xoxo

Title-Are you stalking me?!

Chapter 10

By-Moon Prynces

xoxo

"Ow! Watch what you're doing!" A female voice yelled.

"Sorry! It's not my fault you made me wear these things!" Another girl complained, trying to keep her balance and failing.

"Are you kidding? Haven't you ever worn heels before?" Millerna asked, giving Hitomi a disbelieving look.

The said girl looked away. "Uh... well, it's just been a while..."

There was a moment of silence as Millerna went thoughtful and Hitomi was still trying to walk in a straight line with the shoes she had on. Both girls were in Hitomi's bedroom, and in half an hour they would have to leave for school.

An entire week had passed since the supposed makeover. A week in which Hitomi had cultivated her new look and attitude into a person that she actually liked. She had even consented to getting a drastic hair cut that, added with the radiant color of her eyes and new wardrobe, made a member of the opposite sex stare, on more than one occasion.

Now though, it was time to see if this would work. High school meant a lot of things, and was especially important to the average teenager since at least 1/4 of every weekday was spent there.

Hitomi wobbled over to a full length mirror on the back of her closet door. It was still odd to see your reflection and not recognize yourself. She was wearing a pair of long black jeans, a tight, white t-shirt and the shoes were silver sandals with heels that were almost three inches high. There was a slight touch of makeup that Millerna had insisted upon but it wasn't noticeable.

"Isn't this a bit drastic for the first day back and everything?" Hitomi called over her shoulder.

"How?" Millerna got off the bed and walked over. "I think it sends the perfect message!"

"And what's that? That I'm ready to sleep with every guy that looks at me?" She replied dryly.

The blonde just laughed. "Stop analyzing this so much. You look great."

"Why am I even doing this?" The other girl sighed and walked over to her bed. "It's not like it's a big deal. I just look different." She plopped down and grabbed a pillow to hug it.

"It is too a big deal!" Millerna replied hotly, putting her hands on her hips. "High school is about finding yourself. Trying on different faces and seeing which one fits you. It's better to keep changing until you realize who you are now than wait until you have to go out into the real world. Because on top of dealing with college or finding a job and paying bills and everything else you'll still have to deal with this."

Hitomi looked up at her friend. "So I guess you already know who you are then." She stated.

Millerna stiffened and stood up straight. 'Not quite.' She thought to herself.

Luckily though, Hitomi did not pursue this topic of conversation. "So what happened to Dilandau?"

The blonde waved a hand dismissively. "Who knows? I'm not even sure if his highness will decide to attend school today."

The two girls laughed, knowing there was a lot more to the pryomaniac than a badass, tough guy exterior.

xoxo

'This is stupid!' Allen thought angrily, stomping his way across the campus and not even glancing up to wave a hand at the groups of girls staring at him. 'If this is so stupid then why am I still thinking about it?' He thought again.

It really wasn't like the blonde to ignore the clusters of girls stationed around the area. Most of them usually just got up early to see Allen walk by because he would always wave or stop by to flirt. But today he was still in a fit from his chat with Van the previous day.

It was bad enough he was in a horrible mood but it was even worse that it was on the first day back to school from the break they had. He had been so distracted that he forget all about cutting and going to a movie theater across town to pass the time. Mostly he came just to wring his best friends neck for setting his mind such a disarray.

'Speaking of which, where is that no good Fanel anyway?' Allen thought angrily again.

'I can't believe him! How dare he suggest such a thing. I let it pass the first time. But now, I'm really pissed.' He thought again.

The reason he was so pissed was... well it involved a certain blonde that he didn't want to think about. Van had been once again teasing him about that Millerna girl and how he spent too much time thinking about her. Allen argued that it was only to plan revenge and to get under her skin. Van said that it had to be more than that (for once he had been using his head) and commented on how unusual it was that Allen spent so much time with her or thinking about her, when he never spent half that amount of time with any other girl.

Van was also kind enough to mention that Millerna was female, a girl yes, and that she was very pretty.

And that's how the idea that there was never an established relationship between the two got into Allen's head. He knew for a fact that they weren't friends and no where near a romantic relationship. He never realized how much he depended on her being an enemy to him. But now that he realized she was a girl with exceptional looks what was he supposed to do?

Be completely confused is what.

Revenge? It was so tiresome. And Allen was a playboy by nature, always chasing pretty girls. So when did he start making exceptions just because a girl had an attitude with him and didn't stare at him with adoration? Exactly.

So maybe now it was time for a change of plans...

xoxo

This was absolutely torture. The white walls. The horribly colored floors. The graffiti covered tables.

Van sighed and put his feet up on his desk as he leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head. Class would start in a few minutes. Not that he cared. He was planning on taking a nap. The only reason he came to school today was because his mother was taking the day off from work and running errands. It was more that likely that she would spot him around town, cutting.

He had long forgotten which classes he had attended so far. It was just a habit, walking to the correct room each period since he'd done it so often this school year, which was odd.

So he closed his eyes to prepare for sleep. And then suddenly it seemed as if someone had turned up the volume. People were chattering loudly and it wouldn't stop. His eyebrows came together in frustration but his eyes remained closed.

He also heard as some people were shuffling around and some footsteps that very obviously were coming in his direction. He assumed it might be the teacher trying to wake him up so he stayed put and was planning on ignoring him.

But instead of a voice lashing out at him there wasn't anything and then someone sighed.

He was pretty curious at this point. The chattering was still going on. Peeking open one eye, Van looked around the room and didn't see anything out of the ordinary. But everyone seemed to be looking in his direction but not at him. Then he glanced up in front of him to see the back of a girl's head.

Hitomi, who had just walked into her next class was starting to get freaked out by all the attention she had received from so many people, guys and girls. Obviously no one recognized her as the girl Van seemed to always pick on, so no one actually knew her name. They would come up and ask her name, then say something like 'oh, I remember, the new girl right?' and then pretending as if they didn't know Hitomi had been an ugly duckling that shouldn't be affiliated with, the girls commented and complimented on her new look while the guys would try to hit on her, with no luck.

It seemed like everyone was buzzing about her. 'I'm only the center of attention because of how I look! When I first came here no one glanced at me!' Hitomi thought indignantly, taking her seat and not looking up from the floor at anybody.

There were a few cat calls but she turned her head away to look out the window.

Van on the other hand, for all he was worth, had absolutely nothing to say, because he was completely confused. Who was the girl sitting in front of him? He would've recognized her if it was someone that he sat behind in this class. In fact, what class was he in? It didn't even matter.

So class began a few moments later and Hitomi was ignoring everyone except the teacher and Van was staring hard at the back of her head searching his memory for who this person was.

And then finally he got the brilliant idea to make her turn around so he could actually see her face! So he leaned forward and tapped her shoulder. But Hitomi, thinking it was another guy going to harass, just shrugged off the offending finger.

This only got Van irritated, and he was just too curious now to let it go. He waited a few minutes and then tapped again, only to get the same result. This left him with no choice but to lean forward and...

"Hey, do I know you?" He asked, his mouth only an inch from her right ear.

Hitomi stiffened as she felt a whispery voice next to her ear and recognized who it was. 'Oh no! This can't be...' She thought, and slowly turned around to see the face of the last person on earth she wanted to be near.

Van, who had felt her tense up in her seat wondered what was her problem. And then she turned to face him and he finally saw who it was...

"You!" Van yelled, jerking back in his seat so he was farther away from her face. He actually wasn't sure how he knew who it was. The only thing he remembered were those green eyes, since he'd never seen anyone with them before except...

Hitomi just stared in shock. 'Just great! I should've been paying attention damnit! I would've remembered about him and this class!' She berated herself.

Someone cleared their throat loudly. "Do we have a problem there Miss Kanzaki? Mr. Fanel?" The teacher interrupted the revelation and made them look up to see the class staring at the both of them.

Hitomi turned slightly pink and turned around in her seat to face the board again. Van just made an annoyed face but didn't say anything. It took a few minutes for everybody to stop staring but when they finally did, Van was still pretty confused and Hitomi was horrified.

Van leaned forward slightly again and watched the movements of the teacher. "Hitomi?" He asked suddenly, making the girl jump.

She didn't respond though and started shaking involuntarily. 'Damnit, damnit, damnit. What happened to that whole new attitude thing?' The green-eyed girl thought angrily to herself. Then she blinked. And turned around halfway.

"Did you just say my name?" She asked him, giving an odd look.

Van also blinked and jerked back in surprise. "What?"

"I knew you weren't completely stupid, but you've never actually called me by my first name until just now!" She said again with mock amazement.

The raven-haired boy just 'pffted' and glared.

"What? No comebacks?" Hitomi continued, and mentally grinned realizing this wouldn't be so hard. "Has my new look confused you?"

"Please. You may look different but you're still the same person." Van countered.

"Oh yeah? How would you know? You never knew me from the beginning!" She said turning around fully now, so he could get a better view of her. "Besides, aren't you happy now that I don't look like I did before? Didn't you say I should change the way I look? But just to let you know, this had nothing to do with you."

For a moment there was silence as Van took in her new appearance. And somewhere deep in his mind he had to admit that she did look nice, but that was something he would never ever think again, it was a one-time thing.

Hitomi was unnerved as she watched his eyes roam over her face, hair and clothes. But as he did so she also got a good look at him too. So she noticed how his hair was sloppy as it had always been and how the color of his eyes was something she had never seen before.

But before one of them could spit out another remark the bell rang. So Hitomi jumped up and in a flurry ran out of the room. Van was once again confused.

"Stupid bitch." He muttered on his way out of the room.

xoxo

Truthfully, she was nervous and excited at the same time. It was so odd to be back in school after an entire week. The blonde sighed in exasperation, wishing the day was over already. So far she had made very little contact with anyone else and was hoping she didn't have to see him today.

Celena Schezar looked around and finally decided on taking the staircase that was less used, she could probably take her time without being jostled around by any crowds. The stairs weren't even long, only leading from the first floor (which was actually elevated off of the ground) to outside the building through the emergency exit, which most people didn't use, so that it lead to the campus and the other school buildings.

She was glad to be in school because being at home, watching Van and Allen wrestle each other over the stupidest things made her dizzy. And she hadn't left her house since that one day she went to the mall and ran into a few girls from school. That was the only thing she looked forward to, maybe meeting up with them and having some friends. But she hadn't seen Hitomi nor Millerna the entire day so far.

And then there was that other thing she needed to deal with that...

Well, he was waiting right there by the closed doors, playing with his lighter as usual.

Celena stifled a gasp of surprise, but her footsteps had already caught his attention. She was near fleeing back up the stairs and finding another way to her next class. But it was too late when he stood up and regarded her with cautious eyes.

"Hey." He greeted slowly.

Dilandau had been, of course, cutting another one of his classes. So he picked one of the most unused places inside a school building, because it was just too hot outside, and sat down to smoke.

Unfortunately his peace was disturbed when he looked up to find Celena standing there, frozen in place. Dilandau was good with confrontation, but mostly because it usually involved him beating the crap out of someone (never a female though, he wasn't below that). So he had stood up and greeted her in his most nuetral tone.

But then after a few minutes neither of them knew what to say to this. Celena hadn't responded. Dilly was trying to come up with something to say.

"About that day-" Celena had opened her mouth and a few words tumbled out before she could close it again. But she had cut herself off.

Dilandau, who had been staring at the floor, jerked up to look at her. 'Why does this feel so... awkward?' Was the only thing to come to mind.

"-we made-out, remember?" She continued in an abrupt manner.

Dilandau just stared at her. And his mind went blank. Celena looked expectant, as if waiting for some explanation or something. He just kept staring back, and neither of them said anything for a while.

Slowly his old self and things started slipping out of his mouth. "Well, you're not a bad kisser, I'd have to say." He commented with a lecherous grin.

Celena blinked for a second, and then went up to him... and smacked him upside the head.

And just like that, the world was suddenly alright, at least between these two.

"Shut up, you pervert!" Celena said, but also had on a grin. A little uncertainly she broached the subject once again though. "So then none of that... matters right? It was just..."

"A one-time thing." Dilandau responded with a nonchalant tone and expression. "Don't think about it too much. I just needed to get rid of some stress."

There was silence as Celena tried to push that event to the back of her memory, never to be looked upon again. So she smiled again and continued a conversation with him, forgetting about her next class.

"So what've you been up to the entire week we had off?" Was the first question that came to mind.

Dilandau looked offended, having remembered that he spent most of his time hanging out with two girls in a platonic way. He even had some fun (though not in a perverted way). But these things he couldn't tell her, in fact, he couldn't tell anyone or his reputation might be ruined!

"Nothing really." He answered vaguely. "Oh yeah, and about that thing... before and all..." Celena nodded a head, understanding that he meant the last day of school when they had made-out. "Sorry bout snapping at you like a bitch. I was supposed to save that for someone else, but it doesn't matter." He shrugged.

There was some more silence. Celena looked down at the floor. Dilandau moved to sit down at the stairs, and Celena followed his example.

'This is so awkward. I've screwed up the only good relationship with a human being I have now!' Celena thought to herself. She glanced to her left where Dilandau was leaning back on the steps.

"Actually, I've gotta be going." Celena blurted out and jumping to her feet, she pushed open the door and scrambled out before Dilandau could blink.

And as she ran across the school grounds, not to get to her class, but just to get as far away as possible from Dilandau, Celena realized this entire day was tiring.

'Maybe I should just go home now?' She thought, stopping and looking up at the sky. 'It all seems so unreal.' And she began wandering around again, not caring if someone saw her. 'How did I get in this position anyway? It was such a great relationship we had, always fun and teasing. And now it's all awkward and serious.'

Finally she stopped by a tree and dropped her bag and books down to take a break. "Why'd it have to be ruined now?" She thought out loud.

Except maybe it's just the opposite...

xoxo

Another blonde was walking confidently to her next class, not even bothering to glance at anybody else and holding her books tightly in her arm.

Students on either sides of the hallway were whispering and staring at her. Millerna was trying to give off her most calm and sophisticated vibe but inside she felt like sinking into the floor. The uncertain looks she was getting from her peers were not helping her.

Most of her self-confidence was because her classmates looked up to her and respected her. Now they weren't sure about her anymore, thus Millerna wasn't sure about herself either. The only thing she could be sure of was that she was done playing games with Allen Schezar, and that like Hitomi she wasn't going to back down, not this time.

So she proceded to her next class and casually sat down and waited, the most horrible part. It didn't take that long for him to come waltzing in through the door like he was king. And although his stride showed his over-inflated ego, his face was something different altogether. Just like everyone else in the room at the moment, there was a slight unsure look in his eyes.

Millerna stared at him dead on as he came in. He didn't catch her gaze at first though, not until he was walking up the aisle that lead to his seat behind her. Then he looked at her and grinned.

Everyone else in the room seemed to be holding their breath and watching the two like it was some new TV drama. The teacher hadn't arrived yet.

"Why, Miss Aston, you're puntual, as usual." He commented, stopping near her desk, his grin still in place.

Millerna gave a bored look and put her face in a palm. "Thanks. If only I could say the same to you." She gave a mocking smile.

Allen raised an eyebrow and gave a glance around the room at the audience they had acquired. Millerna nodded her head with her smile, as if she didn't care.

"So how was your vacation? I suppose you went out and partied every night, right?" Allen said once they locked eyes again.

"What would you say if maybe I had?" Millerna countered. "It's not like I don't ever go out and have fun. But maybe my fun is different from yours, you know, the kind where you're busy harrasing people."

Allen had nothing to say to this. He stood there giving her a hard look, he could sense something different about her. But he found his voice soon enough. He leaned leaned to her so they were staring right into each other's eyes.

With an amused expression he went on, "Well then, maybe I should come along with you on one of your adventures. Tasting another life wouldn't hurt, now would it?" He asked, licking his lips.

Millerna stared at him blankly. 'What in the world is he getting at?' She could only think.

But then the teacher came in and everyone, including Allen, took their seats as the lesson began.

For a few minutes he didn't do anything but sit there staring up at the board. And then he put a hand on her right shoulder and leaned forward to the left side of her face.

"So then, have you missed me?" He persisted. Millerna just made a digusted face and tuned to around in her seat so he moved back into his own.

"What's up with you? Are you trying to seduce me or something? I'm not like the other girls you know." She responded confidently. A few people around the two started to stare.

"What would you say if maybe I was?" Allen shot back with his most charming smile. It wasn't so much to woo her at the moment as it was to put on a good show for anyone who might be watching. A plus was that it was obviously getting on Millerna's nerves.

So Millerna was grinding her teeth and glaring hard at him. "Stop messing around. You already know that would be a big waste of time. I'd never ever consider going off with you."

"Really? Are you sure about that?" Another one of his annoying smiles was given.

"What ever happened to that whole 'I'm gonna bring you down' crap you were spouting before?" Millerna asked suspiciously. "Now you're trying to make me an airhead bimbo like the ones you usually date?"

"You know, you were right, you're not like the other girls. That's what makes it more fun." He smiled again.

Millerna was too fed up with this so she turned back around in her seat with a bored look. 'What is he getting at? He's a completely different person than before. I wasn't expecting this. Now what?' She thought urgently.

Allen leaned back in his seat, satisfied that he had once again gotten under her skin. The rest of the period went by without either of them speaking to each other. But when the bell rang and before Millerna could get out of her seat, Allen had risen and was blocking her.

"What do you want now?" Was her irritated reaction. When his smile only grew, Millerna found there was only one thing to do. In a swift motion she had stood up and at the same time brought her palm to his cheek with a resounding smack.

A few people stared in horror. One, Millerna had tarnished her reputation. Two, she had also screwed with Allen's suave, ladies man rep. And three, now their lives would forever be intertwined, as she had been the only girl to ever turn down Allen Schezar, and in one hour the entire school would know.

Instead of fleeing the scene or giving profuse apologies like some people expected, Millerna showed some backbone by standing her ground glaring at him as he held his throbbing red cheek.

"Bitch..." Was the only thing he could mutter at the moment.

She responded by grinning triumphantly. And then before she blinked he had grabbed a hold of both her arms with his hands gripping them tightly and leaned in once again.

"You're gonna pay."

xoxo

I can't believe this. Never have I written such a long chapter for this fic that was completely horrible. NO, do not tell me otherwise. If none of you can see it in my writing, you're obviously blind.

1. There was no humor in there! I hate that! Why did it turn out so serious?

2. I made Allen seem like a complete jerk, and that was not my intention at all. Don't hate him. He really is a good character. Not just in this fic, but in the series as well.

3. Celena and Dilly's scene and now relationship is so screwed up! Remember how I said before that I hadn't any intention of them making out and stuff? I honestly don't know how I let that happen. And futhermore, how did I let it slip past me that this would change their relationship? Like I said, I have everything planned out till chapter 15 and that messes things up a bit.

4. I dislike the scene where Van finds out about Hitomi's new look. It just seems so wrong. I'm not even sure how else it could have gone. I tried to steer it away from being cliché and keeping them to their original character, yet having them change as people. All it did was suck.

I know, I sound so stupid. It's just that things didn't turn out as I planned or thought they would. But I won't rewrite it. I won't change a thing. What's trying to be a good writer if I don't accept these things sometime and try to move past it? Sometimes life's like that. It's not as you expected, but there's nothing you can do about it.

This is so weird, and I certainly didn't think it would happen in this fic. But maybe it's just me as a person. I keep looking at this (along with my other fic, Different Colors) as if these are real people with real problems and there is no easy way out or great big happy ending. They're different people with different ways of thinking and reactions. Even to me, with my vague outline and supposed planning, it's all still unpredictable. It's all so real, with reputations and supposed images that need to be kept up.

And one last thing that I think you should read. Don't sit around expecting a tragedy or a sob story as if something terribly bad is going to be brought up from a character's past. There aren't even any other main characters, and none others will be brought up unless I need to. Millerna's situation is the only one that will be bringing up her family, although they won't be major characters. I'm sorry to disappoint any of you but that's that. This is pure teenage angst, just life. And life sucks.

My profile page is where I'll tell you of any new developments with this story or any others, so check it to see when I might update if you get impatient. And if I were you, I'd go to my xanga! That's cuz I'm just a loser with nothing better to do, but anyway... I have a life outside of writing, in case anyone was wondering.

Sorry for rambling, though I hope someone might've read all that. Until next month! Ciao!

9-24-05

10:34pm