Once upon a time, someone I follow on tumblr requested that we share our 'conspiracy theories' on who Ryder was talking to online. My answer involved Ryder being smack bang in the middle of a complex web of lies involving a cyborg, a large group of aliens and Jarley as the linchpin to a series of events that would bring about the destruction of the world. Some aspects have been altered, just to make it less crazy, but this …(pause for effect)… is that story.

AU from Shooting Star.

If you're on a full size screen, please read this with your page width set to 1/2 or at least 3/4. It's a lot easier on the eyes like this. Messenger conversations interspersed with plot are hard to read and I'm not a fan but in this instance (what with it currently being their only form of communication) I think it's necessary.

He only had a second to squint against the glare before it reached him. Whatever it was hit him squarely on his torso and showed no sign of slowing. Light wasn't supposed to have mass was it? The impact didn't throw him off his feet immediately. Instead he felt the pressure on his chest increase and increase, as the ball of light continued its inexorable path, until his body caught up and he was flung violently backwards. His eyes stayed fixed on her throughout, her face twisted in concentration and her hand outstretched towards him.

Ryder saw her come online as he sat in the library struggling his way through an essay detailing the importance of the Craftsmen's Play in A Midsummer Night's Dream. The concepts and themes were fine, but he'd used Helena and Hermia interchangeably throughout the essay and had only just figured it out. It was going to be a long night. And there was still Glee club before he could go home.

katie_xoxo: Hey there ;)

He started typing in a message and smiled as he was able turn his mangled spelling into clear and precise English. He loved Ghotit. He had been so self-conscious about his terrible spelling when he had started chatting with Katie, it felt like he had the online equivalent of acne or bad BO.

ryder_lynn: Hey\y :D

ryder_lynn: You're the kind of lady I've been looking for my entire life.

ryder_lynn: Every boy dreams of the day he'll finally meet that special someone who is able to….

ryder_lynn: offer even a small break from this hellish English essay ;)

He could see her perfectly when he closed his eyes. She would tilt her head to side, laughing at his clumsy attempt at a pick up line.

katie_xoxo: Haha, cute. How long did it take you to come up with that smooth line?

She was always a little sarcastic when he tried lines like that but he was fairly certain that she was sincere about the cute. She was perfect. Everything he revealed to her: his goofy jokes, his love of cheesy 80s soft rock...even stuff in his past that he didn't think he would reveal to anyone, she just took it all in her stride. She was the most accepting person he had ever met and he hadn't even really met her yet. He felt his stomach lurch as he contemplated this.

ryder_lynn:…..30 minutes, give or take :D

What would he do when he first met her? Would he kiss her or play it cool? Would he even be able to play it cool? Oh god, he would probably panic.

ryder_lynn: Can you blame me? I'm pretty sure it's just about people running around in a forest after getting drugged.

ryder_lynn: There's a guy with a donkey's head. He is LITERALLY an ass. How are you supposed to critically analyze that?

ryder_lynn: It's like critically analyzing The Hangover or Superbad.

katie_xoxo: At least you have Glee to take your mind off it soon : )

ryder_lynn: Yeah, I guess.

katie_xoxo: Is something bothering you at Glee? Are things ok with Unique?

ryder_lynn: No, not that. It's just, Marley….she's acting kind of controlling. She screamed at Jake in the middle of the hall just because of the song he wanted to sing. And I mean, yeah, Chris Brown isn't great, but that really wasn't necessary.

ryder_lynn: And Jake, he just backs up whatever she says, it's like they're this mutated single human being that only has one brain but for some reason gets two votes.

katie_xoxo: You seem to be spending lots of time with them…

katie_xoxo: Isn't that hard? Why don't you try to distance yourself a little?

ryder_lynn: Oh, you know what they say. Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer :p

katie_xoxo: …..Are they the friends or the enemies that statement?

ryder_lynn: JK, they're totally my friends. Just, sometimes, it gets hard to remember that. It would be a lot easier if they weren't so sickeningly…together.

That split second, as he flew through the air, was silent in every conceivable sense. Yes, the locker room was quiet but more than that it was like the force had jolted him from his body for an instant. The pressure from the blast had abated and he hadn't yet landed; it was like his body was holding its breath. And his mind, faced with an impossible truth, was completely blank. He couldn't comprehend what was in front of him; but equally, his mind was almost blissfully unconcerned with whatever had worrying him even five minutes ago.

Ryder sucked in a breath quickly as his words appeared in the conversation window. He sounded so bitter. Somewhere along the line this conversation had gotten derailed. He suspected it was around the time he started talking about Shakespearean asses.

ryder_lynn: They are both awesome people. They just make a singular, not quite so awesome, Jarley Monster!

After a minute of radio silence, Ryder tried again.

ryder_lynn: It's like, there are enough seats to go around, you don't need to share. You know?

Yeah, it was a faux pas, he had been talking about Jake and Marley too much lately but that almost felt like a smooth save. If there was only one thing that two single people could talk about, it would be their dislike of watching coupling. He imagined the worry wrinkle that had formed above her nose smoothing as she let out a quick laugh at his comment.

katie_xoxo: Yeah, I guess.

So, maybe she didn't quite laugh.

ryder_lynn: ….This is coming out all wrong. Can we just start over? I just

He held down backspace. No, that wouldn't do.

ryder_lynn: I'm sure I'd be less jealous if I were part of my own little couple monster…

Oh god no, that was worse.

ryder_lynn: If perchance I have offended think of this and all is mended, that you have but slumbered here while these visions did appear.

He sat back, proud. He had been spending way too long on his essay but it was paying off. That said apologizing via iambic pentameter, while suave as hell, probably wouldn't go down well either. He stabbed at the backspace key until the sentence had disappeared.

ryder_lynn: So…I think I've kind of upset you. And even if I haven't, I still want to apologize. We have something here. Yeah, maybe this all started with me whining about the girl I liked but we have more than that now, more than I ever had with Marley. But sometimes I forget that, and I just slip back into complaining about her again. If you gave me a chance, I know that anything else bouncing around in my head would just disappear. Because I think you're just that amazing.

There.

His hand shook a little as he placed it back on the mouse. His whole body felt like it was pulsing in time to his heart. Maybe this was it; this was what would convince her to give them a real chance.

He set about correcting all of the spelling mistakes he'd made in that. He worked quickly but it still took a while; more than half of the words were colored red. And then, as he looked up to send it, her icon flicked to offline. Ryder slammed his hand on the desk in exasperation which earned him a ferocious shushing from the librarian on duty.

He shut down the computer before packing his bag and stalking out of the room. Maybe if he got to the music room early he'd be able to take out his frustrations on the drum kit.

Or a music stand.

Ghotit is real life software that helps people with particularly bad spelling e.g. dyslexics. It's kinda nuts how far off you can be from the desired word and it will still offer the right spelling. I don't like the idea of spelling everything right (because that's just not who Ryder is) but the idea of intentionally putting in spelling errors physically hurts me. So I figured he'd be likely to use software like this :)

On that note, I welcome ALL criticism. Even if it's just a spelling mistake. Also, theorising! Who do you think is a cyborg? What about the aliens? How exactly are Jarley are vital to the continuation of life as we know it?...