Meanwhile...
Victoria had never felt so angry in her entire life. She couldn't believe the argument that she had to endure back at the house moments ago. She couldn't even believe that James is not wanting her to resume her friendship with Ray after an entire year of no longer talking to him, all because his girlfriend might get jealous. Admittedly, it was no secret that she has a crush on Ray and was a bit heartbroken to discover that he was dating somebody else, but it didn't mean that she had any intention on breaking him and Raven up. She would never do something so malicious. Now she hated her step-brother even more than she already did.
She had been walking for quite awhile now, so Victoria decided to take a rest at the nearest bench. When she sat down, she looked around the part of the neighborhood she was currently in...only to notice that she was in a part of the neighborhood that she's never been in before. She didn't appear to recognize any of the houses on this block, nor did she recall how far from home she even was. She must've been so blind with rage that she didn't end up realizing how far from the house she truly was. Thankfully, she still had her phone with her when she left, so she could probably call her own father or James's mother, Emily, to come pick her up from this spot. That, or she could just take the bus home...she was sitting at a bus stop after all.
Looking around this street, she couldn't help but take immediate notice of the fact that this street was void with people. With the sole exception of the people driving along the road in their cars, there was no sign of people walking along or standing around this street. It was almost eerie to her how empty this street was. She was wanting to wait for the bus to go home, but after taking notice of this, Victoria didn't want to wait another minute on this bench. She pulled her phone out of her pocket, ready to give James's mother a call so that she can pick her up.
Right before she could even have a chance to call James's mother, she heard the sound of somebody's voice coming from right behind her. "Hey! I know you!" A female voice shouts from right behind the drama girl.
Victoria quickly stands up from the bench, letting out a startled scream as she stood up. She turned around to see who it was even saying that behind her. When she saw who it was, all she could take notice of was her extremely messy hair, her pink eyes, and her fangs...which was at this point, she suddenly realized that this girl was Yuki.
"What?!" Victoria said, still clearly started by the girl's sudden appearance behind her. "You're that girl who Ray's friends with...the one goth who constantly screams that she wants to bite people's faces!" She then calmed down a bit, before she decided to question the goth about something. "What are you doing out here?"
"Yuki's boyfriend lives out here." Yuki said as she pointed to the house that was literately behind the bench Victoria was previously sitting on. "Yuki knows you too. You're that girl that pesky Louiston chump always argues with."
"Well...that is true, yes..." Victoria then rolled her eyes, as the expression on her faces changes from confused to angry once again. "Unfortunately...he's my step-brother now."
"Wow, that sucks. I just feel bad for you after you mentioned that." Victoria rolled her eyes still looking annoyed about that fact, as the goth then pointed at her with a smile. "By the way, did you just say that you're friends with our friend, Ray?"
"Why yes, as a matter of fact, I did say that. Me and Ray used to be very close when we were both in the drama club back in high school."
"Really now? It's funny you should be mentioning him! Ray is actually here at Goth Boy's house too, along with the rest of the goths who had once attended the Royal Academy!" Yuki then pointed at Goth Boy's house nearby once again. "You should come in and stop by! It would be wonderful for you to meet the rest of Ray's friends!"
"Oh joyous of days, it wouldst be most splendid to meet..." It was at that moment, Victoria stopped talking as her smile instantly became a worried frown. "...Dost thou want me to be going and meeting Ray's other companions?" She said, suddenly horrified at that idea.
"Yeah. Yuki doesn't see anything wrong with you coming into his house, especially considering that you're one of Ray's friends."
"Well, yes, that is indeed true, but..."
"Oh, enough with this conversation! We can't leave the rest of the goths waiting! Let's go!"
Victoria was about to say that she was vigorously against this idea, but Yuki didn't even give her a second to even speak. The next thing she knew, Yuki grabbed a hold of her hand and pulled her along as she walked to Goth Boy's front door. She wanted to go against this idea and just make a break for it home, but found herself unable to escape the goth girl's grip. Yuki was ironically stronger than Victoria, despite being a few inches shorter than her. It seemed like the only thing left to do was just be forced to go into Goth Boy's house and encounter the rest of the goths.
Without another second passing them by, Yuki pulled Victoria into the house, making their way over to the living room...
As they were passing by the multiple goths who were just standing around the house, Victoria couldn't help but glance around to find Ray or Raven. Unfortunately, she couldn't find either one of the two anywhere around here...all she could see were the many confused or angry glares coming from the goths who were here. Some were whispering to one another...whether it would be that they were questioning who Victoria even was or why Yuki's bringing her into the house...or they were insulting her, even going as far as saying that the girl has some nerve to wear pink inside Goth Boy's house. Either way, none of the goths seem to have a welcoming attitude upon seeing her here. Seeing their angry looks, Victoria was starting to become even more worried than she already did outside the house.
On their way to the living room, Yuki pulled Victoria pass the stairs...right as Raven, Violet, and Crystal were beginning to walk down them. Like a majority of the goths, Violet and Crystal were confused when they saw the drama girl walking passed them. The same can't be said for Raven though, as when she saw Victoria here, she first appeared shocked then angry at the sight of her. She had no idea what even caused Yuki to even bring her boyfriend's high school friend into the house, let alone figure out who she even was. Regardless, she was anything except happy about this.
"Uh...who is she?" Crystal asked.
"Violet...Crystal...that girl happens to be the Victoria girl I've been talking about..." Raven mutters. "...I had a feeling that the mall wasn't going to be the last time I ever saw her...but I didn't expect it to be here of all places..."
Once the two girls got to the living room, Yuki places Victoria in front of the couch and coffee table. "Stay right here. Yuki's going to go find Goth Boy now!" The goth girl said, before heading off to the dining room nearby.
"Wait...what? But Yuki, I don't think this is..." Victoria stopped talking, finally noticing that Yuki had already left the room. "...Oh blimey...this can't be good..."
Victoria suddenly felt the air grow cold as she slowly turned her head from left to right, seeing the sight of all of the goths glaring at her in this single room alone. She still didn't see either Ray or Raven amongst the many who were hanging out in this room. All she could see were a bunch of irritated and angry goths who were just glaring at her, and no sign of her two other goth friends. If neither of them were here right now, then it would seem like she was totally doomed. She was now starting to think that bolting for the door was probably a good idea at this point. Unfortunately, she couldn't now...as Goth Boy and Yuki finally entered the room.
Once Goth Boy entered his living room, he quickly took notice of the drama girl next to his coffee table just standing there. "Yuki...who the hell did just brought into my house?" The goth asked, as he turned to glare at his girlfriend.
"This girl is one of Ray's friends back in high school?!" Yuki said with a smile.
"Really now?" The goth leader turns his head to face Victoria in front of him. "So...you are one of Ray's friends, huh?"
"Why yes, I am." Victoria said, before sheepishly walking over to Goth Boy. "My name is Victoria Verily. Me and Ray used to be in the same drama club together back when we were in the Royal Academy." The girl then blushes, letting out a bit of a giggle. "I must add that during Senior Year, we both were apart of the 'Romeo and Juliet' play. The one our school had back in December."
"The 'Romeo and Juliet' play? Ray was apart of that?!" Raven asked from the staircase, not loud enough for Victoria to hear her. She then glared over to Violet and Crystal. "Ray told me that he went to his uncle's house to help him the night that was happening..." She then glared forward while shaking her head, completely disappointed in her boyfriend for this. "That fucking liar..."
"I highly doubt that you really are friends with him." Goth Boy said while rolling his eyes. "Ray wouldn't even think about being friends with a girl who'd wear pink on the daily."
"First of all, there's nothing wrong with the color pink. It just so happens to be my favorite color." Victoria said as she straightens her pink beret. The other goths just talked amongst each other silently, still skeptical about everything that the drama girl was saying. "Please, just find him and bring him over here. He will surely vouch for me." She then glanced around the room for a few seconds. "Now that I think about it, is Ray here?"
"He is. Yuki will get him for you." Yuki said as she began to walk over to the kitchen. "Ray! Get out here! Some girl is here, claiming that she's one of your closest friends!"
"What are you talking about, Yuki?!" Ray said as he ran into the living room. "What's going on?!"
Right as Ray entered the living room, he stopped in his tracks to see Victoria standing in the center of the small room. His expression went from confused to surprise, the second he saw his friend standing there. Out of all the places in Simport that he could find her at, he couldn't believe that he would end up finding her here at Goth Boy's house. He wasn't sure how she knew he was even here in the first place, but seeing her here, he worried if she did anything to upset or pester the goths. He stepped forward, holding out his arms to her.
"V-Victoria?" Ray said, still in shock that he was seeing her right now. "What are you doing here?"
"That's what I like to know..." Raven said as she finally decided to get closer to the group. She stood near the drama girl glaring at her, as Violet and Crystal stood behind her too. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Raven...please..." Violet said, not wanting her best friend to make this situation any worse.
"Well..." Victoria started off saying, before rubbing the back of her head nervously. "...I was walking through the neighborhood until I decided to take a rest on the bench out there...which was when Yuki suddenly found me..."
"You were out there by yourself?" Raven asked, feeling very skeptical about this.
"Well...I was only out there to clear my head after the argument me and James had moments prior..."
"You and James got into an argument?!" Ray shouts in surprise.
"James?!" Goth Boy asked, suddenly becoming skeptical of Victoria. "Are you telling me you know that prick who's been pestering us since Senior Year?!" The girl nodded her head, causing the goth leader to shake his head in disappointment. "Oh great...now I hate this girl already!"
"Um...Goth Boy..." Yuki said as she stepped towards her boyfriend. "James is actually her step-brother."
"Wait, what? James is her step-brother?" Goth Boy turned his head towards Victoria, who just silently nods her head at the goth leader with a look of embarrassment on her face. "Damn, that can't be good."
"Dude, that's a complete understatement." Crystal said, finally entering this argument. "Having somebody like James Louiston as your step-brother would seriously suck. Remember that one time back in high school when he tried to talk down to one of the jocks...only for his ass to be shoved into his locker immediately after?" Goth Boy nodded his head, as Crystal and Yuki were trying to keep themselves from laughing at that being mentioned. Ray, Raven, and Violet on the other hand were just staring at the rebel girl, not finding what she had said particularly funny, not in the slightest. "Damn, that was probably one of the funniest things that I have ever witnessed throughout that day."
"Are you done?" Raven asked the rebel girl in a serious tone of voice. Crystal silently nodded her head, as Raven slowly turned to face Victoria once again. "Anyways...what did you and James argue about exactly?"
All that Victoria could do at the moment was just remain silent. She had no idea what to even say next, let alone how to even respond to what Raven had just asked her. Knowing that her entire argument with James was all about her crush on Ray, she knew she couldn't bring it up here, right in front of her crush, as well as his other friends, and especially not his girlfriend. She knew Raven was going to be downright furious if she were to confess her feelings for Ray, right here, right now. She genuinely couldn't.
"Is it truly necessary of me to even go into detail about what had happened?" Victoria asked rather sheepishly. The drama girl's attempt to ignore her question caused Raven to become frustrated. "I highly doubt there is anything from our argument that is really worth mentioning to either you, Ray, or any of your other friends."
"Are you hiding something from us, Victoria?" Raven asked, stepping closer towards the drama girl.
"W-What?!" Victoria backs away from Raven, starting to feel rather uncomfortable with where all of this was even going. "Hiding something from you? Raven, I'm not hiding anything from you!" She lied.
"Well, clearly you are." Raven then pointed towards her boyfriend, all while keeping her glare focused on the British woman in front of her. "Ray told me about the 'Romeo and Juliet' play that you and him were apart back in high school...which just so happened to be a day in which both of us were suppose to be on a study date, only for him to lie to me about it." Victoria glanced over to her crush, who was just staring at the ground with a distraught look on his face. "I'm totally fine with you being friends with Ray, but if you're going to sit there and keep things secret from me, then that's where I cross the line!"
"Raven, that's enough! This is beginning to get complete out of hand!" Ray said, now stepping into the conversation again. "Not to mention, the whole thing about me not going to our study date that day...that's not the whole story..."
"Not the whole story?! There's more to this bullshit?!" Raven then held up her hands, before glaring at her boyfriend. "Why didn't you just tell me about that stupid play instead of just lying to my face about it?"
"It's just that..." Ray just pauses for a moment, before letting out a stressed and saddened sigh. "...The only people I had told about me helping out at the school play were Yuki and Crystal, and those two both laughed when I told them. I just...I just couldn't, feeling that you'd just do the same thing as them. So...I just turned down our study-date when that night came...I'm so sorry."
"I...I never thought of it that way..." Raven mutters, now feeling guilty for having to have jumped to conclusions so quickly. She went over to her boyfriend, before sighing to herself. "But...still...you could've just told me, Ray. I'm your girlfriend. Silly or not, you could always confide in me with anything...even if two friends of ours have to continue being the inconsiderate jerks that they are..." Raven then glared at Yuki and Crystal when we muttered the last part.
"Oh whatever..." Crystal mutters, all while rolling her eyes.
"As for you, Victoria...I'm sorry that..."
Raven stopped talking when she turned to face the spot where Victoria once stood. When she faced that direction, she quickly took notice that the drama girl had just disappeared. She wasn't too sure if the girl had just went into a different room or if she just left without her or Ray noticing, but Victoria was just gone. The depressed expression that she had on her face instantly became a look of surprise and confusion.
"What the hell?" Raven nearly shouts in surprise. "Where did she go?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot to say this while you guys were having your little argument there, but...Victoria exited the house." Crystal said as she pointed to the walkway that leads to the hallway. She then glanced down the hallway, taking a look at one of the windows that were next to the front door. "From the looks of it, it doesn't appear that she had left. I think she's sitting on one of the lawn chairs."
"I guess she had enough of that argument that she had to step outside." Violet said.
"I...think me and Raven will handle her..." Ray said, as he held up his hands in the air. "Are you coming, Raven?"
"I don't think Victoria really wants to see me after I made it out like she's keeping secrets from me." Raven said with a shrug of her shoulders. "I...know where James lives, I'll visit her and apologize for everything later...when the time is right."
Ray nodded his head. "That sounds like it's for the best, sweetheart." He then went over to her to kiss her on the cheek, before heading over to the front door to meet up with Victoria.
Out on the porch...
Ray slowly exited the house, peeking out from behind the door to see Victoria sitting there in one of the lawn chairs, just like Crystal had said. The drama girl was leaning forward on her own knees with her hands pressed against her forehead, looking down towards the ground. He felt bad upon seeing this sight. He wasn't too sure if his friend was crying or not, but seeing her this way made him feel awful. He went over to the other lawn chair, sitting beside her.
"Hey, Victoria..." Ray said while placing a hand onto her shoulder. "...Are you alright?"
Victoria looked up from her hands, turning her head towards her friend. The goth didn't see tears streaming down her face, so it seems like she was probably just thinking to herself or something like that. "Oh...I'm fine, honestly..." She simply said. "I must say, this...hasn't been the first argument I have ever endured before. Where's Raven?"
"She's still inside...but don't worry about it, alright? Just give her some space, and I'm sure that she'll apologize to you later tonight."
"Very well then...I also must apologize for any trouble that I have started just by appearing here at your friends house. I was just..." Ray held up a hand, stopping the girl in her words.
"I know...you and James gotten yourselves into an argument. I understand." The goth's smile then turned into a frown, unsure if he should really be asking her more about what had happened earlier this morning. "Um...anyways...what happened between you and James?"
Victoria's relaxed smile slowly disappeared, as her eyes peered the other directly. "Oh...I really don't know if I really should be talking to you about it..."
"Victoria, I'm friends with you and James. Whatever you guys had argued about, maybe I can help you resolve it." He then places a hand onto her hand, causing her to blush upon noticing this. "You can trust me."
Victoria was still a bit hesitant to reveal what had happened during her argument with James. She didn't know how Ray would even feel if he were to hear that they were arguing about him, especially if it involves her having a crush on him. She had just became friends with the goth again, and if he were to discover what the argument was truly about, she doubts that Ray would want anything to do with her anymore. She couldn't let that happen. But then again...she couldn't just lie to him.
"Well...if you really must know..." The drama girl said, still feeling a bit hesitant to continue this conversation. "...We were arguing about...you..."
"About me?" Ray asked, suddenly becoming confused. He raised an eyebrow at his friend, removing his hand away from her. "What does that mean?"
"James...thinks that our friendship together shouldn't continue, because...he thinks that if me and you hang out together...it would make Raven jealous." The girl then pointed at herself. "Now, I tried to reason with him the best that I could, as mutually, me and you see each other as friends and nothing more...but unfortunately, that buffoon was not in a listening mood this morning. I then decided that the argument had gone on long enough, so I left the house to clear my head...which led to me being here."
"James thinks that Raven would get jealous of us hanging out?" Victoria nodded her head silently, as Ray just shook his head in disappointment. "That's ridiculous. That guy knows me better than the rest of the goths that I hang out with. He knows that me and Raven have been loyal to each other ever since the ninth grade...and no way would either I ever think about cheating on her with somebody else." He then held up a hand towards his friend. "Besides, just because we've hung out together a lot, doesn't mean that we have feelings for each other, right?"
"No...of course not..." Victoria said, clearly lying.
"Exactly." Ray then stood up from the lawn chair he was sitting on, shaking his head in disappointment once again. "I'll talk to James about this when I see him again. For now, I have to get back with my other friends."
"Alright. I'll leave you to go back to your friends again."
"Alright." Ray went over to the front door, as Victoria began to make her way back to the sidewalk. "Oh, Victoria...before you go...do you want to hang out with each other this Friday? Raven is going to be busy doing something with Violet, so...I'm free to hang out with you when that day comes."
Victoria smiled. "Of course! That would sound lovely!"
"Awesome." He then backs up into Goth Boy's house, grabbing a hold of the door as he entered. "I'll see you around, Victoria."
"I'll see you around, Ray." The moment the goth closes the door, Victoria stared at the closed door for a few more seconds. "I love you, Ray..." She whispered, before turning around and heading back to the sidewalk so that she can go back home.