Obsession

To disclaimer and such see part 1

Obsession Part 3 – The Way We Weren't

She stares at her open locker with puzzlement as she watches the little stuffed cat softly moving from where it is hanging in the inside of her locker door. She wonders how it got inside but the moment the thought crosses her mind she dismisses it as she believes it's a gift from Declan; it has to be, he's the only one that could possibly open her locker to put that inside. And that he's probably the only one that knows she likes cats.

She smiles as she touches the soft material of the cat and wonders why he had given her that. He has nothing to apologize for, has he? She wonders. Declan is always doing wrongs stuff and what he can't do that finding a reason for why she'd be mad at him and why he'd give her anything is a hard job. Miranda often finds herself annoyed by him and he always believes he needs to apologize.

She takes the cat form where it's hanging and holds it carefully as she puts her unnecessary for the moment books inside the locker and closes it with a loud thump. She smiles to herself and shakes her head as she thinks on about what she's going to tell Declan, tries to remember if she has any reason to be mad at him today. Because, obviously he thinks he has a reason to apologize.

She turns to a different direction than the one she was going to and heads to Declan's office, hoping he's there. She knocks softly on the door out of habit and gets inside before Declan can says anything. He looks up watching to see who's there and smiles softly as he sees Miranda. "Hey." She says.

"Hey." He replies softly and stops writing whatever he's writing down. "What are you doing here? Don't you have a class now?"

"Yeah, actually." She chuckles softly and walks to his desk then puts the cat over it softly so he can take a look at it. "So... what do you have to tell me?"

He picks the cat up and holds it in his hand, looking confused at it. "Well, it's a cute stuffed cat."

Miranda rolls her eyes and sits in the chair across from him. "Declan, whatever reason you have to think I'm mad at you, I'm not... I'm not mad at you, no reason to apologize."

Declan takes his eyes from the cat and looks confused at Miranda. "And why would you be mad at me?" He asks with as much honesty as of someone who doesn't have a clue of what she's talking about. "I haven't done anything to make you mad..." He says then stills his fingers and look worried at her. "Have I?"

Miranda's smile fades as she sees Declan's confused expression and then her face turns into confusion. "You didn't give me the cat?" And at Declan's shake of head, she says, "Who gave it to me then?"

Declan shrugs unconcerned and gives the cat back to Miranda. "Maybe your new boyfriend?"

"He's not... Trevon? Do you think so?"

"Well, he obviously has a crush on you." Declan whispers as if it is something confident as a grin appears over his lips.

Miranda sighs and gets up. "I'll just talk to him." She says and heads out the door. How could Trevon open her locker and put the cat inside? Miranda thinks about the possibility as she goes to her class.

"Trevon! Hey!" Miranda calls after Trevon as she sees him going down the stairs.

At the melody of Miranda's voice, Trevon stops immediately and turns to her. "Hey." He smiles, but as always she doesn't give him a smile back.

"Hey, I just wanted to ask you if you put this in my locker." She says showing him the cat.

Trevon touches it delicately as if he is afraid it might break and smiles at Miranda again. "Yeah. Did you like it?"

"Yes, it's pretty, but how did you get this inside my locker?" She knows she should be more polite but as long as Trevon had opened her locker without her consent and saw her personal stuff, went through it without asking; she has all the right to be angry. He has no right do go through her things like that.

"Does it really matter?" He asks wondering why she seems mad; why she'd be mad at him for doing something especial to her, something nice. After all, he can do that; he has the right. "Didn't you like it?"

"Yes, I liked it, but you did something you shouldn't have. You opened my locker without my permission."

"Miranda," He speaks, starting to get angry with her. Why is she mad, for god's sake? He did something nice, he did something for her, she should be a little more grateful. He never thought Miranda was such an ungrateful person. Again, she's making him angry. "I did something nice for you."

"I know that, but you still didn't ask my permission. I don't like people going through my stuff without asking me first, Ok? Next time, if you want to do something nice for me you can leave it somewhere else or ask me if you can open my locker or anything personal of mine."

"Look," He says, rising his voice just an octave but enough to let her know he's getting angry. He can't understand why Miranda would be fucking mad at him. He just tries to do something nice and that's how she thanks him? He is ready to finish his sentence, but the loud ringing of the bell announces it's time to go for the next class.

"I gotta go." Miranda says and walks away from him.

Trevon only stares at Miranda's back as she quickly walks farther and farther.

As soon as Miranda opens the lab door her eyes immediately catch the reddish glow of the vase of roses over the table she normally uses. Out of reflex, she looks at her right and then her left, checking to make sure no one is actually in there anymore. She walks over to the table and puts the heavy books she's caring on it before reaching one hand out and gently touching one of the roses petals.

First, instinctively she smiles wondering who'd send her flowers but when a very uninvited side of her good sense comes screaming this is not for her. Her smile immediately fades as she believes that but then she takes the card in the vase and reads through it. It would have made her smile again, but unconsciously she can't smile, it isn't from who she wanted it to be, it is from Trevon.

She sighs and puts the card back in the vase and stares doubly at it, wondering what she should do. She knows how lonely Trevon is, she has known him for months now and just throwing it away will only break his heart, but keeping it will make him think she has different intentions towards him from the ones she really has.

She doesn't want to make him think he has any chances with her when he doesn't.

Maybe if she just keeps it as a friendly gesture...

Well, she can't really decide what to do right now, she has papers to work on and since Declan had already asked her to run some tests – what will take some time, she knows- she needs to start her own things now. She pushes the vase to the side and sits down, opening a couple of books.

She will talk to Trevon later.

Trevon stops when he sees Miranda is in the lab and tries to take a peek inside without her seeing him. He had delivered the roses a couple of minutes earlier and was very excited about his gift. Women naturally like flowers and he's sure roses will take a smile from Miranda, that's what he wants to do the most. And wants to apologize for opening her lock without her permission, she got really mad about that. She doesn't like that, now he knows and he'll never do that again.

He wondered if she likes roses, but then most women do, he wouldn't get this wrong and if roses aren't her favorites then he will now and he'll get the right ones next time. Michelle's favorites are lilies and he'd get her lost of it in the beginning of their relationship and she was always happy about that but after a while his gifts didn't seem to make her happy anymore. They'd fight a lot because she didn't want to be with him anymore and he'd end up hurting her because she wouldn't listen so he'd buy her lilies.

He doesn't want to buy Miranda flowers as a way to apologize; he wants to do that because she's nice, because she deserves it, because she's worthy. He wants to show her he's better than the professor, he deserves her more than that scatter brained professor. He doesn't deserve her; he's just a loser. He shouldn't even be her friend the way he is, Trevon has to make Miranda see that, has to make her open her eyes and see who will be a good man to her.

He truly hopes she'll apologize him after she gets those roses. He doesn't want her to be mad at him; not that she really has any reason to...

Trevon hears heavy footsteps and looks up to see professor Dunn running to his direction and he quickly pretends to be doing something else instead of spying on Miranda. Declan runs right past him and gets inside the lab.

"I need those tests results right now." Declan storms inside the lab as his eyes immediately search for Miranda and find her sitting quietly on a stool, apparently very focused on her work.

At the sharp sound of his voice, she turns around looking startled at Declan. "What?!"

"The results!" He snaps his fingers in front of her. "They're taking the statue away! I need the results."

"Declan, I'm busy! I haven't even started to work on them!"

"What?? I asked that two hours ago! I thought you'd have something by now."

"No, you said you needed them by tomorrow! I have things to do, ok? I can't leave my papers for later to run your tests. How could I imagine you'd need them so soon?"

Declan opens his mouth to argue but when some good sense knocks on him he only stares back at her with his mouth half open. He is nervous because the people from the museum are there to take the supposed miraculous statue back to where it should be and he was only discounting on her. Even through his nervousness and anger he can see how unfair he's being to her, but before he can apologize a very pissed off Trevon storms inside the lab, too.

"Hey, is everything ok?" He asks staring with narrowed eyes at Declan as he stands beside Miranda and puts a hand over her shoulder.

She looks up completely dumbfounded at him and clears her throat as she stands herself and discreetly walks away from his uninvited touch. "Yeah," She says a little disturbed and then glances quickly at Declan. "We were just having an argument."

"It didn't seem like just an argument... He was yelling." Trevon replies, staring hardly at Declan, daring the professor to face him. He heard how he was talking to her, as if she has to do those tests for him. She's not his maid, he wants to tell him; she's not his property or anything for the matter. Declan Dunn has no rights over her, and yet he treats her as if he could tell Miranda what do to.

She's a lady, she's nice to him, she's always doing anything he asks her to do and he still argues with her. He knows how important college papers are and that you need to put all of your concentration on it and Declan isn't helping her at all demanding from her what he does. He thinks she has all the time in the world for him and Trevon just hates that.

"He wasn't yelling..." Miranda starts but Declan finishes her sentence with his own words.

"... Not that you really have anything with that." And soon as the words leave Declan's mouth Miranda stares wide-eyed at him but his rude choice of words. And she's not the only one for Trevon keeps looking at him surprised. Who the hell he thinks he is to talk to Trevon like that? He is just a Goddamn professor and has no right to be rude in his remarks, especially when he's defending Miranda.

"Hmm, ok, now guys." Miranda speaks up sensing their male hormones speaking for them. Is that really happening? Are they actually fighting over her? Well, she doesn't really want to know... "I really need to do my paper. Declan, I'll have your results by tomorrow like I had told you. Now could both of you leave, please?"

"Fine." Declan mutters and turn to leave before Trevon. He knows he can't argue with a student for something like that. Even if it is about Miranda and Trevon has no right to interfere in their conversation the way he did Declan would be the one to hear a speech, and not Trevon.

Instead of leaving, Trevon just stands there, looking expectantly at Miranda but with a apologizing expression on. "Miranda..."

"I asked you too leave." She says quietly as she sits down again.

"Look, I'm sorry..."

Miranda puts a hand on her chin, supporting it and sighs as she tries to focus on her book again. "It was just a misunderstood." She speaks quietly again.

Trevon stares at her as his forehead turns into a frown and he narrows his eyes. If Miranda was facing him she'd be able to see little sparks of imagined fire coming from Trevon's green eyes as he focus on her black hair. He can't believe she's actually dismissing him with such an easy as if he is anyone – as if he's the damned professor.

He can't help but let all the anger boils up inside him again. For a lightening moment he wonders if it's really worthy being with her, if all he's doing is really worthy. He tries to be good to her but she just doesn't seem to notice it. He apologized, what more would she possibly want? What more can he do? He gave her the flowers –which she didn't even thanked him for- and is being nice and polite. She has no right to mistreat him like that, she has no right to just ask him to leave like that. She can be rude to that professor that treats her so badly, but him no; she can't treat Trevon as if he is like the professor.

Trevon clenches his hands, trying to make his anger go away by applying his force on them instead of Miranda's beautiful face. Suddenly he feels the necessity to break something and being with Miranda will only make him hurt her. He doesn't want to hurt Miranda like he hurt Michelle –Michelle deserved and as hard as he tries to stop himself Miranda is deserving to be hurt too, she can't just ignore him like that.

"I said I was sorry, what more do you want?"

"Look Trevon," She starts as she turns around on her tool to face him. "I asked Declan to leave and he did, why can't you?" She says softly. "I'm busy, OK? I have things to do, I need to study."

The worse isn't how she's acting towards him but how she spoke with him. The slight hint of rudeness and impatience in her voice is enough to make him even angrier. He always speaks with her nicely so she has no right to be rude with him. She has no right to...

Suddenly, when the anger is just too much to bear, he smashes his hand over the table, right beside Miranda's book, making it jump slightly with the force of his hand colliding with the table. "Damn it Miranda!" Caught completely by surprise, the impact and the unfamiliar angry tone in his voice, scaring the shit out of Miranda, she jumps to her feet stepping away from the sound and Trevon's hand as far as possible. Seeing the frightened and surprised look in her eyes, Trevon takes a couple of steps to her as he runs one hand through his blond silk hair. "I-I'm sorry... I just-I..."

"You know what?" She whispers with what is left of her already very quiet voice. "I'll just find somewhere else to study." She mumbles and quickly picks up all her books, heading quickly as possible to the door.

"Miranda, wait... Let's just..." Trevon starts to say but she doesn't hear the rest of his sentence for she's already out of the door, "talk."

He knew this would happen. He knew it. He doesn't know what is wrong with women but they just don't seem to be satisfied enough, they just don't seem to be glad with how things are. He's nice, he's good, he gives her gifts and still she just treats him like that and when he loses his mind he can't apologize because she doesn't even give him the time to do that. She turns his back on him...

He'll let her know she can't turn his back on him like that.

End of part 3! For more parts review please.