Rose 23: Emotional roller-coaster

Fiona

      "Hey, Fiona!" Tony.

      "Fiona, wait up a sec." Allen.

      Oh. Crud. They followed me home from school. At the same time.

      Link turns his head in my direction and mumbles, "Do you want me to get rid of them?" I guess he thinks he's some big guy that's going to keep these boys from bothering his older sister.

      "No. I'm not sure I'm ready to do this now, but we've got to have all this out eventually." I answer him and turn around.

     "What?" I ask as I turn around. I mean, I know 'what', but I can't think of anything else to say at this current moment. In the background behind them, I randomly notice that Don brought Angela home with him. Angela is another of Allen's ex-girlfriends.. but from longer ago.

     "I need to talk to you." Allen pipes up almost immediately.

     Antonio looks over at him with annoyance before he turns back to face me and says, "We need to talk to you."

     I love the sound of Tony's voice, and it's been ages since I've heard it for more than two seconds. That hurts to think about actually. He's been avoiding me, and I still, still don't know why.

     I suddenly want Tony to make it all better, to tell me that he's sorry and he made a mistake. I realize how much I've missed him. I still force myself not to let anyone know this from my expression.

    I also notice there's an alien spacecraft that's been parked at the pool's parking lot for days now. I randomly wonder if cops can give parking tickets to alien spacecraft. Plus, if the spacecraft is still there, then where is the alien?

    Allen looks annoyed at his brother. "Fine time to try and beg forgiveness. Isn't it a little late for that?"

    That just made me mad and a little more convinced that Glen was right.

    Antonio folds his arms and glares back at Allen. "I have done nothing wrong. It's you that's taken this way out of proportion to suit your own agenda."

    He did nothing wrong?

    Tony's eyes drop their glare and look upon me as he asks, "Fiona, would you please talk with me out of earshot of my brother and yours?"

     We're about to officially break up, aren't we? "Um, yeah. Sure."

     I hear Allen start mumbling to Link about getting him to call someone for him. I don't know why Link has to do it. Maybe it's someone that wouldn't answer if Allen called them.

    I get distracted when Angela, who's all of a sudden had a makeover out of nowhere, starts talking with Allen. He's being a real jerk to her it looks like.

    I can feel Tony looking at me as I ask, "Is this far enough away?"

    "I'd actually prefer a little farther, but this will do." he answers quietly.

    "Okay, so talk."

    "First of all, I was going to destroy those pictures." he says, and my heart sinks, knowing Allen didn't make them up. "Angela was hiding in the bushes while Crystal pretended to be brokenhearted about her breakup with Allen. Then they threatened me by saying they'd show them to you if I didn't break up with you. So, I threatened them right back with something I cannot say because she handed over the pictures. Dad's shredder was jammed, so I stuck them in my bedside table drawer. You know the rest."

    I take a deep breath and stare at his shoulder as I point out, "But that doesn't explain why you never came over, you never called me, and here lately you act like you're avoiding me."

    "I didn't mean to. I've been trying to figure out why Crystal hates you so much."

    "You didn't mean to lie to me and say you were at the station when you weren't? I went by to see you and you weren't there. Some guy told me you weren't there the day before either. Why did you lie to me?" I work hard at keeping my voice even.

    "I can't... tell you."

    "You still lied."

    "Because I couldn't tell you the truth."

    "The truth that you were cheating on me."

    "What?! No! The most I ever did with Crystal is put my arm around her in a hug to try to get her to stop crying."

     "So, the truth that you can't tell me then."

     His face screws up a little as he answers, "Yes."

     "If you're going to repeatedly lie to me, then I'm afraid I can't be your girlfriend anymore, not that we had much of anything anyway."

     "No!" he quietly cries out and reaches for me. I take a step back with my hands out in front of me.

    He lets out a loud sigh and puts his face in his hands.

    I'm sorry, Tony. I've cried over you, and you acted like you didn't care. Why did he have to lie to me? Why can't he just tell me where he was?

     Oh, Chasity's here.

     "Fiona, please don't do this." he whispers through his hands.

     "Why not? It's not like we were much of a couple anyway." I say, hating the way I'm feeling right now but knowing I have to stand my ground.
      "I want to tell you,  but I can't. It has something to do with my job, not another girl. I'm sorry I've been a s--ty boyfriend." he mumbles out from behind his hands.
       "Well, maybe you should drop your job. If not, then I can't sit around waiting for you to suddenly decide to grace me with your presence. I can't take this emotional roller-coaster."
      His head pops up out of his hands, and he has a hopeful expression on his face. I'm so glad I don't see any trace of tears. I didn't want him to cry.
      "If I quit my job, you'll give me another chance?" he asks.
      "Yes." I answer simply.

     Allen walks up behind Tony as he says, "Done."
     I'm momentarily stunned. Why couldn't he have done this beforehand before any of this mess got a chance to get started? We could've avoided all this drama.
     Antonio sees my expression and goes on to explain. "I just don't think I enjoy it like I thought I would. Besides, I need to seriously consider a career since I age up in a few days." Allen rolls his eyes behind his brother's back. I used to find Allen's antics funny, but I'm really pissed off at him now.
     Trying to avoid more awkwardness, I ask, "Um, so what are you thinking about doing?" This isn't really what we need to talk about, but Allen is standing there staring at us like some creepy voyeur.

     Tony acts like he's grasping at conversational straws as well as he answers, "I took one of those new aptitude tests, and it recommended I try something with science or being a private investigator."
      "You got all that from an aptitude test?" I ask.
      He smiles sheepishly and adds, "Well, that's how I interpreted it."
      A girl gets out of a taxi, and my stomach twists in a knot when I see it's Crystal. Great. So now we have both of them here. Angela upstairs flirting with Donovan, probably, and Crystal standing in my front yard.
      What are you up to, Allen? I think as I watch him walk over to her.

      Link and Chasity act blissfully unaware of everything going on around them. It's disgustingly cute.
      Antonio turns around and sees whom Allen is talking to. Then he turns back around to see the glaring expression on my face. "Nothing happened." he says quietly to me. I start to take a step over to get in that girl's face, but Tony's hand holds my arm. "Don't. Just leave it. What Allen is hoping you'll do is cause a scene. I don't know how he got her to come over here, but that has to be the reason."
     "Stupid b-tch." I hear Crystal say in my direction.
     "Then again..." Tony says and walks over to Crystal.

    Tony goes off and argues with Crystal. To be honest, now that my initial anger is done, I'm just tired.
     I think Crystal is in love with Allen. She was just toying with Glen, and she broke up with Allen because he's in love with me. Allen is attractive, yes, but I just can't think of him as anything but a friend.... even if he hasn't been a very good friend lately. But why would Crystal want me and Antonio to break up? The only thing I can guess is that it would force Allen to see that I'm not thinking of him that way. That was quite a risk, but then again, I can see why she wouldn't want Allen if he was going to act that way, and Glen was just someone on the back burner. Poor Glen.
     "Fiona?" I hear asked quietly near me, and I look up to see a very apologetic Allen.

     "Fiona, I had no idea it was a setup." he continues as we hear it all come out in the open from Crystal and Antonio's argument. "I honestly thought he was cheating on you, and I couldn't stand it."
      "All he did was put his arm around her. That's all that showed up in the pictures too. My only problem is I don't know where he was all those times."
       "I hate that he's been treating you badly." Allen says almost angrily.
       "He says he's going to make it up to me." I say quietly.
       "What?! And you're just going to believe him?"
       "Because I want to. He says he's going to quit his job, and I'm going to give him another chance."
       Allen looks to be in a mild panic as his eyes dart around, frantically looking for some other point to argue.
       "Why give him a chance? Why not give me a chance? I would never ignore you like he did." he spurts out rapidly.
       This is what it all comes down to, I think as Allen looks like he's going to make a move on me.

     I take a step back and put my hands up in an unspoken effort to ward him off. His arms drop hopelessly down at his sides. I guess I'm just going to have to come out and say it.
      "I've only ever thought of you as a friend, Allen." I say quickly and quietly.
      "Then how do you know if that could change if you've never tried?" he says, and I can't help but think he's got a lot of nerve saying that with his brother nearby.
      "I've made my decision, and I'm sticking to it." I say adamantly. I realize how ridiculous this must look to him, and well, to anybody, but if I have to make a decision, then this is what it's going to be. "I'm sorry." What's the big deal about me anyway?
       Antonio's voice rumbles over to us. "Allen." he says in warning.
       Allen turns and looks at his once-favorite sibling. I don't know what expression he gives him, but I'm not guessing it's a good one. I feel absolutely terrible and completely exhausted.
      Allen leaves in a magical taxi that he shares with Crystal. Link and Chasity appear to be in their own little world, oblivious to everyone else.

     Tony sighs after he walks back over and stands in front of me. "I'm sorry for my backstabbing brother. I'm more sorry for avoiding you. I felt guilty, and then I felt guilty I'd avoided you. It was that message you left me yesterday that finally made me wake up. I don't want to lose you." He lifts up his eyes to meet mine, and I feel myself go weak in the knees again.
      I just want things to go back to the way they were. If he ever does something like this again, I'd be less likely to forgive him, but I can easily forgive him this time. "Tony, don't worry about it. Not anymore. That you decided to quit your job really makes a big difference."

    He smiles a little and pulls me into his arms. I happily let him this time.
    "I graduate Saturday." he says out of the blue.
    "And I do on Tuesday." I say, wondering where he's going with this.
    "I'm looking forward to it. I don't want to be in that house with my brother anymore." he says as he holds me tighter.

     He pulls back for a second before he shocks me when his lips crash into mine. He seems to be trying to tell me, again, how sorry he is for how he acted, and butterflies explode in my stomach. It was ultimately up to me, and he acts grateful for my decision.

    He pulls back a little apologetically, and I immediately move in to kiss him. He stops acting so apologetic.

     I made the right decision.

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I thought I'd never finish that. Honestly, I was worried I would scrap the whole thing and all that buildup would've been for naught. I'm still a little annoyed with the whole thing, and I'm just ready to let Fiona go and make some Monty spawn. Hopefully, they won't get her EA-screwed-up mouth. Oh well, if they do, then it'll be easier to pick out future generations descended from her.

I finally got that thing set up to where I name all the babies, and I've got a lovely little list from which to work, however, all the names are in the A-C range because I filled up my list fast. So, kids born in this time will all have A-C names. Might make it easier lol.

Oh, Antonio should've already aged up by now. Moving him and his brother back and forth has screwed up their ages. In fact, somehow increasing my household number to 10 and moving in the brothers for a little while screwed up my teen's ages as well, and it has Donovan as the oldest. His actual age is only off by 1 day, but I have to do a little figuring to determine Fiona and Link's real ages. So, I decided to have Fiona invite Antonio over (now that I've made him quit his job, and thank goodness fireman is not his LTW) and trigger age transition on Saturday to try and make everything get back to where/when it's supposed to be. That, and I want them to attend prom again since I can.