SIXTEEN • LOST
Three days past.
I hadn't seen Chloe since Cas and Ryder had taken her and her disappearance seemed to be the least of all the teacher's worries. When she was missing in my Literature class, no one seemed to notice her absence. It was as if she had never existed.
As for Cas, he, too was nowhere to be seen. He didn't show up to computers and I couldn't find him at lunchtime. Ryder, on the otherhand, could be spotted wandering around the hallways in all his strangeness, with a look that could kill if you stepped too close.
And lastly, Daniel. Even though Beckham had strongly advised me not to avoid his request, I felt that it was better that we didn't talk. He was the one who had pushed me into a mess of lying and deceit, my innocence slowly draining. If it weren't for his ridiculous persistance in the first place, I wouldn't do what I was about to do.
It was mid-afternoon on Saturday, students still populating the halls to get to some extra classes, see a movie, and enjoy their weekend. However, I was stuck doing dirty work. Today was the day I would try and discover the reasons for our missing persons and if I was lucky, find out their hiding place. My first inclination was to speak to Ryder, even though I'd be risking my life just by standing a few feet away from him.
Not quite sure where to start, I began simply by walking around the school. I patroled hallways and scavenged every dark nook that I would expect Ryder to be hiding in. Reietto, in a terrible comparison, was about half the size of Hogwarts (or at least that's what I thought) and somewhat easy to navigate after a week or so. The grandeur of its entire structure still had me amazed, but the fact that it was practically built by twelve year olds was what really made it the landmark it hardly was.
After an hour of dedicated searching, I was still at a loss. I had no idea where his dorm was, and asking another student could give away my position or simply start random, stupid rumors. Publicity was the last thing on my list that I needed.
Just when I was heading up the stairs to my floor, a sudden tap on my shoulder sent me flying in the air with surprise. I whipped around to face the source and saw a serious-looking Daniel staring back at me. Well, aside from the smile he was attempting to suppress, he was overall serious.
"Hi." I raised a brow, but quickly settled on an angered expression. He looked back quizically, but kept quiet. "You can't avoid me forever, Rose," he concluded, moving a bit closer. I had almost made it to the top of the staircase before meeting him, so I felt safe on the higher step I was proudly standing on.
"I guess not," I replied quietly. He just kept staring, and before I knew it, was flushing and staring out the window of the staircase and seeing the endless, green land instead of Daniel.
"Come on, Rose," he said, reaching out for my hand. I looked at him, outraged, pulling my hand away quickly. Was he crazy? Or was I overreacting? How could he even begin to think that he could come here and try to sway me? I wasn't going to sway. I wasn't even going to move.
"Really? Rose, I need to tell you some-"
"Then say it. Whatever you have to say, say it now," I commanded, crossing my arms and glaring at him like a child who wasn't getting their way. Had I stuck my tongue out, I would've completed the look, but there was only an awkward silence. He sighed, irritated and defeated.
"We can't talk here," he mumbled towards the floor, a hand on his forehead in thought.
"Yes we can."
"No, Rose."
"Yes, Daniel," I fought stubbornly. He wasn't going to win this one.
"I can't tell you what I have to tell you in the middle of a public place, Rose!" he said, his voice getting louder. I looked around to make a point.
"There's no one here." This seemed to upset him, that he wasn't getting his way, and he soon looked more like the frustrated child. With a mean look in his eyes, he grabbed my arm and began pulling me behind him. I struggled, but I was considerably weak in the muscle department.
"What are you doing?!" I shrieked, trying to wriggle out of his grasp. He said nothing and continued to drag me across the hall until we reached my front door. "Get off of me!"
"Just shut it, Rose," he grumbled. Then, he proceeded to reach into his pocket and pull out a key. My eyes widened when I noticed that it was the exact same as my key, which was currently in my back pocket and impossible to take in the last few minutes we'd been together. He unlocked the door with ease, the key sliding in just like mine.
"Why do you have a key to my room?!" I asked worriedly. Please let him not be a pyschopathic stalker, I repeated over and over in my head. He didn't look at me at all, but instead shoved me inside and shut the door behind him, pocketing the key as he went.
"That's part of what I have to tell you," he snapped. I stared at him with surprise, my eyes wide and heart beating quickly. He sat in the chair near the window and stared back expectantly. I quickly sat on my bed, never taking my eyes off of him, never trusting him.
"So now that you've broken into my dorm and practically kidnapped me-"
"Oh don't be so dramatic."
"How can I not be? When we first met, you were more like your brother. But now I'm not so sure," I accused, pulling my knees up to my chin and holding my legs. He had become someone completely different. The sweet, kind Daniel I'd known a little over a week ago had been replaced by an equally emotionally unstable psycho and it revealed a character that was quite unpleasant.
"I'm really not like this. I promise. But you just have to trust me. It's just...there have been a few things that have been difficult to deal with in the past month." When I heard the sadness dripping from his voice, my face dropped, all emotion and reality resurfacing. I actually felt sorry. How I could I have been so cold? Why were my emotions suddenly everywhere since I'd come to Reietto?
"I'm sorry," I whispered. He looked up, purple circles of sleepless nights clear and an exasperated expression shaping his face. The poor kid looked close to tears.
"There's a reason I...dared you," he said quietly, his eyes hidden by his lowered lids. While he stared ardently towards the ground, I stared his him worriedly. "There's things I want to tell you, but I can't. There's things I've done- things I'm doing that I'm not very proud of and I just want you to know that I really don't want to ruin this." I raised an eyebrow.
"Ruin what?" I replied in a shaky voice. He stayed silent for a moment before looking out the window.
"Our friendship. I know we barely know each other, but...you're not a bad person, Rose. Not at all," he concluded. I sewed my lips shut, fervently trying to think. I considered him a friend, I guess. Being ahead in school never really allowed me the chance to have close conpanionships, so when the chance arose, I was clueless or unsure. However, if I went off of all the knowledge packed into my head, yes. Daniel was my friend.
"When you say that there are things you've done..."
"I can't tell you that, but I want you to know that I'm sorry about it." I was still utterly confused, but the second intrusion of my dorm suddenly interrupted my thoughts as I turned to see Chloe burst through the door. She hadn't become a caveman in her time away, but she certainly didn't look at her best. Her chocolate hair was greasy and slightly frazzled, her lipstick nearly gone and bags beneath her eyes.
"Oh my- Chloe," I breathed slowly approaching her, more from surprise rather than happiness. Her expression was difficult to decipher. It was a mixture of paranoia and anger, her patience and nerves clearly wearing thin.
"Rose. Daniel," she greeted monotonously, nodding towards us. I stopped right in front of her, examining her train-wrecked state. "Sorry to bust in, but I wanted to apologize. To both of you." I craned my neck to see Daniel rising from his chair. He looked at me carefully, but walked forward with his hands behind his back.
"But there's nothing to apologize for-"
"Yes there is," she cut me off abruptly. "Just because I didn't tell everyone your secret doesn't mean that I'm innocent." Both Daniel and I, with furrowed brows, waited on edge for her to elaborate. She said that she hadn't told anyone anything when they were taking her away.
"I was stupid. I knew that Ryder would hear what I was saying, so I began talking. And I involved Beckham. I started saying things about the war between them and how we were all doomed. I said that Beckham was thinking of confronting Ryder about the war and so when Ryder got his first glimse of Beckham, all hell broke loose.
"I didn't think. I was still upset that Rose thought she could challenge me and I decided I was going to stir things up. I'm sorry, Rose. I'm sorry, Daniel. I did this," she said, her eyes watering slightly.
"It's alright. I completely forgive you," I sighed, relief flooding through me. Daniel, face still serious and still, shifted uncomfortably.
"I forgive you, too...but what did you tell Cas and Ryder?" Daniel asked. My heart sank; what if we were in trouble anyway?
"Well, that's what I really want to apologize for. I told them that I thought that by war, it meant Cas and Ryder were going to fight each other. Physically. But Ryder didn't believe me, so he kept prodding until I would tell him otherwise. That's why I was gone for so long; I didn't- couldn't tell him the truth. So in the end, I told him that I had heard about the war from you, Rose. I thought this would give you a chance to get some information," she divulged, her face crumpled in shame.
If my heart had sunk before, then the entirety of my organs must've sunk just then. She told Ryder that I knew about the war? Where would this put me? And just when I thought Chloe was going to fix things, she truly made them worse. But I couldn't be mad; that would make everything that much harder.
I clasped a hand to my forehead, feeling a little light-headed. Daniel and Chloe looked at me worriedly, but I ignored them easily. How would I get through this?
Once I pulled myself together and found the words that had briefly escaped me, I cleared my throat and looked Chloe in the eyes.
"So what am I going to do?" Chloe tightened her lips and looked away. Daniel breathed loudly from beside me, and then tension settled in quickly. "Chloe?"
"Well, Ryder's coming. Here." I opened my mouth to protest, but realised there was nothing I could say to change it.
Just what I needed.
***
Woohoo! 11 fans! Small number for some, but big number for me! And almost 1200 reads?! Fantastico! Anyway, aside from my strangeness, please don't forget to vote, comment, and let your fellow watties know that a girl named Charlotte Avery exists in cyberspace...thanks to you all and I hoped you enjoyed it :)