Just a little idea I came up with during Science today. Hope you like.
Disclaimer: Sky High doesn't belong to me. If it did I would be rich and not trying to think up ways to get enough money to pay for an electric violin.
………
"Got a date for the Valentine Dance, cutie?" she asks him breezily. "Do you need some help getting one?" She's not serious, of course – since he helped save the school from destruction he's been insanely popular. Personally, she thinks he and Katrine, the ice-girl, are perfect for one another.
He looks darkly at her, then goes back to his book.
"Warren?" she asks. "Are you going with Katrine?"
"No," he mumbles. It's very strange – today he's more like the grumpy, sulky person he used to be than the distinctly more cheerful and friendly guy he was after Homecoming.
"Warren, what's wrong?" She's concerned now.
"Don't you need to be somewhere? Doesn't dear Will want you?" The venom in his voice repulses her. She's never heard him sounding so angry, even the day he had the fight with Will in the canteen.
"What have you got against Will?" she demands. He turns to face her, chocolate-brown eyes lasering into her face. "I've got nothing against Will. You used to, though. You used to hate him so much—"
"I was angry, and jealous—" she begins.
"—you made me be your red herring, you even told him you were going with me to Homecoming and made me wear a tux to make him jealous." He glares at her. "You couldn't think about anything but making him angry, and I was the best person to help you."
She can't think what he's implying. "What about it? You said you were cool with it, you wanted to help me get back at Will! In fact, you only agreed after you knew it wasn't because I liked you."
He blinks slowly, and she feels mesmerised, like a cobra being bewitched by a snake-charmer.
"I didn't like you in that way then, I'd only met you the night before. But then… you annoyed the hell out of me, but you still managed to be sweet and funny and I wished you'd forget about Will. He'd chosen Gwen over you, a complete psycho, but you still went out with him just like that, no regrets.
"I wished you were better at holding grudges. You forgave him so easily, it was… well, I didn't understand why."
She understands now, but she still can't believe it. "But, later, at Homecoming, you went off with Katrine. I thought you liked her."
He rolls his eyes. "You're so inattentive it's not even funny. I tell you this and you're still going on about Katrine. Ice extinguishes fire."
She shivers, although it's a – for February – warm day, and she's wearing a thick jumper. All this time, and she'd no idea about any of this. She was usually an attentive person, but she's been totally ignorant of what had happened to Warren.
He's not finished. "When you came here, I remember you being such a little goody-goody. You were the definition of political correctness. Didn't believe in using your powers for evil or whatever that crap you fed Boomer was, didn't believe in separating people into Heroes and Sidekicks, but you believed in breaking people's hearts."
Her throat hurts now. "Warren, I'm sorry."
He laughs self-depreciatingly. "You're sorry. Do you think that makes things OK?"
She wishes she could disappear into the concrete beneath her.
He puts his book into his bag and slowly gets to his feet. "Go on. Go and rush to Will and tell him all about how horrible I am. He'll hug you and kiss you. Isn't it what you always wanted?"
After he walks away, she stays sitting immobile on the bench. She feels dirty, tainted.
She thought this was what she wanted, but now she's not so sure.