stepping forward to hug her mum before turning and leaving the house.
However, Andrea's day did not get any better when she got to school. The girl was immediately met with stares from her peers and then she and Noa had gotten a newspaper shoved in their faces. The girls were quick to find Tabitha, Faran and Imogen, who also had the newspaper in their hands, their faces sprawled across the front page.
"Have you guys seen this?" Mouse asked as she approached the huddled group.
"Way ahead of you, Honrada." Noa commented.
"'Let's hope the disciplinary committee makes the right decision and demands these bullies' immediate expulsion.'" Faran read from the paper.
"We are so dead." Mouse stated. The girls all sighed as they looked down the hall, everyone reading the same thing.
✿✼:*:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑
Meanwhile, Jennifer sat in Davie's old house, at the dining table along with the rest of her old high school friends. She sat next to Sidney Hayworthe, opposite Marjorie, a smoothie in front of her as silence hung in the air.
"Well, one thing's for sure." Corey finally broke the silence. "None of us is going to win Mother of the Year."
Marjorie Olivar laughed. "You know things are dire when the great Corey Bryant deigns to grace us with her presence."
"Love you too, Marge." Corey commented.
"It feels wrong." Elodie Honrada stated. "Doing this in Davie's house. It's ghoulish."
"I'm supposed to be selling it later this month, and since no one else was volunteering to host..." Sidney explained, trailing off slightly.
"Can't be a coincidence." Elodie told them. "That it's all our daughters?"
"Millwood's a small town. Millwood High's a small school." Corey reminded her. "It could very well be a coincidence, Dee."
"And besides, Noa and Andrea were already friends and Imogen and Tabitha knew it other, it wouldn't be very hard for them to fall into the same group." Jennifer shrugged slightly.
"Either way, it's our daughters we need to be worried about right now." Marjorie changed the subject onto the more pressing matter.
"Strong agree. We've got to get them through this disciplinary committee meeting." Corey sat forward in our seat.
"About that—" Sidney spoke up. "our daughters shouldn't be the only ones in the crosshairs. That boy should also be held accountable. I have the phone with the original video. It won't get out girls off the hook, but it might... mitigate what they did."
"That's smart." Marjorie agreed. "Cast a wider net."
"Who do we go to?" Sidney turned to Corey. "The Sheriff or the principal?"
"Both." Corey told her.
"We need to be careful with the Sheriff." Jennifer stated, the woman turning to face her. "Andrea made a comment that the Sheriff has something about them to Lucas yesterday when she couldn't sleep."
"Okay." Corey nodded. "I'll take point, but Sid, if you have all the backstory on the video, you should come too."
✿✼:*:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑
Andrea was at her volleyball practice later, a smile on her face as she warmed up with Margot. Her warm ups were cut short when Coach Reynolds called her name. She turned around, expecting to see a smile on her coach's face but instead found a frown as she gestured for Andrea to follow her to her office. Andrea bid goodbye to Margot, making her way over to the coach's office.
"Have a seat." The woman told her. Andrea sat down in the seat opposite Coach Reynolds.
"What's up Coach?" She asked.
"You know that this team is no place for violence or delinquency of any kind." Andrea nodded as the woman spoke. "And I let you off last time with the vandalization of Karen's locker, but, this, the screening and her death. I cannot let you off as lightly as benching you from one game. And I would love to only have to do that Andrea, because you are a vital member of this team, but parents and some of the girls have already expressed their concerns—"
"Are you kicking off the team?" Andrea asked, wanting to rip the band aid off.
"No." She let out a breath of relief. "But I am benching you for the rest of the season, you're under Stevens."
Katy Stevens was a girl, who was only put on the team on the bench as a pleasantry because they needed another person and she was the only one available. The girl barely even knew how to play volleyball, and had only tried out because her friend Valerie had tried out (said girl now taking Andrea's spot on the team). Being benched under Katy was almost as bad as being kicked off the team.
"Great." The curly haired girl scoffed. "How wonderful. Well I'll be off then."
Andrea got up from her seat and began to leave the room when the woman spoke up once more, "I didn't want to do this, but it was the only way to get the principal off my back, Andrea. He was threatening to cut the team altogether."
Andrea nodded, turning around and giving her Coach a small smile. "It's okay. I get it. I'll come back next season ready to kick some ass."
"Good." Coach Reynolds nodded. "I'll be waiting."
Andrea left the office, standing outside the room for a few moments and letting out a shaky breath. She began to walk back towards the locker room, ready to grab her stuff and leave when she realised something.
A was a bitch, who ruined her life. And she was so over it.
( 💌 ) isobel's notes
such a random chapter fr
i haven't watched season two yet
but it's on my list so please no
spoilers