LEO

"Bye, Mama," I called, striding confidently toward my car. Today was the day. Today was the day I finally took Libra out on a real date and asked her to be my girlfriend. I was ready, and nothing could stop me. Starting the car, I zoomed off, mentally psyching myself up. Libra had told me that we were just friends many, many times, but occasionally, she slipped up and gave me hope for us. That was what kept me going. Varsity High came up in front of me as I parked my car, my friends passing around a ball by the gates. I continued walking, determined to ask Libra out before first period.

"Scorpio, you know I care, but we can't be together right now."

"Why not, Libra? What's stopping you?" I stopped in my tracks, placing my ear to the door of the janitor's closet.

"Everything is stopping me, Scorpio! Like the fact that the last time we were together, you ended up in a coma. Like the fact that we're both damaged goods. We just... we don't work out, Scorpio!"

"We'll make it work, Libra! It was always meant to be you and me, it's fate..."

"I don't believe in fate." She sighed.

"Not anymore." Scorpio groaned, frustrated.

"Stop making excuses! I know you want this too-why are you so stubborn?"

"I could ask you the same thing! You've got some stupid fairytale fantasy sequence in your head, and you're just not letting it go! Snap out of it!"

"I will not 'snap out of it!' One of needs to know that we were meant to be-"

"Listen to yourself, Scorpio! What are you, some sort of Prince Charming?"

"That's not even a part of this discussion-"

"Well, I don't remember Prince Charming smoking or taking drugs or getting high or-"

"Why do you always have to be like this? Why are you so unfeeling?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe it's because I'm a bit on edge after our last two breakups!"

"It's not that hard, Libra! You just need to let me in-"

"It's the same thing every time! It's pathetic! You're always going on and on with your 'let me in, let me in' crap! What if I don't want to let you in anymore? I can't do it anymore, Scorpio! I want to believe that our relationship is lovely and calm and simple, but it's not! Look at what we're doing right now, Scorpio!"

"Libra, I get it! We fight, we argue, we fizzle. But you and I... we never give up. You know you're in love with me."

"Scorpio-"

"I told you I loved you because I do, Libra! I need you and me together!"

"Scorpio-"

"I meant it, Libra! And look, I'm prepared to take things slow, but it's going to be you and me in the end. We both know it. So just stop denying-"

"SCORPIO!"

"What?"

"We aren't alone."

The door swung open, and out stepped Libra, fuming. Scorpio was frowning at her from behind. "Oh, of course the quarterback is eavesdropping," he mumbled, glaring at me. Libra turned around, an absolute blur.

"Do you ever shut up?" she shouted, her finger on his chest.

"Do you ever shut up, Libra?"

"Oh, you little-"

"What are you going to say, huh?"

"I-"

"Exactly."

They both looked extremely guilty, looking at the floor.

"I'm sorry," they muttered in unison. Libra hugged Scorpio before stepping away, planting a kiss on his cheek.

"How about we just cool it for now?" she asked Scorpio. He nodded. "Friends until we stop... cooling it." Libra laughed. "See you, Scorpio." She turned toward me, looking rather apologetic. I knew that I should have been sad, but I found their argument wildly amusing, and so I smiled at Libra.

"Didn't know you had it in you, Leebs."

"Hey, hey, hey, I dragged you around for about a month, didn't I? I'm strong, especially with my words."

"Yeah, I can see that. Anyways, I was wondering if you wanted to hang tonight? Just... as friends, given recent developments..." Libra smirked, lowering her voice to a whisper.

"Why not as more, Leo? You're not chickening out here, are you?" And with that, she walked away. I smirked, watching her leave. That girl had serious guts.

.....

"What do I wear, man?" I asked Sagittarius, staring at my closet blankly. He cleared his throat.

"Wear something that makes you feel-oh, I don't know, mate, I just throw on the first thing that comes in contact with my hands." I sighed, reaching for a shirt. "Oh, this is no use!" Sagittarius smirked, reaching toward my closet. Moments later, he revealed a grey tee, dark blue jeans and a pair of black and white sneakers. A black coat hung off his arm on a hanger. "Voila! Just throw this on." I stopped to take a good look at Sagittarius, in awe of his skills. "You sure you're not undercover Barbie?" Sagittarius snorted. "Please, I don't know anything about fashion. You want a really well-dressed guy? Go talk to Pisces-that guy knows his stuff."

Sagittarius straightened up. "Yo, I got a date tonight too, man," he commented, smirking. I raised an eyebrow. "Who with?"

"Addison. She's this senior and she's so nice. Plus, she's, like, the ultimate prankster. I can't wait, man!" I frowned. "It's only been a week since you and Aries broke up, Sarge. Are you sure you're ready for a relationship?" Sagittarius scoffed. "Relationship? Oh, no. We're just going out for some fun. Besides, I broke up with her, like three days ago. Old news, mate-I can't stay sad forever, eh?" I raised an eyebrow. "But you were never sad, man. You came to school the next day and had an awesome day-got Mr. Jones, pranks for the books throughout the day..." Sagittarius shrugged. "I'm not the kind to get hung up over a breakup. It was fine while it lasted, and now's it's over, you know? What's the point stressing over it?"

I took a moment to think about Sagittarius' approach. He was always happy because he never really gave anyone the power to make him feel sad. He got into relationships with no strings attached and left them just as fast. The only real, close relationship this boy had was with Libra. It only took me moments to realise Libra did the exact same thing as Sagittarius, breaking up with guys just as easily as she got together with them. Scorpio was a mistake. He was the one she never meant to fall for. But now that she was so close to him, she had to decide if that mistake was worth righting.

The doorbell rang. I made my way downstairs, trying to figure out how I came into Libra's story even though I already knew. I opened the door and in came Libra, wearing a white dress and matching booties. She pulled on a cropped black fur-like jacket, grinning. "C'mon, Leo, you and I have a restaurant to get to."

.....

"Wow, this place is really nice, huh?" I commented, looking around at the restaurant. Libra smiled, sipping her sparkling water. "Mom's friend owns the place-he makes a mean risotto." She looked at me, her eyes meeting mine.

"So, about what you heard..."

"I get it; you two have history."

"Well... I guess."

"Look, it's fine with me. I've told you: I just want to take care of you. I don't mind if I'm the rebound or the second choice or whatever, I just want to be here for you, Leebs."

"That's... that's really sweet. But I have to know: why me?"

"I fell for you when you showed me how vulnerable you really were underneath everything. Remember, freshman year? You were in tears and I asked you what was wrong. You told me all about how everything felt cold and bleak inside you and how you didn't think you would feel all warm and fuzzy again. If you would ever feel like you were..."

She smiled softly. "Hugging a teddy bear."

"Well, I wanted to make you feel happy. I wanted you to go hug that teddy bear, I guess. But, the thing is, ever since that night, I couldn't stop thinking about how much you must be hurting. I couldn't get you out of my head, Leebs, and that's when I knew you were the girl for me. You were someone I could love and care for and call my own. I could help you, save you."

"So... sympathy turned into feelings?"

"I guess you could say that."

"Well... I think that's kind of... big-headed." Libra winced when she saw me frown. "I don't think you should be thinking of me as someone you have to stay with because I'm lesser than you or something." I groaned, looking Libra dead in the eyes.

"Look, get this into your head: I'm trying to help you here. I'm trying to make you a better person. Let's face it, Libra, you're not very strong. You can't take care of yourself. You need help, and I'm strong enough to get you through this." Libra fidgeted with her paper straw, looking conflicted. "Leo, please. You need to stop saying stuff like that."

"Look, I'm sorry if it hurts your feelings, Libra, but you're weak. You're incapable of handling yourself. You can't even handle one guy! You're a big, fat mess. Right now, you're a loser. And I'm a winner who's willing to help you out. You should be grateful that a guy like me is willing to help you out." I didn't even care if I sounded like a brag. Libra needed to know the truth.

Libra chuckled, tilting her head slightly so her makeup caught on the light.

"So that's what you think?" she asked, raising her voice.

"It's not what I think, Libra, it's what I know."

She laughed once again in a way that made my toes curl.

"See, all this time I thought you were a sweet guy. I thought you were honestly just really thoughtful and caring. But all this time, it's been about your ego, hasn't it?"

"That's beside the point-"

"But it isn't, is it? This is you showing your true colours."

"I don't care what you think right now, Libra. Like it or not, you're a vulnerable person who needs lots of help for the smallest things."

"See, that's where you're wrong. I don't need your pity, Leo. I thought I did for a really, really long time, but now I've realised that I'm at my best when I'm fending for myself. I can stand on my own two feet and forge my own path, Leo! You don't need to hold my hand all the time. You don't need to act like I'm some kind of puppy with a broken leg. I'm perfectly capable of functioning without help, thank you very much." She pulled out her wallet, slamming 30 dollars down onto the table.

"See this? I made it myself. I've got a job as an assistant at the beauty store, and I'm getting paid quite well. They want to promote me since the customers love the products I've been recommending." She took her purse, pulling on her coat hastily.

"Get yourself some dinner with that and don't forget I just paid, you egotistical jerk."

She turned on her heel, strutting away. I stood, rushing to catch up with her.

"Libra, this isn't a joke! You can't just walk out alone!"

She turned around, fuming. "Oh, really? You just watch me!"

I grabbed her wrist quite firmly, not letting her go.

"What are you doing, Leo?"

"Sit back down right now! You're making me look like an idiot!" I yelled, anger flaring through me. I no longer had any control over my actions.

"I'm not going to sit down!" she yelled. By now, the owner was walking toward us.

"Sit down... or I'll make you."

Libra did not move.

I grabbed her dress, dragging her back toward the table. The owner was moving toward us, yelling at me to stop-

"THAT'S IT, YOU FREAKING DOUCHEBAG!"

And that's when her fist made contact with my body and everything slowly faded to black.