Piper's leg bounced under the desk as she watched the clock, counting the seconds until class was over. It was Friday afternoon and as usual, she had a party to go to that evening. Her phone was already blowing up and she could feel it vibrating against her leg in her pocket. She was itching to leave and meet Polly where they always met - next to the steps down to the parking lot. When the bell rang signalling the end of class, Piper was the first one up, sliding her already stacked books into her backpack.

"Miss Chapman," the teacher called as the class filed out, "I need a word. Stay behind, please." Piper suppressed a groan and stole another glance to the clock as the last few people finally left, leaving her and Mrs Figueroa alone in the class. "It won't take long," she promised curtly. Piper pressed her lips together and tried not to show her irritation on her face.

"Okay," Piper said. She took a seat in front of the desk at the front of the class, and waited patiently for Mrs Figueroa to stop painstakingly stacking her papers.

"I'm not going to sugarcoat it," Mrs Figueroa said bluntly, sitting on the edge of her desk. Piper eyed the pencil skirt that strained over her legs. "You're flunking this class."

Piper's brow furrowed. "This one too?"

Her report card had not been one for the Christmas cards this year, to say the least. In previous years she'd been an overachiever. Getting an A had come easy to her, and she passed every class with flying colors. What had changed? Well…

"Yes, this one too," Mrs Figueroa sighed.

Piper had discovered the joys of partying, had gained a boyfriend, and had also started selling artisanal soaps with her best friend, Polly. They lost more money than they made, but spent more time making soap and discussing how great Larry was than she ever thought about school. As a result, her grades were slipping - and her parents were furious.

"Listen, Mrs Figueroa," Piper said, flashing a smile. "You think you can help me raise my grade? Any extra credit? You know, my dad helps funds the annual French trip."

"I know," Mrs Figueroa said, raising an eyebrow. "He mentioned it when he called to ask how you were doing in my class."

Piper's smile fell. "Oh."

"Oh is right," she said, passing Piper her latest paper. She tapped the grade on the left hand corner, a bright red beacon of disappointment. "Redo this for Monday. You got a D."

"I can't," Piper said instantly. Her eyes flickered to the clock. Polly would be growing impatient by now. "I have a party. You must remember what it was like," she grinned.

Mrs Figueroa rolled her eyes. "The weekend is two days." Piper inwardly sighed. Had Mrs Figueroa forgotten what it was like to be young? Sure, Friday was the night of the party - but Saturday would be all about sleeping it off, and Sunday would be filled with discussing the details with her friends. She didn't have time for assignments! "Monday, my desk, Piper."

Piper didn't comment on the assignment. She was itching to leave, and arguing wouldn't help matters. "Can I go now, please?"

Mrs Figueroa nodded. "You think I wanna see you for longer than I have to either? Get out of here."

Nicky leaned against her car, taking another drag from her cigarette. She followed Alex's gaze and bit back a groan when she saw it was fixed on Piper Chapman. "You know, she's failing like every class."

"So?" Alex sighed. She tried the door handle, but Nicky hadn't opened it. Despite her eye roll, Nicky made no move to unlock the vehicle.

"So, I don't get why you like her. She's a fucking loser." Nicky threw the cigarette butt onto the floor and finally opened up the car, sliding into the driver's seat. Alex followed suit, bowing her head as Piper looked around.

"You're failing like three classes," Alex pointed out, putting her feet up on the dash. She smirked. "Does that make you a loser too?"

"Nope," Nicky said, remaining unbothered and turning the key in the ignition without taking her eyes off of Piper. "I'm rebelling against the system."

"What if she's rebelling against the system too?" Alex proposesd.

Nicky shook her head. "Nah. Blondie's too busy selling her soaps to be part of anything bigger." Nicky exhaled, watching Piper starting to argue with someone on her phone. "The chick's got nothing in her head."

"You wanna argue that?" Alex asked. "What about Lorna? Her head's pretty and all but it's pretty fucking empty too."

Nicky swung out of the parking space, raising an eyebrow at Alex. "Lorna's good at lots of things. Maybe not academic, but trust me," she said, winking. "Lorna's a girl of many talents."

"Ugh. Spare me the details." Alex played with the ends of her hair for a moment, watching as Piper disappeared out of sight. "Are you going to the party tonight?"

"Fuck no," Nicky said. "They only ever have booze. And the cheap stuff." Alex rolled her eyes. She forgot how much of a drink snob Nicky could be. "I need something stronger. Here," Nicky said, rummaging in her glovebox. Alex shifted in her seat. She hated Nicky's driving; the girl never kept her eyes on the road for nearly as much time as Alex would have liked. But as the only one who could afford a car, she was stuck with her for the time being. The blonde pulled out a little baggie containing white powder. "Go without me," she said, tossing the baggie onto Alex's lap. "And have a real good time."

Alex stiffened as the baggie landed on her lap. She held it up, swinging it in the light, and shook her head. "I've told you - I don't do this shit."

"I know, I know," Nicky said, pulling into Alex's street. She cut the ignition. "You only sell it, right?"

"Shut the fuck up," Alex warned. She rolled her window up, glaring at Nicky. "I've told you. My mom cannot know about this shit, okay?"

"And she's not already wondering where the cash is coming from?" Nicky flicked her wrist in the air dismissively. "She knows something's up. She's just ignoring it because you can keep the lights on now."

Alex blushed. Her home life was always a source of embarrassment, and although Nicky knew everything about her and didn't mean it rudely, the comment still stung. The truth always hurt. Alex pushed her glasses further up her nose. "Just don't mention it, okay? Diane and I have a...complicated relationship."

Nicky pursed her lips. "I know all about those, kid. My lips are sealed. Just don't fuck it all up at this party, okay? I know you like her and all, but she's got a boyfriend. Plus, you know, all the other terrible things about her. Straight girls fuck you up."

Alex opened the car door. "I know," she said quietly. Alex slipped the baggie into her pocket and stepped out of the car. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Sure. If you're not too hungover."

"No more hungover than you'll be strung out," Alex called back. Nicky flipped Alex off, starting the engine again.

"We'll see about that!"

Piper winced as the front door slammed behind her. It was a sign of things to come and she had an awful sense of foreboding in her stomach as she stepped quietly into the kitchen. There, both her mother and her father waited for her.

"Piper," Mrs Chapman said, shaking her head. "We've had another call from your teacher. You're failing French. For pity's sake, Piper, your grandmother taught you French when you were four years old! How are you failing?"

Piper sighed, letting her backpack slide down to the floor. "I'm sorry, mom."

"You're sorry? You're failing most of your classes! Do you have any idea what this school costs? We already have Cal failing, but you know him...he can't help it. Your father and I have higher hopes for you."

Piper tried not to smirk at the character assassination of her brother. She loved him, but by God he was annoying - and, admittedly, not the brightest spark either. "I'll try harder, daddy," Piper said, offering her sincerest smile to her father.

"I know you will," Mr Chapman said. "Because you're going to sit down with a tutor each night until your grades are up. No more parties, no more soap, and no more credit card until you're at least getting all Bs."

Piper's jaw worked hard as she processed the information. Her smile instantly darkened into a scowl. "You can't do that."

"Why not?"

"Because…" Piper didn't have an answer, but it wasn't going to stop her. "Because you can't stop me going out!"

"Piper Elizabeth Chapman-" her father started, but the young girl threw down her jacket next to her backpack and stormed to her bedroom. She ignored the yelling behind her and slammed her bedroom door.

Stuffing the clothes and shoes she'd picked and her makeup into a bag, she flew down the stairs. Again she ignored the protests from her parents as she got into her car. Angrily, she shoved the key into the ignition. At least Polly's mom would help curl her hair.

The drive to Polly's house was short. Piper slung her bag over her shoulder as she walked Polly's driveway. Knocking on the door, she was greeted by Mrs Harper.

"Oh," Mrs Harper said, looking confused but still smiling. "I wasn't expecting you, Piper." She threw a worried glance up the stairs, but opened the door to let Piper in.

Piper smiled. "Thanks, Mrs Harper! Is Polly in her room?"

"Yes," Mrs Harper confirmed. She hesitated for a second. "Go on up, honey."

Piper climbed the stairs two at a time and threw open the door to Polly's room. When she saw Brook Soso sitting on the bed, she did a double take. That bitch had been rude to her for months, not to mention the fact that she was weird as hell.

"Oh, hi, Piper," Polly said. She stopped applying makeup to Brook's face and offered Piper a guilty smile.

"Oh, hi," Piper said sarcastically. "You blew me off for her?"

"Listen, Piper," Polly sighed, but Piper had already reached for the door handle. "Don't go!"

"Save it, Polly!"

Twenty minutes later, Piper sat on Larry's bed. When she tried to shut the door, Larry stopped her. "Sorry," he said, ducking his head. "Open door policy."

Piper rolled her eyes. "I can't believe Polly. First she ditches me then she has her round to do makeup! She looked like a five year old playing dress up." Larry nodded but didn't have anything to add, which only added to Piper's anger. "Aren't you gonna say something? Don't you think that's a shitty thing to do?"

Larry frowned and nodded. "Yeah, of course." He took Piper's hand; he never could understand the drama that Piper went through daily, nor could he often bring himself to care. It was always something with her, and he just wanted an easy life and a stress free senior year. "I'm sorry, Piper."

"It's okay," Piper said. "We just have to put on a united front." Her eyes shone. "The party tonight is gonna be amazing. I can't wait," she gushed. Then her eyes fell to his outfit - faded jeans and an old band t-shirt. "You're not wearing that, are you?"

He had been planning to wear that, but he knew that look by now. "No," he sighed. "I'll change. Pick whatever you want."

Piper beamed. "You're a good boyfriend."

At the party, Piper hooked her arm through Larry's. He smiled at a guy walking past and pulled his arm away. "Listen, Piper...I have to tell you something."

"Can't it wait?" Piper asked. She waved at one of her friends on the other side of the room.

"My mom says I shouldn't hang out with you anymore," Larry continued, scratching the back of his neck. The beer bottle clutched in his right hand wasn't even half empty. "I didn't wanna tell you earlier. You were upset about Polly…" he groaned.

"Hang out with me? What are you, twelve? We've been dating for two years, Larry." Piper's fist balled up by her side. She laughed. "Who cares what your mom thinks, anyway? My dad hates you."

"She says you're going to end up doing nothing with your life. Maybe in prison," he shrugs. "You're failing all of your classes. And...I don't know. I think she's right."

"Prison..?" Piper echoed. "What the fuck, Larry? I'm skipping science, not running a meth lab."

"Whatever," he said, shifting uncomfortably. "I just...I think we need a little time apart. You used to have a GPA of 4.0. Now you're wasting your time on other stuff...I don't know," he sighed. "I just miss who you used to be."

"You want time apart? You know what? Fuck you!" Piper snatched the beer bottle from him and took a swig. "I don't need you. I have a business. I have Polly!"

"Oh yeah?" Larry asked. "Where is Polly, anyways? You were complaining that she ditched you three hours ago."

Piper glared at him. "Seeing as we're not together anymore, you don't have to worry about it."

Alex stood at the end of the driveway, watching the kids milling on the porch. The party was in full swing and she'd deliberately left late so that she wouldn't have to wait for the fun to start. She hated the start of parties where everyone stood awkwardly, waiting for the music to start or the kids to get drunk.

She cast her eyes around, and frowned she she caught a flash of red in a field across from the house. Alex looked around but saw no-one else, and she walked over to the fence separating the two areas. A playful smile lit up her features as she realized who the girl in the field was.

Piper.

Alex watched the blonde from the fence. She sat under a vast tree, the trunk supporting her bare back as she leaned against it. Her shapely legs were crossed, the red soles of her Louboutins facing Alex. If it weren't for the smudged makeup and the birds nest she called hair, she would have looked perfect. Alex leaned her arms over the fence, watching as Piper took another swig from the glass bottle. Her lips quirked upwards, and she wondered what other things the other girl hid under her perfect prissy persona.

She hopped the fence, for once thanking god for her tall stature, and looked over her shoulder. Everyone else at the party was enjoying themselves, getting drunk, and kissing girls and guys that they shouldn't. No-one was paying attention to either of them. Satisfied that she'd caught her alone, Alex crossed the field to where Piper was sitting. Leaving a little space, she leaned against the same tree trunk.

"Hey, blondie," Alex murmured. Her eyes drifted to the vodka bottle in Piper's hand. "Wanna share?"

Piper downed the last of the drink and then handed Alex the empty bottle. "Sure."

Alex chuckled softly. "Not very generous, are you?"

"I can't afford to be generous," Piper grumbled. She snatched the bottle back, fighting to get the last drops onto her tongue.

Alex scoffed. Her eyes fell to Piper's shoes, which probably cost more than her mom's car. She scraped her hair back, raising her eyebrows. "God help humanity if you can't afford to be generous."

Piper clicked her heels together like Dorothy. "You're judging me based on these?" Piper bent her knees and hooked the shoes with her finger. "Here. Take 'em."

Alex laughed again. "I'm not taking your shoes."

"Why not? My mom will just confiscate them," she muttered. "I'm not even supposed to be at this stupid party. And Polly's ditched me, God knows where Larry is…" The blonde rolled her eyes and rested her head against the tree trunk. "Anyway," Piper said, trying to focus her eyes on the brunette she vaguely recognized. "What do you want? I've seen you around." She scanned her eyes down Alex's body, wondering how on earth someone who wore clothes from Target afforded to go to their school.

"I have a proposition," Alex admitted.

"Oh?" Piper said. She pushed her hair out of her eyes. "What's that, then?" She leaned dangerously close to the brunette. She'd heard rumors about her - about how she was poor, about how she was a lesbian, about all sorts of things...but the smell of her strawberry lip gloss drowned them all out.

Alex hesitated. The girl was totally out of it, but she had her interest - and that wasn't guaranteed when she was sober. Hell, even getting her to talk to her wasn't guaranteed when sober. She pulled out the little white baggie.

Piper pulled back. "Whoa," she said, holding her hands up. "I don't do drugs."

"Nor do I," Alex chuckled softly. "I sell them. You want an adventure, Piper?"

Piper stared at Alex, wide eyed. She opened her mouth and was about to decline, and then she thought of her parents. Of Polly. Of Larry. They all thought so little of her. Her parents didn't know what was going to hit them. Piper tucked a strand of hair into Alex's ear. "You bet I do," she whispered.

A/N:

This is my first multi-chapter Vauseman fic. It will have Nichorello too.
Please leave me a review telling me what you think. I don't often write Vauseman, so let me know your thoughts.

Hope you're all well.

- Star xo