Disclaimer: I don't own House of Anubis.

Hello! Fair warning- this second installment doesn't contain a lot of dialogue, but it definitely moves the story forward and in the next and final chapter, you'll get to see Eddie, so...

And this is also where some of the Ben/Piper comes in, so if you're fans of that, then you'll probably like the circumstances.

I apologize if Patricia seems OOC in any way. I tried my best to keep her in character while also showing her insecurities and inner feelings.

By the time Patricia had reached home after school, walking alone for the first time in a long time, she had made her decision. After the drama with Eddie, Ben had sidled up next to her during lunch and offered her his number. If you want to talk about it, he said, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. And honestly? It had been nice. It had been nice to get that kind of attention from somebody who wanted her to be more than a friend. Patricia had mainly been a raging ball of fury during lunch, but Ben had still sat next to her, providing her with good information on how many people Eddie had scared away from her. With each word he said, the anger grew more and more until Patricia was glad she had figured it out when she did. Who knew how long Eddie would hold her back for no reason whatsoever? It was her life, right? She could do what she wanted, which was why she was presently scanning the scrap of paper on which Ben had written his number.

Patricia wasn't good with feelings- maybe because she never had to showcase them. Her parents weren't the type to show their affection constantly to each other or even their children, and Patricia had never had a boyfriend. What did it even feel like to like someone? Maybe Eddie would know-

No. She wasn't speaking to Eddie currently. Speaking to him would mean that she forgave him; she was basically telling him that what he did was okay. She was saying that everything could go back to normal- which it couldn't, it just couldn't. And to emphasize her point, she would have to show him, considering he had the nerve to actually call as soon as they got out of school.

That was it.

Patricia was going to the dance. With Ben. Maybe she would have fun, but more importantly, Eddie would realize that she didn't need him to have a good time. And besides, Ben was charming, sweet, predictable unlike some, and he was a nice guy who wanted to ask her out. Who comforted her at lunch today- someone Patricia could grow to like more than a friend. It would work.

And so she dialed his number, and as they talked and Patricia accepted his invitation to the dance, she felt different.

Wanted.

"This is so exciting!" Piper squealed, opening up her closet. "You're actually going to a dance, Patricia! Do you have a date?"

"Yeah," she muttered. Maybe consulting Piper on what to wear had been a bad idea, but to be honest, Patricia was clueless when it came to these kind of things. Previous dances had been spent at Eddie's house, in comfortable clothes, watching movies and throwing popcorn at each other. It was weird to think that she wouldn't be sitting on his couch this Friday, both on the edge of their seats as they watched Nightmare on Elm Street. It was even weirder to think she had an actual date- what if he tried to kiss her? How do you even kiss? Patricia had seen it happen in movies and in real life, but the idea that her first kiss might be approaching made her nervous beyond belief. What if she did it wrong and completely humiliated herself?

"Oh, is it Eddie?" Piper asked with wide eyes.

"No," Patricia snapped, scrolling through the voicemails Eddie had left. There were three of them, and she hadn't listened to them yet. She didn't want to forgive him. "Why is everything about Eddie, huh? What, you think no other guy hangs out with me?" To be honest, no other guy actually did, but that was a fact Piper didn't need to know.

"I never said that," Piper said warily, setting out a dress that Patricia wrinkled her nose at. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Patricia grumbled. Piper asked too many questions, just like Ben at lunch today. While it felt like someone cared earlier, right now it felt overbearing and nosy. If Eddie was here, he would let it go, and started a new conversation.

"Okay, well, as you know, I'm going to be at one of my concerts this Friday," Piper grinned, glancing at her violin. Apparently, she was playing a solo, and while the whole family used to go to support her, the concerts became more frequent and less special to the point where Patricia, her mother, and her father, only came every so often. It wasn't really Patricia's scene- dressed up people playing classical music? Pass.

"I'm wearing this dress," Piper held up a black and white strapless dress that she was sure to shine in. "What are you wearing to the dance?" Piper handed her a lavender dress of hers and Patricia rolled her eyes. If she was going to wear a dress, it was going to be black. Or at least a darker color than lavender.

"Right," Piper said, grabbing a different dress. This one was much more suited to Patricia's taste, a navy blue so dark it could border black. Patricia gave a nod of approval, and Piper set it off to the side before continuing her interrogating. "So, who are you going with?"

"Ben Reed," Patricia shrugged, trying to make it sound normal and casual. Piper nodded and didn't say much else, and for that, Patricia was grateful.

Patricia glanced over at Piper, who was sleeping soundly. It was late and dark, but she pulled out her phone anyway and clicked on voicemail. She just couldn't handle not knowing what Eddie had said- maybe he had some provided some insight, an apology, perhaps? Turning the volume down, she clicked on the first one he left and sank back into her pillows.

Yacker, I'm sorry, okay? I had reasons for what I did- I swear, I wasn't trying to ruin your life or something. Call me back when you have the chance…you have my number.

Delete. It had no reasoning for his actions and though he had apologized, Patricia wanted more than that. She clicked on the second one-

C'mon, Patricia. I'm begging you here, if you talk to me, I'll explain everything. And who am I going to watch Nightmare on Elm Street with tomorrow? Scratch that, we don't even have to watch that…I'll watch whatever, seriously, we can put in The Notebook if you want to. Just call me back.

Patricia sighed slightly. It had been a ritual to watch movies on dance nights, and now that too was washed away. Funny thing was, she had always expected Eddie to ditch her because he had gotten a date, not the other way around.

So, I heard from Fabian that you're going to the dance with Ben. In the third voicemail, Eddie paused here and let out a long breath before continuing. Whatever. I get it. Bye, Yacker.

And after that, there were no other messages left.

The next couple days passed in silence- Eddie didn't call anymore and Patricia didn't sit with him at lunch. Ben now slung his arm over her shoulder and he had even kissed her on the cheek earlier. Once, he had tried to kiss her on the lips, but Patricia had freaked out and backed away before feeling ashamed. How stupid was she actually being, avoiding her first kiss? It was like she didn't want to kiss Ben at all. He didn't seem to understand why she didn't want to kiss, but Ben didn't push her. Ben hugged her instead, almost as if he were ready for Patricia to cry into his shoulder. And it angered her at the slightest, how he just expected her to do such a thing. How he thought some comforting words and hugs would calm her down so easily. It was a bit pompous, really, but she shrugged it off.

Shrugging into the dress, Patricia checked the time. Ben was picking her up in a half hour, and she wanted to make sure she was the one to answer the door and not Piper, who was waiting downstairs for one of her friends from music school to pick her up and take her to the concert. Patricia hadn't exactly mentioned Piper to Ben- the only person from school she had ever told about her twin was Eddie, and even then, it wasn't because she particularly wanted to.

Putting the final touches on her makeup, Patricia smiled at herself in the mirror. The dress felt itchy and awkward and the more she looked at it, the more she hated it. The more she thought about actually dancing and socializing with people from her school, her head hurt. The more she wondered if Ben was going to try to kiss her again, she developed a churning feeling in her stomach. It would be so much easier if she could just go to Eddie's house and watch a movie with him- Ben made her feel anxious and self-conscious all the time, and the only reason she had agreed to go to the dance with him was to prove a point to Eddie. Though she had never really gotten some reasoning as to why Eddie was scaring guys off, he had offered up his explanation. All she had to do was call him, or go to his house.

Oh, c'mon, Williamson, you're going to this dance, a part of her fiercely instructed herself. Patricia sighed and straightened out the dress, grabbing her leather jacket and freezing as she heard the doorbell ring. Was it Ben or Piper's friend?

She was jamming things in her purse all too soon and heading down the stairs, only to hear the door slam.

So it must've been Piper's friend. Not Ben yet.

She still had time to figure out what the hell to do.

Checking her watch, she took a seat on the sofa and tried to calm her nerves. Patricia couldn't dance- she was horribly uncoordinated. What would she even do with Ben once he saw she couldn't dance? What would they talk about? How awkward would it be?

The sharp shrill of her phone broke her out of her thoughts, and Patricia sighed, not sure what she'd do if it was Eddie. Luckily, she was wrong, and the person calling her was her very own twin. Then again…why would Piper call her when she was on her way to a concert?

"Hello?"

"Oh, Trix," Piper sighed in relief. "Thank you so much for picking up!"

"Why, what happened?" Patricia's eyebrows knit together in concern, and Piper's words came out worried and hurried.

"Your date- Ben. Did you ever tell him about me?"

"Um," Patricia drew the word out, not sure what to say. Why was it even relevant whether she had ever told Ben about Piper?

"Patricia! He rang the doorbell ten minutes ago, and I answered, thinking it was my friend who was going to pick me up! And then your date is putting a corsage on my wrist-"

"What's a corsage again?"

"The flower thing! Anyways, I tried to tell Ben that I was Piper, but he thought I was joking! He thinks I'm you and he didn't believe me when I said we needed to turn back around to get you! And now I'm at your dance, and the gym smells absolutely terrible. Why would they even keep a dance in here?" Piper seemed frantic and nervous over the phone, probably worried about Patricia's temper. "This wouldn't have happened if you had just told him about me!"

"Well, excuse me if I didn't want to be compared for once," Patricia muttered under her breath, tapping her fingers on her thigh. A sudden sense of relief had come over her upon hearing Piper was with Ben instead of her. Maybe she was supposed to be devastated, but the only thing she felt was relaxed. If Piper could keep up the act, then Patricia would never have to go and try to dance or prepare for a kiss with Ben. She could take some time to think everything over- now that she had the potential chance to skip the dance, she was actually warming up to the idea.

"What? Patricia, what are you talking about-"

"Hey, Piper, can you stay there for a bit?"

"What?" Piper hissed after a long pause. "Patricia, he's your date and besides, I have my concert tonight!"

"Oh, please, you have nine concerts a month or something," Patricia scoffed, rolling her eyes and clutching the phone tightly. She couldn't believe she was actually doing this- the one time she actually got a date, and she was ditching him. Ben was nice and he was good to her- why didn't Patricia like him?

He was safe. He was stereotypical. He followed the rules, predictable and unsurprising. Sure, stable. He would be there for her, and she could relish in that.

And maybe that was what she hated the most.

Because some part of Patricia Williamson didn't want reliable. She wanted someone she could be herself around, be crazy with, be comfortable with, not as if she was put up to play someone she wasn't. Someone who accepted her just as she was right now, who would put up with all her shit and still stayed there. A daring relationship, one you couldn't tell what would happen next. She wanted to be caught up in the rush of feeling something amazing, whether it be short lived intoxication or long term love.

And Ben…he couldn't provide that for her.

"Please, Piper," Patricia pleaded over the phone, and sighed. "We're sisters, c'mon."

The reluctant sigh from her twin's end of the line was enough confirmation, "…fine." She giggled slightly, "Ben actually is a rather good dancer. If that's okay for me to say," she added on, and Patricia almost laughed too. Things seemed to be looking up- Piper was doing something for her and getting something out of it, Ben could be dealt with later if he didn't manage to fall for her twin throughout the night, who actually was a much better suit for him. They were both the good ones, the superior ones.

"It's fine," Patricia nodded, twisting a ring on her finger upon thinking about what she was going to do next. "Bye, Piper. Have fun." She was met with the dial tone, and she hung up. After a few moments of contemplation, the answer was clear. Eddie probably thought she needed some space, and therefore had stopped calling. Which meant whatever first move or progress in whatever fragments of a relationship they had right now would have to be made by Patricia herself.

And so she dashed upstairs, stripping herself of the tight dress and opting for some comfortable sweats and a loose t-shirt. Eddie had known her long enough to have seen her in all moods, and to be honest, Patricia didn't think he would really care if she was in sweats. It wasn't like she had never worn comfortable clothes like this around him- once, during a raging storm, Patricia had been forced to stay at his house for the night, and Eddie had tossed a pair of his flannel pajama bottoms in her face in response.

As Patricia set off outside, only having to walk a couple minuscule blocks before she reached Eddie's house, she checked her phone again. Should she call and let him know she was arriving?

No. If she called him now, she was sure she'd explode on the phone and have zero tolerance towards anything he had to say, even if it was an explanation for his actions. The question that had been consistently bugging her was yet to be answered:

Why would he even care who she dated though? It wouldn't affect his life, besides the fact that Patricia wouldn't hang out with him as much.

Whatever.

She'd get her answers soon enough.

Next update should be by the end of this week, if I can get it done by then? Thank you for all your wonderful reviews; your feedback makes my day.