Joe weaved in and out of traffic on the busy expressway. He honked his horn at an incoming SUV that kept switching lanes whenever he did. Obviously this person didn't want Joe to pass him. Joe drummed his thumbs on the steering wheel and glanced at the clock on his dashboard. The numbers flashed back at him, 5:34 PM. He had exactly less than thirty minutes to drive home, take a shower and change his clothes.
"I shouldn't have taken a nap, now I'm going to be late." Joe said to himself.
Traffic finally started to move. Joe switched lanes and finally exited the expressway. As he parked his car, he looked back at the clock again. 5:45 PM. He promised he was going to meet up with her at 6:00.
"I hope Femi doesn't get upset with me again." Joe though, tossing his backpack into his room. "Forgetting our one year anniversary made her angry enough…"
Femi was a girl he dated for more than a year. They had met each other during one of Fred's football games. . Femi was a cheerleader on the team and had bumped into Joe who was buying a hot dog for Sam. She looked like she was crying. Joe asked her what happened and she told him everything. She found out that her boyfriend was using her to make another girl jealous and the other girl was her best friend. One thing led to another, and after the game, Femi gave him her number and promised to call him the next day. Joe had good intentions, and those good intentions had landed him with the number of a pretty cheerleader.
For the next few months, everything seemed like a beautiful dream. Joe was crazy for Femi and she felt the same way about him. She loved his magic tricks and he loved how easy it was to talk with her. Eventually, they started dating, and it dragged on for more than a year.
Joe took out his cell phone and dialed up her number. After a few rings, she finally picked up.
"Hey,"
"Hi," said Femi. "Are you almost here?"
Joe tried his best to sound tired. "Listen, I overslept and I'm going to meet you a little later than we've planned."
"How late?" She demanded.
"Um… ten, fifteen minutes?"
Femi said nothing on the other line, and he heard her sigh in defeat. "Fine, I'll see you at 6:15." She immediately hung up before he could say a word.
Joe went to the bathroom to take his shower. His nose caught a whiff of perfume when he brought the shirt to his nose. It was her signature scent, an ultra-expensive perfume that she would buy straight from Paris. The more he inhaled, the less he thought about Femi.
He crumpled up the shirt and tossed it into the dirty hamper. His thoughts weren't on Femi anymore.
He thought about Joleena Beauchene.
Sam got a summer job working as an online tutor for history classes. Joleena was taking a summer class and needed help in her American History class. When Joleena passed the class, the two kept in contact for a bit. Sam wanted to learn French because he was going to do a summer course in France the next summer and Joleena offered to personally mentor him. Joe didn't see Sam much after that; Sam was constantly in her library studying over French pronunciation and etiquette.
Joe decided to tag along and meet Joleena herself in her town house. A chauffer sent by Joleena came to pick Joe and Sam up and the drove to the wealthy side of town to the stunning townhouse of Joleena Beauchene. When they entered inside, Joe found himself in front of the epitome of beauty and elegance. Everything about Femi was tossed aside, as a child tired of playing with an old toy.
He found Joleena to be interesting and exciting. She traveled around the world, she did ballet, and she was a supermodel.
Joleena wasn't as excited as Joe was when she first met him. She turned her attention mostly to Sam and only gave Joe polite nods and aloof glances in his way. He tried to get her attention by fixing all of the books into her library. He picked up a book in French and tried to figure out which shelf it belongs. Joe pulled out a book and the shelf moved to the side, revealing another library inside. He walked inside and found out everything about her.
Joleena was a member of the Beauchene family; a family who used magic for generations. She attended a magic academy for girls and did ballet (but quit when she had the chance). She was also a highly powerful magician. Joleena found him looking through her things and flew into a rage. She threw him out of her townhouse and went back to get his book bag he left behind. When she threw it out as well, The Book fell to her feet. Amazed, she picked up The Book.
"So, you travel though time, non?" She asked him in her lilting French accent, leafing through The Book.
"Yeah. I always wanted to learn magic, but I never found the right person to teach me, or anyone for that matter." Joe sheepishly took The Book from her hands.
"Are you interested in learning then? I would teach you myself, but what I see is that you have a bad habit of snooping around." She simply shrugged her shoulders at him.
"I won't do it again… if you'd teach me…" Joe blushed a bit.
"I'll have to see if I can schedule some lessons for you." She put on her reading glasses and a fountain pen and fancy notebook appeared in a puff of glittery purple smoke.
"I know that you'll find time for me..." He grinned at her.
"A cocky one I see…" She eyed him above the rims of her glasses. "Then I guess I should schedule a date for a non-magic lesson, oui?"
"I'm sure you'll plan even more after this one…"
He saw a spark in her deep brown eyes as she took off her glasses.
"I'll be the judge of that Joseph…"
"Where are the keys, where are the keys?" Joe dug frantically for his keys in his backpack. It was already 6:05 and he couldn't find them anywhere.
Joe felt something tubular and he took it out of the bag. It was one of Joleena's lipsticks; a shade of red that Joe was crazy over. He left it in one of the drawers on high nightstand table.
The keys!
Joe finally found them. He rushed out the door and went to start his car up. Femi said she would meet them at a café. Joe didn't understand why she didn't want to go get pizza at Ray's, but she protested against the idea. They didn't date in two weeks and she was angry over that.
"I don't know what happened to you those two weeks," she said with tears in her eyes. "It's like you packs your bags and left overnight!"
"I left you a message, Femi." He said. "I went on a camping trip with the guys!"
An absolute lie. Joe never went camping for two weeks. Joleena had invited him to go to Paris, France and he agreed to. That was when she bought the lipstick for him. Over 300 Euros wasted on three pieces of makeup. They stayed in one of the châteaux, Joleena's friend owned outside of Paris. The trip was like a never-ending paradise for him.
The Paris trip was one of MANY secret dates he had with Joleena after their first meeting. The more time he spent with her, he couldn't get enough. He was practically ignoring Femi for Joleena. Sure, he'd sneak inside her place late at night with gifts and promise to see her again. But he never kept those promises.
There were times when Joe felt bad for doing this, but a little voice inside his head reassured him that she wouldn't find out about his "secret dates". He left Femi a message on the table before taking The Book and warping himself away to Joleena's townhome (buses don't run late at night).
Femi had her hair in a low, bun with a butterfly clip on the back to keep it place. She wore a low-cut little black dress with low red platform heals with an ankle strap. She looked lovely and Joe couldn't help but feel guilty over falling for Joleena.
"Am I late?" Joe asked her.
"No," She shook her head and for the first time, smiled up at him. "You're actually on time."
"Did you order already?"
Femi shook her head no. She put a hand over his and squeezed it.
"How about after this we go over to your place?" She arched a dark eyebrow at him.
Joe squeezed her hand back. "I'd like that very much."
The date went smoothly enough. Joe made sure to leave his cellphone in his pocket and focus his attention on Femi, so she wouldn't get suspicious. When they were done, he paid the bill and the two made their way to his car.
"Thank you, Joe" she said and got inside the car.
Femi noticed something different about the car. Joe would normally leave some trash inside of it, but nothing too messy. The interior of the car smelled sweet, like perfume and he had it in tip-top shape. Joe got in the driver's seat and smiled at her.
"I got something planned after this. You're going to love it!"
"I'll bet! What are we gonna do?" Femi asked.
"Then it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?" said Joe as they left the parking lot.
Joe opened the door to his house and Femi didn't wait until they got inside to kiss him deeply. Joe carried her bridal style to his room and tossed her to the bed. Femi took off her heels and smiled at him, before biting her lip.
"I'm waiting…" she said sensually.
"Slow down then…" Joe loosed up the buttons on his dress shirt. "Now what movie do you want to watch?"
"Movie?" Femi echoed.
"Yeah, movie." He pulled out three DVDs. "There's Rosemary's Baby, Fast and Furious and my personal favorite, The Son of Pigman!"
"I didn't want to watch a movie" Femi's smile faded. "I wanted to spend some time with you, like cuddling."
"We can cuddle while watching the movie, no biggie." Joe looked at the digital clock on his nightstand. "The pizza'll be here in any minute. I order a large pizza with extra peperoni and marinara sauce."
"It's just not the same." She crossed her arms over her chest. "We can't communicate if we're busy stuffing our faces with pizza!"
"I thought you wanted to spend time with me!"
"Yeah, but not like this! You act like my opinions don't matter!"
"Huh? Femi, I'm not acting like your opinions don't matter!" said Joe.
"I said I wanted to spend time with you after the date," she said. "I never wanted to watch a film!"
"Well, what do you want to do then?" Joe replied.
"Not watch a movie, that's for sure!" Femi turned her back to him.
"I guess I'll eat the pizza and watch the movie myself; because everything I do nowadays is never good enough for you, goodnight!" Joe slammed the door and went to the living room.
Femi buried her face into Joe's pillow and let the tears silently fall from her cheeks. Since when did Joe become so insensitive to her needs, so apathetic about her worries? This wasn't the Joe she fell in love with. He was sinfully adorable, a sweetheart and caring. Not some cocky, uncaring jerk that did what he wanted to do. It was almost as if he didn't want to spend the night with her and used movies and pizza as a way out. It was rude to talk with your mouth full and annoying to talk during a movie.
"Maybe I shouldn't have been so uncaring to him." She said. "He did plan this as a surprise…"
Nonsense! He didn't ask you if that was okay! Isn't communication the key to a long-lasting relationship, hmmm?
"I guess you're right," she mumbled. "But I better find some tissue; Joe would get even more upset if I smeared mascara on his pillows."
Check the nightstand table; I'm sure he'll have some tissue there.
Femi opened the top drawer and searched around for a box of tissues. Searching in the dark made it impossible to find anything; her hand was aimlessly digging around. She turned on the light and pulled the drawer out more.
"What's this… lipstick?" Femi examined the brand name on the side. "Whoa, talk about expensive; I'm sure they only sell this type of makeup in haute couture stores in France!"
The question you should be asking yourself… is "What is Joe doing with an expensive brand of lipstick stashed away?" Doesn't that sound odd?
"Pretty much," said Femi. "I know he can't afford to buy this and it doesn't match my skin tone…"
I think your beloved Joseph might be seeing another girl, a very wealthy girl…
"No…" Her eyes began to water. "You couldn't be so sure, right?"
I don't know, but it adds up. He starts to cancel dates with you, his wardrobe changes; he doesn't even treat you correctly anymore! He's saving his love for another…
"Impossible, not my Joesph!"
Prove me wrong! Take The Book and check his warping history!
Femi opened the case and started flipping through The Book. She saw an image of a beautiful girl with dark brown eyes and skin, long elegant wavy hair and full lips. The name "Joleena Beauchene" was written below the image.
"A Beauchene…?"
See? That spoiled little hussy is all over your beloved Joseph! Go show Miss 'beautiful oak' a thing or two about getting involved with taken men!
"Good idea!" Femi's eyes began to glow ominously. "She'll regret doing this, but not as much as Joe will!"
Femi touched the image on Joleena and a cloud of green mist appeared. She saw Joleena pick herself up and look around her surroundings.
"Joseph!" she called. "What's happening, why did you warp me to your room?"
"Joe didn't warp you here…" said Femi with her arms crossed. "I did."
"Who are you?" Joleena demanded. "I'm busy and you warped me here out of nowhere!"
"With what, dating taken men and ruining their relationships?"
Joleena's face flushed with anger. She raised her hand and slapped Femi hard enough to knock her to the ground.
"How dare you insult me like that?" She snarled. "Never in my life have I had to face an unfashionable, temperamental woman like you before!"
"Oh, I'll show you temperamental…" Femi growled, her eyes glowing dark green. "I'll show you for dating MY beloved Joseph!"
Joe finished eating his half of the pizza and left the rest for Femi if she wanted some. He opened up another can of Coke and went back to seeing The Son of Pigman. A loud crash made him jump and spill soda everywhere. It came from his room.
"Femi?" He heard her scream in alarm.
Joe got up and ran to his bedroom. He opened the door and saw Joleena and Femi battling it out inside. Joe stood in shock inside. He didn't know that Femi used magic, or knew about The Book at all. But, how else was she able to warp Joleena to his room? Femi was launching offensive magic attacks while Joleena used her magic to make a purple shield to protect herself.
"Joe!" She cried.
"Joleena, what's happening?"
Femi turned around and Joe saw that her eyes were glowing. The dream catcher she always wore glowed whenever she used her magic.
"You know this French hussy?" Femi demanded.
"She's not a hussy, Femi!"
"Then you DO know her!"
"Well… yeah I do. She's just a friend." Joe rubbed the back of his neck nervously.
"That's not what you told me, Joseph." Said Joleena, still using her magic. "In fact, you never told me you had a girlfriend!"
Femi used the distraction between Joe and Joleena to overload the shield and break it. Joleena fell back from the force of her magic.
"Joleena!" Joe cried and rushed up to help her. "Take the dream catcher!"
"So you're on her side? Cheater!" Femi yelled. She lifted his nightstand table with her magic and throttled it towards Joe. He cried out in pain and knocked himself out.
"Joe!" cried Joleena.
Femi waltzed over to Joleena and stored up her magic for one final blow.
"I can't believe it; I'm finally going to take down a member of the 'famed' Beauchene family!" Femi cackled insanely.
"Maybe you shouldn't believe it!" Joleena frowned at the insane girl. "Besides, a Beauchene has more tricks up their sleeves."
A glittery purple fog surrounded Femi and transformed into chains. They solidified and restricted Femi from using her magic. Femi yelled in anger and tried to attack Joleena.
"You may be a Beauchene, but that doesn't mean you can defeat me so easily!" she said. "You could have any man in the world; you didn't have to steal Joe from me!"
"I'm afraid I didn't steal him," Joleena wiped the blood off her busted lip. "He came willingly, and that's something for you think about."
"Who has time to think about that when I'm about to beat you to a bloody pulp, prissy?"
"Now." Joleena's eyes turned purple and she concentrated her magic to Femi. "Nisi regatur stamine!"
Femi's smile dropped as she saw the glittery smoke envelope around her. She struggled to break free from the chains, but found that they got tighter the more she struggled against them.
"I'll take this charm," Joleena plucked the dream catcher from her neck and held it to her face. "My, where did you find this?"
"Give that back you French bi-!" In a flash, Femi was gone. She would warp to a random location, and give Joleena enough time to do the following.
"Ugh… Joleena…" said Joe, finally regaining consciousness.
"Joe…" Joleena walked over to him.
"Are you okay?" Joe rubbed his head. "Wow, I didn't know that Femi could use magic like you. She nearly had you beat, I'll tell you that!"
"I'm fine, actually." said Joleena. "But, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm great!" Joe stood up and smiled. "Why did you ask?"
"Good!" Joleena punched him in the face and knocked him down again. "Because we're done!"
A/N: Writer25 asked for a One-Shot request where Joe was dating Femi but was secretly going out with her OC, Joleena. Eventually, Femi finds out and tries to get back at Joleena by using magic. I really wanted to give the one-shot that ending. Hope you enjoy it! 8D
