Chapter Nine:
Cupid's On Strike
Violet and I were chatting as we walked to school; she was discussing me with my new book.
"How did you come up with the name?" she asked me and I smiled to myself.
"Inspiration hit me" I answered and chuckled at my own inside joke. Violet gave me a look of confusion but didn't question it. Instead, she looked over and frowned as we got closer to the gate.
"Isn't that Rosalyn's boyfriend?" Violet asked and I looked over. I had never met Rosalyn's boyfriend yet but I knew he worked at the Clothing Shop next to the café and he was Lysander's older brother.
He had short black hair with eyes that looked like a mix between dark purple and black. He wore similar Victorian-era clothes like Lysander did. At the moment, he kept glancing at the school building and his phone.
"Are you okay?" I called as we walked closer and he looked over. He recognised Violet but glanced at me.
"I'm looking for my girlfriend" he said. "Do either of you know her by any chance?"
We nodded.
"Rosalyn" Violet answered and he nodded.
"I'm Leigh and since I'm not a student here, I cannot go in to talk to her. Could one of you go and get her for me?" he asked and I frowned.
Rosalyn always gushed about her boyfriend and practically ran to go see at the Clothing Store. If she wasn't answering his text messages, then something must have happened.
I crossed my arms over my chest. "Now hold on a damn minute. What did you do to her?" I snarled protectively and he looked surprised. I glared with my eyes narrowed.
"We had a fight" he answered and I studied him for a bit more before walking into the building without a word. I headed to the staircase, knowing Rosalyn would be at her locker.
I was right, her face was wet and her nose red from the obvious tears she had shed.
"Rosa, I'll grab the baseball bat" I soothed as I hugged her and she laughed.
"No don't" she said pulling back and I grabbed a tissue from her opened locker. She wiped her face and blew her nose. "He sent you right?"
I nodded. "After I interrogated him"
She smiled and then sighed, the smile gone in an instant. "Leigh just doesn't show me that he loves me anymore. I don't know if he's shy or just doesn't have the same feelings as before but I am not going out there. If he wants to make it up to me he can show me"
I patted her shoulder before heading back to the courtyard.
Leigh was sitting on the bench, Violet nowhere to be seen. He looked up when he heard me coming and his face fell when I wasn't Rosalyn.
I relay the message and he frowned deeply. "Do you have an idea?"
He shook his head. "I'm not very good with this kind of thing" he admitted and I sighed, staring at the ground.
"I'll be right back with an idea" I promised and went inside. I found the person I was looking for in one of the classrooms, writing something in his notebook.
"Lysander I need your help" I said, walking in and his head snapped up.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, immediately searching for an injury and I shook my head.
"Your brother and Rosalyn are fighting" I answered and explained what was going on.
He frowned deeply. "What about a poem? Girl's appreciate poems"
I shrugged my shoulders. "Rosalyn is a sucker for romantic things" I agreed and he smiled.
"Then I'll write a poem, just need to right equipment"
I raised an eyebrow. "You come to school without stuff?"
He nodded and I sighed, holding a hand up and going to my locker. I grabbed my notebook and a pen before giving them to Lysander.
He went to work as soon as the pen was in his hand.
I sat on a desk and waited.
Five minutes had passed and he handed me my notebook back.
"Read it" he said and I looked at the words he scribbled on.
Rosalyn,
No words can describe me never-ending feelings for you,
You are the only girl in the world,
Who can make me feel this way.
You are my sunlight,
Shining brightly over my dark clouds.
My beautiful goddess,
Aphrodite can only gaze enviously at your beauty.
Your heart is filled with compassion,
As does your soul.
You are the one for me,
I will love you until my last breath.
Leigh
I looked up at Lysander with tears in my eyes. "That was so beautiful Lys"
He smiled and handed me a handkerchief. I took it and wiped away the tears and handed it back to him.
"I'll go tell Leigh and then give this to Rosa" I decided and smiled. "Thanks Lysander"
He nodded as I left and told Leigh the good news. He read the poem and thought it was a good idea.
"Come back and tell me what she thinks" he told me and I nodded. Delivering the poem to Rosalyn, she read it and chuckled lightly before turning to me.
"This has yours and Lysander's work written all over it" she smiled and I shook my head.
"I didn't do anything" I told her and she frowned but nodded.
"Regardless, he didn't do it himself. It was a nice try though but not enough for me to talk to him" she decided firmly and I sighed. "Thanks for doing this Adrianne"
I smiled and walked down the hall, almost running into Castiel.
"Whoa! Watch where you're going Little Bunny" Castiel raised an eyebrow and looked at me better. "Alright, who the hell are you helping now?"
"How do you know I'm helping someone?" I asked, crossing my arms over me chest.
He smirked. "Because you are one of the most selfless people I know"
I'm selfless? I wondered and then shook it off. "Rosalyn and Leigh are having a fight and I'm trying to find an idea on getting them back together"
"Simple, he should just get a new girlfriend" Castiel answered and I shook my head.
"It's always a pleasure talking to you Castiel" I said sarcastically and he grinned.
"The pleasure's all mine" he replied, mocking Lysander's well manner tone to perfection and I just rolled my eyes before heading to the courtyard.
Leigh was eagerly await my answer and I felt bad having to tell him it was a bust. He looked crestfallen at the idea of not getting Rosalyn back and I looked around for another idea.
I glanced at the garden as a butterfly flew past in front of me. "What about flowers?"
Leigh frowned, looking at me and I sighed. "Make her a bouquet"
He smiled at the idea and stood up. "I'll get some ribbon, stay here" he instructed before running out of the school gates. I sat down by the bench, waiting for him to come back.
"Still playing cupid?"
I glanced over and saw Castiel walking over, lighting a cigarette on the way and blowing out a puff of smoke.
"Yep, I think it should become my full-time job" I answered and he chuckled before looking at me curiously.
"Lys said you've got the second book up and running" he said. "Can I just ask why you called it 'Fallen Blood Moon'?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "I was inspired and it seems fitting"
"You shouldn't be smoking on school property" Leigh returned and gave Castiel a disapproving glance.
"Hasn't stopped me before" Castiel replied, blowing out some more smoke while Leigh went to the garden. He grabbed a couple of white roses with some red and I told him yellow too.
"Why yellow?" he asked.
"Because it symbolises the promise of a new beginning" I explained. "Make sure you have at least fifteen roses"
"And what does that mean?" Castiel asked and I glanced at him.
"Fifteen roses represent 'I'm sorry, please forgive me?'" I answered and he shook his head.
"You know too much for your own good" he muttered while I just simply shrugged my shoulders.
Leigh handed me the finished bouquet and I headed inside to find Rosalyn. Violet was rubbing her back as she cried into the said girl's shoulder.
"Cupid's brought a present" I called. "100% Leigh made"
Rosalyn took the roses from me and more tears came to her eyes. "Oh, he really does care about me"
"So go to him" I gestured to the hall but she shook her head.
"I-I need some time to think" she sniffed, running upstairs and I groaned.
"Cupid is officially retired!" I declared, going to my locker to grab some cookies before going to the classroom Lysander was in earlier. "Lys can you answer me a question?"
He looked up from his notebook with an annoyed expression.
"I'm in the middle of writing, can it not wait?" he asked and I sighed.
"All I was going to ask was am I selfless?"
He thought about it before nodding. "You're helping my brother save his relationship. That's pretty selfless"
I bit my bottom lip before leaving and returning the cookies to my locker just as I heard someone call my name.
"Adrianne I need your help!" Rosalyn wailed, grabbing the sleeve of my purple turtleneck shirt. "I lost the white gold ring Leigh got me on our two year anniversary!"
I scratched the back of my head. "So you've forgiven him?"
"I'm going to talk to him yeah but not without the ring" she answered.
"Can't you just buy another one?"
"It costs $235 and I spent my allowance on some boots"
I groaned and nodded. "Alright, I'll check outside while you look around the school"
She hugged me. "You are the best, selfless, most kind girl I have ever known!"
"You're crushing me" I gasped and she let go immediately before running down the hall. I shook my head and wandered outside, checking the grass carefully in case she may have dropped it.
I saw Castiel and Leigh walking towards me and panic filled me as I looked at Castiel worriedly. He saw this and frowned before looking at Leigh.
I nodded and Castiel put his arm around the guy. "Look, why don't you just get a new girlfriend?" he asked, leading him away and into the garden while glancing back at me.
I mouthed 'thanks' and he went back to Leigh. "Alright, time to look for the ring"
Searching everywhere, I found it tucked under some grass and ran inside, giving it to Rosalyn.
"Where did you find it?" she asked amazed at my skills while I smiled.
"It was under some grass" I answered and she slipped it on before taking a deep breath. "Go to him"
She nodded and walked outside as I watched her go.
The bell had rang and school was finally over. I went to my locker and grabbed my uniform as Rosalyn called my name.
"So everything worked out?" I guessed by the massive smile she wore on her face and she nodded.
"Leigh's promised to show more affection" she replied. "I can't thank you enough for helping out Adrianne"
"It's no big deal" I shrugged and she grinned.
"It is though! So as a reward for helping me out, I'll help you whenever you need it!"
I laughed and nodded. "Sure, I'll keep that in mind"
She smiled before running off and kissing the awaiting Leigh who pulled her deeply into his arms.
A tight feeling in my chest pulled my eyes away from the scene and I walked to the café. I got changed quickly and saw a certain red head walk in with a certain Belgian Shepherd.
"Castiel, dogs aren't allowed in the café" I scolded him from behind the counter and he smirked.
"Relax, I'm just here to grab some cake" he reassured me as I rolled my eyes and grabbed a double chocolate mud cake. I threw some sprinkles on and boxed it before handing it to him.
His eyes widened. "How'd you know what type of cake I liked? And that I like sprinkles?"
"Because you told me" I answered, grabbing his money and handing him his change. "You're not the only one who pays attention"
He smiled warmly. "Thanks, Adrianne"
"Wow, no more Little Bunny?" I asked surprised and he winked. I groaned, shaking my head and shooed him out. "I've got work to do"
He chuckled and left, not before glancing back at me one last time, sending my heart into a frenzy of rapid beats.
