Summary: Remake of my original story "Bluebells and Lavenders". Drastic change ahead, beware!

My beta reader is BluebellsAndLavender, so if there is any problem with the grammar, feel free to take it up with her!

"speaking"

'thoughts'

The main characters are in their senior years (grade 12).

A/N: Today's chapter title is by Neon Trees.

~oOo~

An Ikarishipping Fanfiction

Re: Bluebells and Lavenders

Chapter Eleven

"Everybody Talks"

~oOo~

Previously...

Dawn didn't want to face the wrath of Paul-freaking-Shinji if she showed up to class empty handed.

~oOo~

The bluenette woke up extra early to get in some last minute research done as well as finishing up a book. She checked the time on her poketch and sighed.

'Two more hours before I have to leave for school.' She thought. Her note book was already filled with words and slight smudges all for the Comp Civ project that she was doing with Paul. She shuddered at the thought of anything that had to do with him.

Her pokegear vibrated noisily on her desk. She quickly grabbed it before her mother heard the annoying buzz of her phone and asked what she was doing at six in the morning. She flipped open the lid of her phone and saw that the message was from Leaf.

Leaf Blue-Oak

Hey, Dawnie. I have some very juicy information that I believe you would love to have.

She tilted her head with a raise brow. She wasn't sure what 'information' Leaf was referring to, but maybe she does.

Dawn Bertliz

What kind of 'information' are we talking about?

I don't do gangs, ya know.

Another buzz went off in her hand.

Leaf Blue-Oak

Ha ha!

Nah. It's information on my darling step-brother.

Would you like to know~?

Dawn Berlitz

N-no!

…

well...I guess so. Tell me during break? I have to finish doing research right now.

Leaf Blue-Oak

Alrighty

See you soon, Dawnie.

Dawn Berlitz

See ya!

She chuckled while she shook her head at the childish nickname Leaf had given her.

~oOo~

Textiles was proven to be much easy to her. She had already finished making her tote bag and the teacher had given her permission to make some stuffed animal of some sort. The bell rang and she was off to her next class with May and Drew in tow.

The teacher had not arrived yet – well, more like all of the teachers were having some meeting during break. She sat there on the chair right outside the classroom as she looked over he Japanese Mythology notes. May and Drew had been drawn into a conversation with other people in their class, and some who were not.

"You're here early. I thought you'd be off somewhere prancing around with your 'friends'."

She turned her head and was faced with unfriendly eyes.

"What do you want, Shinji?" She asked bitterly.

He rolled his eyes. "I was just asking you a question. No need to be so testy, Troublesome."

"Oh, hush up, you." She wasn't in the mood to have an argument so early in the morning.

"Dawnie!"

The bluenette looked over to her left and saw Leaf smiling away. She got up from the chair and walked over to her new friend.

"Morning, Leaf!" She greeted. Both girls gave each other a small hug, with Leaf ruffling up Dawn's hair in the process.

"I guess I should tell you now, huh?" Leaf said idly.

"Of course you do, ha ha! So, what's this 'so-called' information that you have?" She asked.

"Well. As it turns out, Gary likes to watch those silly rom-com movies. I was suspicious at first when I heard laughing from his room, but I knew it was true when I barged in while he was watching one of them." Leaf replied, blowing on her nails slightly.

"Gary likes to watch rom-coms?" Dawn was baffled by the new found information. It wasn't that him watching something like that was a turn off, more that it was cute and showed that Gary had another side to him.

Leaf nodded as she looked off to the side. "Yeah. He does. He told me not to tell anyone, but what's one more person going to do? It couldn't possibly hurt his ego, yeah?"

She giggled. "Guess not. It's nice that there are some guys out there who aren't just well...all about being macho and tough. It's good that he has a soft, romantic side to him."

A scoff was heard not too far from the two girls.

"What exactly are you displeased about this time, Shinji?" Leaf asked. Her hand had rested on her hips while the other tossed her hair back, annoyed that it had strayed to the front.

"You seem to care way too much about Oak." Paul replied calmly.

"You do realize that he's my step-brother, right?"

Another unpleasing sound came out of his mouth again. "Yeah. I also remembered that you and Oak dated before and after he became your step-puppy."

Dawn felt her heart thump harshly. Her eyes slowly moved to the corner to see how Leaf had reacted, but she showed no sign of flinching or was even bothered by it one bit.

"Yeah? What's your point?" She asked curtly.

"Don't you and Oak feel any sort of shame in the least? You guys decided to continue having a relationship after you guys became step-siblings. That's a little disturbing." He was testing the taller girl. Dawn could feel it.

"At least I know what love is. You on the other hand... You're pathetic. I know what your story is, Shinji. Don't think I don't." She growled.

Paul was no longer playing the cards in the game. His eyes were so brutally cold as he stared at Leaf. "Don't you ever bring that up, Blue."

"Then how about you do the same thing and not bring up the past, hm? Everything happened in the past should stay in the past." She said proudly, but still kept the essence of a lioness protecting her cubs.

Dawn looked between Leaf and Paul. She didn't know what else to do but the stand there awkwardly like how she did as the new student.

The teachers had finally came and opened up their classrooms. Dawn, Paul and Leaf headed to their respective class.

"I can't believe you're friends with Blue."

"She's a good person," Dawn replied surely. 'Or at least... I think she is...'

"You're doubting the fact that she's a good person right now, right?" He whispered.

"No. And stop reading me like an open book, Paul." She stalked off and sat in her desk while he did the same.

As she sat down, May and Drew came up to her without a second thought.

"Hey, what was that all about?" Drew asked, indicating the small spat outside the classroom.

She shrugged. "Just Paul being a jerk and all."

"He and Leaf have been down each others throat for a while... Well, after she became an Oak, I mean..." May whispered.

Dawn cocked an eyebrow. "What are you saying?"

"May, don't." Drew warned as he placed a hand on the brunettes' shoulder. She turned her head halfway and sighed.

"Nothing. Never mind..." The two retreated to their desks, greeted by the same people that dragged them into a conversation during the break. Dawn watched them with squinted eyes. Why must her new friends be hiding something? She shook off the feeling of being excluded and left out of the loop.

'Or maybe it's better to not know...' She thought.

"Alright. We'll take some notes for about fifteen minutes and after that, get together with your group for the mythology project and start working," said the teacher.

She took out her wired-ring notebook and flipped open to an empty page. She squinted at the over head screen, cursing mentally at how she could barely read anything on it. Dawn let out an exasperated sigh as she put on her glasses.

After seventeen minutes of having to sit there and take notes, the class was now finally able to work on their mythology project. Everyone got up from their desks to get into their groups. Paul got up and walked over to the glasses-wearing bluenette and sat back in the desk in front of her like what he did two days ago.

"I didn't know you wear glasses," Paul commented.

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah well, guess you don't know a lot about girls like me, hm?" She scowled at him.

Paul plugged one of his ear with an ear bud and opened up his text book. He took out a couple of loose leafs and put them on Dawns' desk.

"What are these?" She asked, taking off her glasses and carefully putting them away in their case.

"Japanese mythology notes."

Her eyes felt like they were bulging out. "You took all these notes!?"

"Yeah. What's it to you?"

She shook her head with uncertainty. "I-it's just that... I also took some notes too... But not this much..." She was still dazed at the stack of paper in front of her.

"Then clearly you're still unreliable from the start." He said blankly.

"Hey! Now wait just a minute-"

"Is everything okay, you two?" The teacher had just walked passed them and stopped Dawn from finishing her sentence. The bluenette quickly shook her head.

"Y-yeah! Everything's fine, Mr. Rowan!" She lied. The teacher nodded and walked down the steps, leaving the classroom.

"Nice save, Troublesome," Paul said sarcastically.

"Shut up, Shinji," she muttered.

~oOo~

Lunch came around slowly, but Dawn was excited. She passed Leaf on her way to her locker and the two decided to have lunch together. She offered to invited Leaf to eat with the others, but she had refused.

"Leaf? Dawn? Where are you guys headed off to?"

Dawn felt the heat in her body rose all the way to her face; it didn't help since Leaf was playfully nudging the poor girl.

"Hey Gary," Leaf greeted, punching in in the arm.

"Oof..." He winced and laughed it off, rubbing the spot that she had punched him at. "H-hey. You going to be social and eat lunch with my friends and I? Or are you going to be anti-social like always?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Wanting to eat by myself and not wanting to mingle with people is not considered 'anti-social', Garebear."

Dawn giggled at his nickname.

"Don't laugh, Dawnie," he retorted with a smirk.

"Anyways. I have someone to keep me company while I eat my lunch today." She put her arms around Dawn and pulled the small girl close to her with a high-and-mighty attitude.

"Dawn? You're going to eat with my sister?" He asked. His brows furrowed together at the scene before him.

She nodded. "Uhm, yeah," she shrugged. "Thought it'd be nice."

He looked from Dawn and his step-sister with uneasiness. "Alright... But be careful, Dawn."

Dawn tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean by that?"

Leaf forced Dawn to turn around and pushed her down the hall. "Don't mind Garebear. He's being the typical brother and picking on me." She smiled sweetly at the girl as she looked up at her.

"Oh... Okay then..." She would have to ask Gary (or in this case, Garebear) about what he meant to 'be careful' in drama class.

The two girls headed out the front of the school. Leaf sauntered over to the bike racks while Dawn shuffled along like a mouse. Leaf pulled out a box hidden at the back of the racks against the wall.

"What's that?" Dawn asked innocently.

"A box that I hid. It has a blanket in here that we can use to sit down – kind of like a picnic blanket." She replied. She took out the blue cloth and laid it down on the dirt floor. Leaf patted an empty space next to her. "Come on."

Dawn carefully sat next to the taller girl and crossed her legs.

"You sure aren't worried about flashing people your underwear, Dawn."

"I have shorts underneath, so I'm good." Dawn smiled.

"Ahh. Smart, I like it." Leaf winked.

Gary's warning still rung in her mind as both girls talked and ate their lunches.

"What's it like living with Gary?" Asked Dawn.

Leaf looked into the sky and rubbed her chin. "Um... Pretty normal actually... I mean, we both have that typical brother-sister relationship and all. Where we both make fun of each other – well, he just groans and acts like a baby while I just continue to make fun of Garebear."

Dawn took a bite of her sandwich and nodded.

"So, what about you, Dawnie? Do you have any sibs?" Leaf asked as she leaned against the wall.

She shook her head. "Nope. Only child."

"Damn. You're lucky. I used to be an only child."

"And then you became Leaf Blue-Oak, ha ha." She nudged the girl beside her and smiled.

Leaf smirked and shook her head. "You make it seem like I'm some sort of new tree species."

"Well... You do still have your old surname, but now with a hyphen and 'Oak' beside it." Dawn replied.

The brunette chuckled. "You sure know how to make a person laugh, Dawnie."

She shrugged. "I try." And laughed it off at the end.

Both girls finished their lunches just in time for the bell to ring. They went their separate ways as Dawn walked to the auditorium for her drama class.

"Dawn!"

The girl turned around and suppressed the urge to squeal as Gary came by with his signature grin blinding her eyes.

"Hey, Gary!" She said. "Or should I say, Garebear."

He groaned. "Please, spare me the embarrassing nickname."

"I think it's cute," she replied, nudging him a bit. Gary looked down at Dawn's playful grin and smirked.

"You're a'right, kid." He complimented as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Dawn couldn't help but blush at the sudden contact, but she enjoyed every bit of it. The two walked inside the auditorium and was greeted by their classmates.

A boy that Dawn recognized as the one with the scar, the same one that she ended up having a 'pretend' conversation last class.

"Hey Gary. I didn't know you and the new girl already hooked up," he laughed. With that, the closeness of Gary was gone. Dawn felt her heart jump a little, but she ignored it and tried to remain calm.

"Please, Brendan. She's a friend." He replied.

Dawn tried to go with the flow and act like the thought of Gary and her was horrific. "Yeah. Besides, I'm still the new girl, so for him to be going out with me would be a little... Suspicious of some sort?"

Brendan watched Dawn reason her way out of it and broke into a smile. "Dang, you guys are just too funny! But it's sad. You two make a really cute couple. Anyways, gotta set up, see ya!" The noiret ran back to the broken circle of chairs and helped the other students put it back into a perfect circle before Harley came in.

"You don't think that guy's up to something, do ya?" Gary asked, his eyes still focused on Brendan who made his way to a cute blonde and began to flirt with her.

"I don't really know... I just met him..." She replied blankly.

"Are you two lovers going to move? Or do I have to shove you out of my way?"

Dawn and Gary turned back and saw Paul standing behind them angrily. His jacket thrown over his shoulder as he held the neckline.

"Geez, Paul. The least you can do is be polite," Dawn muttered.

"And we're not 'lovers', Paul." Gary added.

"Could'a fooled me," he said sarcastically as he passed them and threw his bag onto the floor near a stack of chairs.

Dawn looked up at Gary with mixed feelings. She tugged on his sleeve, gaining his attention.

"What's the matter, Dawn?"

"Uh, can I talk to you? I just have a question..." She said quietly.

Gary was taken aback. His eyes were wide open and Dawn could see his brain flashing a huge red 'alert' signal. He nodded and she pulled him away from the others and behind the stack of chairs.

"So..." Gary scratched his head. "What is it you want to talk to me about, Dawn?"

The girl played with the ribbing of her cream coloured vest and avoided eye contact with the brunet. "It's um... It's about what you said at the start of lunch... About being careful with Leaf..."

The same expression that he wore when she asked him to speak to him came back, only instead of possibly hearing sirens, a soft chime could have been near them. "Oh! Okay, that... I... Yeah no..."

"Where's Oak and Berlitz?"

"Behind the stacks of chairs!" Called a student.

Dawn and Gary rushed out but was only laughed at by the entire class. Some even made kissy-faces at the two while a quarter of them sang the typical "sitting on the tree" song. Dawn could feel herself shrink from the embarrassment. She was afraid to look at Gary for she knew he was probably angry. However, she was shocked when he pulled her close to him.

"Yeah. She's my girlfriend. We've been... Trying to keep it a secret... What's it to you?" He replied to the laughing students. The teacher sighed and ordered them to take their seats. Snickers could be heard when she and Gary walked pass them. She glanced over at May, Drew and Misty who were already in their seats during the humiliating event of the year. Luckily for her, all three of them felt sympathy for the poor girl. May frowned and mouthed something that she couldn't quite make out of while Drew and Misty did some crazy hand signals that seemed to say that 'they'll talk later'.

'This is so embarrassing... What's Gary thinking? I bet he's mad... But why'd he lie to the entire class?' She thought nervously. She saw Paul just sit there with his legs crossed. An ungrateful smirk appeared on his face. He was mocking her. Maybe he was the one who shouted when the teacher asked where they were. Or maybe he told someone to yell it. Either way, Dawn had a feeling that even if she tried to stay away from him, he's most definitely going to make her school year miserable.

The apparent couple took their seats and Mr. Harley started class. Everyone did warmup exercises and soon enough, they went back to rehearsing for the school play. Dawn was placed back in front of Brendan to have a 'conversation' with him while the lead roles did their thing.

"So..." Brendan whispered. "You and Gary are a thing now, huh?"

"Please... Don't make this worse for me... Today's event was extremely embarrassing and I don't want to talk about it," Dawn replied softly.

His eyebrows rose and Dawn saw the playfulness from within the noiret as his gaze followed the spiky brunet. "Man, you sure got it good. Gary is one helluva eye candy. I'd tap him any day."

Dawn coughed. "I-I'm sorry?"

Brendan continued eying Gary while he replied sensually to Dawn. "Oh yeah. He's hella attractive. But don't worry, Berlitz. I've got my eye on another brand." This time, Dawn followed his gaze and it took her a while and a few guesses before she got it right.

"You like Drew?" She asked.

Brendan nodded shamelessly as his eyes was hooked on Drew. The poor boy looked around discreetly, trying to find the source of whoever was watching him. Brendan and Dawn went back to their starting position, but with the boy taking sneak peeks at Drew.

"Isn't he... With May or something?" Asked the girl.

Brendan covered his mouth to prevent his voice from ruining rehearsals. "Bertliz, plesae. That big-boobed girl is too proud to admit that. Besides, she already has a crush on me, that silly girl."

Dawn's brows furrowed together. She wasn't sure of anything anymore. Was this situation she was hearing some sort of awkward love triangle? Is Brendan gay? Is May actually trying to play hard to get with Drew or was she actually too prideful and decided to fall for a guy who too, liked Drew?

She heard the boy chuckle and looked up as she tilted her head to the side.

"You seem confused," he remarked.

Dawn shook her head. "No kidding."

"I'm bi."

"Oh..."

"Background people! Stop gossiping and be quiet!" Mr. Harley screamed.

Dawn and Brendan winced and bowed in apology before turning back and discussing the more important issues.

"Should you really be telling me this? We just met..." She said quietly.

He smiled as she shrugged freely. "I don't see the need to hide who I am."

"I guess... That's good... But... I don't think Drew is gay... Or bi... He doesn't really give off that aura..."

"Silly, Berlitz. Of course not. But he is bi, he just prefers girls more."

Her brows knitted together. "And... You're not bothered by that?"

He shook his neatly slicked head of his. "Nope. I just like to have fun."

She made an 'O' with her mouth and her brows rose up high. She wasn't sure what it was with Brendan, but she couldn't help but giggle.

"What's so funny?" He asked.

"Nothing... It's just that... I've actually never had friends who were..." She stopped and looked around before she leaned closer to Brendan. "You know..."

He smiled gently and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Berlitz. In this school, anything is possible and filled with mysteries."

oOoOoOoOoOo

A/N: So... Chapter eleven already. I'll just let you guys take in the information that I've set upon you (:

Blaaahhh. Sorry about the mega delay... I promise ch 12 will be up shortly! Also, I've just finished ch 13 with the winner's contest entry in it. Since my beta is pretty much... MIA. The chapters for now will not be beta-d. It'll be proof read by me though.

-EPRika-