Gakuen Hetalia - High School AU

Iain continued to stare down at her, awaiting a snappy reply about how she could make her own decisions like she usually did but surprisingly, it wasn't the case this time around. A smirk spread across her face as she informed him about her homecoming date, the one, the only, Ivan Braginski.

At first he just stared at her, stared at her long and hard like he didn't believe what she had just said. Then he began to laugh, like it was a joke she thought she could pull off. Her face was a stone though, dead serious which convinced him to think the worst.

She was telling the truth.

He stopped laughing then, his expression growing angry and dismayed. "ARE YE SERIOUS?!" He finally spat out, taking a step toward her with wide emeralds. "LIKE HELL YE BLOODY ARE. NAE. I FORBID I' YER NO' EVEN ALLOWED TAE BE FRIENDS WITH THA' KID ARE YE OUTTA YER MIND?! WHY WOULD YE EVER THINK I' WAS A GOOD IDEA TAE GO WITH HIM? HUH? NAE. YER GROUNDED. YER NAE GOIN' TAE HOMECOMIN' IF YER GOIN' WITH HIM I'LL CHAIN YA DOWN TO THE SOFA IF I HAFF TAE. NAE. NAE NAE NAE NAE. WHAT WERE YA THINKIN'?! DID HE ASK YA? TELL ME, DID HE ASK YA OUT? DID HE APPROACH YA? DID HE BLOODY TOUCH YA? I SWEAR....." He trailed off then, eyes containing a raging fire.

He grabbed her by the shoulders, staring at her. "Look a' me. Yer no' goin' with him. Ever. Yer never gonna be even remotely close tae him." He shuddered then, imagining the two of them being close and......alone.

"NAE. NAE. NAE. NO' HAPPENIN'. NOPE. DONNAE YE DARE"

For a moment she thought her plan hadn't worked, but when he started yelling loud enough for the whole school to hear him, she easily figured that it had. Within seconds after his final shouts, she had burst out laughing, hard enough to make her sides hurt. Whatever reaction she was expecting, it was nothing compared to this.

"Iain were ye really believin this bullshite?!" she paused to laugh some more and take a few gasps of air "I was joking ye eejit! Calm yer arse down and le' go of me. Trus' me, I'd NEVER date that kid."

Her laughter had died down by this point, but an amused grin was still plastered to her face.

Once she burst out laughing he soon realized that everything she had told him was, fortunately, a lie. He let out a sigh of relief, racing a hand through his crimson hair. "Donnae ever do tha' again ye'll give me a heart attack." He shook his head, glancing back at her as that same devious and satisfied grin grew on her face.

He suddenly formed a smirk on his face, eyes seeking pay back. "Jus' tae be on the safe side though, yer still nae allowed tae go tae homecomin'. I donnae want some lads starin' at ya and plannin' things. Especially no' Ivan Braginski" He shuddered again.

"Ye can jus' stay home and watch cartoons. Aye? Aye."

At first, Gilbert felt like an idiot; A complete and utter imbecile.Why was he pouring his heart out to this stranger? Was he an idiot or something? Jesus Christ, what was he doing? Somehow he couldn't convince himself that what his did was wrong, however. It wasn't as though he'd lied. He hadn't. He'd been completely honest for once in his life and honestly he felt relieved: Like a great weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

There was a moment of somewhat awkward silence as Lukas sat there, seemingly stunned by his words. Gilbert couldn't say that he was, per-say, shocked that the Norwegian was silent. The blonde was normally very quiet. But he hoped that he hadn't done anything to upset or scare him by bringing up the events of earlier that day.

However, Lukas did speak. Although his voice was soft and shy, he did indeed speak.

"I won't tell anyone. I promise."

What did he mea-? Oh, yeah. The whole gay thing. Gilbert smirked slightly and shook his head, "I don't care if you do, honestly. I'm tired of hiding. I'm sick of being someone I'm not." He spoke as the other explained that at least he had told someone, "I'm sure that by tomorrow half the school will know anyways. Ivan has this funny problem with keeping his big mouth shut." He continued.

Lukas paused for a moment, sighing. When he explained that it wasn't strength or bravery that compelled him to tell, Gilbert chuckled softly, "Either way, it's still really cool that you had the guts to tell. Whether you think it was or not, you were really brave to admit to that kind of thing."

"Though I will admit... I don't want to go back to school after that."

Who would?

Gilbert smiled softly, "Trust me. I'll make sure he'll never lay another finger on you again. I won't let him."

And then, he leaned in close, and kissed him.

He fucking kissed him.

"Trust me. I'll make sure he'll never lay another finger on you again. I won't let him."

Those words had confused Lukas at first, but the kiss he recieved after had made his mind go blank. His eyes widened and he almost pushed Gilbert away, startled by the sudden kiss. A faint pink now dusted his cheeks, as Gilbert sat back in his seat next to the bed.

Lukas avoided looking at the Prussian teen for a while, still trying to sort out his own thoughts. He couldn't believe it at first, but he was actually okay with what Gilbert had done, maybe even wanted him to do it again. This prompted Lukas to lean over the side of the bed, awkwardly hugging the albino.

After the incident in the nurse's office, Francoise headed out and to her next class. She made a mental note to text Gilbert later and check on him before the game started. She thought back and let out a giggle when she thought of Iain freaking out and Abigael lying about Ivan as her date. She sighed softly, still wondering who Aidan was taking to homecoming, she didn't know why either. She shook her head to clear her thoughts as she headed towards the gym, meeting up with her teammates and getting ready for the game to start.

"Thinking about Gilbert?" One of her teammates teased. SHe looked over as a blush covered her cheeks.

"Non" she muttered "Someone else" she added quietly, causing her friend to laugh.

"You change who you like, like you change clothes, Francoise" she laughed before leaning over.
"Who is it?" She asked.
Francoise shook her head. "Non. I'm not telling you" she stated before getting up. "Get ready. We 'ave a game to win"

Aidan was fairly oblivious to the blushing girl in-front of him, for his eyes had fallen shut and he was quite content allowing the icepack to soothe the new aching hole in his head.

"Who are you taking to 'omecoming?"

The question caught him honestly off-guard. His eyes blinked open, and he stared at the blonde as if she'd just asked him to shoot himself in the foot. Honestly, Aidan had barely put any thought into the dance at all. His thoughts, like his brother's, had been on the upcoming rugby game just tomorrow night. Who knows if he could even go to the dance?

A mere shrug was his answer. "Don' know." He opened his mouth to say more, but then his eyes caught a very familiar head of strawberry-blonde hair, which glistened between a soft orange and gold in the sun. A smile cracked onto his face. "Abby! I haven' seen ye in ages! Where-"

"With those injures ye arenae going anywhere."

The Irishman blinked at that as well. What was up with these girls right now? Perhaps it wasn't that she'd said it, but how she'd said it, very tense and forced. It caused him to raise a thick orange eyebrow, but he supposed Abigael had good reason to voice her concern. She was always a woman of practicality and reason.

"Oh lookie here, are ma eyes decievin' me? Ma broth is bein' asked who he's takin' tae homecomin'?"

Aidan rolled his eyes at his brother. "She's jus' curious broth. There's no harm in askin'." It didn't occur to Aidan at all what was being implied. He was a bit rare of a high school boy, for he barely ever thought about 'hooking up with girls' or anything of the sort. He looked more perplexed than anything, though having an icepack between his teeth did not help the look.

But Aidan did nod quite enthusiastically with Iain's next statement. "Aye! We can' miss the game Abby, ye know tha'!" Aidan did quite enjoy rugby as well, though perhaps he lacked the incredible passion that his younger brother held for it. That suited him just fine, he enjoyed seeing the Scot be passionate for something rather than breasts and alcohol.

Finally, the students within the nurse's office began to disperse one by one, Abigael being the last to leave. Aidan, however, did not leave.

His forest eyes had fallen upon the door long ago. The door to the nurse's bathroom. He had no clue what, or how, but he could not pry his eyes from the soft wood. What was it that was bugging him so much? The more he stared, the more unnerved he began to feel, eventually removing the ice pack from his mouth so he would not chew on it.

It couldn't be anything important, it was just a bloody bathroom. But still Aidan stood, making his way to the door and pressing his ear against it. No sounds, nothing. He sighed heavily, shaking his head and rubbing at his temples with his palm. Maybe he was still shaken from that blow from Ivan earlier and needed rest.

But as his eyes fell upon the floor, his veins iced over. Blood was seeping from the bottom of the door.

"...Holy...." Panic quickly thawed his limbs and in a desperation he pounded on the door. "'Ey! Anyone in there?!" He could feel unsettling worry claw in his stomach like a starving animal with the silence that followed. He tried the knob. It was locked.

His eyes narrowed. "I'm comin' in!" He stepped back a few paces, then charged. His shoulder slammed against the door like a wrecking ball, and the wood cracked. He did it again, and again, grunting with each impact.

Finally, the door swung open.

Aidan stood frozen in the doorway, seeming as if he would nearly vomit. Blood covered the linoleum floors, pooling around a young girl who was balled up, crying softly.

He recognized her as the brunette from before, the one that had worried for Iain so greatly. "Lass.." he spoke softly, startling her still from her delirious state. "Lass..it's alrigh'..."

She looked more terrified than he did, her tears dripping off her chin and mixing with the blood she sat in. Aidan gulped. He knew what she had done, and it made his stomach churn. What could have made the girl so distressed that she felt the need to...harm herself?

Like a frightened animal she suddenly bust past him, out of the bathroom and out of the nurse's office.

-

Aidan had tried to chase the frightened girl down but it was to no avail. She had disappeared as quickly as he had discovered her.

After telling a janitor of the mess he walked from the nurse's office with a hung head, rubbing once again at his temples. They ached now.

It took a moment for Gilbert to realize what he had done before he suddenly pulled away, wide-eyed and stunned silent from his own actions. His lips parted and his jaw moved, words desperately trying to form in his throat, but to no avail. He had no idea what to say, even if he was able to speak. Good gods, what had he done? Had he honestly just kissed another man? Not just that, no, but he'd fucking kissed a guy he barely knew! What did he have to say for himself?!

Actually, he honestly had nothing to say. He hadn't really done anything wrong, had he? What was he talking about- OF COURSE HE HAD DONE SOMETHING WRONG HE JUST LIP-LOCKED WITH A STRANGER! But, oddly enough, it didn't feel... Wrong. If anything, he might have said he even liked it and wouldn't be entirely apposed to doing it again but- WHAT WAS HE THINKING HE BARELY EVEN KNEW LUKAS JESUS CHRIST WHAT THE FUC-. Wait. What was he doing?

A sudden warmth wrapped around him with a bit of pressure, and Gilbert realized he was being hugged by the very boy he had just kissed moments ago.

Suddenly, he was able to find his voice, "I-I'm sorry about that... I don't know why... I mean... I don't know... I'm sorry." He stammered, finding that while he had found his voice, his common sense of grammar was a long stretch away.

Alisia sat there, blood pooling at her legs, feeling numb.

"I'm leaving."

The room was achingly silent, the only sound being Gilbert's slowly-fading footsteps from the bathroom. Of course, the other students were still in the office, but they were a white noise to her now. And they didn't matter.

Gilbert had seemed grateful...but had she really helped him? She hadn't consoled him like any other person would have thought to. She hadn't given him encouragement, not as he had given her only hours before. No, all she had done was clean wounds, then stare dumbly as his crimson eyes flashed with pain and shame. It had been the same with Ivan. And Iain. Her attempts to protect the Russian had been feeble and pathetic, and she knew it. Not only that, but she blatantly lied to the very face of the new friend she'd made. She was sure Ivan would never speak to her again. Gilbert would avoid her like the plague, since she knew his two deepest secrets. And Iain...he would resent her.

Slowly, the girl curled in on herself, forehead pressed to her kneecaps as her nails dug into her calves. Dammit, why? She felt as if her impending stupidity had acted as a ticking time bomb, and today was its detonation. She'd done nothing, absolutely nothing to truly help them.

It never occurred to Alisia that some things may have been an misunderstanding. It never occurred to her that maybe Iain didn't resent her, or Ivan nor Gilbert would avoid her. Though her, growing up as she had, believed she possibly (or most certainly) had a fault in every situation. She felt she could have done more, that somehow she could have kept her friends. Being picked on, and bullied since childhood, all Alisia knew was how she was bad, and how she was a walking screw-up. She knew nothing else. It made it difficult for her to bond and make friends at all, much less keep any.

So she began to cry. It was soft, for she still felt ashamed to spill emotion that she did not deserve to spill. Gilbert deserved to shed his tears. As did Ivan. Perhaps even Iain. Her...no. Not one bit.

She'd barely heard the thud of the bathroom door as someone began to force it open. His voice reached her ears in a muffled whispered, and when she raised her head, her eyes were puffy and red. She was shocked that someone, someone found her.

Then she recognized who it was, who he was the brother of, and panicked. Was he angry with her too? Why wouldn't he be? In a fit of desperation she bolted from the bathroom, completely disregarding her disheveled state and blood upon her arms and legs. It was definitely a site that students saw as the girl fled, running for her home. There were laughs, guffaws, but mostly sneers and slicing stares.

Alisia was happy to reach her home. She would be alone that day, and most likely alone for a few weeks. At times she did enjoy the solitude when Heracles went away to his mother's house, but today...today she wanted to beg him to come home.

Today she didn't want to be alone.

The rest of the day had gone smoothly for Abigael, having a substitute in one class, and barely any work in her other classes. The painkillers she took in the nurse's office had quickly gotten rid of the throbbing in her head, which put her in a much better mood than she had been before.

Before she knew it the day was over and she was walking slowly down the hallway, her bag slung over one shoulder. She had taken enough time to where the crowd in the halls was beginning to thin as most of the students left the campus, or stayed in classrooms for clubs or help from teachers. Word of a kid going to the hospital earlier in the day had spread through the school like wildfire. The first student to be associated with this was Ivan, as he had sent many students to the hospital before.

As she continued down the hall, a familiar brunette ran past her, her clothes disheveled and bloodied. That was the same girl from the nurse's office. Confusion was soon followed by concern, as she turned to see the girl disappear around the corner. As concerned as she was, she didn't try to follow the Armenian, having learned to stay out of other's problems.

Abigael turned to continue on her orignal path, heading to her math teacher to take a test she had missed. After that was done, she had headed back to the main hallways, heading for the front doors. From down the hallway she could easily see Aidan, his fiery red hair making him stand out. She yelled his name down the hallway to catch his attention" speeding up her steps to catch up to him. Once she caught up to him, she slowed down, walking beside him.

"Éy, Aidan, I didn' expec' tae see ye still here. Were ye staying after fer a tes'?"

By the time Gilbert had begun to stammer out words, Lukas had shifted back onto his spot on the hospital bed, once again staring at the floor. Once he heard an apology from the Prussian, he shook his head, sighing a little. He hadn't pushed Gilbert away and he saw no reason for the apology. If he really had been upset about the kiss, it would have shown.

"No, its... its alright, don't worry about it." he still hadn't found the ability to look directly at Gilbert, settling for looking around the room as if it were suddenly interesting.

He wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about this, conflicted feelings making his thoughts a jumbled mess. Sure, he should be happy, Gilbert was actually really kind to him, and damn was he attractive, but with how he was reacting, he wasn't sure if he should be so okay with it.

Aidan hadn't realized just how long he'd been wandering the halls, or just how far. His minds were swarming, sifting and twisting.

Who was that girl really? Why was she hurting herself like that? Couldn't he have done something? Guilt twisted in his belly, and suddenly he was unhappy that he'd eaten any lunch.

"Éy, Aidan, I didn' expec' tae see ye still here. Were ye staying after fer a tes'?"

Aidan blinked, raising his head from his hands to stare at the strawberry-blonde-haired girl in bewilderment. When had she snuck up behind him? How long had she been there? He hadn't heart a thing besides the throbbing drum in his skull.

"'Ey Abby." He managed a small smile for her. "No, I've...been out." He rubbed at his forehead with his palm, sighing heavily. "Did ye see a lass run by recently? Brown hair, lookin' scared as a kitten?"

He shook his head. It wouldn't be a good idea to bring her into this. "Ye know, nevermind. I'll find her later." His smile was a bit warmer now as he ruffled her hair. "I'll have te thank ye fer gettin' protective o' me back in tha' office. Yer a little fiery lass, ye know tha'?"

She thought about the girl that had been running through the halls earlier and opened her mouth to answer just as he had shook his head.

"I saw he-" She was cut off by his second sentence. After he had finished that sentence, she just decided to leave it at that, not finishing what she had begun to say.

"Charming, isn't i'." She commented on his description of her, "Look a' all the suitors just lining up around the corner because of my lovely personality." She sarcastically guestured toward the empty hallway.

"Iain isnae much help either. Everyone still remembers wha' he did to tha' lad in eighth grade." She chuckled softly, remembering Iain's temper tantrum after her first and only breakup.

Aidan gave a light snort, raising a thick orange brow at the shorter girl. "I think i's lovely. Wha's wrong with it?" He shook his head. "Wha' jus' because ye donnae have arses who want nothin' more than a one-night-stand linin' up tha' yer no' attractive?" He bent his head down to her level, fixating her with a look. "Tha' jus' means ye'll attract better kind of people. People ye deserve."

Aidan nodded, rolling his eyes, but with a small grin at the memory. "Aye." He straightened himself out again, stretching his arms out above his head. "He's a good protective broth, an' I don' blame him. I wouldn't wan' some good-fer-nothin' arse hurtin' ye either."

She listened silently to him, not making any comebacks like she usually would. It was definitely something she needed to hear, causing a sincere smile to make its way onto her features.

"Aye, I guess yer righ'."

When he straightened out and finally commented on Iain she raised an eyebrow "According tae him, everyone is a good-fer-nothin' arse." She paused for a moment, shrugging a little, "Besides, I already have someone I'm interested in, ye guys donnae have tae worry abou' me datin' half the kids in school."

What she said last, made Aidan stop in his tracks.

For a moment, he did nothing but stare at her dumbfounded. Finally he found his words. "..Ye do?" A smile slowly stretched on his lips, and he laughed heartily, patting her back. "Good fer ya lass. So who is the lad? Is he in yer class? Wha's his name?"

He felt very compelled to find out, and he wasn't quite sure why. He shrugged the feeling off, and they began to walk again.

"Shite! I almost forgot abou' Franny's game." He cursed himself softly before glancing at her. "I be' i's startin' soon. Ye wanna tag along?"

Her eyes flicked about the hallway, an awkward smile replacing her former one. A light pink dusted her cheeks, as she started to get a little dodgy with her answers, refusing to name names.

"Well, he's a senior. Donnae have any classes with him, bu' I hang around him a lo'."

At the mention of the volleyball game after school that day, and the offer of tagging along, she nodded. She didn't try to continue to describe the guy she was interested in, acting as if she had forgotten she was answering the question completely.

"Let's ge' going then." She began to walk down the hallway toward the gymnasium, guesturing for Aidan to follow.

Francoise had changed into the blue and white uniform and slipped her game shoes on, re-doing her braid and just for the hell of it, she made two dark lines under her eyes. It was against a rival team tonight and she wanted them to know that it was serious. They had to win the game.
"Okay, ladies. Get out there and warm up. No goofing around and no distractions. Focus on the game and size up the other team. I know they lost their good seniors from last year and I'm damn sure that one girl that broke mine and Katie's noses is still there." She scowled at the memory as they nodding. "If she is, Katie. Me and you will do everything we can to hit her. At least once... Each"

She called them up and they went out there. The stands were getting fuller and the cheering louder as the girls stepped out. It was a bitter sweet moment for the seniors  especially Francine. It was her last first home game of her highschool career and she hoped she wouldn't cry later even though she would be bawling her eyes out during senior night. She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts that roamed and went back to focusing on the game. After warming up they went back Ito the locker room, gave a pep talk then came out through the tunnel that the students had made. She smiled slightly as they headed over to the bench. The crowd went wild when they called hers and Katie's name as the Captain and Co- Captains.
"Ready?" Katie asked her as they stepped onto the court.
"Oui. I'm ready to win." She smirked as she went back to serve.

'Step, jump, hit. Point' she repeated in her head as she threw the ball, jumped and hit the ball. It flew over and landing right between to hitters. She nodded more to herself and served again, this time it had gotten a volley started. Good. She loveeed volleys.

Gilbert felt stupid. No- Worse than that. He was an idiot. A moron. An imbecile. A complete ignoramus. What the hell had he been thinking, to so bluntly kiss this boy he barely even knew! That was just the thing- He hadn't been thinking. His action had been entirely instinctual. But why did his instincts do that? What compelled him to kiss Lukas? Sure, he was fucking adorable and his sapphire eyes twinkled like stars dancing in their reflection in the ocean but- WHAT WAS HE THINKING?!

He continued mentally scolding himself until the other's soft voice broke the silence, assuring Gilbert that everything was okay, but the albino had a ha rd time believing that. Softly, he began to chuckle. It was a small cackle that grew into a boisterous hissing laughter after a moment, "God, I'm a mess." He smirked, "Before today nobody even knew I was gay. Not a single person except for myself and that Russian asshole. Now half the whole fucking school knows." He continued through his laughter, crossing his arms on the bed and pressing his forehead to his forearm to hide his face, "You've got to think I'm crazy, huh? Maybe I am." He turned his head and looked at Lukas with a crooked smile, "Forgive me?"

Aidan's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and slight interested, though he couldn't quite place that knot of interest that twisted in his gut. "A senior lad?" he mused allowed, his lips quirking downwards as he scuttered about his memories for any senior males she had hung around. There was him...then: "Brian? Moura?" None of it placed, from the expression that remained stagnant on her face.

He followed her, his expression suddenly brightening as he offered her a smile. His arm wrapped about her shoulders as he steered them towards the gymnasium. "Don' worry lass, if push come te shove, Iain tells me I'm an excellent ma'chmaker." He winked playfully.

Once arriving at the gymnasiums double-doors, he nudged them open with gloved hands, and whistled at the sight of nearly-packed seats. He waved to two teachers manning the doors, steering Abigael up onto the bleachers, forest eyes flicking about keenly as he searched for a pair of open seats. He found one, not to far from the front but not quite in the middle, and managed to make enough room between cheering and jumping students to escort Abigael through the horde.

"Excitin', aye?" His eyes flicked towards the game that had already started, beginning to cheer himself as he spotted his French friend playing quite well, and viciously, as she always did.

She shook her head with each name he said, disproving his theories on who she liked. As far as she was concerned he was completely oblivious to who exactly she was talking about, which to her was for the best. "Trus' me ye will know when I tell him."

When they got into the gymnasium, the whole place was packed with students from their school, all gathered to watch the game. Even some of the students that would rarely be seen at school events were there. "Aye, its more crowded than usual. Mus' be a good team we're up agains'." She commented, looking at the other team to see their star players. As good as they were, they seemed like nothing compared to how well their own team played and worked together.

She sat next to Aidan in the empty spot he had found, grinning and cheering, getting just as into the game as the students around her. So far it was one of the most heated games she had seen this year, the score staying almost tied the whole time. There seemed to be a girl on the visiting team that everyone had aimed for, which everyone assumed was because of Katie's injury from the year before.

"Tha' the girl that broke Katie's nose?" She pointed at the girl on the court that was currently dodging yet another spike that was meant to injure her.

The fire of winning fueled her as they won the last two matches. One more point and they would win. She smirked as Katie served it. Up and over, point? No. She growled and got ready as the other team sent it back over.

"Mine!" one of the defenders on the back row called, bumping it to the setter.
"Fran!" Their senior setter called. She stepped, jumped, and spiked it. Effectively, hitting the girl they had all been aiming all night. She grinned inwardly as they escorted her off the court.

"Desole!" she called out, not feeling very remorseful since it was revenge for both her and Katie. They were now tied and it was all on the server's shoulders. They all watched it as it landed in the middle of the court.
"And your lady eagles win it!" The announcer exclaimed. The girls screamed as Francoise stared in shock before jumping with her teammates. After a few minutes of cheering they lined up and congradulated the other team before scattering and going to talk to their friends, who had come out onto the floor. She knew her father had most likely gotten caught up at the hospital since he wasn't there. She looked around and spotted the familiar bright hair of her Irish friend. "Adian!" she grinned, making her way to him. Her smile fell slightly when she saw Abigeal but grinned anyway. "Bonjour Abigeal" she nodded. "I'm 'appy you came" she said, turning to Adian.

Abigael gave Francoise a small wave, smiling at her. "Hey, Francoise." She could see Francoise's smile falter for a moment at the sight of her, which raised some questions in the back of her mind. From what had happened in the nurse's office, it was blatantly obvious that she liked Aidan, which in all honesty actually did make her the slightest bit jealous.

Jealousy is quite the powerful thing, as it made Abigael do something she thought she would never do. "Aidan, figure I migh' as well tell ye who I was talking about earlier." She paused, attempting to form the words. She sighed, unable to find the words, any grasp on a sentence that would convey her message slipping out of reach. She settled instead of moving a little closer, leaning up on her toes, and planting a kiss on his mouth.

All of that courage she had just a moment ago had completely left her. She took a few steps back, her face slowly starting to turn red. Now she couldn't even look at anyone, stuck staring at the ground. She wasn't sure whether to feel relieved or regret what she had just done. She was leaning more toward the latter, all of the worst case scenarios running through her head and taunting her.

Francoise's smile fell but she quickly placed a fake one on. "I-I think it's best I go now" she said, her voice trembling. "Merci for coming" she nodded before turning on her heel and walking off quickly. Her heart pounded and ached.Tears filled her eyes, she shouldn't be that upset right? she shook her head, he knew she probably didn't have a chance now.

'Two in one day. Smooth, Franny' she thought to herself as she rushed into the locker room, changed into some track shorts and a t-shirt.

She got in and out, heading to her jeep putting her stuff in and setting off in a jog with her music playing. She turned up "Stronger" as she jogged down the street, clearing her mind. She needed it.