Kigo

On Being Sheila Gonzalez by Nate Grey

Chapter 3: Crime and Punishment

Kim wanted to tell herself that she was merely imagining things, but a little voice inside her head continued to insist that she was in danger of losing those closest to her.

It had all started on the night that Ron went missing. Although he'd finally shown up the next day, he had not been himself. At least, not the Ron that Kim had come to recognize as her best friend. He was very jumpy, and seemed especially on edge whenever Kim was around. It was almost as if he were afraid of saying or doing something that would upset her, but Kim was honestly more worried about him than anything else.

Then there was Shego. She hadn't said a word about her hunch since that night, and whenever Kim tried to bring it up, the subject was always immediately changed. Aside from that, Shego had become a lot more subdued lately. Her infamous sarcasm seemed to have faded away completely, and Kim found herself missing all the usual witty replies. More than that, she missed the Shego she'd first kissed, because only traces of that woman remained now.

Monique was perhaps the most mysterious. and therefore most disturbing change of all. She seemed to have absolutely no time for Kim anymore, claiming that she was simply busy for some unknown reason. The first few times, Kim had thought that might be true. But with every additional rejection, she began to sense that Monique was doing everything in her power to stay away from her. It was unusual, confusing, and above all else, frightening.

Shego knew even before she touched the door handle that something was very wrong. Perhaps Kim's parents had found out about them, or a mission had hit too close to home. Whatever it was, it was upsetting Kim, and someone needed to do something.
She eased the door open, only to find Kim facedown on the bed, crying softly into her pillow. Shego closed the door behind her and rushed over to the bed, her heart aching with every step as gently rubbed Kim's back. Instead of relaxing, however, Kim's back stiffened beneath her hand.

"Kimmie, what is it?" Shego asked. "What's wrong?"

For a moment, Kim didn't answer. Finally, she rolled over and trained her red-rimmed eyes on Shego's face. "Just tell me what I did. Please. Tell me what I did to make everyone abandon me..."

Shego's eyes widened in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

"You, Ron, Monique, all of you. You've changed. It must have been something I did, so please just tell and I'll fix whatever made you all hate me..." Her expression crumbled, and she buried her face in her hands.

"Oh, Kimmie," Shego whispered. She reached out and drew Kim into her lap. At first, Kim resisted, but then she all but collapsed into Shego's arms, her sobs muffled against Shego's shoulder. Shego merely rocked Kim back and forth like a child, occasionally stroking her hair or pressing a tender kiss to her forehead.

"We don't hate you, Kimmie," Shego murmured after Kim had calmed down. "That's not it at all."

"Then what is it?" Kim asked desperately.

"It's something all three of us have to explain together. But none of us hates you, I promise." Shego gave Kim one last kiss on the nose before setting her on the bed and grabbing the phone. She punched in Monique's number with more force than was necessary.

Kim watched Shego's shoulders tense up, and realized she was quickly growing angrier by the second. 'Is she really that upset because I was crying?' she asked herself.

"Monique, it's me. We need to talk. All four of us." Shego paused, and then snarled into the phone, "You tell that little coward we've waited too long as it is. We've got Kimmie thinking we hate her."

Even from where she was sitting, Kim thought she heard a gasp.

"Yeah, I thought so. We'll be over in a few." Shego hung up and turned to Kim. "Okay, princess, let's go." She started to turn away, but Kim suddenly seized her face and kissed her passionately.