Disclaimer: I don't own it! I have one OC that I do own, Laurie, but that's it.
A/N: Umm thanks for the reviews. I am happy to annouce I offically have more hits on this story then my previously completed one, Out of This World. Ummm for all of you out there reading this and not reviewing I want to please ask you to review because it makes me smile. And it makes me inspired to update quicker. Anyways I'm sure you want to go on and read to story...so...
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Chapter 5:
Laurie couldn't seem to sit still. Shuyin's heavy arm around her was beginning to feel like ten pounds of bricks on each of her shoulders.
"I have to use the restroom." she whispered in Shuyin's ear before sliding out of her seat and power walking off in the direction of the cotton candy booth. What is taking those two so long? She thought impatiently. In the background Forest Gump, the first movie of the night's double feature, had started.
When she arrived at the cotton candy booth Tidus and Rikku were nowhere to be seen. Hmph, thought Laurie annoyed, they're probably back at Silver Crest by now. Riku probably freaked when I tried to flirt with him. Laurie decided she couldn't take it anymore. She began to shakily walk to a small alleyway she knew existed between two of the old dormitories. "I haaatttteeeee my life!" she practically screamed when she was out of earshot of the crowds at the drive-in. "I hate hate hate hate it!"
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Rikku heard Laurie's screams and pulled away from Tidus immediately. She got off of his lap and sat down against the brick wall. It didn't look like Rikku and Tidus had been kissing at all. They just looked drunk, which they were.
"Oh my freaking god. I thought you abandoned me." Laurie's voice shrieked when she entered the alleyway and saw, what she thought to be, a beat-up Tidus and a beat-up Rikku. She ran over to them and flung herself down onto Rikku's lap. "I thought-hiccup-I thought you hated me…" she said, tears cascading down her cheeks.
Rikku looked at her with vapid eyes. She remained quiescent for a brief moment before wrapping her arms around Laurie and patting her back in a friendly gesture of comfort. "Shh," she whispered in her most soothing voice, "where's that sanguine Laurie I'm used to? Calm down we're here for you." Even though this palliative comfort wouldn't last Rikku felt it was her duty, as a friend, to comfort Laurie. And then it was her duty to talk Laurie into driving herself and Tidus home because they were très drunk.
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Shuyin, Lenne, Baralai, Gippal, and Kairi sat quietly watching Forest Gump for a brief while before anyone mentioned the absent friends.
Baralai, as usual, spoke first. "Guys I haven't seen Laurie or Riku and Tidus for awhile. Do you think they're all alright?" Shuyin rolled his eyes and Lenne tried to conceal a small smile. Kairi and Gippal basically didn't pay attention.
"I guess I better go find Laurie and all…" Shuyin said, getting up from his seat hesitantly. Lenne sighed and sagged into her chair. Although she knew Shuyin had stronger feelings for her then Laurie truth was, and Laurie knew this too, Laurie was his girlfriend. Yeah, but don't you think he'd leave her for me? Lenne thought, Shuyin's feelings for her being questioned in her mind, What if he is just using me?
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Laurie sat down in her Honda Civic and placed her perfectly manicured hands on the steering wheel. Silently she slipped on leather driving gloves and turned the key in the ignition. Rikku would leave her Jeep in Dunsberry's parking lot overnight and then in the morning she could talk Shuyin into driving her over to pick it up.
In the warm backseat of Laurie's impeccably neat car Rikku sat down and leaned her head against the window. As they drove the setting sun left shades of purple, pink, and orange tinting the fields and trees they passed. Upon entering the main entrance of Silver Crest a deer darted out in front of the car.
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About fifty minutes later an ambulance was on the scene as an unconscious Tidus was placed on a stretcher.
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!" Laurie kept repeating over and over. Rikku tried to remain as calm as possible, but in her drunken state she was having trouble even walking strait.
"We're going to have to ride over to the hospital and the police will ask you a couple of questions about the accident when we get there." a friendly female officer explained to Rikku and Laurie.
Tidus' blonde hair was matted with dark red blood and his eyes were closed. Rikku felt so guilty for aiding in getting him drunk. She felt guilty and somewhat responsible for what happened to him. But must of all she was thinking of all the ways she would have to make it up to him.
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Shuyin walked around the main area of the drive-in for awhile with no sign of Laurie. After taking one more lap past the restrooms and food booths he decided to go and sit in the old alleyway alone.
When he arrived in the alley he smiled at the memories of flinging stones at Laurie's dormitory window two years ago and trying to convince her to come down. He touched the aged bricks and remembered the times when he and Laurie would use chalk to draw pictures on the walls of the buildings. He remembered one time, before they started dating, when he had tried to serenade her with his horrible singing voice.
"Shuyin? Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" Lenne's voice interrupted his memories.
"Uh yea. What do you wanna talk about?" Shuyin responded curtly. Lenne sighed and walked up to Shuyin apprehensively.
"I want you to make a choice. It's either me or her." Lenne said softly. Shuyin withheld a chuckle before trying to sooth Lenne. It wasn't that he didn't like her, he did, but she wasn't exactly proper girlfriend material. She didn't even live close to him. Next week Lenne and her friend Paine would go back to their home town and Shuyin would make it up to Laurie.
"Calm down Lenne. Come on, look at the stars." Shuyin said, putting his 'charmer' face on. Lenne sighed and realized she wasn't going to get her message through to him until he learned that she had enrolled in Dunsberry Prep.
After he found out she'd be living here, then he'd have to make a choice.
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The ER was ten minutes away from Silver Crest's campus. Rikku and Laurie sat in the morbid waiting room as family members milled about waiting for news on their loved ones. A few scolding stares were directing towards them when the police officers arrived and directed them in a private waiting room. Once inside the officers sat down and sternly looked across the table at Rikku and Laurie.
"Please tell me, in your own words, about the accident." A heavy set officer said as he sipped his grandee coffee from Wawa.
"Who else's words could I use?" Rikku snapped angrily. She felt angry at herself, angry at Laurie, angry at the deer, and most of all angry at her stupidity.
"Umm calm down Riku. I'll explain it." Laurie soothed gently. She placed her hand atop Rikku's and began to slowly and correctly explain the events of the night. "Here's the long story. Tidus, Riku, and I were at Silver Crest and Dunsberry Prep's annual movie night. Riku and Tidus left our group of friends to go buy cotton candy. They didn't come back for awhile so I left the group to look for them. I found them drinking soda and watching the sunset from behind one of the dormitories. I was upset because my boyfriend is cheating on me with my cousin so I started crying. I thought everyone abandoned me and Riku and Tidus comforted me. Then Riku suggested that we go back to Silver Crest to relax in the park and be away from all the chaos. I agreed and on the way back I swerved out of the way to avoid hitting a deer. The car crashed. End of story"
Rikku was taken aback by Laurie's a-matter-of-fact approach to the situation. The way she calmly explained everything with just enough detail and the way she methodically broke down the story.
"Well that story seems to check out with all the evidence…" the officer trailed off. Rikku was thankful that she could hold her alcohol and thatshe and Tidus had taken about seventy breath mints Rikku had brought with her. There was no way they would find out about the underage drinking. Unless they look at Tidus' blood alcohol levels. There's no way we can cover that up...She thought regrettfully.
"Can we go see Tidus now?" Rikku asked anxiously. The officer seemed a bit apprehensive.
"I guess I don't see the harm in it. But be careful he is very weak. His blood alcohol level turned out to be five times above what is considered healthy for twenty one year old adults. Which means it's even worse in a fifteen year old." The officer waged his chubby finger at Laurie and Rikku before jotting Tidus' room number on a scrap piece of paper.
"Thanks!" Laurie called out quickly as she and Rikku sprinted out of the private waiting room.
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Tidus lay very still in his hospital bed. He had woken up from his unconscious state only a couple of minutes earlier. He felt very stiff and his entire head was throbbing. The last thing he remembered was kissing Rikku in an alleyway and then…and then it all went black. A flash of Laurie driving a car and a flash of a deer were the only other two memories Tidus could recall of the night.
"Hey Ti? You mind if we come in?" Rikku said as she knocked very lightly on his room door.
"Of course I don't. Come on in." Tidus said weakly. Rikku shuffled into the room followed by a meek Laurie. A thousand different wires were all hooked up to Tidus and a tube which was helping to flush the alcohol out of his blood were surrounding his bed. Large black circles lay under his eyes and his hair was coarse and matted.
He looked horrible. Rikku managed a weak smile and Laurie sat down immediately in the chair by the bed. "How does it feel?" Rikku said in a lame attempt to make conversation. Tidus almost chuckled before gritting his teeth in pain.
"Quite frankly, not good." Tidus said with a slight grin on his disheveled face. Rikku smiled and mustered up all her courage to prevent her from bursting out in tears.
"So, have the police spoken with you yet?" Laurie said from the chair she was seated in. Tidus' slight grin faded into a slight frown before he answered.
"No really I only gained conciseness about ten minutes ago. They told me the principal of Silver Crest was on his way over here to visit me. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing." He said a hint of worry crossing into his voice. Rikku patted his hand and sat down next to Laurie.
"Tidus I just want you to know I'm sor-" Rikku began to apologize.
"Don't apologize Rikku. I got myself into this mess. It's not either of you guy's faults. Don't blame yourselves." Tidus said. Rikku's eyes darted to Laurie to see if she had noticed how Tidus had spoken to her. It was a very subtle difference, but it was still there. Tidus spoke with her like she was a girl, which she was, instead of like she was a boy like everyone else thought.
"Ahem. I hate to break this little party up, but I need to have a private word with Mr. Wes-Tara and his father who will soon be connected to us through speaker phone. Mr. Chanek and…friend…please wait in the waiting room." Mr. Skari the principal of Silver Crest said upon entering the room. Rikku and Laurie skirted out quickly and went to the gift shop to pick a Get-Well-Soon Balloon out for Tidus.
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"Ahem. Mr. Wes-Tara," Silver Crest's ancient principal said apprehensively, "I want to warn you before hand, this meeting is not for pleasant matters." Tidus' eyes grew a tiny bit larger but otherwise he didn't show any form of expression.
"What have you done now son?" Tidus' father, Jecht, said from the speaker phone.
"I'll answer that for you. Mr. Wes-Tara your son has reached a blood alcohol level which exceeds all normal limits. Further more we have great reason to believe that he got drunk during a school sponsored event which led to him being in the hospital. The Silver Crest Code clearly states students who become thoroughly intoxicated will be suspended from school and housed at the nearby public school until three months after the date of intoxication. Also Mr. Tidus Wes-Tara will be unable to compete on the school sponsored teams until four months after the intoxication. Mr. Tidus Wes-Tara's suspension will begin as soon as he is released from the hospital." Mr. Skari finished.
The room remained deathly quiet for a moment, all awaiting Tidus' father's response.
"I guess you're too much like me son." Jecht said from the phone. "You'll do the suspension you can stay with our cousins who live in town. You better work hard and get back in that school ASAP though. If you two don't mind I have other business to attend to." A click was heard and the phone line went dead.
Mr. Skari adjusted his thick-rimmed glasses and cleared his throat. "This is the school schedule you'll be using while you attend San Francisco High School South. In three months you will be getting a letter from Silver Crest with all your registration information. I will call your father again and find out the address you'll be staying at. We will have your luggage delivered there." Tidus closed his eyes and fought back from screaming in Mr. Skari's wrinkled face.
Instead he kept his eyes closed until he heard the door click and knew that he was finally alone.
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Rikku sat in her empty feeling dorm with a strong pain of guilt surrounding her. Her roommate was gone and all evidence along with that. And it was mostly her fault. How was she supposed to know that this would happen? Rikku collapsed onto her bed and closed her eyes. A strong feeling of guilty fatigue creeping over her.
Suddenly a noise was coming from the living room area of the dorm and Rikku sat up strait. "Tidus? That you?" she called out hopefully. Maybe Mr. Skari revoked his suspension. Maybe it was all a big mistake.
"Hey new roommate!" a somewhat familiar voice called out into the room. Rikku's ears perked up. Was that person who she thought he was?
Rikku walked out into the sitting area to see that she was right. There sat her new roommate.
"Since Tidus is on suspension for three months and all they put the next-best Blitzer in his dorm temporally." a fatigued looking Gippal said.
Rikku nodded at the explanation and sat down on the sofa. These were going to be an interesting three months.
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a/n: Poor Tidus. But it had to happen that way. Anyways review and I'll get started on the next chapter!
PS. Mr. Skari was the name of my principal in Jr. High. Lol. Yeah I always thought it was a funny name.
LUCY!