Hey guys, here's chapter 5 of Ties Beyond Time.
Mike lied in bed, his dog, Sasha lied curled up beside him as he watched South Park on Hulu on his PS4. Hours ago, he considered calling Leni, but know he was having second thoughts. He then heard a knock at his door. Turning his head, he saw his mother standing in the doorframe of his room. Giving a quick glance outside, he saw that it was nighttime. Wow, how time flies.
"Hey, sweetie, how was your day?" his mother asked. Mike replied with a shrug, glancing off to the side, "Is something wrong?" Mrs. Cronos asked, noticing her son's expression.
"I…" Mike looked at her with silence.
"Mike, I'm your mother…" Mrs. Chronos began, taking a seat at the edge of his bed, "If there's something on your mind, you know you can tell me" she told him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
There was a short silence between them. Mike then sat up and began to speak.
"Well, you see… there's this girl…" Mike began.
"Uh-huh" Mrs. Chonos nodded in understanding, a smirk crossing her face.
"Her name's Leni. She's not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, but what she lacks in brains, she more than makes up for with beauty and heart. At least, that's the vibe I get from her" Mike said, "She's the sweetest girl you'll ever meet and likes to make others happy before herself"
"Sounds to me like you're pretty fond of this Leni. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a crush on her" Mrs. Cronos teased a little. Mike looked down with embarrassment, his face turning red, "Aww, my little boy has his first crush! …Even if it did happen way later than it should've" She said, her hands over her chest.
"Mom!" Mike cried. The teenage boy sighed, "Yeah, I like her. Hell, I think I might even love her…" he began, "We hung out at the mall today and we had fun time. But then… something happened" he told her.
"What?" Mrs. Chronos asked.
"Well, Leni and I were having some frozen yogurt. And it was great… until guy showed up. It turns out the dude is Leni's boyfriend. It hurt a little. I know she probably likes the guy, but…" Mike trailed off.
"You wanted her to like you" Mrs. Chronos finished his sentence.
"Yeah…" Mike looked down in disappointment.
"Oh, baby, come here" she said, bringing him into a loving embrace, hugging his head to her large chest, "I know how you feel"
"How?" Mike asked.
"Well, back in middle school—years before I met your father, I had a crush on a boy. He was extremely cute and wanted so badly to be with him…" Mrs. Chronos began, "Sadly, I lost that chance when one of the popular girls snagged him instead. It hurt… it broke my heart…"
"Well, what did you do?" Mike asked, pulling away, his mother's arm still around him.
"There was nothing I could do, honey. Over time I was able to get over it. Eventually, I was content with my former crush being with someone else. I was happy that he was happy" Mrs. Chronos told him.
"But…"
"Mike, if you truly care about Leni, then you should be happy that she's found someone that makes her happy. It'll hurt at first and it'll be a while before you have a crush on someone else, but if you support her, at least you two will still be friends" his mother advised, cupping his cheeks in her hands, "Do you think you can do that, Mike? Can you be happy for Leni?"
Mike thought it over. One hand, he wanted to be with Leni… but on the other, he knew there was an extremely slim chance of him ending up with her should she and Angel break up. Mike sighed in defeat. He looked at his mother and gave a confirming nod.
"That's my boy" Mrs. Chronos leaned in and kissed her son's forehead, and then stood up, "Trust me, the sooner you learn to accept this, the sooner you'll be able to move on" she told him as she exited his room.
Mike sighed and fell back onto his bed. Maybe his mom was right. Maybe he should accept that Leni was with someone else…
The Next Day
Royal Woods High…
"Have a nice day at school, honey" Mrs. Chronos said as they pulled up into the school parking lot before planting a kiss on his cheek, "And remember, try to be happy for Leni" she added. Mike gave an understanding nod, "Alright, go on. I'll see you tonight"
The African-American boy exited his mother's vehicle and headed into the building. He was headed for the library to read manga when he caught something out of the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he saw Leni talking with Angel, laughing at whatever it was they were talking about. Could fate be any crueler?
Mike then saw Leni lean in a plant a kiss upon Angel's cheek. Yep, it really could be crueler. Leni then said something along the lines of goodbye to Angel before leaving.
"Hey Mike" Leni greeted as she walked past him. Mike glanced at the platinum blonde in silence.
"She's so sweet" Angel said to himself, examining something in the door of his locker.
Angel ran his hand through his hair before shutting his locker and walking off, turning a nearby corner. However, he had failed to realize that his locker hadn't completely shut. Curious, Mike reached into his pocket, pulled out the watch and pressed the button at the top, releasing a wave of energy that froze everything around him.
Walking over to Angel's locker, Mike opened it and saw a piece of paper taped to the inside of the locker door. What he saw was a list. This was a list of girls whose names had been crossed out, with Leni's name at the bottom. Why's he got a list? And why does it have Leni's name on it?
Closing the locker door, Mike pressed the button on the watch again, releasing another pulse of energy that resumed time. Angel has a list of girls in his locker, but why? This left Mike to rub his chin in both confusion and curiosity.
"Hey Mike!" Mike looked over his shoulder to see his friend Bobby approach him.
"Oh, hey Bobby" Mike greeted back.
"What you've been up to?" his old friend asked.
"Oh, nothing much" Mike shrugged, "Say, Bobby, you've got time to talk?"
"Sure, what's up?" Bobby raised an eyebrow.
"Do you know someone named Angel?" Mike asked. Considering how popular his friend was, Mike knew Bobby might've known most of the kids in school.
"The only one I know is the one dating Leni" Bobby replied.
"That's the one. What do you know about him?" Mike asked.
"Hmm…" Bobby rubbed his chin, "Well, he's a pretty swell guy" he began. Crap. "He usually helps out with school events. School dances, donation drives, stuff like that"
"That's… nice of him" Mike replied, a bit of unsureness in his voice.
"He also managed to help me get together with my girlfriend. Do you know what's funny? My girlfriend is actually—"
"Yeah, that's great. Thanks, Bobby, I think that's all the information I need" Mike replied, cutting his friend off midsentence, "I'm going to go read manga in the library. See you in history class" he said as he walked away. "Maybe if I ask some of the girls on that, they could tell me something about Angel" Mike thought to himself as he walked the halls of the school.
30 minutes later…
"I can't believe I couldn't find any of those girls on Angel's list" Mike said to himself as he sat in the library, "Ugh…" he groaned before slamming his on the table, "Maybe mom was right, maybe I am just jealous of Angel" he said to himself.
"Did you say… Angel?" a voice asked.
"Huh?" Mike's head lifted from the desk.
He turned to see a teen girl with short, curly brunette hair and fair skin. She wore a yellow tube dress under a small jacket, black boots that went up to her calves, black earrings, and white sunglasses perched on her head like the ones Leni wore. She had a very voluptuous figure, having an amazing sized chest and rear to match. From what he could tell, she appeared to be around his age.
"Uh, yeah. Wait, you know him?" Mike raised an eyebrow.
"Know him?" The girl took a seat next to him, "I dated him" she told him. "He told me he loved me, and we dated for months. But just as soon as it started, he dumped me. He only dated me for my looks"
"The bastard…" Mike said under his breath.
"Trust me, you've got nothing to be jealous about. Why would you be jealous of a guy like that anyway?" the girl asked.
"Well, there's this girl—"
"Ah, I get it" the girl cut him off midsentence. "So, who's the girl?" she asked.
"Leni Loud" Mike told her.
"Oh, I know her. She's pretty, but she's not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed" she told him.
"I know. But she has a big heart" Mike began, "What she lacks in brains, she makes up for in beauty and kindness. More reason I refuse to let someone like Angel use her" he told her.
"Yeah, I got off easy. Some girls changed their names or moved away" the girl informed him, "You know, it'd be nice if someone were to expose Angel for who he really is" she said.
"Yeah, it would…" Mike said. That's when a lightbulb went off in his head. "And I think I know how. How would you like to help me uhh…?" he trailed off, not knowing the girl's name.
"Quinlan Toyger. But my friends call me QT" the girl introduced herself.
"Nice to meet you, QT. I'm Mike" Mike introduced himself, he and QT shaking each other's hands.
"So, what's this plan of yours?" Quinlan asked.
"See you at the assembly after school" Leni said, kissing Angel's cheek.
"See you" Angel said, smiling as he watched his girlfriend walk off. That smile soon faded the moment Leni turned a corner. "Stupid girl…" he muttered under his breath with a shake of his head.
"Hey Angel" he heard a voice. He turned to around to see one of his old flames, Quinlan, standing behind him with a smile, her arms behind her back.
"Oh, it's you…" Angel greeted, albeit a bit bitterly. "Hey, Quinlan. Nice hat" he said. It was a bucket hat with a large sunflower in the center. "What do you want? I thought it made it clear last time that I was done with you"
"Yeah, you made that perfectly clear, Angel" Quinlan said, "Still only dating girls for their looks, I see" she crossed her arms.
"It's what I do" Angel shrugged.
"You know, someone's going to catch on to you" Quinlan told him. "Sooner or later, you're going to pay for all the lives of innocent girls that you ruined"
"That's a stretch" Angel began, "Many girls have said that, but it never happened and never will. I'll date every girl in this school and use them how I please. If they're upset about it then that's their problem, not mine" he told her.
"Does that apply to Leni as well?" Quinlan asked.
"Heh. You serious? She's the dumbest girl I've ever met. She can't even finish a six-piece puzzle meant for three-year-olds. I bet even Big the Cat is smarter than her" Angel said, insulting the girl that was supposed to be his girlfriend behind her back.
"Comparing Leni to a crappy and hated video game character? That's harsh, even for him…" Quinlan thought, glaring at the boy.
The bell then rang, signaling for the students to head to their next class.
"Once I'm done with Leni, I'll move on to the next girl…" Angel told her, "And no one can stop me" he said, turning around as he made his way to his next class, disappearing around the corner.
"Except for maybe us" Mike said, appearing from around a corner behind Quinlan.
[Flashback]
"So, what's the plan again?" Quinlan asked.
"You approach Angel, wearing this hat" Mike handed her a bucket hat that was the same color as her jacket with sunflower in the center, "The flower on the hat is a camera. When you're talking to Angel, I'll turn it on and it'll start recording" he told her.
"Sweet. Where'd you get this thing?" Quinlan asked, putting the hat on.
"I know a guy" Mike replied with a shrug, "Now, let's go find that womanizing bastard" he said as he walked off, Quinlan following close behind.
[End of Flashback]
"Good job, Quinlan" Mike smiled at the voluptuous beauty.
"Thanks. You got the whole thing, right?" Quinlan asked.
"Yep. Recorded and burned it onto this disk" he said, holding a disk between his finger and his laptop under his other arm.
"Excellent" Quinlan said, taking off the hat and handing it to Mike. "I better get to class, don't want to be late. See you at the assembly" Quinlan took off, making a dash for her next class.
"I hope this works. For Leni's sake…" Mike said, looking at the disk.
It was after school and everyone in the student body had gathered in the auditorium for the assembly. The assembly was to be about the upcoming S. , a career evaluation test. Leni found Angel and the couple took seats next to each other. Quinlan sat a few rows behind them, one leg over the other with her arms crossed, glancing at the couple before turning her attention to the front. Mike then appeared, taking a seat next to voluptuous beauty.
"Let's hope this works" Mike whispered to QT.
"Fingers crossed" she whispered back, crossing her fingers.
"Good afternoon, students" Principal Rivera began, "I've called you here to discuss the upcoming S. . These tests will determine what suggestions for careers will be best for you" she told the student body. "You may be something great like a politician, or something less than great like a garbageman. It all depends on what score you get"
"And here I thought they got rid of these a few years back…" Mike thought to himself.
"Here's a short video of what the S. are like" Principal Rivera stepped to the side of the stage.
The lights within the room dimmed. The light from the projector shined on the screen and the video began to play. However, rather than showing some stuff about the career tests, it instead showed Angel.
"What do you want? I thought it made it clear last time that I was done with you" the Angel from the video said.
"Yeah, you made that perfectly clear, Angel" Quinlan from the video said, "Still only dating girls for their looks, I see"
"It's what I do" Angel shrugged.
"You know, someone's going to catch on to you" Quinlan told him. "Sooner or later, you're going to pay for all the lives of innocent girls that you ruined"
"That's a stretch" Angel began, "Many girls have said that, but it never happened and never will. I'll date every girl in this school and use them how I please. If they're upset about it then that's their problem, not mine" he said
Leni looked at the boy beside her, and then back at to the video.
"Does that apply to Leni as well?" Quinlan asked.
"Heh. Are you serious? She's the dumbest girl I've ever met. She can't even finish a six-piece puzzle meant for three-year-olds. I bet even Big the Cat is smarter than her" Angel from the video said.
Leni gasped. The bell within the video then rang.
"Once I'm done with Leni, I'll move on to the next girl…" Angel said, "And no one can stop me" he said evilly, turning around as he made his way to his next class, disappearing around the corner.
The video then ended. Angel turned his head to see Leni giving him a scowl.
"That was Angel in the video" a girl said
"He's a player!" another girl said.
"Where is he?!" another girl asked with a displeased tone. Many of the females within the auditorium angrily ranted.
"He's right over here!" Quinlan shouted, pointing at the boy in question, all the girls glaring at him. Angel chuckled nervously.
"Get him!" one of the girls shouted.
Angel bolted out of his seat and out of the auditorium, an army of angry girls chasing after him. The only girls left inside were the Principal, Leni, and Quinlan. Leni looked down, an upset expression upon her face.
"Hey" Leni turned to see Quinlan approach her, "Are you ok?" she asked with a bit of concern as she took a seat on Leni's left.
"I guess. You must be Quinlan" Leni smiled lightly at the brunette.
"Yeah. And you're Leni, right?" Quinlan asked, Leni replying with a nod.
"I just thought he was so nice. I can't believe was dating a complete jerk" Leni said, looking down at her lap.
"Take it from someone that has experience dating that guy, I know how you feel" Quinlan placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Trust me, you can do so much better than him" she told her.
"Thanks. I guess if it weren't for you, I'd still be dating a guy that only liked me for my looks" Leni said.
"Yeah. But I'm not the one you should thank…" Quinlan began, Leni quietly looking at her, "This was all your friend's idea" she pointed behind Leni. The blonde teen turned her head.
"Mike?" she saw the light dark-skinned boy standing in the aisle. Mike glanced off. "This was your idea" Leni asked with a bit of surprise. Mike glanced at her for a moment, and then at the ground before replying with a nod. "Why?"
Mike cleared his throat. "Well… Well, I… uhh…" he looked around. "I heard something about that guy and they turned out to be true. You're my friend, Leni and I, uh… I… didn't… want to… see you get hurt" he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. He looked back at her with a nervous blush.
"Aww, really?" Leni placed her hands over her chest, touched at his actions. Again, Mike replied with a nod. "Mike…" Leni stood up and walked over to the boy, throwing her arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug. "You're such a great friend" she told him.
"Anything" he wrapped his arms around her waist, "…for a friend" he said that part under his breath, his voice having a hint of disappointment to it.
"Hey" Leni broke the hug, "Want to come to the mall and get some ice cream? My treat" she offered.
"Sure" Mike replied with a shrug. "Go on ahead, I'll catch up" he told her. Leni nodded and made her way out of the auditorium. Mike then turned to Quinlan, "Thanks, Quinlan"
"Hey, I should be thanking you for exposing Angel. Now he's going to get what's coming to him" Quinlan said with a smirk.
"Yeah, that's karma for you" Mike smirked back.
"Leni's right, you are a good friend for looking out for her like that" Quinlan said. Mike looked off to the side. "And even though we just met today, I consider you one as well" she told him, causing him to smile. "Number exchange?" she offered, pulling out her phone.
Mike pulled out his phone, he can Quinlan swapping each other's phones and putting their respective numbers into them before switching back.
"So, if you ever want to hang out, I'm usually free" Quinlan told him.
"I'd like that" Mike smiled.
"Say, how'd you convince the guy to put the disk into the projector anyway?" Quinlan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Let's just say time was on my side" Mike smirked, glancing to the side, having used the watch earlier. "Well, see you around… QT" he said, putting his hands in his hoodie pockets as he made his way out of the auditorium, going to catching up to Leni.
Quinlan chuckled to herself. That Mike sure was different. From what she could tell, he seemed smart. A little on the shy and quiet side, but otherwise pretty friendly. And if she were to be honest with herself…
He was kind of cute.
And that's the end of this chapter. It's been a long time since I've updated this story. And yes, I added Thicc QT to this story and made her the same age as Mike and Leni. I know the wiki says she's in her 20s or 30s, but when it comes to background characters, I don't care what the wiki says. Everything else on there is useful though.
I thank Moon5555 for helping me with this chapter.
I was originally going to have this be an "abusive boyfriend" arc, but that would've been harder to do in the long run. So, I went with this instead and I'm glad I went this route.
What I have planned next though will be an arc for this story. What will it be about? I can't say too much, but let's just say it involves a certain four-year-old girl (no, I'm not talking about Lisa).
If you have any ideas for the next chapter or future chapters, say it in a review or feel free to message me.
Remember to Read, Review and Favorite/Follow.