Survival Of The Fittest

Sarah wiped little bits of Reiko's answer from her cheek. The second response went rather better for her, and she just listened as Reiko explained. The situation for Paige was unfortunate, sure, but she could understand Reiko's exasperation. In the end she just held Reiko's hand, not sure what to say, or whether she should say something or just let there be quiet for a while. As much quiet as there could be with some popstar blaring across a room full with over a hundred students anyway.



Sarah was very glad when Reiko asked if she wanted to leave. She'd mainly come to prom so she could spend time with her and, well, hanging around seemed to be getting in the way of that. Between the music and random people coming up they didn't have much time to themselves. As if summoned by that thought, Tristan appeared out of nowhere and rattled off a barely audible apology before disappearing just as quickly. That seemed like a cue.

"Yeah, let's go. My house isn't far so..." She held up a biscuit that had hijacked her train of thought. "And we can have some non-sugaryish food."

When they stood up, Sarah did what she'd been wanting to for the past five minutes and tightly hugged Reiko. Even if she couldn't think of the right thing to say hugs always seemed to make things better. Releasing the by now probably suffocated Reiko she grabbed the last of the biscuits and turned the two of them to leave.


As soon as they were outside Sarah peeled away from Reiko and whipped out her mobile phone before dialling her home number. She whistled a few notes as the call connected, leaning forward with a hand over one ear as a voice came over the line. "... Dad? Hey, I think we'll walk, it's not too late and... yeah that's what I was thinking. Yep, we'll be fine. Bye! Love you!"

Hanging up the phone, She went back to Reiko's side and curled her arm around her girlfriend's. She guessed she could call Reiko that now. "So, uh... I think we're going this way." She nodded down the street in what she felt was the direction back home "Yep, definitely this way."

(Sarah Xu continued elsewhere)

Thankfully Sarah seemed to have the same idea as she had, and was more than happy to leave, and not a moment too soon. Paige's "date" as it were came up and apologized for her friend. Why he felt the need to do so was beyond her, but Reiko gave a half hearted smile as he went on his way. Hijacking one last brownie from their plate, the girl stood up.

Next thing she knew, she was engulfed by a pair of arms, looking at someone's shoulder. It took her a moment to register what exactly was happening, but when she did, she felt a wave of comfort wash over her body. Resting her head on Sarah's shoulder, she wrapped her arms around her torso, and let herself get lost in the moment. It was by far the best moment of the night, and Reiko was reluctant to let go. She eventually did however, and the two exited the building into the dim light of the almost set sun.

Sarah called her father, presumably to tell him they were on their away. As Sarah came back, she wrapped her arm around Reiko's, which made her face light right up. Their destination in mind, the two girls walked away from prom, arm in arm. There couldn't be a better moment in the small girl's life so far.

((Reiko Ishida continued elsewhere))

Carol had been happily dancing for the past few minutes, not paying attention to any of the events going around her. Although she was a social creature, right now she was off in her own little world of music and poor dancing.

After a while, though, she wandered to the snack table, and, after grabbing a can of Mountain Dew and opening it, she realized something.

Where is the rest of the group?

A surge of worry suddenly passed over her. Seriously, where did the rest of the stagettes go? You would think she could easily find them, since it was not that crowded. But, there was none of them in sight.

Did... did they take off without her? Even this early?

No. They couldn't have. They just got here. Then again, she did not know how much time had passed. Where were they, then? Bathroom? Well, they can't all be in the bathroom, unless, of course, they were out hanging out there like some kids do. But at prom?

Alright, Carol, stay calm. You will find the rest of the stagettes, if you just stay calm, she thought.

The girl raised the can to her lips and slurped.

Besides, MIB agents are supposed to be calm in times of crisis.

She felt kind of pathetic for thinking that, but it actually calmed her down a bit.

And besides, prom was about having fun. She should not have to worry too much, as it might ruin the experience. The rest of the group can't be too far off, and she could see them again later that evening once they got out of wherever they were hiding. And maybe she could find the rest of the Entourage. Well, actually not. Didn't Reiko have a date? Probably wasn't a good idea to interrupt.

Ah well. Hopefully things will work out.

((Carol Burke continued elsewhere))

Felicia could only giggle at what Rosa had set, yet... the very first response out of her had sent the butterflies up yet again. Her arm's resting place around Quincy's shoulders had more weight placed on it, as if she was now holding herself up. Prooooobably because she was, now, at least a little.

The more Rosa talked, the more it continued. It took Felicia a few moments each time the sensation renewed to figure out whether it was good or bad, but it seemed to be good, at least for the time being. Who cared about the inevitable fallout of what might happen? Being a teenager at prom, Felicia couldn't put two cents of stock into ten minutes into the future and see it being worth anything... maybe the whole 'high school experience' clouded you like that.

"Y-yeah, I see!" Felicia stammered, looking around. Smooooth, broadcast your weakness, Felicia! While you're at it, hon, offer her your jugular. Or your skirt. See which one gets you fu- STOP HOLDING INTERNAL MONOLOGUES, DAMN IT! "Ha... sorry, just a bit hungry, I think, been standing up too long..." Uh huh. That'll cover your as- I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO STOP!?

"So, um.... we're all hanging out now, huh?"

As Joshua continued to chat with Daniel, Marty J. Lovett decided he might as well drift off. After all, Daniel was more Josh's friend rather then his, and he didn't want to seem like he was intruding or something.

"Say Josh, uh, if you don't mind I'm gonna go get myself a snack or something." he said to his taller friend, temporarily drawing his attention from Daniel.
"Huh? Sure, go for it. Seeya laters man" He replied quickly before going back to chatting with Daniel.

"Seeyas..." And with that, Marty walked in the general direction of the food stand, intending to pick some sugary snack to feast upon. He arrived there quickly, picking up the first snack he saw without even thinking about it (Namely a rather large and delicious looking brownie). He leaned against the table with his left hand in his jacket pocket as he spent the next twenty or so minutes observing how the rest of the prom was going, occasionally pausing to take another munch out of the tasty chocolate treat. There where plenty of familiar faces arriving together, mostly as couples. There was Quincy Jones and Felicia Carmichael, Max Neill and Acacia Salinger, Eric Laurin and... Brendan Wallace? ...Huh. Never thought he swinged that way. Fair enough I s'ppose...

He took another bite out of his brownie, savouring it's taste. After a while, he noticed another student who'd immediately grabbed his attention, namely a certain Rosalina Fiametta.

He'd heard a great deal of rumours about her from Joshua. Most of which he suspected were complete bullshit. I mean, How COULD someone her age have had that much sex in such a short amount of time? With both genders too! It has to be bullshit, theres no way that'd be true... Although, the fact that she appeared to be taking particular interest in Felicia didn't help...

Meh. He thought to himself as he scoffed the rest of his brownie in one bite... An action he quickly regretted. He held on to his stomach tightly as he quickly began to feel giddy and sick, and all the other symptoms one has shortly before their about to vomit. Jesus Christ, I feel like I'm gonna up-chuck any friggin' second! Guess that's what I get for eating nothing but snacks all day... Sure enough, he could easily tell that unless he got to a bathroom quickly, he was going to vomit all over the dance floor. Now that WOULD suck, no doubt about it. Even though he cared little for his own reputation or respect, there was no way in hell he'd allow himself to vomit in front of the entire freakin' school!

With this in mind, he covered his mouth as he rushed quickly to the bathroom. Hopefully, he could make it there in time to vomit in one of the toilets rather then all over the floor.

Luckily for him, he just about made it before emptying the contents of his stomach into the nearest lavatory. Unluckily for him, it seemed he was sicker then he thought, and it looked as though he would be there for a while...

Fuck, I hope nobody records this and posts it on YouTube or something... My life sucks enough already without a video of me puking in the bathroom becoming some obscure internet meme.

((Marty J. Lovett continued in Closing Time))

"Why Chadd, don't you know me at all?" she smirked, teasing her boyfriend. "Steak over fish anyday."

Happily taking her meal from Chadd, she took her knife and fork from the side of her plate and stared down into the meat, concentrating on slicing it into bitesize pieces with the sharp blade and feeding it into her mouth, rather than striking up a conversation with the man sat across from her. She was pretty damn hungry after all.

It wasn't that she was trying to ignore Chadd Crossen, nor did she have any reason to ice him out. It was just Janet's way to focus on one thing at a time, and right now she was focused on filling her stomach with the juicy steak in front of her; first the steak, then the pasta, then the string beans last: have the best things first, and worry about the worst at the end.

It was the perfect metaphor for her evening.

Or at least, she wanted it to be.

Her eyes looking away from the plate as she chewed the juicy food in her mouth, Rizzo Vitoria cropped into her thoughts again. Why did she have to sleep with the guy? Why couldn't she have just passed out drunk on the couch like an average wasted chick, rather than getting tricked into sleeping with that little creep? It wasn't her fault, so what did she do to deserve all this crap?

"Chadd..." she mumbled through her full mouth, "I love you, you know." She did. She knew she did; no doubts there. She loved Chadd Crossen more than anything, and she didn't have any doubts that she did.

Rizzo Vitoria had got her at her weakest, that was all. That little fucker had just taken advantage of her, that was what happened. It was all his fault that all this was happening, so why the hell did she have to feel so guilty?! Why did she have to hide this dirty little secret between her and Chadd!?

Could she even keep it a secret that much longer?

"Chloe!" Erik half-disentangled himself from Brendan just long enough to swipe one long arm at the back of her dress, but the girl was already gone. He couldn't help but wonder suspiciously about what she meant by her last comment. She wasn't exactly the type to spike the punch, he doubted she'd tell Bobby (oh god, yes, Bobby would be here too but he would just deal with that when it came) about the crush, and unless she was planning on going home with...god, JJ or something, he didn't really see what there was to be mad about.

Which naturally meant she was planning something nefarious. He'd have to keep an eye on her.

Turning back to Brendan, he smiled as the smaller boy held him, hands on the back of his neck. His own hands went around Brendan's hips, fitting snugly over his suit. It was nice. It was - Erik had been with other guys, of course he had, this was nothing new (except this was prom and this was, hello, prom and this was their first date and it was prom) but it was. It was nice.

He let his smile relax from the broad grin it had been, and ducked his head a little, ponytail falling over his shoulder. "Can't say I've been, either," he muttered, catching his lower lip in his teeth for a moment. "Although I hear, you know, in passing rumor, that dancing is generally involved."

A beat, and the faintest blush already staining his cheeks which was absolutely not fair, because he hadn't even had a drink yet and he wasn't supposed to be like some ridiculous churchmouse on her first date.

"I don't, uh. I don't dance that well, but we can definitely give it a shot."

Quince found himself dumbstruck by what as going on around him. Why couldn't he seem to get any time alone with ‘Licia? No sooner had he escaped from Gloria than they were intruded upon once more. He'd hoped to get some more dancing in, but the night was young. At least the newcomer was decent eye candy. But what did he expect from Rosalia Fiametta.

She was hot. Really hot. She put Felicia in the shade, just by being there. But she'd always had that reputation that he'd been wary of. Hell, girl probably had moiré diseases than he could think of, if the stories were true. But seeing her here, dressed like that, part of him wanted her, badly. He figured every red blooded American male in the room felt the same. He stood there, mouth open, as she spoke to Felicia.

Felicia moved in closer to him and started leaning more of her weight on him as Rosa spoke. Was she scared of this girl? ‘Licia didn't take her eyes off Rosa for a moment, as though she was watching, waiting for her to pounce. Quincy held on to his girlfriend tighter; to show that he was there for her, ready to protect her.

The conversation was slow and dull. Awkward. And Felicia seemed content to let Rosa dominate it. Then, when she asked her question about them all hanging out, Quince felt moved to add his own 2 cents worth. He would have to ask Felicia what the situation was later, but for now, he would follow her lead. No matter how much he wanted to have her all to himself.

"Yeah, whatever, girl. It's all cool. You wanna hang, we can make a party of this. No problemo." He hoped that he kept the steel out of his voice as he tried to sound relaxed.

"Why Chadd, don't you know me at all? Steak over fish anyday."

"Oh, but of course! Just in the mood to give the illusion of choice." He chuckled, setting his own plate at his seat, following Janet's lead and chowing down. As much as he didn't want to admit it, being out on the dance floor for that long really had been one hell of a workout. He couldn't believe that she would still be going out there right now if it weren't for her stomach. He just couldn't keep up with her! Then again, being a cheerleader was all about being energetic. He smiled, taking a bite out of the fish. "Hey, the fish isn't bad! Still sure you don't want to switch?" He loved her, and he loved the way she reacted when he teased her. Sure he kinda wished for the Steak, but hey. He didn't really care that much. It all went the same way anyways. He did have to hand it to Bayview though, the caterers they hired for prom were a fuck-ton better than the standard fare for school functions. This was almost on the level of the Olive Garden... Not that that said much, but when you ate prison food from Aramark daily, this was a massive relief.

He hadn't even noticed her lack of speech. Call it being oblivious or whatever you want, but he was doing the exact same thing as her... Just a little less daintily. Okay, he would probably out eat the football team the way he was going right now. Seeing the buffet and smelling so many different foods had really kicked his appetite in the pants. Forkful after forkful of the fish made it's way to his mouth. It was almost comical, in a way.

"Chadd... I love you, you know." He glanced up from his food, swallowing quickly. That was... confusing to say the least. Of course he expected those three beautiful little words to pop up multiple times during the evening. But the way she had just said it, it almost seemed like she didn't know if he knew that she loved him! And by God, he knew. He leaned in, giving the illusion of closing the world between them. "Janet, I know... I've known since you first showed it. Since you wandered into my hospital room, I've known there was something between us. I love you too!" He smiled softly, a worried, yet happy smile. He leaned across the small table, kissing her on the cheek quickly. "Nothing's ever gonna change that. Nothing at all, I promise." He leaned back and put the last bite in his mouth. "Now tell me, what's wrong? I can tell something's up." He wasn't extremely concerned. It was probably something bugging her, nothing major. Well, major in the grand scheme of things. He would be more than happy to listen and comfort her, whatever was happening. And what better place to get her mind off of whatever was ailing her than inbetween sessions of dancing?

((Chadd Crossen continued in Closing Time.))

Oh yeah, she was definitely on the mark. For somebody as well versed in this kind of dance as Rosa, Felicia might as well have been screaming that she was being affected through a megaphone. The flustered way in which she was acting was very much reminiscent of that first day the two of them had properly spoken to one another. Yep, Felicia was hooked, now it was just down to Rosa to start reeling her in... Had to be fairly subtle about it though, didn't want Jones catching on, not until it was already in the bag, when he wouldn't be able to do a thing.

As for the aforementioned... he seemed pretty cool about things, which was just great. The later his suspicions were raised, the more opportunity Rosa was going to have to pull this off. As a bonus, he was okay with Rosa joining their 'group' for the time being, which would give her plenty of time to work her... well, Rosa hesitated to call it magic, but she could settle on 'charms'.

"Well, you know me Quincy, I'm all for having fun. Partying, that is," the ammendum came rapidly, but as she said the second part of the statement, Rosa had looked towards Felicia - just a quick glance, a characteristically mischievious gleam in her eyes.

Catch that one? Sure hope you did. Come on little fishy... let me pry you away from him...

((Certain actions done with permission))

Felicia played along with all of this for now, but maybe things were flying by a little TOO quickly. She hadn't had a good talk with Rosa since the beginning of the year. Yeah, they met in the hall and may have had one class together, but you could hardly expect to get much out of that. Everything in the hall was fleeting, just a blur as the herd of children pushed along one side of the hallway, another current pushing in the opposite direction along the opposite side. It wasn't like they sat next to each other in class, either, so that was no good...

Yet, now that they had an opportunity to really hang out like that day in the cafeteria, Felicia felt just as strange as the first time they met. She almost forgot what it felt like to be rendered into a state of complete awkwardness, especially when Quincy asked her out. At that point in time, it was him that was being rendered speechless, and she played it out to be cool. Quincy was a good... no, he was a great guy, Felicia loved hanging out with him. But... was there something here that she just wasn't getting?

Her frustrations never outwardly manifested, at least not yet. If anything, Felicia wanted to spend this night the way she intended it to go, dancing, partying, being an obnoxiously outgoing teenager, basically living it up. Tingly feelings in her body be damned, nothing was going to stop her. Unless maybe her bladder, since she kind of had to go, and it was a better idea to take care of that before...

That's it...

"Be right back, heading to the bathroom!" Felicia blurted. "Come on Rosa!" She said just as suddenly and, surprisingly brazen even for her, grabbed a hold of the other girl's arm. "Be right back, Quince!" Felicia called to Jones, Quincy Jones (Felicia couldn't help but think of him like that when he wore a tuxedo) as the two of them headed for the bathrooms.

Once they had gotten just inside the ladie's room, Felicia stopped, waited for the door to shut, and checked all the stalls to ensure they were just as empty before turning to Rosa. "What are you doing?" She said in a confused hushed tone... but mostly confused. Oh, how very, utterly, deliciously confused she was right now.

"You know, we should probably stop. Our acting skills are so good we might convince a teacher who might then go on throw us out...That would be a good story though..."

"I'm not sure that'd be the best thing to happen to me tonight," Max said, straightening up and kicking the boozehound routine to the curb. "But then again, I'm not sure that the best thing to happen to me tonight is something that's not happened yet." He smiled - too lecherous? too cheesy? - and glanced around at the dance floor. They seemed to have spent an awfully long time messing around like drunkards, Max thought to himself as he looked around. The prom was moving at a breakneck pace - for all intents and purposes, a success -and it was getting harder and harder to keep up with it - the DJ, the dancefloor, hell, even the dishes of food were going at light-speed in comparison.

Max batted away a loose strand of hair and pulled up his cuffs. "You know, I think drunk people do a lot of dancing. Not saying we're drunk, but am saying drunk that...hell, you know what I mean." He untangled his tongue, managing a facial expression that was halfway between a grin and an epileptic fit in the process. Realising how stupid he must have looked, he raised his arm as though the disco lights were frying his skin, and then recomposed himself in an over-exaggerated fashion. "Might as well go all out, eh?"

The music began to slow down - perfect. Trying his goshdarndest to be gentlemanly, Max bowed slightly and extended his hand to Acacia. Then he asked, in a perfectly plummy British accent, "May I?"

God, did the music have to so loud and her so fast? Now Paige didn't know what Reiko or anyone thought she said, but it wasn't what she knew would spring to their minds. So when Reiko shot her down, she felt as though someone tried to undo knots tied in her stomach. Badly. Begrudgingly, she shuffled back to Tristan, who tried to apologize for what she was going through.
Look, just shut up okay? I don't need you to explain my actions. I've known these guys for years, so you don't act like they're your best friends, capiche?

So then the twerp asked her to dance. Begrudgingly, she held out her hand. Might as well make it official. She was in hell.

As they headed towards the dance floor, the little voice in her head started to spark her brain again.
Might as well converse. God, I hate words like that. Converse. Blah!
"So, Tristan-" started Paige, and although the music hid her tone, there was much toxicity in her voice, "-you're in the Student Council, right?"

*

It just felt...right, to be holding Erik at that moment. It was probably just a spur of the moment sort of thing, but he felt like he could do nothing wrong. A few years ago, did the young, sexually confused teenage boy ever dream he would get this far in life?

"Can't say I've been, either, although I hear, you know, in passing rumor, that dancing is generally involved."
Brendan smiled. All the best ones had a great sense of humour, right?
"I suppose it's possible," Brendan replied slyly.

Brendan saw Erik start to blush. That was a welcome change in roles. He made him blush.
You feel like you're on top of the world, don't you? Well, remember, don't screw it up.

"I don't, uh. I don't dance that well, but we can definitely give it a shot."
Still smiling, and not giving a damn that he had two thousand left feet, he got himself off Erik.
"Well, I'm no master of the Melbourne shuffle or anything, but we could most definitely try. Shall we?"


*

It just so happened that Clio Gabriella was exceptionally quiet that night. Her friends all happened to miss out on tickets, so she was alone. Well, not really alone. She had Simon.
He was nice.

Her night went on without a hitch, and she was glad. Drama was not her thing anymore, so when she left, with Simon driving her home she was content.

Her parents would be all over her about that night, so she prepared for the inevitable as the night whittled by...

((Clio Gabriella's prom exeunt))

Quince was confused. He knew that something was going on, but he just couldn't figure out what. Normally, that wouldn't bother him, but now, he felt like he should be doing something, to really understand the situation. It was a mark of just how strongly he felt for Felicia. But at the same time, he knew that he was missing something, and it frustrated him.

He was certain that Rosa had the upper hand here, that much was clear. 'Licia was collapsing under a barrage that he couldn't see. And as much as he wanted to leap in and defend her, all that he would be able to do was punch Rosa out. Clearly not a sensible option under the circumstances.

In a flash, the girls ran off, with Felicia taking the lead. Quince stood there for a moment, glass of punch in his hand, looking dazed. What had just happened. If Felicia was scared of Rosa, why run off with her? He felt that she wanted rid of him for the moment, if only to sort things out. It had been a while since he'd felt this useless. It wasn't a nice feeling. He retreated to the wall near the punch bowl, watching the prom, hoping that the girls would return soon and he could find out what the story was behind it all.

*********************************************************************

((Bobby Barron cont'd from Every Girl's Dream))

Bobby swept into the hall, Rachel on his arm. He was truly resplendent, in his element. He surveyed the hall. Most of his classmates were here now. Perfect. Not only were they fashionably late, but they'd be able to get a massive audience. Here he truly was one of the beautiful people.

Having gone through the preliminaries of the entrance, the signing in, the photograph, etc, he was really prepared to enjoy himself. He turned to Rachel, flashed his smile at her and said, half jokingly; "It's official. You are the most gorgeous girl here tonight." He'd surrendered to the fact that he was going to be cliche for most of the evening, and was beginning to enjoy it. All just another act, but one he could relax into. It wasn't staged, it was politics. He was there to promote Rachel. And he would do that to the best of his ability.

Scanning the floor, he saw several people he considered friends. And then he stopped. He was almost floored by what he saw. Out on the dance floor, Erik was there. He was even hotter than Bobby could have pictured. And he was dancing. Not, as he would have expected with Chloe, but with a guy. From where he stood, Bobby couldn't quite make out who it was, but the suspect list was small. His throat dried. He turned to Rachel and coughed. "I'm going to grab a drink. Would you care for something?"

A small smile grew on Janet's face as Chadd closed in, speaking those romantic words and giving her a loving kiss on the cheek. Although she was still horribly worried about her secret, hearing his speech made her heart feel just a little bit lighter, if only for a second.

However, she still couldn't be completely calmed by his words. After all, would he still think the same way if he knew the truth that was rapidly growing inside her like a cancer, becoming more and more difficult to contain with each passing moment?

It was inevitable that he would ask what was wrong, but the question was no more welcome for it; she obviously couldn't just outright say te answer, especially given that it was the prom night: the magical evening of their lives. She may have been led astray by that ratty bastard, but that didn't mean that Chadd's perfect night had to be ruined by him too. No, for now she'd just have to continue bottling up her feelings; there would be other times to talk.

"Don't worry about it Chadd, it's nothing important." she lied, shutting her eyes to avoid looking right as his face as she did so, whilst passing it off with a cheesy grin. "Let's enjoy this food. Steak's great here, what about your's?" she continued, hoping to swerve away from the topic. For now, she'd just have to pretend to be happy enough to keep Chadd happy. She could pull that off for one night, no problems. For the rest of their meal, at least, she would be able to keep up this charade. As the night wore on, she kept her hollow smile aimed at his face, trying to put the terrible truth out of her mind for as long as she could.

For Chadd's sake, Janet would keep lying as long as she could; whatever it took to keep him happy.

((Janet Claymont continued in Closing Time))