Lies Everywhere

The Confrontation

//Stampy's POV//

"Netty!" I said, faking a cheerful tone in my voice as I stood up and hugged my sister. She squeezed me tight – a little too tight – then sat down on the opposite side of me.

"It's so nice to see you again, Joe," she said somewhat formally, and I flinched almost unnoticeably. Netty would only call me Joe when we were alone; she liked to try and keep up her 'best sister ever' attitude around my friends by using my nickname.

I felt Sqaishey nudge my shoulder with hers slightly, and I realised I had become lost in thought and hadn't replied to my sister.

"Same goes for you," I responded. Netty leaned out to the side, getting a better view of Sqaishey.

"And you must be Sqaishey! Squid was telling me about you," she said, a sickly sweet smile on her face. For a split second, Sqaishey's face was cold, until she blinked and made it appear as though she was happy.

"Good things, I hope," she laughed, her hand finding mine. I squeezed it reassuringly.

"How long are you planning to stay here, Netty?" I asked, my head tilted in apparent intruigement. 

"Just a couple of days. I'm passing through for work and thought it couldn't hurt to stop by and say hi to my baby brother!" she said, punching me on the arm, hard. I tried to play it off for her, chuckling and rubbing my arm in 'fake pain', when in reality I was fighting to keep tears from falling. 

Two days...
I just had to get through two days.

//Amy's POV/

"They've been up there for a while, Squid," I said anxiously, pacing around the kitchen as I checked my watch. Squid was leaning up against the counter, rolling a bruised apple between each hand.

"He'll be right, Amy, Sqaishey's there," he said gently, picking up the apple and placing it back in the bowl. I shook my head.

"I know, I know, but I'm just so scared that something's going to happen to him." My voice dropped, and I stopped pacing and stared at the floor.

I felt a hand on my upper arm and lifted my head to see Squid standing there. My vision was hazy with tears, and I wiped at them hastily. We hesitated for a moment, just staring at each other, until I started to cry and Squid pulled me into his arms.

"I never knew," I sobbed, my face pressed into his shoulder. "He's been suffering for so long and I've never been able to help him."

"It's not your fault," Squid murmured, rocking from side to side ever so slightly.
"Stampy didn't want any of us to get hurt because of him, so he wouldn't tell anyone. I only found out because I saw the bruises."

Stampy was so selfless, so good, and it just made me cry more thinking about how such a genuinely kind person could have such a terrible past.

Squid held me close, rubbing my back as I cried softly into his shoulder. A few more minutes passed until I managed to calm myself down, reluctantly pulling out of Squid's arms. 

"Thanks, Squid," I mumbled, wiping my eyes. He shrugged, handing me a tissue. "Anytime."

I heard footsteps – 3 sets of them – coming down the stairs, and I spun around, quickly dabbing at my eyes to cover up any sign that I'd been crying. Stampy and Sqaishey entered the room first, and they both gave us a hasty, shaky nod to let us know everything was okay before Netty entered. 

I put on a fake smile, and walked over to Netty. "Do you want something to drink?" I asked. She nodded. "Just water, please." She sat up at the kitchen bench, with Sqaishey on her left and Stampy next to Sqaishey. I passed her the glass of water, resisting the urge to hurl it at her chest. "Thanks," she said sweetly, taking a sip.

"So, Amy, how's YouTube going?" Netty asked after a few moments, startling me. As if you care.
"Really good, actually, I just hit 3mil!" I replied, trying to talk to her as I would with any friend. Netty smiled, and for a moment I could believe she really was who she pretended to be.
"I saw some rumours and stuff – some hate, I guess – going around?" Nevermind...she must've read those lies.
"Yeah, there is," I responded. "Petty stuff, though. I'm trying not to let it bother me." I hoped that that would get the message across.

Sure enough, she left me alone, and turned her attention to Squid, asking the same sort of questions. I helped him out when I could, but my mind was overrun by how such a sweet girl could truly be so awful...

-*-*-*-

//AN//

Me? Never updating?

It's more likely than you think.

Real talk, I'm sorry that I haven't been updating. School is hectic, and to be honest, I'm not apart of the MagicAnimalClub fandom anymore – however I will continue to work on this story.

Unfortunately, all of the W.O.P books I've mentioned in previous chapters have been lost, as I got a new computer and the work was not backed up. I would try to rewrite, but it was over 10k words and I simply don't have the time.

I'll try to be as frequent as possible with new updates on this book, however as of now, I believe it will be my last MagicAnimalClub centered book. 

- magicanimal_books xo