Believe Me

Thirteen: They're Gonna Have a Bad Time

Believe Me

Ch 13: They're Gonna Have a Bad Time

Brice's POV

"I feel terrible," I sob into Annie's shirt. "I just - I was hurt, and I said a bunch of dumb things that I didn't mean, that I could never mean, and I - I cannot believe myself."

"Yeah, that was- wow, Brice," she breathes disbelievingly.

"Ohhhh, Notch," I groan. "Annie, he used to be so depressed. He doesn't really care what random people think of him anymore, but it used to be really hard on him. Imagine an entire city believing you to be heartless! He even believed it himself, sometimes - Notch, it was horrible. And now I'm... Now I've... Notch."

"You done goofed, Brice," Annie sighs. "You need to apologize."

"I know, but I just - Annie, what if he hates me?" I whimper.

"Hates you? Trust me, he won't hate you. That boy depends on you as though you're still housing his life source."

I frown. "Even though I'm not?"

"Even though you're not," Annie laughs. "You mean the world to him, Brice."

"But- But Alesa said-"

"Oh, dear. Alesa's my friend, but she gets all the wrong points across, even with her medicine, and especially if her listener is distracted. What did she say?" Annie asks.

"Well, she was talking about how to know if someone cares about you - they play jump maps with you every chance they get and they use any excuse to hangout with you and they make bad partner choices to try to make you jealous and they get themselves banned from pizzerias with you and-"

"You idiot."

"What?"

"That sounds like Sky and Ty's relationship."

"Well, yeah, she was talking about Sky and Ty."

"Oh my gosh, this wasn't Alesa's fault at all - you're just a total moron."

"What do you mean?"

"Brice, of course Seto doesn't act that way around you, which, I think, is where you were going with that. Seto doesn't act that way around anyone, dimwit, and neither do you. Alesa was describing how Sky and Ty show they care and also, most-likely, why Skylox is obvious. It doesn't apply to Seto, who acts much more subtly most of the time," Annie explains.

"I- Oh. So... Oh." My eyes widen. "Now I feel even worse."

"You should," she scoffs, "imbecile. Now go apologize to your soon-to-be boyfriend."

"My- what?"

She laughs. "Just go!"

"Fine, fine - snap, hold on," I say as my phone blares its ringtone. "Hello-"

"Brice, crap, you idiot - come to the lab. Now," Ty's voice commands, shaky and scared and breathless, and my eyes widen.

"What? Why?"

"Brice, please, it's Seto, the spell strained him too much, he couldn't handle it and oh Notch, he won't wake up, Brice."

"He- oh, Notch," I breathe, nearly dropping the phone. "It's- It's my fault."

"Doesn't matter, get yourself down here before I drag you here myself. Bring a few others, too, preferably some that can find their way around a laboratory."