Sponge: I've returned! Thanks for being so patient during my hiatus. The title of the last chapter, "Everything Has Changed" is a song by Taylor Swift featuring Ed Sheeran. Congratulations to itsyagirlwithwritersblock and IrishLassWithSass23 for coming up with the correct guess! Enjoy chapter 14! Warnings: language, a little angst, and mild peril. Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Scooby Doo characters. They belong to Cartoon Network, Warner Brothers, and Hanna Barbera.

Chapter 14: Brave

Friday, May 21st – two months after The Fight

DAPHNE BLAKE, WILL YOU GO TO PROM WITH ME?

The gaudy banner was hung over the main entrance to the high school, bearing down on everyone who walked into the building. It was impossible to ignore.

Velma saw it the moment she and Marcie pulled into the student parking lot and felt her stomach drop out from under her.

"Oh no," she murmured when she noticed the banner. Marcie looked over and her face blanched.

"Any chance that's from Fred?" she asked, already knowing the answer. Velma just gaped at the sign as she and Marcie exited the car. The banner loomed over them as they walked towards the entrance, casting a shadow over Velma.

In the weeks that had elapsed since The Fight, her anger had evaporated. She was no longer mad at the gang. She wasn't even angry at Shaggy anymore. Now she just missed everyone. Now she was just sad. And seeing this prom-posal for Daphne from someone who was almost certainly not Fred just depressed Velma even further – especially since she knew that it was her fault that they'd broken up in the first place.

She caught a glimpse of Fred across the parking lot, staring dumbfounded at the banner. He still drove the Mystery Machine, the sight of which always made Velma's chest ache. She didn't understand how Fred could even drive it. Briefly they made eye contact, but Velma quickly looked away and headed for the building. She nearly collided directly with Shaggy and Scooby, who had just gotten off their bus.

Velma's heart wrenched as she and Shaggy stared at each other. Of course, she saw him every day in homeroom, as well as their Spanish and English classes, but she could mentally prepare herself for those encounters, because she knew when they were coming. When she ran into him by surprise like this, it felt as though the wind had been knocked out of her. Out of everyone in the gang, she missed him the most – and not just in a romantic sense. It reminded her of last year before they were dating, when they'd argued briefly during the musical. It had been a miserable two weeks when she'd just wanted her friend back. Now she felt that longing again tenfold.

Scooby watched them, waiting with bated breath, as he did anytime Shaggy interacted with someone in the gang these days. The dog, not really one to hold a grudge, had gotten over his anger pretty much immediately and wanted to get the gang back together more than anything else in the world. But he knew that it was up to the humans, and they were all too stubborn to do anything about it. Shaggy proved this as he did an about face and stalked into the building, leaving Scooby no choice but to follow. He shot Velma a sympathetic look over his shoulder, and then sighed as he trotted after Shaggy. This was driving Scooby crazy. How long was this fight going to last? The school year was nearly over. Last week they'd finished taking all their AP tests, so all they had to worry about now were final exams – and the prom, which was next weekend. Then there would be a short half-week of commencement rehearsal for the seniors, then senior awards night, and then it would be time for graduation. Would the gang make up before then? Scooby hoped so, but the longer they went without speaking, the less likely it seemed. And if they didn't do it before they went their separate ways for college, they might never make up.

Velma and Marcie entered the school and turned down a hallway to stop by Marcie's locker.

"You okay, V?" she asked. She'd been an incredible help to Velma these past several weeks. It wasn't the same as the gang, of course, but Velma was endlessly grateful for Marcie's friendship.

Velma shrugged as Marcie opened her locker. "I'm fine." She wasn't, not really. She wasn't sure she'd ever be fine again. She missed the gang so much, like a physical part of herself was gone. But Velma knew she was reaping what she'd sowed. She had brought this on herself. None of this would have happened if she'd let her logic lead her decisions instead of her emotions.

A few lockers down, Daphne was twisting in her combination, and Velma turned away. After what she'd done to Daphne's relationship with Fred, Velma couldn't even look at her erstwhile friend anymore without feeling the heat of guilt and shame grip her heart like a vise.

"Holy shit!" Ashley Hoang stampeded down the hall and abruptly stopped at Daphne's locker. There weren't any teachers nearby so there was no admonition for language, but eyes turned to her regardless. Her face was alight with glee and admiration. Velma watched her surreptitiously. "That BANNER!" Ashley shrieked, eyes wide. "Oh my God!"

"I know," Daphne replied with a coquettish giggle. "Red really went all out."

"I knew it was Red!" Ashley exclaimed. "So you're gonna say yes, right?"

Daphne shrugged. "I don't know. I guess we'll see."

"Daph, prom is next week!" Ashley cried. "How can you not know if you'll say yes?"

"I'm gonna take the weekend to think about it," Daphne told her. "And then I'll let him know on Monday."

Ashley glanced over Daphne's shoulder at Velma and Marcie, who were both staring off into space and pretending not to listen. She dropped her voice to a whisper.

"You're not still hoping that Fred Jones will come back to you, do you?"

Daphne turned scarlet. "W-what? No, of course not, that's ridiculous. I'm just…keeping my options open. A lot of guys have asked me to prom, you know. AJ Kehret even sent flowers to my house."

Ashley gasped delightedly just as the warning bell rang. "Argh, I gotta go to homeroom. But tell me everything about those flowers at lunch, kay?"

"Sure," Daphne replied as Ashley trotted off. After she'd gone, Daphne accidentally caught Velma's eye. Her blush had receded slightly, but now it came back in full force as she and Velma made eye contact. Daphne hurriedly shut her locker door and darted down the hallway.

Marcie adjusted her backpack straps and watched Daphne go. "Do you think that's true?" she whispered, once Daphne was out of earshot. "That she's waiting for Fred?"

"I don't know," Velma admitted as she and Marcie started off down the hall. "Is it bad if I hope so?"

"Of course not," Marcie replied sincerely. "They're your friends. And you miss them. It's completely understandable."

Velma sighed as they approached her locker. "Can you call them my friends if we haven't spoken in two months?"

Marcie didn't reply.

Velma opened her locker and a folded white slip of paper fell out. All thoughts of the gang vanished and Velma felt her blood run cold. She hadn't heard from the secret admirer in months, not since that last threatening note right before spring break.

"What's that?" Marcie asked, spying the piece of paper.

"I think it's…a note," Velma replied in a whisper.

Marcie creased her brow. "A note?"

"Someone's been leaving secret admirer notes for me since the beginning of the school year," Velma told her. "But his notes have gotten really creepy lately. I haven't heard from him in a while though…not since before spring break. I'd forgotten about him…I'd hoped he'd forgotten about me, too."

Marcie still looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

Reluctantly, Velma opened the slip of paper and read it aloud in an undertone.

"Velma,

This is getting ridiculous. I like to think myself a patient man, but I've waited for almost two months, and the prom is next weekend. Everyone says you're the smartest girl in your grade. If that was true, you should have figured out who I am by now. You can't ignore me forever. This was never about you, but I can make it that way if you don't give me what I want."

Marcie's face blanched. "Can I see that?" she asked, reaching for the note. Velma handed it over and watched as Marcie's face became paler and paler as she read it herself. "What the hell?" she murmured.

Velma said nothing, just gazed around at the other students in the hallway. This was never about you? What did that mean?

"I don't understand…" Marcie trailed off, confusion and worry contorting her face. "You said you heard from the secret admirer right before spring break?"

"Yeah," Velma replied, finally noticing Marcie's expression. Why did she look so uneasy?

Marcie looked sideways at Velma and a bit of color returned to her cheeks. In fact, she seemed to be blushing. "Okay, listen," she said hesitantly. "I have to tell you something, but first you have to know that my intentions were pure."

Velma frowned. "What intentions?"

Marcie's face flamed a deep crimson and she looked at the ground. "I never meant to tell you this. I knew nothing could ever come from it."

"Come from what? What are you talking about?"

"I'm the secret admirer," Marcie told her, still blushing furiously and not making eye contact. "Or, one of them, I guess."

Velma blinked uncomprehendingly. "You…what?"

"It was me at the start of the year," Marcie repeated. "I've had a crush on you for a long time, but I wasn't sure if you felt that way about…you know…girls…so I thought I'd bide my time until I figured it out. But then you told me that you were dating Shaggy and I didn't want to pursue you if you were taken, so I stopped sending the notes. Especially after you told me you were in love with him. I figured you were straight."

Dumbfounded, Velma stared at Marcie. Marcie, her brilliant friend. Marcie, the science fair genius. Marcie, who was her only competition for valedictorian. Marcie, who had apparently had a crush on her for a long time. It had been Marcie all along? Velma had no idea what to think. Or how to feel.

But before Velma could react in any way, Marcie hurried on.

"That's why I didn't sit with you guys at lunch for a week after that party, when you'd told me your true feelings for Shaggy," she said in a rush, seemingly embarrassed by her confession. "I needed some space to get over you. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable. And I wasn't about to try to start something up with you when I knew there was no hope."

"Wait a minute," said Velma, suddenly coming back to herself. "You said you stopped sending the notes. When was that?"

Marcie glanced off to the side, thinking. "Ah…February? I left a note in your locker the morning after Valentine's Day, but I didn't learn about you and Shaggy until that afternoon. I swear I never would have sent them at all if I'd known you were dating him."

"That doesn't matter," Velma told her. "But you're telling me that you haven't put any notes in my locker since then?"

"Yes," Marcie replied. "I swear, as soon as I found out you and Shaggy were together, I stopped."

"Well someone's been putting notes in my locker," said Velma. "I've gotten at least half a dozen since Valentine's Day."

"That's the weirdest thing." Marcie looked back down at the note in her hand. "This letter is written in my handwriting. Or else, a very good forgery job. But whoever wrote this…and the others since after Valentine's Day…it isn't me."

Velma's stomach twisted in cold fear. "Then who is it?"

x.X.x

For the rest of the morning, Velma's mind whirled with confusion and worry. She was in a dither by the time lunch rolled around, and she and Marcie sat down at their usual table.

"It just doesn't make sense," Velma said the moment she took a seat. "What are the odds that two people have been leaving notes in my locker? That can't be a coincidence."

Marcie frowned thoughtfully. "What did the other notes say?" she asked. "Were they all threatening, like the one we found this morning?"

Velma thought back to the other notes she'd received. She remembered all too well the over-complimentary language the second secret admirer had used. It was so different from Marcie's notes, Velma was surprised with herself that she didn't realize they'd been written by two different authors. Marcie's notes were sweet, innocent, kind.

But the second author wrote things like, Every day I get to see you, it feels like I can breathe a little easier.

You invade my every waking thought and most of my dreams as well.

I dreamt of kissing you last night. I bet your lips are soft and warm.

Why did heat rise to Velma's face when she thought about telling this to Marcie?

"Um…I don't quite remember," Velma lied, hoping her blush wasn't too noticeable. "But you could come over after school. I can show you the notes the other person left for me and you could see them for yourself."

Marcie frowned regretfully. "I would, but I can't. I lead a precalc tutoring group at the library on Friday afternoons."

Velma shook her head and waved a nonchalant hand. "It's all right, don't worry." She felt slightly relieved. "I can text you pictures of them and you can tell me your theories after your tutoring group."

"Were they all written in my handwriting?" asked Marcie.

Velma nodded, and Marcie frowned deeper.

"I wonder why. Were they trying to make you think that I was the one saying those things?"

"To frame you, you mean?" Velma shrugged. "I don't know. Whoever it is would have had to know that..."

Velma blushed again, not quite wanting to say the words that naturally followed: that you had feelings for me.

"...That you had been leaving notes in the first place," Velma finished, embarrassed. "Is there anyone who would have known?"

Marcie shook her head. "I didn't tell anyone about this. Like I said, I know how to keep a secret. Especially if it's my own." Marcie glanced sideways at Velma. "I don't think I'm the target here – I'm just collateral. I think that whoever's doing this is trying to scare you."

Velma sighed and glanced around the cafeteria. As she did, she glimpsed members of the gang across the lunchroom. Fred was with several popular jocks, Daphne sat with a gaggle of giggling girls, and Scooby and Shaggy shared a table with Tony. Scooby made eye contact with Velma and she averted her eyes. She needed to solve this mystery, but she knew the others would never help her after what she'd done to them.

Velma hated to admit it, but Marcie was right – she, Velma, was the target. But who would want to do this to her? And why? Whoever it was must have known she was receiving notes already. But even as angry as they had all been, no one in the gang would write notes like these, and they were the only ones who knew about them.

And Tony, Velma's brain reminded her.

Velma's stomach clenched, and she glanced at him across the cafeteria, talking to Shaggy. Could Tony have been lying before? Had he been the one leaving the creepy notes after all? Was it possible that Shaggy had been right about Tony all along?

She ruminated on it for the rest of the afternoon, but talked herself out of the idea by the time biology class came to an end. It didn't make any sense – she'd asked him about it point blank, and it wasn't like him at all to lie. Or to sneak around leaving creepy notes in the first place.

Still, it couldn't hurt to ask him one more time.

Not at school, though. She knew better now than to talk where anyone could overhear.

"Hey," said Velma to Marcie at the end of the day. The sky had turned gray and overcast with the promise of a spring thunderstorm. Marcie was driving her home and had just pulled out of the school parking lot. "Do you mind if we stop by Tony's for a minute before you go to the library? He lives a few streets over from me. I'll show you where. It won't take long."

Marcie nodded. "Sure, I can take you." She stopped at a traffic light and looked at Velma out of the corner of her eye. "Listen...I've been thinking...do you want to call your friends?"

Velma stared at her. "What?"

"I'm just saying," Marcie replied. "I know that you guys work as a team...and if this note-leaver is serious..."

Velma hesitated. She'd had that same thought earlier that afternoon in the cafeteria, when she and Scooby had glanced at each other. It was tempting.

But...

"I'll be fine," Velma told her. "We're not a team anymore, anyway. They won't help me. I can do this myself."

When they reached the Willow Springs neighborhood, Velma gave Marcie directions. "Down this street. Third house on the right." She noticed Heavy Meddle's garish van parked out front.

Marcie parked behind it. "Should I come inside too?"

Velma shook her head. "This should be quick. I'll be right back." She let herself out of the car and started up the walkway.

"Velma!"

She'd barely made it to the porch before she heard a voice behind her. She turned to find Julie St. James rushing towards her, having come out of the passenger side of Heavy Meddle's van. To Velma's complete surprise, Julie embraced her in a tight hug.

"How've you been?" Julie asked as she pulled away. "Fred told us all about what happened with your friends. I'm so sorry. Are you doing okay?"

Velma felt slightly taken aback, but also touched. "As well as I can be," she admitted. "What are you doing here?"

"Joey broke a guitar string," Julie told her. "He has some extras here, and just ran inside to get them before rehearsal. Everyone's waiting at home for us."

"You rehearse in the dorms?" asked Velma, confused. Where could they rehearse without disturbing other people who lived in their building?

"We don't live in the dorms," Julie replied. "We all rent a small house near campus together, and we rehearse in the garage. It's right across the street from the fine arts building, Darrow Hall, which is convenient since we're all music majors. Of course, the spring semester's over – graduation was a few weeks ago – so we have more time to rehearse for your prom now."

"Did you graduate?" asked Velma.

Julie shook her head. "No, we just finished our junior year. Well, Leon's a senior, but he has to do one more semester, so he'll be finished in December. Technically Joey should be a senior too, but he spent most of his sophomore year in rehab so he doesn't graduate till next year either. We'll probably extend our lease on this house so we can all live together again."

Velma noticed that Julie rolled her eyes as she said this. "Do you not want to live there anymore?"

"No, no," Julie said. "The house is great. I just…I wish Leon was moving out." She grimaced wryly. "Don't tell him I said that."

Velma just stared at her, a question blazing in her eyes.

Julie noticed and sighed. "We were fine before we lived together," she told her. "Or, I thought we were. Like, I thought he was kind of annoying and pretentious, but I didn't mind being around him since I could go home whenever he was getting to be too much. But now my home and his home are the same. We see each other all the time, every day. The only time I get any respite from him is whene he goes to work at the fine arts library on campus, and then I finally feel like I can breathe again. But we don't have this problem with anyone else. Not with Joey, or Felix, or Priya. Just with each other. There's not any distinct reason for it…but living together this year made us realize that we never really liked each other, as people." She sighed. "It's a weird thing to spend years believing you're friends with a person, only to realize that you have nothing in common, and maybe you shouldn't have even been friends with them in the first place."

Well, that certainly explained the animosity between Julie and Leon. But this was sounding awfully familiar to Velma – it was very, very close to what had happened between her and the gang.

Velma glanced away so she wouldn't have to look Julie in the eye. Her gaze landed on Heavy Meddle's van, and once again she studied the horrible, yet somehow familiar design of the band's name on the side.

"Hey, I've been wondering…who wrote that?" she asked, jerking her head at the van.

Julie glanced at the van and rolled her eyes. "Leon. He used to have the absolute worst handwriting, as you can see, but two years ago he took a penmanship class. His natural handwriting is still terrible, but if he really tries, he can make it look nice. And now he could probably forge anyone's signature with enough practice. It's kind of creepy, actually."

Something clicked in Velma's brain and she stared at Julie.

Julie looked perplexed when she noticed Velma's intense gaze. "Are you okay?" she asked, concerned.

"I'm fine," Velma replied. "Thanks for your help Julie." She sprinted back down the lawn to Marcie.

"How...I...what did I help?" Julie sounded bewildered, but Velma didn't stop to explain. She just hopped into Marcie's car and quickly fastened her seatbelt.

"What was that about?" asked Marcie. "I thought you came to see Tony."

"I need you to take me home," Velma told her. "I just made a major break in the case."

"By...talking to Tony's brother's girlfriend?" Marcie asked, confused.

"Just drop me off at home," Velma said. "I'll explain on the way."

Marcie didn't say anything else, just did as she was told.

"I have a new hunch but I have to confirm it first," said Velma as Marcie drove. "I can't jump to conclusions."

Marcie looked pained. "I wish I could help but my tutoring group…"

Velma shook her head. "Don't worry about it. I'll call you if my hunch is right. I should know soon."

"Okay," Marcie said reluctantly. They had arrived at Velma's. "I'll wait for your call!"

But Velma was already halfway to her front door.

Once inside, she sprinted up the stairs to her room, where she unceremoniously dumped her messenger bag and flung open her closet door. Velma dragged her desk chair over and hastily climbed on top of it so she could yank the cardboard box down from its shelf.

"Come on," she muttered, kneeling on the ground with the box and frantically digging through the contents. "Where is it, where is it...a ha!" Triumphantly she extracted the note that she now realized was written in the same messy handwriting as Heavy Meddle's name on the side of the van, and held it close to her glasses so she could read it.

D-

Thanks for all the help w/ [something ineligible was written here], please take these as a token of my appreciation. You're the greatest.

As Velma re-read the note with fresh eyes and new knowledge, a memory came back to her. At the very first meeting with Heavy Meddle, Leon had stood near her as she fingered the keys on the baby grand piano. He'd asked if she played, and told her that he played some. And then he'd said…

"For a long time in high school, I had a crush on a girl who played the piano – that was how I got started. I wanted to impress her, but…it didn't work out that way."

With the memory of Leon's words in her brain, Velma stared at the unintelligible word and suddenly realized what it said.

Piano.

Breathlessly, she stared at the box and pulled out her sister's high school yearbook. She flipped through the senior pages first, and found her older sister's beautiful, smiling portrait in the D section. The caption read, Dorothy Dinkley, grade 12, and underneath that, her accomplishments. Academic Decathlon, Model UN, Chamber Band Pianist.

Velma gazed at the word "pianist" for several moments as realization hit her like a freight train. The Dinkleys had tried to push piano on all their daughters, but Dottie and Velma were the only ones who had stuck with it past third grade. She had completely forgotten that Dottie had played the piano in high school too. It was the biggest clue ever, staring her right in the face, but Velma hadn't even realized. She began searching through the yearbook again, this time turning to the pages of underclassmen. She flipped too far and found herself in the Ms, where a ninth-grade Joey Moretti smiled a lopsided grin that looked exactly like Tony's. Velma backtracked and flipped to a page of B's. When she found what she was looking for, she sucked in a harsh breath.

A teenager with floppy brown hair and glasses smirked up at her. Leon Berger, grade 9, the caption stated. And beneath the photo, a hastily scribbled note in that same messy handwriting.

I love you, D. I always will. Leon.

Velma stood up as all the pieces started to click into place. Her hunch was correct, and she thought she understood the motive. But she needed more proof. Making up her mind, she picked her bag up again, stuffed the note inside, and ran back down the stairs. No sooner had she stepped into the foyer than the front door opened and Madelyn stepped in, home from school.

She took one look at the frenzied look on Velma's face and frowned in confusion. "Where are you going in such a rush?"

"Uh," Velma replied, trying to catch her breath and think of a credible lie. She didn't want Madelyn to know what she was up to. "Just…to the library. Finals start on Monday."

"It looks like it's about to rain," Madelyn said, eyeing the sky out the window.

"It's all right, it's not that far," Velma responded with what she hoped was a casual shrug. "I can walk."

Madelyn glanced at her suspiciously, but Velma simply looked back at her in the most innocent manner she could.

"Okay then," Madelyn replied.

Before her sister could say anything more, Velma left out the front door and dashed down the street. She thought briefly about actually going to the library and telling Marcie what she was doing, but decided against it – she didn't want to disturb her while she was working. Rather, once Velma was out of sight of the house, she called a Lyft, and five minutes later, she was on her way to Coolsville University.

The rain began on the ride, just a light sprinkle at first. The journey to the college was only about fifteen minutes, but it felt like it took much longer to Velma. She wasn't sure how long the band would be in rehearsal, but they'd have to end sometime. Hopefully, though, not before she found some more evidence.

Velma had been to Coolsville U a handful of times, the most significant being once last summer when she and the gang had gone on a tour for prospective students. It had been a nice day, and they'd had a great deal of fun imagining where they'd live and how they'd spend their time on campus. She pushed the thoughts out of her head as she left the Lyft and headed towards Darrow Hall. She didn't have time to dwell on how much she missed the gang right now.

As Julie had said, the spring semester had ended a few weeks ago, so there were no students on campus. Even if there had been, they probably wouldn't have been milling about on the lawn, since it was starting to rain, so Velma didn't meet anyone as the fine arts building came closer into her view. It was a lovely building, but huge – Velma had actually gotten lost in it with Shaggy when they'd been here on their prospective student tour.

But Darrow Hall wasn't her destination. Instead, she made her way across the street, where there was a row of small one-story houses. In the driveway of a house with a brick façade was Heavy Meddle's van, and she could hear Felix drumming, so she knew she was in the right place. Avoiding the garage entirely, she edged around to the other side of the house, where a sliding glass back door was slightly open. Pushing it quietly, she stepped in and found herself in a small kitchen. Velma patted her hair dry and closed the door behind her. As she did, she became aware of how fast her heart was beating, and suddenly felt her stomach twist with fear. She'd gotten this far on adrenaline, but now the reality of what she was doing caught up with her.

No going back now, Dinkley, she told herself. Be brave.

She found Leon's room easily. It was down a short hallway off the kitchen, and she knew it was his because his name was displayed prominently on the door. Listening hard to make sure that the pulsing drumbeat was still issuing from the garage (it was), Velma turned the knob and entered.

The room was small but neat – too neat. Like serial killer neat.

Stop, Velma scolded herself for being so paranoid. You sound like Shaggy. A twinge of pain seared across her chest as she thought of him, and she forced herself to focus on the task at hand. She studied the room. A twin bed was pushed up against one wall, a desk and a dresser were pushed up against another. A small wardrobe sat in the corner, with an empty stand for a bass guitar beside it. There weren't any decorations, so much of the wall was bare. And now that she was here, Velma wasn't actually sure what to look for. Cautiously, she approached the desk and began opening drawers. In the first, she discovered a few writing utensils and some notebooks. She knelt on the ground and flipped through the notebooks, looking for something incriminating, but found nothing – they seemed to be mostly full of classroom notes.

With a sigh, she opened another drawer. Inside she found some sheet music and bass guitar tabs, and searched through the stack. Suddenly, she gasped when, mixed in with the miscellaneous music, she discovered a piece of paper that was very familiar to her. It was the secret admirer note that Marcie had given her after Valentine's Day. The one that had gone missing. The one, Velma now remembered, that she had shown the band at their very first meeting. Breathing heavily, Velma stared at the note. This was the proof she'd been looking for.

Leon had been leaving the second set of secret admirer notes. He must have stolen Marcie's original letter out of Velma's bag that day when she'd showed it to the band, and had been using it as a guide with the other secret admirer notes. Julie said he was a skilled forger. But how had he been leaving them in her locker? And why?

This was never about you, the note had said.

So then it must be about Dottie.

Velma pulled out her phone and dialed Marcie's number. It went to voicemail – she must still be leading the tutoring session.

"Marcie," Velma said when the tone beeped. "I figured out who the other secret admirer is, but I think I'm in over my head with this. I don't know what to do…" Her eyes swept over the room and she let out a long breath. "Jinkies, it's a long story, so I'll just explain everything in person. I'm on my way back now. I'll see you in fifteen minutes."

Velma ended the call and shoved Marcie's original note into her messenger bag, suddenly struck by how quiet it sounded. With a jolt, she realized that the band had stopped playing – they must be taking a break. She needed to get out of here before Leon found her. She was about to head for the door when her phone buzzed in her hand. Marcie's name lit up the screen.

"Don't answer that."

With a gasp, Velma whirled around, dropping her phone to the ground. Leon was standing in the threshold of the door with his bass guitar slung over his shoulder, hands in his pockets. He was staring at her with a curious intensity. Velma's heart thundered. She watched as Leon slowly approached her and quietly shut the door behind him, blocking her only exit.

Leon stared at her. "You finally figured it out," he murmured. "Congratu-fucking-lations. Although…this part isn't going exactly as I'd planned. I hadn't anticipated that you'd break into my house. Oh well. No matter. You're here now, so I suppose I'll have to improvise." He put the bass in its stand and continued to walk towards her.

Heart in her throat, Velma watched numb, terrified, as he continued to approach her. She couldn't move, she couldn't even scream. All the bravery that her adrenaline had awarded her evaporated. She couldn't help but remember the violent way Leon had shoved Julie. The scene kept looping in her mind.

Leon still gazed at her. "We shouldn't stay. We're not done with rehearsal yet and I wouldn't want the others to find us in here." He cocked his head towards the door. "Let's go for a walk."

Velma trembled from head to foot. "I'm not going anywhere with you," she whispered, trying to sound braver than she felt.

Leon took his hands out of his pockets and stepped closer to Velma. "I don't think you understand," he murmured, his face twisting into a menacing grimace. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice." He was now right in front of her, looming over her, as intimidating, threatening, and frightening as he'd ever been. Velma's breath caught in her throat as Leon gave her an ominous smile.

And that was when she noticed the knife in his hand.

Sponge: I guess chapter 14 will always be the "cliffhanger" chapter, huh? Don't worry, I'll be back next week. Thanks for reading! Review if you please, and don't forget to guess where the chapter title comes from.