AN: Here is my second and last chapter. Like Maddy before me, I'm quite proud of my own Boq part. ^_^ Thanks to everyone for your lovely reviews as well as your follows/favs. They always brighten our day! :) I must say, though, that I'm quite amused by everyone feeling sorry for Elphaba. When I was writing my chapters, I was feeling quite sorry for Fiyero and Galinda - especially Fiyero! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one!
Elizabeth.
Trust issues and apologies
"There she is!"
As soon as Galinda set foot outside the building, the angry shouts from the mob grew louder and one girl lunged forward, nails at the ready. Galinda jumped back just in time, a startled shriek escaping her lips. Luckily for Galinda, Milla reached forward to grab the other girl, hauling her backwards. Galinda let out a shaky breath.
"You boyfriend-stealing bitch! I'm gonna kill you!" the girl screamed.
A loud cheer went up.
"Why are you doing this to us?" another girl called out. "We didn't do anything to you. Why are you trying to take away our boyfriends?"
"She's just trying to get all the attention from the boys," someone said. "That's all it is."
"Please, just let me explain!" Galinda cried desperately.
"We can all see what's going on here, Galinda," Nessarose added her bit. "There's no point in defending yourself. We all know it's just going to be a pack of lies."
"Yeah!" the crowd chorused.
"Come on, girls, just give her a chance," Milla said, trying to play peacemaker. "If you don't like what she says, then you can lynch her."
Galinda gulped. "Thanks, Milla," she muttered.
Milla beamed. "No problem."
Galinda hopped up onto a nearby bench. "Fellow Shizettes," she began in her usual gracious manner, sounding much calmer than she felt. "Yes, it is true that I made cards for all the boys for Valentine's Day. Yes, I did intend to send them out, but not yet. Unfortunately, there was a…mix-up, and the wrong envelopes were sent out. However," she stressed as the murmuring of the mob grew louder again, "the act of giving out Valentine's cards to the boys was not intended to steal anyone away from anyone. It was only intended to show the boys that I, as a woman, on behalf of all women on the campus, appreciate their presence. I did not set out to cause any unnecessary rifts in relationships or my friendship with any of you; I only wanted to say thankyou to the boys. I did not take into consideration all possible consequences of my actions – a very human mistake. I am truly sorry and I hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me my…thoughtlessness." Galinda put her hand across her heart and bowed her head, internally praying that she wouldn't be lynched.
"Then why leave lipstick marks all over the cards?" Nessarose asked. "If you had just wanted to say 'thankyou', you wouldn't have put lipstick marks everywhere."
Galinda bit her lip as she looked up to face Nessarose. "I…wanted to make it more personal?" she said feebly. "But not like that – not like, trying to steal anyone or anything…just…like a signature…"
"Alright," Milla said before the crowd could go off at Galinda again. "Galinda has said her piece. Why don't you all go away and cool off, think about what Galinda has said and then decide if you're angry or can forgive her or whatever. Yes?"
Reluctantly, the girls agreed and the crowd dispersed.
Galinda sat down and sagged back against the wall. "Thanks, Milla. You just saved my life."
"It wouldn't have needed saving if you'd just thought for a change," Milla told the other girl pointedly. "But you're welcome."
Galinda grimaced. "I guess I need to work on that, huh? Maybe I should listen to Elphie when she tells me that."
"It might be a good idea," Milla agreed.
"Elphaba, please! Just let me in!"
"What, so you can insult me again? In my own dorm?" Elphaba snorted. "I think not."
"Elphaba, I said I was sorry! I didn't mean it. It just…slipped out. I never meant to hurt you at all."
"In my experience, anything that 'just slips out' usually does so because that is what that person really thinks. Now go away."
Fiyero sighed and slumped against the door, drawing his knees up to his chest and burying his head in his arms. What had he done?
After a few long moments, Fiyero ran his hands through his hair and raised his head with another sigh. "Elphaba…what can I ever do to make this up to you? To regain your trust? To get you to…well, not forgive me, because what I said was unforgiveable, but to get you to…accept my apology, at least?"
Everything was silent. Fiyero took that as a sign of hope – a sign that maybe, just maybe, he was on the right track.
"How can I show you that I regret saying that more than I've ever regretted anything in my entire life – and there are plenty of things I've regretted. How can I show you that I really do love you? I love you, Elphaba. I love you so much that it hurts. And to have said something so, so stupid like that and made you angry with me…it's tearing me apart, Elphaba. I feel so horrendible, and I guess I can't blame you for not wanting anything to do with me ever again, but Elphaba…I really don't think I can live without you." He paused, but there was still no reply. "It's no good, Elphaba. I can't go on like this. Please talk to me. I'm going to stay right here until you talk to me."
Fiyero spent the night there until about three o'clock the next morning when he was chased away by someone who thought he was a burglar.
"See, the problem is that I think I'm in love with both of them. They're both so beautiful, and they both have different qualities," Boq said. "I told Fiyero about my…predicament, but he just laughed at me. I'm sure I'm not the first guy to be in this position, and I probably won't be the last. He just doesn't understand. He's in love with Elphaba. It would be pretty hard to be in love with two girls when one of them is Elphaba. You'd have to be a one-woman man in order to be in love with Elphaba. How could he understand me? That's why I thought I'd talk to you about it. Surely you'd understand better, if not completely.
"It's hard to not be in love with Galinda. She just has such a magnetic personality. She's always so happy and cheerful and bubbly and…it's like the sun has come out. She's sunshine personified, and that gorgeous, golden hair really highlights that aspect of her personality. She's the spring after the winter – the flowers in bloom and the butterflies coming out after the ground has thawed and the snow has melted away." He glanced over at the card sitting on his desk and sighed. "The only problem is that she never notices me. She's finally realized that I crave her attention, but she doesn't reciprocate my feelings. And who could blame her? Afterall, I'm just a Munchkin. I'm nondescript; I blend into the crowd. There's nothing special about me. I'm not exactly what you could call 'handsome' – far from it. And she's just so popular – always in demand; all the guys are constantly falling over themselves for her, just like me, I guess. But a lot of those guys are really good-looking. She's got the pick of the bunch. Why should she choose me?
"But then there's Nessarose – a name very fitting, for she is as beautiful as a rose. When I'm with her, it's rainbows and birds singing and violins playing…as corny as that sounds. But it's true. I never believed those silly love songs until I met her. But I've only just come to realize it. It took me months of chasing after Galinda while being in a relationship with Nessa and then a nasty break-up to make me realize how lucky I was to have her as a girlfriend. To make me realize what a wonderful person she really is, despite all her faults…and believe me, she has more than Galinda has. Yet her good qualities more than make up for her faults. I was such a fool to let her go. She tried so hard to get me back…but I've blown that one, because now she's got a new boyfriend.
"I've been really stupid about this whole thing. Fiyero would be proud of me for my stupidity. I was with the girl who loved me but let her go because I was in love with a girl who could never love me back…and now I've no chance with either of them, yet my feelings for both girls are growing stronger the more I see them and the more I'm with them.
"Do you understand what I'm saying?"
There was no reply.
"I thought maybe you'd understand a bit. Fiyero kept making fun of me. He said that if I said that to a woman, they'd think I was gay or cart me off to a mental hospital. You're a woman. What do you think?"
There was a thoughtful silence.
"You're right. I'm an idiot. Maybe I should give up and look for someone else. Maybe I should give up on girls altogether." He paused. "No, I can't do that. I love Galinda and Nessa too much to give up on them. What shall I do?" Boq looked into her eyes, begging her to tell him.
The teddy bear stared straight back.
"I'm not convinced," Pfannee declared, putting her nose in the air.
"Me, neither," agreed Shen-Shen. "And to think, we counted her as our closest friend. We thought she was one of us."
"I've never liked her," Nessarose muttered darkly, wheeling herself along behind the other two girls. "I never trusted her, and it seems I was right not to."
"Nessarose."
Nessarose looked up and came to a stop, taken aback at the sharp tone of voice being directed at her.
"We need to talk."
Nessarose was quiet for a moment, before she ventured to ask, "What about?"
Ryyrrika sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "This whole…vendetta you seem to have against Galinda. It's got to stop."
"I am not going to just stand aside and let Galinda steal you away from me like she did with Boq," Nessarose declared.
"Why do you keep saying that? Galinda is not trying to steal me away from you!" Ryyrrika said, frustrated.
"Yes, she is!" Nessarose argued.
"No, she's not." Ryyrrika knelt down beside Nessarose's wheelchair. "And if she were, she wouldn't succeed. I told you I love you. Don't you trust that?"
Nessarose's temper flared. "I do not have trust issues! That's my sister's job!"
"Nessa!" Ryyrrika snapped. "Pull yourself together."
Nessarose huffed and turned her head away.
Ryyrrika waited for a moment before speaking again. "Look, I've tried to tell you that it's you I love. And I really do love you, and I really want to try and make our relationship work. But honestly? I don't think I can deal with a jealous girlfriend who doesn't trust me. So what's it to be, Nessa? Are you going to trust me? Or are you going to let me walk out of your life?"
There was an excruciatingly long silence before Nessarose sniffled. "I…I guess I can trust you…I don't want you to go…I don't want Galinda to win…"
"Nessa…"
"…And I love you, too," Nessarose said quietly, looking at him. "I'm sorry for being such a jealous idiot."
Ryyrrika smiled softly. "Just try to trust me, okay?"
Nessarose nodded. "Okay. I'm sorry."
Ryyrrika kissed her softly.
"We've thought."
"Oh, dear," Galinda mumbled.
"We're not satisfied with your lame explanations and excuses," the girl continued. "We have decided to lynch you."
Galinda gulped.
"Girls, girls, don't be so hasty!" Milla said strongly, stepping in. "Lynching is not the answer. Unless you're all looking to get yourselves expelled from Shiz and jailed for life. Galinda may be an idiot, but there's no need to kill her over it."
"You wanna bet?" someone shouted.
"Look, the girl has seen how angry her actions have made you all. You have expressed your outrage and she has apologized. I'm sure she has learnt her lesson and will never do anything like this again. Right, Miss Upland?"
"Right," Galinda agreed, nodding vigorously.
"So we can all put this behind us."
"I don't think so," growled Pfannee. "I thought we were friends, Galinda. And then you go and do this to me. To us. I still don't believe your story."
"Milla's right."
Everyone turned surprised looks onto Nessarose.
"What did you say?" Pfannee asked sharply.
"I said, Milla is right," Nessarose repeated.
"I can't have heard that right. I thought you were on our side." Pfannee looked disgusted.
"No. I've come to see that what we are doing is wrong." Nessarose wheeled herself up to the front and turned to face the crowd. She took a deep breath and glanced quickly to the side of the mob to see Ryyrrika nodding at her encouragingly, a smile on his face. "I don't know if I believe that Galinda made a genuine mistake, but have any of you stopped to consider your boyfriends' opinions on this? Do they care about it? Or are they too committed to yourselves? When I first found out my boyfriend had received a card from Galinda, I was blinded with rage…I was jealous and insecure, and I thought she would steal him right away from me. But then I came to realize that he didn't even care about Galinda's card." Nessarose smiled softly at the boy in question. "He's in love with me. And I believe him, because relationships are built on trust. If you have no trust, you have no relationship. So do you trust your boyfriends?"
Milla clapped loudly. "Yes, exactly, Nessa! Even if Galinda's intent was to steal your boyfriend – which I highly doubt – you should give your boyfriends a chance."
There was a silence as the gathered girls processed this. Finally, the spokeswoman of the group heaved a sigh. "Maybe this is the wrong way to go about it. Let's just settle for ignoring her." She turned around to face the others. "Alright, girls, let's go. Looks like the fun's over."
Galinda sagged against the wall in shock as she realized it was finally over…or so it seemed. "Thanks, Nessa. I really owe you one."
Nessarose considered the blonde girl for a moment. "Thank Ryyrrika," she finally said. "He's the one who brought me to my senses. As I said, I still don't know if I believe you, but if I'm giving Ryyrrika a chance, I suppose I should extend you the same courtesy. Besides," she added, "I don't want to lose him as well."
Galinda managed a weak smile. "I'm sure you don't have anything to worry about there. Well, now that that's over, I'd better go see to your sister."
Nessarose frowned. "Why?"
"Didn't you know? She broke up with Fiyero."
Nessarose's jaw dropped. "What?!" she screeched. "Why? What happened?"
Galinda shook her head. "Long story…one I don't particularly want to share. Not right now, anyway." She grimaced. "Suffice to say she jumped to some wrong conclusions and got angry with him, but right after they finally made up again, Fiyero said something stupid as per usual and now Elphaba refuses to even talk to him." Galinda sighed.
"Do you want me to talk to her?" Nessarose offered.
Galinda shook her head quickly. "No, no, it's fine. I…really should be the one to do it. But thanks. Just wish me luck!"
"Lots of it," Nessarose said.
"You'll need it," Milla added.
"Don't I know it," Galinda muttered.
"Elphie, what are you doing?"
"I can't do this anymore," Elphaba declared stubbornly. "He's always there. I can't rid of him. He waits outside the room. I can't go to my lectures because either he's in the same class or I run into him in the hallways. I can't go to the cafeteria…it's impossible. He's always trying to talk to me. And now this." The green girl swept her arm over the desk and Galinda saw a bunch of red roses lying there. "He's stalking me, Glin," she said tearfully, voice breaking. "I can't take this anymore. I have to leave."
"What? Elphie, no!" Galinda cried. "You can't do that!"
"I have to," Elphaba repeated. "I can't do it, Glin."
"But you can't leave me!" Tears began to well up in Galinda's eyes and she sniffled.
"You'll be fine without me. Better off, even." Elphaba hugged her best friend. "I'll always remember you, Glin. And we'll keep in contact, okay? I just can't stay here anymore. Promise me you'll look after Nessa."
"Elphie –"
"Please? Promise me that," Elphaba begged.
Galinda sniffled again and nodded. "I promise, Elphie."
Elphaba gave the other girl another hug before grabbing her suitcase and exiting the room without looking back.
Galinda stared after her for a few minutes, shell-shocked, before springing into action. Without even pausing to check her reflection, she fairly flew over to the boys' dormitories, where she rapped urgently on the door to Fiyero's suite. After what seemed to Galinda like an eternity, the door finally opened.
Fiyero heaved a tired sigh upon seeing the blonde girl standing in front of him. "What is it, Galinda?"
"She's leaving."
"Who's leaving? What are you talking about?" Fiyero asked wearily.
"Elphie. She's leaving Shiz and going back home to Munchkinland."
Immediately, Fiyero paled. "She's doing what?" he asked faintly. "No, she can't do that! I can't survive without her! I need her!"
"You have to go and stop her," Galinda said urgently, bouncing nervously on the balls of her feet – well, as best she could in heels.
"I can't," Fiyero said ruefully. "She won't listen to me. She'll probably use her magic or something. He ran his hands through his hair. "Oh, Oz, what am I going to do? Can't you stop her?"
"I tried…she's set on it. She said she can't go on here… Fiyero…it has to be you to stop her. It's up to you." Galinda looked at him solemnly.
"But how?" Fiyero cried desperately.
"I don't…" Galinda trailed off and her eyes slowly brightened.
"What?" demanded Fiyero.
"I just might have an idea."
"Where is the driver?" Elphaba asked the empty area. "He was supposed to be here ten minutes ago. He should have been here by now. I don't want to hang around here any longer." When the driver still didn't appear, the green girl let out a frustrated growl. "Hurry up!"
Eventually, the driver came hurrying towards her.
"Finally! Shall we go?" Elphaba asked sarcastically.
The driver did not flinch. "Certainly, miss. Whither are we bound?"
Elphaba raised an eyebrow sceptically at the man's old-world way of talking, but decided to ignore it. "Munchkinland, Nest Hardings. Colwen Grounds, to be exact."
"Colwen Grounds it is." The driver took Elphaba's suitcase and hoisted it onto the roof rack as Elphaba herself climbed into the carriage.
In a matter of minutes, there were off. Elphaba spent the next few hours reading while she tried to forget what she had left behind and tried not to think about what was in store for her. In fact, she was too engrossed in her activity to notice that the carriage did not take the Munchkinland turn-off.