The Last Temptation of Scott Pilgrim
By: Voice4TheMute
Disclaimer: I do not own the Scott Pilgrim series or any of the characters mentioned in this story. All original characters and lines belong to Bryan Lee O'Malley and other respectable parties. This story is purely for entertainment purposes and not to be sold anywhere.
A/N: A simple one-shot that has been in the back of my mind for awhile. I believe I've told two people about this story idea so now I'm making it public for everyone to read. I MAY do something with this story in the far future, but don't hold me on it. If you feel that I should do something for this one shot then please feel free to tell me. Even better, if YOU want to create something based on stuff mentioned here tell me.
…and yeah, it's another serious fanfic
Updates on the story can be found on my profile page and I will update regularly.
It's been almost two years since I last saw her. I hope she still looks the same. Or at least I hope nothing bad happened to her. Or worse…that she underwent major plastic surgery and she's been stalking me ever since! No, that's not like her. At least I don't think so…
Enter Scott Pilgrim, a brown haired 26 year old prep cook for The Happy Avocado. He was sitting in the food court of the Dufferin Mall (which wasn't a particularly exciting mall) tapping is foot eagerly as he scanned the area, looking for someone. He has his usual attire on, a yellow t-shirt with a red heart in the middle of the shirt and the initials 'SP' inside it, his favorite blue parka that he had since he was 12, his best pair of blue jeans (which still had oil stains and burn marks scattered down the legs), and his pair of blue and white shoes. Scott fiddled with his fingers as he continued to look around, looking at every face that walked by and every face that gave him the stink eye for staring at them. He was actually waiting for someone. Someone that he hasn't seen in over two years. He was excited to meet her, but at the same time he was dreading this meeting for two years as well. So he was nervous…
…so nervous that he arrived at the meeting place early…
…5 hours early…
But at the end of his unnecessarily long wait, he saw her. A girl about his height with long blonde hair that went down to the middle of her back. In her hair was a hair clip that consists of four pink pearls in a straight line that clipped her left bang away from her eyes. She wore a white t-shirt with the number '37' printed on the front, blue jean shorts, suspenders for style purposes, and pink and white shoes. Scott couldn't believe was he was seeing. Other than the hair, she looked exactly the same two years ago. Her eyes, her face, her body…it was the way he remembered it back then. It didn't take her long before seeing Scott. They looked at each other for a full minute before she started to run towards him. Scott quickly got up and opened his arms, embracing the girl of his past…
…his biggest unanswered question…
…Lisa Miller.
Pilgrim 007: The Last Temptation of Scott Pilgrim
"Scott Pilgrim! Where have you been all my life?" Lisa said as she squeezed his high school friend with all of her might. At first Scott was hesitant about hugging her tight but he found himself returning the friendly affection right back.
"Oh you know…stuck here in Canada as usual. But what about you? Last I heard you were in California heading to Hollywood." He said as they released their hug and sat down at the table Scott had on reserve for the last 5 hours. Lisa leaned forward on the table, propping her head on her hands as she stared deep into Scott's eyes. Scott felt a little weirded by this but allowed it to pass.
"I did get to Hollywood! You have no idea Scott. That place is so amazing! I mean the pollution of the place and the people there are unbelievably cruel, especially to Canadians, but the fact that I was there in the Hollywood scene was unbelievable. I really don't know how to describe it in words." She said as Scott leaned back in his chair, arms folded across his chest.
"That's good to hear. So did you manage to land a major role yet?" Scott asked her as she shook her head in her hands.
"Unfortunately not. Just a lot of independent films. They say that independent films are the best way to get discovered. And so far, they weren't all that bad. Every once in awhile I get a few fan letters but I'm trying to aim for the big screen. Go big or go home right?" Scott found his eyes slowly traveling from her face down to her chest.
"…yeah…go big…"
"Scott Pilgrim, are you staring at my breast?" Lisa asked as she saw that his eyes were slowing moving down her body. Scott instantly looked back to her face and started to laugh nervously. She wasn't mad at him, if anything she was a little flattered.
"What? No way Lisa…I mean…"
"Haha don't sweat it." She said as she leaned back into her seat, purposely moving her arms out of Scott's line of sight of her chest. "These babies have helped me score a lot of screen time as well as some major roles in movies. They also landed me some jobs in the...uh, 'adult' business. One hundred and seven of them to be exact." Lisa said. Scott nearly had a heart attack when he heard her say that.
"One hundred and…you're a porn star?" He said out loud as Lisa waved her hands in denial.
"NO NO! It was a joke! Don't say that stuff out loud. Geez Scott. You're the same old spaz that I remember." Lisa said as she dropped her head on her hands again, staring at Scott.
"Hey…I've changed. For one I'm now the head chief at where I work." He beamed as Lisa raised an eyebrow at him, impressed.
"Wow, really…?"
"…ok prep chief." He admitted as Lisa laughed at him.
"Oh Scott. I was about to give you props but now I'm just going to have to keep it in my pocket." She laughed as Scott leaned in a bit towards her.
"Oh come on! I deserve some recognition for that! It took me months of work to finally level up to that position! And not because the last guy quit his job after seeing me sneeze in the carrots, that's for sure…" Scott said, looking off to the side as he heard Lisa laugh some more. Her laughter caused Scott to laugh as well. Soon, they were both laughing uncontrollably as people walked past them, staring at a pair of lunatics. Scott couldn't remember the last time he felt this way: comfortable, relax, easy-going. It was as if Lisa just had that effect on him. Afterall, they've known each other since high school and are still friends to this day. If there's anyone that knows Scott Pilgrim the longest, it would be Lisa Miller…then Kim Pine.
"Level up? God, you're still the nerdy little kid that I left here two years ago." Lisa said, feeling the laughter die down and wiping a tear away from her eyes. "Do you still work at the Happy Avocado with…shoot. What's his name? Stephen? Stephen Stills? And what about Kim? Where's she now? Hell, how's everyone doing? Anything important happen after I left?" Lisa asked as she intensively looked at Scott for answers.
"Uh, yeah! I still work at the Happy Avocado with Stephen Stills. Oh, and get this. He's gay now. Guess Julie, you remember Julie, made him gay or something."
"No way!"
"Yeah. It was a MAJOR bombshell for me. Everyone else knew before me though. They never tell me anything. As for Kim? She's doing well. She's still works at No-Account video but as the store manager now instead of the cashier."
"Wow. That's impressive. Go Kim!" Lisa cheered.
"Yeah…not exactly. It wasn't that big of a promotion and even though she's the manager, she's still on register. The main difference now is that when someone walks in she must greet them by saying 'Welcome to No-Account videos, the place where there's no amount of videos you can rent'. Every once in awhile she sorta…goes off script. I think at one point when I entered she said to me 'welcome to no-account videos, the place where there's no amount of videos you can rent…and Scott Pilgrim is a tool.'" Lisa laughed at him.
"Nice. Is she still mad at you? And is she now living with that Hollie girl? I remember her moving out of her old place to a new place."
"No. Well, she's less angry I would say. Unlike before where she kinda held a grudge on me, now she's only mad at me when I do something stupid. Like use her drum stick to scratch my back, or ask her if her date with a romance novel went well that night." Lisa stared at Scott for a couple of seconds.
"Scott you're dumb aren't you?"
"Yeah sometimes…" Scott admitted, scratching his head. "But for the most part she puts up with my stuff and I put up with hers. She's a lot more forgiving now which is nice. She doesn't call me names as much and she actually smiles once in awhile." Scott said as Lisa opened her mouth in disbelief.
"No way, she's actually happy for once? I mean I know she was smiling and happy when she was with me, but I figured when I left she would go back to her sheltered self…or at least she would withdraw inside herself to the point where she'll snap and start going on a murderous rampage." Lisa said as Scott rubbed his arm.
"Well she did stab me with a fork."
"What?"
"Uh…that's another story."
"Ok…so what how's Ramona? Are you two still together? Did you knock her up yet? She left you didn't she? I figured a hot girl like her would eventually leave a guy like you Scott…" She playfully said as she saw Scott frowned. "Oh come on, I'm just messing around. But really! How is she? I mean the last time I saw her…well, at least the second to last time I saw her she was giving me the stink eye."
"Ramona is doing fine. Great actually. Yeah, we're still together and no I didn't knock her up. I use protection."
"You know you're supposed to pinch the top of the condom and roll down right?"
"Isn't that a suggestion they give on the box?"
"No…"
They sat there and stared at each other.
"I'm so surprised she's not pregnant Scott." Lisa said to him as Scott nodded.
"Yeah me too…" He agreed but then excitement spread across his face. "But get this! We're now engaged!" He yelled as excitement spread across Lisa's face as well.
"Oh my God! Are you serious!"
"Yeah!"
"You're marrying her?"
"Hell yeah!"
"And she said yes?"
"What the-of course she said yes! We're getting married this weekend!" Scott said to her as Lisa's smile stayed plastered on her face.
"That is so cool! I wish I could go. But as you know, I'm leaving tomorrow. We're starting to film so I have to be there this weekend. Just came up here to see relatives and to see how you were doing." Lisa said as inspiration just hit her. "Wait a minute. Where the hell is MY invitation to the wedding Scott Pilgrim!" She yelled at him as Scott raised his hands in defense.
"I didn't know where you live in the US Lisa! Don't kill me! I wanted to invite you but we didn't know where to send the invitation! And I don't think the postman likes us. Or at least he doesn't like me. He told me if I send another unaddressed letter that just said 'Santa' on it, he was going to set our house on fire." Lisa shook his head at him. "…what?"
"Oh nothing…But holy cow! You're getting married! Wow…so Kim is ok with this?" Lisa asked.
Over at the salon
"Hmm…Kim. Do you think I should cut my hair short or keep it long?" Ramona asked her as they sat in the waiting area for an opening.
"I hate you Ramona Flowers…" Kim said, not looking at her.
"Yeah. She's totally cool with it. She's the one that actually picked out the ring. I swear it took us almost half a year to find the perfect ring. And then it took us six hours to find a ring that was just as good but a lot cheaper." He said, looking around again. "But by the end of this week. I'll be a married man." He said as Lisa relaxed her head on his hands again.
"Wow…so she'll be Mrs. Ramona Pilgrim, huh?"
"Well, she'll actually be Mrs. Ramona Flowers-Pilgrim."
"Really…?"
"…ok. She'll be Mrs. Ramona Flowers. I kinda lost the bet with her about the whole 'last name' thing. Terrible story. Lots of alcohol involved. There was an alligator involved too but I don't want to talk about the specifics." Scott said as Lisa's eyes widen from the broad description of that story.
"Sounds like a rollercoaster of an engagement Scott."
"You don't even know the half of it. From fighting Ramona's evil exes, fighting Ramona's evil relatives, fighting Ramona's evil pets! I mean…it's just been a long engagement."
"I'm not even going to ask about that…how long as your engagement?"
"About a year long."
"Yesh and finally you're getting married this weekend. Man, through all the crap that you and to wade through and the people that you had to beat up, you'll finally tie the knot. I'd imagine you tied all the loose ends of your past right?" Lisa asked a Scott thought for a minute.
"Tied my loose ends?"
"You know…like getting the ok from Kim? I mean, even though she's over you I'd imagine that having your ex at your wedding is going to be uncomfortable right?" Lisa said as Scott still looked confused.
"Well…she's ok with me and Ramona getting married, but why would it be uncomfortable?"
"Why would it…Scott you're so dense. Do you know what it would feel like to be an ex at a wedding? I mean, why invite a failed romance come see your successful one? Kinda like a big 'you lose' to that person, don't you think?" Scott still looked clueless.
"You lose…?"
"God you're hopeless. But she's still coming right?"
"Yeah. She's Ramona's maid of honor afterall. Big dispute of how that happened. That's for another time though. Like I said, it was a long engagement." Scott said to Lisa as she smiled.
"I think I need to come back for these stories when we're done filming in the US. Sounds like a lot of exciting stories." Lisa said. "But yeah…all loose ends are tied right? So you can go on and get married in peace?" Scott didn't say anything right away.
"Scott?"
"Well…there is one thing that I haven't exactly 'tied' in terms of loose ends."
"Oh…" Lisa said, her smile suddenly turned worried. "…what's wrong? What's left to do? If there's anything I can do, tell me. I can't be at the wedding but I would love to help you in some way."
"Actually…that's why I called you here." Scott said, scratching his cheek.
There was a moment of silence. Scott didn't say anything. He couldn't say anything. But Lisa finally put two and two together.
"…I'm a loose end Scott?"
He nodded as Lisa and Scott both leaned back in their chairs and stared at each other, trying to analyze what they were going to say next.
"I…I don't know what to say. I mean, we were never together in high school. I'm not exactly an ex-girlfriend to you Scott. Why would I be a loose end to you?"
"I don't know…" He started as he looked at the ground. "It just that it feels like there's unfinished business between us." Scott said to her as Lisa took a deep breath and sulked in her seat.
"I think I know what you mean…"
There was another moment of silence.
"So what do you want from me?" She asked as Scott looked up at her.
"I don't know."
"Ok…what will make you feel better about, well, 'us'." Lisa motioned with her finger back and forth between her and Scott.
"I don't know." Scott repeated. Lisa sat up in her chair and sighed.
"Ok. Let me see if I can do something. Uh…" Lisa pondered for a minute, thinking back to those high school years. The years where she was all alone until Scott's appearance at the principal's office. "Scott, you're a great guy. A really great guy. I mean, after our chance encounter at the principal's office, I figured we were going to be great friends."
"Yeah…" Scott muttered as he too started to reminisce.
"I guess I can see how close we were back then. At least before Kim. Remember that basketball game between our school and the Benvie Tech? When all those guys surrounded me and wouldn't let me go back to our seat unless I go out with their supposed 'leader'?" Scott nodded. "You came looking for me, wondering why I was taking so long with the food. I kinda figured that was the only reason why you were looking for me anyways…because of the food. But you still stood up for me. You still kicked their asses. All eight of them."
"Yeah…then we got kicked out of our own gym…" Scott said.
"Yeah we did…but we manage to sneak back in using that stupid mascot disguise and a janitor's one piece suit." Lisa smiled.
"I still think that mascot outfit gave me that weird rash…"
"You were really sweet back then. I really was taken back on how you defending for me. And for Kim when she was your girlfriend. I really liked that about you Scott Pilgrim." Lisa said, unsure whether or not it was smart of her to admit that she liked him before. Scott took notice though as he stared at her for a couple of seconds.
"You liked me back then?" Scott said. Lisa smiled, closing her eyes and turning her head away from him.
"Heh, it's ancient history but yeah…I liked you. You were this strong, supportive guy that didn't take crap from anyone. And if anyone decided to get in your way, you easily knocked them down. Despite your idiotic moments that you like to have, you were quite the catch. Kim saw that in you as well. It's a shame I never made a move…" Scott continued his one sided staring contest with Lisa. She opened one eye to look at Scott and realized he was still staring at her. "Come on Scott. I know you're dense, but there's no way that you're that dense."
"You liked me back then?" Scott repeated like a broken record.
"That's all in the past ok? And look, things worked out for the better. I mean, I got my acting career and you got Ramona. You're a great guy and Ramona is one hell of a catch. There's no need to think about what could have been, right?" Lisa said, trying to get Scott to stop staring at her like that.
"But what happened two years ago…" He trailed.
"Ok…that was something else." Lisa said as she brought her legs up and crossed them. "That was a real chance encounter at this mall. Meeting you like that…and like I said before, I was doing laundry that day so all I had was that skimpy dress." Lisa sighed. "But I did like how you were looking at me. It made me feel wanted. Back in high school I knew you would never look at me like you did with Kim but when I saw that you couldn't look away from me…it made me feel good. Really good…Old feelings I suppose."
"So…you liked me…two years ago?" Scott asked as Lisa remained silent. She looked up at him at shrugged.
"I don't know. It's complicated ok? The way you were looking at me back then, it made me feel like I was back in high school and you finally took notice of me. And not in a 'friend' way but in a 'girlfriend' way. I never wanted to split you and Kim but it tore me up inside sometimes Scott. Seeing you with her when we were friends longer. I guess I should have made a move..."
"But you did…"
"No I didn't. I supported you and Kim throughout high school remember? Gave you my hall pass so you and Kim and have your secret rendezvous in the hall. Sat one row behind you so that Kim will have to sit next to you on the bus. I even asked me friend if I can borrow her car so that you and Kim had a 'private' place for the night. I love Kim. I love you. And I was always supporting you guys 100 percent."
"You totally did make a move…"
"Scott! No I didn't!" Lisa said, throwing her feet back to the ground. "I stayed in the back the whole time! I covered for you and Kim when you both went missing during the field trip to the museum! Remember? And then I found you stuck in the snake exhibit and Kim was trying to figure out a way to get you out. I mean you were quite literally STUCK in the snake exhibit. Still not sure how you manage to do that."
"Lisa…"
"Then there was that time at homecoming where that one guy…greased back hair, looking like a Greaser reject…he was trying his best to get Kim away from you and I stepped in and danced with the guy instead so you two can have your privacy, Oh, and let's not forget the time in the school pool where you both…"
"Lisa! We had sex!"
Lisa stopped in mid sentence and stared at Scott. Scott stared back at Lisa but she was in more disbelieve that he was.
"…w-w-we what?"
"We had sex."
"When was this?"
"Two years ago…."
Lisa started to rub her head, trying to process what she just heard. Scott could see that a war was raging inside Lisa's head as she starting rubbing harder. "What do you mean we had sex? We couldn't have. You were with Ramona at that time."
Scott looked away from her. "Please stop lying to yourself and really think about it Lisa. That time when I called you?" Scott started as Lisa stared at him. "Ramona and I had a big fight about you and we were talking about…well, 'us' in the past. How we didn't do anything…"
"Yes…I remember that. But nothing happened that night. You pushed me, told me how much you were in love with Ramona and then I started to cry. You tried to comfort me and we ordered a pizza and got really loud. Loud enough for my sister to come down and yell as us. I remember that happening!" Lisa defended but Scott's mood didn't change.
"Lisa. Two years ago I was trying to forget all my past mistakes. I was trying to block out all my flaws and faults and bad memories so that I can become a better person. It didn't turn out that well since somehow those memories took form of an evil me and started kicking me ass." Scott said as he scratched his head. "When I finally defeated myself, my evil persona, I remembered everything I've done in the past. My fight with Simon…me telling you that I was moving away and never telling Kim…my alcohol consumption…" He trailed as Lisa understood what he was talking about, about blocking memories. "But one thing that I remembered was what happened between us…what really happened…"
Lisa buried her face in her hands. "Scott…Scott no…"
"I cheated on Ramona with you."
"I'm so sorry Scott…"
"We really did have sex that night. We had sex and we started to regret that decision. We ordered pizza and started to talk about how we never done anything in the past, up to now. And when your sister came down to yell at us, we were both already fully dressed."
"Scott…I know." Lisa admitted, face still buried in her hands. "I'm a tramp…I'm a skank. I seduced you knowing full well that you and Ramona were having a fight. A fight about me of all things." Lisa said, trying to catch all the tears that were falling from her face. But her constant sniffling was a giveaway that she was crying. "That's why I lied to you the next morning…I'd hope that by ordering that pizza and getting you to eat a majority of it, it will cause you to wonder about last night. It's just…It will never work out between us. It was a one night stand…and I lied because I knew that you were in love with her." They both sat there was Lisa was rubbing her eyes, trying to stop herself from crying some more. "I'm a whore that plays a whore on TV. I can see now why I'm a loose end. I can see why you didn't invite me to the wedding."
"I'm at fault too you know…" Scott said as he looked at her. "Takes two to have sex."
"So…I'm guessing that when you remembered that incident that you told her."
Scott shook his head.
"No…you didn't tell her? She doesn't know? Scott what the hell are you doing?" Lisa yelled at him.
"I can't tell her. I mean…I could tell her but she'll leave me for sure! It's been two years…"
"You have to tell her! The whole 'making up with Ramona' is built…is built on a lie!"
"I know that. But…I'm scared you know? I'm scared of losing her." Scott said as Lisa now staring at him with a whole new perspective.
"Oh my God. I think I understand now."
"What?"
"I understand. The reason you wanted to see me. The real reason…I'm not a loose end. I never was. You knew about that incident two years ago so you knew full well what would have happened if you told Ramona. You were looking for me to give you a reason to tell Ramona what happened that night."
Scott said nothing but looked towards the floor.
"Scott…you're getting cold feet aren't you?"
Scott didn't say anything for a minute. "I'm scared of change ok?" Scott admitted as he continued to look at the ground. "I mean…I'm happy where Ramona and I are. You know, just boyfriend and girlfriend."
"But you love her."
"I do love her."
"Then don' you want to marry her?"
"I do want to marry her. But…I'm scared for the future. I mean…what's really out there for me? Am I going to have kids? Do I need a second job? Can I really be a good husband? I mean, I didn't even tell her about us. The truth about us. How can I be a good husband to her if I can't be truthful to her?" Lisa got up and pushed her chair next to him and wrapped a supportive arm around him.
"I can't believe I'm the one being the supportive guy here, but you got to man up. Yes, change is scary. Yes the future is unknown. But look how much stronger the future has made you. You were willing to fight tooth and nail for this girl. You really love her. I can see it. It's why I lied about us."
"I cheated on her Lisa. I cheated on her with you while we were fighting about you. I mean, how can she look at me?" Scott said as Lisa patted his shoulder.
"I hate to tell you this…but it sounds like there's one way you'll get over this problem…you got to tell her. You have to tell her what happened that night. You're not proud of it…but if your love is strong, she'll forgive you. At least that one time she'll forgive you."
"And if she doesn't?"
Lisa turn towards him and hugged him.
"I guess that's a risk you have to be willing to take."
Scott took a deep breath and let it out.
"This sucks…"
"I know you'll do the right thing Scott…"
Ramona and Scott's House that same day…
"Honey I'm home!" Ramona's voice echoed as she entered through the front door and headed to the kitchen. There she saw a home cooked meal, ranging from a garden salad, two loaves of garlic bread, a beef lasagna steaming on the table, and a nice bottle of red wine poured out for two. Ramona slowly looked around the kitchen, trying to figure out whether or not she was really in the same kitchen or accidentally broke into someone's home. "Oh my…"
"Ramona? Is that you?" Scott called as he entered the kitchen. He felt out of place since he was planning for this to be a surprised. But nevertheless he jumped and extended his arms out. "Tada?"
"Wow Scott…what's the occasion?"
"Nothing! I just wanted to make an awesome dinner…" He said as he walked next to Ramona and kissed her on the cheek. "…for the girl I love." Ramona smiled and kissed him on the lips.
"You're too sweet you know that…" She said as she started to head towards the bedroom. "I'm going to change out of these clothes and then we can eat. I mean today was-"
"Ramona! I have something I need to tell you!" Scott yelled, taking Ramona by surprised.
"…uh. Ok. What is it Scott?"
Scott stood there, staring at the woman he loved. The woman that he fought for. The woman that never truly ran away from him. The woman who stood by his side through thick and thin…in sickness and in health…together for as long as they both lived. Scott swallowed hard as he looked into Ramona's eyes.
He didn't want to lose her.
"…I love you."
The End