Alrighty, second chapter! YAY!

Special thanks to: Hidden Fairy Tail. Congratulations on being my first reviewer! And, as you can see, this is NOT a one-shot. There will be lots more chapters for your enjoyment :) And Belle95. Thank you so much! Don't worry, you'll learn a lot more about her;)

Okay, let's get this chapter started!

Ow, ow, ow.

I started to get really hungry about halfway through my flight, so I decided to stop at one of these big, flashy places with food of all sorts on the windows. But on

the way down, since I had never ever flown before, I sort of clipped my wing on a lonely picket fence in the middle of a forest. I mean, who does that? What was the use of it? Jeez, people these days...

My wing hung limply behind me as I shuffled into the restaurant. The gown I was wearing was ripped and bloody and stuck to some of the open wounds on my body. My blonde and black-streaked hair drooped around my shoulders, shielding my dirty face from the people staring at me as I headed up to a woman who seemed like she worked here.

"Can I have some food up in here?" I asked her. My grimy hands rested on the counter she was standing at.

She looked me over once, a weird expression on her face. "Um..." She messed with some papers in front of her and looked at the girl beside her. The other girl gaped like a fish out of water at me, pink gum falling out of her mouth and onto the counter. I grimaced. The other girl looked back at me motioned in front of her. "Sure. Just follow me," she said. I followed as she led me through the crowded restaurant.

I gaped at all the pictures and decorations that hung on the pale walls. Pictures of waterfalls and people and abstract things. Guitars and other musical instruments hung from the ceiling. I looked at the people eating, sitting with their families or a person of the opposite sex. Wine glasses clinked together. I mentally smiled. This was so much happier than the Lab.

We stopped at a lonely table in the corner and I sat in the wooden chair. The girl looked me over once again and pulled out a notepad.

"My name is Christy, and I'll be your waitress this evening." She put a menu and a single napkin in front of me. "So, what would you like to drink?" she asked. A shaking, pale hand brushed red hair out of her face. I bit my lip.

"What do you have?"

She looked up to the ceiling, thinking. "Water, lemonade, milk, juice, Mr. Pibb--"

"What's Mr. Pibb?" I asked her. There was a drink named after a person?

Christy smiled a little bit. "It tastes just like Dr. Pepper. Pretty much the same thing." I raised an eyebrow. What?

I decided to try something new, so I ordered the Mr. Pibb. She nodded and left my table, slowly shaking her head as she walked. Hm. Wonder what her problem is.

Looking around at the people surrounding me, I noticed a family of three staring open-mouthed at me. I scrunched my eyebrows together as they looked at me, and I looked at them. Why the hell were they looking at me like that for? Yeah, I might look a little bit dirty, but isn't rude to stare? Jeez...

A tall glass of fizzling brown stuff was set in front of me. I looked up at the waitress, who had her notepad and pen out, poised to jot down whatever.

"Ready to order yet?" she asked, forcing a smile. I twirled the straw around my drink a bit.

"Um, are you sure this is safe to drink? It looks gasoline," I told her.

She looked a little offended. "Of course," she responded. "If you don't like it, I can get you something else."

I sniffed it and took a sip. I pressed a hand to my chest as pressure built up inside there. Oh, man, it hurt. Why would people drink crap like this?

A small burp escaped my lips, and the pressure released. "I'll just have some water, please," I said, handing her the glass. Christy nodded and hurried off to get my water.

As my head was resting on my palms, I looked around again. A white piece of paper caught my attention.

I snatched it up and unfolded it. Fancy writing was scrawled on the inside. I couldn't read a word of it, but I scanned over the words anyhow.

Since it looks like you don't have any nice clothes, I left my extra pair of jeans and a hoodie in the bathroom for you. It's in the last stall on the right.

-Christy

My brows furrowed. Hm. I didn't understand a word of that, so I just crumpled it up and threw it to the side. It's not like I would need it or anything.

"Okay, here's your water," Christy said, setting the water down in front of me. I took a sip out of the straw and smiled.

"Perfect."

She took out her notepad and pen again. "Ready to order now?" she asked. I opened up the menu and looked at the pictures of delicious-looking food.

I pointed a dirty finger to a photo of steaming T-bone steak. "Can I have that?" I asked. She nodded and wrote it down on her paper.

"You can have two sides with that," she said.

I shifted my wings behind me, and Christy froze and stared at them with huge eyes. Her lip-sticked mouth fell open slightly, and the blue pen loosened in her hand.

"What do you have for sides?" I asked, making her snap her attention back to me. Christy gulped and pondered my question for a few seconds.

"Um..." she muttered."Oh. We have Fr-French fries, mash-shed potah-potatoes, gre-gre-green beans-s-s, cor-r-rn, and-d, macandcheese."

I scrunched my brows. "Um, okay. I'll have the French fries and mac and cheese, then," I said, staring at her strangely. Never heard anybody talk like that before, except maybe some of the experiments gone wrong. Like poor old Opie. The half-human, half-fish. He lasted half a day.

Her eyes flickered to my wings once again before she rushed off to get my food.

Man, humans are so strange. It was like she had never seen a pair of wings before. And those people across the room were still staring at me. I silently glared back at them with onyx eyes until they got uncomfortable and had to look away. I sat back, satisfied with myself, and crossed my arms across my chest.

A big, white flash of light from the side of me made my head flick to where it came from. A girl had some sort of pink device in her hands that was pointing directly at me. Her group of friends crowded around the machine, looking at the back of it. They all gasped and gaped at me and the thing. Then they started pointing at me with long, manicured fingernails and whispered to each other. I slowly started to stand up. This was starting to piss me off...

Another bright flash, and I whipped around to see a man with a big machine thing pointed at me. A look of astonishment was plastered stupidly on his face. I glared lethally at him. If only these people would stop staring at me like some sort of freak...

"Wow, Mommy, look at that pretty girl with the wings on her back!" a small, squeaky voice exclaimed. I looked to the side to see a little girl tugging on her mother's sleeve. The mother shushed her and pulled the little girl into the restroom. I fixed my gaze back on the girls. They looked excited, yet frightened. The device was still pointed at me.

"Hey, over here!"

I turned back to the man and the bright flash went off again, momentarily blinding me. I stumbled backwards, and bumped into a woman, who was staring at me with wide eyes. Sweat broke out on my forehead. My wings instinctively extended a little bit. More lights flashed, and white dots spotted my eyes. My breathing became quicker, more panicked. I felt so very vulnerable right then. My tan fingers shook by my sides. I backed into a table.

A tall guy in a leather jacket suddenly stepped in front of me, blocking me from the crowd.

"Guys, guys," he said, loud enough for everyone crowded around to hear. "Back off. You're gonna give her a heart attack." And then he turned to face me...and my knees immediately felt weak. Dark brunette hair fell directly in his chocolate eyes, swishing to the side a little. A friendly smile was plastered on his smooth, tan face. A callused hand reached towards me. "Come on, Belle, we're leaving. And I thought I told you not to wear your Halloween costume inside the restaurant?"

My mouth felt dry, and I tried to speak words to this stranger who just possibly saved my life. Instead, I failed miserably, only mouthing nonsense. To be honest: I felt ridiculous.

The stranger guy took my hand. Tingles ran up my arm. He slowly started to tug me away from the people. "Sorry, everybody," he said to the people. "Belle's just a little special, is all." I would have glared at him, but his gorgeous looks convinced me otherwise. So, I just bit my lip and let him embarrass me.

He pulled my outside of the restaurant, and his cheerful facade immediately dropped. Strong hands pushed me against the brick wall. Cold, dark eyes looked at me. His arms crossed.

"Who sent you?" he demanded, a ferocious glint in his eye. I shook my head of all thoughts about how good he looked and attempted to answer him.

"Nobody," I said. "I am completely on my own."

This gorgeous stranger didn't look convinced.

"Mhm. Say, what's your name again?"

I lifted my chin up higher in the air. "Bethany," I told him. "You?"

He swung the hair out of his eyes. "That's not for you to worry about." I glared at him. He may be gorgeous, but, man, he was an ass. "So, Bethany, where you from? Obviously not from around here."

I narrowed my eyes at him, and then said, repeating him, "That's not for you to worry about."

His brown eyes narrowed at me. "Actually, it is. If I'm gonna help you, I gotta know your life story. I don't want some faggot Blockhead turning me into dinner."

My eyes widened, like they do when I get upset sometimes. "Who said I was gonna let you help me? And what the hell is a Blockhead?"

The guy sighed, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "A Blockhead is a retarded werewolf thing that the Labbies created." He rolled his dark eyes. "And I said I was going to help you. You obviously need it."

I crossed my arms against the cold. A sigh escaped my lips as the words sunk in. "Fine. You help me. Do what you want. I don't care."

A smile played with his lips. Then he laughed once. "Alright. I just have one condition," he said. I raised my eyebrows. He smirked. "Help me locate the Labbies' control center and shut it down." I started to protest, but he held a hand up and stopped me. "After you help me with that, you don't ever have to see me again. Capeesh?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Ca--What?"

He laughed. "Capeesh. It means 'okay', or somethin' like that. It seals the deal. So...Capeesh?"

I sighed and nodded once. "Capeesh."

As he led me back through an alley, he slowed slightly, so he was beside me. My heart sped up at the closeness.

He smiled and whispered right beside my ear. "My name's Payne, by the way."

-obnoxiously squeals-

Yay! She met Payne! I think I am pretty proud of this chapter. Probably the longest I've ever done. But, you know, I was getting just SO into it.

REVIEW! Pretty please?