Oh my gosh, guys. I am *so* sorry for lying about the update. I just had some personal stuff come up that I've been working through and couldn't find it in me to write much. However I've made this story my focus for Camp Nano, so hopefully I'll be able to get a couple chapters pumped out with that for motivation! Again, so sorry for such a long wait.
Anon. Reviews:
Melody Jane: Thank you! ... and hmmm.. Interesting theory... You might just find out if you keep reading... ;)
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Peyton floated around the warmly lit lobby, a champagne glass marked with a green stem resting lightly in her hand. She sipped at the sparkling cider and sighed as she made another round passed one of the waiters with a tray of appetizers.
She'd been to company parties before. She knew the dance that had to be performed. But none of the parties she'd attended had ever been quite this grand or lavish. An entire floor of the corporate building they were in had been cleared out for the event. She didn't even want to know what all the glitzy Christmas decorations had cost. There was actually even a life sized swan ice sculpture at one end of the room.
Her substitute parents had left her to her own devices after doing a tour around the room with her to present themselves as a happy family unit to other business associates. Peyton had smiled and indulged them, which they seemed to take in stride. But now she didn't know what to do. It would look odd for her to try and engage in conversation with people who were her actual, true age; and there wasn't an abundance of teens here that she'd noticed.
Peyton fiddled with the shiny, black clutch under her arm. It was a bit bulky with Lex's present inside, but she refused to not wrap the gift. It was small and silly enough as it was, putting it in a gift box was the least she could do.
She continued in her meandering around the room, enjoying the way her heels sounded on the sleek wooden floors and wondering where Lex might be. It was really sad that he was the only company she could keep in this place.
"Peyton?"
She swiveled at her name. The voice hadn't been Lex's, or one she recognized, but that didn't really surprise her. A blonde headed boy was making his way towards her; he looked about the same age as Lex, and Peyton felt a twinge of recognition. She'd definitely seen him before... at the school. Oh! Right! That Oliver kid. The one who thought he ruled the campus, or something like that. Peyton sniffed, took a deep breath, and pasted on a polite smile.
"Hello... Oliver," she said. She held out her hand to shake and she noticed his look of confused amusement. Instead of shaking her hand, he theatrically bowed and kissed her knuckles. Peyton quickly pulled her hand free, subtly wiping the back of her hand on her dress.
"What's with all the formalities, Pey," he asked. "I haven't even heard from you since break started."
Peyton winced slightly at the nickname with the relief that he at least didn't try to use the term "Pey-Pey". Not that she necessarily was anti-nickname, but she didn't know who this boy was and she still wasn't sure that she liked him. So far, he gave her a haughty vibe that was already prickling a few nerves.
"Christmas has been busy," she said lamely. "I've been doing holiday stuff."
He snorted.
"What? Like hanging out with Lex Luthor?"
"Excuse me?"
Oliver huffed out a false laugh and Peyton furrowed her brows further.
"Oh come on. We all saw the tabloid pictures. Are you hanging out with that loser now? I thought you didn't like him."
Peyton cocked a disbelieving brow at the boy and came to the conclusion that he wasn't going to be her new favorite person. True she may not know the full dynamic between the two boys, but there was still some basic decorum one usually followed in company. And he was certainly old enough to know better.
"That's rude," she said dryly. "You know whose party you're at, right?"
Oliver laughed easily.
"Lionel Luthor's," he said. "And since when did you care about being rude?"
She rolled her eyes and brushed back her bangs. Before bothering to reply, she took another sip of her sparkling cider and adjusted her grip on her clutch.
"Since recently." She bit out. "Although your attitude is certainly starting to test it." She smiled sweetly and enjoyed the look of stunned surprise that graced his features.
"Whoa," he said holding out his hands. "Sorry, I didn't know you'd finally grown a backbone."
Peyton's grip on her glass tightened as she shot a glare at him.
"Wow, ok, I think this conversation has-"
There was a hand at her back and Peyton jumped slightly as she swiveled to see who'd snuck up on her.
"Oh; Lex! There you are."
He hardly glanced at her as he was too busy glaring a hole through Oliver's head and still hadn't removed his hand from her back as the boys had a silent face-off. If Oliver was more antagonistic with Lex than her, she could understand the look. She swiveled to face Lex more, and to free herself from his grip. His fingers tensed a moment before he let them fall away, but his expression hardly flickered. Oliver snorted. He dipped his head down and lifted his own glass mockingly as a smile tugged at his lips.
"Good to see you actually showed up," Oliver said. "I was beginning to wonder."
Lex's lips pressed together thinly as his gaze flickered a moment.
"I see you're taking advantage of the refreshments already."
Peyton didn't understand the jab at first. She glanced down at her own glass, the green stem darker at the bottom and fading as it reached the curve of the cup. Oliver's glass, oh, Oliver's glass was red instead of green.
"Hey," she cut in, "you're too young to be drinking-"
"Did your dad not allow you to wear your hat? Too much of an embarrassment? You could at least put on one of those cheesy Santa caps, your kind of blinding the roo-"
"Ok, that's enough!"
Peyton shoved her almost empty glass behind her into Lex's chest, and she felt him take it as she rounded on Oliver and jabbed him in the chest with a finger.
"So far you have been nothing but rude and condescending. You are a guest at someone else's party and there are rules and decorum and a basic little thing called manners. I don't care what kind of stupid rivalry you and Lex have. I don't care who said what to whom! I don't care how much money your family has or how special you think that makes you."
Oliver backed away, his eyes wide as he stared down at her in her aggressive chastisement.
"Unless you can be civil and polite, I expect you to not speak to either of us for the rest of
the evening; do I make myself clear?"
He stared, bewildered, at her as if she'd grown another head suddenly or started spitting flames. Raising his hands in mock surrender, Oliver huffed out a disbelieving laugh.
"Woah, calm down, mom. We were just having a bit of bantering, right Lex?"
Lex glared for a moment with nothing but a deep seeded hatred in his eyes before he bit out a,
"Whatever."
Peyton sensed that this conversation had no chance of being salvaged, so she tugged on Lex's arm and drew him away. Lex felt stiff and moved like it as she positioned them across the room away from Oliver. His hackles were up, that much was obvious, and it bothered her. Apparently not even the rich and extravagant were safe from bullies. There was always a bigger fish, she supposed.
They'd come to stop by a large hearth that popped and crackled and added a certain warmth to the corporate party. Peyton stood and let her back warm and her temper cool as she allowed Lex a moment to simmer in his anger. Having two brothers settling into their teen years had taught her that a boy's ego was easily bruised and those slights not quickly forgotten.
"Well," she finally said with a sigh. "At least we got that part over with."
Lex's gaze shifted to her as she brushed an imaginary strand of hair over her ear.
"What part?"
"The awkward conversation part. They're obligatory at parties like this, you know. But it's good to get them out of the way early."
Lex huffed a bit in forced amusement and shoved his hands into his slacks pockets.
"Just one?"
Peyton shrugged one shoulder.
"I said awkward, not pointless. Anyway, you have to brush it off and let it go; who even cares what he thinks. Don't let that jerk ruin your Christmas."
When he still wore his pouting expression, Peyton rolled her eyes and pulled her clutch out from under her arm.
"I got you a present," she sang.
He perked up at that. Peyton clicked open the clutch and pulled a small wrapped box. She'd kept it traditional and simple and wrapped it with shiny green paper and finished it off with a red ribbon and bow. For a second she hesitated, turning the box in her hand and twisting her lips.
"But don't get your hopes up. It's pretty dumb. I just sort of figured you'd already have everything so-"
Lex snatched the gift from her hand like she might change her mind and not give it to him. She watched in amusement as he hefted it in his hand.
"Can I open it now? Or is peeking off limits until tomorrow?"
"You can open it whenever you want; it's your present."
With a tug he was pulling her by the hand across the room to a more quiet corner away from most gazes. A large Douglas Fir was placed along one wall, and it stood at least ten feet tall. It was decorated with gold and silver baubles and draping tinsel and Peyton wondered just how they'd gotten it into the building. Partially hidden by the boughs of the tree he finally stopped and let go of her hand.
"Right," said Peyton. "That's what I was forgetting. The correct atmosphere."
Lex ignored her as he studied the wrapped box one more time before pulling off the ribbon and tearing open the paper. He pulled the lid off the box and Peyton nibbled at her lip as he pulled the homemade gift from some crumpled tissue paper.
She'd made him a keychain and she felt a little silly for it, but really. She was trying to work with what she had.
"I told you it's kind of dumb, but X-Boxes haven't been invented yet and you'd probably have one already if they were."
The Warrior Angel and Devilicus figurines she'd bought dangled from an eye and chain that she'd managed to screw and glue into the tops of them. On a longer chain, below them, hung one of those small keychain picture holders, and she'd clipped out their tabloid photo and placed it inside.
"I swear there's a rhyme and reason to this," she continued. "So, I don't know if you remember, but when I first met you-"
"I asked you to play with me," Lex finished. "You let me play the hero for hours. And I'm pretty sure you keep getting Devilicus' name wrong on purpose."
Peyton smiled primly and neither confirmed nor denied the accusation.
"And I know the picture isn't exactly ideal," she added, "but it was the only one I could find of us together. At least, you know, one where it's me, and not the other Peyton."
He studied the figurines a moment, smiling softly, before he moved onto the photo and his smile widened.
"It's perfect," he finally said. "It's not dumb."
Peyton smiled happily, fidgeted on her feet and rubbed the back of one arm briefly.
"Well, it's just a keychain."
"I'm not so rich that I can't appreciate a heartfelt gift," he said flatly. "Thank you."
His thank you was much warmer and Peyton let her smile go a bit quirky as she gave his arm a quick squeeze.
"You're welcome. And now you'll have something to remember me by."
Lex frowned at that.
"You still think you're going back?"
"I have to eventually, right? I mean, I have to believe I'll see my family again."
He nodded once, stiffly. His eyes darted around the room briefly before he flashed her a smile and tucked his new keychain in his pocket.
"How about I get us another drink? You want coffee or sparkling cider or…"
Peyton had never been one for champagne, and she really didn't want to drink it in a sixteen year old's body. Lord knew what it'd probably been through already.
"Sparkling cider is fine," she said.
Lex disappeared into the crowd and Peyton hummed a bit as she rocked on her heels to wait. The room was still milling with conversation and sporadic laughter. She shifted, one conversation rising above the others from a group of older men who seemed to be lauding the success of keeping employee benefits to a minimum. Her irritation spiked at the smug tones and condescending nature, and she couldn't help herself. Before she had time to really consider if it were a good idea or not, she'd inserted herself into the conversation and engaged men with much more business experience than her in debate.
She was so riled up by their blase attitudes and obvious dismissal due to her apparent age, that she forgot what year she was in and started referencing studies done that proved happy employees were twelve percent more productive, which obviously actually increased profits and quality work. Some of the men quieted down as she carried on, and she felt a bit victorious for it, until the hairs on the back of her neck prickled and she shut up and turned around.
Peyton was met with the dark, piercing gaze of Lionel Luthor. He hadn't changed drastically from what she remembered from their first brief meeting. His hair was a bit grayer around the temples, but in all other respects he was just as sharp and unsettling.
"Mr. Luthor."
She bobbed her head respectfully while her eyes darted around in search for Lex. He was behind his father, two glasses in hand, and shooting her a sharp look that she took as a warning.
"Miss Woods," Lionel greeted. "I don't believe I've ever seen you so animated. I sincerely hope party conversation hasn't been so upsetting as to incur your wrath."
"Not my wrath… sir. Just my debate; not that I anticipate any change to come from it."
"As only heir to the family business," Lex cut in, "I'm sure Peyton has been privy to plenty of debates by now."
He stepped in front of his father to hand her a glass, and Peyton took a large swallow to distract herself. Unsettling didn't seem enough of a word to describe Lionel Luthor. From her brief time under his scrutiny, she found he had the knack for making a person feel hunted, analyzed, and found lacking all within the span of a minute. His very words felt like they hid a secret test, one that she was failing if Lex's face was anything to go by. She sighed internally and shrugged with a roll of her eyes.
"But, like, whatever; right? What do I know?"
Her transition to flippant teen had seemed to work well enough with her oblivious parents, but it didn't seem to help much with Lionel. He eyed her liked she were a new curiosity and Peyton cursed being trapped in this stranger's body yet again.
Just how was she supposed to act?
Lex placed a hand at her back and she was about to protest quietly when she noticed the action dragged Lionel's attention away.
"I'm sure you've seen the papers, dad."
Lionel's lips twitched in a familiar way, a familial trait, she supposed.
"More than that," he said. "I've borne the brunt of Merrill Woods' enthusiasm on the subject." Peyton winced and Lionel laughed. "Yes," he agreed. "Though I kept my reaction a bit more subdued."
Lex's hand on her back tensed and Peyton took another drink as she watched him shift.
"Well, no need to run the subject into the ground then. Peyton and I have to go."
Peyton noted the tight, uneasy way Lex spoke to his father. She might've protested at the sudden liberty Lex took to direct her actions, but she was just as eager to leave his father's presence as he seemed to be. That and she was reluctant to bring more attention to herself than she already had.
Lionel dipped his head in what felt more like permission than acknowledgement.
"Of course; mingle amongst your own peers. I look forward to seeing you again, Miss Woods."
Peyton didn't know where they were slinking off to but she followed Lex, only hesitating a moment to keep her manners and bid Lionel a good evening.
Lex seemed to be intent on leaving the main party room as he made a beeline towards the open double doors which led out into a wide hall. She knocked back the last of her drink to set it on a passing waiter's tray before they exited the room; which turned out to be a bit of a feat given the clip Lex had them moving at now. Peyton was relieved when they finally passed the threshold and out of the immediate crowd of people.
"Peyton!"
A hand yanking on her elbow had her jerking back and a scowl already forming before she'd even noticed her accoster was Oliver.
"I've been looking all- hey, get away from him. I saw that freak drop something in-"
"Let go of me."
Peyton wrenched her arm out of Oliver's grasp, glaring openly now as she backed away from him and further into the hall. He looked agitated, possibly even fretful, as he swiveled between shooting sneers at Lex and looking over her as if to find evidence of some wrongdoing. Lex went tense next to her.
"Listen, he slipped s-"
"No offense," Peyton cut in, "but unless you're here to apologize, I don't want to hear it. Ok?"
Grabbing Lex by the elbow, she ushered them further away from a gaping Oliver. For a few moments it was silent.
"Fine! See if I try and help you out again!"
She grit her teeth and muttered under her breath.
"I never wanted to be sixteen again in the first place."
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Peyton managed to survive the rest of the party with Lex. At her inquiry, he assured her he'd be fine Christmas morning, that he was used to the routine with his father by now, and Peyton accepted it because she was too intimidated to re-approach the corporate titan. And although the rest of the evening went along quietly, she was drowsy and ready to go home by the time her parents finally decided to make their leave.
And then she was stumbling up the stairs to her room, peeling off the fancy dress, and flopping down onto the large princess bed to sleep until late Christmas morning.
Christmas day was quiet. The house staff had the day off, and Peyton was forced to interact with her stiff, alternate parents one-on-one for a few hours. She opened the gifts they'd gotten her, mostly clothes or expensive trinkets, and reacted with grateful enthusiasm the way her mother had taught her. They both seemed shocked that she'd actually gotten them gifts in return, but accepted them nonetheless. Whether they truly liked them or not, Peyton didn't know; and she didn't quite care.
Although she knew it wasn't Christmas back home, she still couldn't help but feel the sting of emptiness in the holiday here. If it were Christmas back home, they would have had red and green pancakes for breakfast with little chocolate chips sprinkled all through them. They would have laughed and sang badly along to a couple Christmas carols before the twins got too fidgety and demand that they start passing out gifts. Her parents always let them go first, just enjoying the process of watching their excitement and glee.
Why did a few days without seeing them suddenly feel like so much longer?
Peyton found herself roaming around by herself by lunch. She text Lex a Merry Christmas, then sent one to Annalise as well because she was bored.
She wandered and tried to keep herself busy the rest of the day, the sound of her barefeet padding along the wooden floors some of the only noise in the house. She didn't see her parents again until dinner. And while the conversation was idle and shallow, Peyton supposed it was better than the silence.
When she curled up in bed that night, she'd felt the heaviness of sleep sink in, only to stop at that point where the world grows fuzzy and all sounds are far away. It wasn't quite a state of knowing, but Peyton was certainly aware of something. She reached out but couldn't quite grasp her consciousness well enough to figure her situation out.
"-up! Pey- ok -please!"
"Yo- nee- ma'am- there-!"
Something in her yearned to join the voices. It felt like it would be right. Something tingled in her… neck? Arms? She could dimly see a shadow. And then there was a loud ringing right in her ear and she lost focus.
Peyton blinked, eyelids feeling like weights, as her phone next to her bed screeched at her. With a groan she rolled over, snagged the cursed brick, and hit the green button.
"Hello?"
"Peyton?"
Peyton dug into her eye with her fist as the lilting question told her all she needed to know.
"It's me, Lex. Still here."
She was sure she heard a sigh at the other end of the line as she swung her legs over the bed and stood up.
"You weren't answering my texts," he explained.
"I was sleeping."
She certainly heard him huff.
"Well you might want to get dressed. I'm already halfway to your place."
Peyton froze, already poised under the threshold of her bathroom door, and scowled.
"Seriously? What time is it?"
"I'm bringing coffee."
She planned on reprimanding him further, but she remembered he'd just mentioned that he was already on his way.
"Just hang up and drive. You're going to get yourself killed."
"Yes ma'am."
Peyton scoffed as she tossed the phone back onto her bed and shucked off her pajamas for a quick shower. Under the hot spray of the shower head, she attempted to shake off the last coils of anxiety left over from her odd dream.
[]
Lex tried to ease her ire and the accompanying scolding she had planned by immediately handing over a cup of coffee and a small wrapped box. Peyton took the items with a surprised blink as Lex let himself into the manor. He had a backpack slung over his shoulder as he made his way out of the foyer and down the hall. Peyton took a quick swig of coffee, sucked in a deep breath, and then let it out slowly before following after him.
"Oh hey, Lex. Come in. It's been far too long; nice to see you."
She trailed after him huffily as he let himself into the study they'd first used to pretend to do homework in. He flashed a smile over his shoulder, looking irritatingly pleased with himself, but didn't slow.
"Thanks for inviting me in," he goaded. "I'm sure you'll be glad you did once I agree to help you out with the homework."
Peyton paused in the doorway to the study, processing his words as he carelessly dropped his book-bag onto the nearby desk.
"Homework?"
"We actually did have some assignments over break. I'm assuming you haven't done them."
Groaning, Peyton ran a hand across her face and sighed.
"Something tells me this girl isn't one to do her work ahead of time."
"Not really."
It was still too early to be reminded she was supposed to be in high school. Instead she leaned against the desk in the room and eyed the small, wrapped box Lex had passed her. It was wrapped in a sleek silver paper, done by someone who hadn't wrapped very many presents before but had tried their best. She smiled fondly at the tucked in edges and excess tape.
"So can I open this now?"
Lex looked up from the books and notebooks he'd pulled out of his bag and nodded. His pale skin tinged pink around the cheeks.
"Yeah. If you want."
Peyton noticed the keychain she'd made him clipped to his bag and laughed lightly.
"Ok."
Carefully, she pulled the tape away until she could slide the box out from the paper. It looked like a long jewelery box, usually what a bracelet or a necklace came in, and Peyton gnawed lightly on the inside of her cheek before working up the nerve to pull the lid off.
Inside, hanging off a thin silver chain, was a small heart-shaped locket. To Peyton's relief it was relatively simple, and not encrusted with precious gemstones. There was a little engraved filigree around the edges, but that was it and it suited her tastes just fine.
"It's beautiful, Lex," she said. "Thank you!"
"It opens," he offered.
Peyton clicked open the clasp and one side sprung away. Inside he'd placed a picture of himself that looked fairly recent. It looked like it could have been one of the wallet sized photos from a school pictures packet, and she couldn't help wondering if private schools had their students pose next to a fake tree with even faker smiles as well.
"Ah," she exclaimed. "It's perfect! Now we both have something! You really didn't have to get my anything. Thank you."
His shoulders relaxed marginally at her extra praise and he gestured towards the necklace.
"Do you, uh, want help… putting it on?"
The chain had a simple clasp that she'd long since figured out how to manage, but given Lex's tentativeness and the fact that the locket felt weighted like real silver, she decided to indulge him.
"Sure."
Peyton turned so her back was facing him and held out the necklace. When she didn't sense movement after a moment, she cut her eyes over at him.
"Well, come on. We do have homework to get to, right?"
He shook his head as her words sank in and moved forward.
"Right," he said. "I'll just, uh-"
As he accepted the chain and fiddled to open it, Peyton brushed her hair to one side and waited. Before the silence became thick, she saw his hands come from around the back of her neck before disappearing again as the heart locket rested right beneath the hollow of her throat. A warm breath of air puffed against the back of her head, causing an involuntary shudder from her, followed by a nervous swallow, and then Lex was attempting to smooth her hair back in place.
"Thanks!" Peyton stepped out of his reach and turned to face him with a flashing smile. He looked a bit flustered and though that hadn't been her intentions with letting him help, she felt a bit guilty still. He was only seventeen. Of course he was going to get easily confused. Peyton continued on to distract both of them.
"It's the perfect length. Now let me see if I can find this girl's backpack somewhere up in her room."
Lex's lips ticked downward slightly either at her abrupt change of subject or at the reference to the other Peyton , but she ignored the expression and gave his arm a quick, comforting squeeze as she passed him to exit the study.
She ran upstairs and dug around her room for a few minutes before finding the girl's backpack, textbooks and notebooks untouched inside, and then darted back down to the study. Lex had already spread out his papers and books by the time she got back and she grit her teeth as she dropped into the chair next to him.
"This sucks," she said. "I mean, it shouldn't be too hard, but still. I already did this once. How dare they make me do it again."
"I guess you could just refuse to do it," Lex said lazily. He was a bit more relaxed in his chair now, to Peyton's relief. "Or you could try to explain the situation to them. They might make an exception for you."
Peyton rolled her eyes and she huffed as she forced out a breathy laugh.
"Hardy-har. Please don't drop out of school to become a comedian."
[]
Much to her chagrin, she did actually did engage his help with some history homework, not exactly her top subject. But when she pulled out a math book her face lit up and she eagerly opened to the page that Lex announced as the given homework. Lex, in contrast, approached the homework with a resigned unenthusiasm; his lips pressed together and gaze bland.
"Finally," Peyton said to herself. "Something that doesn't change no matter what universe you're in."
"So you think. You are breaking all the rules of physics and the known universe."
"Hush, you. You're amazingly unhelpful."
But she had to, perhaps a bit begrudgingly, admit that Lex was an extremely intelligent teenager. He did most of the math homework without even hinting around for answers and Peyton made sure to use the math methods that the book explained, and not whatever shortcuts she'd learned over her time working.
The room was warm and quiet. For a while the only sounds were the scratching of pencils and creaking as they both shifted in their chairs. It reminded Peyton of college study sessions in the library, complete with the smell of worn pages and stained wood. Her lips ticked up unbeknownst to her as she scribbled down another solution.
"Do you have a calculator? It doesn't say you have to show your work for this section."
Lex tapped his eraser on his paper as he glared down at his textbook.
"Yeah," he said without looking up. "There's one in my book-bag."
"Awesome."
Peyton stood and stretched. A couple vertebrae popped as she arced her back and reached her arms behind her. When she opened her eyes, she caught Lex's gaze and shot him a glare. His eyes snapped back down to his paper and she snorted out a puff of air from her nose.
There were several other books in his bag when she tossed the flap over and began digging around. She shifted between the hardbacked texts and spiral notebooks until she saw a black, brick-like object emerge.
"There you are."
The ancient calculator was quickly pried from its surroundings, only so send something rattling into the bottom of the bag. A flash of white caught her eye, and Peyton's brow furrowed as she reached into the bag again.
"Wait, no!"
It was a pill bottle.
Her heart dropped as her brain rattled through all the things that a preppy teen boy could be hiding. Non-prescribed ritalin? Ecstasy? She didn't even know what all kids could get access to in high school, let alone rich kids. But this was none of those things.
"A sleep aide?"
When she turned to look at Lex, his face had gone pale, arms tight against his sides as he pressed his lips together and seemed to wait. Peyton lifted the bottle.
"Are you having trouble sleeping? Is it stress or-"
She paused, noting that he only tensed further as she continued to speak. Why was he trying to hide something so mundane? Her heart palpitated as she eyed the bottle again. Her palms felt suddenly moist.
"Are-are these not for you, Lex?"
He broke eye contact for a moment, she saw his chest hitch in a broken breath, before he turned back and tried not to fidget.
"Peyton-"
"No."
Her free hand pressed against her lips as every memory was pulled up for questioning. All the coffees he'd brought her, him purposefully handing her a cup instead of letting her pick, the drowsy feeling that always seemed to cling to her when it never had before.
The fact that she hadn't yet woke up back home.
"Have you been drugging me?"
Her voice was shrill and warbled in the middle as her insides fell. Lex's eyes widened and he took a hurried step forward, arms up already in defense.
"It's not like what you think!"
"Not like-? Ok, so explain it then. Because it seems like, to me, you've been slipping me
Melanin pills every day so that I stay in this body and hang out with you!"
Lex stopped. His left fist balled up tightly and he glowered in what almost looked like a pout.
"Well it sounds bad when you say it like that."
Peyton grit her teeth as she felt a swell of adrenaline sweep up her limbs.
"It is bad!"
"I don't have any friends! I just wanted to get to know you better; I'm sorry."
Her fingers tightened around the bottle and her arm almost jerked up, but she was able to keep herself from chucking the bottle across the room.
"No. You do not get to make this about you. You used information I shared with you against me. You drugged me. And this entire time, I have been terrified that I would never go home again. And you knew and you said nothing!"
Peyton stopped and made herself take a couple deep breathes. Lex stood still, head slightly hung as he remained silent. The silence only enraged her more. She threw the bottle back into his bag and then shoved the bag into his chest.
"I think you need to go."
Lex's expression flared in a wide panic and he surged forward again while clutching his bag.
"Peyton, wait! I'm sorry, ok? I messed up. I panicked and didn't know what to do!"
She stood firm. His loneliness, and probably neglect, had her sympathy, but this was too far.
"I'm sure you're sorry," she said. "But you still need to leave." Her bottom lip trembled as she pointed to the door. "I need- I need time to think about this."
Lex's expression fell, shuttering closed. He straightened his posture and Peyton clenched her teeth.
"You'll be gone and you'll hate me."
It sounded like another manipulative statement laced with fear, and Peyton didn't plan on indulging this one.
"I don't hate you, Lex. But I'm beyond hurt, and furious, and extremely disappointed. I will text you before I… before I'm gone."
His eyes burned red and his lips were pressed together so firmly they were hardly visible, but he nodded nonetheless.
Lex walked passed her, pausing for a moment as if to say something, but then continued on. Peyton remained silent as she watched him go and blinked more furiously as he exited the study.
The echo of his footsteps faded away as he made his way further down the hall. Peyton closed her eyes and Alet out a ragged sob as the front door clicked shut.
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Thank you for sticking around through my garbage updating habits! And for those of you who were hoping for romance... just wait a bit! Peyton is still mentally older than Lex in his universe, and she isn't thinking about him that way. (As she shouldn't.)
Next chapter will have a Lex POV though! ;)
