Rumor Has It

-3-

A/N: Now that I'm in a write-y mood, I'm gonna start updating this old fic again. I hope you enjoy it!

As soon as Serena and Miette had booked their (separate) rooms, Miette grabbed Serena by the hand and rushed off. Serena struggled to keep up--- had Miette always been this fast? 

"Where are we going?" Serena panted.

"Somewhere secluded," Miette replied. 

They continued dashing around Anistar City for a few minutes, until Miette ducked into an alley that she apparently thought was secluded enough. Once they were inside, Miette let go of Serena's hand and slid down to the ground, letting out a sigh. She patted the ground next her, and Serena reluctantly sat down. They sat in silence for a few minutes, Serena rubbing the hand Miette had grabbed. The other girl had an iron grip.

"So," Miette said finally, turning her head toward Serena. Serena squirmed. Miette's gaze was piercing. "We need to talk."

"Yeah, I'd gathered."

Miette barked a harsh laugh. "You're funny."

"Um... Miette, do you have any idea what's going on?" Serena asked.

"Not really," said Miette. "Though I know why the journalist did it."

"Why?" 

"Well, people love speculating about this kind of stuff. She thought she'd get famous off of this, and she might have. Also, you've got to admit that picture looks kind of romantic from outside eyes."

Serena thought about it, and had to agree with Miette. It didn't change the fact that it wasn't true.

"Anyway, it might just be a part of being a celebrity," Miette said. 

"You're not as mad as I thought you would be," Serena muttered. "From the way you were acting earlier, I thought you were going to do something crazy."

Miette shook her head, a faint blush rising on her cheeks. "I'm not mad... just... frustrated." And then Serena swore she could hear Miette whisper under her breath, "It wasn't supposed to happen this way."

What wasn't? Serena wondered, but it was no use thinking about that now. Now, she had to break the bad news that her friends believed this nonsense. "Um... Miette, this might be a little more than an annoyance."

"What do you mean?"

"It might... you know, Ash probably doesn't want to date someone with a girlfriend."

Miette's eyes widened in understanding. "Oh. That."

"Yes, that."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, processing the bad news. 

"So what do you want to do about it?" asked Miette finally.

Serena shrugged. "I'm not sure... I guess we have to go to a different paper and say that the rumours are false--"

Miette interrupted her by covering her faces with her hands. "Shhh. Serena, I hear footsteps."

"Footsteps?!" Serena yelped, though the sound was muffled by Miette's hand.

Miette shushed her again, and motioned for her to stay where she was. Then, the blue-haired girl slowly crept forward, peeking her head out of the alley to investigate. She gasped and then looked back at Serena. Miette hissed, "It's your friend with the glasses."

"Clemont?"

"Yeah, him."

"Oh no... I better go," Serena said, standing up and dusting herself off. "We'll talk later."

Miette nodded and held out a hand for Serena to shake. "Later." Serena took the hand gingerly (she'd hadn't forgotten how strong Miette's grip was) and they shook on it.

With that, Serena walked out of the alley and into the streets of Anistar.