Parker Fior's Story

What is the key to popularity? Parker knew about this. She had been thinking about it for all her life and finally the opportunity had presented itself. And like any smart girl, she snatched the role of cheer captain and even got Niko as a boy friend which of course is a major plus. Rose was out of site and down the high school drain, as Parker had always imagined.

Like any other day Parker strut to her locker, passing people by, leaving a wonderful scent of cotton candy down the hall. Her white back pack clear of any scuffs swung over her shoulder. When she reached her locker Parker turned the dial quickly swinging it open to a pink and glittery party like scene. She stuffed her back pack into the locker with force and grabbed her hand bag and English books. Then before closing the locker she popped a piece of mint gum into her mouth and set of again down the hall way. It didn't even matter that she had walked a whole 100 yards by herself. Parker was quickly swarmed with friends and she turned the corner leading everyone where she wanted. "Has any one seen Niko?" She said tapping her polished nails on her hard cover book. She frowned slightly only getting a scattered response nos.

Rose looked into the mirror that morning in the group home and shook her red hair around her shoulders. Her eyes were droppy and vacant, and her skin was deathly pale. She looked like a ghost on fire. Slipping on her black converse and other grey and black clothing items, she hunched her shoulders and went down the stairs. The other girls had already finished the breakfast, and Rose's stomach had stopped grumbling a long time ago, fed up with the lack of food and deciding that it just wasn't going to complain anymore, since it was no use. Rose was always the odd one out nowadays, even with daily nutrients.

The walkt to school wasn't terrible, but Rose didn't even notice. The cherry trees that she used to love didn't even register in her mind anymore. She remembered swinging on the branches when she was little, and sitting under them for a picnic when she got older. Now, they were just old trees that held forgotten memories. That's how everything was these days, forgotten.

Getting to school, she walked past all of the friends groups that she used to be a part of. The cheerleaders were in their usual place, applying cosmetics and gossiping. They laughed when they saw who she was now, a small red headed freak dressed like death. Getting to her locker, she used every ounce of willpower to open the door and throw her books inside. All she wanted to do was curl up and die, just like her mother. Oh, mommy... She felt tears prick her eyes and she wiped them away hastily. Ever since her mother's death, things had just gone downhill. Niko abandoned her, Parker turned on her, everything crumbled to ruins.

It was then that Max approached her, and she averted her gaze. She didn't want to talk to anyone anymore. She was sick of their "I'm sorries" or their "What happened?" She was sick of everything. "H-hey there Rose, I couldn't help but notice you standing here alone... Uhm... Eheh... H-how ya doin'?" Rose shut her eyes tight to keep back the tears that threatened to flow, and she nodded slightly. She had never been friends with Max, or any of his crew. They had been the people she had laughed at. And now the people she had laughed with were laughing at her instead. If any of her old spark had still remained, she would have said, Karma's a bitch but now she just nodded and walked away, not caring if she didn't answer. She just didn't care anymore.

Quinn, a friend of Niko's who was as well on the football team strolled by yelling to some kid, Max who had just been released from jail. Niko told Quinn to let it go. The football team had a huge practice this evening and Quinn would obviously need to be there. But the jock was gone before more could be said and Niko turned back to Parker. "My will, wallet, and car are at your beck and call, m'lady." Niko was grinning to Parker. "Yay! It's a date!" Even though there was no set day or time Parker knew Niko would call her sometime this weekend and she would clear her schedule when he did.
The bell rang, a loud piercing noise, one of Parker's least favorite noises ever. "Look who's headed this way..." Parker smirked, she said it more to herself though, Niko probably didn't even hear. Rose, Parker's ex-bff was headed down the hall, passing the two. Parker saw Rose watching the two and just as a little reminder to Rose Niko was all Parkers, Parker held Niko's hand and kissed him. Well it must have slightly stunned the girl because Rose tripped right in front of them. Parker let out the slightness laugh watching her fall. Only a teeny tiny part of her actually missed the ex-popular. Rose had great nail polish colors... But the girl ran away embarrassed before Parker could say anything. Parker watched Niko making sure her kept his eyes to himself. She swung there hands back and forth. "So...anyways....I gotta go to detention, I'll text you once I get out, ugh she even took my phone." Parker gave one last mutter.

Emma found herself wondering the halls after the Michaline collapse episode. She would have followed everyone to the bathroom, but she really just couldn't deal with the drama she was sure would ensue shortly after. It wasn't that she didn't care, because she did, she absolutely did, she just thought certain things were better left alone. Part of her felt like a terrible friend for it, but she knew that Mickey had enough support in that bathroom. There was nothing Emma could say or do to make it better or worse, she would just be another body crowding the area.

It didn't help that she also had detention. It was unusual for Emma to be assigned to the scholastic version of prison. More often than not that's where she was. Teachers didn't like her because of her alternative appearance and the business she ran at school. Giving piercings to minors on a school campus wasn't exactly adhering to school code and Emma had been caught doing it way more than once, putting her in a position to have detention more often than she didn't. Nobody had the heart to expel or suspend her after everything she had been through. She was the girl with the crazy sister and dead family.

To get the the detention room, Emma always took the longest route possible. Being late to detention was better than never showing up. On her route she would pass the football field, usually right before they would begin practice, and she would avoid all the "jocks" that tended to give her and her friends a bunch of shit. Today, however, she ran face first with her tiny self into the massive Niko and nearly fell after losing balance in her sky high footwear. The boy was an entire foot taller than her and even in her heels she was still quite a bit shorter. "Shit. Sorry." She mumbled, not exactly pleased to be running into someone like him. Emma wasn't fond of people who put social status before being a good human being and Niko, it appeared, was one of those people. Dropping his girlfriend after she lost everything didn't exactly do him any favors, especially when he just snatched up Parker so shortly afterwards.

Speaking of Parker, she wondered where she was - seeing as she wasn't at Niko's side as per usual. Not that it mattered, it was just a curiosity. She considered the fact that maybe they had broken up, but knew that it was unlikely. Being at the top of the popular unpopular food chain was far too important to both of them.

Parker and Niko parted, on their ways to their own things, Niko going to football and Parker going to detention. Parker strut down the hallway towards the art room, that's where detention was being held.
On her way Miss Popular caught up with a few friends, explaining her tragedy. "But no one else you know has a detention?" Parker pouted. One of her friends, Madison walking by her side explained. "Mr. Nigel hasn't given any detentions in like, three months." Another girl cut in. "And Mrs. Bell didn't give any today, she was in a creepy good mood. It was creepy." The 3 girls had linked arms. One might think they where escorting Parker to the class room. As they reached the end of the hall Parker peered into the art room. "Park, you'd be lucky if even another person showed up..." Madison tossed her brown curls over her shoulder, they bobbed up and down as her hair settled. "Okay, we have got to go practice starts in 10." Madison pulled Parker's other friend with her down the hallway, leaving an upset popular alone outside the class room. With a tiny sniffle Parker entered the classroom.
"Parker! Welcome to detention! Today it is you me and...." Mr. Nigel shuffled around his papers, looking for the red detention slip. "Emma Laurence, yes." He left it at that. Parker dropped her pink back pack onto a desk in the front of the room. Then she sat down and with a sigh. "Ugh, bleh. What if she tries to pierce me, Mr. Nigel. She is a serious threat I don't feel comfortable being in the same room as her." She folded her arms and sat up in the chair. "Fine, Parker you can come sit up here, if it makes you feel better." Yes, Parker Fior had played the teacher's pet card. She wasn't normally a teacher's pet. Her grades where proof of that. But at least she got to sit in the office chair and she would most likely play with clay while the hour past. Parker could do what ever she wanted. That's what it's like to be popular.

Finally, Emma made her way to the detention room. There was one other student in there and it wasn't one that the misfit was particularly fond of. Parker was the everything that Emma hated in the human race. She came in just in time to hear her say "What if she pierces me?" She rolled her eyes and plopped down in one of the seats.

"Oh honey, you couldn't pay me enough. It's sweet that you think I'd waste a needle on you, though." She pushed a piece of her long lavender hair behind her ear before pulling out a magazine filled to the brim with tattoo'd people and their stories. "Besides, if I was going to do that I'd just get my gun and tattoo 'Bitch' right across that pretty forehead of yours. Forgive my language, Mr. Nigel." She would probably get another detention for that, but she was already here for the rest of the year so it didn't really concern her.

Emma was no ones favorite student, at least not to her knowledge. She wasn't exactly a cheerleader with excellent grades and dreams of being a sorority girl. Her life would stay the way it was forever. She'd tattoo people, collect tattoos, give people piercings, and maybe open a shop of her own one day. It was no different than what she was already doing and teachers didn't really admire that. They'd constantly tell her that she was 'so smart and could do whatever she wanted,' but none of them realized that she was already doing what she wanted. She didn't want to be a doctor or scientist. Those things had never appealed to her in the slightest. Not even when her family was alive. If that made people view her as a slacker or a loser, she was okay with that because she knew it wasn't true. Hell, she had a career before most of these people even knew for sure what they wanted to do in their lives.

She thumbed through the magazine, waiting for the hour to be up so she could go to work, then go home and sleep. All of her days were like this, unless she happened to hang out with one of the girls from school, but that was rare. Occasionally, she felt like a misfit among the other misfits, even though she knew she shouldn't. She had a hard time keeping people close and tended to push them away.

Emma Laurence had finally decided too make her appearance in detention. She muttered some bitter words to Parker and took her seat. "How rude" She snapped in Emma's direction then quickly added "At least I have a real future, all you've got is a stupid poking...gun...thing". Mr. Nigel was unimpressed with their behavior. But he was an art teacher and stereo typically he was creative and full of ideas. His face light up watching the girls exchange mean looks. "Both of you, that is enough! I've had it! Every other week I have you two in here and it is extremely unpleasant. You think I like sitting here listening to this?" typical teacher saying they have better things to do... "I'm assigning you both a project." He took out a slip of paper writing down the instructions. "After detention Parker will go with Emma to what ever after school thing she has. Then tomorrow after school Emma will go with Parker." He scribbled down words as Parker gaped at the project. "And every night you will write or draw something that happened that afternoon describing the other person..." He handed the paper to Parker. "Mr. Nigel No!!!! I have cheer after this, I have to go it is mandatory! Mr. Nigel what if she attacks me!" Parker whined and stomped her foot. Her face turned a cheery red.

The bell rung. "Go with Emma, Parker. Go. It's only a few hours."