Ticket Stubs

By KatieMatlinIsMySpiritAnimal

Eli x Anya

Chapter One

Hi, everyone! So, I'm back with a new story. For those of you following "Damage Control," I promise it will be updated soon. I'm the kind of girl who likes to start new projects and work on the old ones later. Thanks for bearing with me! I will make this and "Damage Control" my two priorities, amidst maybe a few oneshots. But these will be my two big fics. Thanks!

I really love Enya. That's it. I absolutely adore them. So, yeah.

Also, a note. I did a lot of research. Anya was a senior in the class of 2010-2011, and so all of these movies were released on Fridays from October of 2010 to May of 2011. I wanted it to be as accurate as possible. Anya's a senior and Eli's a junior in this story (takes place during Season 10).

Anya MacPherson sighed. Rarely did her job as ticket-ripper (as she replied when asked what her job was, anyway) provide any new excitements or challenges. It paid for an occasional coffee at the Dot or an on-sale top when she went shopping with Holly J., sure, but she had half a mind to quit. It was just too terrible working there. She hated being a minimum wage slave. She hated that the cute older guys had to see her in her ugly uniform. She hated the rude people who wouldn't thank her after she ripped their tickets. She hated putting on a fake smile and telling people to enjoy the movie, particularly when she was in a bad mood. And she absolutely hated, hated, hated getting hit on, by old men and by stupid niners alike. The only things making the job somewhat tolerable were the few benefits she'd gotten for working there. Anya had always been a movie person; being able to get discounted movie tickets and catch a free flick once in a while was a nice perk. All in all, though, Anya could think of dozens of better part-time jobs. Anything was preferable, she thought, to working as a movie ticket-ripper.

That is, she thought, until one Saturday night in late October.

Her shift had been going on since 4:30 in the afternoon. Three hours of paper-tearing later, Anya was beginning to get excited. Continually checking her phone for the time, Anya waited with anticipation for 8:10 to come. 7:30. 7:35. Here you go. Enjoy the movie. 7:38. 7:39. Here's your ticket. Have a great time. 7:41. Ugh.

She had been waiting since she'd finished watching the first one for the second Paranormal Activity movie to come out. And that night, October 23rd, the night after the premiere, Anya was stirring, completely unable to stand still as she tore apart ticket after ticket with increasing intensity. Only a few more minutes until she'd be in the theater, buttered popcorn and Skittles in tow, leaning back in her seat and preparing herself to get absolutely freaked out. 8:07. Three minutes more! Any time, now…

Snapping her out of her restlessness was the cool, collected voice of a young man handing her a ticket.

Anya recognized the young man. She couldn't remember his name (she wasn't even sure if she'd ever known it). But she'd definitely seen him around in school. As she tried to put her finger on it, she recognized him as the kid who sat at the lunch table a few down from the one at which she sat. Every day, he ate with a boy who always wore a beanie and a girl with curly hair, neither of whose names she knew. Looking at him, she noticed that he was clad in his trademark attire: black. And nothing else. He had on black boots with a pair of tight black pants, a black tee, and a black leather jacket. He had on some jewelry and looked to be wearing eyeliner (something Anya did not find appealing). Right up to his hair, he was in black. When she saw the Paranormal Activity 2 ticket in his hand, she found herself unsurprised.

Putting on that cheery grin of hers, Anya took the ticket and ripped it, handing him the half that he would need to hold on to.

"Here you go! Enjoy!"

She then paused for a moment; as she often tried to make small talk with her customers, she asked, "Hey, do I know you?"

"Thanks. And, yeah. You might."

Vague. That was the only word Anya could think of to describe this boy's tone. He spoke as if everything were a mystery, as if his mind were this big riddle and only he had the key or the knowledge to solve it. She wasn't sure what to think about it.

"Hm, I'm pretty sure I've seen you," she wondered aloud. "You go to Degrassi?"

"I do."

He sure wasn't a talker, she noticed. He began to walk away, right past her. Nothing more was said, and Anya, formerly unsure about this character, formulated her opinion: aggravation. As someone who smiled at everyone, who routinely went out of her way to talk to people who seemed to need conversation, who spent the entire day putting up with people who didn't reciprocate her exuberance in the slightest, this boy's taciturn nature bothered her. A piece of her wanted to wave her hands around and scream, "Hey! I've been trying all day to make small talk with people like you who don't care! You could at least make my job easier by being friendlier!"

Of course, though, she didn't.

Anya took one quick look ahead of her, seeing the boy's slouching posture and slow, unmotivated stride. She then glanced at her phone, seeing the "8:08" on the screen, and used her walkie-talkie to inform the manager that she was heading down to the Paranormal Activity 2 theater. Upon getting the okay, she turned in her walkie to Quinn, the approaching girl whose shift was after hers, bought her popcorn and Skittles, and leaped to the theater.

When she walked into the theater, she was shocked to see the amount of seats that was filled. Her heart sank as she took a quick scan of the room, and she had to stop herself from dropping her popcorn all over the floor. No seats, she saw. She wasn't going to be able to see the movie, was she?

No, she decided. She'd had a longer day than anyone else here, damn it, and she deserved to see this movie. Marching up the aisle, Anya carefully examined every single seat to ensure its occupancy. By the time she headed towards the top rows, she felt as if she could cry. The chances of her finding a seat were slim.

As she continued studying the theater, anger and frustration growing at a rate dangerous to those around her, she noticed something.

A vacant seat.

Anya couldn't hold back a huge smile. One seat left! She nearly tripped over her shoes, but she didn't care who saw as she plunged into the seat; it was as if she were competing against an army of other people who wanted the exact same spot. An aisle seat, never her selection, but she could deal with it.

"Hell yeah!" Anya cheered to herself. "Who's the best? I'm the best."

"Eager, are we?" a voice asked from the seat next to hers, causing Anya to jump up.

She turned her head to the left at her only neighbor. Well, what do you know? It was Darkness Boy (as she dubbed him in her head).

"Um, yeah," she replied, suddenly a bit embarrassed that this kid had seen her trip. "I've been excited to see this movie for a long time."

"Hm. You don't seem the type."

Anya wasn't sure if she should feel affronted or not. Was Darkness Boy implying that she was a wimp who couldn't handle the horrifying images that accompanied horror movies? Or was he flirting, saying that someone as girly and pretty as she was would probably prefer something closer to a romantic comedy?

Regardless, she decided she was overanalyzing his comment. She bit back, playfully but with just the right amount of venom, "Oh, yeah? And what brings you here?"

His eyebrows raised, challenging her. "Oh. Well, I like horror movies."

The previews were starting, Anya noticed. Taking a handful of popcorn, she simply nodded. She had no idea what to say back to that. How was she going to sit through an entire movie with this guy? Even his presence made her feel awkward. He wasn't mean, not at all. But his short, matter-of-fact answers irritated her. Simply being in his presence, she felt paranoid, as if he'd be judging her throughout the entire movie. Darkness Boy seemed the type, she observed, but caught her hypocritical thought a moment later. She distracted herself from the strange position she was in by turning off her phone.

"Wow. I'm surprised."

Anya turned towards him, interested to hear what the silent boy had to say. "What?"

"I guess you had me fooled. I'd peg you as the kind of girl who'd text throughout the entire movie."

He seemed to have a bit of malice in his voice, and Anya couldn't hide her offense. "Excuse me? Do you even know me? No, so how can you pass judgment on me?"

"Feistier than we look, are we. I suppose you're right, though. Eli. Eli Goldsworthy."

Anya was surprised at his sudden attempt at formalities. She also, she admitted, was surprised he had an actual name (she was growing fond of her secret nickname for him). This kid was weird, she acknowledged. He seemed to be the type of guy who enjoyed keeping people on their toes, keeping them guessing at what his next comment would be, leaving them shocked at whatever he'd say next.

"Anya," she stated, feeling herself smiling. Just a little bit. "Anya MacPherson."

"So, Anya MacPherson. Why don't I see you around?"

Still skeptical of him, she replied, "Um, well, I think we have the same lunch. I sit with the Power Squad, and I think you sit a few tables down. Are you a senior?"

"Junior."

"There you go, then," Anya responded. "I'm a senior."

"A senior, ah," he said. Anya couldn't decipher the connotations of the words when he spoke them. "So, when did you buy your ticket?"

"I didn't," Anya said, trying to warm up to him. "I work here, and I'm entitled to one free movie every week. As long as there are enough seats for me before I get in. Thank God there were enough seats for me to make this showing."

Eli cocked a brow. "This is a sold-out show. I actually got the last ticket."

Anya froze. "Wait, so someone didn't show up?"

"I guess not. Wow. For your sake, I hope they don't come in during the movie."

"What? But…but, no. You don't understand. I have to see this-"

Eli let a dry laugh escape. "Calm down. My friend Adam bought the other ticket yesterday. He's sick. Not coming. So you lucked out."

Anya felt relieved, then furious beyond belief, then slightly humored. "Why would you do that?"

"Just playing. You should really relax a bit."

Anya was clueless about two things. The first was, why was he talking to her? Her, of all people. Cheerleader, popular princess, senior hottie. Sure, they weren't exactly engaging in full-on conversation, but still. Why would he even give her the time of day? She'd only seen him talk to those two friends of his that he ate with. The other thing was, why didn't she totally abhor his company? For sure, she'd have thought that someone like Eli Goldsworthy was someone she'd never be able to communicate with. But their conversation was borderline normal. She wasn't about to become his friend or anything, no way. But she guessed that he would be a halfway decent person to converse with as the previews played.

Two more previews played before the start of the movie, during which Eli and Anya didn't talk much more. They didn't, after all, know each other. They had very little to say. When the movie started, they both became engrossed in the horror that was Paranormal Activity 2.

Anya immediately felt herself tense up as the opening credits began. It was her body's way of releasing the adrenaline and letting her know to brace herself. She liked horror movies, which was a fact that surprised some people, as long as they weren't too scary. She challenged herself with the first Paranormal Activity when it came out, and she loved it. Trying again with the second one was a no-brainer to her. Still, she tensed up a bit, preparing her body and mind for the scares that would appear on the screen. Anya swore she saw Eli look over quizzically at her as she went through her pre-horror-movie ritual. She didn't care, though. Not everyone could have the natural immunity for fright during horror films that Darkness Boy had.

She, for the most part, was able to concentrate wholly on the movie and not on her somewhat-creepy companion. And he was able to, too. On one occasion, though, Anya yelped out loud. Everyone around her snapped their heads to look at her, shooting her the "aw-it's-a-preppy-girl-don't-be-scared-it's-just-a -movie" look. And a poisonous MacPherson glare was all it took for them to stop.

This instance, Anya saw, caused Eli to chuckle. And she knew what he was thinking. And she didn't like it. He felt smug, she figured. He felt all-knowing and I-told-you-so for correctly predicting her fear.

When she looked over to give Eli her glare, she leaned over and added, "What was that for?"

"It was sweet."

Officially taken aback, incapable of venturing a guess as to what the hell this kid's deal was, Anya forced herself to continue watching the movie she'd been waiting so long to see. Minutes after being angry at Eli's stupid silent-boy persona, she was able to successfully do so.

Unable to control it, she felt herself shaking throughout certain points during the rest of the movie. A pain though it was, the shaking was Anya's way of knowing that she was getting the full experience of a horror film. One was supposed to shake and scream and feel like the girl who gets found by the killer when he watches a horror movie, she'd always thought. And she intended to live through that experience.

Eli whispered over, enigmatic as always, "Need an ambulance?"

Anya wanted to yell at him to stop interrupting her movie, for God's sake. Did he want a medal, or something? "Congratulations to Eli Goldsworthy," it would read, "for being less scared than Anya MacPherson during Paranormal Activity 2 and for being a condescending douchebag."

The end of the movie came after what seemed to be a short amount of time. Anya had fun. She loved being part of the movie, feeling engrossed, feeling like she were one of the characters in the film. The lights came up after the credits, and Anya got up to stretch.

She almost forgot about her little "friend" next to her, who was also standing up.

"Too intense for you, Anya?"

Feeling taken advantage of in a way she couldn't describe at the sound of her first name, Anya shot back a half-smile. "Maybe a bit. Sorry to disappoint."

"I'm devastated," Eli joked.

Well, mused Anya, joked about as much as Eli Goldsworthy could.

Eli and Anya walked out of the theater a few minutes later, after they'd stretched out and waited for some of the frazzled audience to dissipate. They then approached the main part of the movie theater, and Eli looked over at Anya, who looked back in confusion.

"Well, it was a pleasure meeting you, Anya MacPherson," Eli stated politely, almost too politely.

Anya half-smiled and gave a slight head nod. "It was. See you around?"

"I guess you will."

With that, Eli walked out of the theater. Anya stayed behind for a few minutes to say goodbye to her manager and to Quinn, noticing the car that Eli disappeared into. A black hearse, was that? Scary. Creepy. Morbid.

After saying goodbye, she stepped outside into the darkness towards her own car (in stark contrast, Anya drove a snazzy Volkswagen Jetta). Eli's hearse, she saw, was already down the street, heading towards the opposite direction that she'd be driving in.

She put the car in reverse and backed out of the parking lot. All the while, Anya couldn't stop herself from thinking about Darkness Boy...er, Eli. It wasn't that she was thinking of him romantically, or even that he was someone she could hang out with on weekends. It was more of a frustrated thought process. Why was his speech so ambiguous at some times, and so forward and almost friendly at others? Why did he have that smug attitude regarding his supposed "superiority" over her, because that's what Anya knew he felt? Why would he speak to her at all? Why did she feel like he was someone she could carry on a conversation with one minute, and someone she could easily ignore or even be annoyed with for the rest of her life the next?

Her thoughts kept her occupied the entire drive home. After she pulled into her driveway, unlocked the door, greeted her parents, showered, changed, and got into bed for the night, she decided it best to leave the mystery unsolved. She wasn't meant to be the person to decode the strange hieroglyphics of Eli Goldsworthy's mind. That was the job for someone else. Although curious, she admitted, to know more about him and what made him tick and what made him so brooding and confusing, it wasn't a priority. She'd go back to her normal life the next day, heading to Power Squad practice after school. He'd do whatever the hell it was he did after school, write dark poetry or listen to emo music or spend time with one or both of his friends. They would never see each other again, except possibly the now-and-then eye contact in the hallways. But neither of them would ever, ever be significant in each other's lives.

How did I write Eli? Does his voice sound true to his character? The way I see him, Season 10 Eli (which is when this story takes place) was kind of mysterious-but-flirty-at-the-same-time-sort-of to Clare, and I feel he had a certain charm to him in that season in particular. I hope the whole is-Eli-single thing is somewhat of a mystery. Is he dating Clare? Isn't he? Ooh! :) Anyway, I think Anya's much easier to write considering she's so much more like me, but let me know if I wrote Eli okay or not! I want to make this a really great story. Thank you so much, and review, please!