EDIT:...Did anyone notice, WftTK, IaDL, and SSS all have 14 reviews, and are together in that order? So it looks like -right now- 426, 14, 14, 14, etc. Hahaha -I thought that was cool...

A/N.You can't possibly get mad at me. *nervous look* No way. Promising you a six day update starting Saturday should keep you happy if I don't update when I say I am. *hyperventilates*

I'm sooo sowwiiieee I didn't upppddaatteee yeessstteerrdaaayy!

There was work –and deviantArt –and work –and friends- and, and...

Yeah. You can't possibly be mad at me for time flying by. So again –I'M SO SOWWIE! But here's a chapter! And one more update tomorrow –I swear I will if FF doesn't break down again...whoa. That means you're getting like, 8 updates in a row. This one, tomorrow's, then start of the six-day-update, which makes eight. YOU CANNOT GET MAD AT ME. Mwahahha.

*cough* Anyways, this chapter's not very filling...

Mr. Firay: Obviously. You failed to include me in this chapter.

Me: Excuse me? You didn't want Daphne to risk finding out the truth, did you? If she found out you were here, too...

Mr. Firay: Shut up! People are listening to this! You –reader! Go and read this chapter...*groans* Gay? Really? Daphne said I was gay. With SAGE. Sage of all people.

Me: *pats back comfortingly* The readers liked it, so it's okay.

(I really enjoyed all your reactions. xDDD I'm glad you liked it!)

As Curlscat pointed out, I forgot the "QotD" last chapter. SO, this is the question –and the winner will be announced Saturday:

What's the weirdest situation you've been in with your teacher or the weirdest thing you've ever told your teacher? Answer is announced on Saturday if FF doesn't mess with itself again.

Chapter 38: Almost Normal Again

"Daphne!"

Wendell looked at me in complete shock, a wide grin spreading across his face. I couldn't help grinning right back at him as I stepped into the white hospital room. Wendell went to move position, but a grimace of pain flashed across his face, and he stopped moving. My grin faltered and was replaced by a concerned expression.

"How are you?" I asked, dragging a chair over to his bedside.

"How am I?" Wendell repeated, raising an eyebrow. "How are you?"

"I'm fine…"

"You haven't changed at all!"

"Was I supposed to?" I responded, growing more confused.

"Well, after three months, I'd expect you to look a tiny bit older."

"What are you talking about?"

Wendell frowned, looking at me like I was an idiot. "I've been unconscious for three months, remember?"

"What? No you haven't," I responded, staring at him questioningly. "You've been out for about two days…"

Wendell's facial expression immediately turned to irritation. "My mother is so going to get it…"

I laughed. "Your mom told you that you were out for three months?"

"Yeah," Wendell responded with a nod. "I freaked out about it for a full hour this morning. I can't believe she tricked me!"

I laughed again, but my breath caught when I saw the bandages around Wendell's chest. He caught me staring and quickly pulled his bed sheet over his chest, sending me a cheesy grin. It didn't help the knot that suddenly appeared in my stomach.

"It's not as bad as it looks…"

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, please, Wendell. Being shot is as bad as it looks. Though, I'm guessing it wouldn't be as painful to you because you're not exactly human."

Wendell gave a small smile. "Good thing this place has a few Everafter doctors. It'd be bad if someone found out I wasn't normal..."

I stared at him. "Don't try changing the subject."

He sighed, rubbing his hand across his face. "Yeah, it was pretty bad at the time…"

"What exactly happened?"

"There's not much too it. I was leaving work, and before I knew it I was surrounded," Wendell explained, sounding like he had explained it a thousand times before. "They asked about Matt, and I told them I didn't know him. They said they'd seen me with him, he tutors me by the way."

"I know, he told me."

"Well anyway. There was a little, er… hand-to-hand violence between us and then one pulled out a gun and that was that," Wendell finished, pursing his lips. "But when I told the police—"

I gasped, making Wendell look at me in surprise.

"What?"

"What did you say to the police? Oh, no… Wendell, did you mention Mr. Firay?" I demanded, growing antsy. "Please say you didn't."

"I didn't," Wendell responded slowly. "Why?"

"It's a long story, Mr. Firay will explain it to you," I told him, waving it off. "As long as you didn't mention him to the cops at all."

Wendell shook his head. "I guess it's a good thing I didn't then, huh. But I did tell them about the gangster who shot me."

"Good."

"Daphne, don't you think this situation is getting too dangerous for us?"

I looked at Wendell, a frown on my face. "It's been too dangerous from the beginning…"

"Then why are you still involved?"

"As of now, there is no way I can get out of this," I told Wendell, leaning back in my seat. "I've sort of dug my own grave…"

"You may have dug your own grave, but the one who gave you the shovel to do so is Firay," Wendell pointed out, a scowl appearing on his face.

"And the one who chose to stay in it is me," I returned.

"What if you bury yourself alive?" Wendell demanded.

"I don't even know what that's supposed to mean!"

"What if you end up in deep trouble? Or dead?" Wendell explained. "Daphne, do you realize I could have died the other night?"

"I know! I'm not stupid."

"You need to space yourself from Firay," Wendell told me, a dead serious look on his face.

I immediately shook my head. "No, it's too late for that. They already know who I am, it's not like not interacting with Mr. Firay will change anything now."

"Then don't get any closer."

Well, too late for that. He basically said he had feelings that he shouldn't have for a student. Or, in simpler terms, love. A blush quickly rose to my face and I stared down at my feet. It seemed too impossible, but there was nothing else I could think that he could have meant…

Wendell narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously. "Daphne… did something happen between you and him?"

"W-what? No!" I responded quickly, waving my hands in front of me. "Ha, are you kidding? No way…"

Wendell rolled his eyes. "Daphne, don't lie. You're an open book, I can see right through you."

"It doesn't matter, because he thinks I think he's gay, probably."

"… I don't think I want to know now."

"Good," I responded, running a hand through the tangles in my hair. "Let's just say, it's something that could be favorable for me…"

"He's confessed his creepy, pedophilic, love for you?"

I scowled at Wendell. "First, it's not pedophilic, because I'll be eighteen in about two weeks. Second, he'll only be four years older –physically- than me, and third, it's not creepy. Sabrina got married to Puck and he's four thousand –Mr. Firay's only a few years younger. And no, he didn't say that… directly."

"Directly?"

"That's what I said."

"So he hinted at it?" Wendell prodded, a frown slipping onto his face. "Daphne, if the gangsters find out if he has feelings for you, won't that make it worse?"

"What? Why would that make them want me more? That's… That's…"

"Daphne?"

I stared at Wendell, a look of alarm on my face. Bryant wanted Mr. Firay dead partly because Mr. Firay stole his girlfriend back then… so what if for revenge he wanted to take me from Mr. Firay because he thought Mr. Firay cared about me? But where would Bryant even get the idea Mr. Firay cared for me? I'd been with Sage the first time we met…

"Hello, Daphne?"

I snapped out of my thoughts and caught eye contact with Wendell. He frowned at me, a worried expression on his face. I quickly arranged my features into a nonchalant expression.

"I understand how you feel about him, and it's not like I'm going to stop you two from being together," Wendell started, a sigh escaping his lips, "but I'm more worried over our safety than your love life."

"If they already think something is up, why would it matter?"

"Because they might not have proof right now, and they could get it."

"They're not going to wait around until they have proof, Wendell," I responded, rolling my eyes. "They're gangsters. Once they decide on something, I doubt they're going to stray from it."

"You act like you're a gang expert," Wendell commented with a snort.

"I don't know the first thing about gangs," I told him honestly. "But I know enough to know they do what they want. Anyone knows that."

Wendell sighed, resting back on his bed. "Well, try to stay out of trouble for at least three weeks."

"Why?" I asked, giving him a quizzical look.

"I'm going to be stuck in here until then, so I won't be able to help you out of sticky situations," he responded with a grin.

"And get yourself almost killed again?"

Wendell stayed quiet, directing his eyes away from mine. "It's not like I knew they were going to get me…"

"You're always worried about my safety, Wendell," I told him, a frown pulling at my lips. "You need to be more worried about yourself. I worry twice as hard for you because you don't worry enough."

"Well who's worried about you then?"

"Mr. Firay," I responded simply. "And we both know it's safe to say he's probably the best to look after me."

Wendell opened his mouth to argue, but after a moment he closed it. He let out another sigh. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're right."

"See—"

"But he's still the one who got you into this mess in the first place, so it's only fair he do his best to protect you."

Now it was my turn to sigh. "He does."

"And I don't think telling you he loves you is going to help," Wendell insisted stubbornly. "Daphne, you know they are targeting people close to him. If they found out you were his lover then—"

"We're not lovers!" I denied, feeling my face heat up.

Wendell rolled his eyes. "An indirect confession is still a confession, and even if it wasn't, it's obvious he loves you in a way a teacher should not love a student."

"Those were almost his exact words…"

The words that made the impossible, possible. Mr. Firay loved me. Me. Out of all the people in the world, it was me who he fell for. He hadn't said it directly, but what else could he mean? A smile was spreading across my face. He loved me! His feelings for me must have replaced his feelings for Diana.

"But since obviously you love him back, there's no stopping the two of you from being together once either of you directly confesses. And when that happens, don't come crying to me when a gangster shoots you. Actually… Daphne? Are you even listening to me?"

"It's unbelievable, huh," I said, now grinning at Wendell. "Mr. Firay of all people…"

Wendell shook his head. "Obviously you weren't…"

I gasped, remembering earlier. "Crap! He still thinks I think he's gay! But Wendell, I didn't know what to say! It was so embarrassing when I figured it out, all I could think then was that I needed to get out of the car because I didn't know what to say back! And then I just blurted out he was jealous because he wanted Sage and—"

"Daphne! Stop being such a girl!" Wendell interrupted, clapping his hands together loudly.

I pouted at him. "But I am a girl…"

"But I don't want to hear you freaking out over a guy. Save that for Ariana."

"But Ariana doesn't know," I groaned.

"Tell her."

I narrowed my eyes. "And get her caught up in this mess as well? I don't think so."

"Well, don't tell her about that part," Wendell responded, nodding his head. "You and I are enough."

"Just one of us is enough," I corrected with a small laugh.

"You and Ariana are best friends, right? So you should tell her all your love problems."

"You're just saying that so you don't have to hear them, aren't you?"

"Maybe," Wendell commented with a grin.

"But Ariana won't let me hear the end of it if she finds out I'm in love with Mr. Firay."

The sound of the door opening from behind me made me jump violently. Wendell looked over my shoulder, and a grin came onto his face. I turned slowly to see Ariana entering the room with a plastic bag, and a large grin on her face.

"I knew it!" she cried loudly, setting down the plastic bag. "I knew you liked him!"

Horror crossed my face. How much had she heard? When did she get here? I glanced back at Wendell, who looked relatively calm. What if she had heard about the gang thing? I turned back to Ariana, licking my lips nervously.

"Uh, how much, um, of that did you hear?"

"Just the last sentence, but it said it all," Ariana responded, wagging her eyebrows. "I knew you'd end up falling for his charm one way or the other!"

Relief washed through me, and I hung my head, chuckling. I could deal with Ariana knowing about how I felt about Mr. Firay. I couldn't deal another close friend of mine getting caught up in the gang. Ariana hummed triumphantly, pulling up a seat next to me.

"It was only a matter of time," she commented in a singsong voice. "And I knew it from the start! You two had an unnatural connection! I told you it was fate!"

Wendell snorted and I rolled my eyes. "It's not fate, Ariana."

"Close enough," she responded, her wide grin still in place. "Have you guys kissed?"

"Ariana!"

"What?"

"We're not even… I can't— He can't even— No!" I finally responded, blushing furiously. That one time before didn't count.

"He has to like you back! Who wouldn't?"

"He does like her back," Wendell interjected.

"Wendell," I snapped, glowering at him.

Ariana's eyes were wide with excitement. "He does? How do you know? Tell me! Dime, dime, dime! I want to know!"

I sighed. Ariana wasn't going to let this drop. "He sort of indirectly confessed—"

"He confessed first?" Ariana gasped.

I held up my finger. "Let me finish. He indirectly confessed, but I kind of turned it around on him because I panicked…"

"What'd you say?"

"Um… that he was gay and wanted Sage…"

Ariana looked at me with a straight face for a few moments before bursting out laughing. I frowned at her, waiting for her to stop. When she finally did, she looked back up at me, her grin back in place I crossed my arms.

"It's not funny."

"Oh, yes it is," Ariana responded. "Only you, Daphne. You would say that."

"I didn't know what else I was supposed to say!" I argued, feeling my face heat up in embarrassment. "I was embarrassed!"

"Who's Sage?"

"Oh, he's Mr. Firay's friend. Well I guess he's my friend too now," I responded, brushing a stray hair out of my face. "I'll have to introduce you to him one day."

"Oh! Was he the man that answered your phone the other day? When I called to tell you my mom wouldn't let me leave the house?"

I thought to back then for a moment, and nodded. "Yeah. He brought me to the hospital."

"How old is he?" Ariana asked.

"Uh… twenty."

"You've been hanging out with a twenty year old guy?" Wendell said in a surprised voice. "Since when?"

"For a while," I responded, furrowing my eyebrows together. "I could have sworn I've mentioned him…"

Both Wendell and Ariana shook their heads. I shrugged. Why did it even matter?

"Is he single?" Ariana asked.

"Who?"

"Sage."

"Why do you want to know…?"

"In case things don't work out with Mr. Firay," Ariana started, "you can go with him, right? Is he cute?"

I blushed again, glaring at Ariana. "Ariana, just stop. I don't like Sage like that. And no one ever said Mr. Firay and I can't even be together, it's illegal."

"Only until your birthday," Ariana pressed. "And that's only two weeks away! You're so close!"

"Yeah, it may be two weeks until it's legal," I agreed. "But it's still against school rules."

Ariana opened her mouth, but abruptly shut it. A frown appeared on her face. I smirked smugly.

"Didn't think of that, did you?"

"No one will know," Ariana said, her smile returning.

I sighed. "Ariana…"

"Daphne, you can't deny your feelings."

"I'm not!" I argued. "I'm just stating the truth! If something happened between Mr. Firay and myself and someone found out, both of us would get in trouble. He'd be fired, and I could be suspended or expelled."

"She's got a point there, Ari…"

Ariana frowned again, a thoughtful expression appearing on her face. I relaxed back into my chair, turning to Wendell, who had the same expression as Ariana. I wasn't making excuses as to why Mr. Firay and I couldn't be together. I wanted to be together. But I didn't want to get him into trouble.

"Well," Ariana started, breaking the silence. "They do say love breaks all boundaries."

"What boundaries is this breaking?" I responded, rolling my eyes.

"Student and teacher?" Wendell guessed.

"Exactly," Ariana responded with a nod. "A forbidden relationship. An illicit relationship…"

"A proscribed relationship," Wendell interjected a grin on his face. "An illegal relationship."

"It's not illegal," I pointed out, not finding their game amusing.

"Technically it is."

"A proscriptive relationship! Una relación proscriptiva!" Ariana cried.

"Since when do you know such big words?" I joked, shaking my head.

"I looked them up in advance in case a situation like this arose," she responded with a casual shrug.

I stared at her. Was she serious? She looked back at me, the grin on her face widening.

"Are you serious?"

Ariana laughed. "No! I just pay attention in English… unlike some people." She looked at Wendell pointedly.

"English is boring," Wendell complained. "Even though it's my first language –it's stupid. Stupid books, stupid vocabulary, stupid essays. There's nothing fun."

"It's so styu-pid," Ariana mimicked in her best British accent.

"What's with the accents?" Wendell demanded. "I don't speak like that! Do I?"

"You do, good sir! Quite a lot." She winked at me. "Aye, Daphne?"

"You know how I am with accents," I said with a laugh. "I'm not even going to try…"

Wendell and Ariana laughed too, and for a moment I forgot where we were. It was the simple, carefree, way it used to be before the whole gang incident. It felt almost normal again. It didn't feel like Wendell was in the hospital with bullet wounds. It felt like we were hanging out at my house after school like we used to. And it was nice.

But, I knew I couldn't get used to it, and it'd be a long time until everything was okay and safe, again.

A/N. Told you it was unsatisfying. Bleh. Again:

What's the weirdest situation you've been in with your teacher or the weirdest thing you've ever told your teacher?

So...tomorrow –if FF doesn't shut down- I will update! Bye byes! AND HAPPY BELATED VALENTINES DAY!

~Lara