A/N: references from actual episodes of S3 with some of my own imagination and explanations about what readers wanted me to explain.
thanks to all those who r&r.
POV: Alex
Disclaimer: I don't own Degrassi or any of its characters, just this fic, so don't sue me.
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Chapter 36: The Mystery
The school and work were beginning to take a toll on me and
some unconventional time off of school was not too much to ask for;
so when I heard of the flu going around,
I decided to take full advantage of the situation.
I had pulled this stunt before in my other school during times of a flu spread
and had much experience in making it very believable.
All it took was a couple of visits to the school nurse during morning classes
and I got myself, a much in demand, sick note from her.
I usually relied on writing myself sick notes
but chances of getting caught with those, increased immensely.
It was only during the afternoon of my very first day off of school
that I realized that I had gotten myself too much extra time with
nothing to actually do during it.
So I ended up taking the morning shift at the theatre for the rest of the week
which was definitely a downside of taking time off of school,
not that I'm complaining… they pay good money.
Among others were finding out…
that Amy had dumped Sean after only two weeks of dating him.
Amy informed me of this, that very same night, at the theatre…
I knew that Amy had made a mistake but
it wasn't my place to tell her that and
besides the damage had already been done.
Sean had grown on me and his reserved demeanor,
had gotten him a soft corner at least from my side.
…or that Ellie had been hurting herself and
I had no clue about it;
which later turned out to be a reason for creating turbulence in our friendship.
The Ellie situation was a bit different from Amy's…
Ellie wrote for the school paper 'the grapevine' and
was applying for some reporter job on TV with Caitlin Ryan.
That's when I got the flu… well, supposedly,
and didn't get to see her for a while.
Ellie called me during that time to tell me that she'd gotten the reporter job
despite the tough competition from the cheerleader,
who went as low as to spill juice on Ellie's clothes to ruin her interview.
…another reason for me to not like the princess.
When I started coming back to school,
I found out that Ellie wasn't coming to school for a couple of days and
was seeking help for some personal problems.
Later Amy told me that someone had told her that Ellie was cutting herself.
I called her that night to talk about it but after not getting a clear answer from her,
I took it as a sign that she didn't want to talk about it;
respecting that… I didn't pressure her and we left the issue at that.
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It was my third day back at school after the 'flu vacation' I took.
During lunch time, when I was answering the nature's call in the girls' washroom,
I heard someone knock in the stall nearby…
Girl: Paige…
Paige: Yeah Sure Hun, there u go.
Paige actually helping somebody, that's a first
You know if we had a female custodian who did that...
there she goes again with her banter…
this girl definitely worked on batteries…
I was done and was about to come out of the stall but
the other girl's voice told me otherwise.
Girl: Paige
She said in a lower voice than before which was full of worry…
I could sense that she wanted to talk about something important.
Why couldn't Paige see that?
I knew I would regret it later but my curiosity took the best of me at the time.
Paige: k, you're welcome already
Would you just shut it for a sec and listen to the girl…
Girl: How do I know if a guy… if he used a condom?
She'd asked nervously.
What the hell?
I condemned myself for not leaving the stall earlier when I could.
Leaving now involved the risk of them knowing that I'd heard the girl's secret...
a girl I hadn't even recognized yet,
but was feeling sorry for her all the same…
…not as much for her being in this situation,
than for her having to turn to this ruthless and
self absorbed cheerleader for advice.
I decided that it was safer to just stay in for now
and avoid the whole confrontation,
especially from Paige.
As much as I knew her by now,
she surely would convict me of deliberately hiding in the stall
…eavesdropping on what they were talking about.
May be she'll even spread around rumors about me,
being a 'pathetic creep' who hides in washrooms so
she can listen into other people's conversations.
Just yesterday, I had heard her scolding Terri about her boyfriend…
the girl didn't know anything about boundaries
and about not interfering in her friend's personal lives.
According to Jay, name calling was a very usual habit of hers…
I guess that's why people tried to remain in her good books…
I personally thought it wasn't a good enough reason…
heck, she could call me as many names as she wanted…
and see if I cared…
As far as this washroom situation was concerned,
I knew anything could be expected from her.
The scary part was that people would actually believe it too as
her words strangely carried a lot more weight than one would expect.
She was after all 'the Queen of Degrassi'
who had the school wrapped around her fingers,
students and teachers alike.
No one should be given so much power over others
but considering my own compromised circumstance at the moment…
okay, this is when I'm kicking myself in my head for
not escaping from the washroom earlier when I had the chance.
I'd been well briefed on Paige's jurisdiction by Amy and Ellie…
Her indisputable authority was accepted unconditionally by everyone
and persisted despite silent objections by a few of her 'victims'.
Truth is that she carried undeniable powers of turning me into
a total social outcast with just one swing of her finger or a nod of her head.
I don't care about what people think about me… okay I do a little…
and if I have to confront her,
I will be smart about choosing my moments…
And this is not one of those moments.
There…
I've very tactfully talked myself out of dealing with something…that scares me…
It's an art that has taken me a long time to master but now I'm almost perfect at it.
Paige: What? Well, were u there? It'd been just be a tiny bit obvious...
It was apparent that the girl had chosen the princess for a reason…
most likely due to her probable expertise in the field …
but it took guts to ask someone such a personal question and
all that the princess prissy could do was humiliate her.
The stall door opened…the girls were now probably face to face…
Paige: Oh no, you're serious?
Well, did you like hear him open it or even feel it may be?
She wasn't pretending to be concerned, she really was…
I could tell by the faint sighs, sudden change of her breathing pattern and
an apparent panic in her voice.
Girl: I don't know, I don't think so.
Paige: Well… okay... it's okay.
She was trying to comfort the girl…
If you're talking about who I think you're talking about, then I'm sure you're fine.
He seems like the semi-responsible type.
There was no doubt in her sincerity …
And her up to date knowledge on the whereabouts of the school.
I can almost see her gossiping with Marco… disgusting
Girl: Promise you won't tell anyone, okay?
Paige: Of course not.
genuinely keeping a secret to protect a friend's reputation, that's almost inspiring…
But to be sure, you should really just ask him…
And that's the most honest advice that anyone could give her…
and Hun, remember, next time…
Ask questions first… get naked later.
Did she just switch back to being Satan?
And I was so ready to give her a second chance
thinking that there is some goodness in her after all.
Why does she have to be like this…
…this unpredictable …
… this mysterious person…
she already proved me wrong twice today…
one, when I thought that she didn't care about the other girl's problems…
when in fact, she did.
And second, when I thought that she felt the pain that the other girl was going through…
And she told me …
how horrible and heartless she can be by striking her when she was down.
So I guess I can't really be blamed for being a little scared of her?
What am I doing all alone in the washroom…
They've been gone for over two minutes…
I better get out of this stall already…
------------------------------------------------------- TBC
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