So here's chapter 12. Thanks again for the reviews, they mean a lot! We've finally hit forty! I know that this chapter is really long (I feel like I say that with a lot of chapters =/), but only because I'm not going to be able to update for a bit, as school started yesterday. So I decided to give you a longer chapter. Hope you like it!
forevermissPennyLane: Hmmm, I wasn't thinking of Alaska when I came up with Victoria. But I can see why you say that. I loved Looking for Alaska though. =)
Gabriel flopped onto his bed face down. He groaned into the pillow.
"Mate, are you alright?" asked Thomas, who was reading in his bed.
Gabriel turned his head so he could see Thomas. "No, I'm not alright. I had a fight with Tori and honestly, it was so stupid. I wish she could just stop for a second and look around her."
Thomas raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought that was precisely the reason you fell for her in the first place. She's wild and carefree, but lovable."
Gabriel pulled his left arm out from under him and used it to prop his head up. "You're right, but there has to be a fine line. I wish she was a little bit more like Cecy, who seems to realize that perhaps once in awhile, she needs to slow down."
Gabriel cursed himself inwardly for his slip up. Thomas turned to face him fully, and he set his book down. "Don't tell me you're starting to like Cecily now."
Gabriel shifted onto his back and covered his face with his hands. "I don't know, Tom. I love Victoria, but I can't keep up with her. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Cecily, she just….."
"Mate, have you gone insane? They are best friends. Need I repeat myself?"
"I know that, Thomas, thank you very much. Which is what makes this even worse."
"Besides, even if you break up with Victoria, hypothetically speaking, you wouldn't really be able to be with Cecy anyways."
Gabriel moved one of his hands from his face and looked at Thomas. "What do you mean?"
Thomas waved a hand at him. "Apparently, it's girl code. If the boy dumps your best friend, you hate the boy as much as your friend does. If you break up with Tori, then Cecy will be naturally inclined to dislike you for it."
Now it was Gabriel's turn to raise an eyebrow at him. "Since when did you become the girl whisperer?"
Thomas shrugged and chucked a pillow at Gabriel. "Since you decided to become a prick and fall for two girls who are best friends."
"I don't have a crush on Cecily!"
"I don't care what you have to say, I know you have feelings for her, however small they may be now" said Thomas, lying back down in bed again, and flicking off the light.
Gabriel lay on his bed in his ball clothes, the night sky a deep violet-blue outside his window.
The next day, Victoria was outside on the main quad, sitting on a low stone wall that ran around the ground. She had woken up early, feeling eerily light until she remembered the events of the previous night. After the reality shock, she knew she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, so she slipped out of bed, being careful not to disturb Will and Tessa.
Will was curled around Tessa, his arms wrapped so tightly around her that Victoria was surprised she could breathe. Will shifted slightly, causing his nose to rub against Tessa's neck. "Tess" he muttered in his dreams. Tessa squirmed, unhappy about being tickled by Will's nose. "Will, stop it. I'm trying to sleep" she muttered, also fully covered in dreams. Victoria stared at them for a moment, feeling a sudden pang of longing in her chest. What they had was pure, and simple. No one could doubt the love they had for each other, even if they hadn't admitted it to each other yet.
Victoria had turned away and put her long, dark hair into a braid and slipped into a white sweater with silver polka dots, dark blue jeans, and black boots. She didn't bother putting on a winter coat as she headed out onto the snow-ridden quad. And she watched the sun come up slowly. Snow was falling lightly, but she didn't really feel the chill.
"I come bearing hot chocolate" a voice said from behind her. She turned to see Gabriel standing behind her, holding two steaming mugs of the drink. He had had the foresight to wear his winter jacket and gloves, so he didn't feel so cold. Victoria turned away from him as he dropped onto the wall beside her.
"Listen, Victoria" he continued, turning to face the hot chocolate mugs in his hands. "I'm sorry about last night. I shouldn't have yelled at you for being narcissistic."
"No you shouldn't have" she retorted. "But I'm sorry too, for not listening. I didn't realize how forceful I can be."
He held out the mug, trying again. "Here, take this, it'll warm your hands."
She turned to look at it, and then took the mug from his hands, grateful for its warmth.
"Are we cool now, Tori?" he asked, eyes filled with concern.
Victoria took a sip of the drink and gave him a small smile. "We're cool. I have a question. How did you know to find me out here?"
He chuckled. "I couldn't sleep all night. I got up to watch the sunrise, and I saw you walking out."
"Oh" she said, her face buried in the mug.
He patted her shoulder. "Anyways, Tori, I'm going to head inside now. I have a physics project to work on that's due tomorrow." He stood up and planted a kiss on the top of her head. "I love you." She smiled back at him, meekly. "Me too. I'll see you later."
He grinned and walked into the building. Victoria was glad that he had come and apologized, but she couldn't help but feel that something was missing from it.
The next several weeks passed by in a slow, routine fashion. The teachers had apparently come to a unanimous decision over the Christmas holidays that the students hadn't worked hard enough throughout the first semester, so they piled on the work now. This often meant that only students in the same academic programs saw each other regularly. It wasn't until a Saturday in mid-February, one month after the ball, that the girls decided to have a sleepover.
"Sleepover?" asked Tessa, sitting on her bed and talking to Tori, who was trying to put away some books and clothes she had scattered onto the floor.
"Yes, we are having a sleepover. I know it's cheeky, us living right next door to each other and all, but it's a bit more fun with all of us in the same room" said Tori, stuffing a pair of black heels under her bed.
Which is exactly how Tessa found herself setting up two sleeping bags in between her's and Tori's beds with Sophie. Cecily and Victoria had left Institute to get some supplies, which Tessa deduced included food and nail polish. Tessa and Sophie had finished setting up long back, and had changed into were sitting on the sleeping bags, talking amongst themselves.
"And that's why Mr. Mark keeps the saws under lock and key" finished Sophie, who had been telling Tessa a tale about an engineering project that she and Gabriel had worked on together the previous year.
Tessa grinned at her. "Speaking of Lightwoods, what's going on between you and Gideon?"
Sophie shrugged. "Nothing, really. I had fun at the ball, and I took a walk with him afterwards, but I can't seem to remember much of it. I do remember having a bad hangover though the next morning, which explains why I'm suffering from amnesia."
Tessa rolled her eyes. "Seriously though. As he asked you out on a proper date yet?"
Sophie shook her head. "No. But he's been very awkward around me since the ball. I don't really know why. I didn't have spinach in my teeth, did I?"
Tessa scrunched her eyebrows together. "Not that I remember. But that's strange though."
Sophie shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe he's lost interest. Or maybe he's moved on."
Tessa was about to offer a comforting word to Sophie when the door to their room flung inwards, and Tessa was showered in bags of items.
She screamed before she stood up to find Victoria and Cecily grinning madly.
"Guys! Was that necessary? Couldn't you have set the stuff down like normal people?" shouted Tessa.
Victoria grinned as she shucked off her coat and boots. She had gone out in her pajamas,as had Cecily, who was already lying flat on Victoria's bed.
"Sorry T. But before you completely flip out, we brought you some of those gummy candies you like." said Victoria, who flopped onto Tessa's bed and pulled a bottle of red nail polish out of a bag.
Tessa found the gummy bears and began munching through them. The girls spent the greater part of the next hour gossipping, eating and painting nails. At some point, there was a knock on the door. Cecily looked up.
"Victoria, go open the door. My toes are still drying."
Victoria rolled her eyes. "Yes, because I need your permission to answer my door Cecy."
She opened the door and was greeted by the boys, with Will standing in front of the group.
"Hey Victoria." asked Will, peering around her shoulder. He saw the proceedings of a late night taking place and he cheered to the other guys, plowing past Victoria. "Come on in, they've even got food here!"
Jem feigned mock hurt. "You had food and you didn't invite us?"
Sophie rolled her eyes. "That's because we knew that would happen" she said, pointing a blue-nailed finger at Mark, who had just inhaled a small pack of unopened Doritos.
He grinned when he realized Sophie was talking about him. He flopped onto Tessa's now empty bed. "Hey, the more the merrier. It's not like you guys were doing anything anyways" he said, sparing a cursory glance to the nail polish bottles lying around.
Tessa smiled as Will sat down beside her on the floor. "Hello, William. Do you want some candy?"
He nodded as she reached into a bag beside her. He popped a gummy bear into his mouth. "Hmm, gummy bears" he said.
Will smiled and took one her hands in his. Tessa smiled wickedly to herself and pulled out a bottle out bright pink polish from the bag beside her. Jem and Cecily had noticed Tessa's movements and had figured out what she was going to do. They grinned at her and kept quiet, going along with the idea of her painting Will's nails. He didn't really notice much as Tessa fumbled with his hand, as he was too engrossed in the food. He turned to Tori.
"Now what are we going to do? he asked.
She shrugged. "I don't know. I would've been happy gossipping the whole night, but you guys clearly wouldn't be up for that."
Gabriel nodded. "You're sure right about that one."
The two of them were seated side by side on the floor, not really looking at each other. They may have resolved the conflict, but their relationship was starting to get chilly, just like the weather outside. They both argued over little things, apologized right away, and then fought again. Things that had been nonessential before were now causing them to not speak for days.
Gabriel glanced over at Cecily, who had now shifted to a desk chair, and was blowing her nails dry. She had painted them pale green. Like the color of my eyes he thought. Cecily looked up at that moment and caught him staring at her. She looked away, uncomfortable under his gaze. This had been happening way too much lately for her comfort.
Jem, who was squashed between Tessa and Gideon, shrugged noncommittally. "Why don't we play truth or dare? It's been awhile since we've played that."
This suggestion was greeted with approval. Tessa pulled out a plastic water bottle from under her bed, which they spun to determined who went first. "Okay, oldest first" said Mark. He spinned the bottle in the center of the group, and the opening landed in front of Victoria. "Tori, truth or dare?" She pondered this for a second, and then said "Dare".
He grinned. "I have the perfect dare. Rumor has it that there's a First Form boy who's in the social sciences program who has a major crush on you. Your challenge is to go up to his room on the second floor, and kiss him. And I'll come with you, to make sure it actually happens."
Victoria rose to her feet. "Since when have I said no to a dare? Let's go." The two of them dashed out of the room, leaving Gabriel staring dumbfounded after them. "Okayyyyy" he muttered under his breath, which caused Thomas to stare at him. Before he could say anything, Will let out a very high pitched scream. He was staring at his left hand in terror.
"Tessa! You painted my nails bright pink?!" he shouted. The rest of the group had dissolved into a fit of laughter, while Tessa gave him an innocent smile and shrugged. "I thought it would suit you, Will."
"Tessa, I may murder you"
"No you won't. Homicide is illegal."
He feigned strangling her before he gave in and slung his now pink hand on Tessa's shoulder, giving her space to put her head on his shoulder.
The door flung open, revealing Victoria and Mark, who were laughing so hard that they had tears rolling their faces.
"Oh my goodness, Tori. The look on that boy's face!" said Mark.
She grinned and sat back down next to Gabriel. "Yeah, well, he'll get over it. Although judging by that expression, I don't think he's going wash his face for the next century. Okay, I'll spin."
Victoria leaned over and spun the bottle, the nozzle landing on Tessa. Tori wiggled her eyebrows at her friend. "Truth or dare?"
Tessa, who had no desire to go through a dare of Tori's, said "Truth."
Victoria thought for a second before she said "Tessa, we've only really known you for about five and a half months,and we don't really know much about your life in New York. So my question is, what is the craziest thing that you have ever done?"
Tessa stared at the floor; she could feel the heat rising to her face. "I.. uh… I went to a strip club during my freshman year." Tessa looked up and saw that the entire group was dumbfounded. "I mean, Year 9" she added.
And then Cecily leaned back in the desk chair. "I have got to hear how this happened" she said.
Tessa met her gaze, being careful not to look at Will beside her. "I was playing truth or dare, like we are now, and my friend Chris and my brother Nate dared me to go into one. They handed me a fake ID and pushed me in. I hope I never have to do that again. Which is also why I never pick dares anymore."
Victoria stretched her legs out in front of her. "Well, that's a first. Our own T has gone crazy. Anyways, spin away, Tessa."
Tessa spun the bottle and it landed on Thomas. He picked Truth too.
Tessa was having a hard time coming up with a question, so she wound up asking him a standard one. "What is your deepest secret?" she asked, staring him in the eye.
He gulped and straightened his back. "I'm gay" was all he said.
The reaction from the girls was immediate. Sophie started choking on her water, which caused Gideon to start thumping her on the back. Victoria, who had been in the process of painting her pinky, was holding the nail polish brush in mid air, letting the red polish drip onto the floor while she stared at him. Cecily was curled in her seat, her mouth wide open. The boys just looked uncomfortable.
Finally, Tessa broke the silence. She reached around Will and set her hand on his knee. "Thomas, when did you realize-?"
"Over the summer. I told the guys at the start of the semester. I'm sorry I didn't say anything earlier, I just didn't know how…" he trailed off, placing one of his own hands over Tessa's. She smiled at him.
Sophie, who had finally recovered, spoke up. "Well, I think I speak for all us when I say I'm glad you trust us." The other girls nodded in agreement. Whatever tension had been built up in the room dissipated then.
Victoria screwed the lid of the polish back on. "Well, now that you've told us you prefer boys over girls, is there anyone in particular who's caught your eye?" she said, grinning wickedly at him.
He shifted uncomfortably in his spot. He really didn't want to tell them about Aidan. So he just said 'There is someone, but you don't get to know whom."
"Aww, come on Thomas, please tell us!" begged Cecily.
He laughed and brushed her off. "No. Besides, I believe that my turn is over." he said, reaching over to spin the bottle. The nozzle landed in front of Sophie, who chose to take a dare.
Thomas thought carefully for a few minutes before he said "Okay, I dare you to go downstairs and sing 'Old Macdonald' very loudly in the common room. I don't care if you wake up the entire house. And for good measure, I'm going with you."
Sophie rolled her eyes and rose to her feet, cursing herself for picking the dare. The two of them made their way down to the common room. Sophie kept her word, and those who remained in Tessa's and Tori's could hear her singing away. When she came back, she was beet red. Thomas could barely contain his laughter.
"That was priceless, Soph. I wish I had brought my phone to record it!" he said, crumbling into a laughing fit between Will and Cecily.
Sophie scowled and sat down next Gideon again, who just raised an eyebrow at her. She shook her head and spun the bottle without another word. It landed on Gabriel.
"Truth or dare, Gabriel?" she asked.
"Truth" he said.
Sophie came up with a question very fast. "You and Tori have been dating for just over a year now. By this point, there will be things that you love, but also hate, about each other. What is the one thing that annoys you the most about Victoria?"
Everyone quieted, curious to hear the answer. Victoria stared at the floor.
"Ohhh, Gabriel, tread wisely" said Tessa, who winked at him.
Gabriel folded his hands in his lap, and looked at them while he spoke. "I hate how she rushes headlong into things without thinking them through. She doesn't stop to see how her actions lead to disastrous consequences. When she's in trouble, it is usually her own fault for not thinking things through."
Everyone was quiet, realizing that this was not a game anymore. Victoria turned to look at him in disbelief.
"Are you kidding me?" she asked, anger creeping into her voice.
Gabriel shook his head. "No, I am not kidding you. You know its true, don't give me that look."
"Seriously? When was the last time I did something like that?"
He snorted, rising to his feet. "Just now, with the dare. You kissed that boy, and he may not have said much then, but he's going to find his voice by Monday, and if the entire school knows by lunch, I won't be surprised. And then you'll come to me with a new drama of how so and so said this and this."
Victoria also rose to her feet to meet his eyes. "And maybe if you weren't so sensitive, then you would know that that kiss, which was a stupid dare, meant nothing to me. Because that's what this is really about, isn't it, Gabriel? The kiss."
"You're right, this is about the kiss, because you didn't' even stop for a moment to think that maybe… that maybe you were going to get in trouble again" he shouted.
"You know what Gabriel? Maybe I don't need you to protect me all the time! Maybe I need someone to just let me fall and help me pick myself back up again!" she screamed. Tori had had enough, and she stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind her. Gabriel made an impatient noise and left too.
The remaining people were silent, shocked at the scene they had just witnessed. Finally, Will rose to his feet and pulled Cecily out of her chair. "Cecy, come with me. We should find them." She nodded and followed her brother out of the room.
At the stairs in the middle of the corridor, Will turned to his sister. "Cecy, go look for Gabriel. He might be wandering the corridors of Institute. I'm going to go look for Tori. She'll probably be on the roof." Cecily gulped. "Orrrr, I could go get Tori, and you could speak to Gabriel" she said. Will shook his head, oblivious to her discomfort. "No, because I don't know Gabriel as well as you do. Go look for him." Cecily nodded in defeat and went downstairs, while Will made his way to the roof.
Tori had made no effort to cover up her tracks, and Will found her easily. She was seated on one of the stone benches, her head pillowed on her arms, which were rested against the railing. Will sat down beside her.
"Tori, are you alright?" he asked, even though he knew the answer.
"Not really" she said, not wishing to elaborate.
"This wasn't the first time you've fought, is it?"
She shook her head."This is just one of many, Will."
"How long?"
"Since the ball. Actually, more like Christmas."
"Jesus, I didn't think things were so bad between you two."
"I didn't either" she said.
"Don't talk to him now. Talk to him in the morning, when both of your hot heads have cooled down. You both said things you shouldn't have, and it'll be easier to talk when you're both calm."
Victoria stared at him. "Since when did you become so wise, William?"
He shrugged. "Tessa's influence, I presume. Come here" he said, opening his arms to her. She fell into them, letting him squeeze her tightly for a second before letting go.
"Let's go back downstairs, Victoria. I think we should call it a night" he continued.
She nodded. "Good idea. I kind of wish Sophie hadn't asked that question. I don't blame her, it's not like she could've known. But still…."
"I get what you mean. It just added fuel to the fire" finished Will.
"Exactly." She let him help her to her feet, and they made their way back to their corridor, Victoria feeling slightly better knowing she had her friend on her side.
Cecily spent the better part of thirty minutes racing down the long corridors of Institute. She really wished she could've spoken to Tori. It would've been easier to comfort her. And Gabriel himself… She shook her head to clear it.
She finally found him in one of the open air corridors of Institute, leaning against a brick arch and looking at the quad, the moonlight streaming onto his face. God he looks good. The moonlight- What am I thinking? He's not mine, he's Victoria's.
Not wishing to startle him, she approached him from the front, kneeling on the ground in front of him. She stared at the grounds once before she spoke. "You know, I always find night a good time for thinking. Everything is silent enough for me to think clearly."
He turned his head slightly so he was facing her. "Cecy, what do you want?"
She gulped. "To see if you're okay. That was a pretty nasty fight you two had upstairs."
He snorted. "It's nothing new. I mean, that fight was bad, but we've been fighting a lot lately."
That's news to me. If they've been fighting for a while, then why hasn't Victoria said anything?
"Gabriel" she continued "you shouldn't have said those things."
He tucked his legs under him and rose on knees, now staring down on Cecily. He grasped her by the arms and shook her slightly. "And what about Victoria, Cecy? Was she wrong too?" he asked, a slight desperation in his voice.
"She shouldn't have been so forward either" Cecily said carefully, putting her hands on Gabriel's arms to push him away gently. "You should talk to her in the morning and-"
She was cut off promptly by Gabriel's lips, which had crashed into hers. His hands were still on her arms, holding her tightly in place. The world was spinning around Cecily's head, and a moment later, Cecily was surprised to find that her arms had wound their way around his neck. What am I doing? I'm Cecily Herondale and I am kissing Gabriel Lightwood. But he is not my boyfriend, he is Victoria's- and with that last thought, she pushed him away from her, breaking off the kiss.
He ran his hands through his hair. "By god, what was that?" he asked, staring at Cecily.
She was looking at her hands. "It never happened, Gabriel. We won't ever speak about this, agreed?"
He nodded, knowing the problems it would cause if anyone found out. "Agreed. Let's go back, I'm really tired" he said, rising to his feet. Cecily followed him out, leaving a little space between them.
If each of them hadn't been so absorbed, then they would have perhaps heard the light clicking sounds that had occurred during their kiss.
For the heck of it, I decided to post a snippet of the next chapter. ;)
All ten of them stood in a single line, hands folded either in front of or behind them. Headmistress Branwell was ruffling through the pages on her desk, examining the reports. Then she stood up and spoke to them.
"Never before has Institute ever experienced such disgrace. In my fifteen years here, I have never, ever had to make a late night trip to the police station for students. I want to know who is responsible for this, because I have half a mind to expel all of you this instant."