Sorrys for the long wait lovelies so extra long chappie for you! Hope you like it! Or not... Lol. Also, special thanks to the lovely lady above for the absolutely beautiful trailer she made! I definitely see Tyler like the character in the trailer! <3 Love you all~

Chapter 24: Worthwhile Or A Complete Rip-off?

            I ended up picking out a light caramel coloured bear with a broken heart stitched onto the left side of its chest. It was a furry little thing, but it felt a bit low in quality for the price it read on the tag. Marshall was quite excited about the process though, probably more so than all the kids in the shop, so I let him drag me to the stuffing section after I picked out the bear and watched him gleefully stuff the toy for me.

            Okay… So he did a really bad job. Not that I didn’t expect it. Okay, so that was a bit of a lie. I expected more than that, but he was so oblivious to it when he finished patching up the bear that I didn’t even know what to say to him. For one, I didn’t know if there was too much stuffing in the bear… or too little. The bear’s belly was bloated to the point where it looked pregnant, but the arms and legs were limp things that had barely any support at all. I was sure you were supposed to stuff it a bit and check to see if the plushness was right before continuing, but Marshall had never been the brightest tool in the shed, had he?

            But he was soooo proud! He was smiling so hard and looking so proud as he shoved the bear into my arms and tilted his chin up high. “No need to thank me,” he said.

            I just stared at him. Really Marshall… I wasn’t planning to. Seriously.

            Shaking my head, I moved toward the cashier to pay when Marshall pulled me to another section of the store. Build-a-Bear Palace had a bunch of clothes and accessories for the stuff animals in a long aisle; they were tiny pieces of clothing snitched together being sold at prices comparable to normal human clothes. I can’t fathom how anyone can get tricked into buying them especially since it wasn’t like the toys needed clothes, but need I seriously make another point about how Marshall runs on another brain wave?

            He spent at least fifteen minutes going through all their stuff, putting various items on the bear to check it out before finally settling on a red basketball jersey and white, star-framed sunglasses. Each piece was worth ten bucks and with the tax and everything included when we rang it up at the till, the total came to about fifty dollars – a whole smoking lot for something I didn’t even want in the first place. Regardless, I still slipped my fingers into my bra and took out my debit card, but Marshall was quicker, and passed the cashier three twenty-dollar bills before I had the proper chance to pay.

            I couldn’t help but glance at his wallet while he was waiting for his change, and narrowed my eyes when I saw how much money he had inside. During the last decade, our society had changed to the point where it was normal for people not to have a single paper bill inside their wallets, but Marshall had plenty. There must have been at least a bazillion twenty-dollar bills in there, though I could have highly exaggerated the amount.

            Marshall on the other hand took a high interest in my boobs. “Is that… where you keep your money?” He asked, cocking one eyebrow at me playfully.

            I slipped my debit card back in my bra since he had already paid and shrugged at his remark. “I wore a skirt today,” I said. “I don’t have any pockets. Besides, it’s a pretty convenient place.”

            He smirked. “I’m sure it is,” he said.

            After we got out of the shop, we went back up to the movie theatre since the movie was going to start in a little while and Marshall wanted good seats. We were amongst the first ones there, though the theatre never really did fill up in the end, and sat in the order of Marshall, me, and then the bear. Marshall had gotten a crap load of snacks before coming in and was trying to juggle his food without spilling his pop as he sat down. He offered me some, but I didn’t want anything to do with all of that fattening junk so I declined.

            “Not to be rude of anything,” he muttered during the previews. “I know it’s obvious that performers have to keep a certain figure, but your mom… you’re not anything like that are you?”

            I shook my head. “No, I just eat a very complex mix of vegetables and bran. Though, my mom relapsed back and forth before she fell pregnant with me, and even during her pregnancy, she really struggled with her problem.” I shrugged. “Anyways, maybe it was that, maybe it was the genetics, but I wasn’t born with too much of an appetite. It’s not that I starve, but sometimes I just don’t feel like eating and can’t find the strength to force myself to. Sometimes, I just outright forget because I don’t get that hungry feeling normal people get.”

            “Well, that’s a problem.” Marshall grabbed a handful of buttery popcorn before shoving it into his face. He better not try to hold my hand later because I had the faintest idea I wouldn’t enjoy it very much. “I know! Since you forget to eat sometimes, I’ll remind you. I’ll call you or text you. Everyday.”

            “No thanks,” I said. “I would just find that annoying.”

            “It wasn’t a question Cam-Cam,” he laughed. “It’s a free service.”

            I rolled my eyes, but when the movie came on, I shifted my attention away from him. Marshall had picked out a horror movie much to my dismay. It was my least favourite genre, but I gathered he chose it because it was the most classic type of setting for someone’s heart to race, so I sat through it patiently with Marshall screaming beside me every once in a while. Holding his buttery hands might have been a thousand times better than Marshall clinging onto me, burying his head into my shoulder during all of the scary parts.  

            “You’re such a baby,” I muttered.

            “It’s… It’s not that I’m scared,” he stuttered, his arms holding me tighter. “It’s just that I’m uh… protecting you.”

            “Right,” I laughed. “Because that’s totally believable.”

            After the movie, it felt like Marshall was on the verge of fainting. His face had turned blue and he kept looking over his shoulder like he was worried something would jump out and eat him. Only when we exited the mall and walked all the way back to where I had parked my car at the café’s parking lot did the color return to his face. “Do you need a ride back to your place?” I asked while I fumbled through my car compartment to find my wallet. Once I found the darn thing, I got back out and saw Marshall pointing one thumb back at the café.

            “It’s fine. I’m waiting for Jere-Bear’s shift to end so it’s goodbye here.”

            I nodded and opened up my wallet to pay him as planned. “So how much do I owe you for today?” If we started counting from when we left the café until now, it would be about three hours. That’s sixty bucks. Plus the teddy bear, which was about fifty, plus the movie, which was about twenty, the grand total was: “A hundred and…”

            “Just sixty bucks is fine,” he interrupted, waving his palm out to accept his money. “Our deal was that you paid me for my time right?”

            “Yeah, but you wouldn’t have had to spend all that other money if– ”

            “It’s fine,” he said again and snipped sixty dollars out of my hands before I had further opportunity to dispute. “You might not know Camila, but most guys are actually quite happy to pay for the first date. It’s not really morale or because we were brought up like that, but because the girl we’re with is worth it. It’s as simple as that.” He smiled. “Anyways, I’ll see you at school tomorrow. Make sure you eat dinner when you get home.”

            With that, I watched him disappear back inside the dimly lit coffee shop, wondering if he realized he lost ten bucks today even after he added the sixty dollars I just gave him. I laughed, and then pulled the car out of the parking lot before heading home. He probably didn’t.

            I hadn’t forgotten that Monday at lunch was Todd’s class’s fundraiser. Not that he allowed me to forget with the constant text messages here and there so it was inevitable that I’d go. I didn’t see Marshall all day either, but he did keep his word about reminding me to eat so I was chewing a sandwich as I made my way out to the soccer field where they were holding the event.

            It was as if a festival had broken out on our school’s back lawn and at once I realized why the hallways were nearly empty today. Hundreds of students, mostly girls, but also a lot of guys, were swarming through the field and lining up for kisses. There were at least three booths that had massive waiting lines, and several others with some pretty impressive results as well. Some of them of course, barely had anyone lining up, but one in particular was completely empty. From up on the hillside looking down on the field, it was almost like that booth had been quarantined and figuring that that booth must belong to Todd, I dragged my feet lazily over.

            I just hoped he wouldn’t ask me to kiss him or offer to kiss me for free. Todd would never stop talking about it to me forever if I ended up being his first kiss. He was just that kind of person.

            On my way over, I bumped into Marriah when I passed one of the longer lines. She must have been taking photos for the school newspaper so I stopped to watch before she noticed me and walked over. “There’s a girl that’s a model in the wimpy kid’s class,” she explained after a bit of chitchat, obviously referring to Todd. “That’s why a lot of guys are taking advantage of this event. They’ll probably rake in a good amount with this.”

            I shrugged, not all that interested and then raised an eyebrow when I reached Todd’s homemade booth. The moment he saw me, Todd’s face lit up and he waved at me like he hadn’t seen me for ages. “Camila!” He shouted. “You came!”

            “I did,” I grumbled, forcing a weak smile. “How’s business so far?” He didn’t even have to tell me; just one look at the empty glass jar on the counter and I already knew.

            “It’s been… slow,” he admitted, “but nevermind that. You’re here now!”

            “Not like it makes a difference,” Marriah interrupted with a groan.

            Narrowing his eyes, Todd frowned when he saw her. It was like a clash of cultures whenever the two of them met. They always ended up bickering somehow like the Goth had to fight for her territory and the robot geek, his. “What are you doing here?” He muttered.

            “Feeling sympathy for you. It’s the least I could do.”

            Immediately, Todd’s cheeks coloured in embarrassment. “Well, you don’t have to come all the way over here to pity me,” he snapped. “So I’ve never kissed anyone before. I bet you haven’t had your first kiss either!”

            Marriah shrugged like she really couldn’t care less, and then chucked two bucks into Todd’s empty jar. “There,” she said, “now it’ll look like someone actually came by.”

            I laughed, knowing fully that she meant well even if Todd took it the opposite way, and then turned around when a shadow covered me. There stood, probably the third most annoying teacher in school besides Diana and Buckerfield, Mr. Wicker. I had him for P.E during my second year and I don’t ever want to live through that again. The man was so enthusiastic… for everything.

            “WELL NOW,” he laughed, his voice booming through the surroundings and shattering my eardrums. “THAT’S NOT THE WAY TO GO ABOUT THINGS. TODD, YOU GOTTA GIVE THE GIRL WHAT SHE PAID FOR. NO SCAMMING YOUR COSTUMERS.”

            “I’m not,” Todd huffed, crossing his arms in front of him. “It’s not my problem that she put in two dollars. No refunds.”

            “WELL THEN AT LEAST GIVE HER A BIG SMOOCH ON THE LIPS,” he whispered furtively. “SHE PAID YOU, DIDN’T SHE? YOU GOTTA DELIVER THEN!”

            “What?!” Todd’s freckles quickly faded behind a tomato red face, but Marriah stood quite calmly with Wicker standing over her. “Ki- Ki- Kiss Marriah!”

            “COME ON,” he laughed. “GO GET HER TIGER! ROAR!!! KISS THE GIRL! KISS THE GIRL!! KISS THE GIRL!!!”

            Obviously, it didn’t take long before a crowd gathered around Todd’s booth, and some idiots with nothing better to do even joined Wicker’s chanting. I grimaced, thinking how senseless the whole thing was, but perhaps the most surprising part was when Marriah stood up to stop the scene. “Men are such asinine creatures,” she muttered and then stomped up to Todd looking more determined and serious than I’d ever seen her. “Come,” she bellowed. “Let us share the kiss of death you vile creature!” And then with both hands, Marriah grabbed Todd’s face and smashed her lips against his.

            I think I might have puked a little, but I wasn’t sure. Either way, I faded into the crowd during the big commotion just in case Wicker had plans for me to be next. “You should be happy now Todd,” I said to the wind when I was far away and safe. “You’ve finally had your first kiss. I’m proud of you.”  

            Deciding that I no longer had anything to do with the incident, I shifted back into the school while I finished up the rest of my sandwich. All the while I felt like someone was watching me, but my stalkers didn’t appear until I finished washing my hands in the washroom sink. It was Brooklynn and her pack of clowns, though I suspected as much, and didn’t really bother with too much fake astonishment. “How’s your nose?” I asked, smirking over at her.

            Brooklynn twisted a strand of blonde hair with her fingertips and smiled politely at me. “It’s fine thank you,” she said, and then nodded for her clowns to get to work. Sienna proudly led them inside the washroom, knocking barbarically on the bathroom stalls and yelling curses at everyone until every girl was out of the washroom besides me.

            It was so cliché I actually rolled my eyes and laughed. “Oh no,” I cried. “You’ve got me cornered now. What should I do?” And they did. They had me standing inside the washroom while Brooklynn and her army stood by the door – the only exit out of the place. “You realize you’d still be the one with the handicap even if you charged at me together.”

            Brooklynn smiled. “Don’t get cocky Camila just because you took a couple of self-defence lessons. I’m not unrealistic. I never thought that my girls could hurt you.” Tilting her head, she signalled all her followers to leave and in their stead, five guys that looked much too old to still be in high school made their way in: one tall, one fat and a couple of average looking ones. I clenched my fists when I saw them. I had beaten up tons of jocks at school before when their egos got too big, but there was a difference between fighting a bunch of guys who only had raw strength, and a bunch of guys who had experience fighting, and one look, I could tell these guys were the latter. Their looks weren’t so threatening, but my intuition was what got my heart trembling.

            “How did you sneak these chumps in?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at Brooklynn as the men moved in front of her. “Kind of dramatic for one punch in the face isn’t it?”

            “Then suspending you would have been enough,” she replied. “But do you know why I went through all that trouble to lift the suspension? Because I had to see you today. And do you know why?” Grudgingly, she took out her phone before showing me the picture on it. “Because of this.”

            I sucked in a small breath when I saw it. I had no idea who had taken it and how Brooklynn had gotten a hold of it, but it was a picture of Tyler and me from Friday. It was right at the part where he found me, and even though I knew it was only because he had pulled me so roughly I fell into him, the picture made it look like we were hugging. As vicious as Brooklynn was underneath that false façade she wore, I knew straight away she would never let it go.

            “After everything that happened to you three years ago, you’re still seeing him on the sly Camila?! How stupid can you be?” Fuming, she stomped toward me. “Haven’t I made it clear enough to you before? Tyler is mine.”

            “His body is yours,” I corrected, turning my head to watch her reflection in the mirror rather than in front of me. “His life is yours. His soul is yours. But his heart… Even if there comes a day when he doesn’t remember me anymore, even if there comes a day when it doesn’t belong to me anymore…” I stared Brooklynn straight in the eyes. “His heart will never be yours.”

            With one swing, Brooklynn’s palm slapped me across my cheek, but it hardly hurt compared to the pain she must have felt inside her chest. I knew, because her obsession with Tyler wasn’t as simple as liking or loving. It was a lot more complicated than that and there was a reason she could never let him go. I stood stiffly as Brooklynn retreated behind her wall of weird guys. “Grab her.”

            Despite letting Brooklynn slap me across the face, I had no intentions of being restrained by five twenty-year old guys I had never seen before. Who knew what they planned to do with me after my capture so I quickly swung my fists at the first guy that leaped towards me. It hit him straight in the nose and I smirked when I felt the warm gushes of blood streaming onto my knuckles. I took out the next guy equally as fast before I felt a cold blade against my cheek. My body hesitated and that was all it took for a fist to dig deep into my stomach.

            I gagged and hurled out a stream of sour retch from the blow. One punch, but the pain was so intense that it was crippling. The sting from my stomach made it painful to breathe. My head felt dizzy and they managed to pull my arms and restrain me in a matter of seconds. The blade left my face, but something else hit the back of my knees and I fell down on them. The same thing came down on me again, on my back, and I clenched my teeth and tried my best not to scream.

            It was okay. It didn’t hurt that much. Don’t cry. Don’t scream. It’ll be okay.

            Even if nobody comes to get me, I’ll be okay. I squeezed my eyes closed.

            When the next blow hits my body, it was right against the side of my head and I felt my ears ring before the trickle of blood slides down my cheek. My body felt limp and the hazy sound of Brooklynn’s voice echoed in the room. “Don’t you……Paid you to……Lesson……Not kill her……My way……”

            My mind went peaceful for a moment before cold water hit my body and jolted me awake. When I opened my eyes, a mix of confusion and pain overwhelmed me as I stared into a pair of brown eyes. They were scared, unsteady things, and it took me a lot of effort to recognize that they belonged to Sienna, or the fact that she was standing over me with a small bucket. “Brook… Brooklynn,” she murmured nervously. “Is she… Is she going to be okay?”

            “She’ll be fine.” I heard the voice, but couldn’t see the person. “Those idiots hit her in the head; that’s the only reason she lost consciousness. Is she awake now?”

            “Y- yeah. I think so.”

            “Then let’s go. Lunch is almost over. It’s going to start looking suspicious with a bunch of senior girls guarding the bathroom door outside.” I heard the door open and then close, but Brooklynn stayed behind just long enough to drive her point in. “You’re not strong Camila. I can crush you anytime I want. The only reason I haven’t bothered for the last three years is because you stayed away from Tyler.”

            I didn’t know where the five guys from before were now, but even if they weren’t here, my bones laid in a pile on the bathroom floor. I wanted to say something nasty. Something so hurtful that it’ll make Brooklynn come back and kick me in the face, but I didn’t have a single crumb of strength inside of me. “Like I said, I’m not unrealistic,” she said. “I know where his heart is Camila, but if I can’t be happy, then all three of us won’t be. This was just a warning. I can be a lot crueller next time.”

            I wasn’t sure how long I laid there after Brooklynn left. The bell rang a few minutes after, and a flood of girls walked inside the washroom, but left as soon as they saw me on the floor. Nobody bothered to say anything fully knowing who I was and that nothing came out of helping someone like me. I stayed quiet and waited another ten minutes until most of the students should have gone to class, and then tried to get up. Having regained some strength, I managed to get up and stagger out of the washroom.

            The hallways were mostly empty like I’d thought, but there were still drifters who hadn’t made it to class or had thoughts of skipping. I leaned against the lockers and slowly made my way through, step by step, leaving a small damp trail behind me.

            “Ca- Camila?”

            I looked up when I heard my name, but didn’t pay too much attention to him as I pressed on. I just wanted to go home. It would be nice if he just stayed out of my way. Luckily, despite how alarmed he looked when he saw me, Jeremy was clueless with what to do. He didn’t say anything more to me when I didn’t respond, but followed me a bit before I felt his presence disappear.

            I couldn’t remember clearly how that saying went, about not being able to find something when you want it, only for it to appear once you’ve forgotten. Either way, it was the same with people. I just wanted to vanish, but people I didn’t want to see kept appearing, each one more annoying than the last. I didn’t even stop to look at this one. Tyler’s voice hollered down from the end of the hallway and when I ignored it, I heard him slam his locker close. 

            I picked up my pace despite the pain from my legs. The last person I wanted to see right now was Tyler and I couldn’t afford for him to see me in this state. A flash flew pass me and when I looked up, I found Tyler standing in front of me with such a dangerous look it caught my breath. His face was dark and his eyes trembled when he reached out to touch a strand of my wet hair. Just before he reached me, he clenched his fist and smashed it so hard against the locker door that it left a small dent when his hand backed away. “Who did this?” He whispered. “Who hurt you?” I stared at him blankly, and when he realized there was only one person who would go through the trouble to do this, his face darkened even more. “Where is she?” He hissed. “Where is Brooklynn?”

            Tyler didn’t stay long enough to hear my answer and immediately stormed off like a tornado about to rip everything in its path to shreds. I pressed on, but only when I reached my car and realized that I neither had my keys nor was in the proper condition to drive did I collapse on the ground. I didn’t deserve this. Any of this. All I ever did was try my best at everything. All people ever did was hurt me in the end. I learned to protect myself. I shut people out. I learned not to trust them. I learned not to get too close so it wouldn’t hurt when they turned their backs on me. I took self-defence. But it hadn’t worked. I was just as weak and helpless as I always was. Nothing’s changed. What does the world want from me? What does it want me to do?!

            “Camila!”

            “Camila! Are you sure she came out this way Jere?”

            “Yeah! I swore she was heading this way. I’ll check over there.”

            “I’ll check the parking lot then. Call me if you find her. Camila!” When I heard the voices, I scurried in between the crack between my car and somebody else’s so Marshall wouldn’t find me. I didn’t want to see him either and quickly turned my back to face the rest of the parking lot. “Camila! Where are you?! Camila! Cami– ” His voice stopped right behind me and I held my breath. “Is that you? Camila? Hey... You okay?”

            I felt his hand touch my shoulder gently, but shook it off without having to turn around and look at him. “Just leave. Don’t bother me today.”

            “What are you talking about? Jeremy said you were hurt. Get out of there and let me see you.”

            “Leave,” I hissed.

            “Camila, I’m not leaving. I’m– ”

            “Which part don’t you get!” I shouted. “I’m crying okay! I’m crying! Because as much as I want to be a robot, I’m not one! I do feel! I do hurt! I do cry! And the last thing I need right now is for you to stand there and watch me! So just leave!” The sobs became uncontrollable after that, and I didn’t even feel like it was me – like I wasn’t inside of my body, but standing outside, watching myself cry, curled up in a ball with tears streaming down my face. “Just leave me alone okay? Let me do this in peace.”

            “I can’t just… leave you,” Marshall murmured. “Not when you’re like this.”

            “Trust me, it’s not that hard. Just turn your back and walk Marshall. People do it all the time. I’ll be fine the next time you see me so just turn around and pretend like you didn’t run into me today. Forget this whole thing ever happened.”

            Marshall stayed quiet for a long time before he finally sighed and agreed. “Fine,” he said. “You pay me Camila. I’m just the employee. I have no right to go against my boss’ words so we’ll do it your way. I’ll pretend. I’ll forget.”

            Biting my lips, I wiped the back of my hand against my cheeks. I nodded and waited for the sound of his footsteps to fade, but instead, they moved toward me and in one moment, his hands grabbed me and pulled me up on my feet. I didn’t even get to see his face. The moment I got up, Marshall pulled me into his arms and the touch of his strong chest pushed against my face. “I won’t look at you so if you want to cry Camila, just cry,” he said. “Everybody has their own story, their own obstacles to climb through. One of these days, even though it may not look like it, you’ll be able to look back at this day and realize it’s made you stronger, but until then, it’s okay for you to be weak. It’s not something to be ashamed of.” Holding me tighter, Marshall placed a kiss right at the top of my head. “So just cry. Let it out, but let me be here for you. Let me give you a hand when you can’t stand on your own. And at the end of the night, when I close my eyes and go to sleep, I’ll forget everything that happened today. I promise.”