Belle frowned as the rumblings of her empty stomach reached her ears. A
hurried glance at her watch proved that she still had fifteen minutes of
waiting. She lightly tapped her nails against her Psychology book as she
contemplated asking Zach to stop at the pub for a bite to eat.
The frown on Belle's face deepened as she realized all over again that Zach – not Shawn – would be taking her home that Friday afternoon. Of course, Belle had to amuse her lonely self until 4:30 when Zach, Jason, and Philip would be freed from their final day of detention.
All thoughts of the troublesome trio faded as Belle focused her attention on the reason why it was Zach taking her home – the reason why the week had only worsened after Monday's musical fiasco.
Tuesday had been the epitome of tension. Mimi had refused to even look at Jason, much less speak to him. And, to Belle's surprise, Jason seemed almost indifferent to Mimi's loathing. In fact, the athlete actually appeared to welcome and return Mimi's abhorrence. It was as if the past few months had never happened and the two teens were still unsympathetic enemies rather than tentative friends.
Shawn had dubbed the silent battle Salem High's Cold War. No matter the obvious tension, Jason and Mimi both refused to vocalize their mutual agitation.
By Wednesday afternoon, even Belle had stopped trying to make peace. She finally agreed with Chloe's plan to just let the difficult duo stay mad at each other.
It was Thursday, however, that things really got bad.
(flashback)
The conversation had begun innocently enough with no clear indications of conflict. Yet, somehow the simple group discussion about Thanksgiving had turned to who would be where for the holidays. And, by some unknown means, the conversation had finally turned toward the topic of romance.
That issue had made plain the difference of opinion. Shawn, Chloe, and Jason's more liberal views clashed quite forcefully against Mimi, Philip, and Belle's talk of total and eternal devotion. Self-proclaimed realism slammed into hopeful dreams.
As the conversation progressed, a transformation began to take place. No longer was it a group chat but a personal fight between Shawn and Belle. The two became engaged in a disagreement over the general purpose of relationships and dating that changed into a heated argument over all their differences.
At some point, Shawn and his views clashed a little too hard against Belle and her more romantic, sheltered beliefs, and she had stormed away from the table and departed the cafeteria – without her boyfriend.
And, that was when things went from bad to worse. . .
After fleeing the cafeteria – and Shawn's compelling gaze, Belle ran into trouble – in the handsome form of Zachary Wesley. Belle thought that the charming teen must have been able to unconsciously sense her despair, because he had immediately showered her with his sexiest smile. He managed to pull Belle into a frivolous talk about things such as his dull Chemistry class and the overly-aggressive girl on the soccer team who was all but stalking him.
Just when Belle had finally begun to laugh, Shawn and Mimi had appeared in the hallway. Shawn had surely known that there was nothing happening between his girlfriend and Zach Wesley, but that had not stopped him from falling into a pit of jealousy.
Instead of apologizing like he had planned, Shawn had made a somewhat snide comment about Belle repeatedly hanging out with Zach. That particular comment was followed by an allusion to Zach's supposed criminal tendencies.
A few more casual remarks had been made before Shawn had demanded, "What would any girl actually see in this guy?"
Hoping to slice through the mounting hostility, Belle had lightly answered, "Well, just look at his eyes. It's like looking into the depths of the ocean; they're such a deep blue that they almost sparkle."
Instead of being calmed by Belle's careless observation, Shawn felt himself become increasingly defensive. "And, what? Are my eyes not good enough?"
Before Belle could respond, Zach smiled and answered, "Come on, man, they're dirt brown. The only thing your eyes look like is a pile of dog sh- "
"Zach!" Mimi and Belle had simultaneously squealed.
For a few seconds, Belle had merely stood there while Zach smirked and Shawn scowled. Finally, she had thrown her hands up in the air and stated, "That's it. I'm through with this . . . just leave me alone."
With those words, Belle had walked away from her three friends in search of a few minutes of peace.
(end flashback)
~ * * ~ * * ~ * * ~ * * ~ * * ~
While Belle sat in the hallway reviewing her tiresome week, Mimi was locked away in her bedroom doing the same.
Mimi rested her head on her oversized pillow and allowed her mind to drift back to the day before. After several days of dealing with her own problems, Thursday had provided her with something of a distraction.
(flashback)
Shawn and Belle, who were to senior year what Philip and Chloe had been to junior year, had gotten into quite the squabble during lunch. After a lengthy quarrel, Belle had left. Moments later Mimi went to help look for her.
After all, Mimi considered anything better than being trapped at a table with Philip, Chloe, and Jason. There was clearly some purposeful distance between Philip and Chloe, and it appeared that Jason was doing his best to mimic the action. Mimi got the distinct feeling that Monday's serenading would not be repeated by the angered young man.
Mimi and Shawn had stumbled across Belle in the hallway while Zach had shamelessly flirted with her. Within minutes the two young men had further angered Belle. Again, the normally perky blonde had stomped away.
This time Shawn did not follow. He instead had muttered something about going back inside the cafeteria to supposedly save Chloe from Philip's jealousy. Mimi kept the pot/kettle comment to herself. However, she couldn't remain entirely silent.
Tossing a look toward Shawn before he disappeared from sight, Mimi grumbled, "Can't that boy just worry about his own life instead of Chloe's for like two minutes?"
"What's up with that anyway?" Zach questioned. "I remember when Shawn and Chloe walked in together on the first day of school. Belle wasn't too happy. What am I missing?"
"Did you ever hear the story about how Philip and Chloe got together?" When Zach gave a negative responsive, Mimi continued, "The whole thing actually started at Dotcom. Toward the end of our sophomore year, the guys were really into the video games there. Anyway, somehow Philip and Shawn began to be rivals at this game and eventually they played a tournament."
"What does any of that have to do with Chloe?"
Smiling just a little, Mimi answered, "I'm getting to that. You see, they weren't just playing the tournament for fun – there was a hefty wager. Ever since he'd met Chloe, Philip had teased her, but Shawn had always been more of a friend to her. So, somehow or another, it got set up so that the loser had to take Chloe to the Last Blast Dance. Of course, that was way back when everyone still thought of her as a scary freak and none of the guys thought she was hot."
Mimi paused for a moment to catch her breath. Once that was done, she happily continued with her storytelling. "Anyway, Philip thought taking Chloe would be some horrible fate that would ruin his image. Shawn, on the other hand, said he wouldn't mind at all because Chloe was some good person or whatever."
"Wait. Let me get this straight. Philip once disliked Chloe enough that he wouldn't even be willing to show up in public with her? What happened to that Philip?"
"Well, personally, I think Chloe purposely brainwashed poor Philip – but that's another story for another day. To make a long story short, Philip lost the bet, took Chloe to the dance, got bathed in chicken blood, and the rest is history. The only important thing is that Shawn was always more than willing to be close to Chloe."
Completely missing the point Mimi was attempting to make, Zach asked, "Chicken blood, huh?"
"Yeah, Philip got drenched in the stuff. Of course, Chloe got saved from it . . . by Shawn."
"So, why does Shawn do the things Shawn does?"
"I would be the last person who'd know. Honestly, I just can't understand Shawn sometimes. He totally doesn't get how much it hurts Belle to see him parade around with all these damsels in distress. I mean, was it really necessary for him to drive Chloe to school the past few days?"
His sarcasm spilling forth, Zach said, "What was he thinking? How shameful for a guy to give his friend a ride to school. Just shameful."
"You know what I mean."
"Whatever. You're just mad because Shawn's giving Chloe a ride and you're stuck having your mommy or daddy bring you. Besides, I'm sure Belle would much rather have Chloe riding with Shawn instead of someone like you."
Mimi's hands automatically flew to her hips. Her nostrils preparing to flare, she retorted, "Excuse me?"
"You heard me. There's no way Belle or any other girl would be more concerned by her boyfriend giving a ride to her happily married sister-in- law than a single, flirty girl who's already playing two guys against each other."
While Mimi's mouth flew open, Zach added, "Maybe you should just worry about your own life and leave Chloe's alone."
(End Flashback)
Mimi jerked out of her memories when she heard her mother calling for her. Though she had tried desperately to convince herself that Zach's words held no truth, she was beginning to have her doubts. And, she had no idea what to do about it.
The clock ticked away the seconds with an unnerving consistency. Apart from that rhythmic ticking, the only sound to entreat the classroom was a faint pattering of raindrops just outside the window.
Almost against his own will, Philip looked up at the clock. He released a dissatisfied grunt when realizing that only four minutes had passed since his last glance.
The Kiriakis heir was only thankful that this was his final day of detention. However, he was fully aware that he might have quite a difficult evening ahead of him. Not only was Philip dealing with a narrow window of time, but he was also attempting to help two of the blindest individuals he had ever known – Mimi Lockhart and Jason Masters.
Since Mimi's less than favorable reaction to Jason's song on Monday, Philip had been fine-tuning his own plan to help his friends find the path to happiness. The only problem was that Jason and Mimi both insisted upon taking every possible detour.
Taking an additional quick peek at the clock, Philip sighed deeply and fell into a pit of memories from the day before.
(Flashback)
Philip glanced up from his lunch tray as Shawn haughtily sat back down at the table. It was all too clear things had not gone well in the hallway. Looking directly across the table to his friend, Philip casually asked, "So, Shawn, have you finished your history paper yet?"
Without even looking up from his lunch tray, Shawn answered, "Yeah, I printed the final copy last night."
An uncomfortable silence fell over the table as Shawn, Philip, Chloe, and Jason each pushed their food around their trays. Though they all felt the heavy weight of the silence, they were unable to truly defeat it.
Regardless of what others could or could not see, Philip felt that he – better than anyone among their circle of friends – witnessed the truth about Shawn and Belle. Better than his comrades, Philip understood the precarious path to a broken heart. And, he saw his oldest of pals headed toward that very road.
Thus far, Belle had cared for Shawn in that juvenile puppy love manner. Besides a few isolated incidences – most of which involved a misrepresented situation between Shawn and Chloe – there had been no real obstacles in their relationship.
However, from his own shattered romance with Chloe, Philip had learned that it doesn't take many obstacles to demolish a relationship. On the other hand, Philip knew that Shawn and Belle's connection was a far different from the bond he had shared with Chloe.
Dropping his fork onto his pale green lunch tray, Philip searched his mind for any topic of conversation that wouldn't cause further conflict. As much as he wanted to merely order Shawn to be more sensible with Belle's heart, Philip realized that he could not force the young man to make right his own wrongs.
Philip opted to completely overlook Shawn and focused his plotting gaze upon Jason. "Hey, Jase. Do you think you can give me a hand tomorrow night?"
A doubtful gaze was cast across the table. "With what?"
Philip returned Jason's look with one of near exasperation. "Does it matter? I've been in detention all week because I helped you. Would it kill you to help me take care of some stuff at my dad's office Friday night?"
Jason prudently chose to forget Philip's reference to Monday's troublesome events. With an indifferent roll of his eyes, Jason replied, "I guess I could drop by if you really need me to. Of course, you're gonna be the one owing me after I donate my Friday night to lend you a hand in some stuffy office building."
Philip could hardly contain his gleeful smirk. Trying his best to remain impassive, he shrugged his shoulders and responded, "Maybe it won't be as bad as you think."
(End Flashback)
Philip roused himself from his memories just as he and his companions were told it was time to be freed. Rising from the uncomfortable desk, Philip took a weary glance at Jason and said a silent prayer that he was partaking in a plan that would – just this once – actually work.
The frown on Belle's face deepened as she realized all over again that Zach – not Shawn – would be taking her home that Friday afternoon. Of course, Belle had to amuse her lonely self until 4:30 when Zach, Jason, and Philip would be freed from their final day of detention.
All thoughts of the troublesome trio faded as Belle focused her attention on the reason why it was Zach taking her home – the reason why the week had only worsened after Monday's musical fiasco.
Tuesday had been the epitome of tension. Mimi had refused to even look at Jason, much less speak to him. And, to Belle's surprise, Jason seemed almost indifferent to Mimi's loathing. In fact, the athlete actually appeared to welcome and return Mimi's abhorrence. It was as if the past few months had never happened and the two teens were still unsympathetic enemies rather than tentative friends.
Shawn had dubbed the silent battle Salem High's Cold War. No matter the obvious tension, Jason and Mimi both refused to vocalize their mutual agitation.
By Wednesday afternoon, even Belle had stopped trying to make peace. She finally agreed with Chloe's plan to just let the difficult duo stay mad at each other.
It was Thursday, however, that things really got bad.
(flashback)
The conversation had begun innocently enough with no clear indications of conflict. Yet, somehow the simple group discussion about Thanksgiving had turned to who would be where for the holidays. And, by some unknown means, the conversation had finally turned toward the topic of romance.
That issue had made plain the difference of opinion. Shawn, Chloe, and Jason's more liberal views clashed quite forcefully against Mimi, Philip, and Belle's talk of total and eternal devotion. Self-proclaimed realism slammed into hopeful dreams.
As the conversation progressed, a transformation began to take place. No longer was it a group chat but a personal fight between Shawn and Belle. The two became engaged in a disagreement over the general purpose of relationships and dating that changed into a heated argument over all their differences.
At some point, Shawn and his views clashed a little too hard against Belle and her more romantic, sheltered beliefs, and she had stormed away from the table and departed the cafeteria – without her boyfriend.
And, that was when things went from bad to worse. . .
After fleeing the cafeteria – and Shawn's compelling gaze, Belle ran into trouble – in the handsome form of Zachary Wesley. Belle thought that the charming teen must have been able to unconsciously sense her despair, because he had immediately showered her with his sexiest smile. He managed to pull Belle into a frivolous talk about things such as his dull Chemistry class and the overly-aggressive girl on the soccer team who was all but stalking him.
Just when Belle had finally begun to laugh, Shawn and Mimi had appeared in the hallway. Shawn had surely known that there was nothing happening between his girlfriend and Zach Wesley, but that had not stopped him from falling into a pit of jealousy.
Instead of apologizing like he had planned, Shawn had made a somewhat snide comment about Belle repeatedly hanging out with Zach. That particular comment was followed by an allusion to Zach's supposed criminal tendencies.
A few more casual remarks had been made before Shawn had demanded, "What would any girl actually see in this guy?"
Hoping to slice through the mounting hostility, Belle had lightly answered, "Well, just look at his eyes. It's like looking into the depths of the ocean; they're such a deep blue that they almost sparkle."
Instead of being calmed by Belle's careless observation, Shawn felt himself become increasingly defensive. "And, what? Are my eyes not good enough?"
Before Belle could respond, Zach smiled and answered, "Come on, man, they're dirt brown. The only thing your eyes look like is a pile of dog sh- "
"Zach!" Mimi and Belle had simultaneously squealed.
For a few seconds, Belle had merely stood there while Zach smirked and Shawn scowled. Finally, she had thrown her hands up in the air and stated, "That's it. I'm through with this . . . just leave me alone."
With those words, Belle had walked away from her three friends in search of a few minutes of peace.
(end flashback)
~ * * ~ * * ~ * * ~ * * ~ * * ~
While Belle sat in the hallway reviewing her tiresome week, Mimi was locked away in her bedroom doing the same.
Mimi rested her head on her oversized pillow and allowed her mind to drift back to the day before. After several days of dealing with her own problems, Thursday had provided her with something of a distraction.
(flashback)
Shawn and Belle, who were to senior year what Philip and Chloe had been to junior year, had gotten into quite the squabble during lunch. After a lengthy quarrel, Belle had left. Moments later Mimi went to help look for her.
After all, Mimi considered anything better than being trapped at a table with Philip, Chloe, and Jason. There was clearly some purposeful distance between Philip and Chloe, and it appeared that Jason was doing his best to mimic the action. Mimi got the distinct feeling that Monday's serenading would not be repeated by the angered young man.
Mimi and Shawn had stumbled across Belle in the hallway while Zach had shamelessly flirted with her. Within minutes the two young men had further angered Belle. Again, the normally perky blonde had stomped away.
This time Shawn did not follow. He instead had muttered something about going back inside the cafeteria to supposedly save Chloe from Philip's jealousy. Mimi kept the pot/kettle comment to herself. However, she couldn't remain entirely silent.
Tossing a look toward Shawn before he disappeared from sight, Mimi grumbled, "Can't that boy just worry about his own life instead of Chloe's for like two minutes?"
"What's up with that anyway?" Zach questioned. "I remember when Shawn and Chloe walked in together on the first day of school. Belle wasn't too happy. What am I missing?"
"Did you ever hear the story about how Philip and Chloe got together?" When Zach gave a negative responsive, Mimi continued, "The whole thing actually started at Dotcom. Toward the end of our sophomore year, the guys were really into the video games there. Anyway, somehow Philip and Shawn began to be rivals at this game and eventually they played a tournament."
"What does any of that have to do with Chloe?"
Smiling just a little, Mimi answered, "I'm getting to that. You see, they weren't just playing the tournament for fun – there was a hefty wager. Ever since he'd met Chloe, Philip had teased her, but Shawn had always been more of a friend to her. So, somehow or another, it got set up so that the loser had to take Chloe to the Last Blast Dance. Of course, that was way back when everyone still thought of her as a scary freak and none of the guys thought she was hot."
Mimi paused for a moment to catch her breath. Once that was done, she happily continued with her storytelling. "Anyway, Philip thought taking Chloe would be some horrible fate that would ruin his image. Shawn, on the other hand, said he wouldn't mind at all because Chloe was some good person or whatever."
"Wait. Let me get this straight. Philip once disliked Chloe enough that he wouldn't even be willing to show up in public with her? What happened to that Philip?"
"Well, personally, I think Chloe purposely brainwashed poor Philip – but that's another story for another day. To make a long story short, Philip lost the bet, took Chloe to the dance, got bathed in chicken blood, and the rest is history. The only important thing is that Shawn was always more than willing to be close to Chloe."
Completely missing the point Mimi was attempting to make, Zach asked, "Chicken blood, huh?"
"Yeah, Philip got drenched in the stuff. Of course, Chloe got saved from it . . . by Shawn."
"So, why does Shawn do the things Shawn does?"
"I would be the last person who'd know. Honestly, I just can't understand Shawn sometimes. He totally doesn't get how much it hurts Belle to see him parade around with all these damsels in distress. I mean, was it really necessary for him to drive Chloe to school the past few days?"
His sarcasm spilling forth, Zach said, "What was he thinking? How shameful for a guy to give his friend a ride to school. Just shameful."
"You know what I mean."
"Whatever. You're just mad because Shawn's giving Chloe a ride and you're stuck having your mommy or daddy bring you. Besides, I'm sure Belle would much rather have Chloe riding with Shawn instead of someone like you."
Mimi's hands automatically flew to her hips. Her nostrils preparing to flare, she retorted, "Excuse me?"
"You heard me. There's no way Belle or any other girl would be more concerned by her boyfriend giving a ride to her happily married sister-in- law than a single, flirty girl who's already playing two guys against each other."
While Mimi's mouth flew open, Zach added, "Maybe you should just worry about your own life and leave Chloe's alone."
(End Flashback)
Mimi jerked out of her memories when she heard her mother calling for her. Though she had tried desperately to convince herself that Zach's words held no truth, she was beginning to have her doubts. And, she had no idea what to do about it.
The clock ticked away the seconds with an unnerving consistency. Apart from that rhythmic ticking, the only sound to entreat the classroom was a faint pattering of raindrops just outside the window.
Almost against his own will, Philip looked up at the clock. He released a dissatisfied grunt when realizing that only four minutes had passed since his last glance.
The Kiriakis heir was only thankful that this was his final day of detention. However, he was fully aware that he might have quite a difficult evening ahead of him. Not only was Philip dealing with a narrow window of time, but he was also attempting to help two of the blindest individuals he had ever known – Mimi Lockhart and Jason Masters.
Since Mimi's less than favorable reaction to Jason's song on Monday, Philip had been fine-tuning his own plan to help his friends find the path to happiness. The only problem was that Jason and Mimi both insisted upon taking every possible detour.
Taking an additional quick peek at the clock, Philip sighed deeply and fell into a pit of memories from the day before.
(Flashback)
Philip glanced up from his lunch tray as Shawn haughtily sat back down at the table. It was all too clear things had not gone well in the hallway. Looking directly across the table to his friend, Philip casually asked, "So, Shawn, have you finished your history paper yet?"
Without even looking up from his lunch tray, Shawn answered, "Yeah, I printed the final copy last night."
An uncomfortable silence fell over the table as Shawn, Philip, Chloe, and Jason each pushed their food around their trays. Though they all felt the heavy weight of the silence, they were unable to truly defeat it.
Regardless of what others could or could not see, Philip felt that he – better than anyone among their circle of friends – witnessed the truth about Shawn and Belle. Better than his comrades, Philip understood the precarious path to a broken heart. And, he saw his oldest of pals headed toward that very road.
Thus far, Belle had cared for Shawn in that juvenile puppy love manner. Besides a few isolated incidences – most of which involved a misrepresented situation between Shawn and Chloe – there had been no real obstacles in their relationship.
However, from his own shattered romance with Chloe, Philip had learned that it doesn't take many obstacles to demolish a relationship. On the other hand, Philip knew that Shawn and Belle's connection was a far different from the bond he had shared with Chloe.
Dropping his fork onto his pale green lunch tray, Philip searched his mind for any topic of conversation that wouldn't cause further conflict. As much as he wanted to merely order Shawn to be more sensible with Belle's heart, Philip realized that he could not force the young man to make right his own wrongs.
Philip opted to completely overlook Shawn and focused his plotting gaze upon Jason. "Hey, Jase. Do you think you can give me a hand tomorrow night?"
A doubtful gaze was cast across the table. "With what?"
Philip returned Jason's look with one of near exasperation. "Does it matter? I've been in detention all week because I helped you. Would it kill you to help me take care of some stuff at my dad's office Friday night?"
Jason prudently chose to forget Philip's reference to Monday's troublesome events. With an indifferent roll of his eyes, Jason replied, "I guess I could drop by if you really need me to. Of course, you're gonna be the one owing me after I donate my Friday night to lend you a hand in some stuffy office building."
Philip could hardly contain his gleeful smirk. Trying his best to remain impassive, he shrugged his shoulders and responded, "Maybe it won't be as bad as you think."
(End Flashback)
Philip roused himself from his memories just as he and his companions were told it was time to be freed. Rising from the uncomfortable desk, Philip took a weary glance at Jason and said a silent prayer that he was partaking in a plan that would – just this once – actually work.