Part 9
Velma quickly made her way up the stairs with Daphne right at her heels, both girls eager to find their friend and leave. Velma would constantly look back at the red-head behind her to make sure she was doing okay. She knew however, the answer every time to that question and she was not happy with what she was seeing. Daphne's face had pain shown on every inch of it and her dark blue eyes were with fear and had a horrible red tint to them from hot tears. She would never keep her eyes fixed on one spot for very long but would constantly look in every direction and she had a firm hold on her bottom lip with her teeth. She reeked of paranoia and worry and Velma could only think that since now her friend was free, she was scared. Whatever the killer had done to her must have scared her death and made her even more scared of him…Velma was even scared of him. For him to just kill Shaggy and Scooby like it is just a walk in the park was frightening to think about and now he has them all trapped in his home, infecting their minds with some horrific mind games, watching them, waiting to pick them off one by one, and that kind of psycho behavior scares Velma more than anything. She was happy though that she didn't know what happened between him and Daphne, for she knows that if she did she would probably be furious and lose her focus. The only thing they need to focus on right now is finding Fred.
Velma and Daphne stopped when they reached a big open area just to the right of the staircase. Velma knew Fred had come upstairs but where he went after he got up there was a complete mystery. She had to think, and she had to think fast, for she knew that she was going to have to be the one to figure everything out since Daphne was on the verge of losing her mind. She would be no help to Velma and Velma knew it all too well.
The two girls made their way around a large ping pong table in the middle of the room. Velma moved her eyes in every direction looking for any possible traps or clues like she did downstairs. Though finding Fred was number one on the priority list, she wasn't going to be careless or not use the moment of opportunity. She spotted a little hallway off to the side in front of her and Daphne and made her way towards it already seeing two doors. She figured this must have been where Fred had gone, it's only the most logical answer. She wanted to yell out his name but something inside of her was stopping her from doing just that. The two girls walked into the hallway having a door behind them and two on the left all the way down and a pair of double doors all the way at the end.
"You go check inside those double doors at the end there and I will check all of these along the wall," Velma said.
"Velma…" Daphne hesitated, she didn't want to go alone.
"It will be alright Daph," Velma smiled at her best friend. "I'm right here, I'll never leave your line of sight."
Daphne nodded and walked away, while Velma turned around to the two doors that were somewhat side by side to each other getting no luck with ether one. One was a smaller room that looked untouched and the other was a bathroom. Velma sighed, she doesn't like playing the "which door is my friend behind" game. Already twice in the last 10 minutes she has had to play this "game" and it does not make her very happy. Velma walks away and goes to check the third door just 3 feet from the other two.
Daphne makes her way towards the double doors, hesitant in her steps, hearing Velma open and close doors behind her. She doesn't like the big ominous double doors because they are never good, always mean trouble. It seems that in the movies that is where the heart of the villain's lair is behind those doors and that is the last place she wants to be. She mustered up her courage and pushed open the two doors. Her eyes gazed about the room looking at the many different photos on the walls and the computers all throughout. Her body cringed in fear and chills ran all up and down her back. There were pictures of the whole gang on the walls, all over them, like this guy had been watching them for some time now. That fact that he had been following them and taking pictures of them in their everyday private lives…that made her nervous. She turned her gaze away from the pictures and as she began to look around again her eyes caught something on the floor. She looked down and gasped hard, her eyes forming tears…Fred. Daphne walked over to him and fell on her knees, letting out a loud hurtful scream.
Velma was just about to open her last door when a loud noise caught her ears. Daphne, screaming…Velma rushed in the direction of the double doors. She pushes them open and she sees Daphne on her knees crying hysterically in front of…Fred? Velma looked closely not wanting to believe her eyes, but there was Fred on the floor motionless, lifeless. No…
"Fred…" Velma choked out trying to look over Daphne's shoulder. Daphne murmured something but Velma didn't understand what. "What did you say Daphne?"
"He's dead!" Daphne yelled sharply not even turning around. Velma's mouth dropped open in shock. Tears formed in her chocolate brown eyes as she walked over to her friend and knelt down beside her placing an arm around her shoulders. She laid her head down on Daphne's shoulder, looking down at Fred the whole time. She couldn't believe it, she couldn't believe that he was dead…their leader, he was never supposed to fall, Fred was tough and nothing could take him down. Velma could not, would not believe that he was gone but she knew her eyes have never lied to her before though she wishes they were now. She began rocking back and forth trying to soothe Daphne but nothing seemed to be helping.
"Shhh Daphne, try to calm down," Velma cooed.
"Calm down?! Calm down!" Daphne shouted back still full of tears. "How can I calm down Velma?! Fred is dead! Dead! He's gone…I'm never going to be able to speak to him again, never hear his voice, never going to get to tell him everything…everything that needs to be said is never going to get said now. I loved him so much and now he's gone! Don't I have a right to cry huh Velma? Don't I have the right to mourn the loss of the man I love? Did we ever tell you to calm down when you were crying over Shaggy? Did we Velma?!"
Daphne's words caught Velma off guard. Why did they have to keep bringing up her and Shaggy? First Fred and now Daphne? Why do they have to keep stabbing her where it hurt the most when all she has been trying to do is help? Heck if anything she should be the one getting the help from them to get through losing Shaggy because of how she felt about him though now since Fred is dead Daphne will be in the same boat and that won't be much help. Velma was getting really tired of all of this coming right back at her and being blamed for everyone's horrible feelings. None of it was her fault…none of this was happening because of a could have been relationship between her and Shaggy. She doesn't understand why they keep yelling at her for this and quite frankly she is really getting irritated by it. Velma's emotions fired up and if she was in a cartoon steam would be coming out of her ears. She pulled her arms away from Daphne and furiously stood up.
"That's it! That's it I have had it!" Velma yelled. "I don't know what the problem is with you or it was with Fred but that is enough! I don't understand how this is all my fault! How is my possible relationship with Shaggy the target for you two to blame me for everything that is happening to us?! Why am I the one who is getting shut out and yelled at when I have done nothing but help?! Tell me Daphne, tell me why you think yelling at me about Shaggy is the right thing to do!"
"Velma…" Daphne was taken back, "it's not the same, you don't understand."
"I don't understand?!" Velma retaliated on the verge of tears. "How do I not understand? How is it not the same? How is me losing Shaggy any different than you losing Fred? Well guess what Daphne, it's not! It's not different at all! I loved Shaggy a lot like you love Fred and you don't think that when I saw you knelt down beside him that I didn't think of myself when we found Shaggy dead just a couple hours ago? I know exactly how you feel Daph, and trust me it is horrible. The pain is still lingering inside me and I wish you didn't have to feel it…I know Daph…"
"No you don't! Quit saying that you do because you don't! You don't know how I feel…you don't understand how much I cared about him and all the things I wish I had said to him, all the things I should have said to him," Daphne yelled in tears.
"I cannot believe you!" Velma spat. "Weren't the two of us just sitting in my room earlier tonight talking about the things I never got to say to Shaggy, all the things I should have said to him like how I feel about him? And what did you say, how crying over him like I was, wasn't going to bring him back? Has all of that been erased from your mind?"
"I…just shut up Velma! Just shut up! You will never understand so just acting like you do! I know my feelings not you! Don't you see that I don't need all this yelling and hurtful words coming from you and what I need is actually some comfort!? If you don't want to help then just leave me alone!" Daphne spat but after the words came out she immediately regretted them. No way did she want to be left alone…not in this house, not in this room, not with Fred.
"Fine," Velma huffed trying to stop herself from crying. "If that's what you want then fine, I will leave you to your crazy idea that I have been nothing but absolutely horrible to you and how no, I have no idea how sad, heartbroken, and miserable you are that Fred is dead. Fine, as you wish, Daphne."
Velma turned and stomped towards the doors and Daphne's face held an expression of shock. She didn't actually think that Velma would leave her, she didn't want Velma to leave her. Daphne wallowed up in tears and began crying even more not wanting to turn around and see Velma behind her.
"You want to know the last thing I said to Fred was?" Daphne lifted her head up to Velma's words and finally turned to look behind her. Velma was standing in the doorway ready to leave. "We argued…we argued really bad…I told him that he was idiot for coming here without a plan. I told him that he was being foolish and he was going to get us killed if he continued to think irrationally. I was ready to leave him behind and let him wander off to go get killed himself because he didn't care what happened to me or him, all he cared about was finding you. He told me that I was…" Velma paused because tears were wanting to escape and she wanted to keep them back, "he said I was a horrible best friend for being so selfish for only worrying about myself and that I kept making everything about me and Shaggy. He basically yelled at me in the same words and way that you just did, saying how I didn't understand how he was feeling and how it was different. Just before we split up he tried to give me a nice smile and form somewhat of an apology and I just shooed him off…you're not the only one who wished they had said something else."
Daphne was speechless. She didn't know what to say after that and she so desperately that she had to at least say something. She didn't know that Velma and Fred argued before they got here and how Fred said the same things to her that she just did. She didn't know that Velma was ready to let him die after all the mean things he said to her. She wouldn't have said anything if she knew about that and how much it effected Velma. Daphne noticed that Velma was stalled in the doorway giving her a chance to respond back before she walked away and that was the last thing Daphne wanted. She wanted to speak, but she felt something inside of her holding her voice back from being heard. She had to say something, anything.
"Velma…" she finally managed to choke out.
Velma sighed and relaxed her shoulders at the sound of her name. Tears fell from her chocolate brown eyes as she figured in her head what to do. She could ether turn around and accept Daphne with open arms to comfort her hurt friend, or she could walk away right now and not look back. Daphne hurt her bad, she was already stabbed with those same words from Fred and now hearing them from Daphne just tugged at heart even more. She needed her space, she needed time to calm herself down so she could focus better. Velma straightened herself up and made one of the hardest decisions she has had to make. She didn't look back behind her as she walked out of the room leaving a dead Fred and a distraught Daphne behind her.
Daphne's heart dropped as she watched Velma walk out of the room, silent and not even glancing back at her. The worst possible choice she thought Velma could make, she made. Velma left her, Velma left her alone in a state of heartbreak and distress with Fred lying dead on the ground beside her. Daphne completely lost it, her dark blue eyes flooded with hot tears that streamed down her face. Why was this happening to them? What did they do to deserve this? Why is this random guy toying with them so much? Why is he flirting with their death and not just killing them quickly all at once? All the torture is messing with Daphne's mind and she can feel herself on the brink of going mad. If this whole charade goes on much longer, she might just go insane with paranoia.