"Sic Transit Gloria...Glory Fades"

by A Sorta Fairytale

A/N: I know all these updates are absolutely shocking, huh? I'm trying to update while the story is still clear to me. When I wait a long time (two months *cough*) I start to lose track of the stories direction (I knew exactly what you were saying Jackie!). Once again, thanks for all the reviews, you are all great and I love you! It makes me happy to get reviews! Like dorky smile happy. Oh and I'm glad you all liked the "great scones" line. I couldn't resist! I was reading my whole story and I had written that I was going to keep this story "going for a few chapters." I'm such a liar. Here comes chapter TWELVE. And this one is going to be a whole lot more serious (in my opinion) and I am just letting you all know I've bumped the rating from PG-13 to R.

DISCLAIMER: Yes, this again. I don't own "The Princess Diaries," Meg Cabot is that lucky lady. I do not own the song "Sic Transit Gloria...Glory Fades" it is by Brand New! You really should check them out (and all the bands/singers songs that I feature in my fic, they are all great artists!).

Chapter 12: Sic Transit Gloria...Glory Fades

Mia's POV

I just opened the package. It's a CD. I pop it into my discman and suddenly my ears are filled with Michael's deep voice. He is telling me how sorry he is. And I believe him, I believe him more than anything I have ever been told in my life. Maybe I just want to believe him. But deep down inside I know he would never hurt me purposely. The CD goes on and Michael is singing a song to me. I can hear how hurt he is and I start to cry. The song ends and I turn off my discman. Two more days until I'm back in New York. I can't wait.

Michael's POV

The party's kind of over but for some reason I'm still on Ned's girlfriends couch. I called my parents to inform them I'd be kicking it at Ned's, so everything is cool. I'm sitting here with a beer in one hand when all of the sudden Louie shows up with a whole bunch of girls and a case of Corona and screams "The party is still on at-" he gestures toward the buxom blonde next to him, "her house!"

Simone, Ned's girlfriend, comes out from her bedroom with Ned and smiles. "Thanks for offering up your pool Samantha!" she says to the blonde and smiles, "Everyone grab your swimsuits!"

I feel kind of out of place but Ned grabs my shoulders, "Come on man! Let's go!" he says.

"I don't have a swimsuit man," I reply, "and my parents think I'm kicking it at your place. I'm stuck on dry land." I say with a smirk.

"Nah that excuse isn't going to work. Sam has a cabana room by her pool, tons of swimsuits in different sizes too," he looks me over, "maybe a leopard print speedo?"

I relent and find myself walking up the street a few houses to go to Samantha's house. It was going to be a crazy night.

Mia's POV

I can't believe what an asshole Jacques turned out to be. Not that I was beginning to look forward to marrying him or anything, but he just makes me want to scream! I'm now pacing my room, I think I am going to take a run. I go into my closet and pull on an old blue tank top and some black running shorts. I grab my cross trainers and pull my hair into a ponytail. Once I'm in my running gear I sneak past my guard and walk out to the gardens. I begin to jog around the courtyard and do a few laps around the garden and feel the tension leave me as I run as hard as possible. This is no longer to relax me, I want to run away from all these problems and with every thud on the grass I feel I am crushing my problems away, or at least in a very real sense running away from them. After about an hour, I am exhausted. I look at my watch. It's one in the morning.

I sneak back into the castle and back into my room. I peel the now sweaty clothes off my body and turn on my shower, putting it on hot and on full blast. I get in and I begin to relax as the hot water massages the stress in my muscles.

Suddenly, I hear the door open. I wipe the face wash off and say, "Grandmere? Is that you?"

There is no response and before I can peek through the shower curtain it is ripped away and there is a hand on my throat.

Michael's POV

Ah, youthful debauchery. Everyone is already in the pool and jacuzzi, and I am the last to go into the cabana room and pick out some swim trunks. Not speedos...and they are definitely not leopard print.

As I begin to change and am clad only in my boxers, the curtain opens and suddenly Samantha sidles up next to me and begins to massage my back. She begins to move lower and starts to kiss my neck. I have to stop her and I say, "Hey look Sam, I have to change, I have a girl,"

"You HAD a girl." she said matter of factly, she sighed, "No worries Michael, we have a whole night ahead of us." and she walked out.

Convinced I was no longer going to be surprised, I put the trunks on and joined everyone in the jacuzzi. We were all sitting there and reminiscing and having good times. Time passes and things become more and more hazy as I down more and more beers but its okay because we are all laughing and having fun. I get the sharp urge to urinate and get out of the jacuzzi. I grab my towel and dry off, heading into the house. I finally find the bathroom after numerous tries, and after hitting myself against the wall a few times since I guess I am a bit drunk.

I use the restroom and after washing my face a bit I head back out. I hiss and curse as I fall and begin to get back up. I'm feeling the liquor in my system more and more and find myself being helped up and look up and its Samantha. She takes my arm and leads me down the hall and she opens the door and turns on the light. She throws me on the bed and begins to caress me while kissing my neck and moving to my lips.

Mia's POV

The hand on my throat is tightening and all I can see is the soft pink color of the shower curtain obstructing my vision. I am struggling against my assailant and manage to kick whoever it is in the groin and the vicelike grip on my throat loosens and I manage to run out of the bathroom, only slipping once as I ran away. I almost make it to the door when a hand grasps my ankle and I scream, hoping to catch the attention of my obviously inadequate guard. I am forcefully thrown onto the bed "Help," I scream, "Help me!" and I scream louder and in horror when I realize the person holding me down is Jacques.

Michael's POV

Everything is moving so fast and my head is spinning and I don't know what to do...she's putting her hands everywhere and it feels good but there is a mounting tension in my brain and it's screaming Mia over and over...

************Keep the noise low.

She doesn't wanna blow it.

Shaking head to toe

while your left hand does "the show me around."

Quickens your heartbeat.

It beats me straight into the ground.

You don't recover from a night like this.

A victim, still lying in bed, completely motionless.

A hand moves in the dark to a zipper. Hear a boy bracing tight against sheets

barely whisper, "This is so messed up."

Upon arrival the guests had all stared.

Dripping wet and clearly depressed,

he'd headed straight for the stairs.

No longer cool, but a boy in a stitch,

unprepared for a life full of lies and failing relationships.

(Up the stairs: the station where

the act becomes the art of growing up.)

He keeps his hands low.

He doesn't wanna blow it.

He's wet from head to toe and

his eyes give her the up and the down.

His stomach turns and he thinks of throwing up.

But the body on the bed beckons forward

and he starts growing up.

The fever, the focus.

The reasons that I had to believe

you weren't too hard to sell.

Die young and save yourself.

The tickle, the taste of...

It used to be the reason I breathed

but now it's choking me up.

Die young and save yourself.

She hits the lights.

This doesn't seem quite fair.

Despite everything he learned from his friends,

he doesn't feel so prepared.

She's breathing quiet and smooth.

He's gasping for air.

"This is the first and last time," he says.

She fakes a smile and presses her hips into his.

He keeps his hands pinned down at his sides.

He's holding back from telling her

exactly what it really feels like.

He is the lamb, she is the slaughter.

She's moving way too fast and all he wanted was to hold her.

Nothing that he tells her is really having an effect.

He whispers that he loves her,but she's probably only looking for...

(Up the stairs: the station where

the act becomes the art of growing up.)

So much more than he could ever give.

A life free of lies and a meaningful relationship.

He keeps his hands pinned down at his sides.

He waits for it to end

and for the aching in his guts to subside.

The fever, the focus.

The reasons that I had to believe

you weren't too hard to sell.

Die young and save yourself.

The tickle, the taste of...

It used to be the reason I breathed

but now it's choking me up.

Die young and save yourself.

Up the stairs: the station where

the act becomes the art of growing up.***************

Suddenly I feel her naked against my naked body and I flinch and begin to wake up out of the fever my body was under and try to push her away before things went way to far and I gave up something I wasn't yet ready to. She continued to advance but I said, "No, Samantha, I can't have sex with you. I can't."

She looked at me with disgust as she put her bikini back on. "Your loss Moscovitz."

Mia's POV

I'm trying to wriggle from his grasp as he grabs my body and my chest and all I can do is cry because he is holding my throat once again. I feel so unclean and exposed as he gropes me. I'm gasping for air but his hand is so big and all encompassing. I'm kicking but its futile, his weight is too much for me. It abruptly dawns on me to bite down on his hand, and I do, giving me just enough time to jump away and scream. I fall off the bed and hit my head hard. I see the guard run in and my last thought is "finally" as everything fades to black.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, it was kind of hard to write but I hope it wasn't too much. Anyway, please keep the reviews coming, I really want to know what you all thought of this chapter. THANK YOU!!!