Chapter 24: The Show (part 1)

After I had jogged and washed the paint-flakes off of me, I went to breakfast and class as usual, feeling at peace with the world. When my double-free period started, I ran out to the parking lot to hop into Latte as quickly as I could, just as I had done on so many Thursdays before. I had often run over to Adrian's just to have a few precious minutes actually alone together in real life. This time, however, I had a job in front of me – getting Adrian's paintings over to the gallery.

When I got to Adrian's apartment, he was waiting for me outside his building. He was wearing a dark pair of jeans and a white t-shirt and his hair was styled in that carefully messy way that looked so cute on him. He looked like he had stepped out of an advertisement for Abercrombie and Fitch. He was holding a Tupperware container of what could only be some sort of baked good. We kissed our hellos, and then when I started to ask Adrian where his paintings were, he said, "Actually, let's not worry about the paintings right now. Let's go over to your school. I want to talk to your office ladies a little."

"About what?" I asked.

"About getting you the rest of the day off." He gave me a winning grin and kissed me again, but I wouldn't be distracted so easily.

"What?" I asked, pushing him away gently. "I don't need the whole day off."

"No, but you want it, which is almost the same thing." He kissed me again, briefly, then got into the car. I stood there, shaking my head a little, then got into the car too. Adrian was holding the container in his lap.

"What did you make?" I asked, as I checked my mirrors. "Another cake?"

"Cupcakes," Adrian said. "Want to see?" He opened the top of the container and tilted it up slightly to show me. They were beautifully decorated cupcakes in several different colors."I'd offer you one, but I have to save them for the office ladies."

"They look delicious," I said, starting up the engine. "But that's ok, I'm still full from breakfast." I had had half a yogurt and two slices of melon, which was more than enough. "But I'm not sure about this plan. I'm not comfortable taking a day off from class."

"Oh come on, Sage," Adrian said. "Live a little." The smell of the cupcakes was filling the car.

I thought about it. I was ahead in all of my classes. In many classes, my overall average was actually over 100. I really could take the day off, I realized; there were no tests scheduled, no major projects due. And after all, I was at Amberwood to learn, not to build a college resume. I would never be able to go to college, not as Sydney Melrose, not as Sydney Sage. Heck, not even as Sydney Melbourne, no matter what strings Ms. Terwiliger could pull for me. So what did my grades matter?

"Not much," I muttered.

Adrian's sharp hearing picked up on what I had said. "Not much what?" he asked.

"That's how much chance those office ladies have against you," I said, as we turned onto the main road that led to the school. And I didn't have much chance, either, I realized. I was going to take the day off. And I felt great.

"You know it," Adrian said. I thought that he had had no idea that I had just made a major life decision, but he squeezed my hand as I held the clutch. I took a quick look at his face and his expression spoke volumes: affection, support, and joy. "Hey, you know what's crazy?" he said, in a carefully calm tone. "Rose called to congratulate me on the art exhibition. That was nice of her, don't you think? I didn't know she cared."

I had told her to call, but I was a little surprised that she had actually done so. "She cares," I said. I bit my lip. The question was, how much did Adrian care?

"It's nice to know that," Adrian said. He paused, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw him look out his window. "Maybe it sounds strange, but I hate the idea of having spent so much time with someone who never cared about me. It makes it easier to put it in the past if I know that she did care a little."

"It'd be impossible not to," I said, feeling some of my muscles relax. He was putting it in the past. That was exactly what I'd hoped he say.

We had just paused at an intersection, and I looked over at a him for a minute. He smiled at me and squeezed my hand again. The light changed, and I had to look back at the road.

When we got back to Amberwood, Adrian headed towards the main office, and I walked along with him, feeling slightly embarrassed. What was he going to do? Some students in the hallway looked at Adrian with interest as he passed, and he gave glowing smiles to anyone who he made eye contact with. "Try not to be so conspicuous," I murmured to him as we walked.

"What makes me so conspicuous?" Adrian said softly. "What am I doing?"

Being too ridiculously handsome? Being too charismatic? Being too sexy? "I don't know," I said. "Everyone is staring at you."

"They just want my cake," he said, grinning. "My cupcakes bring all the boys to the halls."

"I don't get the reference," I said.

"But you get that it is a reference, which is progress, Miss Melrose."

By then we had reached the main office, and Adrian walked in as if he did it every day. Well, he had done it before, at least a few times that I knew of.

"Marvelous Maryann, Rockin' Rita," Adrian said, in a smooth tone. "It is so lovely to see both of you again."

Maryann and Rita were the two office assistants who all but ran the school. It was true that neither of them was as powerful on paper as the principal or the deans, but since they made decisions about which excuses were legitimate and which ones weren't, they held the power to let kids out of class or to send them back. Both women were in their late 40s at least, but neither of them seemed immune to Adrian's flirtation. They greeted him happily.

"And what do you want, young man?" Rita asked, no anger to her tone.

"Just to give you these cupcakes I made," Adrian said, his voice like honey.

"Oh, you're so bad," Maryann said, smiling broadly. "We couldn't possibly." Despite her protestations, she was reaching into the container he was offering to her. She pulled out a pink frosted cupcake, unwrapped it quickly, and began eating it immediately. "This is really good," she said.

Adrian brought the container to Rita's desk. "They smell good," she said. She took out a chocolate frosted cupcake and began unwrapping it, just as her coworker had. As she took her first bite, Adrian said, in a gentle tone, "Sydney really needs the rest of the day off to help me set up my art exhibit."

"Of course," Rita and Maryann said at once, then continued munching their cupcakes.

"She should be allowed to take off as much time as she wants," Adrian added. "From this day forward."

"Of course," Rita and Maryann agreed.

"So, if she ever calls and asks for time off campus..."

"We'll give it to her," Rita said, through a mouth-full of cupcake.

"No questions asked," Maryann added, also through a mouth-full.

"Thanks so much, my lovelies!" Adrian said, warmly. "More cupcakes? Another for later?"

"Yes, please," the office workers chorused, and Adrian put one more cupcake on each of their desks. After a little more sweet-talking, he left, and we walked down the hall together. I was shaking my head.

"That was quite a show," I remarked as we walked away.

"I'm nothing if not a showman," Adrian said.

"What was in those cupcakes?" I asked, in an undertone.

"Nothing," Adrian said. He grinned. "Well, butter, sugar, eggs, flour, the usual."

"And...?"

"I may have charmed them a little with some spirit-induced compliance," Adrian admitted, very quietly. "It's an easy way to get what you want out of office ladies. I did it all the time back at St. Vlad's, though back then I didn't bake my own."

I looked around. The hallways were completely empty. I said, very quietly, "I still don't understand how you can charm cakes and cupcakes. You've done it before, but it's still weird. I thought only metal could hold a charge like that."

"Well..." Adrian said, slowly. "It doesn't hold the charge very well. I think it just lays the groundwork. Makes it easier for me to work my compulsion. I don't think you could just hand one of those cupcakes to someone and then boss them around, because you don't have spirit magic. Of course, it'd be different if that person was me." He winked. "You can boss me around if you want. I'm helpless against your powers, Sage."

"Melrose," I said, in a low voice, but I felt a thrill sweep through me.

"Sweetheart," he said, very, very quietly. "Sydney Sweetheart."

"So did you charm me into taking the day off?" I asked, still softly. "Did the smell of the cupcakes induce me to..."

Adrian cut me off. "No. I promise you. I'll never use compulsion on you again. Well, not without your consent."

I wanted to ask him why I would ever consent to being under compulsion, but just then, a door opened and Ms. Terwiliger came out into the hallway. She brightened when she saw us and came over to chat.

"Ms. Melbourne," she said, enthusiastic as ever. "And Mr. Melbourne. Hello, you handsome young man."

"Hello, Ms. Terwiliger," we said in a childlike chorus. We caught each other's eyes and I had to suppress a smile. But Ms. Terwiliger hadn't noticed. She was looking at the container of cupcakes, which was still open.

"Those are some very convincing looking cupcakes," she said. "Did you make them yourself, Mr. Melbourne?"

"Yes, I did, ma'am," Adrian said. "Would you like one?"

"Oh, I think not," she answered, chuckling. "I don't need any help making up my mind today." I was tempted to ask her what that meant, but I was afraid of what her answer would be. "And what are you doing here, young man?" she asked Adrian. "Are you just visiting your, hmmm, sister?" She smiled in that weird way of hers.

"She's helping me set up for my art show," Adrian said. "I need her to help me transport my paintings and set up the refreshments and stuff." Refreshments? This was the first I'd heard about that. I tried not to let the surprise show on my face, however.

"How lovely!" Ms. Terwiliger exclaimed. "I'd love to see your art. Maybe I'll come to the exhibition. Where is it being held?"

Adrian pulled a flier out of his pocket and handed it over. "You're welcome to attend, of course," he said. "After all, you're the one who helped me get into school in the first place."

"I hope you won't forget me when you're a famous artist," Ms. Terwiliger said. "And you will be one, you know." She stated that as a simple fact.

"Thanks," Adrian said, a little bit flustered. "I won't forget you."

"Excellent. You know, I think I will take a cupcake or two. I need to ask the principal to increase the budget to the history department." She winked, took two cupcakes from Adrian's container, and wandered off before we could even react. Adrian and I looked at each other, then we both shook our heads. He started to take my hand, then we remembered that we were still in school and pulled apart a little. Soon we were at the door leading out, and we headed down the paved path to the parking area.

"Where did we park?" Adrian asked.

"Latte is over there," I pointed. "Under the tree, to keep it cool."

"I like that you named your car," Adrian said as we walked. "Did I ever tell you that?"

"No," I said, smiling. "I always name cars."

"Any reason?" he asked.

"I don't really know," I said. "Cars just need names. I mean, if you got a dog or a cat, you'd name it, right? So, it's the same thing." We were down by the cars now, and we had passed by several large palm trees which hid us from the view of the people at the school.

"And you think of your car like a pet?" Adrian asked.

"No," I said. "It's better than a pet. The vast majority of pets don't function very well as transportation, unless you count horses." We had reached Latte, and Adrian rested the Tupperware container on the back bumper for a moment.

"You are so damn cute," he said, and caught my hand in his. He brought it up to his mouth to kiss it. We looked at each other, and he stroked my hand. I could feel the huge grin on my face, stretching out the corners of my mouth almost painfully. But that grin died when I caught a scrap of movement behind one of the big palm trees a few feet away.

It was Bryan. He had been hiding behind the tree for some reason. Had he followed us out? And more importantly, how much of that had he seen? I was about to find out, as he came out from behind the tree and began marching the short distance towards us. I dropped Adrian's hand like it was on fire.

"What are you doing here?" I asked Bryan as he got closer. I tried to keep my voice calm and collected sounding, but the truth was that I was a little frightened. The look on Bryan's face – equal parts triumph and rage – was really a scary thing.

"I was curious about something so I thought I'd just follow you out. And I saw something interesting. Are you two like... in love or something? I thought you were brother and sister."

"We are brother and sister," Adrian said, smoothly. "You didn't see anything weird." To me, he added in an undertone, "Who is this guy?"

"That's Bryan," I said, quietly. Understanding lit Adrian's face.

Meanwhile, Bryan was shaking his head, vehemently. "No, I know what I saw," he said. "I saw you call her cute and then kiss her hand. What brother does that? No wonder you didn't want to give it up for me, Sydney. You're already fucking your brother."

I saw Adrian's face contort with rage. "Look me in the eye, man, and say it to me," he said, and Bryan whirled to do just that.

"Happy to do it, man," Bryan said. "You may be taller than me, but I think I can take you, you skinny sister-fucking freak." He adopted a fighting stance, fists balled up. But then he made a mistake. He looked Adrian in the eyes.

Adrian said coldly, "You didn't see anything weird."

"I didn't... see... anything..." Bryan said, his words stilted and expressionless.

"You didn't see anything weird at all. Sydney and I were acting like normal siblings."

"Ok," said Bryan. "But I still really want to kick your ass. I hate you." His voice was still robotic, but his words chilled me to the core.

"Why?" Adrian asked. "Tell the truth."

"Because you're cooler than me," Bryan said, in that same almost expressionless voice. "And because you're in the same family as Sydney and Eddie and I hate them. And you're probably easier to beat up than Eddie."

I looked at Adrian's face, saw the anger flit across it. "I just punched you in the stomach really hard," Adrian said, and Bryan sank to his knees in pain.

"And I kicked him in the nuts," I whispered to Adrian.

"And Sydney kicked you in the nuts," Adrian repeated. Immediately Bryan let out a high pitched shriek of pain.

"And a bee stung him," I whispered, and Adrian repeated the command. Bryan screamed again. I smiled. This was fun. I wondered, somewhere in the back of my mind, if I was breaking any commandments, and decided that a psychic attack like this wasn't actually too evil.

"Next time you want to beat someone up, you'll remember this feeling," Adrian continued. "You'll be able to feel it clearly. You won't want to beat anyone up anymore. You'll be a lot nicer, in fact."

"And you won't try to rape girls either," I said. Bryan hadn't exactly tried to rape me, but he hadn't been taking 'no' for an answer. I felt like rape wasn't exactly out of the question for him.

Adrian repeated the command, a new level of coldness to his tone. "In fact," he added, "the idea of rape should give you a case of the limps, you know what I mean, buddy?"

"I understand," Bryan sobbed.

"And in a minute or two, after Sydney and I leave, you're going to get up, remembering the punch and the kick. You won't think that there was anything weird about anything you saw, and you won't talk about what happened to anyone, but you'll keep taking our advice, won't you?"

"Yes, I will, I promise!"

"Good. Nice talking to you," Adrian said, and put his arm around me to sort of steer me away from the figure sobbing on the ground. We took the few steps back to the car and both got inside, Adrian stopping for a moment to grab his cupcakes, which he wedged down into the floor in the back seat.

I automatically began the steps I always take before starting up the car, but stopped suddenly. My hands were shaking. Adrian pulled me close to him and began stroking my hair. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I guess I went a little too far. I just really hate that asshole for what he did to you."

"It's ok," I said. I was remembering Bryan's fist flying through the air, his snarled insults, and my own fear. I was also remembering Keith and what he did to Carly. It was a strange, charged moment, and I was glad Adrian was there to hold me. I was glad that I knew him, glad that there were a few wonderful guys in my life to counter-balance the jerks like Keith and Bryan. When I felt ready to sit up, I did so. Adrian gave me a quick kiss on the lips, and we both smiled. "You didn't go too far," I said. "It was fine. You were amazing, in fact. Thank you for defending us."

"If I hadn't, you would have had to kick his ass for real," Adrian said. "Well, kick his ass again, I should say. And as much as I would have enjoyed watching that, it would have been tough to explain to Maryann and Rita. I mean, there's a limit to what cupcakes can do."

"Fair enough," I said. "Well, are you ready to go?"

"Born ready," he said. And we left the parking lot and drove back to his place.

A/N: Hey guys. This isn't a complete chapter, but it's done, and I figured it was enough to post! :)