A/N: Hope you are enjoying this bombardment of updates, writing fast and furiously, more to come soon. What do you think about Pogue/ Reid/ Victoria? Any predictions? Any feelings about the situation? Would love some feedback, have been working on this story a long time, hope you are enjoying! -Cat P.S. Hope there aren't any grammatical or spelling errors, posted before second cup of coffee, let me know if you see any and I will correct asap!

Chapter Twenty-Two

Victoria stood up off the bar watching what was happening across from her.

"I thought you were planning on being here with Amy?" Reid asked Tyler who had appeared beside them.

"Yeah but she bailed. Evidently had a migraine from cramming all day." Tyler shrugged.

Victoria wasn't paying attention to them though. She was watching Pogue hugging Kate across the bar from her. Rage flared in her chest, so quickly it took her breath away. Victoria had always had a temper. Something Evelyn never let her forget, and from a young age Victoria had always had to struggle against it. And now it was nearly taking her over.

"Oh yeah, seemed kind of intense," Victoria looked up at Tyler's voice.

"What?" Victoria asked slightly caught off guard. She felt Reid's eyes boring into her and tried to ignore him.

"Kate and Pogue? Yeah I was just over there with him when she came up and asked to talk to him. You guys know what it's about?" Tyler asked casually.

"Maybe she's pregnant." Reid said casually.

Victoria looked up at him, her mouth dropping open. "What?! No! No way!" She snapped impatiently.

Reid looked down at her with cold eyes, "Why do you care?"

Victoria opened her mouth to snap back at Reid but Tyler cut her off. "No, that can't be it. Whatever happened, Kate and Pogue wouldn't drop the ball like that. I dunno maybe they are getting back together."

"My luck ain't that good." Reid mumbled.

Victoria felt rattled and couldn't focus. She wanted to yell at Reid, ask him what meant by that, but what was the point? She could see where he was coming from even if she didn't like to admit it. And really even if it was for only a couple of seconds Victoria had no right to feel nauseous at the thought of Pogue having kids with someone else. She tried to tell herself she would have been worried about any of the guys if they found themselves in that situation, pregnant so young, but if she was honest, age had nothing to do with it.

Tyler looked between Reid's stony face and Victoria's glare and decided to break the silence, "So dude, for the relay at State I was thinking..." Reid got pulled into the swimming conversation pretty easily. Victoria figured anything to distract him from the gong-show that was her right now was a welcome break.

Victoria looked back over the bar to see Kate and Pogue standing close together, having what seemed like an intense discussion. Kate suddenly turned and looked over the bar. She looked directly at Victoria like she knew she Victoria was watching them. She held VIctoria's gaze and Victoria refused to look away. She knew it wasn't her place. And she had no business watching Pogue and his ex or being upset by seeing them together. But she was.

She watched Kate walk away from Pogue and felt her breath catch her throat. She watched Pogue run a hand over his face like he was exhausted and then he turned. Stopping, he saw Victoria watching him. She stood stone still but she wanted to run around the bar and ask him what had happened, what did Kate want? But instead Victoria stayed rooted to where she was. Feeling completely ineffectual and conflicted.

Pogue sent her a small smile, but turned all the same and made a b-line for the door.

Victoria stood in the crowded bar watching people go about their business. In their regular lives. One she used to have. Sure her boyfriend, brother and their friends were all witches, but everything else was normal as possible but now everything was different.

Suddenly, Victoria started to feel very claustrophobic in the bar surrounded by people.

Victoria stood up from the bar. "I-" Reid and Tyler both looked over at her voice. It felt like she couldn't breath. "I think I wanna-"

Reid looked at her, raising an eyebrow, "Yeah?"

"I'm gonna go." Victoria grabbed her purse.

"What? Are you kidding?" Reid asked staring at her.

"Yeah, I gotta..." She trailed off, lamely stroking his arm before beelining it to the door.

"Vic! Victoria wait!" She knew Reid was following her and a huge part of her brain urged to stay. Have fun. Be with him. To just be with him.

When he kissed her in the parking lot it had been wonderful and terrible. It made her think of the first time they kissed, how amazing it had been, how unexpected it had been. Out by the track when she had just started back at school. She thought of that day and wanted it back. But then she also remembered that it had been Pogue who had interrupted them. Suddenly, the memory got all twisted in everything that was going on now and all she wanted was to go back. But she couldn't...

Reid caught up with her as they stepped into the parking lot, "Victoria, wait."

"I am sorry," She said. "I just need..." She trailed off having absolutely no idea what she needed at all.

"What?" Reid dodged in front of her, "Just tell me!" She knew he didn't mean to sound so accusatory. Victoria knew that all Reid wanted was for her to stay and just be with him, but how could she do that when her mind was trapped in a hurricane?

Victoria shook her head, "I just need to go, Reid, I can't ...be here...right now." She stuttered trying to pinpoint her anxiety.

"With me?" He asked looking hurt and angry all at the same time.

"No!" She snapped impatiently, but deep down Victoria did just want to be alone. Being with Reid took focus now, effort. She felt ashamed but it did. She had to focus on being happy and content, pretend that everything was ok, to avoid sending him into a tailspin. But she wasn't even doing a good job of that now.

"Then what is it?!" He yelled.

She knew he wanted something, anything, from her. Victoria knew Reid well enough to know that by this point he didn't even care if it was bad news, he just hated being in limbo. Reid couldn't take not knowing what she wanted or needed. She knew she was setting them up for failure but she felt like she was caught in a hall of mirrors with no idea where the exit was.

So Victoria simply shook her head, "I'm sorry, Reid." She stepped around him saying, "I have to go, I'll see you tomorrow." And then dashed back to her car.

She knew he wouldn't follow her. Victoria knew she had no right to be disappointed if he didn't. But, once she was safely in the drivers seat, she still burst out crying as she watched Reid stride angrily back into Nicky's and away from her.

Pogue ploughed through the water, pushing his muscles harder and harder. His lungs screamed for each breath as he tried to focus on only his breathing and the water rushing over his body.

Letting Kate go...

Letting Reid go...

Letting everything go.

He had come back to the dorms before anyone else and the prospect of sitting in his dorm alone was worse than being back at Nicky's. So he grabbed his swim bag and headed for the pool. The one last place he almost felt sane.

He touched the wall and took a moment to let his lungs fill with air. He tread water and looked at the clock. It was late. Everyone coming back would be back by now, probably in bed. Everyone else would still be partying.

He hauled himself out of the water and grabbed his towel, pulling off his swim cap.

He would probably get some real rest, at least for a couple hours. Victoria would still be out with Reid so it might be a while before she fell asleep and the memory came. It irritated Pogue that he was having to purposefully not think about what Victoria would be doing that was keeping her up. But he did.

He rolled his shoulders. She wasn't his. It wasn't anything to do with him what she was or wasn't doing.

The words felt hollow in his own mind.

Pogue stood numbly under the shower head letting the chlorine rinse off of him but didn't bother with soap, he could always shower tomorrow morning. After drying off, he quickly threw on some sweats and a loose tank top and strode from the change room.

His muscles now matched his minds level of exhaustion and he simply wanted to fall into bed and fade into the oblivion of uninterrupted sleep.

He strode down the hall of the athletic department eager to get up stairs but hesitated when he saw a light on in the dance studio. Normally he would have ignored it, but it was late and it only seemed to be one small light in the normally brightly lit studio, which made him think it might b e freshmen with some poorly thought out end of year prank.

Upon hesitating, unsure if he wanted to get involved, in case it was a couple of idiots, Pogue took a deep breath and decided to just glance in the door.

There was no noise coming from the studio, just the occasional thump, like a foot landing hard on wood.

Pogue looked through the door and felt transfixed.

There she was. Just dancing, hard, aggressively. Victoria covered the floor as if trapped like a puppet on strings, pulling her this way and that.

He came to stand in the doorway as he watched her leap over the floor. She was in a simple black leotard. Her iPod tucked safely into an arm band, earbuds tucked in her ears under a black head band holding them in place as she soared around the room, dancing to a song only she could hear.

Pogue leaned against the door frame as he watched Victoria dance. Her expression was full of angst, and her movements were intense and powerful, not quite ballet but still heart wrenchingly beautiful.

She landed hard in her final position, her whole body landing on the hardwood floor. She stayed still for a moment, and for just a second, Pogue stood up off the doorway, worrying that she hadn't intended on landing that hard and maybe winded herself. But in the second it took Pogue to stand up, Victoria lifted herself off the floor in what looked like a completely effortless movement.

She strode over to the balance bar, Pogue noticing for the first time how hard she was breathing. If he turned and left she wouldn't know he had been watching her. But he couldn't seem to move, neither did he want to. She grabbed a towel off the bar, and buried her face in it. Slowly she shook out her legs and pulled out her ear buds as she dropped the towel around her neck. Victoria turned to the door and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Pogue standing watching her. She looked completely surprised.

Pogue felt slightly awkward to be caught watching her, and waved at her, unsure of what else to do, "Hey you," He said simply.

Victoria smiled at him, and it made his chest feel tight, "Hi," She strode over to him, wrapping her headphones around her hand. "What are you doing here?" She asked. Her voice was high, like she was excited to see him.

"Just came from the pool and saw the light," Pogue explained. Victoria looked at him, taking in his wet hair and tank top clinging to his chest. Her eyes seemed to linger but maybe Pogue was just seeing what he wanted to see.

"What? Hoping to lurk some dancers?" She teased turning off the light in the studio.

Pogue shifted to let her walk past him out of the door, and closed it behind her, "Heh, not exactly." They started down the hall heading towards the main school. "I didn't know you still danced?"

Victoria shrugged, a slight blush colouring her cheeks. "Sometimes, I dunno. It's a good release, ya know?"

Pogue nodded, "Don't have to tell me about it." He said flicking his goggles that were still hanging around his neck. Victoria smiled and looked down. "You looked amazing,"

She smiled brighter, her blush getting deeper, "Thanks, it's been a while. I just was so caught up in my own head tonight after-" She stopped suddenly glancing at Pogue out of the corner of her eyes, "I dunno. Just wanted to forget everything for a while."

Pogue wondered what she was talking about. Did she have an argument with Reid? He shook his head, wasn't his business. If she wanted to talk to him about, she would. "How come you didn't dance for Spencer?"

Victoria shrugged, "I dunno. I mean when I got here we only had five months left. Plus I dunno, ballet isn't really my thing any more. London was the test of that." She sounded sad.

"Ok, well what about Contemporary? There are dance company's that focus on that right?" Victoria blinked and looked at Pogue, raising an eyebrow, suspicion all over her face. Pogue shrugged, chuckling, "What? I know things."

"Really?" Victoria challenged, her eyes narrowing.

Pogue shook his head, "Ok, so maybe Kate was obsessed with So You Think You Can Dance. And I may have had to watch about a couple million episodes."

Victoria nodded, laughing, "Ahhh, I see. I was gonna say..."

"But honestly, Victoria. Why not? You're amazing. I just saw proof."

She shrugged, "I dunno, maybe after we get home, I'll look into it."

Pogue swallowed, remembering that in about two weeks she and Reid were supposed to take off to backpack Europe. He felt a sinking feeling in his chest as he imagined Victoria leaving. He felt sick thinking about not seeing her everyday.

They walked in silence down the hallways and up into the dorms. Once they reached the girls dorms, Victoria turned to Pogue and looked up into his eyes, "I don't-" She hesitated.

He felt like he couldn't breathe looking at her, all he wanted to do was just step forward and pull her to him, kiss her. Be with her.

He knew it would be hard with her gone, as it was he felt like he needed to be by her even when they were simply in different classes but maybe distance wouldn't be so terrible. After all, she wasn't his. Having her this close and yet not being with her was like his own private torment.

"I just don't-" Victoria started again, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, still struggling to find her words.

"Just don't know what to say anymore?" Pogue offered. Victoria just looked up at him, her bright blue eyes glowing up at him in the darkly lit hallway. She didn't say or do anything, just looked up at him. Pogue nodded, cause he knew she understood. "Yeah, I know." He gave her a small smile. "Night, Victoria." He quickly turned away from her and headed up to the boys dorms before he did something he would regret.