The Night School [GxG] [First Draft Edition]

Chapter Seventy-Three: Ultimatum

A/N: when dialogues are italicized (i.e. "I really hate Monday mornings.") it means they're in a non-English language the perspective character understands. Italicized words (i.e. "I really hate Monday mornings.") still mean emphasis.

. . .

"Hazel!" Megan was already scrambling to interrogate me, a large knife in one hand and hair up in a neat bun like she always has when she cooks. "What happened?!" She followed me as I threw my school bag halfway across the room and into the study.

"Nothing." I snapped. "She wasn't there."

"Oh." She sighed, her posture slumped with disappointment, but she quickly forced herself back up and faked a hopeful smile-frown. Like she wanted to smile and frown at once with equal zeal, so she sort of switched between the two in a halfhearted way. "She's probably just getting herself together-"

"You're bullshitting me again, Megan." I rolled my eyes. "Talk."

"Mm..." She pulled her lips in for a moment, exhaling and gesturing for me to follow her to the kitchen. "Did you see any of her people?" She started, turning her back to me as she resumed the vegetable-chopping she'd been doing before I came home.

"Yes. I didn't talk to any of them." I remembered the small, firm nod Micha had given me, how I'd just felt that troubling myself or Grace's group with immediate contact would not have been a good idea.

"Mm." She went quiet again. "Maybe you should try to talk to Micha." She suggested slowly.

"And why the hell would I do that?" I snorted irritably, wrinkling my nose with a strong feeling against her idea.

"Get close to her, you get close to Grace's friends and there's no chance you have of being back with her if they don't think it's a good idea. Like it or not, Zel, but Grace believes in them more than she believes in you at this point." She shook her head. I growled lowly. "Stop growling at me, I'm just helping you fix your relationship."

"I'm not becoming friendly with Micha. And Grace's friends do not like me."

"I can't imagine why." She grumbled, clearly getting tired of my emotional deficiency. "It won't happen overnight, Hazel. Take small steps and get the foundations of your relationship together so you don't have to build everything from scratch each time you fight."

"But she said she loves me! Doesn't that mean she wants to be with me?! What's the point of her being in love with me if she wants nothing to do with me!" I hissed, an indignant growl trying to tear out of my throat.

"Dear fucking lord. The point to her being in love with you is that she is in love with you! But that doesn't account for much because you completely disregarded her confession!"

"I didn't disregard it! I told her how I felt! I don't want her loving me!"

"Sure as hell sounds like you do." She shook her head, her movements becoming choppy with frustration. "If she told you she was in love with someone else, would that make it better?"

"No-" I clenched my fists. If she fell in love with someone else, I'd probably end up committing another murder (which terrifies me because A. I don't want to kill anymore and B. Why would I fall back on old ways just to keep Grace to myself?! I don't even want her loving me!... Right? I mean maybe- no!).

"So you want her loving you?" She snapped as a half statement.

"I want her wanting me." I retorted.

"And I'm sure the fact that she is madly in love with you makes it even better." She sighed. "Make a choice, Zel. Accept she loves you and make it work like that, or make distance until she falls for someone else and move on. I know what you want. I think you know. Hell, I knew Grace knew. The problem is getting you to realize it."