{Chapter 22 POV: Ally White}
"I have an announcement to make," Kitty told the band plus Sparrow the morning after our stressful mall appearance.
I sighed. My stomach was already in knots, as I had promised Cerise that today I would introduce her to my boyfriend, Ryan, along with the rest of the band. I wasn't very worried about what Holly, Lizzie, Duchess and Kitty would think of him, mostly because if they didn't like him, I would be able to adjust and accept that, but it won't be very easy to accept it if Cerise doesn't like him.
Kitty waited until all six of us were looking at her before saying "the label has suggested that you all go for a group therapy session with anyone who's created stress in your lives recently."
Cerise raised an eyebrow. "Suggested?"
Kitty let out a deep exhale. "Yeah, you guessed it. You're being forced." She looked up from her feet and met Holly's eyes. "They've already invited a couple of people..."
"That means Austin or Blake," Holly muttered.
Kitty heard. "It means both, and Shawn. I don't know how he's caused you stress, I actually think he's helping your stress. I think they see rumors about you guys and assume they bother you," Kitty explained.
Lizzie whimpered. Her head drooped a little, and she reached up to adjust her crown on her head so that it wouldn't fall to the floor.
"This should be... Fun," Duchess said. Sparrow nodded, though he initially appeared excited about this, so he may not have realized Duchess's sarcastic tone. Maybe he thought they'd let him watch our drama-packed "therapy" session.
"Can I bring someone?" I asked, not sure exactly myself that it was the greatest idea. It could be a good thing though. Ryan would have to get used to me and my friends/colleagues having intense drama, and my friends would need to become comfortable having him around.
"Ryan Cassidy?" Kitty asked.
I nodded and heard a gulping noise from my throat as I swallowed. It was weird hearing someone else say his new persona out loud. I liked it and he did too, but it was taking me a very long time to get used to it.
Kitty waved in acknowledgement. "Fine, sure, whatever." She turned to Cerise, said that Daring had already agreed to attend, and then gave Holly the same serious face from before. "They invited Poppy as well."
Holly's eyes widened nervously.
"She isn't coming," Kitty admitted, "claimed to be too busy." Then Kitty disappeared from the tour bus, and we all uncomfortably waited around until Ryan and Daring arrived.
Ryan and Daring had quickly become best friends when Ryan arrived in Ever After. Ryan came from Storybrooke and wanted an escape from the life he was used to. While he couldn't completely rid his life of magic here, the magic in Ever After is different than what he's used to. He told me a horrific story he heard from the mad hatter's daughter about the Queen of Hearts chopping off her father's head. He lived, obviously, but he has had a scar ever since. There, the Queen of Hearts had a literal vault of human hearts she'd removed herself and used to control whoever they belonged to. It was a common practice of dark magic. Ryan's father, who I knew as Mr. Gold, is the Dark One, the most powerful and feared user of dark magic there is. I have never met Mr. Gold, but I know Ryan despises him, dark magic, and gold because of it.
Cerise and I had discussed Ryan and Daring's friendship lots of times. Cerise thought it was highly unusual that Daring found himself so acquainted with someone as different from him as Ryan. Ryan is not royalty and he's not rich- he's a dirt-poor runaway. He doesn't know much about sports or destinies including his own. He is one hundred percent a rebel if his destiny is what he thinks it is. But most of all, Ryan is brave, and I think Daring sees that in him.
We had been parked in a lot for a while before Daring knocked on the door and patiently waited until I opened it. He smiled the signature Daring Charming smile and took a few steps past me to sit next to Cerise. Ryan was behind where Daring had originally been standing. He looked at me hopefully, and I offered him the best smile I could muster up, but I was visibly nervous.
He followed me inside and shut the door behind us. Kitty reappeared almost on cue.
I cleared my throat. "Everyone," I said, "this is my boyfriend Ryan Cassidy. Ryan, this is Cerise, Duchess, Sparrow, Holly, Lizzie, and Kitty." I indicated each person as I said their names with a hand gesture.
Ryan was leaned forward in his seat and kept his hands folded near his knees. I couldn't help but note that he looked very uncomfortable and unrelaxed. "Hey," he said. "Nice to meet you all." His brown eyes shifted between all the girls' and then stopped on Cerise for a while. He was registering who she was. My best friend. The girlfriend of his best friend. After that, he looked back to me. I put my hand on his back, covered by his beat-up brown leather jacket. His hand took mine nearest to him and he squeezed it gently.
Cerise said hey, and so did Duchess, whose boyfriend added a "what's up dude". Lizzie, very formally, said hello and Kitty just nodded in our direction. Holly smiled. It was a sad smile, but it was caused by anxiety and not me or Ryan.
"Where are you from?" Lizzie asked, looking Ryan over with a skeptical eyebrow arched.
"Storybrooke, Maine," Ryan responded before he sighed. "Unfortunately."
"Unfortunately?" said Duchess. "What's so bad about it?"
Ryan told some pretty ugly stories at that point, including the ones I'd mentioned before. He never mentioned the Dark One, his father, Mr.Gold. He never did intentionally. It's his least favorite topic of conversation and he avoids it at all costs.
And then was the inevitable question. "What's your destiny?" Holly asked innocently. She had no idea. No idea at all. It wasn't her fault. I hoped Ryan wouldn't hold it against her.
He closed his eyes, then gazed at me again for support. I knew it meant he wasn't ready to talk about the truth.
"Let's just say that I'm running away from it. It's bad. Really bad. Being here is my way out. As long as I'm here, I can't follow it. Nothing can happen to me... I'm safe." Ryan took a sigh of relief, realizing this for the first time himself.
Holly nodded, though I could tell she was a little confused. That was okay. She didn't need to know everything anyway.
The next question was better. It was from Sparrow, who asked if he liked Ever After.
"Yes, I really do. The people here are so much more relaxed. They're never nervous about evil mayors and twisted deals and needing a savior." The funniest thing about this answer is that as relaxed as we may seem, we definitely aren't. Everyone here is destiny crazed, obsessed. Destiny can never go a day before crossing anyone's minds. It's the reason for all the mess that's taking place in Holly's life right now, and Lizzie's, and the reason we're being forced to go to a therapy session. It's the reason for all of our problems. And destiny-caused problems are the reason we have to go to therapy in the first place.
The band seemed genuinely interested, so we spent the majority of the remaining time before the therapy session listening to more of Ryan's stories.
*****
Hey guys. Sorry it's been a while since I updated. I wrote this chapter a while ago and I didn't like it so I didn't post it, but school has now started and Ryan has to be introduced somehow even if it takes all chapter (which it did, and it's part of the reason I'm not crazy about this chapter, which was originally supposed to be about meeting Ryan and the therapy session). So I have a LOT (basically a whole schedule full) of hard classes this year but I'm going to try to stay on my game as much as possible. I think this chapter was a bust, but I'm hoping for better ones in the future. The next one will be the therapy session.
If you didn't already know, Ryan's story is based on elements and characters from seasons 2 & 3 of ABC's series Once Upon A Time.
I hope you've noticed this story has a beautiful new cover! It was made by my Queen of Hearts cowriter WolfRune20855 . Check that story out!
Lastly if you don't already read The Note Collection that goes with this book, you should.
xo Zoey xo