Yet again, apologies for the long wait. Oh, just a reminder, when I asked if Olivia should go home, I meant to her house in France!

-Allen Residence-

x

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Two days passed. That meant two rising suns, delicately placed in two straight days of cerulean sky. In turn, it brought upon two full moons of ghostly silver sheen, a phenomena unnoticed to most.

Two days were enough…

About half a mile from the danger-prone grounds of Kadic Academy, a serene road had run itself inside the cement cascade of tall work buildings, no more than an aloof pave way for the more peaceful residents who wished to escape the metallic sounds of the 'city life'.

But this Sunday, the city was just as silent as the country road that broke its character.

The minivan veered left on the intersection. Wobbling slightly, Olivia gazed outside her tinted window, smiling ever so often as she recognized Ruth, the Allen's elderly neighbor, with her dark hands always on a pot or exotic flower. Over the past weekend Olivia restrained herself from getting to know her community who took shelter on this beautiful street, spending most of her time counting the innumerable number of trees lining the sidewalk.

Still, Ruth seemed…different.

Next to the florists' smaller brick cottage stood a much larger paneled home. Her home. The whole color itself was a pale yellow speckled with brown from years of seasons and hardships, with a dull maroon roof with a towered archway shape. The house was elegant and defiantly old, but the actual beauty of the dwelling was the yard. Splashed with purple wild flowers and white rose bushes brought out the infinite spring aura around this place, with a white fence surrounding the structure and extended to great lengths in the back.

Kathryn and Kayla had already sprung from the back seat, each of them walking side by side, but neither could be so opposite. Kathryn was walking rather leisurely, tossing her newly cut hair around and enjoying the new 'bounce' with her purse neatly strung over her shoulder. Kayla, on the other hand, was coated in sweat from her track meet, while still managing to handle a volley ball in her right hand.

"Hey, Liv, grab the other one for me." Olivia turned around, watching her Dad hauling a bag filled with contents from the earlier trip to the grocery store. Eager to get back to her earlier conversation, the brunette walked awkwardly back to the car.

Ruth chuckled dryly, her hands on her hips. "Well now, I nevah thought I would be so happy to hear all your questions again."

Olivia smiled, politely taking the second lawn chair inside the lush garden and fumbling her hands over the trimmed hedges. Ruth had invited Olivia over not long after she had finished helping her parents, glad to enjoy the company again.

"So how've you been, 'Livia?" Ruth asked. Her frizzy brown hair was left to poof under the shade of her tan sun hat, a pink ribbon around the rim. Although her face was dry and covered with layers of wrinkles, her eyes were still warm and questioning.

Olivia shrugged, letting her eyes wander from flower to flower. "Okay, I guess… It's a nice neighborhood." Feeling her face growing hotter, Olivia turned away to observe something else that masked her embarrassment. "Err…isn't that new?" she asked, fumbling through her words. On the other side of the lawn was a bright red watering can with a neatly painted sunflower stretching across.

Ruth nodded without glancing at the can with her sunken eyes. "Just got it while you been out with ye folks," she began, "Somethin' troubling you, baby girl?" Her thin lips were pressed in a straight line and a small crease ran through her forehead.

Shivering, Olivia's hand traveled down her new, blue skirt (compliments of Kathryn) until she was staring down at a ragged, bruised scar running from the top of her knee down to bottom of her shin. Everywhere her legs were permanently gouged, especially near her knees where several white lines were obvious marks of past stitching and scars.

Frowning, Ruth put out her hand and traced a finger over a newly-stitched cut that had opened up during Brian's assault. Olivia flinched, instinctively pulling back and restraining some longing for going back to Kadic…just to see her friends and Odd for comfort.

"Is that it?" Olivia looked up in surprise. "Just those itty-bitty scratches?"

Is that it? Scratches? These were much more than scratches and they were definitely not small! Since Friday all the way up to now Olivia had explained her whole life story to this woman, hoping that she would at least understand something that was going on…leave out Lyoko.

Opening her mouth to retort, Olivia could already feel some hostility boiling in her stomach, but Ruth's dark hands cut her off completely, waving a wiry strand of hair from her face. "I know, baby girl, I know," she rasped. "But you don't know."

"What?"

"You don't know what you're thinkin' about. 'Livia that boy did many things that don't deserve talking, and God knows what he did that deserved forgiving." Ruth's voice now reached a crescendo of sing-song words. "It's all in the past, my little spitfire, so just forget. Brian is gone, and he ain't comin' back no more."

Olivia stared beyond Ruth for a brief moment. Now her face was thoughtful, but her eyes were downcast and droopy. "But…it's hard, you know. Everywhere I go there's something behind me to back track the rest of my day." Resting her elbows on her knees and her chin on her palms, Olivia tried to enjoy the remainder of the Sunday, for tomorrow during school and the rest of the week would be hell for the End of the Year Dance.

-Kadic Dorms-

"Did you ask her yet?" Odd Della Robbia questioned eagerly.

His friend, Ulrich Stern, had just entered their dorm with a weightless look on his face. Yumi and he had decided to take a "harmless trip" to the movies earlier that day, and being as slick as Odd had taught him, lied that Jeremy and Aelita were too wrapped up in some computer scheme that they couldn't make it.

"Mind your own business!" Ulrich retorted briskly. A shade of crimson red crept onto his pale cheeks. "You already have a girlfriend, 'kay? Me and Yumi were just hanging out, you know."

Odd stared at Ulrich for a minute before bursting out into a fit of high-pitched laughs.

Ulrich's face flushed angrily as he turned his back, refusing to meet his friend's enthusiastic eyes. "What do you care if I asked her?" The question was raw and dull, almost disappointed.

"Sorry, sorry," Odd choked out between chuckles. The little hate-love game Yumi and Ulrich played had kept Odd's spirits in full gear while they mutually gave up their excuses. They were like sticks of fire and ice; one couldn't feel so different yet so powerful without each other. But Odd knew the repercussions of toying with the dangerous elements: you can get either burned or frost-bitten.

As he waited for the laughter to subside, Ulrich plopped down on his bed, gazing up lifelessly at the ceiling with his hands under his head. Odd noticed this immediately, lowering his snort until all that was left was a hollow sound. He titled his head to the side inquisitively.

"Did she say no?"

To his surprise, Ulrich didn't agree. Instead, a smile slowly formed on his lips as he turned with an in-your-face twinkle. "Nope," Ulrich replied, "she said yes."

The blond raised his hand in a complimenting gesture. "Finally!" he yowled happily. Odd couldn't help but give Ulrich one of his cheesy low-fives with a big round praise thrown inside.

"Hey, she only said she would go to the dance with me. I didn't ask her to be my girlfriend, or anything. All I did was asked her if she would go with me as friends, so I guess that was fine with her…" Odd yawned at the modest rambling of his friend, although it was a little shocking that Ulrich could think that there was a difference between going to the dance and finding you a relationship.

Odd stared with jaded-ridden eyes as he let Ulrich finish up the rest of his sermon. Sighing, he leaned on his knee as his thoughts wandered elsewhere, outside the school and down some road probably on the other side of town.

Cerulean eyes twinkled back at him. That was good. He missed her.

"…when did she say she'd be back?"

A voice broke Odd's thoughts as he snapped back to the present situation. Ulrich was finally asking him a question now that his desperate attempt to clear his name was finished.

Odd blinked. "What?"

Ulrich nodded for emphasis. "When did Olivia say she'd be comin' back? You talked to her yesterday, didn't you?" he asked with a mischievous smirk. Now, Ulrich is no good person at witty small-talk, and neither was he exceptionally capable of changing a subject of his weak points. Odd simply had to hang his head in defeat.

"Tomorrow, I think." Yes, good, a simple answer. Odd wasn't going to break down his worry in front of his more 'masculine' friend, in fear of an obvious comeback. "She has to, anyway. School lets out this Wednesday, and that would be the dance, as well as she being a contestant." He straightened proudly. "And my date."

Ulrich shook his head No as if he had just listened to the biggest excuse. "Love-struck yet again."

His lip curled in a disgusted sneer. "Again? What do you mean again?"

"Sam."

Oh.

Ah! WRITER'S BLOCK! Sorry for this poor excuse of a chapter, but I had to upload something or I would have gone insane.