Chapter 4: As Time Goes On

"This is stupid," Nicole sighed as she sat down on the couch in the Earp's living room. "How am I supposed to remember all of these lines?"

"If you would just to learn them, it wouldn't be so hard," Waverly looked at the other girl. "But you have such a hard head that I think that might actually be impossible."

Nicole scoffed and rolled her eyes. " the one with a hard head? You're the one who keeps making me repeat the same line over and over again because I'm not saying it the way you want me to."

"Well I'm sorry for trying to help you learn how to deliver your lines properly!"

"This wasn't about the 'delivery' of my lines," Nicole stood up. "You told me to come here so you could help me my lines."

"You haven't even been able to do that, Nicole. It's not that hard. Really. Just look at the words and convert them to memory."

Nicole laughed and shook her head. "I'm sorry that this whole acting thing isn't as easy for me as it is for you. I'm an athlete. Shit like this isn't what I'm used to!"

Waverly refrained from saying anything, sensing the panic lacing Nicole's voice. She took a deep breath and stood in front of the taller girl. She stared at her lines and then up at Nicole, thinking. Suddenly, Waverly's face lit up and she smiled slightly.

"Okay," Waverly began, "think of it like this: your lines are just another play for you to memorize. For your games, how many plays do you plan out ahead of time?"

"Too many to count," Nicole replied shaking her head.

"So imagine these lines," Waverly motioned to the highlighted areas on the script in Nicole's hands, "as new plays for your next basketball game. Stare at them, memorize them, then execute them. Take what you know and use it to help you with this," she placed her hand on Nicole's arm and motioned to her script with her other hand, their hands brushing against each other briefly.

"That's actually a really good idea," Nicole looked down at her script and then at Waverly's hand on her arm.

"Are you two finished arguing yet? Or do I need to go back upstairs," Wynonna stomped down the stairs and into the living room.

"We were just finishing up," Waverly rolled her eyes at her sister.

"Great! Just in time for Haught-shit and I to start making our way over to Doc's place for dinner."

"You're going out for dinner?" Waverly looked at Wynonna. "And you're just going to leave me here alone."

"We'd ask you to come," Nicole chimed in, "but it's seniors only."

Waverly rolled her eyes and sat her script down on the table. "Right, whatever. Does Aunt Gus at least know you're leaving?"

"What do you think?" Wynonna scoffed. "I'm Wynonna Earp. Of course she doesn't. That's your job. To inform her."

"Of course it is," Waverly sat down on the couch.

"So you'll cover for me?" Wynonna threw her arm around Nicole's shoulders and pulled them both towards the door.

"Yeah I guess so," Waverly sighed.

"Kiss ass," Nicole laughed and muttered under her breath.

Wynonna smiled at her sister. "Great! Thanks, baby girl. I owe you one!" And with that, they were both gone.

"Yeah," Waverly rolled her eyes. "You really do."

- - - - -

"Wynonna, are you ready yet?" Waverly called up the stairs to her sister. "We're going to be late for school!"

"We will if Haught-Pants doesn't get here soon," Wynonna said as she came downstairs, throwing her backpack over her shoulder.

"Nicole is driving us to school?" Waverly furrowed her brow.

"Gus still has me grounded for decking Hardy in the face the other day. No driving unless she's with me. So our only other option is Haught. Unless you'd rather walk to school."

Waverly rolled her eyes and shook her head. "No. Nicole is fine."

The sisters walked out of the house at the sound of a car horn honking and Waverly locked the door behind them. Turning around and seeing Nicole's car, Waverly couldn't help but laugh. She had never seen Nicole's car before, but she had always imagined her to be a Jeep kind of girl. Not a Chevy Malibu kind of girl. The black car seemed almost too small for someone of Nicole's stature, but Waverly knew that the Haught's already had three other cars to pay off, so Nicole's was probably the cheapest option. Waverly watched as Wynona climbed into the passenger seat and sighed.

"You coming or what?" Wynonna stuck her head out the window.

Waverly rolled her eyes and got into the back seat, sliding to the middle so she could stick her head between her sister and the redhead. Nicole glanced in the rearview mirror and caught Waverly's eye. The smaller girl bit her lip and looked down at her hands.

"Can we listen to some music?" Waverly asked as she lifted her head.

"Sure but I choose the station," Nicole said, turning the radio on. "We all know that my taste in music is superior to either of yours," she switched to a station playing 80s rock and bit back a smile when Waverly groaned.

"Your music taste isn't as great as you think it is," Waverly huffed and sat back in the seat, crossing her arms.

The ride to school was quiet, the only sounds coming from the radio. Waverly stared out the window and tried to block the music from her mind. Nicole really knew how to piss her off, and she liked to use it to her advantage. When they were parked, the three girls got out of the car and grabbed their things. Wynonna saw Doc and immediately took off in his direction, leaving Nicole and Waverly alone with an uncomfortable silence hanging over them. The two stared at each other, trying to think of what to do or say.

"Nice outfit," Nicole said after noticing that Waverly was in her cheer uniform. Her words were dripping with sarcasm, yet the snarky remark didn't reach her eyes, taking the sting out of her words.

"Nice car," Waverly fired back just as sarcastically. The 2013 Malibu really wasn't Nicole's kind of car, which made making fun of her for it even easier.

- - - - -

"This is pointless," Nicole grumbled and covered her face. "Why am I being forced to remember what happened during the Hundred Years' War over four different Crusades?"

"Because it's a part of history," Waverly stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "And this is a history class."

"No shit, Waverly," Nicole snapped. "This is stupid. I'm done here. I can't do this anymore," she began to shove her books into her backpack.

Waverly placed a hand on Nicole's arm to still her movements. "Hey, I'm sorry. That was a stupid answer. I just...I really want you to do well."

"I want to do well too," Nicole stated flatly. "But I can't do that with basketball practice and games going on along with this stupid play. Mr. Del Rey told me he'd pass me if I took the role. I took the role. I don't need to stress myself out over studying."

"Nicole Rayleigh Haught," Waverly spoke sternly looking into the redhead's eyes, "you are many things. You are cocky, stubborn, and bossy – "

"Gee thanks, Waverly," Nicole rolled her eyes and stood up.