A/N: Yes, folks, I am back. Hopefully this chappie isn't too boring... kinda laying the groundwork for future chapters... you know how that is. Italicised(sp?) portions are dream sequences. Please Review!!
Disclaimer: I only own original characters.
Inspiration for this chappie...
Ready, Aim, Misfire by New Year's Day
Get out of the car, and don't try and stop me
Stay where you are, 'cause there you can't hurt me
You took things too far, and I don't deserve this
You said that you'd be, you'd always be honest
And mean what you say, but you broke every promise
That you ever made, and I don't deserve this
If I had just one bullet, and a trigger I'd pull it
Shoot my cupid out of the sky
Break off his wings, and gouge out his eyes
And thank him for nothing, 'cause that's all that he gave to me
Your love is my heart disease
Don't try and call, I'm not going to answer
I'm not going to fall for another disaster
That you put me through, and I don't deserve this
No I don't deserve this.
If I had just one bullet, and a trigger I'd pull it
Shoot my cupid out of the sky
Break off his wings and gouge out his eyes
And thank him for nothing, 'cause that's all that he gave to me
Your love is my heart disease
Shoot my cupid out of the sky
Break off his wings and gouge out his eyes
And thank him for nothing, 'cause that's all that he gave to me
Your love is my heart disease
I don't care anymore
About You.
Because without you I'm better off.
Shoot my cupid out of the sky
Break off his wings and gouge out his eyes
And thank him for nothing, 'cause that's all that he gave to me
Your love is my heart disease
Shoot my cupid out of the sky
Break off his wings and ask him just why
He played such a sick joke on the fool that is me
And curse me with this sickness
Your love is my heart disease.
Avery walked into one of the local Starbucks and stood in line to get her usual Double Chocolaty Chip Frappuccino. She looked around the semi-empty coffee shop and took a deep breath. She walked up to the cashier and smiled.
"What can I get you?" the thin brunette girl asked.
"Venti Double Chocolaty Chip Frappuccino... and..." She grabbed two chocolate hazelnut biscotti and set them on the counter. "Nothing better than chocolate to help mend a broken heart." Avery thought to herself as the girl totaled up the order and Avery handed over the cash. The girl grabbed a cup and a Sharpie and looked at Avery.
"Your name?"
"Avery." Avery walked away while opening one of the double baked cookies. She took a bite as she stood against one of the walls by the counter. She heard her cellphone ringtone of My Friends Over You from her inside her jeans pocket and she jumped a little. She grabbed it and looked at the screen which showed a picture of she and Nicki. She smiled as she opened her phone and put it to her ear. "'Lo."
"Where are you?" Nicki asked.
"Um, Starbucks."
"Which one? There are three of them in town."
"The one across the street from the pharmacy. Why?"
"We just got back and you weren't here. You want some company?" Avery laughed softly.
"I'm not fragile Nic. I'm not going to break."
"Yeah, I know that, but still, I would be a shite friend if I didn't offer my company right now." Avery could hear the smile on Nicki's face.
"Alright. Come keep me company."
"I'll be there in a few. Don't drink that frap too quickly."
"And how do you know that's what I got?" Avery raised an eyebrow as she smirked.
"Because we have been best friends for six years and there isn't much that I don't know about you Ave. See ya in a bit." Avery closed her phone and slipped it back into her pocket as a warm smile spread across her face.
"Avery," a barista called out from behind the counter. She walked over and grabbed the icy drink and a straw from the counter. She turned and saw an oversized chair vacant and she smiled. As she walked over, her phone began vibrating in her pocket. She grabbed it and furrowed her eyebrows at the screen. She opened it.
"'Lo?"
"Um... hi. Is this Avery?" a male voice drifted from the earpiece.
"Yeah, who is this?"
"Braedon Gilbert. I met you last night." She smiled brightly.
"Oh yeah. How are you?"
"I'm doing fine. I didn't catch you at a bad time, did I?"
"No, just sitting down to enjoy some Starbucks." She sat in the comfortable chair and set her drink on the small table beside her. She took a deep breath as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Braedon's grey eyes looking down at her with a smile on his face. She smiled brightly. "What are you doing here?" She closed her phone and slipped it into her pocket.
"Uh, my aunt is here. Visiting her and some other family for the holidays." She looked at the chair next to her.
"Wanna join me?" He resisted the strong urge he had touched her cheek.
"Sure." He slipped his phone in his pocket and sat next to her.
"So, do you live in Boston?"
"No. I actually live on Martha's Vineyard. I go to school in Boston."
"Where do you go?"
"Sophomore at BU."
"Oh, you're in college?"
"Yeah. You live here?"
"Yes and no." He furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head a little with a small smile. "I go to school here at Spenser. I live in Boston."
"Where are you planning on going after Spenser?"
"Duke or NYU." Avery looked up as she saw Nicki walk into the building. She smiled softly as the dark-haired girl walked up with a smile on her face.
"Am I interrupting something?" Nicki asked. Braedon stood up and smiled.
"Not at all. Nicolette Emerson, this is Braedon Gilbert. He's the guy I met at the ball on Saturday." They shook hands.
"You can call me Nicki or Nic... everyone does," Nicki said as she dropped his hand from hers. She sat at the small table across from the two chairs as Braedon reclaimed his chair. "You live here in Ipswich?"
"No, visiting family for the holidays." Nicki looked at Avery.
"What a coincidence. How long are you here for?"
"Couple of weeks." Nicki furrowed her eyebrows as she looked into his grey eyes.
"I can't escape the feeling that I know you..."
"Maybe from the ball?"
"No..." She squinted and shook her head slightly. "Well, I'm sure it'll come to me eventually." She got up and grabbed her wallet from her bag. "I'll be back." She walked away. Braedon's eyes followed Nicki as she walked to the counter.
"Something wrong?" Avery asked as she took a bite of her cookie.
"No. Not at all." His eyes shifted to Avery and he smiled. The ringtone of On My Mind started playing and Avery sighed. She grabbed her phone from her pocket and looked at the screen. A picture of her and Reid stared back at her. She slipped the phone back into her pocket as Nicki walked back over. Nicki sat down and stuck her straw in her Vanilla Bean Blended Crème.
"How was the drive back into town?" Avery asked as Nicki sipped her drink.
"Fine... quiet." Avery raised an eyebrow.
"How's that?"
"There wasn't much to say after last night. Ty's still pissed at Reid and I didn't really have a hell of a lot to say. Lots of listening to the radio." Avery smiled as she took a bite of her cookie. "So I take it you decided not to take Reid back?"
"You take it right." She grabbed her drink and looked at Nicki.
"Did he explain why things happened like they did?"
"Yeah, but how can I trust him again after doing something like that? I would be wondering if every girl he happens to glance at is someone that he is sleeping with behind my back."
"Don't you believe people can change?"
"Yeah, I do. I just don't believe he's ready to change. He doesn't need a girl like me. He needs one that will turn a blind eye to his fucking around. I can't do that. I want all of him, not half of him while he shares the other part with someone else."
"I can understand that, I guess, but... Ave, you have never been happier than when you were with him, doesn't that mean anything to you?"
"Yeah. It means a lot, but so does my self respect Nic." She sipped her drink and set it down again. "Not to mention, do you honestly think that after one conversation with him that I am going to fall back into his arms? Please, if he is going to get me back, he's sure as hell going to work for it. I'm not that easy Nic." Nicki laughed.
"Yeah, I know. You don't ever take things lightly."
"Nope, never. Besides, what's to say that someone else may not come along that might tickle my fancy?" Nicki sipped her drink as the two girls looked at Braedon. His eyes shifted from one girl to another as a smile appeared on his face.
Avery walked into a large ballroom and smiled at the masked couples dancing to the soft classical music that seemed to float on the air. She caught sight of herself in a floor-length window as she made her way down the long staircase. She felt the satin ribbons of her mask fluttering across the back of her neck as her feet hit one black carpeted step after another. Her heels clicked on the marble floor as they left the final step and she smiled. A man in a black tuxedo with a royal blue bow-tie and cummerbund walked up to her slowly and smiled. He held out his hand to her.
"May I have this dance?" he asked softly. She smiled as she nodded. She placed her black lace gloved hand in his and they walked out to the dancefloor. One of his arms slid around her waist while the other took her hand in his. He smiled as they began to dance along with the other couples. Avery smiled as her feet glided across the marble floor. She looked at her dance partner and he smiled softly.
"Who are you?" she asked softly as they stopped dancing in the middle of the floor. As he leaned toward her to kiss her, red and white rose petals began falling from the ceiling. She looked up and smiled as the soft petals fell over her cheeks. She heard a soft chuckle come from the man and she looked at him. He gently kissed her lips and she felt her knees getting weak.
"Ave!!" she heard and she looked around.
"AVERY!!" Nicki yelled a second time. Avery slowly opened her eyes and frowned as she groaned softly.
"What time is it?"
"Six-thirty. Your alarm went off like a half hour ago. You slept right through it." Avery sat up and ran her fingers through her light-brown hair.
"I had the strangest dream." Nicki slipped her feet into her navy blue knee socks and looked over at Avery as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed.
"What happened?"
"Have you ever had one of those dreams where you were with a guy, but you never saw his face clearly or really knew who he was?" Nicki grabbed her penny loafers and nodded. "It was one of those. There was this guy and we were at a masquerade ball. We were dancing and he went to kiss me, but before he could, all these rose petals fell from the ceiling. It was so romantic, Nic." Avery looked over at Nicki as she tied her tie. "And he kissed me. It was the most... I can't describe it, but your voice yelling cut right through it and I woke up." Nicki stopped and looked at her friend.
"Well, I have no explanation for that, but if you plan on taking a shower, you better go now." Avery sighed as she got up from her bed and slipped on her slippers. She grabbed her robe and shower caddy before walking out of the room. Nicki smiled to herself and grabbed her small collection of headbands. She picked a white lace one and slipped it over her head.
Avery sat in the dining hall picking at her breakfast of fruit and yogurt. She sighed as Kate walked up with Sarah in tow.
"Mind if we sit here?" she asked as she swung her long ponytail over her shoulder.
"Sure, go 'head," Avery breathed as she stabbed a piece of honeydew from the bowl on her tray. The two girls sat down and Kate put her head in her hand as she raised her brown eyes to Avery's form.
"So, spill. How was the ball?" Avery looked up slowly.
"It was beautiful. My dress was gorgeous, my mother rewrote my presentation statement to contain a bunch of crap, but all in all, everything was perfect until... I caught Reid messing around with another woman." Kate and Sarah gasped as they sat back in shock.
"You're kidding," Sarah said softly. Avery shook her head softly as Nicki walked up and sat next to her best friend.
"Sadly, no, I'm not kidding. I caught him and Kiana Weissman in a broom closet."
"Kiana Weissman?" Avery rolled her eyes.
"Kiana McEwan... Barbie," Nicki said as she poured the contents of her small Special K cereal box in the bowl that sat in front of her. Kate and Sarah laughed softly at the nickname thrown out with ease by Nicki.
"I'm surprised that the whole fiasco hasn't made the rounds around school yet," Avery said as she looked back down at her bowl of fruit.
"So, what are you going to do?" Kate asked as she opened her container of yogurt.
"Nothing." Kate raised a questioning eyebrow. "Reid and I talked yesterday morning and I couldn't bring myself to either accept his apology or take him back." Kate sighed deeply.
"I suppose that is the price you pay for dating someone with Reid's reputation," Sarah said as she looked to the doors. She smiled as Caleb appeared in the doorway with Pogue following closely behind him. Caleb's eyes scanned the large room quickly before settling on the beautiful blonde and her dark-eyed friend. He nudged Pogue's arm and pointed to the table full of girls. Avery looked up as the two boys quickly made their way to the table. Caleb bent down and gently kissed Sarah's cheek. She smiled and giggled softly as he whispered something in her ear before nodding in agreement. Pogue sat next to Kate and placed a soft kiss on her lips. He looked over at Nicki and Avery with a soft smile on his lips.
"Where's Reid and Tyler this morning?" he asked.
"I was about to ask you the same thing," Nicki said as she set her spoon in her bowl. "I haven't seen or heard from either of them since last night when we got back." Nicki looked over at Avery.
"Um, I've got some things to take care of before classes, I'll see you guys later," Avery said as she got up and grabbed her bag. She slung it over her shoulder.
"Hey, wait up. I need to grab some stuff from my locker," Nicki said as she got up and grabbed her bag as well. She slung it over her shoulder and the two girls made a beeline out of the building. Pogue looked at Kate and frowned slightly.
"Was it something I said?" he asked innocently. Kate shook her head as she looked down at her container of yogurt.
"Um, Reid and Ave broke up last night." Caleb looked over.
"Didn't they just start dating like a few days ago?" he asked as he stole a piece of fruit from Sarah's tray.
"Yeah, but um... Ave caught him in a compromising situation with the former Kiana McEwan at the ball." Pogue sighed.
"Why am I not surprised?" he asked softly to himself. He looked over at Caleb. "That explains why he's been avoiding us then." Caleb nodded in agreement.
Tyler stood in front of the bathroom mirror tying his tie. He saw Reid moving around in the reflection of the mirror and he turned slightly.
"Morning, Reid," he said softly.
"Morning. What time is it?"
"Uh... I think it's about seven."
"Why didn't you wake me up?"
"I thought after the night you had, I would let you sleep." Reid looked up and scratched his head.
"What do ya mean 'the night I had'?"
"You were tossing and turning all night long man. I thought a couple of times I heard you calling out..."
"Ave's name?"
"No, Kiana's." Reid sighed in frustration as he sat on his bed. Tyler turned off the bathroom light and walked into the room. "What's going on man?" Reid ran his fingers through his blonde hair and sighed again as Tyler sat across from him.
"I don't know. All I do know is I want is Ave back, but I guess Kiana has invaded my dreams." Tyler tossed a few books in his bag.
"What do you plan to do?"
"Whatever I have to. I want her back, Tyler."
"What if 'whatever' is something like... making out with another guy or some other such fuckery?" Reid laughed softly.
"Fuckery? What kind of word is that?" Tyler smiled.
"Eh, I knew that would make you smile. However, answer my question."
"I suppose I'll do whatever, within reason to get her back." He smiled as Tyler grabbed his notebook and pen from his nightstand. "I have a week to come up with something good." Tyler furrowed his eyebrows as he looked over at Reid.
"How do you figure you have a week? School is in session until June, man."
"Yeah, but come Sunday morning, Ave is taking off for home for three weeks for the holidays."
"What difference does that make?"
"There's no telling what can happen in three weeks, who she can meet... I just want to know that I have my foot in the door again before she leaves is all." Tyler got up and grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair.
"You better hope she doesn't slam the door on your foot if you do get it in there." Tyler grinned as Reid flipped him the bird. "So, I guess you better get to thinking then, shouldn't you?" Tyler smiled as he slipped his jacket on and grabbed his bag. "See ya later, man." He walked out and Reid sighed as he laid back on his bed.
"Fuck...," he said softly to himself.
A/N: I actually have the ringtones mentioned in this chappie on my cellphone. :D I also thought it was time to bring in the other characters as more than just side convos. Again, please review!! I appreciate them all... really, I do! :)
