#dannabell

This is set in the Gallagher Girls Universe, which if you haven't read it it's basically just spy school. Enjoy, reblog, and lmk what you think!

Trouble

Word count: 2,042

Danna had her nose in a textbook on “The French & Arsen” when a knock came at the door. She did not even look up. It was going to be that new girl who was only here because of the family name and Danna did not care for outsiders. Not only did she not like them, she didn’t trust them and trust was the name of the game around here. She still didn’t trust the group of boys that had infiltrated their school… well most of them at least.

Narcissa put the latest disguise she had been perfecting down and looked wareily at the door, but Danna kept her book up. After a moment of awkward silence Ruby came running in from the bathroom with a towel on her head and her shirt on inside out and backwards.

“She’s Here! Guys why didn’t you get the door!” Ruby’s eyes flashed with excitement as she threw open the door.

“Hi No… oh,” Ruby’s cheeks flushed as she tossed the towel on her head off to the side, “Hi Adrian, hi Oscar,” the second ‘hi’ was barely a squeak and Danna could hear Narcissa snickering on the other side of the room.

“Hi Ruby, you look very, um, clean!” Oscar practically shouted in his haste to come up with something to say. For being in the top five percent of an elite spy school, those two were not very good at being subtle. 

Finally Danna put her book down to look at the two boys at the door. Oscar was just as red as Ruby and Adrian was flashing that signature smile of his.

“We came to invite you down for dinner with us! Anyone interested?” Adrian asked, sweeping his gaze around the room.

“I’d love to but,” Narcissa started before Danna cut her off quickly.

“Yes! Yes we would love to!”

Narcissa and Ruby both looked back at Danna with wide eyes but she silenced them both with a glare and in a matter of minutes they were out the door.

Meals at Gallagher Academy were always full of fruits, vegetables, and main courses from around the world. Plus there was a sign above the door that stated what language the table conversation was to be held in. Sundays, however, were a free for all. Language was in english, and the food generally consisted of chicken fingers pizza, and other american favorites. Just hearing Oscar whine and complain all week until sunday dinner was enough to drive any person up the wall, trained spy or not.

Just as they were about to go through the threshold of the cafeteria a loud, intimidating and beautifully feminen voice echoed in the hall around them, “I hope you are having a good time abandoning your new colleague Ms. Bell, Ms. Cronin, and Ms. Tucker.” 

Danna flinched and slowly turned around to face Headmaster Tamaya Rae. Her expression was cold as ice as she took the time to make eye contact with all five of them individually before cutting her eyes over to the girl behind her. 

“This is your new roommate Nova. I’m sure you did your research, so I will leave you to it. Please take her on a tour of the grounds before curfew,” Headmaster Rae said smoothly before turning back to Nova and whispering something inaudible to the rest of them. She nodded and watched as the headmaster walked away. Danna looker with wary eyes as the girl, Nova, finally fully turned to face them. To Danna’s surprise her first thought was not, ‘ew’ or ‘ugh I hate her’, but rather just ‘wow’. Her heart was beating faster than normal as she looked over Nova. She had tan skin and cropped black hair with bangs hanging across her forehead and these blue eyes that just sparkled in the light. She looked like she had been training in martial arts her entire life with a thin waist and toned legs. She was effortlessly beautiful and Danna was… blushing. 

Realizing that she was staring, Danna peeled her eyes away and focused them instead on the line of marble busts on the side of the hall.

Ruby was the first to break the silence running up to hug the short girl, "Nova! It's so nice to finally meet you!"

Danna could see Nova tense up when Ruby threw her arms around her and how her face almost imperceptibly flashed with killer instinct. It was like Nova had never experienced affection before. Finally Ruby peeled herself off of the poor girl and started introducing everyone else who gave a little wave in response, aside from Oscar who bowed.

"Well, I guess an introduction for me isn't really necessary at this point is it?" Nova said, giving a side grin that made Danna's heart do a flip inside her chest. The sensation, however, just made her more upset.

With a huff Danna turned and walked into the cafeteria leaving everyone else to follow. She could hear Adrian, Oscar, and Ruby asking Nova questions and making light conversation behind her and for some reason it made her blood boil. They didn't even know this outsider and all of a sudden she was the most interesting thing since Betty White?

A tap on her shoulder pulled Danna out of her anger filled trance and she whipped her head to the side finding Narcissa walking beside her.

"Are you okay?" She whispered, keeping pace with Danna's wide steps.

"I'm fine," Danna spat back through gritted teeth.

"I really don't think that you are, maybe Nova isn't all bad, you should at least give her a chance."

Danna stopped and turned to face Narcissa. Leaning down close to her ear she growled, "chances are earned, not given," before stalking off towards the salad bar.

There were so many emotions swirling around in Danna's head as she threw tomatoes and carrots onto the bed of lettuce she had hastily thrown into a bowl. How could one interaction with a person cause so much internal dissonance? The fighting emotions only served to stoke the fire in Danna as she slammed the ladle back into the Italian dressing.

She turned to find everyone else already sitting down with plates full of chicken tenders or pizza. Well, Oscar had three plates filled with literally every food in the cafeteria except salad. Begrudgingly Danna sat down directly across from Nova and stared down into her salad, glancing up from time to time to keep tabs on what was happening.

"So, do you have any specialties?" Adrian asked Nova who had just put a spoonful of mashed potatoes in her mouth. 

"Oh, sorry, bad timing," he said, blushing slightly and running his hand across the back of his head.

Nova smiled sheepishly at him and swallowed, "are we suppose to talk about that? Isn't that confidential?"

Ruby laughed, "not here! We all have to know each others strengths to work well as a team."

"And also know who to copy in class!" Oscar chimed in grinning. They all laughed, even Narcissa who had been staying generally neutral.

The light conversation with this outsider made Danna's stomach twist. She knew there was something up with Nova besides her ridiculously flawless skin. She knew it and she was going to find out what it was. 

Danna looked up to see Adrian's hand on Nova's shoulder and the two of them laughing and smiling. The sight caused something inside her to jump. It felt almost like… jealously? No. It couldn't have been. Maybe she was just mistaking her overprotectiveness of Adrian as something else. Either way it didn't matter.

Dinner came to a close and the team took Nova on a tour of the grounds as requested. Oscar and Ruby doing most of the guiding, Adrian adding cute little tidbits and finding every excuse to touch her arm or shoulder, Narcissa happily following along behind throwing out the history of different paintings they passed, and Danna shuffling along at the back scowling and rolling her eyes. Every touch, every smile, every… everything made the knot in her stomach tighten till Danna felt like she was going to explode. Plus Nova kept glance back at her with this look that sent shivers down Danna's spine.

Finally they finished the tour and the boys went off to their side of the dorm while the four girls continued to their room.

As soon as they were inside, Danna stomped off and locked herself in the bathroom. She couldn't take one more second of those piercing blue eyes cutting over to her, or that silky black hair tickling the bottom of Nova's sharp jaw, or watching Adrian place a hand on her toned arms to turn Nova's attention to something else. 

To get her mind off of it all, Danna turned the shower on to the coldest possible setting, tied up her golden deadlocked, and stepped inside. The freezing water on her bare skin made Danna gasp and instinctively wrap her arms around herself, but at least she felt something other than anger. Unfortunately the silence in her mind didn't last long.

Her thoughts were moving at a mile a minute replaying everything that had happened that night, from the moment she saw Nova to the second she had stepped into the bathroom. Danna searched for something, anything, that would give her a lead to what Nova was up to, but the girl just seemed so… average. Well as average as anyone in the Gallagher Academy was.

A sharp knock at the door cut into Danna's quickly spiraling train of thought and she yelled, "what! I'm taking a shower!"

A startlingly strong voice shot back, "I need to brush my teeth!"

"Can't you wait!?"

"No! I'm still on Italian time and I've been exhausted since I got here!"

Italian time? Danna thought and she prepared her next excuse.

"The door is locked and I'm not getting out of the shower for you!"

"The lock is not a problem, can I brush my teeth or do I have to go ask Adrian to use their sink!"

This made Danna's skin crawl. The thought of her going and batting her eyes at Adrian and slinking into their bathroom made her almost sick to her stomach. After a long pause Danna finally let out a sigh, "fine. But it better be quick."

In less that five seconds Danna heard the lock click and the door creak open. What the… that would have taken out top lock picker at least ten seconds, Danna thought as she heard the sink turn on. This was a spy school the locks were not armature. Maybe Nova wasn't just a legacy after all. The two stayed in silence until Nova turned off the water.

"I know you don't like me and I get that, but I hope that I can change your mind someday."

Without thinking, Danna stuck her head out of the curtain, catching Nova's blue eyes in the mirror. She was wearing black shorts and an oversized 'I ♥  Paris' shirt, but the way Nova was looking at her made Danna's words catch in her throat.

"I promise I'm not all bad, if you just give me a chance," Nova said softly as she turned to face Danna.

Finding her voice, Danna forced a scowl onto her face, "chances are earned."

"So, how do I earn one?" Nova asked, stepping closer.

Danna's mouth went dry as Nova advanced on her. The way that just a look from this girl melted Danna's resolve was dangerous. Still trying to find her words, Danna just stared at Nova who had taken another step closer and put her arm up on the wall next to the shower, leaning in close. 

"Well," Nova whispered leaning in closer to Danna and brushing their cheeks in the process, "if you think of anything let me know."

Danna didn't know if she wanted to slam Nova against the wall and kiss her or dislocate her shoulder, but it didn't matter because she was frozen in place. Unable to move, or think, or speak.

Finally, Nova pulled away with a smirk and sauntered out of the bathroom as Danna slammed shut the curtain and sank to the floor, cooling her face in the cold water. In a matter of hours Nova had managed to win over Ruby, Oscar, and Narcissa while also seducing both Adrian and herself.