Monster

by Miss Rouge Apple

Orc was the school bully. Just a bully. But ever since the big POOF, he's been a lot of things; a captain, an officer, a murderer, just a kid... Can he finally straighten everything out? Is he really Charles Merriman or is he in fact a monster? OrcXOC

11. Chapter 11

Dedicated to my friend, Bo-Livia (hey look, another nickname). Hope you enjoy this chapter, and please don't scream!! C:

Chapter 11

I pressed the aluminum can to my chapped lips and tilted it back, letting the liquor run down my throat. Hell, beer didn't look good, smell good, or even taste good, but it took the pain away for a while. My stomach was churning. Howard paced the in the small kitchen and I sat on the couch, trying to figure out how to hold the game controller. How many beers have I had? Six? Seven? Eight, even? My head felt lighter and lighter with each swig, so it was hard to count anything anymore.

It was late. The sun had fallen hours ago and it was already dark and chilly outside. It wasn't exactly a warm and cozy home, so I was watching goose bumps rise on my arms. But I didn't feel like I was cold; in fact, I felt hot. It didn't matter though. I still felt my stomach do flips when I thought of when Savannah and Eve fought; Eve's fist going into her sister's gut, Savannah flipping Eve. My face began to heat up when I remembered Eve falling back into Edilio. Howard had tried to hold me back from running over to beat the crap out of him.

"Man, we gotta get outta here!" Howard had hissed, standing in front of me. We were 'escaping' into an alleyway. But once I saw Eve fall back into Edilio, there was no way in hell I was leaving without punching Edilio's nose so hard, it went inside out and touched the back of his skull.

"Shut up!" I had growled, my eyes locked on Eve and Edilio. "He ain't gonna touch her like that! He ain't gonna!"

"Orc man, c'mon!" Howard pleaded. "They're gonna kill us, man!"

"Does it look like I give a shit?!" I snarled.

"Listen, man, she's fine! Look!" Howard had pointed behind himself and I looked over to see Eve getting up with Edilio's help. I still didn't like it, but she was okay. Howard gave me a look. "Look man, she's tough. Tougher than the girls 'round here. She'll kick ass if she's gotta. Same with the other girls." I looked down at him with as much intimidation as I could.

"I know they'll pound ass if they'd gotta!" I had hissed. "But I isn't leaving' them here!"

Howard had glanced behind him and I followed his gaze. He was looking over at Pete, who was pulling Lavender and Odette's arms into another alleyway. Andrea and Maye were sliding through a through a tight squeeze between a brick wall and garbage cans. Howard then looked back at me and said, "They'll handle it man. They're tough. And they're leaving'!"

Odette had looked up and over at us. She met my gaze and she put her hand up in the air, waving at us to run. Her face had been pale. Then she disappeared through the alley. Howard nodded at me and then slipped past through the alleyway, heading to our old house. With one last glance, I watched Eve blush under Edilio's concerned gaze, and I turned around. My stomach started to flip.

And it hasn't stopped since. I frowned when I tilted the can back once more to find that it had been drained of the liquor. Crushing it in my grasp, I chucked it. Not anywhere really, but it hit the floor with a clank that made me have to hold the side of my head with a little anguish. I moaned as I lay back on the couch, which smelled horrible and was some scratchy material, but I was far past giving a damn anymore.

Howard looked out and said, "Think we should go, man?" I had to think about it for a while. My head was running through the mud of the beer and the question was already hard for me to answer.

We'll go back and sleep in 'er basement; wake up to a hot breakfast.

Or Beer.

The girls will be dancing and singing again.

Or Beer.

They'll try to convince you that a movie night is good for the soul.

Or Beer.

Savannah and Odette will argue about whether popcorn or candy is a better snack for a movie.

Or Beer.

Damn, this was hard. I picked up another can of beer; it was warm, but I opened the tab anyway. Howard was still looking at me as I tipped the can back and practically inhaled half the continents. I belched and wiped my mouth on the back of my wrist. Howard was becoming impatient. "Well?"

I gave him a scowl and grunted, "Shut up! I'm thinking, dumbnut!"

Howard bit his lip from frowning and folded his arms across his scrawny chest. I furrowed my brows, trying to concentrate on the question through the fogginess that was my mind. It was already foggy, so the beer didn't help one bit with that. Nonetheless, I took another swig.

Finally, I reached a point where thoughts came a little faster and clearer. Sleep.

If I sleep at the girls' house, I'll get breakfast.

And I'll be warm.

And Eve-

Eve.

Eve?

My head went a little fuzzy as I recalled this morning. I remember waking up; my mind almost was as fuzzy as it was right now. It took forever for me to realize it was her, let alone realize that she was laying on me. My stomach did another flip and I titled the can to my lips once more. I mean, I wanted her off. I wanted her to get off. I wanted to yell at her, have a good reason to growl. But I couldn't. I don't know why, but I didn't want to. I mean, I wanted to, but I didn't want to. URGH! I frowned to myself. The first thing that hit me when I woke up was the smell of cotton. It was strong, but didn't make my nose wrinkle up. I liked that smell. Her hair smelled like it. I mean, it's not like I like the smell of her hair. Cause I don't. I mean, she smells like flowers; the kind that are really pretty and catch your eye… But, I hate them; flowers. They're stupid. Tough guys don't like flowers. I'm a tough guy.

But this morning, I had breathed in, smelling her; she smelled nice. Why don't all girls smell like that? Why did she smell… pretty? Pretty is bad for guys, but pretty is good for girls. It was good for her to smell like that. Did Edilio smell it? Did he smell the cotton? Did he smell the flowers? I thought a moment before concluding that I hoped he didn't. I didn't want him to be near Eve anymore. Sam wasn't a problem anymore; he had Astrid. Astrid was hot, and he wouldn't go to Eve. Eve wasn't hot. But Edilio didn't have nobody, and he sure as hell wouldn't have Eve.

I looked up at Howard before saying, "We're takin' a few beers back."

Howard's eyes flickered quickly, a small smile flashing before returning to normal. He was excited to go back, and he didn't hide it well. But really, I didn't care so long as we got back to their house soon and there was beer. That's all that mattered to me.

Soon, Howard had rounded up a backpack and filled it with six-packs. He tossed it over his narrow shoulder and mumbled something not very nice under his breath. I didn't really care though, but I gave him a scowl anyway. We headed out into the chilled night. Surprisingly, tiny wisps of our breath was visible in the front of our faces, barely, but visible nonetheless. I didn't rub my arms like Howard did, for in fact, I was sweating. Instead, I walked in the direction that I thought would lead me to the girl's house. And when Howard said nothing, I assumed myself right. I'm always right.

The plaza was empty, no children sleeping nor even walking around. We walked across, our steps heavy and thunderous compared to the stillness and silence of the night. I was crossing over a grass patch when Howard stopped, looking around. "Hey, man…?"

"What?" I asked, annoyed.

"…Something's wrong, Orc man…" Howard said. Through the darkness, I saw his brows furrow. His lips were taut. "There's something not right."

"So?" I asked, beginning to walk again. Howard didn't move, but looked around, scanning the area. I was getting ticked off. "Move it." I grunted, giving him a frown.

"Hold on, man…" Howard began to turn and squint his eyes. He couldn't see so well and the darkness wasn't helping.

"Hold on?" I said, my nose wrinkling. "You ain't tellin' me what to do." I growled. Howard nodded his head toward a building.

"Orc man, someone's down that alley."

"So what?" I grunted again. "I wanna sleep."

"…Man, I'm gettin' a gut feeling here." Howard said, still staring at the alleyway. "There's… one guy there… I think…"

I groaned and walked past him towards the building, shoulder-shoving him as I stalked past. Howard was caught off balance, almost falling over, and then running to catch up with me. We walked towards the alley and began to hear noises. They were muffled and distorted. Some strange looks went between me and Howard, and he stepped forward first, looking around the corner of the alley. Howard's jaw dropped and his face was filled with anger. "LET HER GO!" He growled.

There was a crash and I walked around the corner. Two shadows were running away from us. One was in the lead, nearing the end of the alley already and turning the corner. The other was doing the same, but had tripped and fallen over a garbage can. They laid there as I laughed loudly. Howard gave me a look of shock and I returned it with a scowl. He ran to the fallen figure. I frowned. Howard doesn't do that…

He bent over the figure and put his hands down to aid them. I was shocked. But I smirked when the figure slapped his hands away. "Don't touch me!" The voice rasped. My jaw dropped and it almost fell to the ground. No… The figure got up and began to run again, but Howard grabbed their shirt and held them back. I ran over and grabbed their shoulders, twisting them to face me. "Let go!" Their voice croaked.

Blood was gushing out of Eve's left nostril so that her pale lips were coated scarlet red. Her arms were blotched crimson and bruised. She was practically in tears, but her cold fury seemed to keep them from spilling. My eyebrows shot up and I stammered, "E-Eve?" My voice never cracked like that. I was in shock. Eve looked up at me with icy blue eyes; the tears seemed to soften them, though. She was angry, just angry. "What happened?" I growled at her, my brows furrowing.

"I'm fine, thanks for asking." Eve's sarcasm was hard to miss; finally she answered, "Nothing happened."

"Bullshit." I snarled. She frowned and with a shaking hand, she angrily wiped away a few tears.

"What's bullshit is that freakin son-of-a-bitch…" Eve growled. I was shocked her voice could posses so much rage. "I can't believe he punched me…"

Howard frowned at her. "Who?"

"None of your business!" She snapped, her face still distorted with fury. Howard recoiled and then shook his head, as if refusing to fear her anger. I shook her once and her attention went back to me.

"Ain't my business?!" I thundered. "Ain't my business?!" She thrust out her chin and puffed her cheeks a bit.

"Yeah!" She defiantly said. "That's right! It 'ain't' your business! It's my business! So stay out of it!"

"You ain't tellin' me what to do." I growled back, my brows furrowing. Eve flinched and then looked away from my glare.

"I'm not. I'm…" She stopped and then looked at me straight in the eyes, something no one did. Her lips were in a tight frown, but some tears were welling up once more. "I'm asking you. Can you let me go?"

Howard looked between me and her, shuffling a little and feeling awkward. I stared back at her, still frowning. I wasn't going to let up.

"…Let me go…" She hissed, turning her gaze to stare at the dirty brick wall that was part of the Subway's building. "…I'll explain stuff later, just let me go and get this blood off. I don't want to girls scared."

"Why?" I asked. Eve's nose wrinkled; my breath must've smelled of beer. Discreetly, I inhaled, only to frown once more. She smelled like pennies and metals; it was the blood.

She licked her lips, some of the blood disappearing. She didn't shudder at the taste, but merely stopped licking and looked back up at me. "Because if they're scared, I'm scared." Eve answered honestly.

Howard cocked his head. "…You'd be scared? What the hell does that mean?"

"I don't know, okay?" Eve was getting snippy. "But if they're scared, I will be, too. It's just how it works." Her blue eyes bore into mine. "So let me wash off so I can go home." Then she added, "Please."

This time, I looked at Howard for the answer. He was smarter than me, and even though Eve wanted to run away, I wanted her… not to. The last time she was out of my sight, this happened. But, against my thoughts, Howard nodded at me to let her go. My hands slowly released her pale arms. I noticed how big my hands were compared to hers. Mine were thick and strong. I glanced at hers, noticing that they were smaller, calloused and had pad-like palms. They weren't dainty and frail like other girls'. They didn't even look soft or silky, like how books described a girl's hand. They looked rough.

Eve sniffled, wiping her wrist under her nose. Streaks of blood and snot smudged her pallid skin. She made a face, gave one last look at us, and turned and ran. I watched her as she ran under the light of a streetlamp and her hair shimmered under its horrid orangey-yellow beam. I watched her until she was out of my sight. My shoulders drooped a little as I yawned, and Howard looked up at me. "…They're tough, man, just keep remembering that. They're tough…"

I frowned as I kept staring at the end of the alley. "Whatever." I grunted, suddenly a little more annoyed.

Howard opened his mouth, but I turned around started heading back before he could even take a breath. I had walked half-way through the plaza when Howard finally raced to catch up. I swayed a little as I stalked onward. That was when Howard said, "Man… they live that way…"

I stopped, growling at him, and turned to the other direction. Howard was silent for a while, his eyes glued ahead, and then they would glance over at me, looks of confusion or annoyance. I mean, I knew he didn't like me much. But did it look like I cared much? No.

We walked down Alameda and were about to turn the corner of Eastern Avenue, when Howard finally said, "Hey… Orc man?"

"What?" I grumbled, tired of walking and just wanted to get back. Howard had stopped.

He looked around before saying, "Man, something's up."

"What?" I grumbled once more, glancing between him and the house, its windows glowing with a faint, but warm light. I was starting to get cold.

"What is with you?" He asked me, and through the shadows I saw his eyes flicker with uncertainty. "You've been actin' all weird." I frowned at him, not quite understanding. He sighed and then started again. "Look, I've seen how you look at her. You stare at her, like, all the time, man."

"Who?" I asked, scowling.

"Don't deny it, man."

"Who?" I persisted. Howard frowned.

"Eve!" He opened his arms wide as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. I glared daggers at him, and turned to walk towards the house. Howard jogged next to me, continuing, "C'mon, man, even an idiot can see-"

I whirled around, my brows furrowing. "What?" I growled.

Howard stopped in his tracks, gulping. "Nothin' man, nothin'…" I glared at him and he then said, "Hey, man, if you, I mean…" He thought a moment. "…if you talk to her, man… You know…" He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. I felt my frown disappear as I actually tried to think about that. Talk to Eve? Don't I already do that? …Do I? It was painfully, obviously clear that neither Howard nor I knew anything about girls. We used to taunt, tease, and insult them, but never even tried to get one to like us. I wasn't curious about them before. All I wanted to do was get out of class.

I used to think girls were easy to figure out; they were excited by the dumbest of things, liked horses, and thought that they were the prettiest things on the planet. As I got older, my view began to change. Some girls began to talk about how horses smelled and were filthy, they would hate the color pink, said dresses made them gag, ranted about stockings and how they itched like hell. Then in middle school, more and more girls began to complain about their faces, their hair, their whole figure. My view had been screwed.

It hadn't been until just a few days before the FAYZ that I had started to watch them more. Well, not anyone particular or anything… I mean, what am I? A lovesick dumbnut? Only morons follow a girl around to get their attention and affection. And what do they get once they catch them? A couple blushes and giggles? Hug and kisses? …well, now that I think about it… No, no, no! Hugs and kisses?! What am I, a pansy?!

"…Talk to her…?" My voice sounded less gruff than I had hoped. I was looking at the house now, where I hoped she was.

"Yeah, man…" Howard was avoiding me as I was avoiding him. "Just… ya know… talk…"

There was a running shadow through the window, followed by another. I could see the faint outlines of Pete and Savannah's faces. They were laughing and chasing one another. Delilah bounded alongside. Howard sighed and began to go forward, muttering, "I'll hide this around the back, man, so they don't find it."

"Yeah." I grumbled, waiting a moment before walking to the house.

Once we hid the beer backpack, we walked around the front and opened the door. We were hit by immediate warmth. They had obviously turned up the heater a little and it was quite pleasant; my fingers tingled from the sudden change of temperature. Howard jumped when Delilah came bounding into the room, practically tackling him. She rubbed her head under his hand, willing him to pet her. Pete came running over shortly after, she looked relived.

"Howard!" She said, leaping over to him and wrapping her arms around his neck. "Thank goodness you guys are all right!" Pete was laughing. "We thought you guys were going to get mauled!"

Even though Howard's skin was dark in shade, a blush could be seen over his cheeks. Pete stopped laughing a moment and released him, giving a sheepish smile. "Oops! Sorry… You guys'll get used to that after a while…"

"Dammit Pete, I've known you for twelve years and I'm still not used to it." Savannah came over, a ruffled cat in her arms. Its green eyes settled on me. "Besides, you knew they were fine."

Pete's cheeks flushed as she hotly retorted, "Just because you don't like hugs don't mean these guys don't!"

Savannah raised an eyebrow and released the cat, which dropped to the ground with a thudand waddled over to me. "Right, I'm sure Orc and Howard enjoy hugs. They're both such gentle and sensitive men." The cat rubbed against my legs purring loudly. Savannah's eyes darted to the cat quickly; I realized how close in color they were to the cat's. Her deeper green eyes widened with surprise. "Wow…"

"What?" Howard asked, giving little glances over Pete's way. Savannah pointed to the fat, silver tabby.

"Mistletoe." She said. "That's the cat's name; she usually hates everyone… Well, she tolerates them, but she's never this affectionate, even with me." I looked down at the cat, which was already gazing at me. It mewed and rubbed its head once more on my leg. I was wearing khaki shorts, and I felt the fur against my skin; it was extremely soft. I looked over at Savannah, who was rubbing her chin with her hand, pondering. "Hmmm…" She mused.

I wanted it to stop; the cat continued to nudge me with its soft head and mewl. I don't like cats. Only sissies like cats. I ain't a sissy. "Knock it off." I growled at the cat. Pete threw me a mean face and Savannah wrinkled her nose at me. But the cat looked up and seemed to bear its teeth, as if laughing. It made a sort of mew-snorting noise. It made Howard laugh.

"What was that?!" He chuckled. Savannah's jaw fell as she laughed.

"That's the noise she makes if she wants to be held!" Savannah looked at me and giggled. "She really likes you!"

"Oh!" Pete cooed. "That's so sweet! Pick her up! Pick her up!"

I scowled at her and then shook the cat off of my shoe, which it seemed to have tried to settle down and nap on. It gave me a weird look and I gave one back. Andrea trotted down the stairs and scanned over the picture before her. "I see our duo of detainees came back from the mayhem and disorder of the piazza."

As Howard and I gave her blank looks, Pete sighed, "Four letters or less, Drea, four letters or less…"

Andrea rolled her eyes, which were magnified from her glasses, smiling. "Fine… So you guys are back from the plaza?"

"'Plaza' is five! Five!" Odette accused, skipping down the stairs. Her hair was wet and she was shaking it out. There were protests from the other girls, but she just said, "Oh, get over it!"

Odette had a smile plastered onto her face. "Nice to see you guys again!"

Howard smirked. "Yeah, yeah, we get it. Where's Lav?" I knew he liked the kid.

Pete smiled, seemingly warmed by the fact that he cared about her sister. "She's in bed, sleeping. You do know that it's one in the morning, right? Nine year old girls shouldn't be up at that time."

Howard rolled his eyes. "Gah, you sound like a mother…"

For a moment, Pete's eyes flashed over to Savannah. In fact, all the girl's eyes flashed to her. "Err, well, someone has to make rules for Lav." Pete's voice was hesitant. Savannah's eyes were flat, dull; she looked away from the conversation. Pete continued quickly, as if wanting the conversation over with. "And, well, who not better than her older sister?"

Howard threw a glance my way, confused. "Um… sure…" He murmured.

"Well…" Andrea jumped down the stairs and walked towards the kitchen. "Eve was saying something about getting some tea or hot chocolate after she was done, and that made me thirsty." She pointed her thumbs behind her as she walked backwards. "So, I'm just going to set up the hot chocolate machine and get a cup or two brewin'… anyone else?"

Odette skipped along, singing, "Yesyesyes! I luuuuuuurve hot chocolate!"

Savannah turned quickly and followed behind, quiet. Pete looked over at us, before racing with them, asking, "You guys want something?"

Howard nodded, beginning to walk with her. "Yeah, some hot chocolate sounds good."

They began to walk for the kitchen, when they both slowly turned back to me. I was looking over at the staircase, trying to hear or see for any signs of life. From the corner of my eye, I saw Pete exchanging a weird look with Howard, who then asked her, "Where's Eve?"

My stomach flipped and I looked over at the two. Pete pointed upstairs and replied, "She's taking a shower. Boy, she was tired when she came home. Her head was all down low and stuff! She looked like she was falling asleep!"

Keeping her head down..? Oh, yeah, the blood. Pete then gave me a look and said, "You gonna have some hot chocolate, too?"

I looked over at the stairs again. "Nope." I grunted. Pete gave a look to Howard, who shrugged and then walked ahead. Pete followed suit, leaving me alone with the dog and cat. Delilah didn't nudge her head under my hand like she had with Howard, but turned a heel and bounded to the kitchen. Mistletoe wobbled over to the staircase landing, where she sat and stared at me intently with her piercing yellow-green eyes. "Don't look at me like that." I growled at the cat.

It didn't say a thing, but blinked and yawned. I frowned and began to make my way up the stairs; the cat followed my lead. The hallway was lit when I stopped at the very top of the staircase, and I heard the sound of running water, a shower. There was a loud humming, muffled, but clear enough to get the melody. Steam was emitting from under a doorframe; it was warm when I neared. Eve was humming the tune full volume, not even worried that someone was outside listening. My hand was in a fist as I raised it to the door, but I did not knock. It was like the day before, when I had tried to talk to her. She had gotten hurt; her bruise. I had hit it and she had curled up in a ball. I wanted to tell her that it wasn't my fault. It's never my fault. She shouldn't have gotten hurt in the first place.

The cat meowed loudly, a cross between a sneeze and a mew. I flinched, forgetting Mistletoe for a moment. I panicked, thinking Eve would realize I was out here. But the humming continued. I let out a sigh and then glared at the cat, who looked up at me with the same look as before; bearing its teeth as though laughing. Before I could even turn my head back to the door, I had knocked. The humming stopped and a voice asked, "What? Who is it now? God… can I get at least ONE minute?!"

My eyebrows rose, and then furrowed as I frowned. "Shut up!" I growled and I heard the water quiet down; she had stopped moving.

"Orc?" Her voice got softer. "Um, what? What is it?"

My fist relaxed back into a hand. "…Uh, nothing…" I shook my head. "No, no! I mean, um, can, uh…" I licked my lips; they felt a little dry. "Can we, um, talk?"

"…Talk?" Her voice sounded as though she was suppressing a smile and a laugh. I frowned.

"Whatever." I grunted, turning. "Forget it."

"Wait, Orc!" She was giggling. "Wait! We can talk!" I froze. "Um, you'll just have to wait until I'm, uh, clo-thed." She didn't giggle, so she was being serious about not talking at the moment.

"…Um, sure…" I said, rubbing the back of my neck with my hand.

"Err, just… you can go…" Then she added quickly, "If you want. I mean, if you really want to, you can go over to my room and wait there, I mean…" I had never heard Eve fight for words before, it was actually funny. "Well, do what you want, I guess…"

"Uh, yeah… yeah, okay…" I said to the door, the steam rising and warming my face. Or was I blushing? No, I don't blush. "I'll go to your room… I guess…"

"O-Okay…" Eve stammered. There was splashing again, which led me to think she had resumed her shower. I stood in front of the door for a while before finally turning around and going to the room across the hall; Eve's room.

I entered it and tried to see through the darkness, squinting my eyes. I saw something dart into the room by my feet; actually it waddled, so I didn't jump or anything. I wouldn't have jumped anyway, because I don't get scared. I groped the walls until I felt a light switch, and then flicked it on. I was shocked to find the room as neat as a pin. The bed was made, the dressers clear of clutter and loose clothing, the desk organized, and even the closet could close all the way. I had thought that girls liked to fill their closets to the brim, so I was then led to thinking (something I rarely do) that their rooms had to be strewn with clothes. Now, I realized my view had been screwed again.

Looking up, I noticed that the cat was on the bed, clawing the thin bed sheets with its un-declawed claws. Tiny, tiny holes were left behind. The cat finally plopped down, yawning and flopping to its side. Instead of scowling or rolling my eyes, my tired feet walked the short, but painful, distance to the bed. I sat down and leaned back, scratching my cheek as I yawned loudly. The cat mimicked my movements, yawning and scratching its ear with its hind paw.

It seemed like forever as Eve finished her shower. Every five minutes, I'd have to switch my position. Finally, I heard a voice peep, "Um, Orc?"

I sat up on her bed, rubbing my eyes, for I had taken a small, small nap. Mistletoe sneezed when Eve came in, her scarlet ringlets soaking wet. She was dressed in a spaghetti strap shirt and shorts; I could see goosebumps forming on her arms and legs. Eve tossed her wet towel into a hamper next to the door and then crossed them room to the bed, where she sat at the very edge. She seemed nervous as she fidgeted, trying to be on the corner of her bed as possible. I scooted over, closer to her as she rubbed her arms. "So…" She looked over at me. "What did you want to talk about?"

I snorted. "I dunno."

Eve's eyebrows rose. "You don't know?" She laughed. "You were the one who wanted to talk in the first place!"

I shrugged. "Yeah, well… whatever…" I stood up and walked to her desk, picking up one of the papers. "Where'd you get these?" I asked as I stared at the vibrant pictures.

"I made them." Eve's face lit up and she rushed to my side. "This one was of a dream I had!" She pointed to the one in my hand. "That was when Lavender spilled grape juice on her shirt! I thought it looked pretty, so I drew that before I washed it." She smirked and sighed. "The stain didn't get out, I'm sorry to say…"

"You drew these?" I asked, picking up a paper with a girl on it. Her short hair fell to her neck, flipping up to the sides. She was smirking, a hand on her hip. Freckles dotted her face and a cat circled her heels. I recognized her. "Is this Savannah?" Eve nodded, smiling brightly. "Andrea?" Again, another nod. "Odette?" She laughed and nodded.

I realized how happy she was. She picked up papers and brought me over to the bed again, laying them out and showing me. Her voice got fast and excited as she moved from drawing to drawing. I picked one up with a girl I had never seen before. "Who's this? I asked, frowning.

"That's my friend…" Her smile faded slightly, as though she was reminiscing. "That's BelleMarie… She was one of my best friends…" Her smiled widened, though her eyes were lost. "And that's Nellie… and Phoenix… and Winter…" She laughed. "God, I haven't seen them in forever…"

"Who are they?" I grunted as she stared fondly into the pictures.

"My best friends. Oh, don't give me that look! Of course the others are my best friends, too! And yes, you can have more than one best friend."

"What's the difference?" I asked, leaning back on the wall.

"A friend will knock on your door before they walk in. A best friend walks in screaming, 'MOM! DAD! I'M HOOOOME!'" Eve stood up and opened her arms wide. I almost smirked; almost. She went back to looking at the pictures. "I miss them so much…"

"…Where are they…?" I asked. "Back at your old town?"

Eve pursed her lips as she whispered, "I hope…"

I frowned. "You hope?"

"They were going to come down to Perdido a while ago. Remember the day the FAYZ began? Well, they were coming a week from that day. I just hope they're not trapped here in this stupid, freakin fishbowl." She began to collect the pictures and put them away. She didn't look at me. "Orc?" I looked over at her, but she didn't turn around. "Can we stop talking… or whatever? I'm really tired and I have a lot to do tomorrow…"

A sudden thought popped into my head. "Not until you tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"Who that guy was."

It was silent as she took a deep, shaky breath. "Nothing gets by you, huh, Orc?" She smiled a rueful smile. "Fine. It was Drake Merwin."

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Miss Rouge Apple~ For those who have guessed Drake, you were CORRECT-A-MUNDO!! This chapter was racking my brain and making me bang my head against the wall. I had the idea and everything, but in order for me to sit still for hours at a time, I have to listen to music. And I didn't have a song to listen to because nothing really truely fit the feeling of this chapter. If you have any song suggestions for this chapter, please write it down in your review! I'd like to see the different feelings you get from this chapter! It's interesting!

I'm not going to stop writing for anything, but I'm feeling a little bit review starved for this fanfiction compared to my other one (meaning, reviews per chapter). And it's not a problem! Not at all! But I do like to hear what your thinking about this, readers, and I want to know if you like it. If you don't, hey that's fine, but I'm feeling a little as though I'm looking through a hazy glass to see my readers' opinions. So, if you could please, write a review for me. I promise to write back! I don't leave you guys hanging, and you know that, dearies (except for cliffhangers, but they're in good fun ^^).

Have a nice Thanksgiving! Toodles til next time, luvies!