Five Days
Disclaimer: I do not own Austin & Ally
Rating: T for cursing and suggestiveness
Genre: Humor/Romance
Miscellaneous: N/A
...I have no words.
The First Day (of Their Lives)
"My mind forgets to remind me
You're a bad idea
You touch me once and it's really something
You find I'm even better than you imagined I would be
I'm on my guard for the rest of the world
But with you, I know it's no good
And I could wait patiently
But I really wish you would."
-"Sparks Fly" by Taylor Swift
Ally finishes cleaning out her locker, a sad smile tugging on her lips. All around her, people are cheering, excited for the parties that are sure to be happening tonight. None of them seem the slightest bit sad about school ending.
Yes, high school has ended, meaning that they're all ready to go out in the real world (though, she isn't too sure about the students who aren't so bright; their parents should probably keep an eye on them).
She shuts her locker gently, giving it an affectionate pat. Despite being pranked all through high school, she'll miss it. A lot.
She walks to the double doors at the end of the hall that lead to the outside. Wistfully, she casts one last glance over her shoulder.
She turns back around and pushes through the doors, crossing the main plaza in the middle of the front yard, and she's about to start down one of the sidewalks leading out of campus when a voice calls, "Hey, Dawson!"
She bites back a groan and abruptly pivots to face the owner of the voice, keeping her face as neutral as possible.
Of course, she turns fearful as soon as she sees who it is.
The king of the school himself, Austin Moon, is making his way towards her, a scowl throwing off his usually calm, cool, and collected appearance.
When he reaches her, she blurts out the very first thing that enters her mind. "Did I forget to do your homework?"
Inwardly, she curses at herself. He hasn't been asking her to do his homework! Plus, school is over! Sometimes she wonders about that mouth of hers. She really, really does.
He scoffs. "No, I don't- Wait, you do homework?" He looks interested for a second before he reverts back to scowling, and she wonders if he's forgotten that school is over. "Never mind that! Look, I need to talk to you about something."
She stares at him, incredulously. They never speak to one another unless it involves a prank that was played on her or if he needs answers to a test.
She doesn't understand why he needs to talk to her or what it's about, but she has to listen, unless she wants to be egged while she's walking around. And, trust her when she says that being egged is not fun.
"Wh-what about?" She asks, weakly.
He groans and runs a hand through his hair in frustration, looking like he wants to scream or something. "I told my parents a stupid lie," he mutters, crossly. "They kept trying to get me to date these nerdy goody-two shoes, and I got so sick and tired of it that I told them that you and I were dating. Because, you know, you were the first decent nerd that popped into my head."
He doesn't look at all ashamed; instead, he just looks annoyed. On the other hand, Ally's jaw is dropped in shock, her eyes wide with disbelief.
How can he do that? Ally knows he's popular, but still! How can he just say that and expect her to go along with it?
"They asked me a bunch of questions before saying that they wanted to meet you. Obviously, I couldn't say no," he points out with an eye roll. "So I need you to come meet my parents and clear up all this fake girlfriend nonsense before they start setting me up with nerds again."
Ally finally closes her mouth, cheeks flushed a deep scarlet color. "Why me?" She asks in a small voice. It seems appropriate since he's about a foot taller than her.
He gives an exaggerated sigh, rolling his eyes again. "I told you; you were the first nice nerd to come to mind. Plus, my parents seem to have their hearts set on someone nerdy."
Why do his parents want him to have a nerdy girlfriend? He's not even remotely nerdy, and he's so... so... popular!
She anxiously chews on her lip as her eyes flick from him to the sidewalk that leads away from this place. "I-I don't know... I mean, I know I'm supposed to follow your guys' orders lest I suffer the consequences, but this... is a little extreme."
Austin narrows his eyes at the clearly anxious girl. "I didn't sign up for this either, Dawson." She stifles a sigh, wondering if he even knows her first name. "It was a stupid lie, and now, I've gotta deal with the consequences. Unless you want there to be consequences for you too, you have to agree to go along with the plan."
Her shoulders sag with defeat as she reluctantly nods. "Fine. What's your plan?" She asks, lowly.
He grins. "Well, my parents want you to come over for dinner tonight. You up for that?" Of course, they both know that he's not really asking; she'll have to go either way.
"Yeah..." She sighs.
"Great." He looks her over, scowling again. "But you need to de-nerdify yourself first. Yeah, my parents want me to have a nerdy girlfriend, but I don't think that I could stand it if you looked like this the whole time. They're just going to have to piss off about your appearance, and by the way, you need to at least present yourself as nerd-ish. I didn't pick you for no reason."
She takes a step back, brows furrowing in complete and utter confusion at the first part of his rant. "De-what?"
He rolls his eyes, gesturing to her whole body. "You know, make yourself look less nerdy! Jeez, I thought that you were smart."
That strikes a nerve. "Hey, I am very smart! I'm on the honor roll!"
He waves a hand dismissively, glossing over that fact. "Whatever. So, here's what you need to do." He steps toward her, invading her bubble of personal space, which makes her freeze.
He takes off her glasses, ordering, "No nerdy, thick-lensed, rectangular glasses."
"Hey, I can't see without those!" A squinting Ally cries, retrieving her glasses and putting them back on.
"Well, then, get contacts or something!" He snaps, irritably, looking her over again. "Don't leave your hair in that awful high ponytail, don't wear anything with flowers, and for the love of pancakes, can you please wear something decent? I don't mean like pants or whatever; I mean that I really wish that you would stop wearing stuff that your grandma wore back when she was in high school."
(It vaguely occurs to her that he said 'for the love of pancakes,' but she's too busy going over his words to comment on that.)
Ally looks down at her brown knee-length floral print dress with horrified eyes. When she looks back up at him, Austin nods, putting a faux-sympathetic hand on her shoulder. "It's time," he says, gravely.
"Not making me feel better," she mumbles, dejection circulating through her. She didn't realize that her clothes were that awful.
"Meet me at the park near here at five. I need to make sure you look acceptable before we go to my house," he explains when she looks confused.
"Bring... How long have we been dating, supposedly?" She asks.
It's his turn to be confused. "Only a week... Why?"
"Well, couples normally take pictures," she elaborates, gesturing between them with her hands. "Since we're supposedly a couple, we need pictures to back it up. So bring... four extra sets of clothes. I know that it won't account for a whole week, but we'll just say that we don't always take pictures if anyone asks."
He raises an eyebrow. "So... You want me to dress up and take pictures... With you."
She blushes, ducking her head in embarrassment. "Am I really that bad?" She asks, softly, in a hurt voice.
He bites his lip, backing away from her. "No, I mean... Forget it. I'll be there."
She sighs, resignedly. "Yeah, I'll be there too." She adjusts the straps on her backpack, walking away. "See you then."
As she heads home, a question lingers on her mind.
Now, what to wear?
Ally slings her backpack over her shoulder as she leaves her house, starting for the park she's supposed to meet Austin at. She wishes that he hadn't mentioned her because she really doesn't want to be caught up in a lie. But she knows all too well what could happen if she doesn't go along with it, so she's going to. It doesn't matter that they've graduated; the populars still haven't lost their popular status and probably never will.
She'll regret this one day. She just knows that she will.
As she walks along the sidewalk, her mind drifts back in time to her days as the school's laughingstock.
*Start of Flashback*
Ally, on her way to her next class, mutters a curse under her breath. Her class starts in-literally-a minute.
She's completely absorbed in her thoughts and curses and doesn't notice a group of teenagers sneaking up to her. The lead blonde, smirking, signals to his friends to fire.
Ally feels something slimy land in her hair. Her eyes widen in horror as she realizes what's happening, and she whirls around just in time to have another weird thing hit her right in the face. Her eyes immediately snap shut, and so does her mouth as the substance slides down her face.
"Oh, Dawson," an all too familiar voice sighs, mockingly, "didn't your mom ever tell you not to eat raw eggs?"
Ouch. Did he have to bring her up?
Casually, another person tosses an egg at her, and the eggs must be open already because she doesn't feel the shells scraping her skin like they should be.
She shakily reaches up and wipes the watery substance off of her face, feeling disgust well up inside of her. She hates the feeling of raw eggs; it's so slimy and could have salmonella in it. Don't they know that?
She opens her eyes, but her vision is blurred because the raw eggs have coated her glasses. Still, she knows who's standing there, but she doesn't dare speak to them for fear of the eggs getting into her mouth.
"Aw, aren't you going to talk to us?" A distinctly feminine voice coos.
"Oh, leave her, Cass," the first voice grunts. She can vaguely see that he's herding them away. "We've done enough..." He says, his voice fading as he goes further and further away.
Feeling more egg slide down her face, she agrees.
*End of Flashback*
In case you were wondering, that was Austin and a cheerleader named Cassidy talking. And, also, no, she didn't make it to class on time; in fact, she had to talk to the teacher and make up an excuse (she can't get the golden kids in trouble, obviously) as to why she didn't make it to class. She didn't get in trouble, but her spirits were down for the rest of the day.
She shakes her head, dismissing the memory. The last thing she needs is to be stuck in the past with those times; it's time to move on.
The mile passes by quickly, and she arrives at the spacious park, watching the kids play soccer in one corner of the field. Other people are having picnics, and a few are just goofing off, doing what they please.
Must be nice, she thinks, wistfully, following one of the pathways in the large park.
"Dawson!" A voice shouts soon after, making her sigh with annoyance.
"Do you even know my real name, Moon?" She asks, mockingly. He raises an eyebrow at her sudden spark of confidence.
She twirls around, an unamused look on her face. "Well?"
There's an awkward pause as the blonde nervously scratches the back of his neck. "...Ally?"
She claps her hands, slowly. "Ding, ding, ding. Look who figured out my name after an eternity."
He's surprised by her attitude. He thought that she was weak, going along with whatever people tell her to do. So what's this?
She shakes her head, sighing. "Sorry, it's just... I don't like lies."
Oh, look, there's the goody-two shoe side of her.
He dismisses it. "Whatever. Let's just do whatever, alright?" She makes a mental note of how he overuses the word 'whatever.'
"Yeah, okay. Come on," she says, leading him over to the bathrooms. She takes off her glasses and puts in her contacts (which she hardly wears because she almost always forgets to put them on), which earns her a few weird looks. She then goes into a handicap stall (to her extreme distaste, it's dirty) and quickly changes just in case a handicapped person needs to use the bathroom since this is the only one. She takes her hair out of her ponytail and swiftly drags her fingers through it, untangling it. Her curls are noticeable by now, so she leaves and is relieved to find that no one was waiting for her stall.
Before she exits the bathroom, she takes off her sandals and slips on her sneakers one by one so that her feet never touch the filthy floor, putting her sandals in a plastic bag which she then drops into her backpack.
As soon as she steps out, she starts looking around for Austin, and she finds him immediately. He's leaning against the building of the men's bathroom, wearing a white tank top under a black button-up, dark wash ripped jeans, and black combat boots.
She has to admit: he's easily the hottest, handsomest, and most attractive guy she's ever met. He's got it all: the blonde hair that's just the right shade and flops exactly the right way, the sparkling brown eyes, the nice tan, the noticeable but not disgustingly huge muscles, the charming smile... Everything. He has everything a guy could want and a girl loves, and dare she say that he might just be the closest thing to perfect? She blushes and clears away those thoughts as she approaches him, taking out her camera.
"Ready?" She asks, getting his attention. His eyes widen as he takes in her appearance, making her blush. "Is it that bad?" She wonders aloud, glancing down at her outfit.
She's wearing a grey vest over a black V-neck, stone grey skinny jeans, and darker grey sneakers. She didn't think that it was that bad...
"No, I mean," he begins, dazed, "you look... Different. Good different," he hastily tacks on.
She blinks, surprised at his (sort of) compliment. "Um... Thanks?"
He ducks his head. "Yeah, um... No problem. Should we just- you know..." He gestures to the camera awkwardly.
"Yeah," she quickly agrees. "Yeah." She looks around for something... Something legitimate and something that'll make them look like a real couple. Like... "Come on," she orders, bringing him over to a lone stretch of grass.
"Grass?" He asks, dryly. "What, are we gonna make grass angels or something?" He falls onto the grass, setting his backpack down next to him.
It's only when she's set down her backpack next to his and takes a seat next to him that she realizes just how awkward this will be. She never thought that taking romantic pictures with Austin Moon would be on her agenda.
"No," she snips, pushing their stuff to the side. Now how to go about this... "Okay, this is all going to be a really weird experience, but if you want this to work, you're going to have to go along with it. I don't like this as much as you," she sighs. "So, lie down. Right there." She points to the spot next to her, and he scoots over, lying down next to her.
Taking a deep breath, she turns on her camera and props herself on her elbows next to him, muttering, "Smile," through a fake grin.
He surveys their positions. He's lying on his stomach, elbows propped up and head lazily resting in his hands. She's also lying on her stomach in a similar position, except she isn't resting her head in her hands.
"Wouldn't it look better if we did this?" He asks with a devilish smirk, throwing an arm around her shoulders and pressing her right against his body. She blushes because of how close they are.
"...Uh, um... Okay," she says in a small voice. He snickers and grabs the camera, taking a picture. "Hey! I wasn't ready!" She whines, making a rather pathetic effort to retrieve her camera from the laughing blonde.
"Oh my God, your face is hilarious!" He laughs, showing her the picture. Her face is bright red, and she looks timid while Austin is just biting his lip, trying not to laugh.
"Austin!" She groans, hanging her head in shame. "You're horrible." It's something she's always wanted to say when he plays one of his pranks on her, but never has the courage to do it. Hearing it now, though, it doesn't even sound bitter; it just sounds like one of those things you say to a friend when they throw their stale piece of bread from lunch at you.
"No, I'm funny!" He counters, taking another picture. This is more fun than he thought it would be.
"Ugh, just let me take the picture," she mumbles, forcing a smile to her face and taking a picture. He's still grinning from the pictures he took so she doesn't need to cue him.
"Not the best, but it'll have to do," she sighs as she looks at the picture, figuring that it looks real enough. She pulls away from him and gets up, dusting herself off.
"What now?" He asks, and she glances down at him.
"We're going to Phil's Fun Town. Come on," she says, lifting her bag from the grass and walking away with Austin scrambling after her.
She's wearing a navy dress with a white flower above the hemline (Austin, surprisingly, didn't complain), a thick white belt, and white flats. He's wearing a blue plaid button-up, black jeans, and bright blue high-tops.
With a reluctant sigh, she slips into the photo booth, Austin sliding in after her. They put their backpacks at their feet, and she sets the machine to take one strip, which is five pictures.
"Who gets the fifth picture?" He wonders out loud, glancing over at the petite brunette.
Her finger stops, hovering over the button to start the booth. "You do," she replies, flatly, eyeing him in annoyance. "Can I start now?"
"Jeez, don't need to be so snarky," he mutters, watching her roll her eyes back over to the button and pressing it.
The countdown starts, and he realizes that he has no idea what to do. Fortunately (or unfortunately), Ally is so annoyed at him that she dismisses her previous reservations about taking romantic pictures with Austin because of the required close proximity and smiles at him, ruffling his hair, which makes him jerk back in irritation.
"Hey!" He exclaims, reaching for her and tickling her as payback. She erupts into a fit of giggles, trying to push him away.
"Austin!" She gasps, shoving his hands away and tackling him with a hug, restraining his arms. "Stop it!"
"Never!" He cries gleefully, breaking out of her hold and squeezing her tightly. She wheezes.
"Stop!" She coughs, sucking in a deep breath. He lets go, and she remembers why they came in here in the first place. She sees that they have only one more picture left, so she leans up and pecks him on the cheek. His eyes widen in shock as she pulls away, the session complete.
She picks up her backpack and pushes him a bit, snapping him out of his daze. "Hey, come on. We have to go get the strip." He blinks.
"Oh, right. Okay, let's go," he says, grabbing his bag and leaving the booth, Ally right on his heels.
The strip finishes developing in a few seconds and drops into the shelf-like structure sticking out of the booth. She takes it out and bursts out laughing at the odd pictures that were taken of them.
The first one is of him jerking back, eyes narrowed at her in irritation, with her hand still in his hair. The second one is of him tickling her with the biggest grin on his face, and her head is thrown back as she laughs. The third one is of her with her arms wrapped around him and him struggling to start tickling her again. The fourth one is of them hugging each other to death, smiles on their faces despite being deprived of oxygen. The fifth one is of her kissing him on the cheek, and he's still smiling, not registering the kiss quite yet.
The fifth one would convince anyone that they're a couple.
"Wow, they're nice," he murmurs, looking over her shoulder at them. He actually has to duck his head a bit because he's just that much taller than her.
"Yeah," she agrees. "They are. Well, we'd better take a few more pictures. Maybe near a ride?"
He nods, enthusiastically. "Let's go on the rollercoaster! They take a picture of the ride at one point."
She opens her mouth to say no, but she makes the mistake of looking at him. His eyes are wide, and he's pouting his lip, resembling some sort of sad puppy. Faltering at the rather innocent look on the rather dirty boy, she agrees. His face lights up like the night sky on Independence Day as he cheers, dragging her over to the intimidating rollercoaster.
She has second thoughts when she boards the monstrous ride.
"Austin," she begins, nervously, "I-"
"Oh, no, you're staying right here," he smirks, looping his arm through hers. She looks up at him, eyes wide.
"But-" And then the coaster starts moving, startling her into a terrified silence. Seeing that his fake girlfriend is actually really scared, Austin puts his arm around her, which makes her jump slightly, but she doesn't do anything because they're ascending the first big hill.
The ride passes by fairly quickly, punctuated by Ally's soft squeals every few seconds. She never screams, to Austin's amazement, even though she's obviously freaking out.
When they get off, he has to steady her because she's obviously feeling kind of... green. They get the picture, and while she looks sick to her stomach, he looks like he's having the time of his life.
"Are you okay?" He asks as they leave, glancing at her in concern.
She swallows, difficultly. "...Yeah. Just, uh... Give me a second." She takes a few deep breaths and reminds herself to never go on that ride again. "I think... I'm good. So, um, we need to go take a few more pictures. Come on."
First, she tells him to change into a different set of clothes, so he does, as does she.
He follows her as she leads him away from the amusement park and to an old abandoned road that's cracked in various places with weeds sprouting up. She instructs him to sit down on a dirty old couch, which he does with a reasonable hesitation.
"Um, is this- and you're sitting down too," he mutters as she sits next to him.
"It's alright. I know it's dirty, but whatever, you know? Now, come on; smile."
She smiles softly and holds out her camera at arm's length. He wraps an arm around her shoulders, a warm smile on his face.
For the first time, she doesn't blush at his close proximity.
She snaps the picture then brings the camera back, checking the picture.
"Wow," they breathe at the same time.
Their softly smiling faces are close, barely an inch apart, his arm keeping their bodies close together. The sun is setting right behind them, illuminating their frames in a perfect mix of light and shadows.
"That's... like..." Austin struggles to find the right word.
"Amazing," Ally finishes in a hushed voice. "I haven't taken a picture like that since... Um, yeah." She looks away and clears her throat quietly. "One last stop."
They stop at the park to change one last time, and then she takes him to the other side of the park.
"We already took park pictures," he points out as he sits down next to the quiet girl. She absently picks some flowers near her, and he can't help but take a picture of her doing that, marveling at how pretty she looks in the setting sun.
He never expected to think that nerdy Ally Dawson is pretty.
"I know," she says, softly, bunching the flowers together. "Just one more." She motions for him to lie on his back, so he does. She lies next to him and rests her head on his chest, looking up at the stars. He moves closer to her to make it easier for her and slips an arm around her.
The camera clicks as it takes the picture.
He puts his chin on her shoulder, looking at it with her. "I like that one," he whispers. She pauses.
"So do I."
They develop the pictures and part ways so that Ally can go home and put her clothes away. She meets him at the park, freshly showered and wearing black boots, black jeans, and a red long-sleeved shirt.
"Hey," she sighs, approaching him. "My dad wants me home by nine," she tells him, as a superficial notion. She doesn't actually have to be home by then, but maybe he won't keep her too long if she tells him a curfew time.
Her hand slips into her messenger bag, pulling out the strip from the photo booth. "Which ones do you want?"
He narrows his eyes, looking it over. "Three, four, and five," he says, decisively.
She glances up at him in surprise. "You didn't want two?"
He shakes his head, smirking devilishly. "Nah. You look like you're straddling me in three." Her eyes widen, and she quickly checks the picture, groaning when she sees that he's right.
"Ugh, here," she mutters, ripping the strip and handing him his pictures. He grins, pocketing them.
"Thanks. Okay, so, you ready to meet my parents?" He asks, rhetorically, before adding, "Don't forget to act a bit nerdy, since that's why I chose you in the first place."
She rolls her eyes, despite feeling slightly nervous. She may not be his actual girlfriend, but she does need to make his parents think she is or, of course, there will be consequences.
"Sure, let's go," she says, and he signals for her to follow him.
They cross several streets and take a million turns, so she knows that she won't be able to get home on her own. He seems perfectly at ease, though, and never falters in his choice of direction.
Honestly, she can't say that she's surprised when they walk up to an estate.
"Nice place," she observes with a tinge of resentment, "you guys must be pretty rich."
He doesn't notice the resentment in her voice and nods, but he doesn't seem too excited. "Yep. It's nice, right?"
"Yeah, it's really nice," she agrees, looking around the grand estate's property.
No words or last minute warnings are exchanged as the odd pair traverses the walkway, Austin opening the wooden double doors that look like they were pulled from the medieval times at the end.
She's hit by the rich smell of steak, and she has to stop her jaw from dropping. She hasn't had steak in... well, forever.
Austin, however, is passive as he lazily calls out, "Okay, I brought her!" He looks down at her, annoyed, when he feels her dagger-like glare fixed on him. "Well, what was I supposed to say?"
She opens her mouth to retort just as a blonde woman comes running around the corner, causing Ally to jump towards Austin and wrap her arm around his. To her inner disappointment, she can't snap back at Austin.
The woman clasps her hands together in, what Ally considers, an overdramatic fashion. "Oh, you are so pretty! And you two look adorable together!" She coos.
Austin rolls his eyes in irritation. "Mom!"
She seems to drop from cloud nine back to Earth, blinking in confusion. "Oh, I'm sorry, hun. I forgot."
Ally looks up at her supposed boyfriend in bewilderment, but he just mouths, Tell you later.
His mom, presumably Mrs. Moon, smiles warmly at her, saying, "Welcome to our wonderful home! Come, come, dinner's almost done." She leads them back to the kitchen, which rivals a professional one in a five-star restaurant.
It has a stainless steel double door fridge with pictures and a calendar hung up on it with magnets, and next to it is a dishwasher. The oven is squished tightly in a space between the counters, and the microwave is built into the wall amongst cabinets. A sink is sitting in front of a window, which looks out onto the grounds. Two islands are pushed up against each other in the middle of the kitchen, another sink planted into one.
"This is really nice," Ally compliments, politely.
Mrs. Moon grins, widely. "Thank you so much!" The petite brunette nods, while Austin sighs.
"Mom, please stop yelling," he mutters, tightening his grip on Ally. She thinks that this is odd but doesn't try to pull away.
"Oh, sorry," she quickly apologizes, bustling around the kitchen. "So, Ally, is there anything you would like to drink in particular?" She asks as she takes the mouth-watering steaks out of what looks like a heater on one of the islands.
Ally's tongue darts out to wet her lips for a nanosecond before she answers, "No, it's okay." No one notices her actions, making her relax in relief.
Mrs. Moon smiles at the two teenagers, beckoning them into a different room with her head. "Well, come on; let's eat!"
She can't stop staring around the dining room.
The walls are ornately designed with elegant roses decorating the beige wallpaper, and the floor is clean marble. A long wooden table reminiscent of past times stretches down the middle of the room, high-backed chairs standing stout on each side. A twinkling crystal chandelier dangles from the ceiling, casting a bright glow on the people below.
She wonders if she's dreaming.
When she glances at the two Moons, she can picture them in the clothes of royalty, complete with capes and crowns.
To think a simple peasant girl (if you'd prefer older terms) like her is sitting with a queen and prince in modern times is bizarre.
Austin is finishing up his steak by now and so is Mimi (she learned that that's his mom's name), but Ally's still working on hers. She's getting full by now because she's used to eating so little.
"You gonna eat that?" Austin asks around a mouthful of mashed potatoes, pointing a fork at her steak that she's pulling back from.
"Austin!" Mimi cries, whacking her son on the arm. He flinches even though it doesn't hurt much and rubs the spot she hit.
"What?" He asks, defensively.
Ally giggles, softly. "No, it's okay. You can have it."
He gives his mom a pointed glare as he steals the steak from Ally, plopping it down on his plate.
Ally pokes her mashed potatoes, taking a bite every so often. The table is silent for a while until Austin questions in an annoyed voice, "What, Dad got 'held up' at work again?" He puts air quotes around 'held up.'
His mom glares at him. "Austin..." She warns, eyes narrowing.
He throws his hands in the air, exasperated. "What? Both of you wanted to meet Ally, and he couldn't be bothered to take off work for one damn day? I think that I have a right to be pissed!"
"Language!" Mimi snaps, pointing a stern finger at her son. "What did I tell you about-"
"Oh, excuse me," he hisses, harshly. "I am so sorry for swearing! I should just go to my room because I am such a petulant child, right? Okay, no answer, so I will!" He roughly pushes himself away from the table, the chair squeaking on the floor. He swiftly stands and storms off, leaving a fuming Mimi and a stunned Ally behind.
She blinks. She had never realized that his family situation was so bad... She looks down at her lap, feeling slightly guilty. She may not be his actual girlfriend, or even his friend, and she may not know him, but she does know that she needs to go after him.
"I'm so sorry, but please excuse me..." Ally says, quietly, slipping out of her chair and hurrying after him. Mimi is too angry to reply.
She passes through the kitchen and looks around in confusion, already lost in this huge house. The appearance of the mansion from the outside pops into her head, and she wants to groan when she realizes that she'll have to search five floors.
The first room she enters looks like a living room, only five times larger than a regular one. She disappears down the hall and ghosts through the long hallways until she reaches the stairs.
"They need signs or something," she mutters as she trudges up the stairs, wondering where she'll end up next.
As it turns out, she enters another living room, and she sighs. "How hard is it to find his bedroom?" She mumbles, hesitantly creeping down one of the halls. She peeks in the rooms on both sides of the hall this time, seeing a bathroom, an office, a den, an empty room, a linen closet, and a door leading into a storage room.
At the end of the hall is a turn, which leads to a walkway with carefully crafted black rails on each side. They twist into different cylindrical and cone-like shapes, and some have metallic roses infused into them.
"I'm starting to see why he hates flowers," she says, noting the railings. She peers over and sees large rooms on each side, most likely both living rooms. How many do they need? But as she looks closer, she realizes that the room on the right is the same one she passed through on the start of her trek (because, really, that's what this is turning out to be).
The room on the left is filled with wrapped gifts and a few balloons, and she figures that they must be for Austin. After all, they did graduate today...
She pushes through the set of chalk white double doors at the end of the walkway, entering a cavernous room with a soaring ceiling and pure white and black furniture.
"What in the world?" She murmurs, amazed. Not only is everything pure white and black... but they're all actual chess pieces on a white and black checkered floor. "Obsessed with chess much?"
Of course, no one is there to give her an answer.
She stares up at a towering white queen that stands at least a few feet taller than her. But when she nudges it, it easily slides across the floor a bit. Fascinated, she moves it towards the piece in front of it. A giggle slips from her mouth as it bumps into it.
After a couple minutes, she stops messing around and puts the queen back in place and continues her search, crossing the board.
"Huh?" She asks, confused, voice bouncing around the room in an eerie echo. Three doors fan out in front of her, each designed differently.
One is bright purple with pink polka dots, only half a foot across. Another is sunshine yellow with black stripes randomly slashed across it, and it's the size of a regular door. The last one is so neon orange and yellow, it hurts her eyes. Unfortunately, it's the widest one, which means it has more width to torture her eyes with.
"Is this like a funhouse or something?" She questions the empty air, head tilting. "Or maybe they're eccentric... That must be it," she concludes, hoping that she's right.
She picks the yellow and black door and finds herself in a hallway with bright blue walls on each side, instruments painted on them. She stares at them in amazement and then looks up at the ceiling, where gold stars dangle and shine over her. "Wow..." She whispers in awe, tip-toeing down the hall.
Soon, she discovers the door at the end of the hall and enters, jaw dropping immediately.
A stage is set up against the back of the room, with a microphone and stand at the front, a guitar resting on its own stand, a drum set in the back right corner, and a keyboard in the back left. Seats line the wall opposite the stage, maybe just in case the performers have an audience. Most of the room is open for whatever reason, and a window lets in the moonlight from outside.
She walks up to the stage and settles behind the keyboard, trailing her fingers across the keys wistfully. A quick, cheery riff rings through the silence for a brief moment, and she cracks smile.
She leaves before she gets absorbed in the most amazing room in the house, in her opinion. She travels throughout the house, soundlessly, a sleepy haze settling over her vision.
It's been a long day.
She finally stumbles across yellow and blue double doors at the end of yet another hall, music notes decorating the doors. She hopes that this is his bedroom and prays that he likes music.
Her hand lifts up and knocks. No answer.
"Austin?" She calls, softly. Still nothing.
She sighs and twists the knob, poking her head in. She doesn't see him.
His blue plaid bed looks used, and she knows that it's his room because his clothes are strewn around the room and the pictures they took earlier are scattered across his sheets. The odd thought of him looking at them crosses her mind, but she quickly brushes it off. He wouldn't... right?
She finds that he does indeed love music, since he has guitars, a keyboard, and a few other instruments all around. His desk has unfinished homework piled on top, and his backpack from earlier is placed on his chair.
She mutters under her breath, walking over to his window seat and sitting down on it, looking out the window at the night sky. She's always loved Miami nights. The night air calms her down.
She must have dozed off, because next thing she knows, she's being shaken awake.
"Ally, come on," a voice whispers, probably belonging to the person who's shaking her.
Her eyes flicker open, taking in the vague image of a blonde-haired boy. "Austin?" She murmurs sleepily as he stops shaking her, letting out a sigh of relief. She stretches out her stiff limbs and yawns.
"Thank God," he breathes, bending down to look her in the eye seriously. "Do you know how long I've been looking for you?"
She frowns and cocks her head in confusion, looking like a lost puppy. "I've been looking for you."
He exhales and straightens up, crossing his arms in annoyance. "Whatever. What are you doing sleeping on my window seat?"
She silently stands and then purses her lips, answering, "I was looking for you, found your room, and ended up dozing off here, I guess." Her eyes soften with concern. "Are you okay?"
He wonders if he should try to avoid the subject, but dismisses the idea because he knows that she'll just pursue it. If anything, she's determined. "Yeah, I... I'll be fine. I deal with this a lot, so you know," he shrugs, trying to act nonchalant, but she picks up on his distressed vibe.
One of her hands reaches up for a second before dropping as she withdraws from him, shaking her head. "Look, Austin, I know that we don't know each other, but if you need someone to talk to, I'll be here." Her gaze drops to her boots as she whispers, "Always." She forces a smile to her face, lifting her head again. "Okay?"
He's too stunned to say anything but, "Okay."
She nods, firmly, like she's trying to convince herself that this is fine. Talking to who used to be the king of her school like this is fine. (It's not but she'll pretend it is.) "Good." As she brushes past him, she gives his hand a quick squeeze of reassurance.
And then she's gone.
He finally turns around and realizes that she just went off on her own again. "Ally, wait!"
He chases after her, running down various hallways with no real sense of direction. Eventually, he finds her on the second floor, observing the pieces in the chess room. She spins towards him, eyes wide, when he bursts through the doors, but relaxes, noticing that it's only him.
"Sorry, I had to stop by this bizarre room before I left," she says, apologetically, turning back to the pawn she was examining. "You guys must really like chess."
He flushes, walking towards her. "No, that's just Mom. She and Dad designed this whole house."
She hums, slightly surprised. "Really?" She says. "That's pretty cool. I don't really approve of the house's maze-like inside, though. I got pretty lost."
He chuckles. "I used to get lost a lot too when I was a kid."
She smiles just a bit, and silence follows his comment. It's not really awkward, and it's not really comfortable, so it unnerves him a little.
"Austin?" Ally asks, quietly, breaking the indescribable silence.
"Yeah?" He asks quickly, anxious to avoid the silence that was previously filling the room.
"You know your parents love you... right?"
He scoffs a bit, turning his head. "Sure they do."
"They do. Trust me. They may seem busy and distant, but... They're right there if you need them. They work hard so that you don't ever have to worry about anything. Do you understand that, Austin?" She sighs, running a hand through her curls. "Stop being so petulant- because you are- and look at the bigger picture."
He scowls, crossing his arms. "I am not," he mutters, refusing to look at her.
"Well, you're being petulant right now," she points out.
He groans and swings his head towards her, sending a glare her way. "Do you always have to be right?" He growls in annoyance, but she doesn't frown like he expected her to.
Instead, she grits her teeth, showing anger for the first time since she came here. "I am not a perfectionist! Dammit, stop saying that! God, how can you people judge someone you don't know? Just because I strive to get good grades, does not make me perfect!"
Her chest heaves as she recovers from yelling, and she snaps her mouth shut, biting her tongue.
The things she says when she snaps.
He's stunned into silence at her outburst. When did she grow a spine?
She sighs, chewing on her lip nervously. "Sorry," she mumbles. "I just... I'm not perfect, and I don't always have to be right. I don't like it when people assume that I need to be perfect. I'm not some stupid, naïve idiot, you know." And then she lets out another sigh. "Stupid and idiot mean practically the same thing. See, I'm not perfect."
He just stares at her, an odd look on his face. She shifts, uncomfortably. "What?"
"I thought that you needed to be perfect," he says, carefully, trying not to set her off again. She looks away, sighing yet again.
She sighs a lot, he notes.
"Most people do," she says, resentfully.
"You never said anything."
She scoffs a bit, turning her head slightly to look at him from the corners of her eyes. "I was supposed to stand up to the people who seem to live to see me suffer?"
He flushes and glances down at his shoes, scuffing them against the floor. "We don't- I don't- I mean..."
"Austin, if you have something to say, say it."
"I just... I guess I didn't realize you felt that way. I mean, I know it's wrong and that you probably don't like it, but... Well, if it's any consolation, I never hated you."
She raises an eyebrow, skeptically. "Then why did you do all of that?"
He inhales deeply, opening his mouth to say something but nothing comes out. He tries again a couple more times before finally getting out a, "Lashing out, I guess."
He expects her to ask why, scoff, or snap at him again, but she doesn't do any of those. She only looks slightly embarrassed, averting her gaze completely.
"Oh," she says in a small voice. "I should have guessed that in the first place. Sorry."
"Why are you apologizing? I'm the one who should be apologizing," he admits, for once in his life. Apologies are something he struggles with.
"No, no, it's okay," she sighs, brushing him off with a wave of her hand. "I... I misjudged you, just like you misjudged me. Look, can we just... Just call it even? And stop judging each other by what we see on the surface?"
He shrugs, smiling a bit. "Sure. I'd like that."
She turns to him with half of a smile on her face. "Yeah. Me too." Then she pulls out her phone and glances at the time, sighing again. "Well, it's way past the time I was supposed to be home, so I guess I can just walk. Thanks for having me over, I think," she says in a puzzled voice, wondering how to put this strange visit into terms.
He ignores her last comment and furrows his brow at her. "You're walking home? Now? From here?"
"I should be home by six in the morning," she jokes, weakly. At his flat stare, her shoulders slump, and she puts her phone back in her pocket. "Well, I'm not sure where the nearest bus is, and I'd rather not call a cab, so what do you suggest I do?"
He smirks, devilishly, and she knows that expression all too well. "Stay here."
Her jaw drops. "Are you crazy?" She squeaks, blushing madly. "If someone sees me, they'll- you and I aren't- but-"
"Would you rather catch a cab with a perv for a driver?" He interrupts, wryly.
She immediately stops protesting and lowers her gaze in defeat. "No..."
He grins. "There's a guest bedroom on my floor. I'll tell my mom you're staying over on the intercom." He walks over to a device on the wall and delivers the message. Ally wonders if she'll say no. She doesn't, but she does say that they'll need to talk about his dad in the morning. Ally sees him roll his eyes, but he still mutters a reluctant agreement.
He finishes the conversation and glances back at her, raising an eyebrow. "Coming?"
She scampers after him as he strides out of the room and ascends a couple flights of stairs, stopping at his floor, which is the fourth one. He leads her through his room and to a door inside, opening it. It reveals another hallway with a few doors in it.
"Why do you have a hallway in your room?" She asks, confused, hesitantly poking her head past the doorframe.
"Well, it's not really in my room, only attached to it. But you can't access it any other way, so I guess that you could say it's in my room," he shrugs.
She peeks inside the room on the right as she passes and finds that he's turned it into a gaming room, complete with consoles, cases, and beanbags. "Those are comfortable?" She asks as she points to a flattened beanbag.
"Of course," he snorts. "You've never sat on one before?"
She pauses, thinking. "Maybe a long time ago," she decides, moving on before he tries to get her to sit on one.
She checks the door on the left, discovering a relatively empty room, except for a few posters of older bands like the Beatles decorating the walls. "Why is this room empty?" She asks, curiously.
"Oh, uh... Couldn't find a use for it," he answers quickly, ushering her towards the double doors at the end of the hall. She finds his actions weird but doesn't comment on them.
"You guys have a lot of double doors," she notes as they come to a stop before the blank white doors. She notices markers and an eraser resting inside of a container nailed into the wall next to the doors. "What's up with the markers?"
"Oh, these aren't wooden doors," he grins. "These are whiteboards. You know, like some teachers use instead of chalkboards?"
Her eyes widen in amazement as she reaches out to touch a door. Amazingly, he's right. "Cool," she breathes, running her fingers along the board. "So is this the only room with these type of doors?"
"Yep," he days, popping the 'p.' "And it's all yours for one night. So, come on; let's go." He opens the doors and pushes them open, Ally standing on her tiptoes to try to catch a glimpse over his shoulder. Unfortunately, he's too tall, so she has to settle for looking around him.
"Wow," she whispers, staring at the room in shock.
Two of the walls are painted deep purple, and the other two are painted red. A king-sized bed with red covers resides in the center of the room, looking fit for royalty. A dresser is resting next to the bed, and a lamp sits on top of it.
A few other pieces of furniture are scattered through the room, but what really catches her eye are the instruments. A set of ocean blue drums is set up on a raised platform, and just to the right of the platform are three guitars hanging on the wall. A keyboard stands directly in front of the guitars.
"Sorry about the instruments," he apologizes, sheepishly. "I know that they're all over the place," he says, gesturing to the corner of instruments she had been admiring, a trumpet hanging on a wall, and a few others spread throughout the room.
She blinks, realizing that he doesn't know she likes music. "Austin, it's fine," she laughs, walking over to the keyboard. "I like music too." To show him, she plays a quick cartoonish riff.
His eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "Really? We actually have something in common?"
"It appears so," she giggles, amused by his shock.
He cracks a smile and joins her in his little music corner, taking an acoustic guitar off of the wall. He strums it and glances up at her. "I just realized that we might not know a song we can do together."
She laughs again. He likes her better when she's happy.
"Then maybe we need to do this another time. We can try a different day," she suggests, and he nods.
"Well, feel free to use anything. Just tell me if you used something that required your mouth," he says as he puts the guitar back up.
"Ew, no." She scrunches her nose. "You probably used them before. I think I'll pass."
He rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."
Curious, she looks at him, raising an eyebrow. "Hey, I have a question."
He shrugs. "Go ahead; ask."
"Why did your mom know my name, but you couldn't remember it?"
He blushes. "Oh. Well, I had a hard time remembering it when I was first telling my parents about you, and I guess that I forgot it again."
She rolls her eyes. "Gee, how did you ever pick me?"
He shrugs again. "I dunno." Another roll of her eyes. "I'm kind of glad I did, though."
Her eyes widen in surprise. "Really?"
He grins, lopsidedly. "Well, yeah. You're pretty cool, you know."
She smiles up at him, surprising him with a brief hug. She blushes afterward but still says, warmly, "Thanks, Austin, for saying that and for letting me stay. Good night."
He smiles, softly. "No problem. Night." He leaves and closes the doors behind him.
She sighs and tosses her messenger bag onto the dresser as she falls onto the bed, frowning to herself.
This day did not go as planned.
First of all, she didn't even keep up her end of the deal. Sure, she played the part of his girlfriend, but she didn't act nerd-ish at all tonight.
Second, she wasn't supposed to become- what are they? Acquaintances? Friends? Whatever the case may be, she certainly wasn't supposed to get closer to Austin Moon- her sworn enemy since ninth grade, her prime antagonist, and someone she used to only feel bitterness toward. Now? Now, she thinks that they might be friends. And she would be okay with that.
Because it's her, and she's as forgiving as they come. Even to sworn enemies.