"Are you still the same
Tell me have you changed
When you look at me
Do you feel ashamed."
~ Right Now by McKenzie Small
Adalynn raced down the stairs as fast as she could possibly go, Daniel and Jackie only a few steps behind her. They rushed into the lobby, just in time to see Jason, leading a resisting Emma by the arm, across the floor towards the front doors.
"JASON!" Adalynn shouted, stopping him mid-stride. Furiously, she stomped over to him. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"It's none of your business, now get out of the way!" Jason growled.
"No," Daniel stepped into his path. "You're not going anywhere, not until Louis finds out about this."
"Guys," Emma pleaded tearfully with them. "It's not worth it. Just go."
"Never!" Jackie exclaimed. "We're not gonna abandon you!"
"Here's your things, Miss Geller," a timid staff member scurried over to her, tugging along a line of suitcases and bags.
"You - you knew you were leaving?" Adalynn gasped in shock.
"This isn't the first time I've been threatened," Emma whispered under her breath.
"Excuse me, Miss Geller, what was that?" Jason raised his voice and glared at her pointedly.
"Shut-up Jason and let go of her arm!" Adalynn hissed.
"Emma? What's going on?"
Everyone turned around in surprise.
Max was standing at the foot of the stair-case, his eyes wide and questioning.
"M-Max," Emma stuttered. "Max, it's okay."
"You're leaving? Where are you going?" Max hurried over to her and cupped her chin in his hands.
Tears trembled in Emma's eyes. "I - I'm sorry, Max ... here, this will explain everything," she pressed an envelope into Max's palm.
"Emma ... no ... please."
"Jason, what the hell is going on?" Louis thundered as he burst through his office door and strode towards the huddled group.
"Jason's expelling Emma!" Adalynn blurted.
Jason shot her a puzzled look. "Excuse me? No Dad, I'm not. Emma's mum is sick so I'm sending her home so she can take care of her."
Adalynn gaped at him. "Seriously? How come we didn't know about this?"
"Emma, is this true?" Louis questioned soberly.
Emma nodded her brown curl-covered head. "Yes sir. It is."
Adalynn, Jackie, Max and Daniel stared at her in astonishment.
"B-but I heard him say ..." Jackie said, pointing at Jason. "I HEARD him say he was going to expel you!"
"Miss Sanders, I believe you heard wrong," Jason gave her a knowing look. "And besides, who are you to contradict the dean of this school?"
"Emma," Adalynn stepped forward and grabbed her friend's hand.
Emma pulled away from Adalynn. "Just drop it okay?"
"Emma," Max whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "Please - please promise that you'll phone me when you get home? Just so I know that you're safe?"
Emma nodded, her lips quivering. Suddenly, she stepped forward and grabbed the back of Max's head. She titled it down and, standing up on her tip-toes, she pressed a soft kiss on his lips. "I - I'm sorry," she said as she drew back.
"The car's waiting, Miss Geller," Jason announced. He turned around on his heel and stalked away. Emma had no choice but to follow him.
Before she did so, however, she hissed at Adalynn, "The answer's in the white knight."
Then she was gone.
As soon as the front doors had closed behind Emma and Jason, a tense silence filled the air.
"Louis ..." Daniel began.
Just then, Louis' phone began to ring. "Not now, Daniel," he shook his head at him as he picked up his device and accepted the call. "Yes Judy ... oh okay, I'll meet you in my office in ten ..." he slowly walked off, leaving the others in a state of confusion.
"I - I heard Jason threaten her!"Jackie exclaimed. "It's not a joke, guys! I did!"
"I believe you," Adalynn returned, her gaze still fixated on the closed doors in front of her. "B-but why?"
A stifled sob escaped Max, who was standing beside her.
"Hey Maxie, it's okay," Adalynn caught his shoulder in one hand and spun him around so she could hug him. "Emma will be fine."
Max nodded mutely as he rested his head on Adalynn's shoulder. She could feel his tears wet her shirt and a rush of anger and sadness passed over her. How dare Jason do this to Emma, to Max, to all of them!
"Max?"
Adalynn glanced up towards the stair-case and saw Ethan hurriedly descending them. He was dressed in a black hoodie, grey coloured pants and converse. He hadn't brushed his hair and his thick dark brown locks fell across his forehead in waves. Adalynn's breath caught in her throat.
"What's going on?" he questioned as he approached them.
"Emma's gone," Adalynn explained as Max pulled away from her and rubbed at his teary eyes. She gave his arm a comforting squeeze and glanced at him sympathetically.
"Really?" Ethan gazed at her incredulously. "Why?"
Adalynn shrugged. "Her mum's sick ... apparently."
Ethan narrowed his eyes at her and she had to avoid his gaze and heave a deep breath. She hated to admit it, but every time she saw Ethan, he made her heart flutter and her mind go into 'dumb and speechless' mode.
"I - I'd better go," Adalynn blurted as she jerked a thumb over her shoulder. Whipping around, she scurried over to where Jackie and Daniel stood waiting for her. Together, the trio left the room.
"So, what now?" Daniel questioned. "We still need a hypnotic spiral."
"I'll take care of it," Jackie assured him. "You two go get Oreo and anything else you might need. We stick to the plan. Nothing can go wrong."
"I hope you're right," Daniel mumbled as he turned away.
"Wait, what do you think Emma meant by 'the key is in the white knight'?" Adalynn interjected.
"Look, we can figure that out later but right now? We have Brooke to dehypnotise," Daniel told her sharply.
"Daniel's right," Jackie said. "We need to focus on this for the time being but the 'white knight' business will be our next goal, for sure. Don't worry."
Adalynn nodded. "Okay. Let's do this."
At the time given, everyone was back in the biology lab. As they gathered around the table, trying to make the place as homey as possible, each person's Louie binged as a message was sent through to them all.
"You're serious?" Daniel groaned as he dug around in his pocket for his device. "This is the worst time for one of Louis' school meetings."
"Uh Daniel? It's not from Louis," Hayley ventured.
"W-what?" Adalynn frowned as she opened up her Louie. Her eyes widened in horror and she stepped back with a gasp.
"ASPEN!" Jackie growled. "I'm gonna kill her!"
Aspen Fairchild, the trouble-maker, the snooper and everything in between, had just sent out a post to every single person on the school grounds. It was a picture. Not just any picture but a picture of Adalynn and Daniel as they walked down the hall away from the biology lab. Daniel was chuckling at something Adalynn had just said and his hands were on her shoulders in a massaging move. Adalynn had her head tilted back and her eyes were gazing into Daniel's.
Adalynn glanced up at him and then looked at everyone else.
"This - this is bad. This is really bad," Daniel breathed.
"It's - it's not what it looks like!" Adalynn protested.
"We know," Hayley assured her. "But Brooke doesn't. And once she sees this, there's no way she'll be calm enough for the dehypnotision."
Adalynn sniffled. "Great. We're so screwed."
~~~~
Gif: Adalynn's look of shock when she sees Emma off.
A/N: O-kay ... this is bad. Emma's gone. There's no hypnotic spiral. Aspen's gone on an entire school's campaign as she tries to set up Daniel and Adalynn. Brooke will be absolutely horrified and enraged and now she won't be ready for the dehypnotision. What's going on here? What do you think will happen next? Why is Jason on Emma's back? What did he REALLY catch her doing? Please comment your opinions below. I'd love to hear from you! Thanks so much for reading; have a great day. xx