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"Jerome?" Nina asked as Jerome walked into the living room. Everyone look up. Fabian and Nina were on the sofa, talking, and Mara was in the arm chair in the corner, reading.

"What?" Jerome asked, carrying a cup of hot chocolate.

"Your hand!" Nina exclaimed "It's burnt!"

Jerome looked down, and seemed to remember "Oh yeah," he shrugged "Burnt in yesterday when I was making coffee. And again today," he walked past her towards Mara.

"Shouldn't you get it treated?" Fabian asked, baffled.

"I prefer to let my body fight its own battles. Can't go coddling it," and he plonked down opposite Mara, taking a long warm sip. Fabian and Nina went back to talking amongst themselves.

"Mara?" Jerome asked curiously. Mara looked up at him from over her massive book

"What?"

"Would you like a game of chess?" he eyed the chess board that was placed conveniently between them.

"Um…you play?" she asked, smiling. Jerome smiled too.

"Unbeatable."

"Yeah," Mara said, placing her book down "But when your opponent's Alfie…"

And the game started.

Line Break

It had been 7 hours. And they still weren't done. After the first four quick moves they had realised that this was serious. They spent each move, calculating, contemplating every where they could go, how it would affect them.

Their housemates had come and go, watching bits of it, but they were bored and had long gone.

"Are you two still playing? Off to bed now! Both of you!" Victor yelled

"But we're not done!" Jerome cried. Victor sighed, and whether it was because he had had a bad day, or because he didn't the will to fight with blonde, he sighed.

"Well make sure you go to bed right after you finish." And he left.

It was a weird feeling for Mara, knowing that everyone was in bed, while she was up late, with Jerome.

"How often do you… you know?" Jerome looked up at her after he moved his knight.

"Every three nights, or whenever it gets to hard," she whispered, not meeting his eyes. Jerome sighed

"Every two nights, sometimes every night," Mara looked at him "It's hard, isn't it?"

"We should be able to live without it, Jerome." She sighed. Jerome didn't say anything, just watched the chess board, carefully.

Mara didn't know what else to say, so she moved her piece randomly.

"You realise that I've won?"

"So?"

"You moved yourself into check," he looked up, into her eyes.

"So?"

"Well technically that's against the rules," he said quietly. Mara just stood, picking up her book and walking away in a huff, when she got to the door she turned back.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" he asked baffled.

"That you'd quit?"

Jerome blinked once, before turning so he could face her properly "I don't know what-"

"Oh don't give me that." Mara snapped, his eyes widened at her obvious anger. Never before had she been so openly angry, and at him. "I know you have."

Jerome stood too no, angry "Oh, you know? And tell me, how does the great Mara, know? Are you physic now? Oh, I bet you are, I bow before you oh great one," he bowed in fake sincerity.

Mara glared at him "Those burns on your hands? You're never that clumsy, and clumsiness is a classic withdrawell symptom. You've quit. And you did it quickly, all in one go." Jerome watched her in utter shock, before coughing once.

"…Well….I…." Mara just shook her head at him, a look of disgust on her face.

Line Break

Jerome wasn't good at this. He didn't know how to apologize. He raised his hand to knock on her door, but just before he did, it opened.

Mara looked up at him in shock. Jerome's eyes looked her up and down. She was wearing a white dress with a lime green cardigan. She looked refreshing.

"Hey," he said, looking down at her. Mara looked down at the ground, and Jerome wanted to put his fingers under her chin and make her look him in eye. But he couldn't. "I came to say…sorry."

"You shouldn't be. You did nothing wrong."

Jerome frowned "But I didn't tell you,"

"And you didn't have to," Mara said smartly, looking up at him

"But-"

"No Jerome." She cut him off "You and I are nothing, you had no reason to tell me. We are nothing, we're not even friends, so I don't know why I made such a big deal about it," she shrugged, "I guess it was because we both took it, it's fine." She smiled, and Jerome's heart sank.

"Yeah," he ran a hand through his hair "I gue-"

"Sorry," Mara said, her phone bleeping. She slid it out of her pocket and read the text quickly, flipping it shut "Sorry Jerome, Joy needs me, I have to go, okay?" She didn't wait for an answer before walking past him.

And Jerome's blood boiled. How dare she call them nothing? I mean sure, they were nothing, but…But what about their kiss? What about in the toilets? What about the crying? The chess game? The talks? The hugs? Was that all nothing to her? Apparently so.

And it made him so angry.

"Joy's just using you!" he called, and instantly regretted it. Mara turned slowly,

"What?" she asked in a low voice

"I've said if before and I'll say it again!" Jerome called down the hall "She's just using you because she knows you're free. She knows you have no plans, and she knows that even if you did have plans, they wouldn't be important ones and you'd instantly drop them for her!"

"I-"

"No, let's not interrupt Mara," Jerome sneered "I mean, who do you hang around with nowadays?"

"Be quiet, Jerome." She hissed

"Why?" Jerome laughed "Afraid someone might here the truth? Well I have news for you Mara! They truth hurts!"

Mara whispered something. Jerome cocked his head to the side. "What?" he called "Didn't here you Titch!"

Mara coughed, then looked up again, looking smaller than ever "I said ….." she trailed off again. Jerome kicked the wall frustrated, making her jump

"Come on! Speak up!"

Amber, Alfie, Patricia and Eddie gathered on the stairs, leaning over the barrister. Seeing a sneering Jerome and a close to tears Mara.

"Hey! What are you doing to her, Jerome?" Patricia called

"Leave Mara alone!" Amber cheered

"What's going on?" Eddie and Alfie asked in unison.

"Shut up!" Jerome roared, they all froze "Go on Mara!" he yelled, totally fuelled by anger now. He loved this girl now, he realised, and he was angry about it. Angry that he had fallen in love! How dare he? How dare he fall in love? No- No, how dare she? How dare that short black haired witch catch him? "TALK!"

Mara started sobbing openly now, unused to such yelling. "I don't want to-"

"I didn't ask what you wanted." Jerome hissed, venom lacing his words. "Say what you said."

The four of them watched from the steps, watching Mara.

"I said," she sniffed

"Louder!"

"I said!" she called loudly, still softly "I said, in the words of William Wordsworth, 'You think you know someone, until they let you in. And that's when you see, the true monster within."

Jerome breathed in, staggering backwards a few steps, as if she had hit him. And he stared at her open mouthed.

"What?" Amber asked "It was just a quote."

"No it wasn't Amber," Eddie whispered, eye flitting between Jerome and Mara "It was a judgement."

Mara turned and walked away, and without a second thought Eddie ran after her. Jerome stared in shock, emotionlessly at the place she had been. Amber and Alfie went back upstairs. And Patricia watched him for a moment

"Slimeball?" she asked quietly, curiously. He looked up at her, then looked away

"Not today Trix," he sighed exhausted, waving her off and turning and walking back to his room "Just not today,"

But there was one upside, when Jerome got into his room, he didn't have any Diodide, he collapsed on his bed…

…Clean.

Hey guys! So, summary: Jerome's realised he loves Mara, only he thinks it's a bad thing, Mara is trying to cut off all strings with Jerome. Patricia is only just realising the seriousness of the situation, and Eddie is eager to help…but why? What's his angle?

Review!

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