"Artemis! Come on! We're going to be late!" Cameron said as he rushed down the hallway, with the brunette sprinting after him.
"What do you think I'm doing?" asked Artemis running after him.
Dealing with the problems that morning has delayed the teen's time quite a bit. Rick and Beth have got to their respective classes while Cameron and Artemis are rushing to theirs. And finally, their classroom was in sight. The duo burst in pantingly, earning themselves glances from the people that were already inside the classroom. The classroom was full of people, and the teacher was already in there as if she was about to start the class.
"Mr. Mahkent and Miss Crock… you're almost late… come in," the teacher ushered. "Go on, find a seat."
"Gosh, that was a close one," Cameron whispered.
"Yeah, we should really leave early next time," Artemis said.
"Hey! Not like Courtney having panic attacks is something that we can control!" Cameron hushed.
"Is there something you two would like to share with the class?" asked the teacher.
"Uhm, no Mrs. Degaton," Artemis stuttered.
"Good, now stop wasting our time," the teacher said glaring at the two who rushed towards the two vacant seats at the back of the class.
As the laughter from inside the room died down and Yolanda was finally smiling a bit again, she couldn't help but feel curious. "Alex… aren't you supposed to be prepping for school?" Yolanda asked.
"Well, you need me to be here. Plus not like mom is going to take care of you while I'm gone," Alex shrugged.
"You should go, I really can take care of myself," Yolanda assured as she took a sandwich from the plate.
"You sure Landa?" Alex asked worriedly.
"Don't worry about me. Studies are important," Yolanda insisted. "You wouldn't want to miss the first day back."
"You sure?" asked Alex again, not convinced.
"I will let them know if something happens," Yolanda said. "Thanks… Alex... even after…"
"Don't mention it, sis. You're my sister after all," Alex said smiling before walking out of the room.
Pat was working on a car. First day of reopening after the summer holidays and all the chaos that came with it. Then, he heard a car stop behind him, and someone walking out of the car.
"Can I help you?" asked Pat as he turned around to face a man, slim, while as tall as the mechanic himself.
"Ah, so this is the Pit Stop I assume," asked the man.
"Well the sign is right there," Pat pointed out.
"Ah, didn't see it. Anyway, I was thinking whether you could check my car, it has been making these weird noises," the man said, gesturing towards his car.
"Sure thing, Mr…"
"Knox, Curtis Knox," said the man.
"Pat Dugan," Pat introduced himself.
"So I've heard," Curtis said as they walked towards his car.
"So anything unusual happened to your car?" asked Pat.
"Not that I know of," Curtis answered. "Started a few days ago, but you weren't open. Folks around here say that you weren't open throughout the summer."
"Ah… yes, had to deal with some family business," said Pat.
"Ah I see. Understandable," Curtis said.
"So, you're new around here?" asked Pat. "I can tell that you're not a familiar face around here."
"Well, just moved here, so pretty much new around here," Curtis said.
"Well, if you like I could show you around," Pat offered.
"No thanks, I can handle myself," Curtis smiled. "You people are really nice here."
"Yeah, that is Blue Valley alright," Pat grunted as opened the front of the car
"That's weird," Pat said as he looked at the engine. "You're going to need new parts for this," Pat said.
"Sure, I can pay. Just get it fixed," Curtis shrugged.
"It's going to take a while, could you come back tomorrow?" asked Pat.
"Sure," Curtis said as he walked out of the garage.
"Wait, you need me to give you a lift?" asked Pat.
"Ah, no need, I'm good," said Curtis. "Thanks!"
Pat then walked back into the garage and felt his phone ringing. He picked it up, it was Barbara.
"Yes Barb?" asked Pat.
"Pat, Courtney injured herself, I don't have the car," Barbara said urgently.
"Hang on, I'm going back now," Pat said as he rushed towards his car.
Later, Courtney was at the medical center, having her wound bandaged, while her parents just stood outside the room, talking about what happened.
"Pat, she is that traumatized!" Barbara finished after explaining what happened to her husband, who looked at her singing. "She had a panic attack just from getting a glass of water-"
"I know, it's bad… She just needs time to heal," Pat sighed.
"Pat… what if she never heals? Memories like this… especially… being raped over and over again… Pat, you don't know what it is like for a woman to go through that… I'm just saying… That these dark memories, they don't go away easily," Barbara said, frowning as they both watched their daughter being treated. "Pat… do you think… she needs to…" Barbara was about to ask.
"What do you think? We can't counsel her, we don't have the ability to. But how does one work if she can't even tell the person how and why she went through that hell? Her identity would be at risk," Pat explained.
"You know. As much as being Stargirl brought joy to her before. Now, all I just see is the misery that came along with the accursed staff," Barbara sighed.
"And that was why I didn't want her in this life… I should've fought harder…" Pat sighed. "Against all of this… This is all my fault."
"No… it is not. Without you, without her… the ISA would have reached their goal by now," sighed Barbara.
"And yet she paid the price," Pat pointed out, clenching his fist as he closed his eyes. His daughter may never be the same again, and all of this was largely his fault. Had he hidden the staff better, it would've never been discovered by her. She would never become Stargirl. Sure, the country would've fallen under the ISA control, but, at least Courtney wouldn't have suffered so much. What should he do now?
It was lunch break, and Beth and Rick were at the usual 'JSA" table, waiting for the other two to show up. Soon, Cameron and Artemis walked forward to join them.
"There you two are," Rick mumbled as Cameron and Artemis sat down with their tray of food.
"What? Were you waiting for us?" asked Artemis casually.
"Kinda, I mean. If you two don't turn up, it either usually means that both of you got in trouble or someone decided to kidnap you two in school," Rick said sarcastically as Artemis pulls out her phone to type a message.
"What are you doing?" asked Beth curiously.
"Checking in on Courtney," Artemis sighed as she typed.
"I'm sure… she will be fine… Like, she is the leader of the JSA," Beth said. "She is the strongest… or at least one of the strongest out of all of us… I don't know about Artemis, but the point is. She and Yolanda will get through this," Beth assured the rest of the group.
"This will take some time for them to recover, to be honest," Rick sighed. "Any news from Court?" asked the teen.
"Oh my… Court hurt her hand," Artemis said, shocked.
'Wait? How?" asked Beth immediately, worried for her friend as well.
"Hold on, she was getting a glass of water when… well, a panic attack happened, she dropped it onto the counter," Artemis said, reading off the text on her smartphone. "Pat took her to the medical center, she is fine now."
Cameron breathed in relief. "That's good for now," Cameron said smiling weakly.
"So… how is your… you know… relationship with Courtney?" asked Beth. "I mean, the both of you didn't exactly part on good terms and get back together before all of this happened," Beth explained herself.
Cameron sighed, he has been thinking about this ever since Courtney got back. What of their relationship? Does Courtney even still like him, after all that has happened in the past few months? Are they still even a thing?
"To be honest… as much I want it to be… I don't know… Haven't talked to her much after coming back-" Cameron explained.
"Why not?" asked Rick curiously. "You are her boyfriend."
"I was her boyfriend," Cameron corrected. "And everyone was busy trying to get back their lives together, the family was busy arranging for Artemis to be adopted and all.
"You should talk to her," Artemis suggested. "Maybe one of the people that she needs is her boyfriend."
"Hmm… you think?" asked Cameron unsurely as he began to remember how their last interaction before all the chaos happened went.
"When you're going to tell me about this, Courtney?"
"I... I don't know, I didn't know how to tell you that..."
"Your brother killed my father, and you knew that the entire time?"
"Cam..."
"Don't call me that! And don't get me started on your secret hero life, when were you going to tell me? You knew about my powers, and you helped me control it, why?"
"Cam... I was just trying to help you, I didn't know how to tell you... without hurting you... I'm sorry, I love you."
"Ha... you love me? YOU LOVE ME!?" Cameron shouted in rage. "If you'd really loved me, you would have told me the truth. You're only thinking of yourself, Courtney."
"You have no idea who your father really is, Cam, please, hear me out."
"You had your chances. Whatever my father did, I'm sure he had a good reason."
The next thing Cameron did was straight up attacking her in his rage. Something that Cameron would grow to regret.
"At least… give her some more hope for the future, I guess," Beth said.
Cameron looked at his food, thinking hard about how he would approach the blonde later.
At Montez's residence, Yolanda was dead tired after going through her assignments… but when she was asleep, her dreams gotreal peculiar. In particular, Cindy Burman was there, and it included, she noticed, that their left ring fingers had both engagement and wedding rings thereon. There was sunlight coming through the window panes, and she noticed she was in Cindy's room. Looking down, her dream got even more completely bizarre: she and Cinthia were wearing wedding bridal gowns, and she groaned "Oh, not again!" and flapped her hands against her sides and stomped as if flabbergasted to find this one out.
To her horror; Cindy came up behind her and began to cuddle her, to which she replied "This simply cannot get any worse!", but Landa knew better to say that- for if her "summer of love" with Cindy (which was anything *but* "love") had taught her anything; it was that with *this particular exceedingly peculiar chick*, you never really could tell what she was going to do! She had thought that Cinthia Burman was simply evil, but didn't know she was totally crazy too, or that Miss Burman had the "hots" for her- which made for even creepier times than Landa had any idea could happen- and now she was acting like they were *married* to each other and on their honeymoon. Which was even more completely cuckoo come to think of it! "And I thought that *Courtney* was insane!" Landa exclaimed in frustration.
In a way, she wished silently to her shock in this situation, this exceedingly realistic dream, that Dragon King would come in the doorway and find out what his daughter was engaged in doing- even that would serve as a rescue of sorts from this "Twilight Zone Romance", if that fit! But then again, the reptilian was as insane as his daughter was… Who knows what he might do to her. All the Latina could bring herself to do is curl up and sob, wanting the nightmares to stop.
"Aw, Love, what's the matter?" Cinthia asked Yolanda sweetly and lovingly as she ensconced her in her arms and began to kiss her yolk and the left side of her neck from behind, while easing her to her own bed in this very vile rape-room that Yolanda had been violated in during that completely disgusting "summer of love" that they'd endured together- it was a "summer of love" that was anything *but* "love" between those two teen girls! There was no respect nor charity in there between those two girls in the events that had happened.
On Cinthia's dresser was a picture of her Pa, Dr. Shiro Ito, and that, combined with Yolanda's "fighter personality" gave her a position she could grasp for this conflict "Well, "Love", if he's to be my father-in-law; what do you think he'd think of his daughter marrying another girl, considering how traditional Japanese society tends to be?" Yolanda asked, intending to engineer a "Checkmate scenario" in her favor.