Chapter 15: Don't Cry
"You gotta make your own way,
But you'll be alright now sugar.
You'll feel better tomorrow,
Come the morning light now baby."
-Don't Cry: Guns 'n Roses
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Monday came and Dawn woke up with a new purpose. She jumped out of bed once her alarm rang and hurried to get ready. Dressing in a stylish skirt and a sweater, she headed downstairs with her backpack to meet her brother.
Her brother was already in the kitchen putting a few spoonfuls of protein powder into his breakfast smoothie. He looked over when he pushed his thumb on the machine to merge the contents in the blender together and Dawn looked at him when she pulled a yogurt out of the fridge.
"You look nice today." He commented when she pulled out a spoon and pulled the wrapper of the top of her yogurt to throw it in the trash.
"I look nice every day." She shrugged and popped a spoonful of yogurt in her mouth, leaning against the counter and watching her brother.
"Sure, whatever." He shrugged and poured his smoothie into his usual cup to drink on the way to school. She finished her yogurt and threw the empty container away to follow him out the door to his car, grabbing her bag on the way.
After a few minutes of driving the twins arrived at school and Drew turned off his car and got his bag from the backseat. Dawn took her bag and walked beside her brother as they walked through the cars to the school.
"Hey guys!" A loud voice boomed behind the two and the twins stopped to see Gary walking towards them. The brunette was standing tall and slung his arms around both their shoulders and pushed them forwards while he walked between them.
"What's up?" Drew asked and they neared the doors to the school. Gary chuckled.
"I was a very lucky man on Friday night, you guys should've stuck around longer." The tall play-boy remarked and followed the shorter two into the school, Dawn blushed and shied away.
"Now I'm glad we left early, don't want to follow your actions." Drew commented and Dawn separated once she was near her locker and found May waiting as usual.
"Hey girl!" May smiled and Dawn gave her a similar greeting and unlocked her locker. Taking her books and putting her bag away Dawn shut her locker and looked to May who was watching someone over her head.
"Here comes your man." May winked and Dawn blushed but turned around to see Paul coming down the hallway, the blunette turned back.
"He's just going to his locker May, don't get excited." Dawn rolled her eyes and May giggled, reopening her locker for no reason; she already had her history books in hand.
"Hey." The familiar deep voice came and Dawn turned back around to see Paul standing there with his book bag thrown over one shoulder and one hand in his pocket.
"Hey Paul." She greeted and clutched her books to her chest feeling nervous.
"I'll see you later." He tugged a piece of her long hair and smirked, "Bye little Blue."
The tall football player walked off and Dawn watched him disappear in the crowd. May pulled her hand to get her to walk and the two walked to history together.
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Dawn walked beside her brother and Paul once English class was over, stopping by her locker to drop off her books and then catching up with them down the hall to walk to lunch. The three stood in the lunch line as it slowly moved.
"I won't be able to work on our project on Saturday." Paul spoke and Dawn shrugged, showing her indifference.
"Okay, why's that?" They were almost to the food buffet and she took a few more steps to stand behind her brother, staring into his neck.
"I'm going to the University to meet the coach." He said and she gave him a smile and took her food. Sitting down at the lunch table the two resumed their conversation.
"Well good luck, is it a long drive?" Dawn questioned and picked up the fork on her tray to position it between delicate fingers. Paul was already chewing his first bite.
"Yeah, couple of hours." He said after he swallowed, at least he had manners. Dawn shuffled in her seat to get a little more comfortable on the bench.
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Dawn tried not to blush when she saw her boyfriend waiting by her locker when she came back from coordinating class with May. He was leaning against her locker and his eyes searched the crowd, probably looking for her.
"Oooooohhhh!" May giggled when he saw the tall football player and she shook her friend's arm in excitement for her. Dawn turned her head to shy away. She approached her locker and Paul stepped away only to lean against the locker next to hers on his shoulder.
"How was battles?" She took his attention as she twirled the lock on her locker to open it, he shrugged in response and watched as she grabbed her books. His books were already under his arm.
"Same as usual." He stood straight on his feet when she closed her locker and May waved her off with a wink as she went to follow him down the hallway and to the stairway to their biology class.
The silence of the hallway was welcoming after the loud voices of the hall and she enjoyed the rays of sunshine that filtered through the window despite it being the fall season. It was a wonderful day outside.
"Hey!" It was Gary's voice that called to them once the couple entered the room and his eyes watched them as they took their seats. He looked at both of them separately.
"What?" Paul rolled his eyes tossing his lab manual onto his lab table carelessly. Class didn't start for a few more minutes anyways.
"How come I just found out the two of you got together? And at my party? How did I not know about this!?" Gary's shouting and arm waving took the attention of the few early students and Dawn blushed at the attention.
"Gary, shut up." Paul's tone held a threat and the brunette just shook his hair, unafraid.
The brunette huffed and plopped down into his chair and flipping open his workbook. Dawn met Paul's eyes as he smirked and turned back around as their professor entered the room.
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"Drew." The green-haired male turned around when he heard his twin call out, she jogged the couple of steps to catch up with him in the hallway and he stopped in front of his bedroom door.
"Yes?" He asked and opened his door, leaving it open behind her as in invitation to come in. The blunette did so and stood in the doorway. She had already changed into her sweatpants and t-shirt for the night and caught her brother as he came home from practice.
"Could you help me with the English essay? I just want you to read over my thesis." Dawn asked and her brother and he tossed his duffel bag on his bed.
"Yeah sure, just let me shower first." Dawn thanked him and closed his door behind her as she left to give him some privacy.
A few hours later and she laid on her brother's bed as they completed their homework. She was glad that they had their own strengths in subjects and helped each other out. She had been helping her brother study for his biology exam for the past half an hour. He was in the regular biology course and she was more than happy to assist him.
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Dawn looked at herself in the mirror. She fixed her hair and fluffed it accordingly, smoothing out her t-shirt for any winkles. She heard her bedroom door open and smiled. Paul had texted her earlier to let her know that football practice had finished and he would be coming over to finish their English project. She pulled the waist of her sweatpants up a little higher, she decided not to dress any differently just because they were dating now, they were friends first.
The blunette opened her bathroom door and saw that it indeed was her boyfriend who had arrived, he had just set down his backpack next to the desk and looked up. She could barely see his eyes with his hair damp and hanging down from the shower he must have taken after practice.
"Hey." She greeted and sat down on her bed as usual, crossing her legs into a pretzel. He sat down in the desk chair with more huff then he normally did. Her blue eyes looked up to see him leaning back in the black office chair with his eyes closed.
"Rough practice?" She questioned and opened her laptop up in her lap. He groaned and caused her to smile at his lack of effort.
"I'm tired." Paul stated but leaned up to pull out his lap top and turn it on.
"You can sleep later, we're almost done!" She reasoned and he smirked. Dawn wondered what was behind the turn of his lips.
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"Done!" She slapped the last piece of tape on their project board. Dawn had long ago moved to the floor to finish putting together the poster while Paul stayed in the office chair, he had put his computer away a few minutes ago.
It was only seven at night and she was glad that they were done earlier than usual. In had taken a few weeks, but it was November now and their project didn't have to be presented for another week. Paul got up from the desk chair and walked past her and the poster on the floor and plopped ungracefully onto her bed shoving his face into her pillows and slipping his arms under the pillows and under his head. His weight making the frame creak with effort.
"What are you doing?" She peeked over the edge of the bed when he fell quiet. His length took up most of the bed and his heels hung inches from the end.
"You said I could sleep when we were done." His voice was muffled by the pillows as his face was buried in them. She took a moment to appreciate his wide set shoulder blades through the t-shirt that clung to them.
"I didn't mean in my bed." Dawn rolled her eyes and when she got no response she stood up and picked up the poster. She placed it against the wall in the empty space of her closet where it would be safe until they needed it. The blunette picked up her supplies from the floor and put them back on her desk, pushing aside his laptop to make room on the surface.
"Paul?" Walking over to see if he was still awake she took a seat on the edge facing him. Her legs crossed and toes almost brushing his side near his hips.
He didn't answer and she found herself looking around her room for a moment. She rocked on her bottom to pass the time. Finding her white walls bare and boring she looked to her boyfriend once again, watching as his back moved slightly as he breathed.
Reaching out she brushed his hair, letting her fingers touch the soft strands. It was lighter since it had dried and resumed to its length to brush against the collar of his shirt.
She blushed and drew her hand away when he turned his head on the pillow to look at her. His hair falling to cover almost all of side upturned and eyes half-lidded with sleep. His arms that were tucked around the pillow escaped and one reached towards her.
"I'm tired." His voice was rough and he pulled her down to lay on her back beside him. Paul turned on his side and pillowed his head with his arm. She blushed but stayed where she was and her eyes caught his movement when he hovered over her.
She blushed when his heat surrounded her as his torso leaned over hers. He supported himself with his elbow next to her head and his fingers trailed on her cheek.
"You're blushing Blue." He smirked when he saw how red she was. Dawn closed her eyes when he leaned down, welcoming his lips with her own; warm and strong. She felt his fingers brush down her neck and over the collar of her t-shirt to retrace their path once again.
She liked how easy it was from them.
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"Paul Shinji is a cuddler?" Dawn grew bright red and slapped her hand over the mouth of her best girlfriend and the brunette continued to muffle her words.
"May! Be quiet!" The blunette scolded and withdrew her hand so she could pull on the rest of her shirt. Gym started in a few minutes and she was only half dressed at the moment.
"I just can't believe it!" May whispered as she tied her shoes and finished getting ready. There were only a few girls left in the locker room at this point.
"Well you better be quiet about it!" Dawn shut her locker and the two headed out into the gym for their gym class. Lt. Surge was already standing with the students around him waiting for instructions. The two girls hung around the outside of the crowd to wait.
"Alright! Please pick a partner, we will be doing partner exercises today. There are cones around the gym, each one has an activity to go with in. You might not finish today with everyone, but get started." Lt. Surge blew his whistle and the students began discussing.
"Be with me!" May said and Dawn nodded in agreement. They probably would have been partners anyways and they headed towards one of the cones to read the instructions left there. Other students had already paired off and went to an unoccupied cone around the rubber floors of the gym.
"We're doing Yoga first." May spoke and the two went on either side of the paper to complete the shown exercise. Dawn exhaled as she went down into a lunge and clasped her hands in front of her.
"Oooo… Look at Paul." May whispered lowly and Dawn looked around the gym until she spotted the purple-haired male a few cones away with her brother. Her sapphire eyes went over his form as he completed pushups in a confident manner. Her cheeks stained pink.
"Look at my brother." Dawn teased in return and her friend snapped her head to avoid looking at the green-haired boy now completing his pushups.
"Shut up!" May glared and the two moved on to the next pose. Dawn giggled and caught her brother's eyes from his cone.
"Ohhh.. Drew's looking." Dawn giggled and struggled with her balance for a moment, catching herself on her feet. May laughed at her.
"You almost fell." May commented and Dawn huffed in annoyance at her friend.
"I would have laughed." A snide remark came and the blunette turned to see two other girls coming towards their cone. The pink-haired set an unaltered glare in her direction.
"Heard you and Paul got together?" Ursula commented and Dawn set her hands on her hips. She wasn't her usual kind-hearted self when other people pushed her.
"We are." Dawn snapped and walked away with May to find another exercise to complete. The two girls completed their gym class with small talk and plans for the weekend.
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"So what did Ursula say to you?" Dawn looked up from her phone and to her brother. He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as the car idled at the stoplights. His emerald colored eyes watched the lights for a few seconds before they turned back to her.
"She just asked if Paul and I got together." Dawn shrugged and her brother hummed in response, glancing at the lights once again.
"Okay, but let me know if she gives you any trouble okay? She's a bitch sometimes." The light turned green and he stepped on the gas. They were a few minutes from home and he had to return to the school for football practice. Dawn waited for a few minutes, until the houses were large and white showing that they had entered their neighborhood.
"Why does she not like me?" Dawn asked and looked out the window.
"Probably because of Paul, they dated before but he broke up with her because she didn't treat him right. She's from a very wealthy family and asked a lot of him." Drew explained and pulled into their driveway, stopping in front of the garage doors.
"May told me before, I'll see you later." Dawn collected her bag and shut the door to the car after she got out. Her brother waved and went back out to the road to drive back to school for practice.
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The next day Dawn woke up more tired than usual, feeling slow and numb as she went through her normal morning routine. She had stayed up later than usual last night to study for her history test today. She decided to wear jeans and a long-sleeved shirt today.
She pulled out an extra sweatshirt and her purse because she would be going over to May's house before the game and not coming home until later and put both in her schoolbag. The blunette unplugged her phone from her charger and put it in her pocket before leaving her room to head downstairs.
Putting her schoolbag by the bottom of the stairs to grab later, Dawn headed over to the kitchen to find her father already dressed and looking into the fridge. She swallowed harshly, her and her father were still not on good terms after their fight a few weeks ago. She wouldn't lie when asked if she was avoiding him.
"Oh hey Princess!" He had finally picked something to eat and noticed his daughter standing in the kitchen.
"Hey Dad." She spoke quietly and went over to the toaster to put her usual breakfast in. Her brother came into the kitchen and took her father's attention away from her.
"Hey son, I'll see you at the game later okay?" The father patted his son on the shoulder and then left the twins in the kitchen by themselves.
"Still haven't talked to him?" Drew asked and walked over to the blender to make his usual breakfast smoothie.
"I guess, I haven't really talked to him at all. He's not home that much." Dawn shrugged and put her toast on the plate when it popped out of the toaster. She was glad that her brother didn't ask much more about the subject.
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Dawn was surprised to see another person at their usual round booth at the pizza place after school. A familiar redhead sat next to Ash and she waved when the girl's eyes caught hers, Dawn was glad to see her friend.
"Hey guys." Drew greeted and slid in the booth to sit next to Gary who was in the middle. Dawn followed him and found herself looking across at Misty who was between Ash and Gary.
"Hey Misty." Dawn smiled and took one of the cup from the stack in the middle of the table to pour herself some of the soda that was in the pitcher. The red-head smiled and seemed more comfortable at the sight of the blunette.
"Hey Dawn, how did you like the history test this morning?" Misty asked. Dawn had found that the red-head shared her first class of the day, history, but she sat on the other side of the room from herself and May.
"It went well, I only struggled with a few questions." Dawn shrugged and Misty nodded.
"Yeah, the essay took me almost fifteen minutes to answer!" Dawn laughed and gave the girl a smile.
"Hey Paul!" Gary's shout caught her attention and she looked to see that Paul was approaching their table and slid into the booth next to her on the end.
"Hey." The tall male said and checked his phone once before sliding it back into his pocket. With the addition of another person at the booth there wasn't much room between them and Dawn felt the material of his jeans brush against hers.
"I have something for you before you leave." Paul's voice was low and she looked up at him.
"Okay." Dawn said and leaning back in her seat, surprised to find Paul's arm stretched over the back of the booth behind her. She blushed and tensed, afraid to move.
"Watch this." His voice whispered and his arm moved behind her as it lengthened to reach her brother. Dawn bit her lip to keep from laughed when Paul's fingers pulled on her brother's sleeve. Her twin jumped in response and looked over.
"What?" He asked his sister and she shook her head to show that it wasn't her. She giggled when Paul performed the act again and her brother glared at her.
"It's not me!" She defended even though she giggled. Her brother narrowed his eyes at her and poked his fingers between her ribs making her laugh, pushing her against the tall male beside her.
"Drew!" She laughed and was glad that the pizza came to distract him. She was sure that her ribs were bruised now. Dawn grabbed her regular two pepperoni pieces and set them on the plate in front of her. Paul had removed his arm from behind her so he could eat and the group fell silent as they chewed.
After the pizza was finished by a rather entertaining eating contest between Ash and Gary, the group finished up and headed outside the pizza restaurant. Dawn went to follow her brother to his car but then remember that Paul had to give her something.
"I'm be right back Drew, Paul has something for me." Her brother only nodded and continued his way to the silver car. Dawn jogged across the parking lot in the direction that Paul had walked earlier. The blunette caught sight of him unlocking his black truck and stopped behind him.
"You said you had something for me?" She asked and he turned to see her then nodded in agreement, opening the door and reaching over the seat to pull his duffel bag he used for football over to the driver's seat.
"I forgot to give you it after school." Paul explained and pulled out a familiar jersey to hand to her. She smiled and took it gently into her own hands.
"Thanks!" She gave him a fleeting hug, pressing her cheek to his canvas jacket and her hands around his waist. He pressed a hand against her shoulder blades and released her.
"I'll see you at the game." He muttered and tugged on a piece of her hair to go with the smirk he sent her. She blushed and turned around to head back to her brother's car.
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The young woman yawned and stretched as she stood up from her desk chair. She pushed the cushioned chair back into the groove in her desk and looked at the clock. It was later than usual on the Saturday night and she had gotten her homework done so she could relax tomorrow.
A buzz alerted her for a moment before a cheerful sound came out of her mobile phone on the bedside table by her bed. She furrowed her brow and walked over to where her phone was pulled it and looked at the caller I.d. on the screen. Paul
"Hello?" She answered quite unsure, she wondered why Paul would be calling her this late.
"Hey, you weren't asleep were you?" His deep baritone came across the line and Dawn took a seat on the edge of her bed.
"No, I was doing some homework." Dawn answered and heard this thoughtful hum from his side.
"Good, I'm on my way home now." He said and Dawn nodded even though he couldn't see it. He had went to the University of Hoenn today to meet with the coaches and she hadn't heard from him all day.
"How did it go?" She questioned and got up to put her things in a more orderly fashion on her messy desk.
"Alright, coaches were good." He answered and Dawn smiled.
"That's good." She answered and went back to her bed to lay down on top of the covers.
Just hearing his voice over the line was enough to make her feel warm.
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It's good that they're together now, makes it easier to write about them!
As always, please review!
I like suggestions.