Disclaimer: no one mentioned belongs to me, I guarantee it.
Author's note: if this seems really long, it's becuase it is. I ended up combining this chapter and the next, to save you the wait. I'm doing it all for the fans. :D
*Karasuma*Firestorm*
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
While You Were Out
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
The four of them met in the theater lobby that evening. Larry and Veruca were both there at exactly seven o'clock, while both Miranda and Claire were a few minutes late. "Sorry," Miranda said, "I couldn't get a ride."
"No harm done," Tudgeman said cheerfully, then he flashed her a warning look. "But if you make me miss my previews, I *will* put an elfin curse on you." As he turned and started for the ticket line, Miranda a cast a worried look at Veruca, who as Larry's best friend, would know better than anybody, "Is he serious?"
Veruca nodded. "He's a very high-ranking officer," she said. "He has the authority and skill."
As Miranda followed her friends, she lagged behind them slightly, marveling at how just when she was thinking that this was a cool clique she was in, they were definitely worlds apart.
The downsides of dating Larry Tudgeman was having to put up with his various sci-fi/fantasy geek obsessions.
Wait a sec. *Dating* Larry Tudgeman? After she'd gotten home that afternoon, Miranda had pushed it out of her mind, but it sounded like she was seriously considering it now. Was she? Did she really want to be Larry's *girlfriend*?
They paid for their tickets and stood inside the theater for a minute, waiting while Claire and Veruca stood in line to get food. Larry made a move towards it, but then noticed that Miranda was just standing there. "Not hungry?"
"Low on cash," Miranda said, shrugging slightly.
"Well, what do you want?" Larry asked.
"What?"
"What do you want? It's on me."
"Oh, no, Larry, I couldn't."
"Don't be ridiculous. I made you come here, and by doing that, forgoing an evening out with your two best friends in the future. At least let me buy you a popcorn. And maybe an Icee," he added with a smirk.
"Okay, but I'll pay you back," Miranda said.
"Really, you don't have to. The pleasure of your company these past few days and future days to come is payment enough."
Miranda found herself smiling doofily at him. Well, how could she not? she rationalized, once she'd caught herself. That had been a ridiculously sweet thing to say. And the act itself was a nice gesture. She tried her best to ignore the knowing look Veruca was shooting them. Tudgeman was just being...Tudgeman. He was a sweet guy, and that was the sort of thing he did.
So when she ended up sitting next to him...
Okay, there was really no rationalizing the tingle she felt. Glancing at his profile in the darkening theater, she couldn't help but think of that first party she'd ever thrown, where she'd ended up dancing with the truly hot 'Lawrence'...
But that was different. He'd been a different person. His hair had been washed. He was wearing another shirt. He wasn't talking about Star Wars. He hadn't been Tudgeman, he'd been some other guy.
She'd liked the other guy, though, was that a crime?
Well, really, Tudgeman himself wasn't that bad. Hadn't she been able to just open up to him that time she'd been fighting with Lizzie and Gordo? And he'd listened and offered to advice, and she'd never admitted it, but he'd been a real friend when she'd needed one.
Miranda stole another glance at him before they were bathed completely in darkness. Hmm.
Suddenly the screen exploded as a preview for a huge summer blockbuster flooded their senses. Miranda stuffed a handful of popcorn in her mouth, chewing laboriously and thoroughly enjoying the various trailers. All thoughts of romance flew from her head as she engaged in the blissful escapism of an evening at the movies with friends.
~~~~~
"That was so awesome," Claire gushed as the four of them came out of the theater.
"Totally," Veruca said. "That one scene where Josh Hartnett single-handedly saved the orphans from the burning escape pod? That was *so* cool."
"So cool," Tudgeman agreed, and Miranda grinned at him.
"Larry, that's so unlike you. Aren't you going to tear apart the implausibility of all of it? The lack of factual science?"
"Hey, I like to see things blow up, too, you know," he said.
Claire checked her watch. "It's been a blast, guys, but I gotta motor. The parents want me home by nine-thirty."
"Is it that late already?" Veruca said, looking concerned. "My mom's gonna be here any minute now. Claire, need a ride?"
"Oh, that'd be a huge help, thanks," Claire said, and actually sounded grateful. Taken out of context as one of Kate's cronies, Claire was a human being. Veruca glanced at Miranda and Larry. "You guys need a ride?"
"No, I'm good, thanks," Miranda said.
"I'm okay," Larry agreed.
Moments later, Veruca's mom pulled up in front of the theater, and Veruca and Claire climbed in the car. As the minivan drove off, Tudgeman turned to Miranda. "So, is your mom picking you up, or..?"
"No, I'm walking," Miranda said. Off of Larry's concerned look, she added, "It's not too far."
"Still," he said. "Let me walk you home."
"Larry, you don't have to go out of your way for me," she insisted, touched by the gesture all the same.
"It's no biggie, really," Larry said. "C'mon, I'd feel better."
He was like a bulldog. Miranda knew he wasn't going to give it up that easily, so resignedly she sighed. "Okay, okay. You win. But I'm telling you, I'll be fine."
As they strolled down the street at a leisurely pace, Miranda found herself asking, "Aren't you curious? About Claire?"
He peered down at her. "What about Claire?"
"Well, aren't you wondering why she's hanging out with us? I mean, sure, her best friend's off in Rome, but..."
"Well, *your* best friends are off in Rome, and *you're* hanging out with us," Larry pointed out, but without any malice in his voice.
"Yeah, but that's different. We've hung out before, and Claire, well...Larry, every other day of the week, she hates our guts," Miranda said. "Aren't you worried that maybe she's just gaining our trust, waiting for us to just spill our guts, and then destroy us on the first day of high school?"
Larry cocked an eyebrow at Miranda, but there was a trace of amusement in his eyes. "You just think everyone has an agenda, don't you?"
"Why should we trust her?" Miranda countered. "She's never done anything nice to us."
"Sometimes, Miranda, you just have to let your guard down," he said with a gentle sigh, looking up at the darkening sky. "Like they say, don't judge a book by its cover."
"Like you?" she said, giving him a sideways look.
To her surprise, Larry Tudgeman went red. "Well, I guess so, yeah."
"I don't give you credit, Larry," Miranda admitted, embarrassed herself. "You're a little dorky...you're a *lot* dorky," she amended with a little laugh, which she was grateful to hear Larry reciprocating, "but you're nice and you're smart and..."
"You're not fixing to get me to tutor you in math next year, are you?"
Miranda stopped dead in the middle of the sidewalk and looked at him, alarmed. But the twinkle in his eyes and his grin indicated he was only teasing. Mortification melting into fury, she hit his arm. "Are you insinuating that I never would pass on my own?"
"Nothing of the sort, Miranda, my dear," he said with an easy grin, and Miranda marveled at how easily he could diffuse the situation. They settled back into their walking rhythm, looking ahead or at the ground, but never at each other. Miranda kept one hand at her shoulder, holding her purse strap in place, and Larry's hands were jammed in his pockets. She glanced out of the corner of her eye at them, and then broke the silence by saying, "What's the deal with you and Veruca?"
"Me and Veruca?" he echoed. "What do you mean?"
"Are you two, like...a thing?" she said. "She says you're not..."
"I wasn't aware you'd been asking her," he said, his tone heavy with seriousness.
"Well, are you?"
"No," Larry said. "Veruca and I are just friends. Like you and Gordo."
"That's just what she said," Miranda said, furrowing her brow.
"Can I ask why you're asking?"
"Oh! I was...I was, uh...um...just, you know, wondering," she babbled. "'Cause you guys are so close and stuff..." She felt her face flushing and knew she was giving herself away. Okay, so maybe being so close to Tudgeman was bringing back all sorts of feelings that she'd had in the past...feelings that she *so* did not understand. On a fundamental level, she and Larry were absolutely wrong for each other. They had *nothing* in common.
So why was being around him suddenly having this affect on her?
"We're here," Tudgeman announced, and Miranda was surprised to see that they were in fact standing in front of her house. She was about to ask how Larry knew it was her house, until she remembered that he'd been here before. "So. Um. Thanks for...thanks for walking me home," she said.
"Again, no problem."
"And thanks for the food," she added. Was she going to thank him for everything?
But really, the thought of going inside was wholly unappealing.
"You don't have to thank me for every little thing," he said with an amused smile, and Miranda wondered if he was reading her mind, because that was exactly what she'd just been thinking.
"I know. I just...I don't know," she stammered, the flashed him a quick, nervous smile. "I should get in, it's late. Hey, why don't you come in, and my mom can give you a ride home?"
"Nah, that's okay, it's not far."
"Sounds familiar," she said jokingly, glad to take the focus off her insecurities, if only for a few seconds. "Listen, just call me when you get in, okay? So I can make sure you've gotten home all right."
His eyebrow quirked at that, but to his credit, he didn't say anything. "Okay."
They smiled awkwardly at each other, then Miranda ran quickly inside. "How was your evening, chica?" Mrs. Sanchez called, as Miranda pounded up the stairs to her room. "Fun, Mom," she said, and shut the door behind her. Mrs. Sanchez didn't ask any further questions, which was good, because Miranda didn't know how to explain that she was eagerly waiting for the school nerd's call.
Author's note: if this seems really long, it's becuase it is. I ended up combining this chapter and the next, to save you the wait. I'm doing it all for the fans. :D
*Karasuma*Firestorm*
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
While You Were Out
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
The four of them met in the theater lobby that evening. Larry and Veruca were both there at exactly seven o'clock, while both Miranda and Claire were a few minutes late. "Sorry," Miranda said, "I couldn't get a ride."
"No harm done," Tudgeman said cheerfully, then he flashed her a warning look. "But if you make me miss my previews, I *will* put an elfin curse on you." As he turned and started for the ticket line, Miranda a cast a worried look at Veruca, who as Larry's best friend, would know better than anybody, "Is he serious?"
Veruca nodded. "He's a very high-ranking officer," she said. "He has the authority and skill."
As Miranda followed her friends, she lagged behind them slightly, marveling at how just when she was thinking that this was a cool clique she was in, they were definitely worlds apart.
The downsides of dating Larry Tudgeman was having to put up with his various sci-fi/fantasy geek obsessions.
Wait a sec. *Dating* Larry Tudgeman? After she'd gotten home that afternoon, Miranda had pushed it out of her mind, but it sounded like she was seriously considering it now. Was she? Did she really want to be Larry's *girlfriend*?
They paid for their tickets and stood inside the theater for a minute, waiting while Claire and Veruca stood in line to get food. Larry made a move towards it, but then noticed that Miranda was just standing there. "Not hungry?"
"Low on cash," Miranda said, shrugging slightly.
"Well, what do you want?" Larry asked.
"What?"
"What do you want? It's on me."
"Oh, no, Larry, I couldn't."
"Don't be ridiculous. I made you come here, and by doing that, forgoing an evening out with your two best friends in the future. At least let me buy you a popcorn. And maybe an Icee," he added with a smirk.
"Okay, but I'll pay you back," Miranda said.
"Really, you don't have to. The pleasure of your company these past few days and future days to come is payment enough."
Miranda found herself smiling doofily at him. Well, how could she not? she rationalized, once she'd caught herself. That had been a ridiculously sweet thing to say. And the act itself was a nice gesture. She tried her best to ignore the knowing look Veruca was shooting them. Tudgeman was just being...Tudgeman. He was a sweet guy, and that was the sort of thing he did.
So when she ended up sitting next to him...
Okay, there was really no rationalizing the tingle she felt. Glancing at his profile in the darkening theater, she couldn't help but think of that first party she'd ever thrown, where she'd ended up dancing with the truly hot 'Lawrence'...
But that was different. He'd been a different person. His hair had been washed. He was wearing another shirt. He wasn't talking about Star Wars. He hadn't been Tudgeman, he'd been some other guy.
She'd liked the other guy, though, was that a crime?
Well, really, Tudgeman himself wasn't that bad. Hadn't she been able to just open up to him that time she'd been fighting with Lizzie and Gordo? And he'd listened and offered to advice, and she'd never admitted it, but he'd been a real friend when she'd needed one.
Miranda stole another glance at him before they were bathed completely in darkness. Hmm.
Suddenly the screen exploded as a preview for a huge summer blockbuster flooded their senses. Miranda stuffed a handful of popcorn in her mouth, chewing laboriously and thoroughly enjoying the various trailers. All thoughts of romance flew from her head as she engaged in the blissful escapism of an evening at the movies with friends.
~~~~~
"That was so awesome," Claire gushed as the four of them came out of the theater.
"Totally," Veruca said. "That one scene where Josh Hartnett single-handedly saved the orphans from the burning escape pod? That was *so* cool."
"So cool," Tudgeman agreed, and Miranda grinned at him.
"Larry, that's so unlike you. Aren't you going to tear apart the implausibility of all of it? The lack of factual science?"
"Hey, I like to see things blow up, too, you know," he said.
Claire checked her watch. "It's been a blast, guys, but I gotta motor. The parents want me home by nine-thirty."
"Is it that late already?" Veruca said, looking concerned. "My mom's gonna be here any minute now. Claire, need a ride?"
"Oh, that'd be a huge help, thanks," Claire said, and actually sounded grateful. Taken out of context as one of Kate's cronies, Claire was a human being. Veruca glanced at Miranda and Larry. "You guys need a ride?"
"No, I'm good, thanks," Miranda said.
"I'm okay," Larry agreed.
Moments later, Veruca's mom pulled up in front of the theater, and Veruca and Claire climbed in the car. As the minivan drove off, Tudgeman turned to Miranda. "So, is your mom picking you up, or..?"
"No, I'm walking," Miranda said. Off of Larry's concerned look, she added, "It's not too far."
"Still," he said. "Let me walk you home."
"Larry, you don't have to go out of your way for me," she insisted, touched by the gesture all the same.
"It's no biggie, really," Larry said. "C'mon, I'd feel better."
He was like a bulldog. Miranda knew he wasn't going to give it up that easily, so resignedly she sighed. "Okay, okay. You win. But I'm telling you, I'll be fine."
As they strolled down the street at a leisurely pace, Miranda found herself asking, "Aren't you curious? About Claire?"
He peered down at her. "What about Claire?"
"Well, aren't you wondering why she's hanging out with us? I mean, sure, her best friend's off in Rome, but..."
"Well, *your* best friends are off in Rome, and *you're* hanging out with us," Larry pointed out, but without any malice in his voice.
"Yeah, but that's different. We've hung out before, and Claire, well...Larry, every other day of the week, she hates our guts," Miranda said. "Aren't you worried that maybe she's just gaining our trust, waiting for us to just spill our guts, and then destroy us on the first day of high school?"
Larry cocked an eyebrow at Miranda, but there was a trace of amusement in his eyes. "You just think everyone has an agenda, don't you?"
"Why should we trust her?" Miranda countered. "She's never done anything nice to us."
"Sometimes, Miranda, you just have to let your guard down," he said with a gentle sigh, looking up at the darkening sky. "Like they say, don't judge a book by its cover."
"Like you?" she said, giving him a sideways look.
To her surprise, Larry Tudgeman went red. "Well, I guess so, yeah."
"I don't give you credit, Larry," Miranda admitted, embarrassed herself. "You're a little dorky...you're a *lot* dorky," she amended with a little laugh, which she was grateful to hear Larry reciprocating, "but you're nice and you're smart and..."
"You're not fixing to get me to tutor you in math next year, are you?"
Miranda stopped dead in the middle of the sidewalk and looked at him, alarmed. But the twinkle in his eyes and his grin indicated he was only teasing. Mortification melting into fury, she hit his arm. "Are you insinuating that I never would pass on my own?"
"Nothing of the sort, Miranda, my dear," he said with an easy grin, and Miranda marveled at how easily he could diffuse the situation. They settled back into their walking rhythm, looking ahead or at the ground, but never at each other. Miranda kept one hand at her shoulder, holding her purse strap in place, and Larry's hands were jammed in his pockets. She glanced out of the corner of her eye at them, and then broke the silence by saying, "What's the deal with you and Veruca?"
"Me and Veruca?" he echoed. "What do you mean?"
"Are you two, like...a thing?" she said. "She says you're not..."
"I wasn't aware you'd been asking her," he said, his tone heavy with seriousness.
"Well, are you?"
"No," Larry said. "Veruca and I are just friends. Like you and Gordo."
"That's just what she said," Miranda said, furrowing her brow.
"Can I ask why you're asking?"
"Oh! I was...I was, uh...um...just, you know, wondering," she babbled. "'Cause you guys are so close and stuff..." She felt her face flushing and knew she was giving herself away. Okay, so maybe being so close to Tudgeman was bringing back all sorts of feelings that she'd had in the past...feelings that she *so* did not understand. On a fundamental level, she and Larry were absolutely wrong for each other. They had *nothing* in common.
So why was being around him suddenly having this affect on her?
"We're here," Tudgeman announced, and Miranda was surprised to see that they were in fact standing in front of her house. She was about to ask how Larry knew it was her house, until she remembered that he'd been here before. "So. Um. Thanks for...thanks for walking me home," she said.
"Again, no problem."
"And thanks for the food," she added. Was she going to thank him for everything?
But really, the thought of going inside was wholly unappealing.
"You don't have to thank me for every little thing," he said with an amused smile, and Miranda wondered if he was reading her mind, because that was exactly what she'd just been thinking.
"I know. I just...I don't know," she stammered, the flashed him a quick, nervous smile. "I should get in, it's late. Hey, why don't you come in, and my mom can give you a ride home?"
"Nah, that's okay, it's not far."
"Sounds familiar," she said jokingly, glad to take the focus off her insecurities, if only for a few seconds. "Listen, just call me when you get in, okay? So I can make sure you've gotten home all right."
His eyebrow quirked at that, but to his credit, he didn't say anything. "Okay."
They smiled awkwardly at each other, then Miranda ran quickly inside. "How was your evening, chica?" Mrs. Sanchez called, as Miranda pounded up the stairs to her room. "Fun, Mom," she said, and shut the door behind her. Mrs. Sanchez didn't ask any further questions, which was good, because Miranda didn't know how to explain that she was eagerly waiting for the school nerd's call.