Chapter Thirteen

Na-Na: OMIGOSH! The Covenant!!!!! I'm soooooooo excited about the fact I got to see it! I'd been waiting forever for it! And now it's been in theaters! God do I love Steven… Drools…. As disappointed as I am about him not having his hair all pretty for it, I'm still reeling from seeing my hunky-hunk in action. Especially in that bathing suit… Nosebleed … I wish I really did own Sky High, because I'd own him as Warren. But I don't. So no hottie for me. Wahhhhhhh!!! Anyway, this chapter will be featuring the song "Voices Carry" by Til Tuesday. Know that I don't own it, but it's a great song, and in my opinion goes well with the chapter. Wow, it's a Christmas Miracle! I have updated! This sadly will not be putting review responses in for this chapter. Hope no one is too, disappointed. From now on, I will send private replies. Since I haven't apologized yet, I'll apologize now, sorry I haven't updated in forever. I just was dreading breaking up Lash and Tenni. Anyway, this chapter will be featuring the song "Voices Carry" by Til Tuesday. Know that I don't own it, but it's a great song, and in my opinion goes well with the chapter.The chapter is officially a Christmas Present for Rachie! Happy Christmas Rachie!
The week started off as if nothing happened. (Please tell me your sarcasm beacons are going off!)

Okay, let me re-start. Everything was different. The first of which I will mention is good 'ole stretch-boy.

Every time we were together, he made sure that every person with eyes, ears, and inhuman senses had their attentions drawn straight to us at one point or another. We just had to be THE spectacle of the day. Monday had been a loud public declaration of his "undying love" for me. Tuesday was slingshot-ing folded-up notes that said "LASH + TENNI" with little pink hearts to everyone in the cafeteria. Wednesday was a proposal, which we rehearsed many times before its execution. It was quite gasp inspiring. And don't worry! I'm supposed to politely decline the offer at the end. Seriously, do you think I'd publicly say, "Yes Lash, I'll marry you!" like one of this chickies where the princes flounce in and sweep them off their feet? Pshht! Shyeah right! Even if it weren't public, I wouldn't say yes.

I think by that point, the end of our little performance, I had to put all my energy into making my feet move and mask my beet red blush under that ever-present splash of freckles provided by my illusion. God, do I love my power. Saves me from that kind of embarrassment. Not to mention leering boys. Damn them and their hormones. No boy would give the odd freckle-faced, bushy-haired brunette "the eye." At least, not most of the boys, so I'm mostly in the clear. Which believe me is a truly great thing.

Lash still confuses me though. He could've picked any other girl to play the part, yet he picks me out of them all. Was it specifically to bug my favorite cheerleader, or was it something more? Those reasons Lash had given to me before forcing me into this situation seemed even less believable now then when I had first heard them. What was it that making Lash do this? What was so special about me that I was deemed the perfect candidate for Lash's revenge upon Penny?

As concerned about those troubling thoughts as I was, I was also starting to be distracted by yet another new irregularity in my life. His name was, you guessed it yet again! Warren Peace…

Even after making peace with one another last Friday (I was not trying to make a pun), I knew there had been things that had been left unsaid that really shouldn't have been. We had managed to straighten out the "friends" business, getting the anger and frustration out of our systems. But that was it. We'd just left it… there. Again. We were just friends. There were so many other things I had been almost dying to ask him. The opportunity had just about come right up to my face and shook its tail end at it, yet I didn't do anything! This was getting more and more irritating. Mind you, irritating is the nicest way of putting.

I do realize that if I had indeed done things the way I wanted to, the end result probably would've been way too disastrous. After all, how would Lash and Layla come out of this whole ordeal? If I made my affections for Warren known, well… So many things would just go to hell. Layla for one, would be pissed. The way she was acting whenever she talked about Homecoming, she'd find countless, agonizing ways of torture to try on me for trying to make moves on her date. No girl wanted to be dateless to Homecoming. Especially the girls going to Sky High. It was humiliating if you showed up alone.

Than there was Lash. My problems seem to always go straight back to him lately, huh? Well, Lash, as nice I've come to realize he is, has problems. He's been following me all over school like a lost puppy. Even when I'm at home I feel the need to make sure he hasn't decided to follow me yet. Because he's always nearby, it's really hard to talk to Warren. It's always so awkward having someone looming over your shoulder when you want to have a private conversation. Especially when the "loomer" just so happens to be your pretend boyfriend and the person you want to talk to is the one you actually like.

The last thing that makes things so hard is Will. It scares me how he's almost fallen out of my life. It's like I stopped being there after Gwen showed up. Then, he only had time to get the slightest a bit upset I was with Lash. It hurts a little, you know? He only takes time away from his girlfriend to notice that his best friend and sister have hooked up with his rivals. Sure, Will knows I like Warren. But he only thought that it was a silly crush. I know he's still upset about me being with Lash and everyone else being with Warren. Joining them is like rubbing salt in the wound. So for now, I really had to hold off talking to him. For now. As proved to me by our last conversation, if I started to avoid him, it would only lead to a confrontation far worse than what happened at the Paper Lantern. I'm not so sure things would end as peacefully either.

For now, I'll keep everyone unaware of my problems as I paste a rather fake smile (be it illusion or not) to my face and kept up appearances. Nothing could go wrong, right?

For some reason I couldn't fight down a bad feeling all day. It was driving me crazy. We were on the bus right now, and I was seated next to Ethan silently trying to figure out why I was so worried. Lash had been acting rather normal in the morning, the usual obnoxious behavior he donned to play his part. But during passing period between second and third, he disappeared for a little while much to my surprise, and came back only just before class was about to start. While he walked to class, I made sure to get a good look at his face. Sure, he was smiling, but that couldn't fool me. He was faking it, assuming I was none the wiser.

But I was.

He continued acting suspiciously throughout the day. He didn't even try to pull one of his silly stunts like the love notes or the skit. Every time he was walking me to my classes, he seemed lost in thought, and even whenever I offered my hand to be held, he'd always reach out and take hold of it with a touch of reluctance. It was disconcerting. Something was wrong, but I decided to do nothing. The way Lash looked, it seemed as if he needed time to think about whatever it was himself.

When school was over, I found myself relieved. I was worrying over Lash so much, it was really messing with my concentration during class today. Trust Mr. Reynolds to be the only one who ever picks up on when I start to let my mind wander… (My forehead still smarts where that piece of chalk hit me! Is he out to get me or something?!) Anyway, the minute he left my side at the bus, I heaved a large sigh of relief. Only Ethan noticed something was wrong, but I waved it off and changed the subject to something along the lines of, "So how've your classes been?" As lame as it was, that did the trick.

It was about a half an hour later that I got off the bus. Both Magenta and Ethan as well as ten or so other people had already gotten off, so that had only left me, Will, Layla, Zach and three other kids afterwards. I didn't turn to see whether or not Will or Layla were following meonce we hit our stop, though I did manage a quick discreet goodbye to Zach before I was out. He returned it enthusiastically through the window just as Ron decided to drive away. With that, I set out for the treck home. As usual, I made it home before Layla and Will, since the both took their time walking. Leaving my backpack in the closet, I went up stairs and lay on my bed.

Suddenly, I realized just how tired I actually was. Glancing at the clock, it told me it was only 3:45 P.M. A little nap couldn't hurt. Besides, Mom and Dad would be out tonight on "urgent business" and I did all of my chores this morning and finished my homework during class. I yawned a little before curling up and drifting off into a very peaceful sleep.

It was a crash that woke me up.

At first, I thought it was nothing. My tired mind wasn't awake enough to register anything that was going on. The next crash managed to remove me from that half-dead-to-the-world state I was in. By force of habit, my illusion activated. Finally, I began to realize that there was loud music blasting through the house. Which is odd because I'm pretty sure there's a rule set somewhere in this house that doesn't allow very loud music. One of our neighbors would probably call the police and then we'd be in a whole lot of trouble. But I was just imagining the loud music.

Right?

Apparently, wrong, because the door to my room swung open, smacking against the wall with enough force to leave a mark on there. The music, which had been slightly muffled while the door had been shut, now rushed in at full blast. My head snapped in the door, to see why it had been so violently forced open. What I saw managed to make all of the blood drain from my face. Noise in the house seemed to be quieted, it wasn't like it went away, it just wasn't as important any more.

I'm in the dark, I'd like to read his mind

But I'm frightened of the things I might find

It was Lash.

No matter how dark my room was, I'd know his tall gangly form anywhere. I knew from all the times he tormented me. All the times I saw him out on the gym floor during Save the Citzen playing the villain. All the times we talked and ate together. All those times he held me, and told me I was doing a great job, I was doing my part perfectly. The way his hair was always slightly ruffled, no matter how many times he'd stop and futilely try and make it stay. But right now, his hair was far more messy than usual, and his eyes stared right back at me, shock, guilt and fear reflecting back in his own.

If only I could have been born a mind reader. I'd know the countless thoughts running through his head. For that moment, I truly wanted that power, but than… did I really want to know what he was thinking? What he thought of me? Did he think of me? After a couple more moments of staring, I realized who it was that was in his arms.

Oh, there must be something he's thinking of

To tear him away

The sight stole my breath away. It didn't feel like it would be coming back anytime soon either.

It was Penny. There was no doubt in my mind it was her. I could see the malevolent gleam in her eyes and the outlines of her pigtails just as clearly as I could see the shine of the cheap lip-gloss she was wearing. The thing that made this whole scene unbearable was that her lip-gloss was shining on Lash's lips, Lash's cheek, and Lash's neck. Traces of Penny were all over him. Her lips began to form a sneer as one of her arms slithered around his neck while she placed the other on his chest, as if the act was saying, "Mine."

Desperately, I tried to find something to say. I knew it was a rather foolhardy attempt because at the moment, I was still finding it increasingly hard to breathe. I wouldn't have been surprised if my lips had started turning blue from the lack of oxygen and choking where I sat on my bed staring up at the two of them. There were a million words, almost as many questions, and not enough answers.

When I tell him that I'm falling in love

Why does he say?

Hush hush

Keep it down now

Voices carry

"Lash, I—What's going on? Why are you here? I—How could you?"

Trust me to ask the stupidest questions I could've thought of. I wasn't dumb enough to not know the answers to such obvious questions. Though I didn't quite exactly know what was going on, I knew why he was here in my room at this moment. I wasn't naïve; I knew how teenage boys were. And I knew, well I thought I knew Lash. There was only one reason why a boy and a girl would be trying to get together in an empty room alone.

"How could you?" I demanded, saying it louder this time than I had before. My gaze shot from Penny's overly satisfied face to Lash's, horror showing clearly upon it.

"I thought we were—we were…!"

A couple? No, that was a lie. Just a show for all the people. Friends? No, we couldn't even be that. We had only barely managed to form a truce in order pull off this stupid act. But, why was feeling this way when I couldn't even explain why I felt that way?

"Hush…" He said softly, trying to mollify me, moving away from Penny and closer to me, much to both her as well as my discomfort. The guilt in his eyes seemed to grow stronger.

"I'm sorry, Love… Please don't make a scene… People will hear…"

I try so hard not to get upset

Because I know all the trouble I'll get

"That's all you can say?" I asked almost hissing, "Hush? I'm sorry? How dare you think that you can still call me Love? Showing up here with-with her!"

Lash drew back almost as if I had tried to take a swipe at him. My words were mean, and they came out even harsher than I expected them to. I was upset, very upset, and it was hard to keep it all under control, to not let him know I was this upset by what I was seeing, what he was doing to me. I knew I wouldn't be able to hold it all in, all the hatred and fury. I was angry, and I was about to let it all go. Just let go if he managed to make me any angrier than I already was.

"Why so upset Stronghold?" Penny jeered, "Didn't the Commander ever teach you to play nice? Can't you share your man a little, Freshie?" Her words were stung more than I'd ever admit. My anger was already being replaced with sadness and, oddly, an overwhelming sense of loneliness.

"How could you do this to me?

Oh, he tells me tears are something to hide

And something to fear

Lash winced when he heard me ask him this. I don't know why he would. It's not like he cares, he didn't have the decency to at least tell me that he was going to show up at my house to make out with his ex-girlfriend in my room of all places. Obviously I wasn't important enough to be clued in on the fact that this whole thing was over and we were going back to being different people. He was back to being boyfriend with Penny and I would go back to being that loser Hero, with a popular brother and famous parents.

"I didn't mean to—,"

"How could you kiss another girl and not mean to do it?" My face was stony, but I could feel the tears threatening to spill from the corners of my eyes. A frightened look flitted across Lash's features. He took one step towards me, slowly, nervously, as if I was going throw a tantrum at him.

"I'm sorry, please don't cry. I don't want you to cry," he said, just as softly as he had before. His normal loud voice obviously wasn't working

And I try so hard to keep it inside

So no one can hear

Cry? I wasn't going to let myself cry over Lash. There were so many times I cried over Warren. So many times I cried over Will. So many times I cried over the feeling of being betrayed. I had learned over the many years not to cry in front of the people who made me feel this way. If I let them know that they had the power to make me cry, they'd be able to use it to hurt me.

Bringing up an arm, I brought it to my eyes so that it would stop any tears from falling. I would not let it out. I would not let Lash or Penny see me cry this way. And the truth was that I really didn't want to look at either of their faces right now. I know that I can't just bury my feelings, but that doesn't mean I need to be open with them. Especially around them. I could feel the sleeve of my shirt beginning to soak itself in my tears. It was incredibly wet against my cheeks, as well as uncomfortable, but I would not take down one of my last defenses from Lash and Penny go. Looking up, I had to bite back a sob.

I didn't want to cry.

I didn't was to feel weak anymore.

He wants me

But only part of the time

"It's over."

Lash looked back at me shocked, and I could tell from the way that his mouth kept on opening and closing without saying anything that he was at a loss for something to say. I could feel the anger bubble up inside of me. I'm the kind of person who isn't prone to being violent without good reason. But since Lash so rudely broke into my room with his arms and lips all over Penny fully intending to … well you get the idea, I felt that my needed to hit Lash was wholly justified. Hitting the cheerleader a couple of times, though excessive, would probably make me feel a whole ton better as well.

"Really now?"

The aforementioned cheerleader purred, moving closer to Lash and circling her arms around his waist. He tensed before immediately he shrugging her off and stepping forwards more. I had to admit I loved the outrage and bewilderment that crossed her face at the fact she had been pushed aside. Hell, I even admit I felt better that he was paying attention to me and not her. Even though I was so angry with him right now.

He wants me

If he can keep me in line

"Is there anything I can do to make you forgive me?" He asked, though the hopelessness that was in his eyes made it clear that he didn't believe there really was anything he could do.

"No," I told him coldly, "But there is something I want to do."

With that, my fist shot out and connected with his face. Lash had been leaning in close enough to me to give me the perfect shot at him. I wanted to make sure he'd remember how much he hurt me, so a black eye would do the job. Unlike Warren, who had managed to keep on his feet when I had punched, Lash stumbled back and fell on his butt. His hands shot up to where he was struck and he moaned pathetically. Penny instead of going to se if he was okay, marched straight up to me getting ready to hit me back.

"You bitch!" she shrieked, swing her arm at me. Just barely, I managed to lean backwards out of the way.

Hush hush

Keep it down now

Voices carry

She tried to claw at me another time, managing to get a swipe at my neck. I couldn't stop the cry that escaped my lips as I felt her sharp nails scrape my neck from the chin to where my neck met my shoulder. It wasn't deep, but I knew it was bleeding. Seeing me bleed, twisted grin spread across her face as she got ready to take one more swipe at me.

"This will teach you to keep your filthy hands off of my man!" She screamed.

"Stay away from me!" I cried, throwing my arms in front of me to protect myself. My eyes closed tightly as I waited for the feel of her nails cutting my skin.

It never came though. Terrified, I opened one eye than the other to see what had happened. Standing before me was Penny, stuck in the same position she had been in before I had closed my eyes. It took me a couple of minutes to realize that I had used my powers accidentally to freeze her. For a second I felt bad about what I did before remembering the fact that she had been trying to hurt me. So there she stood, encased in ice and not moving.

Hush hush, darling, she might overhear

Oh, no-voices carry

I sat there staring at the frozen Penny with a sense of satisfaction for a while until I remembered that Lash was still in the room. Slowly I turned my head to look at him. He didn't look back. He just continued to stare at Penny horrified. Suddenly, I didn't know what to do anymore. I was sitting on my bed with a frozen cheerleader right there in front of me and my ex-pretend-boyfriend on the floor with a forming black eye. If anyone looked in on this scene, it would take a whole lot of explaining the situation. So I did the easiest thing I could that didn't take a lot of thinking.

I ran.

And didn't get very far, because next thing I know, I'm being dragged back into my room by Lash. I struggled and fought all the way. Why couldn't he leave me alone? Wasn't he finished with me already? He already had Penny, so why couldn't I just go back to being alone? I pushed and shoved trying desperately to try and get back to the staircase.

He said shut up he said shut up

Oh God can't you keep it down

"Let me go Lash!" I yelled, "Why won't you just let me go?!"

He said nothing, just continued to hold me as kept on hitting him.

"Don't make me freeze you Lash! I will do to you what I did to Penny if you don't let me go now!" I threatened, yet he still held on, only this time, his embrace tightened.

"God, Love, just shut up. Just listen to me. You don't know how sorry I am. You don't know why I had to do this. You don't understand. I don't know how to make you understand, please, just please," he said this so quietly, I barely caught most of it.

"You're right, I'll never understand," I said, my voice wavering, "Let me go…" He finally released me, his arms falling to his sides. He backed away and looked into my eyes.

Voices carry

I wish he would let me talk

"You should've told me…" I said, before leaving for good.
Nana: MERRY CHRISTMAHANUHKWANZUHMUS!