Opposites Attract: A Tobecky Story- Wordgirl X Tobey

Stalking With Purpose

"Relax, you're wordgirl, the good guy. Everyone's going to love you no matter what you do." The boy fretted, growing slightly annoyed by the conversation. "Tobey on the other hand is a narcissistic monster, and everyone knows it. It was only a matter of time before people started pointing it out."

Becky looked at her friend with wide eyes. She didn't want anyone to look at how she snapped at Tobey and think it was good. Nothing about the situation should have made Wordgirl look good, as she was definitely in the wrong and felt regret over her reaction, but Scoops was right. People associated her with doing the right thing, and as flattering as that was, it was also disturbing. She had been placed on such a high pedestal that perfection was imprinted on everything she did. For the sake of others she had to be the icon of peace others deemed her to be. It was growing tiring, and even just thinking about how she had to be morally flawless made her feel exhausted. Her mind dipped back to her interaction with Ted that morning.

"Don't beat yourself up over this." Violet reasoned. "You're a good person."

Becky nodded.

"Besides," she smiled. "Right now you're Becky. You don't have to worry about being a hero."

"I always have to worry about being a hero..." Becky thought, before making a final attempt to forget about the situation. Talking to her friends had both helped and hurt her, as they just didn't understand anything from her perspective. Life for them was easy, but for her it was just a constant bombardment of unmeetable standards.

"So what are your plans for spring break, Violet?" Scoops asked, changing the subject.

She smiled sweetly. "We're going to go see my aunts out of town."

"Cool," He paused to shovel a spoonful of mashed potatoes into his mouth. "I'm going to a journalism camp."

Becky watched him, "What do you do in journalism camp?"

"I'm honestly not quite sure." Scoops admitted, putting a hand on his chin. "I haven't been before."

"You'll probably write a lot." Violet smiled, gently nudging her boyfriend's side. He looked at her lovingly.

"Well, duh."

Awkwardly, Becky went back to eating her food. She hated being the third wheel, and her former crush on Scoops didn't help her emotions either. Watching them flirt was like a punch in the gut.

For a brief moment, the girl zoned out, staring off into the distance. However, as she did something caught her eye.

It was Tobey, out of detention, and sneaking through the cafeteria. Immediately her hackles were raised. He was always up to no good, and based on her conversation with him as Becky there was a fair chance he already had a robot army at the ready.

"Behind you both, ten o clock." She whispered, staring daggers at the boy.

The pair turned around, and upon noticing the villain's presence, they turned concerned.

"Go do something." Scoops whispered, moving closer to Violet. "Turn into Wordgirl."

Becky sighed. She really didn't want to change into her superhero persona. For the past few months, saving the city had become more and more of a nuisance. She had been transforming only when needed, and after fighting whatever villain was attempting to take over the city, she was too tired to do anything else. "I'll take care of this as myself..." She frowned, standing up to tail the boy from a distance.

Quickly she stood up, making her way over to blend in with another group of students walking the same way. From there she walked to the wall, a place where she could easily watch the boy's movements.

He was heading for the large iron doors that led out into the front halls. What was he doing? In his hands he was carrying all of his supplies, and he walked with an unnatural stuttered step. His expression conveyed no emotion, but his free hand toyed nervously with the hem of his vest.

The cafeteria swarmed with students and faculty stood guarding every main exit. Becky did her best to watch the boy carefully as others darted between her gaze. The girl resorted to moving closer to see better through the haze of people, careful to still maintain a practical distance. If Tobey was up to something, she would be there to put an immediate end to it.

However, as the boy neared the door, a faculty member stood in his way.

Becky sighed, before making an attempt to listen to the conversation with her super hearing. The cafeteria was unfortunately too loud, and she couldn't make out a word. All she could do was watch in surprise as the security stood aside and allowed him to pass.

Tobey reluctantly pushed open one of the large metal doors and walked through.

The girl frowned, looking over at her friends.

The two were already back to flirting. It was obvious they didn't care at all about the situation.

She narrowed her eyes, turning back to the task at hand. Upset, Becky stalked towards the same door Tobey had left through. With a confident wave of her hand, she brushed her hair behind her ear, walking close enough to the door to not be stopped.

For a few moments the girl just watched, smiling when the security finally turned around, giving her the time she needed to sneak out into the hallway. The guard never even noticed her absence.

The halls were empty and dull. Half the school was currently being contained in the cafeteria, so the odd, barren silence of the building was something Becky wasn't quite used to. The only sound was the squeak of shoes and the ruckus going on in the room she had just escaped from.

"Where did he go?" The girl wondered aloud, looking at the three separate hallways that opened up in front of her. She was standing in the middle of the trophy ring, an intersection of three connecting halls and the cafeteria. School banners decorated the top of the room, and a flickering luminescent light sparked above her. Again she made an attempt at using her super hearing, this time successfully locating someone walking the halls. With quiet steps she followed, making sure not to seem suspicious on the several security cameras littered through the building. She couldn't get caught.

At one point a janitor passed by, but Becky played it off coolly with a smile and gentle wave.

After a minute or so, the girl eventually caught up to the villain who had been walking much slower than she anticipated. What was he doing? Why was he walking so slow through the halls if he was supposed to be in detention?

As the girl rounded the last corner of the hall, all of her questions were suddenly answered.

Tobey had paused, fixed his neat blonde hair and bowtie before walking around the bend and into the office.

Inside was his mother.

Becky shuddered, her guilty conscience building. Tobey's disdain for their project was not worth detention and whatever punishment his mother had lined up. She even felt bad for immediately thinking that Tobey was up to something evil, rather than just being picked up early from school. She was too quick to assume he was up to something mischievous.

Ashamed, she turned around and began walking back to the cafeteria. On her way, the bell rang so instead of returning to her friends, she walked to class.