Hello, my darlings :)

I don't really have much to say today... just thank all of my readers and my very loyal reviewers who came all the way from the first part of Fayne's story and are taking the time to read the sequel, thank you so much!

ENJOY!

CHAPTER TWO – The Worst Week & A Leaking Ceiling

Morning came and the Sun shone throughout the entire Pevensie household.

Mrs. Pevensie and Mr. Pevensie, as usual, were the first ones to get up, followed by a very cranky Peter.

He had barely gotten three hours of sleep and, just like every single day, he had to get ready for school.

When he had woken up in the attic he noticed he was still holding the black velvet box in his hand. Rubbing his eyes, he stood up and dragged his feet towards the dresser and put Fayne's gift back where it had been before.

He went downstairs and walked into his room. Without waking Edmund up, he retrieved his clothes and headed for the bathroom to start the day.

Meanwhile, Fayne, who had had even more trouble falling asleep, heard the daily noises coming from outside her room and her mind decided to not sleep anymore.

With an exasperated sigh, she got up and did the same as Peter.

Choosing her dress for the day, she exited the room and headed to the bathroom but as she meant to knock the door, it opened, revealing an already prepared Peter.

She smiled at him but noticed something in his eyes.

"Good morning" She said trying to maintain the smile on her face

"Morning" Peter coldly replied and started walking away but Fayne took his hand and stopped him

"Hey… what is it?"

"Nothing" He answered with the same cold tone without really locking eyes with her

"Are you sure?" Fayne insisted

"Positively"

That was all he said. He gave her the fastest of glances before walking away and leaving Fayne even more confused than the night before.

"Morning, Pete" Edmund said walking out of his room but Peter didn't reply; he just brushed past him and went straight downstairs "Good morning, Fayne" He continued shifting his eyes from the stairs to her. She nodded and gave him a small smile "What's the matter with him?"

"I don't know… maybe he's a little stressed out because of school…" She said but she knew that was a lie

"Probably. So, did you sleep well?" Edmund asked gleely

"Yeah, thanks… and you?"

"Like a baby. Talking of which… we should be waking Lucy up"

"I am not a baby" Lucy snapped back walking to them

"Morning, Lu" Fayne said chuckling at the last comment

"Good morning, Fayne. Have you talked to Peter yet?"

"Uhmm… no… I… I'm going to take a shower. Won't take more than ten minutes, promise" Fayne said nervously before rushing into the bathroom and leaving Edmund and Lucy staring at the now closed door

"Is she alright?" Edmund asked

"I'm not sure… Have you seen Peter?" Lucy questioned

"Yes. He's in the kitchen with mum and dad"

Without saying anything else, Lucy walked away and went downstairs.

There, she saw her mother working over some toasts, her father reading the newspaper as he sipped some of his coffee and Peter playing with the cereal in his bowl.

"Good morning, Lucy. Would you like some toast with jam?" Mrs. Pevensie asked as the girl sat down next to Peter

"Sure, mum, thanks" She replied and then turned to Peter "Hello"

"Hi" He mumbled without looking at her

"So… is that cereal very interesting?"

"Mmm"

"Are you alright?"

"Sure. Why wouldn't I?" Peter asked dropping his spoon a little to forcefully into his bowl of untouched cereal and stood up "I have to go. I'm running late"

"Have a nice day, son" Mr. Pevensie said as Peter walked to the door

"Your lunch, sweetheart" Mrs. Pevensie called

"I'll buy something later" Peter replied and stormed out of the house

"Was that Peter?" Fayne asked walking into the kitchen already showered and dressed

"Yes, dear… would you like some…?" Mrs. Pevensie started asking but stopped as she heard the door slamming shut "What is it with everyone today?"

"Peter!" Fayne called running out of the house and catching up with him "Peter, stop, please!"

"What do you want, Fayne?" He asked, indeed stopping but without turning to face her

"What's wrong? Why are you in such a bad mood?" She inquired standing in front of him

"I am not in a bad mood"

"Oh… alright… then… why… why didn't you… you… haven't kissed me yet" Fayne said, blushing and looking down

Peter widened his eyes. For a moment, he thought he was looking at the same Fayne he had met in Narnia. He lifted his hand and brushed its back softly against her cheek. She closed her eyes and smiled.

He then leaned forward and, just when he was about to kiss her, he stopped, a mere inch away from her mouth.

"I have to go" He said, dropping his hand from her face and standing straight

Fayne couldn't say anything. She just felt her eyes filling with tears as he started to walk away.

"Peter!" She called once more, making him stop and turn to her "I love you"

But Peter didn't answer. He stared at her for a second before resuming his walk.

As He walked away, Fayne suddenly felt a freezing wind hitting her body; she wrapped her arms around her body, protectively and stood there for over an hour, long after Peter had disappeared.

And that was only the beginning of the worst week of her life.

That day went by in an extremely slow manner. After Lucy and Edmund had left for school and Mr. Pevensie had left for work, Fayne stayed at home with Mrs. Pevensie, as she always did.

She helped around the house, cleaning, tidying up, cooking and once everything was done Mrs. Pevensie started with that day's lessons. Mathematics and Chemistry; two of the subjects Fayne hated the most. Her favourites were History and Geography but of course, having started the day so well, she wouldn't be lucky enough to study what she liked the most.

After a couple of hours, Mrs. Pevensie decided it was enough for the day and released Fayne from her duties, which Fayne thanked.

While Mrs. Pevensie prepared lunch, Fayne went up to the attic. She was too depressed to go outside and enjoy sometime in the garden.

Once in her and Peter's preferred room, she went through some of the books they had there but none caught her attention. Nothing seemed to draw her attention.

Her mind was fixed on Peter's attitude that very morning. And that made her doubt even more about his feelings for her.

She sat down on the pillow mountain, embraced one of the many cushions and leaned her body and head against the window frame and looked out the glass with sadness.

The morning went by and half an hour before lunch she saw Edmund and Lucy arriving from school.

Of course, Mrs. Pevensie called her to go down to eat lunch with them but she didn't even bother on replying.

"Edmund, dear, would mind fetching Fayne. She must have fallen asleep" Mrs. Pevensie asked and Edmund nodded

"Fayne?" He called knocking on her bedroom door but got no answer "Fayne, are you in here?" She wasn't. When he opened the door she found both her and Lucy's beds empty. He kept on looking for her until he reached the attic "Fayne?" There she was, her legs pressed up against her body, her chin leaning on her knees "Hey… I've been looking for you"

"Why?" She asked still looking out the window

"Mum asked me to come and get you. Lunch is ready" He said approaching to her

"I'm not hungry"

"Well… I don't think mum will settle for that response, you know how she is"

"Yeah… could you tell her I'm asleep or something? I really don't feel like leaving this room" Fayne replied

"What is it, Fayne?" Edmund questioned

"Nothing, Edmund… I just… I need to be alone, that's all"

"Oh… alright… I'll think of something to tell mum, then…"

"Thanks"

He nodded and noticed how weak her smile was. Then he was gone.

She stayed there for the rest of the day and the next day and the day after that.

Mrs. Pevensie was terribly worried about Fayne for she hadn't eaten in almost three days and hadn't left the attic.

She had even asked Peter to check on her (since he already knew a bit about medicine) but all he would reply to that was that she would get over it or that she was just missed her parents or anything of the sort.

At the fourth day, she finally came out of the attic, took a shower, had something to eat and then went straight to bed, without talking to anyone.

The rest of the week went by just like that but the day before her birthday, Fayne decided to get out of bed and start behaving normally.

Meanwhile, that day, in the afternoon, at the hardware store, Peter finished unpacking some boxes when some of his neighbours walked into the store.

"Hey, Pevensie!" Michael Lawson, the oldest of the group called "Where's your pretty girlfriend? We haven't seen her in almost a week"

"Sod off, Lawson" Peter replied as he organized some merchandise

"She's really pretty. You should take better care of her… one of these days she might opt to rise her expectations and leave you for someone… better" The young man continued making his friends laugh

"Shut up" Peter said

"Whoa… Look… Pevensie has got some temper today" Lawson mocked Peter turning to his amused friends "Really, with that temper of yours it wouldn't surprise me if Fayne left you for… I don't know… me, perhaps?"

"I said shut up!" Peter shouted, grabbing Michael by the collar of his shirt and slamming him against the nearest wall with rage

"Put me down, Pevensie!" Michael demanded

"Peter!"

As he turned his face, Peter saw Edmund standing at the door of the hardware store. He was the one who had called his name.

"Peter, put him down" Edmund said

Peter was breathing heavily and looked back at Michael menacingly "If I ever see you anywhere near Fayne… I'll kill you"

He then let the very frightened Michael Lawson go, followed by his two friends.

Edmund approached to his brother and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What happened, Pete?"

"Nothing… he was… he said… something about Fayne… I wasn't going to let him offend her" Peter replied stepping away from Edmund

"So you do still care about her"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"What you heard, Peter. Fayne has been acting very strangely lately. She's not well and you don't seem to care at all!" Edmund explained

"I do care… it's just… it's nothing, alright? Tomorrow is her birthday; that should cheer her up" Peter said walking to the back part of the counter

"You have to talk to her, Peter. If your feelings for her have changed, she has all the right to know. You're not being fair to her"

And with that, Edmund walked out the store leaving Peter completely confused with his thoughts.

That evening, once Mr. Thomas, the hardware store owner had dismissed him, Peter left the store and walked back to his house.

All the way there he thought about Fayne and what Edmund had said about her. Perhaps he was hurting her with his demeanour towards her but if she didn't love him anymore (even though she had told him so several days before) then he had to cut the bond that kept them together.

He had actually asked Mr. Thomas to give him the next day off several weeks before so he could be with Fayne on her birthday and now he couldn't take it back.

Once he reached his house, he looked up and saw Fayne looking out the window of her room but she didn't seem to have noticed him. He stared at her for several minutes and then looked down at his mother's garden.

A single yellow rose caught his eye and feeling the impulse, cut it and walked into the house.

"Peter, dear! I'm so happy you're home!" Mrs. Pevensie said kissing Peter on the cheek

"Hi, mum" Peter replied and started walking towards the stairs

"Sweetheart, dinner will be ready in less than five minutes. Go wash up and tell Fayne to come down as well, please"

"Yes, mum" He said and went straight upstairs

He paced up and down in front of Fayne's and Lucy's bedroom for a couple of minutes, holding the rose he had cut for Fayne, making up his mind to whether give it to her or not but his train of thoughts was interrupted when Lucy opened the door, scaring the hell out of him.

"Peter!" Lucy exclaimed "How was work?"

"Good… it was… good, thanks… Is Fayne in there?" He asked

"Yes, she is… what have you got there?" She inquired curiously noticing the yellow rose he was holding

"This? Oh… nothing, it's… nothing…"

"Lucy! Dinner is ready!" Mrs. Called from downstairs

"I'm coming, mum!" Lucy said and after winking at Peter, rushed away

Peter sighed, looking down at the rose. He then bend down on one knee and intended to leave it on the floor, next to the door so Fayne could see it when she walked out but she appeared at the door right in that moment.

"Peter" She said

"Fayne!" He exclaimed startled

He immediately noticed how much she had changed in only a week. Her skin looked pale, her lips had lost their natural rosy colour, her eyes were a little puffy and blood shot and she had obviously lost a lot of weight.

"What are you doing?" Fayne asked as he stood up

"I was… just…" He started but interrupted himself "Are you alright?" His tone seemed sincerely concerned

"What?"

"Are you alright? You look… weak…"

"Oh… no… it's nothing, really… I'm probably coming down with something, nothing of importance" She replied trying to smile

Peter didn't go for that. He lifted his hand and placed it on her cheek and then her forehead "You don't seem to have a fever…"

"Honestly, Peter, I'm fine" She said taking his hand from her face but without letting go of it "And you? How was your day?"

"Good… normal, I guess" He shrugged

"I'm glad"

For the first time since they had met, they felt a little awkward being in silence. There were so many unsaid things between them that needed to be told but none of them dared to speak them.

"Is it for me?" Fayne suddenly asked

"What?"

"The rose"

"Oh… well… yes… it's just… it's silly, really…" Peter replied offering it to her

"It is not silly, Peter… it's lovely" She whispered taking it and smelling it with her eyes closed "Thank you. This is the best gift anyone could have ever given me"

Standing on her tiptoes she gave Peter a kiss on the cheek. He closed his eyes and couldn't help to turn his face and kiss her straight on the lips.

He surrounded her waist with his arms and lifted her a little from the floor as she passed her arms around his neck as the rose still remained in her right hand.

But as they kissed, all the thoughts he had had during the previous days came rushing back into his head and suddenly broke the kiss and the embrace.

"I… I'm sorry… I'm sorry, I can't do this right now…" Peter said and without even looking at her, ran away

"Peter… don't go…" Fayne whispered, trying her best to hold back a sob. She brought the rose to her lips and kissed it softly as some fresh tears formed in her eyes

As it was to be supposed, neither of them went down to dinner.

The next morning, unlike any other spring day, dark clouds covered the sky making the day for both Peter and Fayne more depressing than it was already.

"Wake up, sleepy head!" Lucy told Fayne, sitting next to her on the bed

"What?" Fayne asked grumpily

"Wake up, Fayne! It's your birthday!" The girl insisted shaking Fayne

"Oh, yes… it is…" Fayne replied in no mood to celebrate anything

"C'mon, Fayne! It's a great day! Well… not outside… there's a storm coming, the first of the season, dad said, but we can have fun inside! Mum said Edmund and I can skip school and Peter asked Mr. Thomas to give him this day off like a million years ago! We're gonna have so much fun! Oh and mum is baking a cake and she's making your favourite meal for supper, isn't that great?" Lucy exclaimed

"Yes… yes, Lucy, it is…" Fayne answered somewhat mechanically sitting up

"Oh, and the presents! We all got you something; you must get ready and come down for breakfast as soon as possible!" Lucy continued walking to the door and then stopped and ran back to Fayne, hugging her "Happy birthday"

"Thanks" Fayne said hugging her best friend back, trying her best to smile

"I'll see you downstairs" The girl said and exited the room

Fayne sighed and dug her hand under her pillow, taking out the yellow rose Peter had given her the day before.

After smelling it once last time, she got up, got her clothes and went to the bathroom to get ready for the day to come.

A little while later, she joined the rest of the family in the kitchen; they were all there, even Peter.

"Happy birthday, Fayne, dear!" Mrs. Pevensie exclaimed hugging her

"Thank you, Mrs. Pevensie"

Mr. Pevensie echoed his wife's words and actions and then Edmund and Lucy walked over to hug Fayne. The only one who didn't move from his place was Peter who seemed very interested on a particular spot on the table.

"Peter, aren't you going to congratulate Fayne?" Mrs. Pevensie scolded

Peter looked up and after glancing at Fayne for a moment nodded. He stood up and approached to Fayne.

"Happy birthday" He simply said and gave her a light hug

As Fayne felt some tears welling up in her eyes, a thunder stroked and the storm began. Rain came pouring down in gallons. There hadn't been a storm like that in years.

Fayne felt as if everything around her was tumbling down and she didn't feel she was able to cope with it.

"Edmund, go and see if all the windows are closed, please" Mrs. Pevensie said

"I'll go" Fayne hurriedly said and rushed out of the kitchen, going upstairs

"Go and help her, Peter" Mr. Pevensie added

Peter thought for a moment before standing up and following Fayne.

He walked into his room and there she was, fighting against the roaring wind trying her best to close the window.

"Let me help you" He said and rushed to her side

With some struggle they managed to close the window but they ended a bit soaked.

"I could do it on my own" She suddenly said, sounding quite upset

"It didn't look like it. You aren't strong enough"

"I'm not strong enough? You're a jerk, Peter!" Fayne shouted and ran out of the room

"Hey, Fayne, wait up!" He called running after her

They went up to the attic and Peter slammed the door shut. The ceiling was dripping for the roof was quite old and hadn't been looked after for several years, letting the rain leak all the way into the room.

"What's wrong with you?" Peter asked

"What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you? For over a week you've been practically ignoring me and last night… last night you came to my room, gave me a rose, kissed me and then ran away like a real coward and now you barely speak to me, your mum had to make you congratulate me, which you didn't have to do if you didn't really want to, by the way and then you come and tell me I'm not strong enough? What else am I not enough, Peter? Am I just so pathetic and lame that a man like you couldn't live with someone like me?" She shouted at him feeling more angry than sad

"How can you say that when you're the one who wishes to go back to Narnia every single day and find your prince charming and have a life I can't give you? I'm nothing but a med school student, part-time clerk at a local store, how pathetic am I? I can't give you what you deserve… what you want!" Peter shouted back

"I never said I wanted big, expensive gifts!"

"No, you didn't say it but you think about it!"

"Oh, so now you presume to know what I think?"

"Yes! You wish you had chosen Caspian instead of me!"

Fayne couldn't take it anymore. She strode to Peter and slapped him across the face with all her strength.

"How could you say something like that? How can you…?" She tried to ask, got tears rolling down her face which by now was quite wet because of all the leaking water. She looked up at the ceiling and exhaled "Our relationship is just like this. A ceiling full of leaks"

"Do you still love me?" He asked

"I should be the one asking that, Peter. Over the last week I've been the only one using that word" She replied and then tried to approach to him but he gave a step back "What's going on, Peter? Why are you letting everything we fought for slip away?"

"I am not the one to blame" Peter coldly said

"What have I done? What…?"

"I can't deal with this… I can't be here…"

Peter started walking to the door but then, it felt as if the whole house started shaking. A part of the ceiling fell apart, letting the rain into the attic without restrictions.

"Peter!" Fayne shouted

"Fayne, don't move! I'm coming!" He yelled rushing among the rubble towards her. He took her hand and held her close to his chest "Stay still!" He told her as some other parts of the ceiling began to fall down

"What's happening?" Fayne asked

"I don't know!"

Suddenly, the whole ceiling fell apart and then, everything went black.

Uuuu... I can't think of anything to say... just... uuuu!

I'm kinda sleepy and in not a very good because I haven't been inspired today... I hate it when that happens...
But whatever... I hope you're liking it and please, keep R&Ring!

Thanks once again and I'll be seeing you soon!

Angie
xoxoxo