“Yeah, yeah I’m coming just hold your horses will ya.”
“Are you gonna get that door or am I gonna have to do it?”
“Well, if you’d get off your lazy ass for a change, then you could.”
“I would but you’re already at the door so be my guest.”
“I swear if you weren’t my best friend, I’d hit you.”
“Holly, don’t be such a bitch. Just answer the door.”
She rolled her eyes at her cohort laying on the couch, flipping through the latest fashion magazine and wondered why they hadn’t killed each other before now.
“Um, Hol, are you gonna get that?” Brooke urged on with her freshly manicured hands, waving them towards the door.
Holly spoke something under her breath before plastering on a fake smile and opening the door - only to have that smile leave as quickly as it had come.
There in the doorway stood both Viera and JC, hands held tightly together, forming a bond that Holly knew would be her and Brooke’s downfall. “Um…Viera…JC…what…what brings you here?” She asked, trying to sound happy but failing miserably.
Brooke threw the magazine down on the floor the instant she heard the two names and rushed to the door. “Hey…hey guys, long time, huh?” She stuttered out, noticing the way the pair just stared them both down.
“I think you know why we’re here so let’s get this over with. I have an appointment with the police in an hour.” Viera said as she pushed the two girls back and drug JC inside with her.
Holly gave Brooke a worried look before shutting the door and turning to speak to them again. “V, what do you mean you have an appointment with the police? Something wrong?” She asked, knowing full well what was going on but trying to play dumb.
Viera wasn’t buying it for a second. “Cut the crap Holly…and you two Brooke. I’m sure she told you about me running out last night, huh Brooke?” She asked, standing straight and looking her in the eyes. She held tighter to JC’s hand, needing it for balance.
Brooke looked over at Holly and merely chuckled. “Yeah I guess she did. What happened to you?”
Viera got an evil grin to her face and simple remarked. “Let’s just say that I’m finally putting the puzzle together and just needed a few more pieces before it’ll be complete.”
“You…you remember?” Holly asked, coming around the back of them and standing with her hands on her hips. Viera nodded in agreement to her question. “So you know about the wreck?” Again Viera nodded. “Then you remember that it was YOUR fault Shelly died, right?”
This time Viera wasn’t going to be silent. She let go of JC’s hand, giving him a look that said she would be okay, then approached the worried girl in front of her. “Actually, I remember you informing my sister that her boyfriend was cheating on her with me. That’s how the argument started that led to the wreck. So if that’s what you mean by me knowing it was MY fault, then YES, I remember that.” She said, speaking right to her face now.
Holly was going to say something else but Viera interrupted. “Or could it be that when I grabbed the wheel of the car to get Shelly to pull over, she lost control and drove into the wrong lane, only to hit JC’s car and then slam into a tree, killing her almost immediately - YES I remember that.”
Brooke was trying to step in but JC held her off. “Or maybe it was the fact that JC had been drinking, not looking where he was going and never really hit us because WE hit him and then spun out of control - YES I remember that. Which leads me to ask you a question Holly.” She began and got so close to her face that Viera could feel the sweat off Holly’s brow on her own.
“Why would you try to blackmail JC into this sick game when he wasn’t to blame for any of this? Oh, you made it seem that he was at fault, knowing full well that I was to blame but allowing him to think otherwise just so you and Brooke could get a good laugh in. Was that it? Did you enjoy seeing him squirm? Did you like destroying more lives than had already been destroyed?”
Holly was terrified at that moment. She didn’t really know Viera all that well, only meeting her a few times with Shelly but had heard enough about her to think that she was harmless. That was NOTHING compared to the anger she saw in Viera’s eyes and the heavy breath she felt on her face. This woman wasn’t to be messed with and she wondered how her and Brooke were going to get out of this one.
Brooke had an idea.
She jerked her arm away from JC and scurried over to yank Viera back from Holly’s face. She spun her around and began to speak her mind. “How dare you come here and get mad at us. YOU KILLED YOUR SISTER! You did it, not Holly, not me, and yes - not even JC. You did this and we wanted to see you suffer for it. We knew that the judge wouldn’t convict you on anything other than a misdemeanor at best so we lied to the police, so what. We knew that JC would go along with it because he had fled the scene. What idiot leaves a crash scene…nevermind, I know of one.” She said as her eyes looked over at JC standing there livid at what he was hearing but kept his mouth shut. This was Viera’s battle to fight, he would be there for backup but she HAD to do this on her own.
Viera stepped closer to Brooke and assumed the same position as she had had with Holly. “Don’t even bring JC in on this one. What he did was wrong, he and I both know it and will deal with it on our own but as for the two of you - I wonder if there isn’t a more devilish pair in all the world.” She commented as she stepped back and crossed her arms over her chest to ponder her next question.
“I wonder something…when I came home from the hospital, why were all of Shelly’s things gone?”
Brooke, the mentally stronger of the two, got a confident grin to her face before sweetly telling her. “Oh that, well, you see…your parents were devastated to hear about Shelly’s death and, they weren’t too happy to find out that you caused the whole thing. See, your parents really do know the truth about the whole thing and decided that they didn’t want anything to do with you anymore so they came to Florida, packed Shelly’s things up and left you on your own. Such a shame too. A girl really needs family in her life to support her and help her through such a tragedy like this but I guess we all know now that YOU weren’t their favorite.”
Viera heard the vicious words and without thinking, leapt towards Brooke. JC saw it coming and got in between them to hold her off. “JC, let me go! She has no right saying that to me, now let me at her and I’ll let her know what a tragedy really is.” She yelled at him but he held her at bay.
“Viera, I can’t let you do that and you know it. You can’t do this to her. You’re better than she is…than they both are. Don’t stoop to their level. Please, sweetheart…don’t.” He told her, whispering in her ear, trying to give her the strength she needed to deal with the two of them.
“Well, now don’t you two make such a cute couple and who knew that we could bring them together.” Brooke commented while smiling brightly to Holly, who was still visibly shaken from having Viera in her face moments ago.
“Yeah…yeah they’re cute.” She replied, not knowing what Brooke was talking about but soon found out.
Brooke’s face turned to complete evil and she motioned with her head towards the table across the room. Holly looked curiously at her but got the message when she realized what was in the drawer. She mouthed the words ‘are you sure’ and when Brooke nodded slowly, Holly grew scared but went to the table anyway.
JC was busy calming Viera down and didn’t notice Holly’s departure. “Viera are you okay now?” He asked, looking into her eyes and seeing that she was better.
“Yeah, I’m fine. You can let me go.” She replied, giving him a slight smile and he obliged. She squeezed his arm once before replacing her view of him with that of Brooke. The fire began to boil inside her again but she willed it away. She had all the information she needed and was going to end this so she could go to the police station and confess.
While she faced Brooke and fought not to slap the smirk off her face, Holly returned from the table, carrying something behind her back. JC noticed this and spoke up first. “Holly what do you have there?”
She glanced at Brooke, who nodded her head excitedly, then slowly revealed the object she was carrying. Both JC and Viera gasped at the site and felt their hearts race. Holly raised the object shoulder level and pointed it right at the two of them.
Brooke though, spoke up to explain the situation. “Well, now that we have your attention I think we can talk a little more friendlier.”
“What’s going on?” Viera asked, trying to keep her teeth from chattering out of fear.
Brooke simply shrugged her shoulders. “You didn’t think that we’d let you two come here, yell at us then go off and confess to the police what you did, get away with it and live happily ever after. This isn’t some fairy tale or romance novel. This is real life and in life, well, there comes a point when…yours is up. It should have been you in that car wreck. Unfortunately Shelly paid the ultimate sacrifice but we plan on seeing that the two of you join her VERY soon.” She informed them, almost in a sinister hiss.
Viera tried to move but Holly motioned her to stay where she was. “I wouldn’t go anywhere if I were you. I don’t know how to use this thing and I might have to make several shots in order to get you down. Now that would hurt an awful lot if I didn’t hit your heart.” She said, pointing the object towards Viera’s chest.
She was the one visibly shaken now and didn’t know what to do. She clung to JC’s hand and said a silent prayer that they would make it out of there but fearing that they wouldn’t. “What do you want from us?” She asked, through a slight cloud of tears that were working their way down her face.
Brooke just laughed at her. “Now don’t go getting all emotional on us V. You’ll ruin your mascara and that won’t make a pretty picture on the cover of the paper tomorrow now would it?” She said as Holly merely agreed. “So you want to know what we want from the two of you?” They both shook their heads. “Well, its not that we really wanted JC to be here but I guess he just fell in love with the wrong girl on this one - but no, V it’s you that we want to punish. See you should have been the one to die in that wreck and not Shelly, so we’re gonna do what should have been done months ago and put you out of your misery.”
Holly pointed the object towards Viera and appeared ready to do the deed…when JC leapt in front of her.
All that could be heard over the sounds of the traffic below was that of a high-pitched scream and the sound of something hard hitting the floor. In the cloud of smoke that surrounded the room, Viera clung to the one person that had kept her safe yet again.
“JC…oh God, please no…open your eyes…please open your eyes…JC, do you hear me…honey please don’t leave me…you’re not suppose to leave me…I can’t lose you too…” Her pleas weren’t heard from the man lying on the soft carpet of Brooke’s living room. The large pool of blood that surrounded his body was a sure sign that he wouldn’t be answering her…ever again.
Viera didn’t notice Holly or Brooke’s presence but only put her attention on the man in her arms, bleeding because of her. “You can’t leave me…please don’t go…I…I love you…I love you JC…”
“YOU LOVE WHO?”
Viera struggled against the person pulling her away from JC. She could hear voices speaking to her but she couldn’t see their faces until her eyes popped open and an enormous amount of light filled her view. “What…what’s happening. Where’s JC?” She asked, almost in a panic.
She had to blink her eyes and even give them a good rub a few times before they adjusted to the light. She looked around the white room and noticed several faces staring at her in confusion. One of the faces made her catch her breath and she wondered if she was dead. “Sh…Shelly?”
“Yes it’s me, but why the hell are you talking about JC? And why did you say you love him?”
Viera tried to sit up but felt a pain in her left leg. She looked down and noticed a cast on it and even the tubes running from her hands. She was in the hospital but didn’t know what was going on. “But you’re…you’re dead.” She said, looking straight at her sister.
“Damn and I thought I hit my head hard on the steering wheel. V, I’m not dead and neither are you…well until Jakob hears about your love affair with JC. Did the two of you hook up while I wasn’t looking?” Shelly laughed out as she saw her sister’s still confused look.
“Hey leave her alone. She’s been through a lot tonight.”
Viera turned her head and saw the face of Holly looking at her from across the room. She immediately jumped, then winced at the pain in her leg. “YOU! You shot him. You killed JC.”
The room erupted into laughter and Shelly just shook her head. “You DID hit your head harder than we thought. V, JC isn’t dead. In fact, he’s right outside the room. He heard about the accident and came here to check on all of us. And what’s this about Holly shooting him? I think the only thing she shot him with was her finger when he refused to throw one of those glowy things at her during ‘Digital Get Down’ or something. Are you okay?”
Viera clutched her head in her hands and squeezed her eyes shut. “But it felt so real. Holly was there and so was Brooke. They were holding us at gunpoint.”
Shelly became worried about her sister’s ramblings now and approached the bed to take her hands in her own. “V, why would they do that. I know you guys aren’t the best of friends but they would never hurt you. What the hell did you dream about?”
Viera slowly opened her eyes and felt them tear up at the wonderful sight of her sister. “Because…because they blamed me for…for killing you.” She finished in a whisper and saw Shelly’s eyes raise in shock.
“V, I’m not dead. You didn’t kill me. I’m here, see. I only got a cut on my head from the steering wheel and a bruised rib or two but I’m fine.” She started as she lowered herself down to her sister’s bed and hugged her as tight as she could. “I wouldn’t leave you, V - you’re my soul. I can’t leave my soul can I?” She said into Viera’s ear, causing her to struggle with the tears now.
“But it…it felt so real.” She repeated as Shelly leaned up and smiled while wiping the tears off her face.
“It was only a dream but if you don’t believe me, then I know of someone who will convince you.” She began and motioned for Holly to go get the person that she was talking about.
A moment later, the door opened and in walked the man who had invaded Viera’s ever thought for months…well, hours she soon found out. “Hey how are you feeling?” JC asked as he stepped forward and reached for her hand when Shelly moved out of the way.
Viera was speechless. She saw this beautiful man standing above her, squeezing her hand, checking on her to make sure she was fine…and giving her the comfort he had shown her in her dreams. She didn’t know if she wanted to cry because she was so happy that he was alive or because reality hit her and she realized that she wasn’t a part of his life. Everything she had dreamt felt so real - from the anger inside of her to the passion she felt when he kissed her and when they…well, you know.
She decided to let the tears fall anyway, regardless of the reason. She couldn’t believe all this was make believe - like some fictional story on the Internet or something - but it was.
JC looked at the others watching the two and wondered what he should do. Shelly stepped forward and touched him lightly on the shoulder. “She’ll be fine. She just had a bad dream that’s all.”
He nodded his head, reached for a nearby Kleenex and wiped Viera’s tears off with it before smiling gently to her and saying his goodbyes. “I hope that your leg heals and maybe you should look into getting a digital camera.” He told her as the others laughed at the confused look on Viera’s face. “Shelly will fill you in.” He said as he leaned down and lightly brushed his lips over her forehead, leaving a permanent mark on her heart.
Once he was gone, Viera looked at her sister and asked what he was talking about. “V, you know you couldn’t wait two seconds to get your pictures developed from the concert so you just HAD to get them in the mail tonight. That’s when we got into that wreck.. I called mom and dad and they’re furious about the car but they’ll live. I just told them that we were fighting because Mark was cheating on me with you.” She said as she began laughing but saw that Viera wasn’t. “Um V, I was only kidding. Jakob would kick Mark’s butt if he laid a finger on you.”
Viera shook off the awful feeling that her sister was TOO close to what she had dreamt when she heard her say that last name again. “Is…is he here?” She asked, wondering if she would ever be able to look at her boyfriend the same way since having that dream about JC.
She got her answer when Jakob came into the room and everyone filed out to leave them alone. He crept towards her bed and held out his hand for her to take. “Hey sweetheart, how are you?” He asked, smiling lovingly at her.
She knew her answer immediately, seeing his sparkling green eyes looking down on her, feeling the warmth of his touch on her hand and knowing that everything she had dreamed JC to be - was only Jakob in disguise. “I’m gonna be just fine now that you’re here. Just fine.” She said as she pulled his hand closer to her, signaling him to lean down. He obliged and she felt herself falling in love with him all over again when their lips finally met.
‘Sorry JC. You may be every others girls’ fantasy but I’ve got mine right here.’
THE END...