Okay, forgive me. I'm a horrible person. I haven't upload in almost a year? What the heck?! Truthfully, my inspiration died out. I haven't written anything for weeks; I've had a terrible case of writer's block. I have so many loose ends to tie up, I might start working on those for a next chapter. Yes...I'll make a comeback (hopefully if I still have readers) to finish this up. Right now, it's sort of an ubrupt time change, but there'll be more on that next chapter. I had originaly planned to write out the carnival, but never did, instead I focused on what might come afterward. Also..I'm sorry for the cliffhanger, it's got a purpose with the plot, I didn't just add it in randomnly- well, it sorta ties into plot afterward. Originally, I also had something else planned, but more on that next chapter. Thank you so much to people who have continued to support this, even with my irregular updating, I love all my readers who give this a chance and especially leave reviews. I've been busy this past couple of months, and truth be told, I spend more time on YouTube than I should now, because I edit videos a lot more than write, which needs to change. Okay, my rambling aside, here's (short, ugh) chapter fourteen!
"Rapunzel, truth or dare." Mavis had a conspiring glint in her eye, a little half-smile on her dark lips, and ridiculous pigtails of tiny black tufts courtesy of Once-ler, but it was a cheerleader slumber party- dumb makeovers were required, obviously. Rapunzel had been hesitant to accept the invitation to Mavis's party in the first place, actually, but Mavis had insisted seeing as Rapunzel was team captain. Even though most of the team eyed Rapunzel with judgmental glares, Rapunzel had to admit that she did have some true friends on the team. Besides, it was her squad, and Mavis was her friend above all. Rapunzel had as much right to be there as any of them.
Rapunzel, seated cross-legged and hugging one of Mavis's stuffed animals, shrugged her shoulders sheepishly. "Um…truth."
"Okay," Mavis looked around the people gathered on the carpet and lowered her voice so that Rapunzel had to lean closer. "Truth- are you gonna get back together with Flynn?"
Rapunzel's unwillingly let out a little gasp, biting her lower lip nervously, gaze flickering about the room uneasily. Suddenly, she locked eyes with Tooth, who was staring a little bit too intently. Rapunzel looked down at her hands. Mavis had meant well with the question- it was asked with a giggly tint, meaning that Mavis thought she'd say yes and all would be well; rumors were circling that Flynn had broken up with whatever girl he'd been dating and that he wanted Rapunzel back. Except- she wasn't sure she'd take him back so easily. Not with the way he'd treated her.
"Punzie?" Mavis's concerned voice brought her out of a stupor.
"Oh," Rapunzel stammered. The room felt like it was spinning, suddenly, like the walls were getting closer. "Um- no. I don't think so."
For a while, there was silence. All was quiet. One of the girls awkwardly coughed.
"You're just joking," Mavis said jovially, smiling widely. "Right? You and Flynn have been together, since, like, forever. You're the school's It couple!"
Rapunzel thought of Flynn- his handsome smile and warm embrace and the lips that had given her a first kiss…but then she shook her head, no longer associating him with her happiness. "No, I don't think we'll get back together."
Mavis's mouth hung open in shock, obviously baffled. "But- you won Spring Queen. He won Spring King. It's, like, a sign you're meant to be!"
Rapunzel was instantly reminded of the Spring Fling fiasco with her mother- and the wonderful night she'd had afterward. She thought of the times Jack held her hand on fast rides, when Merida's curls squashed her in the photo booth, of the greasy hot dogs and cotton candy she'd eaten too much of, how Hiccup had snuck her back into her house without her mother ever finding out- and Rapunzel decided, right then and there, that what other people thought of her relationships didn't matter. She would be friends with- and date- who she wanted to, not who the school voted her to be with.
"It's just a dance," Rapunzel said quietly, looking at the time on her watch. It was barely nine o' clock, but already, she was tired of being interrogated. It had been hard enough to get Gothel to let her out for the cheer sleepover seeing as she'd been grounded, but on top of that, she'd lied about a late study group that surprisingly Gothel fell for (or perhaps Gothel had just wanted her out of the house). The other girls seated around Rapunzel were whispering in shock, but she ignored them. "Mavis," she added, seeing as her friend looked confused, "Do you think maybe you could take me home?"
Once-ler stood up and offered his own car, so Rapunzel bid the cheerleading squad a quiet goodbye before she gathered her things and left, trailing Once-ler.
It wasn't until they'd pulled out of Mavis's driveway that Rapunzel started sniffling and feeling tears prick the back of her eyes. Why was it so hard to admit it to herself that she'd have to let Flynn go? He signified a part of her that had been so happy and carefree- yet she wasn't happy anymore. She cared too much, and it was her own fault.
"It's okay if you don't want to date Flynn," Once-ler offered quietly as he merged left onto the highway. The sky was dark, but Rapunzel looked up at the moon and fervently wished the sun would come out, silently counting stars in her mind. Why had everything gotten so muddled…her life had been so simple before, and there had only been her mother to tiptoe around, but now…suddenly there were so many people she was supposed to be like and things she was supposed to do, and Rapunzel felt like that wasn't the type of person she was anymore.
Rapunzel let silent tears slide down her cheeks and didn't brush them away, and Once-ler respectfully let her without prompting her to talk. He left her at home, she sent him away with a thanks and a tight throat, and that was that.
Rapunzel had once looked forward to every cheerleading get together. Now, she just wanted them to end.
And it wasn't just Flynn. It was something bigger than that entirely. Rapunzel wasn't sure if the mingling of cliques she'd unknowingly started was something she could handle, if she was losing so many of her friends to it. On the other hand, those people had never felt like friends. Jack, Hiccup, and Merida did.
Rapunzel let herself into her home, finding her mother asleep on the couch with a bottle in her hand, and rather than send her to sleep, Rapunzel went upstairs.
She was tired of being everyone's puppet.
If she wanted to go out, she would. If she wanted to hang out with her friends, then, so be it. She'd resign from the cheer squad if she had to.
Rapunzel sat down on her bed, and gathered something in her lap…a green stuffed chameleon Jack had won for her at the carnival. She smiled softly, stroking its smooth sides, remembering the adorably flustered smile Jack had had when he'd handed it to her. The carnival had only been the week prior, but it'd seemed like an eternity since then. She could remember every detail…even Merida winning the bet with Jack about carnival prizes…Hiccup getting sick on the Iron Dragon…little things that made her so happy.
They made her happy.
And it wasn't a crime to be happy.
.
.
"Rapunzel's never late," Merida scoffed as the popcorn grew cold and the TV stayed off. "She'd never miss movie night, either." She grabbed a handful of buttery kernels and shoved them into her mouth.
Jack and Hiccup sat side by side on the couch, Jack's legs thrown over Hiccup's lap, and Merida was seated on the carpet underneath them, remote tucked between her arm and her side. The four had arranged for another movie marathon, this time of cheesy brat-pack eighties' movies, but Rapunzel had never showed. They'd prepared for the occasion with plenty of snacks and drinks at Hiccup's house. Stoick was visiting a friend for the night, and Hiccup had the place to himself, and the three teens had made themselves at home, but they felt it wasn't right to start without Rapunzel, seeing as she was the glue that held them together.
"Maybe she's still grounded," Hiccup said solemnly, shoving Jack's shins and ripping open a packet of gummy bears, which Jack reached into.
Merida snorted. "O' course she's still grounded. But ye know the lass- she finds ways to get out, she woulda said somethin', don'tcha think?"
"We should go pick her up, then," Jack offered. "Egg Gothel's room. Toss toilet paper over her stuff-"
"Dumbass," Merida retorted.
"What? That's how I got an A in English last year. Distractions are everything, so that way I can rearrange some things on a teacher's computer."
"That's illegal," Hiccup piped up.
"Relax, Hic, I was kidding, I never did that. How could I, you remember the teacher, eyes like a hawk…"
"We should drive by her house, then," Merida said, "Just to make sure."
"I'll go with you," Hiccup offered himself.
"We can all go," Jack replied lazily, but then a broad smile lit up his face. "Unless you wanted some alone time with Merida, Hic, in that case, I can stay behind…"
"Shut up," Hiccup cut him off, face red. "The three of us can just drive by quickly and see if her light's on.
That's it."
"If she's there, we tap her window, see if the lassie's still interested," Merida suggested.
"It's already really late, though," Hiccup pointed out. "Already about to be ten, she was supposed to be here like an hour ago."
"Whatever," Merida rolled her eyes, "We'll just see if she forgot is all. Comin', Frosty?"
"I guess," Jack got up dramatically, but there was a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach. He felt like something was wrong, because Rapunzel had never missed any important things like movie night before. He brushed it off, deciding it must've been the cold popcorn he'd eaten by the bowlful.
"We'll take my car," Hiccup offered.
Merida called shotgun instantly, and Jack made quips about being the third wheel until Hiccup threatened to toss him in the trunk. Jack promised to behave with a few well-placed comments on how Hiccup was a real stick in the mud, but otherwise sat still. Hiccup pulled out of the driveway, forehead creased in surprise, eyes turning to survey the backseat and front of his car.
"What?" Merida noticed his face as she messed with his radio.
"Nothing, just-" Hiccup pressed on his accelerator. "The car looks a little weird. Like things were moved- maybe my dad took it somewhere last night."
"Proba'ly nothin'," Merida responded, finding a station she liked as they took off. "Say, Punzie's house is only a little ways away, we might be able to make it to her place and still watch all the movies before sunrise." She stretched out under her seatbelt and relaxed.
"If she isn't just avoiding us," Jack said, and he was lurched to the side of the car as Hiccup took a particularly fast turn. "Hey, Hic, slow down!" He buckled himself up. "You're forcing me to wear a seatbelt, huh? I remembered to put it on this time!"
"I just saw ye barely puttin' it on, Frost," Merida rolled her eyes and put her window down a little bit. "This is fun!" She gave a little whoop. "We should go on a roadtrip sometime, eh?"
"No, guys-" Hiccup looked horrified. "I'm not going fast on purpose! My brakes- they're not working!"
Jack sat up straight. "What?"
"Yer jokin', right?" Merida tried to smile, but then it fell flat as she saw how quickly they approached incoming traffic. "Alright, Hic you can quit playin', yer almost goin' eighty here!"
"It were fine last night, I don't understand…" Hiccup sounded panicked. "I can't control it! The brake's not working!"
"Just drive into a ditch!" Merida screeched, suddenly freaking out. Hiccup was moving fast, weaving in and out of traffic. Up ahead, there was a red light, and Hiccup was about to run it.
"No! Don't, you'll wreck the car-" Jack started shouting.
"BETTER HE'LL WRECK THIS ONE THAN ANOTHER PERSON'S! HICCUP, JUST DRIVE TO THE SIDE O' THE ROAD!" Merida was clinging onto her seat for dear life.
"Stop, you're freaking him out!" Jack yelled, sounding scared, as the Beatles crooned softly in the background.
"I'm trying!" Hiccup gasped, the car running through the red light and narrowly missing turning cars by mere inches.
"HICCUP!" Merida screamed.
"I-I-" Hiccup tried to take control of the car, but there was something no one noticed up ahead.
"Construction zone!" Jack yelled before the other two did. Merida's eyes grew wide, Hiccup was a pale as a sheet, and Jack's knuckles were white from his grip on the seatbelt.
The shining yellow light of the construction zone instructing them to yield was the last thing they saw before the world went blank, Merida's terrified screams echoing in their ears.