CHAPTER ONE

"ISABELLE! RÉVEILLEZ-VOUS!" (trans: wake up!)

Belle groaned at the loud noise her brother was making. "Je suis reveille! Calmez-vous!" (trans: I'm up! Calm down!)

"You better be. Come on, school starts soon. If you don't get out of bed, maman will come and hit you." (trans: mum)

She lazily lifted her hand and flipped him off. He sighed and walked off. When he was gone, the French girl sat up, knowing that a threat from her mother was nothing to be taken lightly. She shut the door behind her brother and went to the bathroom.

After she almost fell asleep on the toilet, she brushed her teeth, washed her face and then got dressed. She opted for a pair of denim shorts, a white tank top tucked in, and then tied a red and black plaid shirt around her waist. Once she was done, she went to her dresser and ran a comb through her shoulder length hair, making sure to have a hair tie around her wrist in case a teacher asked her to tie it up.

She added some tinted moisturizer to her face, mascara to her eyes and grabbed a lip balm to place in her bag. After putting her white trainers on, she grabbed her bag and walked downstairs where her mother and father were sat in the kitchen.

"Bonjour." She greeted.

Silence.

She sighed internally. Of course. Her mother was scrolling through her phone, sipping from a teacup, while her father was flipping through the newspaper, a mug of coffee in his hand. Belle grabbed an apple from the table and poured some coffee in a thermos.

"Je te verrai après l'école, je suppose." (trans: I will see you after school, I suppose.)

She made her way out of the kitchen and took her keys from the hooks by the door, waved at Elias who was walking down the stairs, and then hopped over the door into her convertible, not even bothering to open the door. She placed her carry on in the passenger's seat and the coffee in the coffee holder, while the apple went in her mouth. She stuck her car keys and turned it on, backing out of the driveway.

On her way to school, she managed to finish the apple. As usual, during summer, Belle and her family would travel back to their home in France to spend the holidays with their family, and so she hasn't seen any of her friends since the day when they all said goodbye to her before they left for the airport. And just like every first day of school, she couldn't wait to see them.

They were a very close knit group, even though they were a lot of people. Elias sometimes hung out with them, but he mostly spent his time with his own friends. In her friend group there was Caspian Turner, who was her first and foremost friend. He was her oldest friend and she had known him almost her whole life. Her and Caspian were the biggest adrenaline junkies in their group, and that says a lot considering they were all crazy and reckless.

Then it was Josephine Decker. Her second closest friend. Jo was the person she went to for boy problems and girl stuff, even though the two were far from girly. Belle actually taught Jo how to throw a right hook.

Then there was Atticus Prescott. The 'bad boy' of their group and basically of the whole school. He had the whole look complete, leather jacket and motorcycle (Caspian had a motorcycle too).

Aurora Cyrus was the living embodiment of a Disney princess. Other than her name itself (which she and Belle bonded over in the first place), she loved everything pink, dresses and makeup. Anytime any of the girls wanted their makeup done, they went to her.

The smart guy of their group would be Duke Alexander. He basically was Hermione in male form. He made sure he had all his notes, and then he gave them out to everyone else. He made quite a business selling them to other kids in the school.

Luna Hester was quiet. Quiet, but she was wild when she wanted to be. Luna probably had the highest alcohol tolerance in their whole group, but in front of everyone else, she was the quiet and reserved girl who always listened to the teacher.

Finally, there was Wren Oakley. Their jock. Every group has one. Theirs was Wren. He played basketball for the school team and he was essentially Troy Bolton to them. Belle liked to stand up at his games and sing like Gabriella did, it was their 'thing'.

When Belle parked her car outside the school, she downed the rest of her coffee and placed the thermos in the glove compartment, before jumping out of her car and locking it. She stuffed her keys in her bag and slung it over her shoulder.

As she walked across the parking lot she was waved at by several people, and she smiled back, nodding her head as a greeting. She saw Josephine talking with Atticus and was about to make her way over towards them when she noticed a boy looking quite lost. She hadn't seen him before and assumed he was a new student.

So, she approached him. "You alright?"

He looked up, startled. But that melted into an easy-going smile. "Hi, just a bit lost. I'm new."

"Maybe I can help?"

"I'm Nicholas. And I would be so grateful if you could."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Isabelle." She replied. "Where do you want to go?"

"I was looking for the reception."

"It's right over there." She pointed behind him at the main building. Suddenly two hands dropped on her shoulders from behind her and she cried out in shock. "WHAT THE FUCK!"

But when she turned around, the frightened look on her face disappeared and was replaced by a delighted grin. "CAS!" She squealed and jumped into his open arms. He laughed and spun her around before dropping her back down. Then, she remembered and smacked his arm. "You scared me asshole."

"Sorry, but you were distracted and I had to take the opportunity." He grinned. "I missed you, Belle."

"I missed you too, Cas." Then she remembered that they weren't the only ones there and turned around, an apologetic look on her face. "Sorry. This is my best friend, Caspian. Cas, this is the new kid, Nicholas."

"Nice to meet you." Caspian grinned.

"Nice to meet you too. I thought you said your name was Isabelle?" Nicholas asked Belle.

"It is. But no one calls me Belle. Your name sounded fancy so I wanted to be fancy too." She shrugged, causing both boys to laugh. "Have you seen the others?"

"Not yet. You?"

"I saw Jo and Atticus, but I don't know where they are. Wait, there's Jo!" She ran in that direction, calling her friends name. "JO!"

Jo turned around. "BELLE!" They met in a dramatic hug, one Oscar-worthy, complete with tears and music and rain.

No, I'm joking.

There were smiles and laughter. "Oh, I missed you my little wild child!"

"I missed you too!" Belle squeezed her friend tightly.

"I've just turned invisible then?" She heard a deep, amused voice say from behind Jo. Letting go of the brunette, she looked behind her and smiled when she saw Atticus.

"Never." She hugged the taller boy. "I missed you as well, Atticus."

"I know you did." Then he whispered. "I missed you too."

Caspian had made his way over, with Nicholas trailing behind him. He hugged Jo, then did a handshake and bro-hug with Atticus. "Who's this?" The 'bad boy' asked, nodding his head at Nicholas, arms crossed over his chest, looking intimidating.

"That's Nicholas. I just met him. He was lost so I helped him." Belle explained.

"Hey, Nicholas. I'm Jo, that's Atticus. Welcome to our school? Should I say welcome? I mean, do you say welcome to people when they enter hell?" Jo introduced herself and Atticus, before trailing off.

"I don't think you do." Atticus responded.

"Yeah, you would know."

"Because I'm the devil's reincarnation?"

"Exactly."

"Sweet of you to say."

"I know right."

"Belle." Caspian suddenly shook her.

"What?"

"It's Wren."

Everyone grinned and Nicholas was left looking confused and slightly lost. "What's happening? Who's Wren?"

"Wren is our personal Troy Bolton. We only say that because he plays basketball. But, Belle likes to sing High School Musical with him, so that works as well." Jo explained. "Which one is it today, Belle?"

"I was thinking Breaking Free. Has that element of drama." Belle replied. She looked in the direction Caspian pointed and smiled when she saw the familiar boy walking. He hadn't seen the rest of the group yet, so she cleared her throat. "Don't be too in awe of my voice." She teasingly said to Nicholas.

"I'm so ready for this." Jo bounced up and down excitedly.

"WE'RE SOARING!" She sung out, her voice sounding beautiful as it rang across the courtyard. Most people smiled and laughed when they saw who was singing, but the freshman and some new students look confused. Wren immediately looked up when he saw who was singing and grinned.

"FLYING!"

"THERE'S NOT A STAR IN HEAVEN THAT WE CAN'T REACH!" His voice was just as good as hers. Belle and Wren often volunteered for school musicals or anything related to singing when they could. They were the only two in their friend group that could sing well.

"IF WE'RE TRYING!"

"OH WE'RE BREAKING FREE!"

"YEAH WE'RE BREAKING FREE!" Wren finally made his way over to the group and Belle hugged him tightly. "I missed you, Gabriella."

She laughed. "I missed you too, Troy." As they let go, he greeted the rest of their friends. "Seen anyone else?"

"I just got here, so no. Oh, hello person I've never met in my life." Wren frowned in confusion when he saw Nicholas.

"I'm Nicholas. Just moved here."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Wren."

"Is that Rory?" Belle gasped. "Cas, is it? I can't see!"

The taller boy looked up. "I think so. Who else would be dressed like that?"

"RORY!"

The blonde girl across the courtyard looked up, a beautiful smile appearing on her face. "BELLE!" She came over as fast as she could considering she was wearing heels. But she matched her namesake perfectly, dressed in a figure hugging pink top, with a plaid pink and black skirt and some black and pink heels. Her blonde hair was pulled into a half up half down, and her makeup done perfectly.

Once she was close enough, Belle hugged her friend. "Hi, sleeping beauty. Have a good summer?"

"Brilliant one, thanks Belle." She smiled. The next person to greet her was Atticus, who hugged her tightly, and once he let go, she kissed his cheek gently. "Hey, babe."

"Morning." He replied, a smile spread across his face. Atticus and Aurora were dating. Complete opposites, but it is true what they say, that opposites attract. Aurora was the newest member of their little group, having joined freshman year. The year she joined, she was fast friends with Belle, who then introduced her to everyone, and she caught the eye of their resident bad boy. It didn't take long for him to ask her out, and soon, fireworks were exploding.

"Jo!" Aurora beamed as she hugged the brunette girl, before hugging Caspian and Wren. She turned to face Nicholas. "New kid. Nice to meet you, I'm Aurora."

"I'm Nicholas. Nice to meet you too."

The last two members of their group walked in together, considering they were neighbours. "LU! DUKE!" Jo called out to them, causing them to look over and head over when they saw everyone.

Belle bounced over and wrapped them both in a hug. They laughed and hugged her back. "Are we the last two?" Luna asked as she went to hug Jo.

"Yeah. By the way, this is Nicholas. He's new, and he was lost. So me being the generous person I am, helped him." Belle explained.

Duke snorted. "Funny, Belle. Sure you didn't accidentally make him an accomplice to stuff?"

"Duke! I would never!" She placed a hand over her chest, widening her eyes in shock. "Not till tonight." She winked.

"Tonight? Are you going to murder someone? Am I already an accomplice because I know?" Nicholas asked, his head swinging back and forth between Duke and Belle.

"Don't worry your head over it." Jo patted his shoulder. "Belle's talking about the party. Same one every year on the night of the first day back. Joshua hosts it every year. He always has the best parties."

"I cannot wait! I've been drinking champagne most summer, and I need the real stuff." Belle laughed.

"We can pre-drink like usual, yeah?" Caspian nudged her.

"Of course." She replied, a smirk on her face.

"Let's go get our schedules and see when we have free, because I'm not staying here." Aurora brushed her hair over her shoulder.

"Let's go." Luna nodded.

"Well, I have to go to the reception. So I guess I'll just see you in class?" Nicholas pointed at the reception.

"Of course. Don't forget the party." Belle waved. Caspian beside her turned around and gave her his back. She smiled and jumped on, letting him give her a piggy-back ride. Caspian ran ahead of their other friends, Belle laughing on his back.

They got to their normal form class and the mischievous pair sat down in the back seats, with Caspian beside the window, and Belle on the aisle seat. Jo sat down on the table beside Belle, and Duke was beside her. Luna and Wren in front of them, and Atticus and Aurora in front of Belle and Caspian.

Their schedules got handed out by the teacher and Belle immediately scanned it for her free lessons, grinning when she saw that she had study period after lunch, and last lesson. "Guess who's leaving for lunch, and going home early." She waved her timetable.

"Let me see." Caspian grabbed her timetable and looked it over before lifting his eyes to meet her. "Let's ditch." He held his fist out and she happily bumped her own against it.

"After lunch and last?" Atticus asked. "Both of you?"

"Hell yeah." Belle nodded. "You?"

"Same thing, princess." Aurora smiled, reaching out to high-five Belle.

"Magnifique!" Belle high-fived her back. "Jo? Duke? Wren? Lu?"

"I got lunch free, not last." Jo groaned in exasperation.

"Yeah, same." Wren frowned at his timetable.

"I've got no frees today." Luna looked at her own timetable in disbelief. "None."

"Mine are after first, and second last." Duke replied.

"Brilliant. Just great. At least we'll be at the party together, yeah?" Caspian asked. They all nodded their heads in agreement.

The bell outside the classes rang loudly, signaling the end of form class and the start of their first lesson of the day. Belle headed off to her class accompanied by Duke, and it dragged on for so long. The only thing that kept her sane was Duke making jokes beside her.

The same could be said for the rest of the lessons until they got to lunch. Caspian and Belle both came from the same class and so they waited in the reception for everyone else. They were allowed to leave school if they had lunch or frees, just as long as they made it back in time, if not, then they would lose marks.

Jo and Atticus made their way over and were followed by Aurora and Wren. Belle was surprised to see Nicholas walking beside Aurora. "Nicholas. Pleasant surprise seeing you here." Caspian said.

"I saw him looking lonely, so I took pity on him and asked him to come with us." Aurora explained as she left his side and walked to stand beside Atticus, who immediately wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Cool. Well then, shall we? Pizza sound alright with everyone?" Belle asked. When she got nods back she smiled. "Race you there." She smirked as she grabbed Caspian's arm and dashed to the parking lot, dragging him with her.

Nicholas looked over at Aurora and Atticus in confusion as Jo and Wren both raced after the others. "We like to race to places. But not today, because I'm not trying to break my ankles. You can ride with us, considering none of them will wait for you."

As Belle and Caspian ran between the cars to Belle's convertible she asked him "Where's your bike?"

"Service. But it should be done by tomorrow. I'll come pick you up?"

"Yes, please." She grinned as they finally got to her car and she quickly unlocked it, watching as Wren got in his pickup and Jo got in her Jeep. She stuck the keys in as both her and Caspian clicked their seat belts into place.

Once her car started, she quickly backed out of the parking and turned out of the school, followed closely by Jo and Wren on her left and right. She managed to speed up a little until she could barely see the shadows of their cars.

The pair whooped as they raced through the streets. Caspian reached for the radio and it just so happened to have Queen on, so they both belted out the lyrics as they drove to the best pizza place they knew.

Belle was the first to pull her car into a parking spot, sticking her tongue out at Wren and Jo when they pulled in, as Caspian laughed beside her. She got out of the car and danced around, singing 'We Are the Champions'.

Soon enough, Atticus' car pulled in with Aurora in the passenger's seat and Nicholas sat in the back. One look was all they needed to know that Belle had yet again won. "How many laws did you break today, Belle?" Atticus asked the French girl.

"Too many to count, mon ami." She winked, a huge grin on her face. "Now, let's go get some pizza!"

Cassius got out of the car, shaking his head with an amused look on his face. He walked over to the rest of them just as both Jo and Wren got out of their own cars. "How many times have you won now?" The dark skinned boy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Too many to be counted." Belle winked. Then, she turned to Jo and linked their arms before dragging her inside the restaurant. "I'm back, Luke!"

A blonde boy poked his head out from inside the kitchen. "My favourite customer! Hey!" He walked over and hugged her before greeting the others and simply giving Nicholas a smile. Luke was the son of the owner of this restaurant. "Your usual table is free."

She grinned and dragged Jo over there. The rest followed behind her and once they were all sat in the booth, with Caspian on her other side, Luke walked over with his notepad. "The usual? Or you want to add something else for the new kiddo?" He nodded at Nicholas.

"Nicholas, what do you want?" Aurora asked. When he didn't appear to have an answer, she just turned to Luke. "Just the usual. He'll love it."

"Of course he will. Who doesn't?" Luke grinned before heading back to the kitchen.

"I can't wait for the party tonight!" Belle clapped her hands excitedly.

"Is Elias coming?" Atticus asked.

"Probably. Let's try and sort out rides. Of course, Lu and Duke are coming together, considering they are neighbours. We can't drive back, considering we're probably going to be shit faced." Belle rested her chin in the palm of her hand.

"You can stay at mine. It's close to Joshua's house. You can park there and we can walk." Caspian offered. His parents were never home, so it was good. "Willow's staying over at a friend's house tonight anyways."

"Brilliant." Belle patted his shoulder. "So, Rory, Atticus, you guys coming together I assume?"

"Yep." Aurora replied.

"Jo? Wren? Nicholas?"

"I'll probably catch a ride with Lu and Duke." Jo shrugged.

"I'll drive myself. Nicholas, I can drop by if you don't have a ride?" Wren asked.

"That would be greatly appreciated. Thanks." The boy replied thankfully.

"Ok, so we meet at Cas'. Pre-drink and then head to the party. Sound good?"

"Sounds great." Wren nodded. And just then, Luke walked over with a few pizzas and some drinks. He placed them all down and the teens dug in. When they finished, Aurora paid. They all usually took turns to pay when they went out as a group, and it was Aurora's turn this time.

After that, they all headed to their cars to drive back to school for the last few lessons before they could head home. Belle got in the driver's seat and started driving. "Belle, want to head over to mine's after school's done?"

"Sure. But I've got to drop by home and grab my stuff for tonight. Sound alright?"

"Yep. I'll come, considering I haven't got a ride."

"How'd you get to school this morning?"

"The bus." Caspian pulled a face. "But you're back now, so I have you." He grinned before turning the radio on. They all drove back to school and went back into class, holding on to the thought of a party later to get them through the day.

When it was last lesson, Belle left her class and made her way to the front of the school where Caspian was stood waiting with Atticus. She smiled when she saw them and sat down on the stairs to wait for Aurora, considering she didn't want to leave Atticus waiting alone.

When she saw the blonde girl approaching, she stood, waving to Atticus and dragged Caspian away, their arms linked. They got in her car, turned the music up high and drove to her house. Once there, Belle got out of the car, followed by Caspian.

"Try not to miss my mother off." She commented as they made their way to the front door. Belle pulled her keys out and unlocked door, letting them in before shutting the door and locking it behind her.

"I missed her too." Caspian grinned. "Is she in a bad mood?"

"No. She doesn't like my friends."

"ISABELLE!" Came a yell from the kitchen, and Belle gestured for Caspian to start walking up the stairs.

"Oui maman?"

"Sortir les poubelles!" How typical of her mother. No greeting. No asking how her day was. Just demands with no please. (trans: take the trash out!).

Belle cursed silently and turned to Caspian with an apologetic look. She held a finger up, telling him to wait. Then, she clenched her jaw and walked into the kitchen, coming out seconds later with a black rubbish bag in her hand.

She opened the front door and left it open as she walked to the massive bin outside and dumped the bag in it, before walking back inside and closing the door. She walked up the stairs and threw up the middle finger towards the kitchen.

"Go, go!" She whisper-yelled at Caspian. He rushed up the stairs with her on his heels. When he reached her room, he went inside and Belle closed the door behind her, leaning her back against it.

The walls were all white, and the roof slanted slightly over her bed, which was simple and had an iron bar headboard. It was in the middle under the slant with a little wood nightstand to the side against the wall, which had a white lamp, a few candles and a book sometimes.

Then she had a window on the same wall as the nightstand, which was usually open, considering one of her friends would climb through it, usually Caspian. There was a wooden beam over her bed with curtains on either side, so she could close them and block out the rest of her room if she wanted.

Opposite her bed was a closet and a vanity. She didn't ask for a desk considering she usually did her work either in the kitchen, on her bed or on her bedroom floor. Then, her bathroom was to the right of her bed.

Belle dropped her school bag on her bed before dropping to the floor and pulling a duffel bag from under her bed. She dusted it off, seeing it was dirty from not being used in almost three months. "You can lay down if you want to." She told him, and he happily threw himself onto her bed, then, she dropped it on the floor beside her closet and then turned her attention to the clothes hung in there.

She rifled through her clothes and pulled out a tight black top with a deep neckline. Then, she paired it with some white pants with black stripes and tossed them both on the bed. Just as she was about to go looking for shoes.

"Help me with this." She held out a pair of black sneakers and some white ones. "Which one?"

"White ones." She nodded and put them in the bag along with the clothes. "I missed your room. And your bed."

"I missed yours, rich boy." She replied, before going to her vanity to grab some makeup. Belle pulled her makeup bag out and put her makeup in, before double checking to make sure she had all the makeup she needed, then, she put it in the bag and held a hand out for Caspian to take. "Let's go."

"I want to sleep." The boy whined.

Belle unlocked her car and tossing her back into the small backseats that she had. Both of them got in the car, turned the radio on and drove all the way to Caspian's house. When they got there, she saw the driveway was empty. Nothing new.

His motorcycle would usually be there, but it was being serviced. His parents both were on a work trip, so their cars were kept safely in the locked garage, away from prying eyes and trouble-seeking teenagers. Willow's bike was also gone, not a surprise either, considering Caspian had said she was staying at a friend's house.

Belle parked her car in front of the garage and turned it off, getting out and grabbing her bag, following her curly haired best friend to the front door. He pulled his keys from his bag and unlocked the door, letting them both in, before closing the door and tossing the keys onto the table beside the door, making a loud clink as the metal collided with the glass.

"Oh, yeah. Go ahead, scratch the table." Belle commented sarcastically, heading right for the kitchen.

"This is my fuck you to them." Caspian defended.

"Can't say they don't deserve it." She opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. She turned to him. "Because they 100% do." Belle dropped her bag on the kitchen table and walked closer to Caspian. "They suck and you know it."

"Can I sleep now?"

"Yeah. Come on." She nodded, letting him lead her up to his room. He opened the door and the first thing he did was head to the curtains and close them, shrouding the room in complete darkness, except for the tiny sliver of sunlight that streamed in between the gap between the curtains.

Then, he threw himself onto the bed. Belle dropped down beside him and placed her water on the bedside table, along with her phone. She sat, leaning her back against the headboard, and let him place his head on her lap.

Her hands unconsciously went to his hair. It felt almost like second nature, considering how many times she had to do this before. Caspian had trouble sleeping. It was no secret; the whole group knew it. His parents didn't, but that's because they were never around much for him to even tell them. Belle's parents didn't know either, but Caspian still came over whenever he wanted. Her window was used often.

There was one thing that really helped Caspian sleep, and that was the sound of Belle's voice. It was so calming and soothing to him. And it really helped that she sang. She sang to him, and it put him to sleep as though he had been shot with a tranquilizer dart.

"Got a special request today?"

"Can you do Before You Go by Lewis Capaldi?" Caspian muttered, eyes closed, enjoying the feeling of her playing with his curls.

"Yeah. Of course." She fell quiet for a second.

"I feel by the wayside like everyone else

I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, but I was just kidding myself

Our every moment, I start to replace

'Cause now that they're gone, all I hear are the words that I needed to say

"When you hurt under the surface

Like troubled water running cold

Well time can heal, but this won't

"So, before you go

Was there something I could've said to make you heart beat better

If only id have known you had a storm to weather

So, before you go

Was there something I could've said to make it all stop hurting

It kills me how your mind can make you feel so worthless

So, before you go."

Belle's didn't get the chance to finish the rest of the song before she heard light snores. Looking down, she saw Caspian's features relaxed. He had fallen asleep to the sound of her sweet, sweet melodies. It always did the trick. Always.