Chapter XXXI

For the time being, Lilly and Eric were content trusting in Liz to work everything out with Damien herself, which meant that they could focus their attention solely on Vinny. Even after Eric’s visit to his house, the blonde boy had still been relatively distant with the club and was mainly spending his time with Alice, so they weren’t yet sure how to go about working everything out with him. Regardless of the consequences it entailed, Vinny had been able to put an end to the bullying. With Evan not showing up at school for the time being and Rina having backed down, it was clear that whatever Vinny did had been effective. The problem was that they couldn’t even begin to guess what it was he did. Vinny wouldn’t tell them and even Liz had admitted to not knowing anything about his plans after he left the clubroom that afternoon. That meant that their first course of action should be to find out what Vinny did and act from there and, since he clearly had no desire to just give that information up, they instead chose to go at a different angle.

Jay Brooks was the only other person who had been a part of Vinny’s plan to help Alice and it was painfully obvious that he knew something. Damien had spoken with him the day after Liz stole the stone and he had explained how unnerved the boy had been. Lilly hadn’t talked with Jay once since that afternoon in the clubroom and she couldn’t be sure of what was going on with him, so she decided that she would talk to him herself. She wanted to try and gauge Jay’s stance on the situation and decide what to do from there.

That was why she stood alone against the wall of the second floor hallway, her arms folded across her chest as she watched students passing her by. She had texted him to meet her there so they could talk before first period. Eric had opted to stay out of it and leave the discussion to her since she was closer to Jay and she was grateful for that. She had a feeling that it would be easier to talk to him if it was just the two of them. Despite the rocky start to their relationship, Lilly did feel as if the two of them had become closer over the last few months. She now had no problem admitting to herself that she truly cared for him and considered him a friend. If something was bothering him, she wanted to help him get past it and, if she could learn what Vinny did in the process then that was perfect.

She glanced off to her left and smiled at the sight of Jay slowly making his way toward her. There was a nervous look on his face and she could already tell that he was anxious. She wanted to make him feel comfortable with her and at the same time, she wanted to see what she could learn.

“Morning, Jay,” she greeted, doing her best to look as cheerful as she could. “How’s it going?”

The boy refused to look directly at her and instead stared down at the ground, which was plenty to tell her that he was struggling with something. There were bags under his eyes and his hair was sticking out at odd angles. She even noticed his tie wasn't straight.

What the hell? Why’s he look so ragged? This couldn’t be all because of Vinny, could it?

“Uh, I’m fine, I guess,” he muttered. “So, what did you want, Lilly? It’s kinda odd for you to call me to talk to you. Did something...bad happen again?”

He looked as if there was something in particular that he was scared of her knowing and she could only assume it had to do with the Rina/Evan situation. She quickly shook her head, wanting to reassure him that he had nothing to worry about.

“No, nothing. I just wanted to check in on you, is all. You’ve seemed kinda out of it lately and honestly, I’m a bit worried about you. Is there something wrong cause if so, I’ll listen. You can talk to me, you know?”

For a brief moment, his eyes flickered up to look at her before returning to the ground.

“Wrong? Nah, I’m fine,” he replied. “I’m just tired. I need to stop staying up so late and get back into a school schedule.”

He’s lying. He’s so obvious that I doubt even he thinks I believe him. There’s something wrong and it’s more than just a lack of sleep. He’s exactly like Damien described, so I can only assume this is related to Vinny. So what happened? Would he tell me if I asked because I kinda doubt it. But then how do I get him to open up to me? Should I just be blunt? Would that work?

“So, is that all?” Jay mumbled.

Lilly narrowed her eyes, feeling like she really should press the issue but deciding that it might be better to hold off and talk with Eric first. He was far better at dealing with people than she was so she figured it would be best to formulate some plan. She had confirmed that what Damien told them was true. Now that they knew this, they could figure out a plan from there.

“I guess so,” she finally responded. “Although, I do have one favor to ask.”

He raised his eyebrows and glanced up at her once more. “Yeah?”

“Come by the clubroom this afternoon. You haven’t been by in a while and we miss you. Eric and I are the only ones who’ll be there today so it’d be nice to have company.”

Jay instantly went to shake his head. “I-I don’t think I can—”

“Please?” she interrupted. “For me, Jay?”

“Um...well…” The boy stumbled over his words for a moment before sighing in clear reluctance. “Fine. I’ll stop by for a little while. That okay?”

She nodded firmly. “That’s perfect. I’ll see you then.”

“Yeah...you, too, Lilly.”

With that, he hurriedly turned around and started making his way back in the direction he had come. He was so quick about it that it was clear to her that he had been desperate to get away from her. Every action of his was putting her on edge and she hated seeing him like that. She hoped that she could find a way to help him deal with whatever was bothering him but, until she knew what that was, she wouldn’t be able to do a thing.

Lilly swallowed nervously before taking a deep breath and turning to start making her way toward Mrs. Kentz’s classroom. She wanted to speak to Eric before class started so she could get his opinion on the whole thing. After all of that, she desperately wanted to talk about it and hear what he had to say. Everything about Jay was stressing her out, so she quickened her pace. When she reached the classroom, she greeted her teacher at her normal spot beside the door then headed inside. She immediately noticed Eric sitting alone at his desk and he looked up when he saw her. However, before either could call out to the other, somebody else spoke.

“Oh, Lilly!”

She frowned, turning to her left to see Brad getting to his feet. Taken by surprise at the clearly uncomfortable expression on his face, she couldn’t help but wonder if something was wrong.

“Could I talk to you for a moment,” he quickly added.

Lilly glanced briefly at Eric but he didn’t seem to be in a particular rush to discuss Jay so she turned back to Brad and nodded.

“Sure,” she replied.

She had expected him to start heading toward the door but instead, he made his way toward the opposite corner of the classroom. Lilly followed after him, taking note of the suspicious looks she was getting from Brad’s group of friends. However, at this point, she was used to getting strange looks from them so she instead turned her focus solely on Brad. Based on how tense he was, it didn’t take her long to deduce what it was he wanted to talk about.

“What’s up?” she asked softly once they were away from the others in the room. “Is everything okay?”

Brad swallowed, glancing once more over her shoulder at his friends before replying. “I’m…not sure, to be honest. I actually wanted to talk to you yesterday, but never got the chance. It’s…about Evan.”

Yeah, I figured.

It had occurred to her over break that she had never told him what went down between Evan Wright and the Magic Club. Yet, every time since that she considered talking to him, she realized that she wouldn’t even know what to say. After all, she didn’t even fully know what happened. The sudden rumors about Evan were probably as surprising to her as it was to him.

“I had a feeling,” she said with a sigh. “I’m really sorry, Brad. I should’ve talked to you sooner but, to be honest, I’ve been busy trying to figure it out myself.”

He went to reply before furrowing his brow in confusion. “What do you mean? I figured you guys were behind what happened to him.”

Lilly shrugged. “We were and we weren’t. In fact, Eric and I had nothing to do with it but…it’s a long story.”

“Then can you tell me?” Brad pressed. “I need to know what happened. For better or for worse, Evan was my friend. He hasn’t answered my calls and now I’m hearing all these rumors that he might have been arrested or expelled and…this is right after I told you guys he was involved with Mendez… It’s just been weighing on me so…please?”

Lilly bit her lip in thought. Part of her wanted to try and get out of telling him but she also understood where he was coming from. He did them a big favor by talking to Evan and so, he deserved to know what happened—or at least what she knew.

“I’ll give you the quick version then,” she said.

He nodded. “Thank you. That’s all I ask.”

Lilly took a second to gather her thoughts before explaining. “The short of it is that after you told us about Rina and Evan, the club was at odds on whether to use the stone to help her or not.”

She noticed a brief look in his eyes that told her he had suspected as much. However, since he didn’t interrupt, she decided to continue.

“Vinny wanted to use it, Damien was against it, and Eric and I were kinda in the middle. After talking it out, we decided not to use it and to deal with it some other way. That should have been the end of it but…Liz stole the stone and gave it to Vinny.”

Brad’s eyes went wide. “They stole it?!”

“They did,” she confirmed. “After that, I don’t have a clue what happened. Vinny left school before we knew it was gone and we couldn’t find him. The next day, after it was all over, he gave the stone back and refused to tell us what he did. Eric and I only found out about Evan over break.”

The boy’s eyes narrowed as he glanced around and Lilly got the feeling he was looking to see if Vinny were there. “So Mickelson did it?” he growled. “And you still don’t know what he did?”

“We don’t. Eric and I have been trying to figure it out but so far, we’ve got nothing. I do promise to tell you once we get it worked out though.”

Brad clenched his teeth in obvious irritation. “Fair enough. I’m sorry about all that. I never would have thought Mickelson would stoop to that level.”

“Neither did I,” she muttered.

He seemed to stare off into space for a moment, as if considering all she had told him, before grimacing and beginning to head back to his friends. “Thanks, Lilly. I appreciate you telling me.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

For a moment, she stared down at the ground, wishing she could have given him something better before taking a deep breath and turning to head toward Eric’s desk. He didn’t say anything as she took a seat in the spot beside him and sighed. When she looked over at him, he seemed to also be deep in his own thoughts. It took him a second before he looked up and turned his attention toward her.

“What did Fischer want?” he asked. “Was everything alright?”

Lilly shrugged. “Yeah, everything’s fine. In fact, he wanted the same thing we did: to find out what the hell happened to Evan.”

“Ah, that makes sense. We probably should have talked to him sooner, huh?”

“Probably,” she grunted. “Not like we had much to tell him, though

“Well, hopefully that’ll change soon,” he replied. “And speaking of, were you able to get anything interesting out of Brooks?”

She shook her head. “Nope. Nothing there either. Although I can say that Damien was right. It’s obvious that something’s bothering him. Whatever happened with Vinny, I think it’s weighing on him.”

Eric frowned. “Not surprising, unfortunately. If what Vinny did tainted his heart as much as it seems it did, it’s no wonder it’s affecting Brooks. Especially considering the personal stake he had in it all.”

“So what do we do?” Lilly asked. “I told Jay to come by the clubroom later but…I honestly don’t think he’s going to tell us much.”

Much to her surprise, Eric smiled as if he didn’t think they were at a loss. “Well…I guess that just means it’s my turn to speak with him,” he said. “If he’s coming by the clubroom, I’ll just have to have a little chat with Mr. Brooks.”

The way Eric said it was so confident that she couldn’t help but believe that he’d actually find a way. Despite his odd quirks, he was somebody she trusted. If Eric said he could help Jay then she was comfortable believing he could. After all, that was just who Eric Reiner was.

***

On the walk to school, Damien was overwhelmed by a vast array of new feelings and sensations. Just moving his body had a completely different feel to it and, despite already having an idea of how the stone worked, he couldn’t get over how little that affected his ability to walk. Even though his center of gravity had shifted and he was significantly shorter than he had been, he was still able to move as if he’d been born in that body. In addition to that, he was very aware of his longer hair. He always preferred to keep his own quite short so trying to deal with Liz’s getting in his eyes due to the wind was already proving to be a pain in the ass.

Beside him, Liz seemed perfectly happy and didn’t show any signs of discomfort or irritation. Rather she looked to be enjoying getting to experience the morning as him. She was grinning the whole time and he could only pray that she would lose the smile by the time they got to school. He couldn’t imagine what people would think if they saw him walking around with as cheerful a grin as she had.

My god, this is so weird. I’m next to myself! Frickin hell! I mean, I accepted the fact that the stone was magic months ago, but to actually experience it is a completely different matter. And I’m supposed to stay like this all day?!

There was still a small part of him that wanted to take the gem from his pocket and switch back, but he forced himself not to. At this point, he was determined to see what Liz wanted him to see. He wanted to fix their relationship and he truly believed this was the way to do so.

Finally, after what felt like a much longer walk than usual, the two of them arrived at the school’s front gates. They were later than usual so there wasn’t as large of a crowd heading into the courtyard. Most were already heading to class or were within the building.

“Here we are,” Liz said slyly. “Are you ready, dear girlfriend of mine?”

Damien cringed at the words coming from his own mouth. “Please stop roleplaying. This is weird enough as it is.”

“Ah, come on,” she replied with a playful elbow jab. “Have a bit of fun, dude. Might as well enjoy yourself, yeah?”

“Sure, fun,” he grunted, continuing forward and through the gates leading into the courtyard. “If that’s what you think this is.”

She laughed. “Of course I think this is fun! I’m my boyfriend, after all. I never thought you’d actually swap with me and I doubt you ever will again so I have to take full advantage of today!”

He eyed her suspiciously. He had a feeling she was just teasing him but a part of him did fear what she intended to do with his body. He was putting a lot of trust in her by agreeing to the swap, something he knew he should’ve been more against after her theft of the stone, so he couldn’t help but be a bit on edge. Though, he was certain that if she did anything, it would only be mildly embarrassing. Liz wasn’t the type of person who would actually do something to hurt him.

And I know that, he thought. Which is why I know that her theft of the stone wasn’t done to hurt me. She had her reasons and, hopefully, I’ll know by the end of today.

“Well,” Liz began as they made their way into the school building. “I guess this is where we part ways. Don’t forget to look at the text I sent you if you forget where to sit.”

Damien grimaced, recalling the intricate message she had sent him the previous night with details of her classes, seats, and assignments for the day. He had done the same for her so he was hoping they wouldn’t have any trouble living the other’s life for a little while.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got it all down,” he assured her.

Liz smiled. “Alright then! See you in third period, Liz!”

He rolled his eyes but couldn’t help but chuckle a bit. “Yeah, you, too, Damien.”

For a moment, he stood by and watched her turn and head down the corridor. His first period was Geography in room 1-14 so she would be remaining on the bottom floor. As for Liz, her first class was History in room 2-3 so he would have to go up to the second floor. Part of him felt a little nervous since he knew he wouldn’t be able to completely act like Liz. He didn’t even know how she acted when not around Magic Club members. He didn’t want to act strange and embarrass her so he was determined to do his best to pretend to be her.

He took a deep breath, looked over his uniform to make sure he looked okay, then made his way toward the staircase. There were students all around him but none seemed to be paying him much attention. It was something he was grateful for since he normally received a bunch of glances that were either fearful or distrusting.

Nobody’s looking at me, he thought. They aren’t staring like I’m some maniac about to punch one of them.

He didn’t approve of using the gem and he would forever stand by that opinion. However, for the time being, he couldn’t say he wasn’t happy to not have to be the feared Damien Clark just for a few hours. He knew Liz wasn’t exactly well liked either, but maybe he would be able to actually interact with his classmates for once. If he was going to be stuck like this all day, maybe he should just embrace it for a bit and just be Liz Tao.

He arrived at the top of the stairs and turned down the hall leading to Liz’s first period when he suddenly came to a stop. The door to the boy’s bathroom on his left had opened and out walked Vinny, stopping once he noticed him. Damien instantly prepared himself for a potential confrontation but Vinny simply smiled and waved.

“Morning, Liz,” he greeted.

Damien barely suppressed his surprise as he returned to his senses.

Right, of course he wouldn’t know about the body swap. He thinks I’m Liz right now! Shit! If I’m not careful, he’ll realize I’m not who I appear to be and I sure as hell can’t let Vinny of all people know I used the stone!

Damien hurriedly collected himself, hoping to get out of the conversation as quickly as possible. He hadn’t spoken to Vinny since their conversation out in the woods and he wasn’t ready to face him again.

“M-morning, Vinny,” he replied. “How’s it going?”

“It’s fine, I guess. Still dealing with everything, but what can you do at this point, yeah?” The boy shrugged. “How’ve you been? Have you worked everything out with Damien yet?”

Damien nearly flinched at the mention of his name. “Um…I think so. We’ve…almost got everything put behind us, and I like to think that we’ll be able to fix everything.”

Vinny nodded, smiling sadly. “Well, I’m rooting for you. I’d hate the thought that you helping me could be the cause of your relationship breaking. But I think if you’re just honest with Damien, he’ll understand. I don’t think he’ll blame you. He’s just not that kinda guy.”

There was genuine emotion in his voice and Damien could tell that Vinny wasn’t lying. He truly wanted them to get back together despite all of their arguing. It was good to know that his friend still cared about him regardless of their disagreements. But, his words made Damien hesitate. He knew he should bring a quick end to the conversation. He knew it was rude to pretend to be Liz and try to get him to talk, yet Damien found himself speaking anyway.

“And what about you?” he asked. “If you think Damien wouldn’t blame me then…why do you think he’d blame you? Are you…mad at him?”

Vinny shook his head. “No, I’m not mad at him at all. I understand where he’s coming from, but…he just frustrates me, is all. I know that no matter my reasoning, he’ll never accept what I did and I know that he won’t forgive me unless I tell him. I’m at a standstill. Either way, he’s going to be pissed and there’s nothing I can do to prevent that.”

Damien narrowed his eyes. But what is it he did that he thinks would piss me off so much? Liz told me that even she doesn’t know what Vinny did. What is he hiding? What did he do?

“Well…it’s still worth trying, I think,” he replied, trying to hide his inner turmoil. “Who knows? Maybe Damien won’t be pissed if you just tell him the truth.”

“No, he will be,” Vinny muttered. “You don’t know what I did, Liz. If you did, I couldn’t even say for sure that you wouldn’t be pissed. Damien…would definitely hate me.”

Hate him? So even he can admit that whatever he did was wrong? Then why is he standing by it so firmly?

“Can I ask you something?” Damien began carefully. “Do you think that what you did was the best way to help Alice?”

Vinny didn’t even hesitate. “Yes. I do. Rina and Evan won’t go near her again. She’s safe.”

Before he could reply, the bell signaling five minutes until class began rang out through the hall.

Vinny sighed and shrugged. “Oh well. Guess I’ve gotta go. I wish you luck with Damien though. I’m rooting for you, Liz.”

With a weak smile, Vinny waved him goodbye and made his way past him. Damien watched him go, feeling mildly guilty for lying to Vinny and pretending to be Liz, but also glad to have gotten to speak to him even just for a little.

Whatever he did…no matter how bad, it wasn’t malicious. He was truly only thinking of helping Alice. I just wish…I knew what it was he’s hiding.