The Great Escape
AN. Thank you to xHalosandwings, John Cena's Field Hockey Star, sophia0401, xTwistedxImperfectionx, Tiffyxox, 208x, xxDaniceValentezxx, Grits0205 & quteash for reviewing the last chapter.
Thanks very muchly & welcome to the last chapter of TGE! :)
Chapter Forty – The Future
THE GIRLS
The New Year had come and gone quickly. While there were some grand memories for the majority of students – and embarrassing pictures too – the time for partying and getting drunk, for the most part, was over; all classes were back on and a serious regime was to be taken up again.
Though studying was hardly fun, there was one girl who didn't appear to mind spending the limited amount of time she had before class in the library. She'd come to know this place well—maybe as well as her studious best friend even—and had used it many a time to escape her troubles and gain peace of mind.
Happily enough, Ashley could now note that she had far fewer worries on her mind; in fact, angling her head away from the note-filled writing pad in front of her on the table and peeking discreetly at her boyfriend, she knew she wouldn't have any concerns for a long while to come.
She saw the smirk on his lips grow bigger, and had to hide her own; she'd quickly learnt Adam Copeland had a habit of knowing when someone was staring at him, whether he was looking in their direction or not. And sat besides her leafing through a huge book of psychology notes, Adam was definitely aware of her sudden stare.
"You should stop looking at me like that." He muttered. When she nonchalantly brushed her jean-clad leg against his, he straightened up considerably, causing her to giggle softly. "I'm serious, Ash. Otherwise I might have to grab you over this table and—"
"So what's stopping you?"
She was challenging him again. Catching the mischievous glint in her eyes, he couldn't help but to settle his smirk into a smile. How had he struck so lucky with this one? Whatever had forced her to give this relationship a chance, he owed it his life. Just to see her so... full of life... filled him with the promise of anything.
He'd never felt this way about a girl before. Ashley was special. Even though he didn't like to think about the future and what it could hold, he was fairly certain he'd be with her for a long, long time to come. Nothing would stand in their way and they would only grow stronger as a couple. Yes, he liked the thought of that.
"One thing you have to stop?" She nudged him and then focused on her notes again. "Breaking off mid-reply to stare at me. It's getting a little bit creepy, you know." But the laughter at the end of her sentence proved that theory wrong.
"I apologize." He raised his hands innocently, then lowered one to flick his pen in-between his fingers. "I was just so, you know—" A shrug. "—caught up with the image of you in your bedroom singing and dancing along to The Backstreet Boys that I forgot about our conversation for a second there..."
Despite trying to pull off the pissed-off look that she had perfected for him so many times, Ashley found she couldn't this time. "You're never going to let that go are you?" She shook her head.
"No. Pretty much no."
"You're horrible. Remind me of why I'm attracted to you in the first place?"
"Must be my good looks and charismatic charm." He gave a boy-ish grin – to which she rolled her eyes playfully and looked away again. "Come on, just admit it."
"I guess you might have that something about you."
"Well not to take all of the attention away from you." He mocked a bow in her direction. Curious, she met his eyes. "Why do you think I fell for you?"
"Must be because I'm the only girl to outrank you in just about everything."
"Yes – especially in arrogance. No," he sobered a moment later, "I love you because – above anything else – you're the most stubborn person I've met. You stick to your beliefs, even if they are a bit shaky, and I couldn't admire you more for it. You're perfect for me."
The blonde wasn't used to all of these compliments just yet. She merely blushed, unable to say a thing. He didn't mind though; quickly becoming used to her new-found shy state, and actually revelling in it, he leaned over, pushing the table away slightly, and pecked her kissable lips.
"You're kinda perfect for me too." She beamed.
And then she kissed him back, wondering how the hell she'd ever allowed herself to be stripped of this kind of affection. It was beautiful. It was real.
Who knew where this relationship would lead in the future? And caught up in this moment now – knowing her heart was beating double time all because of the effect her boyfriend had on her – who even cared? All she knew right now was that she was happy.
Happy beyond anything.
-x-
Logging off of the computer she'd sat behind for the past ten minutes, Eve felt better in herself while she gathered her things together. She'd just finished emailing her parents about her progress—despite having seen them at the holidays, filling them in on everything and, in return, strengthening their relationship—and now it seemed as if that was one thing she could put aside on her list of troubles.
In a strange way, she was looking forward to this semester of classes – even if she did have a two-hour lecture up first. With her mind not constantly obsessed on issues with boys, the brunette was warming up to her studies much more, and she was hoping to grow more focused on doing her very best in class.
If Mickie James could hear her thoughts now, the smart girl would be proud.
A smile touched her lips as she caught sight of Adam and Ashley on her way out. It was no surprise—she thought to herself, rolling her eyes playfully—that they were kissing. Again. The pair could never keep their hands or lips to themselves nowadays. But it's sweet, she mused. I hope they stay together.
And she truly did. Even if her own love life was barely heading anywhere, it was nice to see others happy with the ones they cared about. A warm feeling trickled deep inside of her and she held onto it for as long as she could.
"I was just coming to find you." Cody's smile was the first thing she saw when she looked up from the ground, surprised to hear the familiar voice in the middle of her thoughts. He'd clearly just walked up the stairs, but was now turning with her stride and about to walk back down them. "Maria said you'd be here."
"Yeah. My laptop wasn't connecting to the internet this morning for some reason, so I decided to come up here and send off a few emails. Are you going to be a gentleman and walk me to class by any chance?"
"Eve, we're in the same class." At her smile, he shook his head playfully. "But if you want to look at it that way then sure. But actually—" This was where his smile returned. It was stronger than ever, confusing her. "—I came to talk to you about something else. And don't freak out when I suggest it. Or think that I'm trying to spend the rest of my life with you because I'm not, okay?"
"Um, okay." Stumped, she motioned for him to continue.
The student waited until after they were out in the open to do just that. His smile hadn't faltered yet. "So I was talking to Ted about what we were going to do after college—you know, just out of general interest because we never really talked about it before—and he mentioned that he wanted to travel. He said he's wanted to since he was a little kid actually. I'm surprised I didn't know that about him considering he's my best friend..."
"Seriously? I want to travel too." Her eyes lit up. It was nice to finally hear of someone who had the same ambitions in life as her. "Does he know where he wants to go?"
"Just all over the world apparently. It got me thinking... I don't know what I want to do with my life after college. I don't even have a plan." He shrugged. "So I've decided to be spontaneous and go with him. To anywhere and everywhere. And then the idea came to me that maybe... maybe you—"
Nothing more needed to be said. She understood perfectly. "Would want to come?" When he turned to her, a hopeful expression on his face, she couldn't help but to smile.
"Well I remember you talking about going travelling before and I just thought it would be something you're interested in. But don't make a decision too quickly. Obviously. It's just a thought for you to—"
"It sounds amazing. I will definitely think about it." She nodded. As her eyes caught a glimpse of the building they were about to head into, her smile grew and she turned to him again. "Thanks for considering me, Cody."
"You're a good friend, Torres. That's something I've come to learn recently." He pulled her in for a side hug. "And Ted likes you too. He said something stupid about me finally finding a girl who's actually a keeper. Whatever that means."
"Yeah, whatever that means." Eve echoed quietly with a giggle.
The Latina knew she had three more years of college to go through before a decision had to be made, if this option even held up for her. Who knew what would happen in these three years if so much had happened in a brief few months?
But there was this small glimmer of hope she started to hold for the offer. The thought of travelling to exciting new places with good friends was one she wouldn't let go of for a while. It was something aside from boys and work to think about.
She welcomed it with open arms.
-x-
Holding hands with Randy felt like the most natural thing in the world to Maria. It made her feel as though the past couple of months—becoming friends with Michelle, fighting her feelings for him to keep her happy, the eventual break-up, the discovery of a friend's betrayal and then the wonderfully romantic reunion between them—had all been leading to this.
Was that silly to suggest? The girly-girl inside of her voted no on that question. This was just perfect for her.
"I wish classes weren't starting up again – at least not until tomorrow." She muttered, resting her head on his muscular shoulder as they walked through the throngs of students who were heading to their own. "Then maybe we could have another day to ourselves."
"If it helps I'll be sitting right behind you in our usual seats." She heard him laugh. "And I'll be staring at you like I usually do—completely ignoring the lecture—just to focus on you."
Surprised, she angled her head to look up at him. "Did you really do that before?"
"Yeah, of course – though at the time I had to tell myself I was in a healthy relationship with Michelle so I couldn't do it. Funny how healthy was the only word I could think of at the time to describe me and her together."
"Yes, well, we don't need to talk about her right now. Do we?"
No, they certainly didn't. Randy stole a kiss from his girlfriend and they walked on, their grip on each other even tighter than before. To anyone around it was clear that this new couple had started off with the most confidence and love any two people could hope for.
Would it last? Maria didn't know about him but she certainly hoped so; she hadn't gone through all this reluctance, struggle and pain just to end up with a damaged relationship. She felt that he was everything to her, even if they were in the early days of their time together.
"Hey Randy?" Her tone was curious. "You think we're going to be okay, don't you?"
He knew exactly what she meant, breaking the hold he had on her briefly, only to wrap his arm around her shoulders and pull her into him. She smiled into his chest. "I think we're going to be perfect."
This settled her a great deal. When they reached their class, they broke away – though not before a quick parting kiss – to go and talk to their friends before the clock officially struck on the hour mark.
Maria's smile dropped a little when she came into contact with Jeff at the back, but she quickly reminded herself to pull it together. She'd been trying to act like nothing had changed between them since she found out about his crush on her—and in a way, nothing really had—but now that she knew, it was harder to treat him the way she always had.
Harder but not impossible.
"You're here early, Jeff." She eyed him suspiciously. "Did someone put you up to this?"
"No." He laughed as she pulled him in for a hug. "I just figured that it was a new year and a new start is in order. A new everything."
If she hadn't known what she did now, she'd simply smile and think about how grown-up he was being. But she couldn't help but to wonder if 'a new everything' meant letting go of his feelings for her and possibly finding someone else. She hoped so; it would be nice to see her best guy friend with a new love in his life... someone who wouldn't screw him over like Candice Michelle. He deserved the very best.
"Sounds good to me." She smiled anyway. "So we're still hanging out tonight right? Dinner and a movie with the girls?"
"Uh-huh. Isn't Randy coming?"
"Oh no, I don't think so. Something about plans with Mike. He's been trying to cheer him up ever since the whole dumping-Layla-for-Eve-but-she-doesn't-want-him-in-the-end thing." He laughed when she was forced to take a deep breath, and she hit him playfully. "Maybe another time. Anyway, I'm going to go and find my seat. I'll talk to you later."
"See you later."
As she walked away, Maria wondered why she'd just lied to him – for the very first time – about her boyfriend having plans; as far as the redhead was aware, he was planning to order in a takeaway and study. Even though he would be seeing The Miz for a while, it wouldn't be for the whole night. He could easily attend dinner.
Huh... perhaps she just didn't feel at ease having her boyfriend spend time with Jeff, knowing everything that she did. That must be it.
Her worries were put on hold as she slid into her seat—just as the professor walked in—and she turned quickly to the seat behind her, where Randy was ready and waiting. A smile from him reassured her of everything and she smiled back before turning back to the front.
Only time would tell, but Maria just knew she and Randy had a good future together ahead of them.
-x-
Knowing she would have to see Phil in her first class back, Mickie felt unsteady as she put one foot in front of the other into the room. Her head was down, her books were gripped tightly to her chest, and she looked like the same girl who started nervously in the first term.
She wanted to slap herself for acting this way; it wasn't her who was in the wrong at all, and yet she felt like she had to cower away from her boyfriend anyway. Or was that ex-boyfriend now?
The thought depressed her as she found her usual seat. A couple of rows behind her, she finally caught someone's eyes—though it wasn't Punk's. In fact – unable to resist and taking a quick peek at where he would sit in this class – she realized he wasn't even here yet. The relief she felt at this was surprising.
Christian gave that sympathetic smile he'd given the other night, and she couldn't help but to smile back. Their friendship had definitely grown a lot more after he decided to help her out. He'd comforted her for as long as she needed, walked her back to the dorms—half-dragging an almost passed out Chris Jericho—and made sure she'd stopped crying before letting her go to her room.
And even though she'd rung in the New Year crying into her pillow, she could still feel the lightest smile grace her features in the morning when she thought of him and all he'd done for her.
"You okay?" He mouthed at her, gaining Jericho's attention in the process, who stared at him oddly, as if trying to work out what his best friend was doing.
She caught this and laughed. Then, turning back to him, she nodded. "Thanks." She mouthed back.
The brunette took her seat after waving hello to a bewildered Chris, and wiped strands of her hair out of her face as she looked to the front. This term had to be different for her; she loved to study, she loved to be in class and she loved to learn. Wouldn't that get her far if she only focused on that?
But her new thought pattern appeared to betray her when Phil finally walked through the door, looking tired and not at all up for the lesson. The professor hurried him in and he muttered his apology before heading up the aisle to his seat.
He stopped briefly in front of Mickie. Her heart beating double in time, she tried to block out the regretful expression he gazed down at her with. Funnily enough, it was easy to do: the unfortunate thing was that her mind went straight to when they first met and how mesmerized she'd been by him.
Unfortunately for Mickie, he caught her gaze before she could look away. Now an amused smile curved his lips. "Can I help you?"
Noting how the students in the class all turned to face her, the rare blush crept to her cheeks. "Oh, um..." She trailed off, wondering what to say, only to be captured by the tattoos travelling from his arms down to his wrists. "Nice tattoos...yeah, that's it."
"Right..."
Who knew that things would end up like this eventually? She certainly didn't.
By the time he'd taken his seat class had already started. She tried to pay attention, tried to be the study-hard girl she loved to be... and yet it didn't work. Why couldn't she focus on anything else but him?
Something light hit her on the back about two minutes into this thought. Confused, she turned into Christian's apologetic expression. He pointed down at the ground beside her and she followed, only to find a crumpled up note there.
Discreetly picking it up and opening it in front of her desk, she read the small words: Can you ever forgive me?
Of course. Phil sat behind Christian in class. The note must have come from him.
Taking out a pen, she wrote down one word: No. But she really didn't know. Then, just a beat later, she added a large question mark underneath it and passed the note back.
She didn't bother to look at his reaction to the note. Quite frankly, she couldn't really stomach looking him in the eyes and having to deal with that pathetic look of his. He hadn't bothered to contact her until now, and the first thing he did when he decided to was pass her a silly little note? He deserved that no.
Still, as she tried to focus on getting notes from the board, she had to bite down on her bottom lip and think.
She'd thought she had everything planned out from the start—all the girls had in fact. None of the four students thought guys would get in their way at all; they were only interested in making the most of their college experience and graduating with only the best grades.
But who knew what the future held now? It had just been proven that anything could happen to anyone at any given time... so who was she to make plans that probably wouldn't come to fruition?
The future.
Ha. She scoffed. Why am I even thinking about that now?
Why was she? She still had this year to get through, and then another three. Come what may, as she'd heard many times before. Come what may...
So there's the last ever chapter of TGE! Thank you so, so much for all the people who review each chapter and make me so happy to see one new email in my inbox. You guys truly make my day. For the last time, please review? :)
Also, the poll is still up – so vote if you haven't yet! The quicker I get those votes, the quicker I can write out the sequel!
I only have one last question. Who was your favourite girl/couple throughout the series?