"Bubbles, I cannot forgive you for this! I mean, Jake Karzet? I saw him climb into your window. Angie Rena told me what you've been doing with him. You cheated on me with that blonde punk? Well, I can't deal with that! I'm never speaking to you again, Bubbles. -Ian" We are all silent after Blossom finishes reading the name scrawled across the bottom of the page. I start crying. I am so confused; I just met Jake today, practically.
I'm still crying; everyone else is still silent. We look and see that a window is broken, and there are glass shards everywhere. I see movement out of the corner of my eye and scream. There is nothing there though; it's just my imagination. Professor, luckily, hears my scream and races down the stairs to where we're all standing, in shock. He calls the police. Nothing is missing. Our dishes are all broken.
Luckily, Professor doesn't know what Ian had meant about Jake. Buttercup wouldn't be able to live that down. She would probably run away. Though, I wonder what Professor thinks about me. I just want everyone to be happy. Why is this all happening?
Angie Rena? I ask myself, thinking back to the note. I was in her homeroom last year. We competed for the same part in the play last year. She was cast as my understudy. I didn't realize that she was that upset. I would have given her the part. Why would she spread lies about me though? This is how rumors get started. I just know her through school and she could have gotten me killed - or worse, my sisters killed.
What if I had been in the kitchen when Ian was here? What would he have done? The police haven't left yet, and I have a horrible feeling, so I run upstairs. I find my room in the same shambles as my kitchen. He had been in my room. He had thrown all of my clothes on my floor. Was he looking for something? I am frantically pawing through my brain for anything he could have been looking for.
I figure it out quicker than he obviously found it - my diary! Could he have taken my diary to find out if what he had heard was true? I searched my top desk drawer for it, but I didn't find it. He had it. I always put it back in the same place.
I run back downstairs to tell everyone that my room has also been rummaged through. I tell them that my diary is missing. Everyone is probably wondering the same thing: If all he wanted was my diary, why did he ransack the kitchen?
The police ask a few more questions and tell us they will do what they can do. They leave, and the Professor asks what Tasha thinks she should do. She tells him that she needs to stay with me right now. The Professor agrees, and says we all need to stay away from Buttercup's room, and my room, for safety's sake.
I am surprised by the fact that Professor hasn't asked more questions - maybe he knows more than he's letting on. I wonder if he knows about Jake. I am still crying on and off. It's now morning, and I'm too afraid to be tired.
Buttercup, Blossom, and Tasha all drag me into Blossom's room. "Bubbles," Buttercup begins, forcefully, "You knew Ian was dangerous, didn't you? You knew he was capable of this. I can tell. You're not nearly as surprised as the rest of us."
I just look at them for a moment. I nod, silently, and begin to speak, "He is a great boyfriend. I just don't always act the way I should. He's teaching me. It doesn't really hurt me; it helps me."
They all look at me for a moment. I don't know why they're looking at me like that - like I'm crazy, or something. Blossom speaks this time, "He hits you?" Her voice is shaking.
"I told you: he's teaching me. I do bad things, and he helps me learn that they're bad." I don't understand why they're still looking at me like that. Buttercup is beginning to look angry. I am so confused.
"Tasha, did you know about this?" Blossom demands.
"No! I had no idea. Bubbles is always happy. She only told me good things about Ian." My best friend answers.
The anger is rising in Blossom's voice, "Bubbles, did he leave any scars, or bruises? What he did was not okay. We will never let him hurt you again Bubbles. We love you; he doesn't. He wasn't helping you. He was hurting you."
I'm crying again, so between snuffles I say, "Yes, there are bruises. They're on my legs, and back. Why would Ian lie to me? I was so happy. He was so happy. Look, he loved me so much that he broke into our house, when he thought I was cheating on him. He's a good guy. Don't be mad at him."
The other three girls are staring at me in disbelief. I love him. He wouldn't hurt me. Why don't they understand? He just wanted to help me be a better girlfriend. I'm daydreaming again, and when I come back to reality, I realize Tasha is crying. Why are they making such a big deal out of this? I ask Buttercup, "Doesn't Jake teach you, too? He cares about you; I can tell! You understand, right, Buttercup?"
"No, Bubbles, Ian is a bad person, and I want to beat the shit out of him right now. Do you know where he would be." I shake my head to Buttercup's question. I let her know she might want to go check on Jake though. I think he might want to teach Jake a lesson. Buttercup yells, "Fuck! I'll be back!" She flies out the window and down the street.
The rest of us drop our jaws in disbelief. None of us have flown in years. She did it without even thinking. Tasha is looking at the two of us. I think we're just as confused as she is right now.
