Friday, October 11th, 2013: Girls' Dormitory - Rooftop
"OW! Owowowow. Owwwwwwwwwwww..." Victoria whines as Kate helps her limp over to the nearby ledge, before gently guiding her to sit with her back up against the smooth gray stone.
It all started a few minutes ago, while the pair of them still clung tightly together as they danced in smooth, slow circles, well after the song they were originally dancing to had ended. Her phone next shuffled to Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley, which probably wouldn't have been Victoria's first choice for a follow-up, but at least the title felt apropos to her current mood of utter relief at the fact that Kate was ok. She was here, in Victoria's arms with her head resting on the taller girl's shoulder. The truth was, it didn't matter to her if Rammstein was playing next… Kate's happy little sighs and the thudding of Victoria's own heart in her ears was music enough for her.
She did, however, eye her phone suspiciously when Don't Stop Believin' was the next song in line, wondering if she was starting to pick up on a theme here. Again, she normally wasn't the type to believe in woo-woo crap, but all the inexplicable things the girls had experienced lately, combined with the fact that she DID just tell God to go fuck Himself, made Victoria feel justified in being at least a little nervous.
They barely made it past Steven Perry crooning about the city boy taking a midnight train when Kate let out a loud, horrified gasp, her downturned eyes going wide at the sight of the trail of blood Victoria was leaving behind on the stone tiles with each step. Placing both hands on Victoria's shoulders to pull her to a stop, she stepped back to inspect her shoeless feet, her hazel eyes worried and accusatory.
"Oh my God, Victoria, what happened?!"
"Huh?" the pixie-cut blonde asked, before her emerald eyes followed Kate's to a smear of red near her right foot.
"Oh, I don't know, maybe I popped a blister or something running up the stairs? It doesn't even hu—" her voice cut off in a strangled gasp of her own when she raised her foot, toes curled inward, at an angle where she could see that the black fabric of her tights were positively soaked through with the sticky red fluid. Suddenly, the sharp pain she'd been ignoring during her mad dash up the stone steps leading up to the roof, during her impassioned plea to save Kate's life, and during the sweet reward of the dance that followed, all came rushing back to her. When she lowered her foot again, she found she could barely put her weight on it at all without receiving a pang of sharp, piercing agony for her trouble.
Now, with her back against the ledge and her leg outstretched, Victoria sucks a pained breath through her teeth as Kate gingerly lifts it up to inspect the wounded foot.
"I can't really see anything… c-can you take these off?" Kate asks, a couple spots of pink forming on her cheeks.
"Trying to get my pants off already, huh?" Victoria coos with a sultry bite of her lip. If it's a choice between wallowing in pain and giving someone shit, Victoria will almost always choose the latter. Kate's blush deepens and she quickly looks away as Victoria starts hiking up her skirt to wriggle the black fabric down her toned legs.
"There…" she sighs wistfully, pouting at the fact that Kate didn't try to sneak a peek before she pulled her skirt back in place. She leaves the leggings pooled about halfway down her calves so that Kate can pull them the rest of the way.
Kate carefully peels the fabric off the damaged foot, hissing out a frantic "sorry!" when the blood-caked material sticking to her skin causes Victoria to wince. She follows this by ever-so-gently wiping at some of the blood with one of her thumbs in search of the wound.
"SHIT!" She exclaims suddenly, a hand flying up to cover her mouth and her eyebrows rising in alarm at what she sees.
"Umm, language, madam," Victoria snorts with amusement, ignoring the incredulous frown this earns her. "I mean, Gee-golly-gosh-darn-heck! I don't think my virgin ears can handle this sort of vulgarity!"
But she finds herself suddenly devoid of mirth when Kate turns her foot at enough of an angle to allow Victoria to see the little shard of red-stained, mirrored glass that has managed to work its way through the thin fabric and into her soft flesh at a nearly horizontal angle. It must have gotten snagged in her tights as she stormed out of her room earlier, and ground its way into her skin during her mad dash up the stairs. Having never been too keen on the sight of blood in the first place, this makes Victoria's face go green as she turns away, having to fight off the urge to dry-heave.
"Just… just sit tight, ok? I'm going to get my first-aid kit and I'll be right back." Kate wads up the removed tights to form a make-shift bed for Victoria's foot. With a final, worried frown and an almost guilty look in her eye, Kate turns and bustles through the door and into the stairwell beyond.
Left to her own devices, Victoria heaves an exasperated sigh and picks up her phone and its ever-increasing pile of unread notifications that she's been avoiding for the past couple of days. Giving it a quick scroll, she sees that it's mostly boilerplate Vortex crap interspersed with Taylor and Courtney checking in, asking if they'll see her at lunch, etc. If it were up to her, Victoria would throw the damn thing over the ledge, choosing to forget about "real life" and its associated dramas in lieu of staying up here dancing with Kate… at least until it gets cold enough to force them to retreat to the comfort of one of their rooms.
But, like it or not, Victoria does live in the real world… and if she doesn't deal with her real-world issues, she knows they'll find a way of dealing with her instead. Thus, with an angry cluck of her tongue against her teeth, she pulls up Nathan's contact. She hasn't received a word from him, or any evidence that he's attempted to contact her at all, since before the party yesterday. Not that she expected anything else, but being proven right doesn't make her any less furious.
Jamming her thumb down onto the "Call" button, Victoria raises the phone to her ear. If he thinks he can just ghost his former best friend after the shit he tried to pull, Nathan most definitely is in for a very rude awakening.
Three calls that go straight to voice-mail later, an increasingly enraged Victoria switches to texts.
Vic - So… what? I don't even get a
"Yo V… Sry 4 tryin 2 kidnap u last nite. My B lol"?
ANSWER YOUR GODDAMN PHONE – 10/11 11:55 AM
Vic - Seriously WTF Nate?
After all I've done for you?
MAN THE FUCK UP AND TELL ME WHY
You OWE ME that much at least! – 10/11 11:57 AM
Vic - CALL ME BACK. NOW!
OR THE NEXT CALL I MAKE IS TO THE FUCKING COPS – 10/11 11:58 AM
Victoria is well aware of just how much of an empty threat that last text might be. She hasn't had the chance to think things through yet, but she knows exactly how deep in the Prescott's pockets the Arcadia Bay Police Department is, and how little the word of a passed-out "drunk" girl and that of someone half the Blackwell Academy student body would testify to being her stalker would mean to them.
Still, she has to do something. Victoria can't just let Nate get away with shit like this. She just needs time to plan out her next moves, so that when she goes after him, she can go at him HARD.
Her eyes are drawn to the sound of the door opening, and to the tiny girl in the black party dress coming through it. The breeze blows Kate's long, honey-colored hair to the side, causing a few stray strands to alluringly get caught in her red lips. She hurries over with a bulky first aid kit in one hand, and a pair of blue and white converse sneakers from Victoria's closet in the other.
But even as her heart swells at the sight of Kate, the nasty blue and purple bruise that covers the left side of the girl's jaw and part of her cheek makes her blood run cold at the same time. It's a stark reminder that Victoria isn't the only one who has to be worried about what might happen if Nathan comes back. In fact, being the only sober witness to what actually happened that night, if anyone is in danger it would be Kate, not her.
The wheels start turning in Victoria's mind as the girl who quite possibly saved her life kneels down in front of her, fussing over the contents of white and red box in her hands. The next threat she sends Nathan is anything but empty.
Vic - If you ever touch Kate again, I'll kill you. – 10/11 12:00 PM
Victoria chews on the inside of her cheek, continuing to anxiously tap away at her phone while Kate tends to her wound: picking out the shard of glass with tweezers; cleaning the blood away with antiseptic wipes; applying peroxide to the wound itself before sealing it closed with an adhesive bandage.
But it's not the injury itself that is driving her nerves. The shard of glass wasn't nearly as big and hadn't punctured nearly as deep as it looked at first glance. Instead, it's the fact that every time she looks up and sees that angry bruise on Kate's face or the scabbed over scrapes on her knuckles, the same words replay in her mind:
'You can't even deal with a little 120-pound girl...' Victoria sneered. '... maybe it's time to grow the fuck up and handle your own shit!'
'Yeah… sorry Vic…' Nate glowered, before casting his hard-eyed glare in Kate's direction. '… this isn't over, bitch.'
At that time, all Kate had done was humiliate Nathan in front of half the dorm. Humiliation compounded exponentially by Victoria emasculating him over it, so caught up in her own drama with Max at the time that she didn't even consider the potential consequences of her words.
But now that Kate has beaten the living shit out of him? All to save Victoria's ass? Nate put that one girl, Samantha, in the fucking hospital for much less.
Victoria may not have pulled the trigger, but she can't help but feel like she's helped load the gun that is Nathan's rage and pointed it right at Kate.
And if Victoria goes to Wells or the cops, what then? She can see things going two ways. The obvious choice would be the Prescotts and their lackeys taking a page right out of the Samantha playbook, making Nathan out to be the victim in all of this. Hell, they'd probably have it much easier this time around, as Sam didn't have hands that looked like she just came back from a barfight. They would claim that Nathan was taking Victoria to go get help, Kate attacked him unprovoked, and he hit her to defend himself, which had just enough truth to it to make anyone predisposed by Prescott money more than happy to accept it as fact and look the other way.
Victoria doesn't even want to think about the second possibility: that the police somehow believe their story, and decide to move forward with charges based on Kate's testimony alone… making the girl a major fucking problem in Sean Prescott's eyes.
No, if she's going to do this, Victoria needs a plan. And… she at least has the beginnings of one. One good thing about being Nathan's friend/babysitter all these years is that she knows how to get inside his head, how to push his buttons to… well, not control him, per se, but to at least nudge the boy one direction or another. If she confronts him about what he did, maybe she could convince him to turn himself in… or at least record herself badgering a confession out of him.
Of course, to do that she needs to find him… but that's putting the cart before the horse, as they say. Because right now, step fucking one is to get Kate someplace safe, so Nathan has no idea where to find her in case he does come looking. And that means she needs to convince Kate to let Victoria take her away from here.
…
The sound of Kate sniffling distracts Victoria from her scheming. When she looks up, she can see that tears are dampening the girl's cheeks while she wraps Victoria's wounded foot in gauze.
"Katie? What's wrong...?"
Save for the continued sniffling, Kate remains silent for several moments… her full lips pressed into a thin, distressed line. She doesn't meet Victoria's eyes when she finally speaks, her chin quivering with emotion.
"You... You hurt yourself. And it's my fault." Those last words just barely avoid coming out as a sob.
Of course, while Victoria is sitting there worrying herself into developing an ulcer over how to keep her from getting hurt, all Kate Marsh is thinking of is Victoria. It would be almost funny if the miserable, guilt-stricken look on the girl's face wasn't just heart-breaking.
"Oh, Katie, no..." Victoria soothes. "I'm the dumbass who thought jogging up the stairs after walking through broken glass was a good idea."
Obviously not in the mood to find her words amusing, Kate firmly shakes her head as she gently lowers Victoria's freshly-gauzed foot back to the wadded-up clothing that is serving as its makeshift cushion. Her body shudders while she seethes with self-directed anger.
"But you did that to help me! And... and I saw your room, Victoria. Your mirror... Your b-beautiful pictures... It wasn't like that before I..."
Shit. Victoria hadn't thought about the fact that Kate must have seen the disaster area she left behind after raging out earlier, when she went in her room to retrieve her shoes.
"No, hey… just look at me, ok?" Victoria leans forward to nudge the girl's chin upward, finally coaxing those glistening hazel eyes to meet her own.
"What happened in my room is not your fault, alright? You may have noticed that I have some minor anger management issues, from time to time?" The corners of Kate's lips twitch up just a tad at what they both know to be a strong contender for understatement of the year. Good.
"Well… after you left, I was really pissed with myself. For a lot of things, but mostly for being too scared to stop you from leaving, to tell you just how much I needed you to stay. I looked around and all I could see was a girl who can do anything except what she really wants… and I guess I had to just kick that girl's ass a bit. And I'm glad I did, too, because it seems like it helped give her the courage to get off her ass and come find you."
"Besides..." she smirks as she slides her fingers up to caress Kate's swollen cheek. "You got yourself hurt for me too... would you let me say you shouldn't have done that?"
Kate covers Victoria's hand with her own while she holds her stare, and she can feel the pulse quickening beneath that hot skin. Finally, she shakes her head, her eyes softening and her frown fading into a pretty little pout at not being able to come up with an argument against that.
Damn straight. I'm the QUEEN of guilt trips. Git gud if you wanna step to me, scrub.
"Here." Victoria smiles while patting the tile next to her. "Come sit with the cripple for a minute."
Kate returns Victoria's smile with a shy one of her own when she scoots over to take the spot at her left. Looking down at the abraded hands that demurely rest in the girl's lap, Victoria can't help but reach for them with one of her own. Kate graciously takes it in both of hers.
"Still…" Kate says, darting chastising eyes up to Victoria's face. "The dance could have waited…"
"Nope." Victoria responds with a pop of her lips. "It was totally worth it."
"But…" the girl whispers, trying to argue despite the happy gleam in her eye.
"Totally was…" the short-haired blonde cuts her off with a grin. "10 out of 10, would dance with glass in both feet next time."
Kate looks down at the manicured hand in her lap, unable to fully suppress the sweet little smile tugging at the corners of her red lips.
They sit in a comfortable silence for a couple of minutes, before the worries that have been gnawing at the back of Victoria's mind finally force her to speak.
"Kate…" she starts, peering at the girl out of the corner of her eye. "I… don't really feel safe staying here tonight."
It's not really a lie, per se. At this point she truly has no idea what Nathan's capable of… however, if it was just herself she was worried about, she'd probably opt for sharpening her toothbrush into a prison shank and lying in wait for him. But Kate is involved, and she really doesn't want the girl to be anywhere near this school until she figures out what the hell she's going to do.
"I need to get out of here, clear my head so I can decide what to do about… about Nate. There's a hotel I stay at in Portland sometimes, and I was thinking about going for the weekend."
Victoria can see the worry growing on Kate's face as she speaks, her tone anxious and protective. "Victoria… I really don't like the idea of you being that far away from me right now…"
"I know." Victoria smiles, giving Kate's hands a squeeze this time. As always, her little bunny seems inclined to hop right into the snare she has laid.
"That's why I was hoping you'd come with me."
Spots of pink grow on the suddenly flustered girl's cheeks. "B-but… I don't really have a lot of money for a hotel room…"
"Well I wouldn't offer if I minded covering for you. Besides, I'll be staying there regardless, so it's not like you would cost me any extra."
Kate's eyes widen at that. "You… you mean, you want me to stay in the same room?"
"Duh…" she snarks, punctuating it with a lascivious eyebrow waggle as she unlocks her phone. "One king-size bed should do, right?"
"Vic… Victoria…!" Kate complains, her face growing tomato red as she looks away.
Victoria knows she shouldn't tease Kate like this, especially since she's the one who said they should take things slow. But she just can't help herself when Kate makes it so much fun.
"Oh, calm down, I'm kidding," She grins wolfishly while nudging the girl's shoulder with her own. "There's an adjoining room, see? You can even lock the door if you want, to protect yourself from my wicked ways."
But she wonders if she's pushed things a little too far when Kate flashes her that look, the one that says 'Bitch, you might need that lock way more than me.' Suddenly Victoria's not sure which of them is the bunny and which is the wolf. It's all Victoria can do not to cartoonishly gulp at the sight of it.
"You… you can say no, if you want. And if so, I'll stay here, because… because I don't want to leave you alone, either."
Kate's eyes are mysterious now as she searches Victoria's for a long moment, one that seems to stretch out into eternity.
C'mon Katie… please say yes… I swear, all I want is to keep you safe.
It definitely has nothing to do with her desire to keep her and Kate in their own little world for just a little while longer. To take time to get to know her, to wine and dine her a little… nope, nothing to do with any of that at all. Strictly altruistic, this plan is.
Finally, the girl's face lightens as she giggles melodically, her eyes dancing with mirth like she was just reminded of an inside joke.
"So…" Kate asks coyly, "Are you saying you want me to hop in your fancy car so we can leave this poop-hole town behind and go on an adventure?"
"This WHAT-hole town?!" Victoria cackles. "Bitch, you literally just said 'shit' like five minutes ago."
Kate grins despite her ever-deepening blush. "Sh… shithole town…" she manages to mumble, before covering her mouth to hide her own embarrassed laughter.
"Much better." Victoria chuckles, before giving the girl an expectant smile. "So… is that a yes?"
Kate thinks it over for a moment, before dropping her hand to reveal one of those bright smiles that seem to always make Victoria's heart skip a beat.
"It… honestly sounds like a dream come true."
...
Uhhh, damn… swoon, much?
"Perfect…" Victoria manages to say, feeling her own lips stretch in an effort to match Kate's as her heart goes into over-drive. With a final tap on her phone screen, she adds "There… all booked. We probably should go get ready, I've got a couple things I need to do around campus before we go."
"O-Okay!" Kate beams, scooting forward to help Victoria into her sneakers.
They have to unlace the right shoe about halfway to allow the gauze-covered foot to fit inside, but once Kate helps her stand up, she finds that putting her weight on it hurts far less now that the glass has been removed. They hold hands as they make their way to and down the stairs, Victoria only limping slightly as they go.
When they arrive at the second-floor landing, however, the sound of voices in the hallway beyond causes Victoria to freeze, her eyes locked on the closed door in front of her. It's lunch-time now, so of course some of the students would be filtering back into the dorms. Up until now, whatever this is between her and Kate has existed solely between the two of them. With everything going on, she honestly hasn't had time to think about what it might mean for both of their social circles outside of it.
But Kate gently disengages her hand from Victoria's, giving the taller girl a pure, understanding smile. A smile that says 'It's ok if you're not ready yet. We said we'd take it slow. I can wait as long as you need me to…'
Victoria bites her lip as she stares into those unwavering hazel eyes. The Victoria of yesterday would have jumped at the offer to preserve her image that much longer, at least until she had a meticulous plan in place for how she wanted to move forward.
But that Victoria didn't know how it felt to wake up in Kate's arms, or to come so close to losing her forever. That Victoria didn't know what it was like to get lost in those beautiful eyes while they danced together on the rooftop.
Fresh start…
Victoria grabs Kate's hand and pushes the door open, her cheeks pink and her eyes locked straight ahead as she confidently pulls the girl along with her into the hallway and on toward their rooms.
They walk right past Stella and Dana, the dorm-neighbors' idle conversation dying instantly as they watch the pair stroll on by with eyes wide and mouths agape. They must be quite the sight, with Victoria surely more bedraggled than they've ever seen, and Kate still in her little black dress with her long hair down and flowing behind her.
"KATE!?" Stella's shocked voice finally calls after them. "Is… is everything ok?"
"Yeah…" Victoria can hear the brightness of Kate's smile as she turns her head to address her friend, squeezing her hand tightly the whole way.
"Everything's perfect…"
Blackwell Academy - Courtyard
About twenty minutes, an extremely Spartan shower (hair, face, pits, and crotch), and a quick change (blue jeans and a halter top to match her sneakers) later, Victoria finds herself standing with her back to the wall at the "smoker's corner" by the Pool locker room entrance. She's feeling a bit self-conscious, of course, having had little time to work on her appearance... she wants to get on the road as soon as possible, after all, and she needs to talk to her friends before lunch is over and everyone heads off to their next class.
The one affectation to her vanity Victoria did allow herself is her oversized designer sunglasses, both to shield herself from the increasingly brutal midday sun, and to hide the horror show of red, white, and green her eyes have become since this morning's intense vomiting session. The glasses do make it harder to pull off her patented death glares, but her disdainful sneer seems to be enough to send any would-be smokers scurrying back the way they came.
Victoria is mostly through her first cigarette of the day when she spies Taylor and Courtney exiting the main building. She stubs it out against the wall as they approach, doing her best to steel her nerves against the bomb she's about to drop on them.
"Hey girl!" Taylor starts brightly, before her expression progressively descends into one of concern as she gets close enough to get a good look at Victoria's face. "Umm… how are you feeling? You…"
"JESUS CHRIST, Vic you look like SHIT!" Courtney exclaims, her face a mixture of horror, disappointment, and that familiar dread the girl seems to experience every time she sees Victoria not being completely on top of her game. Not surprisingly, more than a few heads from students scattered throughout the courtyard turn at the sound of her outburst
"Gee, thanks! You bitches always know how to make a girl feel pretty…" Victoria scoffs, though she knows they're right to be concerned. Her hair is a damp, untamed mess, and since she had no time for make-up, her face is pallid and sunken, showing the strain of her alcohol/whatever-else induced hangover, the time she spent wrapped around one of the toilets earlier, and the fading remnant of Max's slap on her left cheek. 'On brand', she is not.
Not that any of that matters right now.
"Have... either of you heard from Nate since last night?" Despite trying to keep her tone neutral, some of her worry came through if the looks on their faces are anything to go by.
"Nah..." Courtney shakes her head. "He wasn't in Calculus earlier, and I definitely haven't gotten any texts."
Taylor gives Victoria a fretful look. "Not since I left you with him... Why, did something happen?"
Victoria sucks at her teeth as she considers her next words, focusing on keeping herself calm. She's cried over Nate enough for one day. Shit, she's done enough crying to last a lifetime at this point.
Finally, after taking a deep breath, she lets it all out in a rush.
"I think Nate spiked my fucking drink last night. And I know he tried to take me somewhere I didn't want to go."
Taylor and Courtney's jaws drop in unison. That was definitely not what they were expecting to hear.
"Oh my God, Vic…" Taylor gasps out, her eyes wide as saucers. "Are… are you sure? I mean… I know Nate has issues but… he adores you…"
"Y-yeah… I m-mean…" Courtney stutters, shaking her head in disbelief. "You were hitting it pretty hard, right? M… maybe you just passed out? Wouldn't be the first time one of us has had to help you get—"
"Look, I know what drinking until I pass out feels like. I know what a fucking hangover feels like. And this isn't it..." Victoria snaps, rubbing at her temples to ward off the steady throbbing in her head that has been returning ever since her post-dance euphoria has started to wear off.
"I don't remember everything, but I remember enough. How goddamn shady he was acting, especially before giving me that last drink before I passed out. And him dragging me down those steps right over there to his shitty fucking truck. And… and Kate saw it too. The only reason he didn't take me where-the-fuck-ever is because she was there to save my ass."
That last sentence didn't help alleviate the mistrust in Taylor's eyes at all. "Kate… Kate Marsh? Vic… you know how this sounds, right?"
"It sounds fucking BATSHIT." Courtney cries, clearly going through some of the same stages of panicked denial that Victoria herself was feeling mere hours ago. "You're trying to tell us your best friend since middle school tried to kidnap you out of fucking nowhere, and that psycho little baby-lez stalker stopped it? Are you sure it's not the other fucking way around?!"
"Court… Court, calm down, let's just hear—" Taylor soothes while touching the brunette's shoulder. Her empathetic eyes are locked on Victoria's face as she struggles to keep her emotions in check. She's not going to cry again, she's just NOT.
"Hear WHAT?! More excuses for why we shouldn't just crush that crazy bitch like a bug? What's it going to take, for her to start walking around campus wearing your fucking SKIN?! Vic, you know—"
"I KNOW how fucking scared I was last night, OK?!" Victoria practically wails. "I KNOW Kate was there for me, when NO ONE ELSE was! And… and…"
She sniffles, and when she reaches up to touch her cheeks, her fingers come back damp. GOD DAMMIT.
"… And I know after the last few days I don't have many fucking friends left… you two are basically IT. That's why I really need you to BELIEVE me right now!"
While a tear-stricken outburst like this was the last thing Victoria wanted to happen, at least it seems to snap her friends out of their doubts as their expressions shift to ones of guilt and horror.
"Oh, fuck, Vic—of course we believe you…" Taylor sobs, throwing her arms around the shorter-haired blonde. "I'm sorry… I'm so fucking sorry… I knew I shouldn't have left you last night…"
"Y… yeah…" Courtney sniffles, looking at the two of them miserably, obviously not sure what to do. "S… sorry for being such a shitty friend…"
When Victoria holds her arm out to beckon Courtney in, the brunette lets out a sob of her own as she rushes to join the three-way hug.
"It's ok… It's not your fault, I should have been safe with him..." Victoria sighs into their ears. "And, I get it… I don't want to believe it either, and I was there…"
"What… what are you gonna do?" Taylor asks, her voice strained.
"Fuck if I know…" Victoria shrugs, taking the opportunity to escape from the hug so that she can wipe at her face. At least this time she doesn't have any make-up to ruin. "Try to find him, I guess. Make him tell me WHY. After that… you may not even want to know."
She checks the watch on her left wrist. "But… for right now? I'm gonna get out of town for a few days, see if I can get out from under all this insane drama long enough to figure things out."
That sets Sweet T fretting once again. "I really don't think you should be alone right now…"
"I won't be." Victoria replies matter-of-factly.
"Then… who…?" Court asks with a confused look.
Victoria smirks as she tilts her head down enough to peer at the girls over her glasses. "Wouldn't you like to know."
That causes Courtney to cross her arms and regard her with a suspicious squint. But while Taylor's expression is mostly unreadable, Victoria's pretty sure she can see the beginnings of a coy, knowing little grin starting to form.
"Look… I need you to spread the word to the other girls, ok? ALL of them. And… if you, or anyone sees or hears from Nate, call me. I'll be back as fast as I can."
After receiving affirmative nods from Tay and Court, Victoria pauses long enough to kiss each of the girls on the cheek before turning away. She leaves them to stare nervously at each other in her wake as she heads for the locker rooms.
Blackwell Swimming Pool – Locker Rooms
Victoria stomps her way through the door leading into the boys' locker room, paying absolutely no mind to the fact that she's walking right in the middle of the football team while most of them are still nude or clad only in towels following their post-practice showers. Steam billows along the ceiling, emanating from the stalls running nearby.
One of the Bigfoots, a walking slab of beef named Sebastian or Hank or Whogivesashit, gives a low whistle at the sight of her, causing the others to turn their heads as he looks her up and down.
"Damn, girlie, you're in the wrong room. What, you here to audition for a Brazzers video or somethin'?" This elicits a round of guffaws from the assorted meatheads in the vicinity.
"Whatever," she scoffs, sparing him only a passing glance as she makes her way to her target. "Like I haven't seen a dozen shriveled dicks in one place before." The laughs and 'Ooooh's that follow are even louder than before.
"Where's Nate?!" Victoria snaps as she comes to a stop right in front of Zachary.
"Yo, Vic…" the much taller boy coos, a shit-eating grin plastered all over his face. He flexes his pecs a couple of times, standing in a way that shows off his washboard abs and hanging schlong like he thinks she gives even the tiniest of shits about either of them.
He looks around the room, giving his audience a knowing smirk. "You know you don't gotta make up an excuse to finish what you started with those texts, right? All you gotta do is show up to my room in just that necklace of yours…" he raises his hand to reach for the string of pearls around her neck.
His little innuendo prompts a round of catcalls and innuendos, as hoax or not, their text exchange had surely been a hot topic around here at the time. Even Logan, standing to Zach's right, gives a buffoonish har har in response… though he at least has the decency to eye her nervously while wrapping a towel around his lower half.
"Let's try this again…" Vic growls, batting Zach's hand away while taking off her glasses. She studies the floor as she secures the glasses in the neckline of her top, pausing for full effect before giving Zach the iciest glare she can muster… one that offers a full view of the angry red smears from the burst capillaries that dominate the whites of her eyes.
Zach's eyebrows shoot upward in shock at the sight of it, and his back bangs into the lockers behind him as he takes an involuntary step backwards. The boy flinches as Victoria steps forward to deliver a hard poke to his right pec.
"Tell me where the fuck Nathan is right now, or I'll shove that football so far up your ass you'll have to squat to score your next touchdown!"
"SHIT, I don't know, okay?!" Zach complains, holding one hand up in surrender while the other rubs at his chest as though she just stabbed him. "Last I saw, he was at the bar with you."
Victoria turns her baleful gaze on Logan, who simply shakes his head mutely while holding up both hands, before hurriedly grabbing for the towel as it starts to slip from his waist.
"Fine," she practically spits. "If you do see him…? Tell him to answer his GODDAMN PHONE."
With that, Victoria turns to leave... but not before giving each of the assembled Neanderthals a long, pointed, appraising look. The dismissive sneer on her face clearly stating 'you have been weighed, you have been measured, and you have been found... wanting.'
The sight of all these big, manly men turning away from her gaze or suddenly covering themselves with hands and towels causes a self-satisfied grin to slowly spread across her face as she strolls out.
Heh, yep... I've definitely still got it.
The thrill of total social dominance is short-lived, however, when just a few steps toward the exit Victoria is yanked to a stop by a hand that snags the neck strap of her halter top. As much as she'd like to turn and find the identity of her new assailant, it's all she can do to stay upright as the hand proceeds to drag her stumbling and sputtering backwards into the girls' locker room on the opposite side.
"L… LET ME GO!" she shrieks, just before the owner of that hand complies by practically hurling her into the empty room. She rounds on the offender, all manner of furious invectives forming on her tongue for whoever dares to be impudent enough to manhandle her like this, on today of all days.
The curses die on her lips, however, when she recognizes the heavy-set, purple-haired girl who has planted herself between Victoria and the exit. Alyssa Anderson - dressed in her standard scene-kid attire, arms crossed over her chest and an angry grimace to rival even Victoria's best plastered on her face.
Oh, shit.
Having both attended Blackwell Academy since Freshman year, the two girls had never been on the best of terms. They were essentially oil and water: where Victoria was a social climber who craved attention, Alyssa was basically a loner who always had her nose in a book. And while the purple-haired girl never seemed to care when insults were thrown her way, she did have a way of planting herself between bullies and their would-be victims… and when she did, there would suddenly be this invisible edge to her. One that said 'trust me, you really don't want to fuck with me right now.'
The tension between them really started to ratchet up at the beginning of their current term, however… especially when Kate came into the picture. She often found that when the three of them were in the same room, Alyssa seemed to position herself between Kate and Victoria, almost like a mother bear protecting her cub. And sometimes when Victoria would fall into that all too common dance of / Stare at Kate for reasons she can't explain / Kate stares back and smiles / Suddenly look away, anxious and flustered / she'd catch Alyssa looking right at her with eyes that seemed to say 'I know you're going to hurt her, and when you do you're fucking dead.'
And, oh yeah, did Victoria mentioned that Alyssa knows kung-fu? That's the rumor around campus, at least… mainly because the girl seems to have an uncanny knack for somehow spotting and evading any projectiles thrown her way… or catching it and redirecting it back at whoever threw it. And while one errant football getting beaned right back into the head of the jock unfortunate enough to toss it in her direction would be chalked up to coincidence, after the fifth or sixth such incident the consensus was split between the girl either knowing kung-fu or having spider-sense… not that anyone really believed in sci-fi super-power bullshit like that.
Victoria didn't buy any of it, of course… well, not until the incident in the girl's bathroom a few days ago, anyway. That day, Victoria was in rare form after Alyssa had been caught throwing a toilet paper roll at Max, and had managed to corner the girl with Courtney and Taylor in tow for back-up. Her fury overriding her sense of self-preservation, Victoria pushed Alyssa in the shoulder before demanding to know what her problem was… at least, that was the plan, until she somehow managed to find herself flat on her ass with her arm twisted behind her back before the push even had a chance to land.
"I didn't throw ANYTHING at Max," Alyssa had growled in her ear, the menace in her voice making the hair stand up on the back of Victoria's neck. "I was aiming for YOU."
"I have no idea why she cares so much about a bitch like you, but I'm warning you: Leave. Kate. Alone."
"Oh y-yeah?" Victoria stuttered in response, while Tay and Court stood uselessly by, their eyes wide with terror. "A-and what are you gonna do about if I don't, Daniel-san? Crane-kick me? Sweep the leg?"
"Make her cry ONE more time, and you'll find out…" she snarled before releasing Victoria and exiting the room, pushing right past her friends as if they weren't even there.
So… yeah. That's why Victoria would much rather face down the entire football team, their greasy wieners all helicoptering in unison, than be on the receiving end of Alyssa Anderson's glare right now.
"J—Jesus, Anderson, the hell did I do this time?!" Victoria whines, rubbing where the neckline of her top had been pulled taut against her chest during her recent mauling.
"What the HELL is your problem, Victoria?!" Alyssa demands, her face absolutely livid.
The sheer absurdity of the question forces an anxiety-fueled laugh to escape Victoria's mouth before she can even think to catch it. "Seriously?! Do you want a fucking LIST? You're gonna need to be way more specific after the week I've—"
"You know what I'm talking about!" The purple-haired girl growls while advancing on her, forcing Victoria to backpedal until it's her turn to be pressed up against the lockers. Her reddened emerald eyes widen when Alyssa shoves a phone in her face.
Stells - O_O
:o :o :o :o
(°-°) (°.°) – 10/11 12:32 PM
ALYSSAbeth Lavenza - ? – 10/11 12:35 PM
Stells –
KT Cakes – Hey Stella… If it's not too much trouble,
KT Cakes – Would you mind watching Alice for me
KT Cakes – over the weekend?
Stells – HEY STRANGER.
Stells – DUH u know Auntie Stella always loves 2
Stells – hang out with her favorite niece. Y tho?
KT Cakes – Because… I'm going out of town.
Stells – Srsly? Family getaway or sumtin?
KT Cakes – No…
KT Cakes – I'm going with Victoria :) :) :)
KT Cakes – :'-)
Stells – WHAT
Stells – SHUT UP
Stells – GIRL IM COMING OVER – 10/11 12:37 PM
ALYSSAbeth Lavenza - WTF?! – 10/11 12:38 PM
Warren G – whooooooa plot twist! (°◇°) – 10/11 12:38 PM
ALYSSAbeth Lavenza - Stella? – 10/11 12:40 PM
Victoria can't help but smile a little as she reads Kate's messages, her heart fluttering once again.
Well, the cat is definitely out of the bag now, but… crap, does she have to be so damn adorable about it?
But Alyssa's free hand slamming on the metal a few inches from her head brings Victoria back to the situation at hand.
"Is this some kind of sick PRANK?" Alyssa snaps. "What's the plan, get her hopes up and then ditch her… or something worse? I TOLD you to leave Kate ALONE."
Victoria knows Alyssa's accusation is a fair one to make, given how fraught her and Kate's interactions have been since the girl's public freak-out in this very room a couple weeks back. More than fair... she's just being a good friend, after all. Trying to keep Kate from getting hurt.
But it makes her hackles rise, regardless. She's done with being afraid, both of how she feels about Kate and what people will think of her if she's with Kate. And if that means getting beat up by Alyssa in the girls' locker room, then she may as well just get it over with. Fully expecting to get karate-chopped or judo-flipped for her trouble, Victoria plants both hands on Alyssa's shoulders and pushes the startled girl backward.
"Oh really, Anderson? What the hell do you think I've been trying to do this past month? If you haven't noticed, Katie can be pretty goddamn tenacious when she puts her mind to something! But you know what? I'm sick of running from her. I'm sick of pretending like I don't have feelings for her. Because I finally got it through my thick skull that the only way I can stop hurting her is to stop pushing her away."
Alyssa's jaw remains firmly set, and her eyes are hard as stone as she searches Victoria's face for even the slightest hint of bullshit. Since she has yet to be sucker-punched or hurricanrana'd or whatever, Victoria presses on.
"Kate… stopped Nathan from hurting me last night. And I don't know if he's going to try to come back, but I don't want her to be here if he does. So yeah, I'm taking her out of town until I get all that sorted out, and I'm going to make sure she has a great fucking time while we're there. And if that means I have to take a beat-down from your My Chemical Romance-groupie looking ass, then bring it. Because… because she's worth it."
The tension in the air is palpable, but Victoria holds her ground… refusing to flinch from that steely blue glare.
…
Finally, Alyssa releases a long, slow sigh through her nostrils before turning on her heel, delivering one last threat over her shoulder as she stomps off.
"Don't make me regret not taking you up on that offer, Victoria."
It takes several seconds after the girl disappeared around the corner before Victoria regains enough of her nerve to collect herself. All things considered, that probably went as well as could be expected. She pauses long enough to straighten her top and put her shades back on, even running her fingers through her hair a few times before remembering what a lost cause that is right now. As much as she'd like to take a victory lap over surviving an encounter with Alyssa, she has one more stop to make. And then…
Victoria chuckles to herself, a wry grin spreading across her face.
And then Kate and I will hop in my fancy car and leave this poop-hole town in our dust.
Boys' Dormitory – 1st Floor Hallway
"NATE!"
Victoria delivers three loud, banging knocks to the door to room 111. It's the second time today that she's abused a door in such a fashion, but this time she doesn't stop to correct herself. 'Aggro as fuck' is exactly what she's going for.
BANG BANG BANG.
"Nathan, I swear to GOD if you're in there and ignoring me…!"
She honestly doesn't expect him to be in the room anyway, since she swung by the parking lot on her way here and didn't see any sign of his truck. Still, she figured it would be prudent to make sure before she barges on in to rifle through his shit. Pulling out her phone, she dials him again. Ringing on the line, but no sound coming from his room. Good.
She tries the door handle, but it's locked firm. No luck there. Still, where there's a will…
Victoria looks around the hall. All the doors are shut, and she can't hear any voices or music coming from nearby. The dorm is mostly deserted, since now that it's past 1:00 most everyone would be on to their afternoon classes. This is all according to plan, of course, since if she's going to break and enter she'd prefer not to have any witnesses present.
Her eyes land on one of the slates in the corner on the opposite side of the hall, one of the few that doesn't have a shitty pun, homophobic slur, or football reference written on it. Instead, there are two quotes: "There is no unique picture of reality" – Stephen Hawking, written in black marker; followed by "Cool story, bro :" – Ur scrt admrr, written in pink. Definitely Warren Graham's room, and it doesn't take a genius to figure out who the second quote belongs to.
A brief chill runs down her spine as she reads that Hawking quote again, the bizarre events of a couple hours ago replaying in her mind. Writing on a mirror that was there one second, gone the next. Memories of her peers saying things she'd never actually heard. The feeling of… some other Victoria controlling her body, using her lips to kiss her Katie.
Victoria fights to suppress the intense and irrational flash of jealousy that arises from that last thought. She doesn't have time for that crap, and besides… the simplest explanation for last night was that she was just really fucked up from copious amounts of vodka mixed with whatever Nathan dosed her with… right? The voices and Kate's dreams were harder to explain, but those things weren't necessarily related to each other. Regardless, ruminating on sci-fi bullshit isn't going to help her get into Nathan's room.
What will help, she thinks to herself as her lips quirk into a devious smirk, is this fire extinguisher conveniently placed right here next to his door… Don't mind if I do!
Victoria lifts the heavy object high over her head a couple of times, testing the arc of her upcoming swing by slowly bringing it down to touch Nathan's door handle. Measure twice and cut once, like dear old Dad used to say. Well, someone's dad anyway. The idea of Mr. Chase crafting something with his own two hands like some commoner was simply laughable.
She is about to raise the fire extinguisher for the third and final time, when the sound of a door swinging open makrs her yelp with fright, clutching it to her chest in an attempt to hide it from view.
"Heeeeeeey, if it isn't Vicky-Christina-Barcelona! What brings you to our humble halls?" A scratchy, just barely post-pubescent voice asks from behind and to her right.
Victoria groans, both inwardly and aloud. Who, of all people, would pick this exact moment to walk in on her in the midst of committing a felony?
Why, none other than Warren fucking Graham, of course!
"Graham!" she barks over her shoulder. "Why the hell aren't you in class right now?!"
He seems to take her tone in stride… which makes sense, come to think of it, since this is pretty much the standard tone she uses to address him regardless of the situation. Seriously, between him, Stella, Max, and especially Kate, why do so many of the people she's willfully and flagrantly rude to actually end up liking her? Is there some weirdly in-depth experiment on the effects of Stockholm Syndrome being run at Blackwell without her knowledge?
"Oh, uh, this is my free period for the week?" he explains with a shrug. "Hey, so anyway, I heard about what happened with you and Ma—"
Warren coughs suddenly, his eyes bulging out in an effort to stop himself from putting his foot straight into his mouth at the sight of Victoria's head whipping around, her eyes narrowing sharply.
"Ahem, heh, wh-what I meant to s-say, is… Stella just told me you and Kate are hanging out. That's like… really cool, right? So, do you think you guys would wanna go see the Planet of—"
Victoria groans again, hanging her head down and silently cursing her luck as his voice drones on in the background of her mind. Seriously, she does not have time for this shit, and even worse, Warren has nowhere else to be. She could probably stand there in the middle of the boys' dorm with her back turned to him like some kind of weirdo for hours and he would just yammer away about how Star Trek: The Next Generation is clearly the superior entry in the franchise. (Which is totally incorrect, anyway, because if you don't prefer the hard-boiled badassery of Captain Kathyrn Janeway from Voyager then you're a fucking plebe and Victoria will brook no argument to the contrary!)
…
On the other hand… of all the boys living on this floor, Warren is square in the middle of Venn diagram between "Easiest to Intimidate" and "Least Likely to Snitch on Someone Screwing with Nathan Prescott." So maybe this wasn't such a bad turn of luck after all. In fact, she bets with just a slight change in tactics…
"Warren…" Victoria says, smiling sweetly and fluttering her eyelashes a bit, her voice positively saccharine.
His chatter about… time travel? And a roman emperor, or some shit… cuts off mid-sentence, a look that is a positively delightful mixture of fear, suspicion, and confusion slowly beginning to take root. Victoria is not sure if it's due to the sudden change of tone or the fact that she used his first name for the first time in recorded history that did it, but regardless she just knows she will treasure the memory of the wavy-haired brunette's current expression to the end of her days.
"Uh… y-yeah?" he stammers, his mouth contorting into something between a nervous grin and a pained grimace.
"Dear, sweet Warren…" she continues, slowly turning toward him. His eyes go wide and the color drains from his face as her shifting angle begins to reveal the fire extinguisher in her hands.
"We're not about to have a problem, are we?"
Warren's Adam's apple bobs as he audibly gulps, his gaze shifting between the smile on her face and the blunt instrument in her hands for several moments. Finally, with a contemplative purse of his lips and a stiff shake of his head, he matter-of-factly states "Nope! No problems here… in fact, I just remembered a test I really need to study for, so… I'll see you later?"
Victoria maintains that polite smile as Warren retreats to the safety of his room. "Sure thing! Bonjour!" She obsequiously calls after him, before a passing thought strikes her.
"Oh, and Graham?"
He freezes midway through the act of closing his door, his nervous brown eyes meeting hers.
"Stop trying to make 'Warren G' a thing. It will never be a thing."
He sighs and gives a put-upon little nod as he shuts the door. "Yeah, ok..."
"He's a rap icon, Graham! A pioneer of West Coast hip hop! I will not allow you to disrespect his legacy like that!"
"I got it, Victoria!" He calls through the wall.
With a satisfied nod of her own, Victoria turns back to room 111.
Now that 'Warren G' is handled, it's your turn, Nate Dawg.
She raises the fire extinguisher over her head, slowly bringing it down to touch the handle. Once…
REGULATOOOOOORS...
Twice…
MOUNT UP...!
On the third heft, she brings the extinguisher down to crash into the door handle with all her might, the lock giving way with a loud CRACK after just one blow. Victoria makes a mental note to add "other people's dads" to the growing list of people who can kiss her sweet cheeks as she hurriedly steps inside.
...
Goosebumps rise on her flesh as she looks around Nathan's macabre little dungeon of a room. She's hung out in here plenty of times without issue, of course… but there's nothing like an attempted kidnapping between friends to put things in a different perspective, is there?
Victoria isn't expecting to come across a signed confession or anything as she rifles through his documents, porno mags, and assorted knick-knacks. She's seen most of his shit before, and thus glosses over anything that doesn't immediately strike her as useful. Her objective is anything that can help to either find Nathan himself, or that she can potentially use as leverage against him should the need arise. Which makes the laptop perched on his desk an obvious choice for a good yoink-ing.
And while she doesn't find any proverbial smoking guns lying around, a pamphlet offering instruction on the use of actual hand-guns serves as a chilling reminder to get her ass in gear and proceed with getting Kate's ass out of town ASAP.
Laptop and charger in hand, Victoria is about to make her escape when scuff marks on the floor in front of his black pleather couch catch her eye, reminding her of similar markings in her own carpet left behind by Kate's impromptu overnight redecorating. Thankfully, his furniture proves much easier to pull out of the wall… revealing a plastic bag holding a phone and some papers taped to the back.
Nope… that's not shady at all.
Victoria jacks that shit as well before making tracks out of there.
Girls' Dormitory – 2nd Floor Hallway
Though she half expected to be stopped by Samuel the Janitor to get his hot take on current events on the way back to the girls' dorm, thankfully no further obstacles between her and Kate manage to present themselves. At least, that is, until she steps into the second-floor hallway and spies Stella Hill, clad in her customary blue and yellow hoodie, standing just outside of Kate's room and grinning widely while speaks through the open doorway.
"Dang, Hill," Victoria sighs in dramatic fashion as she strolls towards her, still limping just a tad. "Does anyone at this school actually attend classes?"
"I could ask you the same question," Stella snarks back, not missing a beat. "I reserve my allotted absences for special occasions, like when the Queen of Blackwell decides to contribute to my best friend's truancy."
The dark-haired girl gives Victoria a quick once-over before her eyes land on the laptop tucked under her right arm, which elicits an appreciative whistle. "Nice hardware… you getting ready for a CS:GO tournament or something?"
The blonde shrugs. "Nah, I'm more of a League of Legends kind-of gal."
This causes Stella's eyes to widen in shock and no small amount of disbelief behind her rectangular-framed glasses. "No fucking way. What's your ELO?"
Hit Plat over the summer, bitch. Test my Akali and get wrecked!
Victoria forgets that thought before she can voice it aloud, however, as she gets close enough to see Kate standing just beyond the threshold to her room, her dirty-blonde hair done-up in her usual bun. To be fair, the way the girl's face lights up at the sight of Victoria does make it pretty hard to concentrate on anything else. And the way Kate's anything-but customary attire (wearing jeans of her own and a white sweatshirt with one of those Jesus fish embroidered in blue on the chest) takes Victoria's mind back to that first day they met right here in the girls' dorm hallway doesn't help matters at all.
"Hi…" Kate says, her succulent red lips spreading into a shy little grin.
"… Hey." Victoria returns with a smile of her own, suddenly very aware of how fast her heart is beating.
…
"Soooooo i'mma take that as my cue to bail, I guess…" Stella laughs, reminding Victoria that she is, in fact, still standing right there. After a few moments silence, she jokingly adds "I guess Warren and I will see you at the next Vortex Club meeting, Vic?"
"Uh-huh… sure thing Stella," Victoria absently murmurs. She wants to spare the other girl a quick glance, just to be polite and all, but she finds herself transfixed by the delighted twinkle in those big, hazel eyes.
"Holy shit, yeah… I'll leave ya'll to it, then." Stella chuckles as she starts off down the hall. "Have fun you two… and be saaaaaaaaafe~~!"
"Buh… bye Stella! Thanks again!" Kate calls with a wave, her cheeks aglow in pink once again. She giggles as she inspects Victoria's outfit. "We… we match!"
"I guess so…" Victoria laughs. Even though Kate's clothes are more Dollar General than Dolce and Gabbana, their color scheme is on point. With a smirk, she adds "You didn't have to go quite so far with the accessorizing, though."
Victoria points to the slap mark Max left on her own cheek in response to Kate's questioning gaze, which causes Kate's blush to deepen as she turns to hide the injury she suffered at Nathan's hands. "Oh gosh, I know I must look awful…"
"No way…" Victoria reaches out to gently tilt Kate's face back in her direction, leaving her fingertips to linger on the girl's cheek. "You look like the bravest girl I've ever met."
Something about the way Kate's eyes soften as she once again leans into her touch, her lips slightly parting, threatens to take Victoria's breath away. It's… actually kinda hard to think about anything other than how bad she wants to kiss her right now.
But… she knows that when she does kiss Kate… kiss her for real, this time… she wants it to be right. No, Victoria wants it to be perfect. So, she begrudgingly breaks the moment by making a show of glancing at her watch.
"You, um… about ready to hit the road?"
"Mmhmm!" Kate smiles brightly while nodding. "I'm all packed!"
"Très bien, then let me just toss a few things in the suitcase and we can GTFO!"
Victoria grins as Kate looks up and to her left, moving her lips silently as she works her way through the acronym. God, this girl is too cute.
She is forced to stop and shake her head in exasperation, however, upon stepping inside her room and finding it to be immaculately clean. Her bed is perfectly made, her shredded photos have disappeared, and there's not even a speck of broken mirror visible on the floor anymore. Even the glass-scored book she threw earlier has managed to find its way back to the proper place on her shelf.
Victoria doesn't want to be the girl her mother raised her to be… the kind that leaves problems behind for others to deal with, as though cleaning up her own mess is somehow beneath her. But, she thinks to herself with a wry smile as she rifles through her closet, this is Kate Marsh she's dealing with. The girl that's never met a selfless act of kindness that she didn't like. How could she have expected anything different?
And… allowing someone like Kate to be kind to her, especially when Victoria has so much trouble being kind to herself? She's starting to realize that maybe that's not such a bad thing after all.
Arcadia Bay – Highway OR-6
Eyeing the girl in her passenger seat as she eases her car onto the highway, Victoria just can't keep the smile off her face. Kate is practically vibrating with energy, seemingly trying to look in every direction at once while they chatter excitedly about the trip ahead of them. From the way she marvels at every aspect of the vehicle's interior, one might wonder if Kate had ever ridden in a car at all, much less cruising along in Victoria's Audi with the top down and the wind whipping at her dirty-blonde bangs and the wisps of hair trying to escape her bun.
"So, back to the bun, huh?" Victoria interjects with a smirk the next time she has the opportunity to get a word in edgewise.
"Hmm?" Kate questions, reaching up to feel her hair before her eyes widen in realization. With an embarrassed laugh, she shrugs and adds "Oh! Force of habit, I guess. I was… so excited while getting ready that I didn't even realize I was doing it."
With a bite of her lip and a raise of her eyebrows behind her sunglasses, Victoria reaches out for Kate's hair and asks "You mind if I…?"
The girl just grins and shakes her head in response, before turning to offer her hair to Victoria's questing hand. With a few quick pulls, Kate's long locks come spilling out of their previous confinement, causing the girl to laugh uproariously as the wind catches and starts whipping them around her head.
Before long they're passing the blue and white sign that marks the border of Arcadia Bay, and Victoria can't resist the urge to hold a middle finger up high for the town behind them, earning a scandalized giggle and a playful push of her shoulder from her passenger. But only a few seconds later, Kate is holding both hands up in the air and yelling "Wooooohooooooo!" at the top of her lungs, prompting Victoria to give an enthusiastic wolf-howl of her own.
As their school and peers, their cares and worries shrink to nothingness in the rearview mirror, Victoria realizes that all she has at this very moment is the open road ahead of her, whatever is in her suitcase, and Kate at her side… more wild, and vibrant, and free than she's ever seen.
And for the life of her, Victoria can't think of a single thing more that she could possibly want.
A/N - Woof, the FFN dislike of special characters kills my chatlogs every time!
To the guest reviewer who I sadly cannot respond to, thank you so much for reading and sharing your lovely thoughts and encouragement! It means more than I can express to know that people out there are enjoying this little story of mine. Also, PLEASE feel free to correct any errors in Victoria's French, I shamefully must rely on google translate for that. ;)