Disclaimer: I do not own She's the Man.
Hey this chapter is gonna be drama filled! It really is. This is what everything so far adds up to. But don't worry there's still a long way to go. LOL. I hope... Well I present to you chapter 24!
The next day, Viola woke up and realized she had a game. A very important game. She quickly got ready and went to the field. The team was warming up already and she knew how important it was not to miss this game. It would determine if they would go to the finals or not. Yep, it was the semi-finals. Duke came early and Viola told him to watch the game from the sidelines. All the girls couldn't believe that it was true that Viola was dating the Duke Orsino. Duke watched Viola practice, the girls on the team watched Duke and Jason watched the girls.
"Let's focus!" Jason would bark.
"Let us have our fun. We'll win today," Emma reassured him. They continued practicing and whenever Duke smiled, they had no clue it was because of Viola. It was game time and the girls new it was going to be everything but friendly. It was going to be the game to determine the next team to go to the finals. The girls trained so hard for the moment and it was there. It wasn't the finals, but like the doorway to the finals.
The game started and Viola was playing her best. So were all the others in hope that they could steal the attention of Duke off of Viola and onto themselves. But it wasn't working. The near the end of the first half, Viola and the team were in the lead. Jason told them, "It's not over yet!" The girls just rolled their eyes and continued playing. Viola had the ball and she stumbled a bit, falling. She got up and said she was fine but Jason (and Duke) said they needed a time out. Viola went to the sidelines.
"What? I'm fine. Just tripped I guess."
"Don't hurt yourself. You seem to be playing a bit too hard, don't you think, Jason?" Duke asked.
As much as Jason wanted to get the pleasure of yelling at Viola to tell her to focus, but he had to say, "I agree. Take it easy."
Viola went back on the field. The first half ended and while Viola sat on the bench, waiting for the second half, Duke spent the whole time whispering in her ear. Whatever he said, was making her laugh and making the other girls have smoke coming out of their ears. They drank their water, eyeing Viola.
"Don't you want some water, Vi?" Duke asked at one point.
"Nah. I'm fine. Well. It's the second half. Wish me luck."
"Good luck." Viola looked back at him and smiled. She ran back onto the field with a smile on her face and continued playing. Viola didn't know when but she started feeling dizzy. Really dizzy. It seemed there were five goals instead of one. She shook her head and continued. She told herself not to let that get in the way. Viola was dribbling with the ball. She narrowly missed a player and headed up towards the goal. That dizziness feeling came back and Viola just let her eyes clothes and body fall to ground.
Viola Hastings fainting cause a lot of gasps. All her team mates saw her and they all rushed up. This time, Viola didn't wake up, she stayed on the ground. Duke came rushing out to, to see if she was alright. She wasn't alright and soon Viola was taken off the field and rushed to hospital. They had a replacement for Viola, but it didn't seem the same. The girls on the team were truly worried which was an advantage for the other team. They quickly gained the lead and won the game but that wasn't important.
Viola could only remember dribbling and then everything was a black out from there. What had happened? Viola woke up, still feeling dizzy. She saw about 25 Dukes in front of her, but soon it went down to 1. "Duke?" Viola asked. Her voice was hoarse. "Where am I?"
She heard Duke sigh with relief. "Finally Vi! You scared us all, so much!" Viola confused got up in bed. It the pain was extreme. In the room she saw her parents, Olivia and Sebastian with Evie, Justin, Toby, Kia, Yvonne, Paul and Andrew.
"What's wrong with me? Why am I in a hospital?"
"Viola, during the game you fainted," Paul spoke up.
"I did? But what about the game?"
"Is that all you ever worry about!" Daphne Hastings shrieked, appauled.
"Daphen, be reasonable," Viola's dad tried to calm her down.
"Vi, your team lost," Justin said softly.
Viola's eyes filled with sadness. "That just proves what your team would be without you," Duke said trying to cheer her up. At that moment, a doctor with a nurse behind him came rushing in. "Excuse us, excuse us," the doctor said pushing past to get to Viola.
"Doctor Kentworth. Now Viola, you've been out cold for 3 hours now. Care to tell us what happened?"
"Sorry doc. I have no clue. I was dizzy and then from there nothing."
"Well, lucky us. You passed out because you were dehydrated. Very dehydrated."
"Oh."
"Yes, your dehydration made you dizzy and also caused you to pass out."
"Told ya you should've had some water," Duke said, nudging Viola gently.
"Anyways. Now can you tell me why you a healthy active girl has suddenly become dehydrated? You play sports don't you?"
Viola nodded. "Well why don't you keep yourself hydrated?"
Viola looked weak. She looked up at the doctor, scared. She hated hospitals. "I, I," Viola couldn't say anything. Duke had an idea why she was so dehyrdated. That day. That game. When she cried her eyes out for ages. What if she didn't drink enough water to make up for what she lost? Duke got up and took Doctor Kentworth aside. Duke spoke to him in a quiet voice. Doctor Kentworth came back and said, "You'll have to stay here for a few days, until your rehydrated. Then you may go." Doctor Kentworth left with his nurse writing down a few things. They left Viola to rest except for Duke. Viola wanted him to be there with her.
"Am I going to be alright?"
"Yep. It's nothing big. All you need to do is rest and get better." Viola smiled up at him, gratefully and headed off into sleep. Sure enough, Viola was able to leave a few days later. She showed up to practice the next morning, right after coming home from the hospital. This time, she drank lots and lots of water. Her team mates were glad she was better. Viola was feeling so much better than before. She was walking along the street and she noticed a lot of people staring. Viola shrugged it off.
But then Viola saw what was making people stare. There on another magazine was her, on the cover, big with the writing 'Hastings on Drugs?' written across. Viola, horrified that somebody would say such a thing, ran home. When she got home she sat on her bed, hugging her knees. She turned the TV on which was still set to the entertainment channel. She saw that his was another show that claimed it had the latest news on celebrities.
"And now there are rumors that Viola Hastings who fainted at a Friday game is on steroids. Reports say that she fainted from dehydration, something steroids can do to you." The show went on and Viola just stared at the screen, not watching it. She jumped up when the phone rang.
"Hello?" She asked nervously.
"Viola? Have you read the headlines? They're so horrible! I can clearly remember saying heroin, not steroids. Tabloids these days."
"You? Again?" Viola was shocked. "What do you want?" She asked icily.
"For you to back off."
"ABIGAIL, DUKE ORSINO IS NOT YOUR MAN AND NEVER WILL BE!" Viola said it loud and clear so she would understand.
"You wish. Like I said Viola, I can make someone's life a living hell."
Viola hung up on her and went up to the rooftop. She sat down cross-legged. She cried and cried, until there were no more tears. The feeling of depression came walzting back into her life. Viola had to do something. Now.
Duke was getting worried. He was supposed to meet Viola an hour ago. He had asked her to dinner, a quiet one now that she was feeling better. He went to her apartment and hammered on the door. When there was no answer. He opened the door to find a note on the table. There was that magazine and Duke quickly read the note, knowing it could not be good.
Duke,
Sorry to bail on you tonight. It's just something needs to be done and I'm going to do something.
Don't bother looking. I hope I'll float away and everything will be better. Abigail will get her way, as usual. It's just this time, I'm helping.
Maybe the way things happen were just meant to be.
Viola
Duke got this horrible feeling in his stomach. Was Viola referring to it? Did she actually think that she would have to do that to get away? Duke realized he had to do something now to stop Viola from making the worst choice in her life. Duke ran down to his car and drove speedily. He called Justin and started speaking rapidly.
"Justin what was the name of the beach you and Vi used to play soccer?"
"Why?"
"JUST TELL ME!" Justin told him and Duke quickly said a thanks and bye before continuing driving. He drove as fast as he could to get to the beach. He parked messily but didn't care. He got out and looked onto the beach. There was a figure in the water and he knew it was definetly not good. Duke ran onto the beach and splashed into the water. It was surprisingly cold. He caught up with Viola and grabbed her wrist. She turned around to see him.
"What do you want?"
"Vi? What are you doing?" It started to rain heavily. A storm was coming. A big one.
"What do you think?"
"Why?"
"Why do you think?"
"I DON'T KNOW, OKAY! SO TELL ME!"
"DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY? WHY?" Viola screamed at the top of her lungs. Her hair was wet and tears were streaming down her face. "BECAUSE THERE IS SOMEONE OUT THERE WHO WANTS TO RUIN MY LIFE AND I'VE DECIDED I'LL JUST HELP THEM! WHAT'S THE POINT LIVING IF YOUR LIFE IS A LIVING HELL?"
"Vi, why do you think this is the only way out?"
"BECAUSE THIS IS THE ONLY WAY OUT. THERE IS NOTHING I CAN DO TO STOP ABIGAIL. SHE WILL KEEP GOING ON AND ON UNTIL SHE WEARS ME DOWN! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND DUKE? THERE'S NO END TO IT!" There was a clap of thunder and a flash of lightening and Duke saw her pale face.
"What happened to being strong? You have got to believe in yourself. Ignore what others say. Live your own life!"
"I'm sick of being strong. I'm sick of everything! Nothing is worth living for! I'VE LOST MICHAEL, EVERYTHING AND THE WHOLE WORLD THINKS I'M ON DAMN STEROIDS!"
"You have me, Vi. You have Sebastian, Olivia, Justin, Kia, Yvonne, Paul, Andrew and Toby. Aren't they worth living for? Isn't soccer worth living for?"
"ALL I EVER WANTED WAS TO BE HAPPY. BE WITH YOU! BUT LOOK WHERE IT'S GOTTEN ME!"
"VI! You don't need to worry about what they say. You've got to be strong of Michael! Ignore them, keep going on! Even when things are tough, you can't let them pull you down!"
"MICHAEL IS DEAD! AND HE'S NOT COMING BACK! WHAT'S THE POINT IN LIVING? I'M SICK OF ABIGAIL! I'M SICK OF SUFFERING! I HATE EVERYTHING! I HATE HER! I HATE MY LIFE! EVERYTHING ALWAYS GOES WRONG!"
"Vi, Michael's only dead if you want to believe he is. He can live forever, in your heart and you know that he would want for you to be strong and keep going! He wouldn't want you to give it all up! Don't you understand? People can say all these things about you, but we'll know they're not true! YOU HAVE GOT TO IGNORE THEM!"
"Easy for you to say! All you've ever been is the soccer star! NOTHING ELSE! YOU THINK LIFE IS SO EASY!"
"I KNOW LIFE IS NOT EASY, VI! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO YOURSELF? YOU DON'T HAVE TO!"
"I'M TIRED OF HAVING EVERYTHING. THE RUMORS, LIES, THE STORIES. ALL BECAUSE OF ABIGAIL! I HATE HER!"
"Vi! We all know who she is and what type of person she is. BUT you can't let that get in the way! You've got to be strong! Abigail is never going to change. So you need to stand up to her now, or else there's no escaping!"
"EXACTLY! I'LL JUST HELP HER RUIN MY LIFE!" Viola tried to escape from Duke's grips.
"DON'T DO THIS TO YOURSELF, VI!" There was another bang! of thunder and flash of lightening. Viola's face was ghostly with tears everywhere. She opened her mouth to protest, but instead she collasped into his arms. Duke hoisted her onto his back, piggy-back style and carried her out of the chilly water. He was so angry with Abigail, making Viola think the only way to get away was suicide. He couldn't even believe that she would think such a thing. Duke felt like ripping Abigail into tiny shreds. The walk up to the beach was slow, as Duke thought about how much Viola must've suffered. Then his thoughts were interupted with a voice.
"I love you," Viola's soft voice said. Her breath was warm and Duke could feel it against his ears. Her voice was so quiet. It ws the first time she had ever said that. (A/N: I know she says it in the movie, but let's pretend she never did, for the sake of my story!) Viola had never, ever said anything like that to him. It shocked him. But Viola wasn't finished talking.
"I think've I've loved you ever since high school. I just never knew it. I didn't realize how special you were, how grateful I should've been for you." Her voice was drowsy sounding, but it was her. "And then you came back. It was the happiest and best thing that happened to me since Michael died." No, she wasn't sleep talking. But then again, her eyes were closed. Duke pushed his thoughts aside and listened. "It seemed you were the only one who understood me, who I could trust with my deepest thoughts. You came and mended my heart. It had been tossed and torn from when Michael died. You helped me believe in myself. You helped me learn to trust, learn to love. And most of all, you helped me regain what I thought I had lost when Michael died. I thought I lost everything. I had lost the floor from underneath me. And I've been falling ever since. But then you came and you became my new floor. You were sturdy and would never let anything happen. You helped me regain my happiness."
"I love you too, Vi." But it was too late. She had fallen asleep once again.
Duke put her in the front seat with and reclined the chair as far as it would go. She took her to her apartment. He put her in bed. He felt bad about leaving her alone. He sat in an armchair in her room, the whole night, not sleeping. But early in the morning he did fall asleep. Viola woke up in bed. She knew what she had said last night, she meant it. Then she saw Duke sleeping in the chair. She got up and put a blanket over him. She went into the kitchen and made herself a cup of tea.
Duke woke up later with a blanket over him. Then he saw the bed empty. He left the room to see Viola, sitting on the couch, thinking, sipping at her drink. She looked up at him. "Hey," she said quietly.
"Hey. How are you feeling?"
"Not too well."
"I hope you get better. We really need to do something about Abigail."
"Yeah. Do you want some coffee?" Viola jumped up. She went into the kitchen and started fumbling around for the right things.
"Viola?" Viola turned around.
"Hm?"
"About last night. What you said-"
"Duke what I said was the truth. That's all I need to say." And as Viola turned around again, Duke couldn't help but smiling. Duke walked up to her and from behind, he gave her a hug.
"I love you too Vi." Viola looked up at him with shock in her eyes. Viola didn't think there ever was a happier moment. And it seemed it was that moment, that they knew they were meant to be.
Over the next few weeks, Viola stayed close to Duke. She felt scared leaving him. She thought if she did, everything would go horribly wrong. A week later, Duke had an interview. Alone. Duke assured her it was only an hour long. Viola said fine. So she stayed in her apartment while Duke went off to talk to John Jabbers about her.
"Now their's been a lot about Viola. What can you tell us?"
"Well first of all she's not on steroids. She was dehyrdated. That's all."
"Okay. That's easy enought to believe. Lack of water. Next question." The interview went smoothly on and Duke went back to Viola's apartment. He found her up on the rooftop, thinking.
"What are you thinking about?"
"How much I love you," Viola smiled. She got up and gave Duke a hug. "So how was it?"
"John's a interesting fellow."
"You could say that."
"But I guess that's what makes him so popular."
"Yep. What did he ask?"
"Stuff about you."
"Like what?"
"Why you fainted."
"Oh."
"I told him you were dehydrated, end of story."
"Thanks."
"No need to thank me. It's the truth." Duke went home that night, just knowing Viola was the girl. The girl he'd always wanted. The girl he wanted to be with forever and ever. The next morning he went called to meet up with Sebastian and Olivia. They met for lunch and Sebastian asked, "What's up?"
"A lot."
"Like?" Olivia asked. She got a bottle out for Evie.
"I need you guys to help me find a ring."
Hehe. Cliffhanger. But not a good one. You all know now what's gonna happen. Sigh. But how will Viola react? Second chapter today! WOO HOO! I hope you enjoyed. Keep the reviews coming.