Left: Chapter Nine

The ivy had climbed up the brick walls of the building making it green all over. The sidewalks were stained with mud and darks circles where bubble gum had been spat onto it. The grass on the front lawn was overlapping the sidewalks, creating a look of overall disrepair.
"This is where Nick is?" Ellie pointed up at the building. "Are you sure, Artemis?" Her hair swished when she turned around to face him. "Artemis? Are you even listening to me?" She walked over to where he sat.
"Why do you want to find him so badly? What makes him any better than me?" Artemis snapped, looking up at Ellie through the corner of his eye. "Why can't we just go home and be together again?"
"I want to find Nick because I love him. He's better than you because for one, he never treated me like garbage. And we can't be together for obvious reasons. Our relationship didn't work out before, so why would a relationship now do any better?" Ellie walked over to a small puddle of murky water that had formed in a dent in the sidewalk. She traced Nick's initials into the water with the toe of her shoe and watched as they rippled away.
"You didn't answer me...." Artemis stood up, and walked over behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close.
"What?" Ellie breathed.
"Why do you love him?"
"I...I...”
"That's my point. How can you love someone if you don't even know why?"
"Why does it matter to you? Why should you care if someone actually thinks I matter?"
"Because I love you, Ellie."
"But why do you love me?"
"I...."
"Exactly." Ellie walked off, leaving Artemis standing alone. "You coming?" she asked as she walked to the front door of Sighton High School.
"Yeah...sure." Artemis trudged after her into the school.

The interior of Sighton High School was drastically different. The walls were an off-white with decorative posters depicting upcoming events; prom, reminders to buy the 07-08 yearbook, etc. Ellie stood in the lobby surrounded by chairs made of cracked brown leather, and she turned in a circle observing every piece of art and multi-colored poster on the walls when Artemis came running down the hall from the main office.
"Find anything?" she asked urgently.
"Yeah, he's in lunch now." Artemis nodded.
"Great. Which way is the cafeteria?" Ellie pointed left and right.
Artemis looked at the doors right across from the main entryway. "Uh, Ellie?"
"What?" She asked, her eyes following the direction to where his finger was pointing. Above the doorframe there was a plaque that had ‘cafeteria’ stamped onto it. "Oh."
"Yeah." Artemis pushed open the door, giving way to a room full of long tables with students packed around them.
Ellie walked forward. "NOBODY MOVE!" she shouted and stepped onto the stage. "Can Nick Sommers come up to the stage, please?" the students relaxed as Nick got up from a small round table in the far corner. As he passed certain people, they whispered things to him. He ignored them and kept walking up to Ellie.
Ellie felt as though her heart would explode at any second. She was giddy with excitement when Nick began to climb the steps up the stage. He was getting closer.
Suddenly, a girl with dusty brown hair appeared next to Nick.
“What are you thinking?” She whispered, but the cafeteria was so quiet her voice carried as loud as though she were speaking normally.
“Cam, please. Leave me alone.” Nick continued walking towards Ellie, who had a highly confused expression spreading on her face.
“Nick, I thought you loved me.” Cam went after him.
“I don’t. I thought I made that clear. I only love Ellie.”
“That girl who you were with when you got shot?”
“The very same.” Nick didn’t even make eye contact with Cam as he spoke.
“She’s a basket case! She’s mental! Why would you be with her when you can have me?” Cam moved in front of him. Ellie stood upon the stage glaring down at Cam trying to talk Nick out of climbing the stage steps.
“Well, for one, Cam,” Nick began. “I believe Ellie to be in possession of many qualities that you could not even begin to grasp. She is not crazy, and if you dare to speak of her mental stability again I will be forced to raise my voice. Now please move.”
Cam moved away in shock as Nick climbed up the stage.
“No!” Cam shouted as Nick approached Ellie. Cam lept forward, tackling Ellie to the stage floor. Ellie cried out in alarm and pain when her head hit the floor. Ellie put a hand to her head and her jaw dropped when she felt a warm substance trickling out of the back of her head. Ellie glared up at Cam with deep hatred raging in her eyes. She shook her blonde hair out of her face as she stood up and walked over to Cam.
“You bitch.” Ellie snarled. “You tried to steal Nick from me? God, you are such a spineless lump of bear scat!” Ellie raised her fists.
“Oh, so suddenly I’m the bitch? You left him to die on the sidewalk!” Cam dodged out of the way as Ellie’s fist nearly hit her right in the face.
“So you don’t deny being a spineless lump of bear scat?” Ellie asked, putting on an innocent tone.
“Oh, that is it!” Cam yelled, grabbing Ellie by her hair and flinging her off the stage. Ellie’s back hit a table and she yelped in pain. She slid down to the floor and feigned unconsciousness; her eyes appeared closed, but Ellie held them open just a little bit so she could see Cam coming. Once Cam was in arms length Ellie lashed her fist out and slammed it into her nose.
“Bring it on, Cam!” Ellie shouted as Cam stumbled backwards, blood streaming from her nose. Cam walked forward and Ellie backed up. She’s chasing me out into the hall. Ellie thought. Ellie went along with Cam’s idea by backing up every time Cam advanced. Ellie felt the cafeteria door press into her back. She pushed it open slowly, then suddenly reached out and grabbed Cam and flung her through. Cam slid across the tile floor until she hit her head on a chair. She didn’t seem hurt, judging by how she rose back up to continue to fight with Ellie. Ellie and Cam dodged each other’s punches until Cam faked a right hook and hit Ellie with her left fist. Ellie fell to the floor and Cam pinned her.
“This is my school. You know you can’t win here.” Cam’s voice was venomous to Ellie’s ears.
“I have one thing to ask you, Cam.” Ellie said.
“What?”
“Do you feel lucky?”
Cam turned her head to the side and her chokehold slackened slightly. Ellie looked up at her.
“Do you punk?” Ellie lifted her feet up into the air and used them to grab Cam around the shoulders. She lifted Cam into the air and flung her to the ground in front of her.
“Don’t mess with me or Nick. Or I will guarantee that you will be beaten up and humiliated again.” Ellie walked away from Cam, who now lay in the fetal position.

Nick ran out of the cafeteria and saw Cam lying on the floor and Ellie walking towards him.
“Woah,” Nick breathed. He looked at Ellie. “I repeat. Woah.”
Ellie giggled. “Sorry about Cam. She had it coming.” Ellie looked up at Nick and smiled.
“Where’s Artemis?” Nick asked. Ellie looked both ways.
“I dunno.” She said. “He might be outside. I think I upset him earlier.”
“Want me to help you look for him?” Nick asked, heading for the main door.”
“No, that’s fine. If he sees you he might run.”
“If he sees you he could scream.”
“Is it that bad?” Ellie asked, patting her cheeks.
“You have a black eye, two bruises on your forehead and a bloody lip. It could be worse.” Nick laughed.
“See you soon.”

Ellie wrapped her arms around herself; a poor attempt as a shield from the cold air. She stood on the front lawn of Sighton High School and took in her surroundings. A lake was to her right, about ten yards away. That seemed like the most likely place Artemis would be.
When Ellie reached the bottom of the hill that led to the lake, she found him.
Artemis was standing at the edge of the lake, tossing small rocks and pebbles into its watery depths. The wind tossed his black hair around his head, giving him the look of a grieving soul. Ellie began to creep back up the hill.
“It’s all right. I know you are there.” Artemis said without turning around. He tossed a big rock onto the lake. It created a large splash a few feet away. Artemis stood unnaturally still and let the ripples from the stone lap at his feet and soak through his shoes.
“Artemis,” Ellie started but he interrupted her.
“Just go.” he said. “Leave me alone.”
“Okay.” Ellie turned away and began to walk back to the school.
“I still think I’m better for you.” Artemis turned around to see her. “I still think that we belong together.”
“Artemis, it could never work out between us. It didn’t before so why would it work now? It’s just…I can’t explain it. You might understand later.”
“Oh, it’s one of those things, huh?” Artemis walked over to her and took her hand. Ellie jerked it out of his grip.
“Yeah,” Ellie turned away.
“I’ll be home if you want to talk later.”
“I doubt that.” She said solemnly.
Artemis sat down on the bank of the lake and put his head on his knees. His shoulders shook as tears fell rapidly from his eyes. He realized that he had lost the only girl who ever truly loved him. The only girl he had a chance with. And he could never get her back.

Ellie shut the door to the school and welcomed the warm air from the vents in the ceiling. Nick ran forward and hugged her.
“What’s up?” Ellie asked.
“School got a call from my mom. She says we can go back to Point Place.”
“That’s great! We can be together again!”
“But there’s a catch.”
“What?”
“My parents have agreed that I shouldn’t go out with you anymore because of the events that have happened over the last few months.”
“Great. Tell them that going out with me is your choice and they shouldn’t tell you otherwise.”
“I can’t. I told them that we weren’t together anymore.”
“But we still are together, aren’t we?”
“Exactly.” Nick smiled.
“So you lied!?” Ellie dropped her jaw.
“Yeah. As far as my parents are concerned, we broke up.”
Ellie shut her mouth, opened it, then shut it again. “Damn. You’ve got guts.”
“So now can we have lunch?” Nick asked.
“Yeah.”
“Great!” Nick said happily.
“But I expect you to keep your promise to me.”
“I won’t leave you. I swear.”
“Good.” Ellie grabbed Nick’s hands and stopped him in the doorway.  
“What’s this?” he asked.
Ellie put a finger to his lips. “Shh…” she whispered to him. She moved her finger away and kissed him.
Nick broke away and began to talk.
“Ellie,” he started but Ellie silenced him with another kiss on the lips.
“Ellie there are people watching us.”
Ellie looked up and saw the students sitting at the cafeteria tables, all turned and watching her and Nick.
“What are you looking at?” she asked.

THE END