Chapter Eleven:

Later that afternoon, Willy woke up and discovered that he was alone.

Where is she? he thought to himself. She wasn't in his room with him, as he had first expected, but he suddenly felt rather guilty for hoping that she would be there when he woke up. He got up from bed and heard giggling from downstairs.

Except it sounded like to people giggling. And both giggles sounded familiar to him.

Willy opened his door quietly to try and peer over the stair railing, but he suddenly heard footsteps approaching, so he dashed back into this room and quickly got back under his covers.

The door opened, and Jenni peeked inside. "Hey, Willy," she said, smiling. "How are you?"

"Just... just fine," he said nervously.

Jenni looked at him curiously, but she came over and sat on his bed. "Guess what."

"Er...what?"

"Someone came over to visit you." She grinned.

Willy's heart almost stopped. So there were more people in the house than just Jenni and himself. I knew it... "Um... who?"

Jenni turned to face the door, and called, "You can come in now."

The door opened again, and in came Mandi Masterson.

"Hi, Willy," she said, greeting him with a familiar smile. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

Willy was speechless. It was true that he hadn't seen Mandi in many years, but she hadn't changed very much. She still wore her sweet, loving

grin. Her hair was still the same long, chestnut brown as it used to be, and she had friendly hazel eyes. Seeing them together, Willy realized how much the two sisters looked alike: Jenni also had brown hair, but it was cut shoulder length, and she had green eyes, but it would be rather easy to mix them up by their appearance.

"Hello, Mandi. Yes, it has..." he said, and Mandi pulled Willy into a hug, then he hugged her as well.

"I hear you got sick again," she said, putting a hand on his forehead. "Tsk, tsk. You'll never change, huh, Willy?"

He grinned, blushing slightly. "I guess not... it must be a family trait from Mom's side."

Jenni smiled. "This is amazing. For all these years, I've had a sister who was the nurse for the Wonkas, and she never told me!"

Mandi shrugged. "Mr. Wonka told me not to tell anyone but Mum. Just for the sake of privacy, you know." She noticed Willy's face fall a bit at further mention of his mother, and quickly decided to change the subject. "So, I hear you have a very good candy shop."

"Oh yes. Well, I think it's good," said Willy.

"Of course it's good," laughed Jenni. "We're always up to our eyes in customers. Especially now that it's the holidays." Willy smiled at her.

"Oh!" said Mandi suddenly. "I can't believe I just realized this... I'm sorry for coming her so unexpectedly. I can forget my manners when I'm getting caught up with friends."

"It's fine," assured Willy. "Really, I don't mind. And it's nice to see you again." He smiled at her as well, and Jenni felt a twinge of jealousy. They were acting so sweet together... just as Willy and herself had been acting. But I suppose it's because they've known each other longer...

Suddenly, Willy started to shiver. "Are you-" began Jenni, but she was interrupted.

"Do you need a blanket, Willy?" asked Mandi.

He nodded, coughing, and Mandi opened his closet and looked on the shelves to find one, then returned to his bed and laid it on top of him. "There. All better, right?" She patted his shoulder. "We don't want you to get any worse."

Willy turned red, but he laid his head back on his pillow. What? thought Jenni, starting to get a little angry. I could've done that...

"So, Jenni," said Mandi, turning to her sister. "How have you been? You stopped writing to me."

Jenni rolled her eyes. "That's because I didn't know where you were. Last I heard from you, you were going to America to study their medical methods. I had no way to contact you."

"Sorry, sis," she said, grinning apologetically. "I promise I'll tell you where I'm going before I high-tail it out of London again. What have you been up to? You didn't really tell me much on the phone..."

"Oh, right. I forgot to tell you... I work at his shop."

"Really?" said Mandi, surprised. "I thought you were going to be an actress or something."

"That's not happening," laughed Jenni, "or at least not anytime soon. For now, I like working at the shop. It's very fun, and very rewarding. Plus I get to work with you, Willy," she added, grabbing his hand and squeezing it softly. Willy was taken a little aback by the sudden gesture, but smiled back anyway. Two can play at this game, Mandi... Jenni thought, but then she stopped. She had done it again: she had become jealous. It had been a while since she had felt this away about someone, and she had become defensive as soon as her sister had came to visit. I shouldn't act like this... I should be grateful that nothing happened to my sister during her travels, and that Willy got to see someone who meant so much to him. But... why do I feel so empty inside?

Her thoughts were interrupted when Willy started to sneeze, and brushing aside those thoughts quickly, she practically dived for the tissue box. But Mandi beat her to it once again. "Here you go, Willy," she said, smiling sweetly and handing it to him. "Bless you."

Fury was now starting to pulse through Jenni's body. That's it... It was unbearable to watch Mandi, her own sister, playing around with Willy like they were best friends. Well, they were best friends, but that wasn't the point. The point was that Jenni had initiated a relationship between the two that was more than friends. And clearly Mandi didn't know to what extent that relationship really was, and Jenni guessed, maybe even Willy didn't either. But she would let them both know.

"Mandi... can I talk to you for a second?" she said through gritted teeth, motioning towards the door. Mandi, looking curious, nodded, and left the room with her sister after patting Willy on the hand once again.

Sure, he has reason to love her more. Sure, she was his nurse. But that doesn't mean she should be able to just walk right in and take him away when... when I wanted him. That's not fair to me. I love him...

"What's wrong, Sis?" said Mandi when they were downstairs and a safe distance from Willy's bedroom.

"What's wrong? What do you mean, what's wrong?" replied Jenni furiously.

"What's the matter with you? Why are you angry?"

"You! You're the one playing around with him like he's a toy, that's why!"

"What are you talking about?" her sister asked, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not playing with him. I'm trying to help him feel better."

"Well... Well, I could've done some of those things myself!" she spat furiously.

"I'm sorry," said her sister, shrugging. "I'm used to it, though. You don't know how many times I was stuck with him being sick and had to take care of him. It's like a natural reaction now. And... why are you getting so defensive?"

Argh... I did it AGAIN. "I..." She blushed. "I'm not being defensive."

"Yes you are. You're getting mad at me for helping him. And I'm sorry that you don't like me being nice to him, but he's my friend, and it's always been my job to take care of him. At least it used to be."

"Well... he's... he's my friend, too. I've been working for him for ages now! And..."

"And you like him?"

"Yeah, I like him, but-" She stopped. Her sister had been able to tell. Now she knew about Jenni's feelings for Willy. A sly grin surfaced on Mandi's face, and Jenni turned even redder. "N-no, it's not like that, I just-"

"Jenni, I know what you're trying to say," said Mandi, still grinning widely. "You really like him."

Jenni was never usually a person to be embarassed easily or become flustered often, but now she was being both. "I... no... you don't understand... Um..."

"Jenni... I know how you feel. And believe it or not, I've felt the same way before."

"You... you have?"

"Yes. You're in love. And I'm pretty sure he loves you, too. I'm not going to try and take him from you, I've found someone else. Willy's not the guy for me, he's the guy for you. You two look really cute together, by the way," she added, winking.

Jenni blushed furiously, staring at the floor. "Well... can I take care of him then?"

"Certainly. Like I said, I'm sorry, it just comes natural to me, being his old nurse and all."

"I can't believe you never told me..."

Her sister sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you, they didn't want me to. And now you know, so it doesn't matter, right?"

Jenni shifted uncomfortably. "I guess you're right but..."

"Look. Just take good care of him, okay? He's really precious to me. Not in that way," she added, seeing some of the fire return to Jenni's eyes. "He's like... a little brother. And you're my little sister, so I care about both of you. I want both of you to be happy, and if being together means you'll both be happy, that's good enough for me."

"So you... you approve?"

Mandi laughed. "Of course I do! My two favorite people are in love! That's like Christmas to me! But like I said, I just want you to promise me you'll take good care of him."

"I promise... but shouldn't he take good care of me, too?"

Mandi rolled her eyes. "Of course he will. He's head over heels for you. And look how rich he is!" she giggled, and the two hugged. I don't feel so troubled about this anymore, thought Jenni. Now that I know that I have support, maybe things'll be a bit easier... for the both of us.

Upstairs, Willy was sitting up in bed, frowning. Jenni and Mandi had been downstairs a long time, and he was starting to feel lonely.

"I wonder what they're doing?" he thought aloud, debating if he should peek out his door to see them. After waiting a few minutes, he sighed, and laid his head back down on his pillow. "Whatever. They'll come back eventually, I suppose," he said sadly, closing his eyes. He wanted Jenni. Even though she was only in the other room, he still felt completely abandoned without her. And he missed Mandi as well, but not in the same way that he felt about Jenni.

I love Jenni... he thought. And I love Mandi... but I don't love Mandi the same way that I love Jenni... I'm so confused... His head started to hurt a little, adding to his frustration, so he decided to let himself sleep to evade the debate in his mind.

It was a warm, sunny day outside, and the breeze felt nice against Willy's skin. He could see a silouehtte in the distance, but he couldn't make out who it was. He squinted and walked slowly towards the shadow.

The person turned, and it was Jenni. She was smiling warmly, and she instantly put her arms around him.

He did not shudder, but he smiled back.

"Willy... I love you..." she said softly, kissing him on the cheek.

He felt his face become more warm than the surroundings. "I... I l-love you too, Jenni..." he said, slightly startled.

A small frown came onto her face. "You're not lying, are you?"

"Of course not!" he said quickly.

"But what about me?" a voice interrupted.

Willy turned around to see Mandi, crying. "I thought you loved me," she said sadly. "But apparently, you love her more." She turned to walk away.

He ran up to her. "Wait! Don't leave! I love you too!" he said.

"But you said you loved me!" said Jenni, starting to cry.

"Wait..." Willy was more confused than ever. With both girls crying, he didn't know who to talk to, who to comfort, who to console. "I love... I love you both. But, it's not the same..."

"What do you mean!" demanded Mandi. "What are you saying!"

"He's saying that he doesn't love you!" yelled Jenni.

"Wait... you misunderstand, I-"

Both girls glared at him, and he started to cry himself, and ran away, leaving the two arguing amongst themselves.

When Willy woke up, he was breathing slightly heavily. The dream had felt so real... especially since Jenni had seemed so angry earlier.

But when he turned around, he saw both Jenni and Mandi sitting by him, smiling.

"Hey sleepyhead," chimed Mandi. "You looked like you were having a nightmare."

"That'll make the millionth one this week," laughed Jenni. "What did you dream about, Willy?"

Willy could only blush; it felt a little embarassing to have dreamt about the two of them, especially when they had been fighting over him in the dream, and how could that possibly happen? "Um..."

"Don't worry about it. Sorry we left you alone," said Mandi, taking his hand.

"We had to talk some things over, that's all," added Jenni, taking his other hand.

Now Willy seemed stuck in the middle, just like in his dream. "Er... what did you talk about?"

"You, of course," said Mandi.

"And we came to some conclusions," said Jenni. "Mandi loves you like you're a little brother-"

"And Jenni loves you as a boyfriend," finished Mandi.

Willy was bewildered. He had known that Jenni had well, liked him, and she even said she loved him. But he didn't know she meant like that. Jenni grinned at him, and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "How do you feel about that, Mr. Wonka?"

"I...I..." He was practically speechless. "I... l-love you, too..." Truthfully, he did love her back. He was just confused. But happiness was now spreading through him, the familiar warmth he had felt before.

Mandi pulled him into a tight hug. "Aw, you two will be so sweet together. Well, I gotta go, I haven't visited Mum yet. But I'll come back later, if it's alright with you." She winked at Willy. "See you two later."

Jenni waved, smiling, and Willy just stared open-mouthed as Mandi left the room.

Now they were alone. Again.

"Well... now that we're alone," said Jenni, smiling slyly. She pulled Willy into another hug, and the two kissed.