Warning: Numerous flashbacks and, at times, utter fluff ahead! Disclaimer: Don't own the Clique by Lisi Harrison, people. Get with it.
Take Me Back:
Take me back to the time when we walked down the aisle
Our whole town came and our mamas cried
You said I do and I did too
Take me home where we met so many years before
We'll rock our babies on that very front porch
After all this time, you and I
-Mary's Song by Taylor Swift
Massie Block sat in her enormous dressing room waiting for the event to start while her friends fluttered around, worrying about what was left to do. She just watched them with a half-smile on her red lips. It was her wedding day and her friends were more worried than she was.
Her maid of honor and best friend, Claire Lyons, sat opposite her with an uneasy expression, her blue eyes darting nervously and her nails chewed to the quick. Massie laughed. Claire's expression looked more like the bride's than hers.
Claire glared at her, but then her anxiety took away any annoyance. "Are you ready, Mass?"
"I've been ready since I was a baby. Relax, you're not the one getting married," Massie said, looking very amused.
"Do you have something blue?" Alicia Rivera, her other best friend and one of the bridesmaids, demanded suddenly. Massie groaned. Not this again.
Massie pointed to the hyacinth flower in her hair and rolled her amber eyes. 'Nothing is going to go wrong, for God's sake,' she thought, 'They're being so paranoid. And paranoia is so not cool.'
"Something old?" Dylan Marvil questioned next, her red hair whipping toward her. Massie held up her old silver charm bracelet from 7th grade. She really didn't like the whole 'something old' part of the wedding tradition. Massie hated using old things. In her book, newer was always better.
"And the 'something new'?" Claire asked. Massie pointed irritably at her diamond drop earrings and tiara. The tiara was to make Massie feel like the queen, not that she told her friends that. That information was 800 gossip-points worthy (wow, it's been a while since they used that) and Massie was not going to let anyone use it.
"Where is your 'something borrowed'?" Kristen Gregory asked her.
"Obviously, Kris, they're on my feet! Do you not see the navy stilettos or have I started hallucinating?" Massie sighed impatiently, exasperated with the procedure. Were her friends developing some form of OCD? Massie knew going to the aptly named school, Octavian Country Day (the middle and high school), would get to them someday.
"No need to get angry, Massie," her mother called from the other side of the room, looking up from her magazine for the first time since they got there. She was having trouble dealing with the fact that Massie was getting married already. Kendra was having the whole 'My little baby is growing up and leaving me forever' phase. At least, Massie hoped it was a phase. Massie thought the high dose of Xanax would calm her down enough for the wedding.
"I'm not angry, Mother," Massie gritted through her teeth. Her mother gave her a pointed look at her fuming appearance. And at the fact that the rest of the ex-PC was practically huddled in a corner in fear of Massie's wrath.
Massie took a deep, cleansing breath. When that didn't work, she counted silently to 20. And when that didn't work, she just gave up all together and continued glowering at everyone else.
"If you all just leave, then I might be less angry," she said. "Tell Dad to come and get me when it's time."
Kendra nodded. She stood and beckoned for Alicia, Dylan, Kristen, and Claire to follow. The door closed quietly as the last person left.
Massie closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. She felt more relaxed instantly. 'Finally!' she exclaimed in her mind. 'I can breathe without their anxious voices!'
Her mind began to wander over to less stressing topics, like her fiancé. She smiled at the thought of her future husband, Derrick Harrington. She then giggled slightly as she remembered her childhood with him. Massie always had this odd fascination with him…
-0-
Massie Block looked around in wonder at her new surroundings. She had just moved from New York City. Her seventh birthday party had just passed when Massie's parents announced that they were moving out of their brownstone and moving into an enormous mansion in Westchester.
She had never been in that part of New York, so she was excited to go. However, having to leave her friends, school, and house was the downside to this whole move. But, Massie took it with grace, like her Mommy told her to when she didn't get what she wanted, and went along with it.
They had just arrived at the house they would be living in. Massie had to tilt her head so far back to see where the building finally stopped growing that she almost fell backwards. It was so huge! Though, everything was huge to a 3'11" little girl.
Massie grabbed her Daddy's hand as he walked by to enter their new estate. Her Mommy walked on her other side in a swan-like walk. She grinned excitedly as she waited to see the interior of her new home. Kendra and William unlocked the door and allowed Massie to be the one to open it.
However, right before she reached the doorknob, a flying projectile hit her, knocking her down to the floor. Massie rubbed her head as she shakily got back up, restraining the sobs that threatened to overwhelm her.
"Oh my God! I'm so sorry!" A little blond boy with caramel eyes, seeming no older than Massie herself, smiled crookedly, was trying to make her forgive him for hitting her with the ball.
"It's just that I was playing soccer with my best friend, Cam, and I kicked the ball into our mini-goal. And then, he sort of forgot to catch it and with my awesomely strong kicking powers it flew at you! I'm Derrick, by the way." His words seemed to blend together; he was speaking so quickly.
A pause as Massie looked at Derrick the way a scientist would look at a piece of DNA.
"You're weird," she concluded succinctly.
"I am not weird! I'm totally normal and cool and…lots of other good things!" Derrick shouted back, obviously peeved.
"Sure, you are. Seriously, you are weird. You spoke super fast when you gave me that reason for hitting me; which, by the way, I'm not forgiving you for." Massie gave him a steely, frigid glance and pursed her lips.
"No, I'm not! You're totally…" Derrick and Massie kept arguing, fighting to see who was weirder. It was, all in all, a power struggle. Which of them was better than the other?
Unbeknownst to the quarreling pair, William smirked and wrapped an arm around Kendra's waist. "Doesn't that remind you of how we used to act? And look how we ended up," he whispered into her ear.
Kendra scoffed. "William, just because we had a bit of a love-hate relationship when were younger does not automatically mean these two will get married. They might even end up hating each other! Oh dear, there are going to be some awkward dinners with the Harringtons."
William kissed her cheek in a bit of a mock gesture. "Sure, honey, sure. Watch, they'll end up together."
"Oh my, my, my," Kendra mumbled.
-0-
Massie laughed softly as she remembered that first conversation. She had won in the end, with Derrick stubbornly accepting that she wasn't changing her mind about him and simply apologizing to her again. After that day, her fascination with him grew. Their bickering attitudes intrigued her, making her want more of the exhilarating fight.
They still had moments like that now. Just, a bit toned down. Nowadays, she never shouted at him about his weirdness. And he never tried to sneak into her all-girl sleepovers and dye her hair green.
When they were younger, they never did treat each other like normal boys and girls did. She treated him like an annoying pest and he treated her like the epitome of aggravating. Arguments were never rare on the Block and Harrington's street.
They did everything to get back at each other. Once, Derrick shouted at her to stay away from his group of friends because she was a girl. Massie didn't see anything wrong with it; she was a girl, so what? All she got to do that he didn't was wear elaborate dresses. She insisted that she could hang out with them, and the other boys didn't really care either way. Derrick, who wanted to hang out with his friends without Massie, said that he could beat her up since he was bigger if she kept insisting.
Massie had simply raised an eyebrow and told him to go ahead and try. He never did.
The next day, she had cornered him on the street. She was still fuming because he excluded her and decided to trick him. Massie had taunted him with first kisses. Kemp, one of his perverted friends, had already stolen a kiss from a girl on his street and bragged about his new kissing expertise. It was palpable, to Massie anyway, that Derrick never liked to be second-best at anything and was going to be better than Kemp.
The furtive brunette stated that she could help him be better. Derrick's eyes had widened and he leaned in, hoping to keep being better than his companion. Massie leaned in as well.
Just when he was about to kiss her, she pulled back harshly, causing him to fall forward. She laughed and then helped him up. Massie and Derrick made a pact that they were even.
The first time, which Massie could remember anyway, that they didn't fight, was on the day of Homecoming. Massie and Derrick were both dateless and their fathers (who considered their arguing secret declarations of love) thought to pair them together.
-0-
"Mom! I do not want to do this. I'll stay home, do chores, and be the next Cinderella! Just please don't make me go with Derrick to Homecoming!" Massie pleaded while her mother zipped up her dress. She was wearing a purple silk beaded dress with a flapper-like hem. Massie loved it as soon as she found it. She just wasn't hoping for the King of Arrogance to be her date while she wore the dress.
"Massie, you are going. That is final." Kendra swiveled Massie away from her full-length mirror to face her. "Everything is going to go great. Derrick can be exceptionally sweet when he wants to."
"Key phrase, Mom: wants to. Ergo, while he's around me, he won't want to!" Massie had the urge to flop back on her bed, but forwent it. The dress would be ruined. It may be fun to embarrass Derrick with a date that looks sloppy, but she didn't want to be the ugly one in the situation. Massie sighed. This was difficult.
"Come on. Derrick's waiting downstairs," Kendra said. She walked out of Massie's spacious room and motioned for Massie to follow. Massie tilted her head back and groaned, but followed anyway.
Kendra walked down quickly, seemingly excited to present Massie (though, most likely the fabulous dress) to the world. Or, just the Harringtons and Block family gathered to see the arguing duo go to Homecoming. Massie wondered if her eyeballs would fall of with the amount of rolling they were doing. She loved her mother, but her antics were a bit… exuberant.
Kendra smiled like a true socialite and said, "May I present my lovely daughter, Massie?" A snort reverberated and Massie would bet her abundant trust fund that Derrick had done it.
Massie took a deep breath and walked down slowly, her inner-diva channeling Rachael Leigh Cook in "She's All That". The room was silent, an eerie silence that just reinforced the idea of dramatics in the two families. Massie raised her head as she reached the end of the staircase, wanting to show the people around her that she would take this new date in stride.
Massie locked eyes with Derrick and smirked. Sammi, his older and eclectic sister, whispered something quickly in his ear. He turned crimson and broke eye contact. Massie raised an eyebrow, but disregarded it. It couldn't be that important, after all. Sammi's favorite pastime is publicly embarrassing Derrick.
Derrick raised his head again and glared at Massie, seeming back into his 'I-can't-stand-you' phase. But there was a glint in his eye that seemed out of place. Massie couldn't decipher it, but she looked back and got lost in the orbs she spent hours seeing: in fights, bi-weekly dinners, and those moments when he seemed to be a good person (he later squashed it with snark).
"Pictures!" Derrick's mother, Angela, cried happily. They posed, cringing visibly when their parents positioned them, and soon left in Derrick's car.
The dance was a blur for Massie. It became a swirl of colors and banter. Contrary to the popular belief, Massie didn't want to spend all of her time with the Pretty Committee, especially as they were preparing for yet another clique war. So, she spent her time with Derrick and somehow, she had fun. That's all she could really remember when she thought of Homecoming: fun. Something she hadn't been able to feel in a while as she moved into high school.
The fact that it happened with Derrick Harrington, her annoying sometimes-companion, was what really skyrocketed the dance to her, "Greatest Nights" list.
-0-
A smile spread slowly on Massie's face. She knew, even though Derrick denied it with a blush on his face, that Homecoming had started it all. The minute slow of the insults, the secret smiles in the halls, the notes taped inside their locker doors (he still remembers the combination), just everything.
It wasn't as dramatic as when Chuck and Blair from Gossip Girl started their tumultuous and, at times, frustrating relationship. It wasn't as unexpected and unplanned as John and Claire from The Breakfast Club. But it was all them, two kids trying to find out what they really felt for the other after years of sneers and sarcasm.
And, in a wondrous cliché, Massie wouldn't have it any other way.
That didn't mean, however, that they stopped fighting when they finally got together. Oh, no. Their clashing personalities often started heated and loud arguments, usually resulting in both storming off. Then, in true Derrick and Massie form, they grudgingly apologized to the other and everything went calm again.
Massie winced as she remembered a particularly bad argument. They had almost given up being together.
-0-
The warm spring breeze blew through Columbia University as the students were released from the suffocating atmosphere of their first final exam. Massie Block walked among them, trying to calm her nerves and failing miserably.
Her anxiety caused by finals had been giving her problems the last few weeks. When she spoke with Claire on the phone two weeks ago, she yelled at her for anything and everything. When she was visited by Alicia from Princeton a few days later, she commanded her like she had in middle school, making Alicia feel like a mere minion again. When Dylan and Kristen emailed her from NYU together, Massie sent them a reply asking why they had no individuality and the address to the nearest hospital so they could cut whatever held them together and stop acting like Siamese twins.
Needless to say, she hadn't spoken to any of them since. But that was nothing compared to the fragile state her relationship with Derrick was in.
They had decided to go to the same university to avoid the doomed-to-fail long distance relationship. Even though they were in many of the same classes, this didn't mean that they're relationship was as stable as she would have liked.
Massie had been getting possessive; she had been getting angry; she had been getting irritated with him over meaningless things. And Derrick was beginning to get sick of it. After the fourth exam, that's when things had hit rock bottom. The frustrated brunette had opened the door to the apartment she and Derrick shared a few blocks away from the school. What she saw was something that made her widen her eyes and drop the books she was holding on the floor.
Derrick had a busty blonde on his lap and he didn't seem to be pushing her away. She smiled lustfully at him and leaned in to kiss him. Massie's eyes soon narrowed and she found the voice she had lost moments before.
"Who the hell are you and what are you doing straddling my boyfriend?" Massie's hair crackled in her anger. If it had been like Medusa's, the blonde in the slutty maid's uniform would have been dead on the floor.
The blonde got off Derrick, who gave a sigh of relief, and turned toward Massie, a mocking smile playing on her lips. "I'm Jessica, the girl who has been seducing your boyfriend for the past twenty minutes. I'm sure you'd like to have a talk with him, because you two are just the type," she said. Her voice radiated scorn and Massie just wanted to slap her.
"Yeah, you are leaving." Massie grabbed Jessica's waves and pulled them (which brought the surprised girl along with it) toward the door. The loud slam was all that was heard as Massie turned slowly back to Derrick, the feral glint still in her eyes.
Derrick gulped. If he knew one thing, it was to never get Massie Block angry. That would mean your immediate death, social or otherwise.
"I can explain, Block," Derrick started. And instantly wanted to hit himself. Really, that was the most overused starter to a lie!
"Try me, Derrick."
"Okay," he started. She didn't seem to be lessening her glare. "Jessica and I met a few weeks ago in the lobby. All I did was hold the elevator for her, but I think that she thought I meant something more by it. I established clearly that I had a girlfriend, but she didn't seem to be deterred by it. I think today was just the way she told me that she wasn't going to stop pursuing me."
Massie raised an eyebrow coldly. "And how exactly did she get in our apartment?"
The blond looked sheepish. "I sort of let her in. She said that all she needed was some cooking supplies for a party she was having. I didn't realize that wasn't exactly what she had in mind. Eventually, she pretty much pinned me to the couch as I was about to get away. And then, you came in."
There was silence in the room as Massie mulled this over.
"Get out."
"Excuse me?" Derrick asked incredulously.
"How stupid do you think I am? 'She pinned you to the couch'? Newsflash, Derrick, you could have pushed her off! And my ass that you established you had a girlfriend. As much as I hate to admit it, but the whore was pretty. And we all know how you've gone for blondes."
That shot a bolt of anger through Derrick. He couldn't believe that she still hadn't forgiven him for that. In one of the brief times that they had broken up, Derrick had gotten drunk. And, of course, had sex with some other girl. The sad part was that when Massie went to apologize for the break-up, she found him fast asleep with the ditz of the class, Olivia Ryan, by his side. She told him later on that she forgave him, but she obviously hadn't forgotten.
"That was one damn time, Massie! I was drunk; I was stupid; and we had broken up. Why can't you just forgive me for it?" Derrick shouted.
"I've tried! But you've always been a playboy! I can't just forget that through time. Before we got together, all you did was date girls and then drop them. Do you think that old habits die easily? No! So how am I supposed to believe you?" Massie Block, the great and stoic Massie Block, seemed to almost be in tears. But she wouldn't let them drop. Her pride was too big for that.
"I don't know, Massie. But I'm your boyfriend. That should've counted for something." Derrick shook his head sadly and did exactly what Massie asked him to do: Got out.
-0-
Massie shut her eyes tightly as the waves of emotion she felt that day passed through her. They never saw each other for months after that. It was quite possibly the worst months she had ever spent. Her friends had tried to cheer her up and get her to move on, but all she could ever see was Derrick. And that hurt her more than she'd care to admit.
One day, they saw each other at one of Dylan's infamous costume parties. It was awkward, to say the least, at first, but then they began to talk about what happened with them. They began a tentative friendship that soon gave way to a relationship almost exactly like the one before. Just without the hidden hate and remorse.
There was a knock on the door and William's head poked through. "Massikur, it's time." Massie smiled as she heard the old nickname. Her father was the one who had given her the idea for her screen name. He never stopped using it.
The brunette suddenly felt as nervous as her friends were. Her stomach erupted in butterflies that fluttered through the knots inside. Massie thought she might ask her mother to give her a dose of Xanax before she made her grand entrance. Her father grabbed her hand and grinned reassuringly. His crinkly eyes seemed to say, "It's okay; everything is going to go smoothly."
Her friends breezed by her one by one with the groomsman walking beside them giving her the thumbs-up. Dylan was with Cam; Kristen practically skipped with Chris (Plovert, of course) by her side; Alicia held hands with Kemp and Claire walked happily with Josh.
Massie took a deep breath and, as she heard the Wedding March, walked slowly onto the aisle. Everyone stood up and watched Massie's arrival. Some gasped at the dress' beauty. Others simply smiled happily at her.
But for Massie, she only paid attention to who was at the end of the aisle waiting for her. Derrick looked up almost shyly and caught her eye. It made Massie forget the nerves, the fears, everything and all she could focus on, all she could see, was the blond boy who had caught her attention all those years ago.
She finally reached the podium and her father kissed her cheek as he handed her over to Derrick. Her father gave Derrick a look that said, "Take care of her or I'll have you castrated." Derrick seemed to get the message if his meek nod and terrified expression was any indication. Massie bit back a laugh as she gave Claire the bouquet of lisianthus flowers.
The priest began to speak and soon it came time for the vows. "Do you, Massie Elizabeth Block, take Derrick Andrew Harrington, for your lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do you part?"
"I do."
"And do you, Derrick Andrew Harrington, take Massie Elizabeth Block, for your lawful wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do you part?"
Derrick grinned. "Of course I do."
"Ladies and gentleman, I'd like to present you with Mr. and Mrs. Harrington! Derrick, you may now kiss the bride," the priest said happily.
Derrick smirked as he grabbed Massie's waist and dipped her low. "You crazy idiot," Massie said softly before he claimed her lips. The crowd cheered uproariously while the mothers of the married pair cried. Sammi just grinned widely like the fathers. Massie and Derrick smiled and waved aristocratically before practically running to the car that would take them to the reception. As the door closed, Massie waved goodbye to her best friends and parents, who all gave them smirks at their run from the chapel.
Derrick sighed happily. "Thank God we're out of that. It's pretty unnerving to watch all of them watching us."
"Can you be anymore paranoid? We were getting married! If they didn't stare, then we should be worried," Massie laughed.
"Whatever. If it had been up to me, we would have gotten married in five minutes after I proposed and that everything only lasted ten minutes. The point was just to be with you." Derrick wrapped his arms around Massie and she leaned back against his chest.
"Aww, you are such a sap." She pinched his cheek mockingly. He scowled. They settled into a comfortable silence.
"Hey, Derrick?"
"Yeah?" he responded, looking down at her.
"I had begun thinking today about our relationship. All that crap and confusion we went through to finally get where we are. Do you remember Homecoming night?"
"Of course. I spent all of it with you and without your friends, who back then were quite aggravating."
She punched him lightly. "You thought I was aggravating back then too. But that's not what I meant. Before we left, your sister whispered something in your ear that made you blush. What was it?"
"That she had been declared Queen of Sheba and was going to make me her towel-boy-slash-slave," he said with a straight face. Massie shot him a dark look.
He ran a hand through his hair. "Let me just think for a minute, Block." Massie wanted to remind him that she wasn't a Block anymore, but thought it was more important to let him think of what his sister said. It was pecking at the back of her mind irritatingly. Suddenly, a smile began to grow on Derrick's face. He looked at Massie, the smile growing wider.
"What? What had she told you?" Massie asked, her curiosity rising to mass proportions.
"She told me, and I can say with certainty that I quote, 'Look at her, look how pretty she looks today. Don't let this one get away, Derrick. Or you'll be labeled the biggest dumbass in history.'"
Massie blushed. She never expected that. "Well, she can't call you a dumbass now. You didn't screw up."
Derrick caught her eye and didn't look away. "Yeah, I'm really glad I didn't. I think when I accidentally hit you with that soccer ball was the start of something."
"Don't start quoting High School Musical on me now," Massie warned playfully.
"As long as you'll be my Gabriella." He grinned cheekily.
"I knew I shouldn't have let you see that movie with me and the girls…" Massie muttered.
"Come on, Block. You know it's true." Massie always wondered how it was so easy for him to be so teasing and then be so serious. She always felt like she got whiplash when she tried.
"Yeah, it is true." She gave him her infamous half-smile.
And she knew that no matter what came at them, they wouldn't screw it up.