HG AU Normal

Drake raked a hand through his hair; he was attempting not to panic, but it was only getting worse. "I...I don't know, Angel! We don't have any proof that Derek did it," he muttered, closing his eyes. There was literally nothing that they could do. He paced back and forth, which was a common habit for him when he was stressed. Normally he would have a solution to a problem; it would be as simple as solving a common math equation. But this time it was different. The principal gave Brandon a hard look. "Mr. Crawford, you have had plenty...disagreements with your teachers. However, expelling you would be giving you the easy way out. I believe putting you to work will teach you a more valuable lesson. So you will help with the float like I had told Mr. Sherwood and Mrs. Blakely, as well as school cleanup for the school - including repainting the lockers. In addition, however, you are benched from football."

Angel bit her lip, and she hugged him tightly. "We will find a way to fix everything," she said, and she kissed him lightly. "Let's get to class. We'll figure something out," she said, and she went to her locker. "I'll sneak in and help Brandon with his work anyway," she said. Brandon nodded as he listened to his idea. "Yeah, that sounds okay. Can I go now?" he asked, and he bit his lip. Drake better like him. He was sacrificing more than he could imagine. Livia would probably hate him after she heard the news. At least Drake wouldn't have to deal with Victor, and Drake could be with Angel without her dad trying to kill him.

Drake couldn't help but steal a glance at Derek's locker before he shook his head and opened his own. He fished out everything that he would need before he shut his locker once more. "Yeah," he agreed finally, sighing. Stress never worked well for him. He managed to at least send a fake smile Angel's way before he lead the way towards class. As expected, everyone was staring at him the moment he walked in. He quickly hurried to his seat. The principal gave Brandon a hard look before he nodded towards the go. "Go, and get back to class."

Angel gave him a small smile before she took her book and followed Drake into the class. Of course everyone was looking at them. She tried not to think too much of it. She sat down in her seat, and she tried to ignore everyone. The teacher look at them before she started to write the notes. Brandon sighed, and he stood. He got his things from his locker before he walked into class. He took his normal seat and looked down at his notes, not looking at anyone at all. Especially Livia. He couldn't look at her at all. She probably hated him.

Drake didn't pay much attention in class. Actually, most of his time was spent scowling back at Derek. The nerve of the guy! He clenched his pencil and forced himself to calm down but a little bit. This wasn't going to work out if he just had a temper tantrum in the middle of class. He peered over at Livia, who looked to be avoiding all of them. Go figure. Soon, the bell rang, and he bolted for the door. He needed to get out.

Angel spent most of her class time terrified of what her father would think and what everyone else would think. The little reputation that she did have was ruined by Derek. When class ended, she was going to go to Drake, but he was out the door before she even had her things. She sighed and looked over at Livia. She walked over to her and bit her lip. "Can we talk?" she asked her.

Livia was grabbing her things when Angel came over. A frown immediately slipped onto her face. "Look, I don't know what game all of you are playing," she muttered, gripping her backpack strap a little tighter. "Even if you and Drake didn't do it, Derek told me that you confronted him. Why would you do that? After I tried so hard to get you and Drake together? You want to break up my relationship?"

Angel looked over at Livia, and she sighed. This was going to be hard. Sometimes she wished that she wasn't so hard headed. "I did it because Derek is manipulative. If you keep this up, you are going to end up more sad than you are right now," she said, and she looked around for Drake. "Don't take this out on him, okay. This was all my idea," she said, and she looked at the ground. She wanted to help Drake be happy again, and he clearly wasn't.

"Funny, because I am not sad. I am angry," Livia muttered, attempting to calm down unsuccessfully. "I have to go," she continued turning and quickly heading out the door. She couldn't be there another minute. Drake had just finished getting his stuff out of his locker when he saw Livia storm out. He sighed and shook his head. This was not a good day.

Angel sighed, and she reached out to stop Livia, but she was gone before she could do anything. She quietly went back to her locker and got her things out for her next class quietly. She looked up at Drake after a moment. "I'm sorry," she said, and she took his hand. She needed him right then more than she could fathom. He really did keep her anchored. What would she do without him?

Drake pulled Angel into a quick hug and sighed softly, kissing the top of her head. "Don't say sorry. It's not your fault. None of it is," he whispered as he took her hand and gave it a small squeeze. He would make sure that Derek paid for what he did. He was ruining everyone's friendship, and it just wasn't worth it. One guy was not worth breaking up an entire friend group.

Angel looked up at him, and she hugged him tightly. "I honestly have no idea what I would do without you," she said, and she kissed him lightly before she looked up at him. "We should get to class," she said, and she looked into his eyes. She wanted to spend more time with him, but it was limited. "Maybe everything will end up okay," she said. She hoped that it would. If it didn't, their little group would be gone.

Drake could say the same thing about Angel. He needed her now more than ever. It just felt everyone was against him. He lightly reached out to caress Angel's cheek. He kissed her quickly before he nodded. "Yeah. I will see you at lunch, I guess," he whispered as he pulled her into a quick hug. He then headed off to class.

Angel sighed, and she hugged him tightly. "I'll see you at lunch," she repeated, and she went to her next class. Luckily, only Brandon was in it with her. The whole class went by slowly and uneventfully. It seemed like forever when the bell finally rang. She quickly got up and went to her locker as fast as she possibly could. She really did wish that lunch wouldn't happen. Maybe someone would pull the fire alarm.

Drake went to class, but he was almost like a zombie. He didn't pay attention, nor did he try to act interested. He hopped up when the bell rang and was going to head right out the door when the teacher stopped him. "Drake, your grades have been slipping...I know you are going through a rough time, but you may need to pick up everything a bit," the teacher suggested. Drake only sighed and headed off to his locker. "Hey, Angel," he whispered as he grabbed his books for his next class. He was considering skipping the rest of the day.

Angel looked over when she heard Drake, and she offered him a smile. "Hey, it's good to finally see you again," she said before pulling him int a tight hug. "Let's just get though the rest of the day. Maybe tonight I can sneak out and go over to your place," she said as she ran her finger up and down his chest, making small patterns. She gave him a soft kiss before speaking. "I just want to be alone with you."

Drake hugged her back and send her a half smile. "I don't know...maybe," he said uncertainly. He knew his father, and he knew things wouldn't end well the moment he found out about Angel. If it hadn't been for his mom, his father would have hurt his last girlfriend. He closed his locker and took her hand. "We wouldn't be alone. My sister would be there," he pointed out before he lead the way towards the cafeteria. Although he hadn't expected her to be there, it still hurt a bit when he found that Livia wasn't at the table like she usually was.

Angel sighed to herself, but she knew that he was right. They wouldn't be alone at his house, and they sure wouldn't be alone at hers. "Is there any place that we can go?" she asked with a small sigh. She followed him to the cafeteria, and she took his hand. It pained her not to see Livia at the table like she normally would be. Maddox was there though, and so was Brandon. Maddox looked over at Drake, and he got up, walking over to him. "I think I can help you with Derek."

Drake hesitated before he said, "I have no clue. We can think of something, maybe." He tried to smile, but at the moment he just wasn't up for it. He was already losing his friends faster than he could have ever imagined. He took his seat was thinking about just excusing himself when Maddox came up. He frowned slightly and crossed his arms over his chest. "How do you expect to help?"

Angel looked over at Maddox as he came over to Drake. She was hoping that he wouldn't make Drake go nuts. Maddox looked over at Drake. "I overheard Derek. I think he is going to talk to coach and join the team. You know he is going to get in because his dad is the principal. Who says I can ram into him, maybe break a few bones. Mess him up for a little bit so you can think of something," he said. Maybe if he got on Drake's good side, he wouldn't have to deal with him of he dated Annalise. At least publicly.

Drake furrowed his brows at his offer and pressed his lips into a thin line. "Okay, and what's the catch?" he muttered. There was no way Maddox was doing this out of the generosity of his heart. He wasn't going to just buy into it. He just didn't know who to trust and who not to trust at this point. Maybe that was his whole problem. He didn't trust Derek, and Livia is now avoiding him. He didn't trust his intuition, and Angel was hit on by Derek.

Maddox couldn't help but smirk when he heard Drake ask the question. "I was going to just do it because I hate Derek as well, but now that you say it," he said with a small smirk, and he paced. "Let me date Ann. If I do it, then I can go out with Ann without you going off on me and punching me in the face," he said, and he looked down at Angel who looked at him skeptically.

Drake doubted he would have really done it because they had a mutual enemy. If that were the case, he may as well ram into him himself. His frown deepened as he tried to negotiate his way through it. The guy was putting up a hard bargain. He clenched and un-clenched his fists. "If you so much as make her shed one tear, you will have more to worry about than just that pretty face of yours," he muttered.

Maddox smirked when he agreed, and he nodded. "You have yourself a deal, Drake Sherwood," he said, and he smiled before going back to the table and waiting for Annalise to come. Angel looked up at Drake, and she closed her eyes. "Are you sure that it's a good idea to let him date her?" she asked him. She remembered her first day when she was at lunch and he tried to ask her out. She couldn't see why Ann liked him.

Drake threw a glance at Maddox before he turned to Angel. He whispered in her ear, "I doubt he will keep his word. I distrust Kenway with every fiber of my being." He was going to be one hundred percent sure that Maddox didn't hurt his sister. Annalise came running up with her tray in hand. "Hey g-" she began, then cut herself off as she noticed the tension. "Uh, what's up?"