Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“I'm sorry, Sam.”

Three words that doomed their fate. Or was it those three words? Maybe it was the next three.

“Let's break up.”

Or the three after that?

“I'm kinda gay.”

The whole 'I'm kinda gay' thing took place outside her locker. Sam had just shut it when he'd jogged up to her, looking a little like he was going to be sick. He wiped his hands on his trousers. Assuming it wasn't a dire situation (most likely something had come up and he was going to cancel their date to the skate park again), she'd leaned back against her locker, folding her arms. Knowing he didn't have much time, he just decided to throw all subtleties aside.

“You're kinda gay?” Sam raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah. Well, no, not really. I'm bi. I always have been. I mean, you already knew that, so.” He laughed, but it looked like he was trying hard not to cry. “Sorry, I didn't mean to say that. I'm bi. But, uh, I think we should break up.”

“What is this about, Odd?” Sam demanded, folding her arms over her chest. “If you're bi that means you're cool with girls too, right? So what's the big deal?”

“I think I prefer guys. And I think I'm about to start seeing someone.” His voice cracked and he coughed. Odd's face flooded with shame. “I think I might be seeing someone who isn't you, Sam. And I feel really weird about it and I don't want to lead you on so I'm doing this now. I'm sorry. I really care about you.”

This wasn't something Sam saw coming. Admittedly, she'd tried breaking up with him at first because he'd been acting like a total jerk, but he'd been getting better. They were working out fine. Or so she'd thought.

“So you're breaking up with me... because you've met someone else.” She said this slowly, to confirm. He nodded. “So you're leaving me so that you can run off to happy land with... who? Who is it, Odd?”

“Er...” Odd grimaced. “I wouldn't say leaving – because you'll leave me first, you know? And... I can't say, I don't think they'd want me to...”

“Why?”

“Because you'd either hit me, or hit them,” he groaned.

“What, and you don't deserve that?” She was angry; not just angry at Odd for basically cheating on her but at herself for genuinely believing he wouldn't. They'd been in an open relationship for nearly two years now – she knew that when she was gone he spent time with girls (probably guys too, though she knew for a fact that it wasn't anyone at Kadic) – but their agreement was that for as long as they were attending the same school they didn't date other people.

Odd shook his head.

“No, I do deserve it. I just don't want you to take it out on... them. So I think concealing their identity is okay, isn't it? I'll take whatever punishment you dish out, but he isn't ready to come out yet, so please...”

She shoved him against her locker, body alight with hurt, her blood burning. There might have been tears in her eyes, but she did tend to get hay fever around this time of year, so it was probably the latter.

“I'll spare you that. That's my last favour as your girlfriend. We're through.”

Murmurs rose around them as she stumbled back in the direction of the dorms, snapping at Milly and Tamiya as they tried to reach out to her for a scoop in the gossip column, leaving Odd leaning against her locker in bewilderment. Somehow she managed to contain her grief until the door was firmly locked behind her.

Then she cried.

…

Now, Sissi wasn't persistent. She wasn't. Sure, she made a firm point of addressing Ulrich every so often; it wasn't like she believed it was going to happen, not anymore, but that didn't make getting over the crush she'd had on him for the last three years any easier.

She wasn't sensitive to the feelings of others, but Ulrich was a rare exception. Recently, he'd seemed down. Sissi didn't reckon Yumi understood – all she seemed to do these days was hang all over William, in Sissi's opinion, and it wasn't a case of being biased, it was the truth – and she was determined to help in any way possible. Even if that meant ever so slightly crossing the line between good friend and stalker.

He'd been wandering off by himself. It wasn't like the others in his weird group noticed, either. In fact, Sissi was fairly certain she was the only one that had spotted him heading that way, so impulsively she followed him, anticipating some sort of secret project awaiting him. Maybe he was meeting a girl? One of those awful stuck up ones from the private school in the next neighbourhood, with the pretty uniforms and perfect hair? (Sissi already had cute clothes and perfect hair, thank you very much. Ulrich just looked like the type of guy to fall for a girl in uniform.) Her stomach clenched in a flicker of jealousy at the thought, and she wasted no time in following him.

Of course, she didn't expect what she got, but she really should have expected that much at least.

When Odd emerged behind the tree, she didn't know what to think. Then after exchanging a few words they started kissing, and that just about confirmed every fear she'd ever had regarding those two.

She concealed herself behind the oak tree and listened in as they continued to make out, oblivious to her presence.

“I broke things off with Sam,” Odd muttered so quietly Sissi really had to strain to hear. The crease in Ulrich's brow deepened.

“And she wasn't mad?”

“No, she was.” Odd sighed and leaned against Ulrich's shoulder, and Sissi could hear the pout in his voice. “I mean, she had every right to be. But she slammed me against a locker!!”

“You probably deserved it. You've always been bad at breaking up with girls.” There was a tense pause, before, “Did you tell her... about me?”

“No,” Odd breathed, and Ulrich's shoulders sagged in relief. “I promised not to, didn't I?”

“Still, it's not the first time you've ran your mouth around her,” Ulrich ribbed with a dry smile. Odd scoffed, sounding offended.

“What do you take me for, Ulrich? I'm hurt, hurt I tell you, that you would say such a thing!”

Their conversation continued with a mixture of playful insults and chaste kisses, until Sissi finally slunk away, feeling small.

…

Sam was halfway through a heart-wrenching Tegan and Sara album when she was disrupted by a sharp knock at her door. Sitting up in a daze, she caught sight of her face, blotchy with tears she had wasted on Odd, and scowled at her reflection.

“Odd, leave me alone,” she snapped at the door, hoping he would take the hint.

“It isn't Odd,” the voice answered. The usually haughty tone lacked any of its attitude today. It just sounded small.

Sam's eyes widened incredulously, and she hunched back defensively, as though the offender would actually break down the door just to torment her on her split ends and 'shabby' fashion sense. “Sissi Delmas? What the hell do you want?”

“Rude!” Sissi shot back, sounding a little more like her old self. “Let me in, would you? I got something to tell you.”

Sam searched for some concealer and hastily dabbed at her face, not wanting Sissi Delmas of all people to see her face so raw.

“Why should I? I'm not in the mood for hearing about how shitty my clothes are, Sissi, not today.”

“I'm not here about that!” Sissi's impatient tones brought forth a spike of annoyance that, in the meantime, was an escape from thinking about Odd, so she reluctantly opened the door. Sissi opened her mouth, probably to say something cutting about Sam's complexion, but thought better of it and shut up.

“Can I sit down?” she asked, pointedly glancing between Sam's tattered desk chair and the dishevelled bed. Sam nodded listlessly, closing down her iTunes and taking a seat on the old chair. Sissi perched on the edge of the bed, looking out of place against the unmade bed and band posters.

“So what do you want?” Sam asked, running her fingers through her hair. Her trilby sat on her desk, untouched.

Sissi played with her hands for a few moments, uncertain, before piping up, “I know who Odd is seeing.”

Sam felt like she had been punched.

“How? How exactly do you know that, were they... were they together today? Less than an hour after breaking things off with me he runs off to be with his new guy friend? Screw him!” Sam bit down on her lip hard, seeing red, before turning to glare at Sissi. “So what do you want, Sissi? Did you come here to rub it in my face? Get me back for that time in science I called you Regina George? What do you think you could possibly say that could make me feel any worse?”

For a few moments Sissi sat silently, stunned. Then, she lowered her head. “I didn't come for that. I just thought you had a right to know who it was.”

“Well, I don't want to know.”

The two sat in silence, Sam sulking, Sissi fidgeting, until finally Sam spoke. “So what did you think was going to happen if you did tell me? Were you going to leave it at that? Or did you expect me to pluck up some plan of revenge on the two of them and invite you along for the ride?”

“I don't know,” Sissi sneered, scowl deepening. “I didn't think that far ahead. I just... I guess I just felt like I had to tell you. It's not right, what those two are doing.”

“So this was for girls everywhere? No malicious intent at all?”

“I wouldn't say at all because you know that Odd gets under my skin,” she protested, raising an eyebrow. “But mostly, yes. We may not be friends, Suarez, but we're both girls, and I'd absolutely hate it if a guy did that to me.”

“You'll have to find one to date first,” Sam ribbed, although she was smiling faintly. “All right, Sissi. Say that I did want revenge... what's the plan, exactly?”

“Sabotage. Odd never remembers to lock his room, so getting in there is pretty easy. Hmm... we could tin-foil everything? Someone in the year above did that to their friend's room when they went home for winter break. It was magnificent. So thorough, as well.”

“Tin-foil isn't too bad. We'll see what we can find when we get there.”

“Perfect.”

Sam grinned. “So when should we strike?”

“Well, Ulrich and the dream team usually slip out around five, right after dinner. So Odd should be with them. That would be the ideal time.” Sissi stood up and showed herself out, smirking as she took one last sweeping glance at Sam. “Meet me there?”

“It's a date,” Sam echoed, picking up her hat and placing it defiantly on her head.

…

When Odd returned from yet another one of Jeremie's programming runs, he stared in dismay as his iPod nano sat solidly in a frozen glass of water on the counter. On the piece of paper beneath the glass, a lipstick mark and a crude drawing of a trilby lay side by side.

…

…

A few weeks later, Sissi decided to take Sam shopping.

It was premeditated, ever since the raid on Odd and Ulrich's room. Now, Sissi had been trying to wipe her slate clean of the kind of malicious things she used to do to her classmates – there was nothing mature about blackmail, after all – but after Sam's iPod-in-frozen-glass-of-water trick... how could she recover from that? It was brilliant. It reminded her of all those times she had pulled tricks on Ulrich and his gang when they were younger, and it was somehow nostalgic. Taking Sam shopping was not only to improve her fashion sense, but to show her that she had appreciated being able to take part in such a cruel sabotage on the prank master himself.

“Want to go into town later, Suarez?” Sissi dropped casually as she approached the bench in the courtyard that Sam sat at between each class. It was always the same sight – legs crossed, skinny paperback in hand, like she was posing for a Starbucks photo shoot. Sam glanced up in surprise, although when she saw who it was her face relaxed a little and retained some of the sneer it usually did when she saw Sissi.

“What brought this on? Did my wardrobe finally get too much for you to bear? Are you going to dress me up in high waisted shorts and make me crimp my hair?”

The sarcasm dripping from her mouth made Sissi's stomach twist and she scowled.

“Why, do you not want advice from a fashion guru like me? I could probably introduce you to some guys too, so you can rub it in Odd's face.”

Sam laughed, though it sounded more like a cough. “I'm not looking for more revenge right now. And I definitely don't want you of all people to set me up with a guy. Also, I don't really rock the look you're going for, Sissi. There's a reason I don't wear those skirts, you know.”

“True, your legs would definitely look better in shorts or pants,” Sissi agreed, eyes sweeping over Sam. “I still think I ought to take you out, though. I need to know which shops you get clothes from so I know to never, ever shop there.”

“I used to live by the coast before I came here, I think you're safe,” Sam replied, eyebrow raised, though she rose to her feet. “Well, all I had for the rest of the day was biology, and I can't deal with Ms Hertz right now. Sure, lets go.”

…

“What kind of mascara do you use, Suarez?”

“I don't.”

“Well that explains a lot.”

“Piss off about my face, okay? At least I have natural beauty on my side. What's your excuse?”

“Rude!” Sissi sipped on her cappuccino and raised her eyebrows. “All I'm trying to say is that maybe you'd turn a few more heads if you darkened your lashes some more. I mean, you have the natural gift of dark lashes, apparently, but they're very fine because you don't put anything on them. Mascara and eyeliner would really bring out your eye colour.”

“Is that so?” Sam asked without much interest, chugging the last of her strawberry frappe through a straw. “Well, I hate to break it to you, Sissi, but I'm not planning on 'turning a few heads'. If I wanna look good I wanna do it for me, not for guys. What I'm most concerned about is how to go about catching Odd in the act with the guy he's hooked up with.”

“Look, I know who it is, and if you'd just let me tell you it'd be twelve times as simple to catch them in the middle of something dirty,” Sissi pointed out. Sam scowled.

“No! Where's the fun in that? If I catch them in the middle of something and I already know what to expect the reaction won't be nearly as brilliant as it will be if I'm completely unaware of who the man on the other end of Odd's cock is.”

“Please stop saying that.”

“Why? It's true.” She closed her eyes. “Normally I wouldn't be so caught up in it, but this is Odd. We had an agreement – no dating other people while we're attending the same school – and he broke it. So, I'm taking this personally.”

“I think I'd take it personally regardless of whether he cheated,” Sissi vouched. “I mean, leaving you for a guy? Isn't that, like, insulting?”

Sam shook her head, opening her eyes and examining her phone. “Nah, I already knew he was bi. That part doesn't bother me. It's just the nerve of him running off to be with his new guy within an hour of breaking up with me. What's with that? It would be easier to forgive him if he just had a little tact.”

Sissi stared off into the distance thoughtfully and Sam took this opportunity to steal the last strawberry from the pile of waffles they were sharing (not that Sissi would mind; she'd complained about the calories of eating café food enough in the past five minutes, after all). When she spoke, there was a note of curiosity in her voice.

“Well, what would Odd say if you got together with another girl? It would be one thing to find yourself a new guy, but a girl would throw him for a loop, wouldn't it?”

Sam stared.

“I'm not suggesting anything!” Sissi hurriedly tried, even though now it sounded even more like she was suggesting something than before. She felt her face redden. “It's not like that. It was hypothetical. I mean, an eye for an eye, right? If he gets with a guy, get with a girl and see how he likes it? That's all I was trying to say!”

Sam swallowed the strawberry and exhaled. “...Well... I never specifically told him I was bisexual too... I never thought there was much point bringing it up. I don't know if getting with a girl would do much good though. I mean, how many lesbians do you see hanging around Kadic, anyway? Not to mention it would be just as bad as leading them on, and I'm not a bitch.”

“Well, what if you found a girl who was totally fine just flirting with you a bit in front of Odd, who was in on the plan and didn't care if people thought you were going out? Would you do it?”

“Are we still talking hypothetically here?” Sam asked suspiciously.

“Yes! Of course!”

Only now Sissi wasn't thinking hypothetically, she was thinking realistically, and how awful yet magnificent it would be. Dating Sam, that'd be the awful part. But the satisfaction of being able to pull the ultimate trick on Odd, to see his face as his ex-girlfriend waltzed off in the arms of not just any woman, but Sissi Delmas... that was the magnificent part.

It was an offer almost too brilliant to pass by. But she didn't want to give Sam any ideas. After all, it wasn't like she was looking to hook up with another girl. Getting Sam's hopes up would only hurt her later. And Sissi was trying to be nicer these days.

Sam contemplated the scenario for a few moments.

“I guess,” she said eventually, “if there was someone willing to do that, I'd be up for it. Just long enough to show Odd how it feels. Then we could stage a dramatic break up and be done with it. Who would get a kick out of that, though?”

“Well, for one, the long line of Odd's ex-girlfriends whom he treated like dirt,” Sissi pointed out.

“A valid point,” Sam agreed, before dissolving into laughter.

…

It was almost 1am and Sissi couldn't sleep. Each time she tried to doze off the conversation would plague her thoughts and she'd shoot awake almost immediately. Why did she get like this whenever a good opportunity to prank someone arose?

Groggily she climbed out of bed, appreciating the silence as she left her room, tiptoeing towards the bathroom. The corridor was dark, and the only noise was the sound of typing coming from Aelita's room. If she pressed an ear to the door she'd probably be able to hear the muffled whispers between the Einstein couple (and that Laura girl, if they even still talked to her. Sissi didn't know and frankly didn't care – that third Einsteinette freaked her out, the way she stared at her from across the room every history lesson). She pushed on the bathroom door with a sigh and came face to face with a ruffled-looking Sam.

The two stared at each other as several long moments passed. Then, after briefly eyeing Sissi up and down, Sam cleared her throat.

“So I was thinking-”

“Me too,” Sissi rushed. “We should. You know, do it. What we were talking about earlier.”

“You want to?” Sam asked, astonished. “For real?”

“It's a chance to play the ultimate cruel prank on Odd Della Robbia. Of course I'm for real.”

Sam pursed her lips. “Guess we're going out, then.”

“Cool. Meet me before breakfast and we'll come up with a plan of action?”

“Deal.”

High-fiving her on the way out, Sam retreated to her room as Sissi began to wash her face, never once turning off the taps. That was that.

…

Kadic Academy's cafeteria was always hectic during the breakfast rush, and today was no exception; the din was loud as ever, the staff shouting as younger kids burst through the doors from the courtyard with footballs at their feet, the groups guys laughing at something on their phones, the girls in turn yelling at them to stop stalking their twitter profiles. The only difference was that the usually empty tables Sissi and Sam sat at respectively had become one less in number, as the two were sat opposite one another, setting up for their first performance.

“So, here's the schedule: we'll walk to every class together, hand in hand; you'll compliment me on my clothes, I'll compliment you on your eyebrows; we'll plant kisses on the cheek, mouth or hand if and whenever Odd walks by; we'll eat every meal together; we'll hang all over each other in the wreck room; we'll constantly text and act super loved up about it; and last but not least, I'll be in charge of changing facebook relationship statuses and we'll take a bunch of cute lovey-dovey selfies to upload to both of our instagram accounts.”

“This is extremely thorough,” Sam complimented as she buttered a croissant. “Were you up all night making this plan?”

“This isn't the first time I've fake-dated someone, so I know the drill,” Sissi replied with a shrug. “I've just never done it with a girl before, so it should be even more fun since girls are actually sensitive about whether or not we're wearing special perfume and stuff.”

“To be honest I probably wouldn't notice if you wore new perfume because I don't pick up on things like that,” Sam admitted. “Though, it would be fun to hang all over each other and announce that we're so compatible that our periods have synced. Can you imagine Odd's face?”

“...Yeah, we aren't going to do that.”

“Hey, I'm just trying to put forward some creative input. Can't call it a group project if you're doing all the work,” Sam retorted, lathering strawberry jam over her croissant and taking a bite. “Anyway, are you sure you're okay doing this? I mean, it'll smash your reputation to smithereens, and I know you care about that stuff.”

“Look, when I dyed my hair I didn't do it just to change up my look. It was a fresh start, you know, a chance to reinvent myself. Don't you think mixing up my sexuality is a big change? Who knows, maybe it'll make me even more popular than before. Guys love thinking they have a shot at 'turning' a girl straight, so when we've done our huge dramatic break up I'm sure guys will be lining up.”

“That is one of the dumbest things I've ever heard,” Sam deadpans. “But if that's your plan, go for it, I guess. I don't really care. But how will Principal Delmas take it? Your dad's one of the most conservative men I've ever met. I haven't met any gay students at Kadic, I have no idea how he's going to treat the two of us if this gets out.”

“Oh, quit worrying about that,” Sissi said dismissively, waving her hand. “My father loves me too much to do anything too terrible to me. It might take some getting used to, but he always tells me that he swore by my mother's deathbed that he would love me and care for me no matter what. I'm holding him to that.” She could admit to herself that it was a bit cruel to force her father to adapt to a fake relationship, but then she reasoned he should be more accepting of same-sex couples in his school anyway, and chose not to dwell on it anymore.

“That's quite harsh, since it's not even genuine. But anyway, are we going to make this public, or something exclusive? Maybe have Odd 'accidentally' catch us in the middle of something?”

“No, we have to be more sneaky than that,” Sissi explained, leaning in closer. “Yumi always waits for Aelita to come down before coming into the cafeteria. If we play our cards right they can be the ones who catch us 'slipping up', and they can run over to Odd and tell him what they saw. He'll believe it, get really bummed out, but he's still touchy over the break up so he'll probably try and keep his distance. That will give us about a week to romance it up and make it real convincing before he finally works up the courage to confront you.”

“You have it all planned out, don't you?” Sam grinned, reaching for her hot chocolate. “I'm impressed.”

“It's all talent, baby. If we pull this off successfully they'll still be talking about it several years from now. We'll be the stars of Milly and Tamiya's favourite gossip column – 'Are They Or Aren't They?' - we'll be brilliant. Not to mention Odd will get a taste of what he dished out.”

“You're having way too much fun with this,” Sam pointed out, although she was smiling. “Okay, so what exactly are we going to do to spark off the chain of interest?”

“Hm... kiss, maybe?” Sissi rolled her eyes dramatically. “I mean, I hate to jump the gun so soon, but it is necessary to be convincing otherwise Yumi and Aelita are never going to mention it to Odd. We only have to do it once. I mean, we might have to do it later on as well, but a kiss will totally stir things up. It doesn't have to last long, it just has to occur the moment they step through the door. Or maybe we should pretend to flirt first?”

“Well, we're gonna have to hurry it up, they're coming through the door now.”

Sam's gaze flickered over to where the two were stood, deeply engrossed in their own conversation, and without thinking she grabbed Sissi forcefully by the face and pulled her into a kiss that was supposed to look romantic and meaningful but ended up feeling like the trainwreck it has been born from. Sissi almost spluttered in surprise but held back just in time to catch Yumi staring from the corner of her eye. She decided to shut her eyes tightly, make a real show of it, and hastily began to lose her fingers in Sam's hair, deepening the kiss. As it would happen, it really wasn't that bad; Sam's lips were about as chapped as a boy's would be, if not slightly softer because apparently she did use Vaseline after all, despite how cracked her lips looked on the outside; her mouth tasted of strawberry jam; Sissi found her hair felt kind of like straw, but softer and more pleasant to run her fingers through. By the time she pulled away she could feel more than just Yumi's eyes on the two of them. Sissi could feel her face burning but instead she focused in on Sam, who was pink in the face and looked a little stunned at her own impulsive creativity. Her hat was skewered and Sissi set it straight with a grin, tapping Sam lightly on the nose.

“Well, that's set the ball rolling,” Sissi said simply, winking at Sam before bringing her cup of hot chocolate to her mouth.

Chapter Text

All was not well at Kadic Academy.

“I think it could be a new tactic employed by XANA,” Aelita explained as Jeremie raised an eyebrow, ever the sceptic. “Look, what else could it be? They were making out.”

“They could, you know, be experimenting?” he offered a little uncomfortably. “Does Odd know about it?”

“No, I think Odd and Ulrich are still in their room,” Yumi inputted. She glanced over at the table Sam and Sissi were sat at. “I mean, I know that it looks suspicious, but Odd did break up with Sam a few weeks ago. And neither of them have ever stated they weren't-”

“It just feels too weird!” Aelita exclaimed. Then, upon seeing Yumi and Jeremie's puzzled looks, “Not like that – not two girls. Those two specifically. I mean, Sam and Sissi? What do they have in common besides their hair colour?”

“They're both really bitter?” Jeremie suggested. “And that isn't even a valid point – Sissi dyes her hair.”

Aelita threw up her hands in disgust. Jeremie nodded in greeting as William sauntered over, looking baffled.

“Uh, did you guys hear? Sam and Sissi-”

“Saliva city? Yeah, we heard.” Aelita pulled a face. “We saw, too.”

William whistled.

“Hot damn.”

“William's immoral fetishes aside, I really don't think it's a XANA attack. I mean, what would XANA gain from turning two of our classmates into lesbians? Sam and Sissi aren't exactly close friends of ours, and Sam isn't even Odd's girlfriend anymore, so why would doing this benefit XANA in the slightest?” Yumi asked, arms folded over her chest.

Aelita's mouth quivered.

“Maybe it's a ploy to knock Odd's confidence so he performs poorly on Lyoko! He's not over her yet, I can tell. He keeps glancing over at Sam's spot in the courtyard whenever we hang out there.”

“But Odd seems happier now, somehow,” William pointed out with a frown. “Or relieved to be shot of her, at least. Maybe Sam was meaner than we gave her credit for.”

Yumi snorted. “Mean? Samantha may be prickly, but she's no meaner than any of us. Odd has never exactly been great boyfriend material, either. Maybe it just wasn't meant to be.”

“True, but don't let him hear you say that.”

“Say what?” Odd and Ulrich, having approached the group while they had been distracted by the subject at hand, sat at the table, setting down their trays. “And what has darling Sissi done now? Everyone's talking about her but I couldn't get any straight answers from Theo, he just kept laughing.”

“If you were looking for 'straight' answers, this might hurt a little,” William said with a snort. Yumi elbowed him in the ribs.

“William too?” Ulrich rolled his eyes. “Care to explain, anyone?”

There was a long silence.

“...I think I'm going to go to my room, I really need to check through this programme,” Jeremie said first, rising abruptly. Aelita stood up too, deciding that even if it was a XANA attack she still didn't want to be around when they broke the news to Odd.

“Oh my, look at the time, I gotta get going to Jim's class-”

“Hold it.” Odd jumped to his feet and grabbed the collars of both William and Yumi's jackets. Yumi stayed obediently, cursing fate, while William chose to sacrifice the jacket and slipped his arms out of the sleeves, escaping with a “See you in class Yumi!” and a manic wave.

“How bad is the story, exactly...?” Ulrich questioned, but then he stopped as he noticed Odd's gaze wander over to the far end of the cafeteria.

“Why is she sat next to Sissi?” he muttered, scrutinising the sight of polar opposites Samantha Suarez and Sissi Delmas sharing a table and seemingly holding a pleasant conversation.

“Well, the thing is-” Yumi began.

Their hands were touching. Sissi laughed, tossing her hair over her shoulder, and Sam squeezed her hand tighter.

Odd's grip on her jacket went limp. William's tumbled to the floor, forgotten.

“...I think they're going out now,” she explained softly.

The strained silence was lost beneath the din of the rumour mill.

…

“Samantha Suarez!! Is it true that you and Sissi Delmas are going out? Is it true that you two kissed passionately in the cafeteria this morning? How did this lesbian affair begin? Is it love?”

Sam was never in the mood for Milly and Tamiya's persistence and when it came to her love life she was especially irritated. She reasoned that since she was supposed to make her and Sissi's relationship appear genuine she should be milking opportunities to talk into their microphones, but another part of her felt no obligation to further their experience in the world of journalism since it gave them free access to ask her personal questions about her sexuality and love life. So she ignored them.

It wasn't like she had wandered into the eye of the storm knowingly – Milly and Tamiya had been waiting at her usual courtyard seat, video camera and notebook in hand, and had been persistent in following her down the corridor as she had tried to abandon ship. Sam knew by this point that same-sex couples at Kadic were so rarely sighted the school paper would make a big deal out of it, but she hadn't expected for it to catch on so quickly. Not that many people had been initially paying attention to them, but apparently somebody had caught it on camera, linked it to the school's facebook page and that was that – the end of their sound little lives as they knew it.

“Sissi,” she said stiffly as she approached the blonde, who was sorting out her locker, “the school paper is trying to interview me on our 'lesbian love affair' and I figured it would make more sense if you were the one doing that sort of thing, so if you see Milly and Tamiya would you just answer a few of their questions so they'll get off my back? If I see another microphone thrust in my face I will scream. All I want to do is sit in my spot and read this novel in peace.”

She held up her flimsy paperback as proof, and Sissi cocked an eyebrow.

“Fine. But you know, you should start calling me something more romantic. A pet name or something. Like, I'll call you sweetie, you call me honey? Something along those lines. Gotta be believable.”

Sam stared.

“...Believe me, I've never given anybody a pet name in my life,” she deadpanned, glaring as Milly's small squad of underclassmen in the paper charged towards them. “I'm escaping. Tell them I'm moving to Canada.”

“So much for making it public!!” Sissi called after her as Sam slipped into the girls bathroom. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, she set her books straight and shut her locker, glancing warily over at the stampede heading her way.

“Don't move, Sissi! We have serious questions for you!!”

As Milly and Tamiya emerged from the crowd of underclassmen, grinning like they'd scored the jackpot, she brushed off her skirt and addressed them with a serene smile.

“Go ahead. I'm sure you have a lot to ask.”

…

“Woah, sorry if I didn't give you enough direction when I said 'you take care of this, Sissi', but this is a little extreme, don't you think?” Sam spluttered, glancing over the column in amazement. “I mean, how the hell is Story of My Life 'our song'?”

“I blanked! It was the first song that came into my head. What would you have said instead?” Sissi shot back.

“Uh, I don't know, Crimson and Clover? All The Things She Said? Heck, even something as obvious as Girlfriend would fit us better than that. I don't think I've ever listened to One Direction with you. Ever.”

“That can be our next date, then,” Sissi said with a shrug. Sam sighed.

“Lets do something a bit more exciting than that, okay? Ice skating or something.”

“Sounds good to me! I'll make a note of it. Wednesday?”

“If the rink is open.”

The two had finally found solitude in Sissi's room, where they at least had a locked door standing between them and the school paper. Milly had given Sissi a preview copy of the upcoming article, telling the two of them to work out the kinks 'as a couple' and pass it back to her before curfew. After Sam was through with it the original text would be barely recognisable.

Sissi reached over and moved a strand of Sam's hair to one side. “Hey, so, we should take some cute couple pics soon. Create hype, and all that. If someone shows Odd what a great time we're having it's bound to bum him out.”

“True,” Sam agreed, squirming away from Sissi's hand. “Fine. We'll piece together a collage of pictures over the next few days. But nothing excessive, okay? If people think we're overdoing it they'll start to realise it's a hoax.”

“I promise I won't go overboard. I'm just having fun,” Sissi agreed, pouting. “Having a girlfriend is nicer than a boyfriend. You get me.”

“Well, you're meaner to guys, so they stay away from you. I mean, you're pretty harsh on other girls too,” Sam mused. “But I don't take that kind of shit from anyone, especially not you. That's probably what makes us so compatible.”

There was a sharp knock at the door.

“Sissi? We need to talk.”

“Ulrich?” Sissi hissed, glancing between the door and Sam, who shrugged, clueless. Realising Sam was still in the dark regarding Ulrich's role in the break up, she hastily crept over to the door. “Wait here,” she told Sam, who nodded, discarding the news article and picking up her phone instead.

Sissi shut the door behind her and leaned against it, exhaling, before laying eyes on Ulrich, who appeared antsy, folding and unfolding his arms. “What's up, Ulrich?”

“What's up?! What the hell are you playing at, running around kissing Samantha?! She's Odd's ex-girlfriend!”

“Uh, yeah...?” Sissi raised an eyebrow. “'Ex' is the key here, Ulrich. She doesn't belong to him. In fact, since they're broken up she doesn't have to answer to him for anything.”

“But why?” Ulrich snapped, eyes flashing. “Why would you...? You don't even like her!”

“Wherever did you get that idea from?” she asked innocently. “I don't think I'd be macking on a girl I don't like, Ulrich. Sam and I are dating. We're going ice skating on Wednesday, you know.”

“But you're not a lesbian!” he spluttered, waving his hands around for effect. Sissi sighed.

“Isn't that for me to decide?” she replied coolly. “Anyway, are you done yet? Not that I don't love talking to you, but Sam and I have plans, and I think I've answered all of your questions, so-”

“Listen,” he said urgently, grabbing her arm. “Odd is still hurting from the break up. What you're doing with Sam is upsetting him, so stop it, okay? Lesbian it up with some other girl. Just not her.”

For a moment Sissi almost believed him; his eyes were wide and anxious, his lips set tight and he was gripping onto her arm with some force. And then she remembered that less than thirty minutes after the initial break up Odd had his tongue in Ulrich's mouth, not a regret to be named. She pursed her lips and slid her arm out of his grasp.

“It doesn't work like that,” she said smoothly. “Maybe he should have considered this before breaking Sam's heart. What Sam and I have is real, okay? Give Odd my condolences. But don't tell me not to date her, Ulrich. Neither you nor Odd has that right.”

As he stood there dumbly, she flashed him a smile. “Gotta get ready now. Sam's waiting for me. Talk to you later, Ulrich!”

“Having fun?” Sam asked mildly as Sissi shut the door quickly and flipped the lock in place.

“Well, apparently we're hurting Odd's ego, so, so far so good I guess.”

“'What Sam and I have is real', huh?” Sam teased in a poor imitation of Sissi's voice, grinning as Sissi stuck out her tongue. “What we have is about as real as that blonde hair of yours.”

…

All eyes were on them as they sat down to eat that night. Rosa pursed her lips disapprovingly but said nothing. Some kids were steering themselves clear, others were fighting to get closer seats. Odd and his group were watching them like hawks.

“I didn't consider how much we'd stand out,” Sam muttered through a mouthful of spaghetti. Sissi hummed in agreement.

“Maybe we should eat out from now on. Become permanent residents in the McDonald’s down town.”

“I'm down for that.”

…

The lights were dim in their room, the sheets rumpled, and the only sounds audible were the soft kisses and fumbling of belts, the noises of clothing being removed. Yet there was still something lacking. They just couldn't get into the swing of things like they usually could.

“I mean, why do you even think she likes her?” Odd demanded. Ulrich peeked up from between Odd's legs. “Sissi is too uptight and shrill. What does Sam see in her?”

“You sound pretty jealous,” Ulrich stated, amusement in his voice. “Not quite over Sam yet?”

“Of course I am!” Odd was indignant. “I just don't understand how the hell that trainwreck of a relationship came to be.”

“They're pretty tight, apparently,” Ulrich commented, resting his chin on Odd's navel and peering up at the blond. “Sissi told me herself. She said her and Sam were the real deal. They're going ice skating on Wednesday.”

“I don't believe it! They're already going on dates?! How long have we been broken up for?!”

“Well, you and I were at it before you two broke up so I hardly think you're one to talk-” Ulrich started.

“They can't just do that, can they?! I mean, Sam knows I'm terrible! But she's better than that, isn't she?”

“I just don't know, buddy,” Ulrich responded, shaking his head. “I just don't know.”

He leaned up and pecked Odd lightly on the lips.

“Can we stalk their date on Wednesday?” Odd asked miserably. “I have to see it for myself. It's just too surreal to believe right now.”

“We don't need to go that far. Why not just ask Sam yourself?”

Odd groaned dramatically. “She hates me, Ulrich! She shoved me against a locker and sunk my iPod in ice, remember? The last thing she'll want is me asking about her lesbian love life!” He buried his face in Ulrich's hair. “I didn't even know she swung that way,” he mumbled incoherently. Ulrich reached up and patted the side of his head affectionately.

“We're a fine pair to talk. But neither did I, Odd. Neither did I.”

…

They were lying back on Sissi's bed, streaks of moonlight spattering the bedsheets and their curled up bodies. It was warm, but the warmth wasn't coming from outside, but within themselves, a heat rising from their stomachs and spreading through their arms, legs, chests, crotches. The only times their lips parted was to draw in enough oxygen for more kisses, a chain deep and strong and seemingly unbreakable. Sam thought her heart was ready to burst out of her chest. Her hands were getting lost in Sissi's hair, running down her neck, to her shoulders, hitting her waist, fingers clinging on tightly. Sissi's hands were on Sam's boobs, rolling in circles, squeezing, varying pressure. Nobody could reach them here. It was their own little world.

“I love you,” Sissi muttered in between kisses. “I love you so much.”

“You too,” Sam responded each time. “The feeling's mutual.”

She could only vaguely connect thoughts, moving from I love her to this feels so fucking good.

Then Sissi's hands dipped down her shorts and Sam stopped thinking altogether.

Had she ever done this with Odd? Hell no. Had she ever done it by herself? ...Yes.

But this was an entirely different experience, and the ecstasy rising from the pit of her stomach warmed her body, radiating through her. Sweat broke out on her skin. She was burning up inside, legs twitching, breath hitching, her voice coming out as a mewl when she tried to ask Sissi to slow the fuck down.

Then her eyes opened and she was on her own, facing up at the ceiling as light streamed through cracks in the curtains. Sam groaned and rolled over, pulling her pillow over her head.

“I'm so fucked.”

…

That morning Sissi was summoned to her father's office. She wasn't entirely sure why, but she could guess. Milly and Tamiya's paper had gone out this morning at 7am, and people had kicked up more of a storm than at breakfast yesterday. Their written interview would be featured on page 4, a double spread according to Milly and Tamiya's underclassmen, who were hanging around in the courtyard throwing papers at anybody who passed by. Kids wolf-whistled as Sissi strolled past. Guys leered at the picture, chanting 'that's so hot' and 'who'd have thought'. Girls raised their eyebrows, muttering the odd 'I never thought she was like that' and 'maybe we should dial back on sharing the shower rooms with her'.

The blurry snapshot of the kiss was featured on the cover, with the headline 'We Hear You Loud And Queer! - A Shocking Coming Out' in bold print. Sissi scowled down at the badly printed image. Her chin fat was so much more visible in that shot than it usually was.

Her father's secretary offered her a sympathetic smile as she passed, and she returned it uncertainly. It was amazing how differently people were looking at her just because she and Sam kissed in front of a crowd just the once. Were they already calculating how long it would last? Were they already searching for signs in her previous behaviour and sum it up to her being gay when that obviously wasn't the case?

Sighing, she reached his door and knocked.

“Daddy?”

A gruff voice responded.

“Come in, Elisabeth.”

Swallowing, Sissi pushed open the door to her father's office, the familiar smell of peppermint and book must hitting her. The first thing she noticed was the fact that her father was stood up, hands behind his back, watching outwards unto the courtyard – a telltale sign that she was in for a lecture. With a grimace, Sissi sat down and watched him apprehensively.

“What exactly are you playing at?” he asked simply, without turning to look at her. She raised an eyebrow.

“Um, I don't know what you mean,” she replied testily, watching him closely. He turned around, mouth set in a grim line.

“I saw the school paper this morning. In fact, I had heard a few students talking but I didn't believe it was anything more than idle student gossip. Rather malicious gossip, I'll admit, but I didn't for one moment consider there to be any truth in it.”

She'd seen it coming, but it was still a little humiliating to have to sit back and allow her father to throw these kind of cruel words around like it was nothing.

“Well... it is true, Daddy,” she managed to choke out. Why had she thought pretending to date Sam was going to end well when this conversation was obviously going to end up happening? Maybe she should have thought ahead a little. Bravely, she continued. “I kissed another student. And for whatever reason people are making a big deal out of it.”

“Because you kissed another girl, Sissi!” her father scolded. His fists were clenching and unclenching. “What exactly possessed you to do such a preposterous thing?”

“The same thing that possessed you to kiss Mom! The same reason that people on tv kiss for!” Sissi reasoned, folding her arms. “I kissed her for the same reason that other teenagers kiss. Does her being a girl really matter right now? It's better than me accidentally getting pregnant and having to drop out of school, right?”
“That- That-” His face was beginning to redden.

“Why are you so upset? Because the school paper made a big deal about it? None of the staff here read it; nobody outside Kadic read it. Are you ashamed, is that it? Do you think people will look down on you for having a daughter in a same-sex relationship?” Sissi should have held her tongue; yet all the same, this kind of reaction was more realistic, wasn't it? Even in this state of anger Sissi calculated the odds of her being grounded after this conversation.

“You're too young to know what you want,” he spluttered, crimson-faced. “You shouldn't do things like this. What would your mother think?”

Sissi scowled.

“You wouldn't be having this conversation with me if I had kissed a boy,” she said quietly, standing up. “And I'm sure that my mother would want me to be happy. She'd care more about my happiness than what the people who read that stupid newspaper think.”

“Where are you going?” he barked as Sissi beelined for the door.

“To class!” she shot back, pulling the door shut louder than probably necessary.

On her way out, the secretary shot her another sympathetic smile, and Sissi nodded, holding her head high.

…

…

“So apparently Principal Delmas has stopped the school paper from reprinting,” Sam remarked as Sissi sat down beside her gloomily. Seeing her downcast expression, Sam leaned closer. “What's up?”

“He stopped the reprints because he's furious at me,” she muttered. “I mean, I thought I didn't care what he thought. But it still hurt, the things he was saying. It suddenly makes perfect sense why all of the queer students at our school have been closeted until now.”

“Hey,” Sam said softly, squeezing her shoulder. “Listen. Whatever he says, you can't let him get to you. That's letting them win. We have to hold our heads high and ignore what they say.”

“What if he tries to split us up?” Sissi asked aloud, frowning. “If he moves me to different classes we won't be able to do that sketch we planned where we write each other sappy notes and pass them over the tables so everyone gets a good look at how loved up we are.”

“That would be a tragedy,” Sam agreed, grinning. “But so what? Everyone believes it anyway, you know? Besides, I really don't think your father would do that, Sissi. He doesn't seem like the type to deliberately push you away. Once he gets his head around the idea he'll bounce back. I mean, I don't think he'll particularly enjoy it? But he'll tolerate it for your sake at least, I'm sure.”

“You think so?” Sissi mumbled, pulling out her phone. She began to scroll through her twitter feed without much interest. “Well, what would your parents say?”

“My mom's dead,” Sam said mildly, as though stating the weather. “Cervical cancer, when I was three. So I have no idea what she'd say. My dad doesn't care that much, really. I think when I was younger he really wanted me to shape up into the kid who'd act like a girl, get married and have kids, but it's not like you're my first girlfriend. He probably saw it coming to be honest. Two of my brothers are gay and I did always sit on my brother Henri's girlfriend's lap when I was eleven. She smelt nice.”

“Your family sounds way better than mine,” Sissi grumbled, folding her arms. Sam shrugged.

“Really? Because my dad packed me off to boarding school when I got expelled from my last school. So he may be tolerant about who I date, but as far as he's concerned I'm basically a terrible student and therefore a sad excuse for a daughter.”

Sissi didn't know what to say to that, but she reached over and squeezed Sam's hand. For a moment Sam's heart skipped – and then she noticed out of the corner of her eye a camera flash.

“Seriously?” she muttered. “You're picking now of all times to put on a scene?”

“It's only half fanservice,” Sissi retorted. “I really am trying to make you feel better. I just figured it'd look more authentic if we did it this way.”

“Why is it that your Romeo and Juliet performance didn't do so hot last year?” Sam questioned. “I mean, you're a proper method actor.”

“Thank you. I pride myself in it,” Sissi smirked, opening her instagram app and holding out her phone at arms length. “Say cheese?”

…

“Well, there's no need to launch a return trip,” Jeremie sighed, as the last of the group devirtualised, “since nobody got hurt this time. All the side effects of XANA's attacks disappear after the tower's been deactivated, so if Sam and Sissi are still holding hands when you see them next, it's safe to say that there's no ulterior motive to their coming out.”

“I'm certain it was XANA's doing,” Aelita exclaimed, folding her arms. “And you'll see. They'll be throwing insults back and forth the next time we see them.”

“Yeah! I mean, we don't know anything yet! It could be over,” Odd agreed, perking up. “Come on Aelita, lets go look!”

As the two bounded off, Ulrich raised his eyebrows at the others.

“I can't be the only one who's starting to believe their bedroom eyes have nothing to do with XANA, right?”

“Well, neither of them have ever said they weren't going to do this sooner or later,” Yumi said with a heavy sigh. “I don't know how long this has been going on for or how long it'll last, but I have a feeling Odd and Aelita are going to be disappointed.”

William shrugged. “Well, what's the worst outcome to this situation? They kiss and fool around a bit, Kadic becomes a more accepting place, and it's not like Sam and Odd are still together anymore so it's all fair game, right?”

“In theory it should equate to nothing, but you can't honestly tell me that you believe Odd will be completely fine with this,” Ulrich pointed out, sitting back.

“...That's a pretty good point, actually,” William admitted, hanging his head in defeat. “Well, I say let it play out. It's not like breaking them up will do anything except make us look like jerks, and it's none of our business. We'll let the pressure from the school paper drive them apart instead. I doubt they'll last if they have Milly and Tamiya on their backs all the time.”

They found Odd and Aelita sitting at their regular table in the cafeteria, scowling over at Sam and Sissi, who were still sitting together and conversing freely.

“They're still together,” Aelita said through gritted teeth.

“Don't give in, Aelita. Things will get better,” William joked, patting her shoulder.

“I just think there's something wrong with it,” Aelita sulked. “If it were any other girls I wouldn't care, but Sam and Sissi... it's fishy, right? There's something suspicious about it.”

“Well I for one think it's adorable,” Milly piped up, appearing from behind William. She was poised, notebook and pen in hand, grinning like the Cheshire cat. “And even if Mr Delmas has banned today's newspaper from being reprinted, there's nothing saying we can't go ahead and set up tomorrow's! You should be happy for them! Being the first same-sex couple at Kadic takes guts, don't you think?”

“Maybe,” Aelita muttered. “But I still think they're up to something.”

“I just can't believe it,” Odd said coldly, before turning on his heels and leaving the cafeteria.

…

In class, Sissi was interrupted from binge-watching Gossip Girl on her phone behind a textbook by a paper plane hitting the back of her head. With a glare, she searched the room, honing in on likely suspects. The rest of Ulrich's crew were the faces of innocence – however, sitting directly behind her, Odd had a mischievous look on his face.

She unfolded it with a scowl.

So you guys are for real?

Rolling her eyes, she wrote underneath it and, neatly folding it into a square, stuck it in between two large clumps of hair at the front of his head. He swatted at it irritably, snatching the paper up and reading her curt reply.

YES, we are dating, if that's what you were getting at.

His brow furrowed as he processed this. Hurriedly he scribbled a response, which he stuck down the back of her shirt collar. She swiped it before it got wedged in her bra strap and unfolded it, fixing her gaze on the blotchy green ink from Odd's gel pen.

But WHY? When have you and Sam EVER got along????

The minutes ticked by with no response. Finally, Sissi pretended to drop a pencil on the floor, noticing Mrs Meyer looking in her direction, and when the teacher returned to writing on the chalkboard, Sissi kicked the note behind her. Odd reached down in a separate incident and hastily picked it up.

That's hardly any of your business, Odd!! Anyway, if you don't like it, tough. She's not your girlfriend anymore. You don't have a say in what we do.

“You're a mean, mean person,” he hissed, kicking her seat.

“Delmas! Della Robbia! If I see you two horsing around again it'll be detention,” Mrs Meyers warned, hands on hips. Sissi said nothing. Odd scowled and hunched back over his exercise book. Sissi glanced down at the page he was opened on and spied a strange drawing of his dog, accompanied by a sketch that appeared to be the outline of Ulrich.

“Yeah, I'm the mean one,” she muttered under her breath, turning back to face the front.

Chapter Text

By the time Wednesday rolled around, the mood at Kadic Academy had settled, although there was still a hum of uncertain excitement in the air.

“I've gained over 80 more followers since we came out,” Sissi announced with a grin, flicking through her instagram feed with barely suppressed glee. “Man, I should have come out years ago! I'm so over fake-dating boys, let me tell you.”

“A few years ago and you would have been strung up for this,” Sam pointed out. “Lets not forget the social wars have yet to be won. And might I remind you, you aren't actually gay.”

“You do love reminding me of that, yes.” With a roll of her eyes, Sissi tossed her phone onto her bed, narrowly avoiding Sam's head, and turned to the vanity table, before picking up a clear mascara to work with. “Now, I don't want to get your hopes up, but Ulrich is aware that we're going on a date after today's classes, meaning he's probably told Odd. Meaning, Odd might just stalk us to the ice rink, so we have to make today a believable performance, all right?”

“Hey, I thought we've been doing a pretty good job so far,” Sam defended, propping herself up. “Though I think maybe people are getting the wrong idea about us being a typical butch-and-femme combo, like Milly and Tamiya keep advertising. For starters, neither of us are lesbians, so we can't appropriate the butch-femme dynamic, and secondly-”

“I get it, you aren't butch. Though you gotta admit, you're a tomboy.” Sissi blinked a few times, admiring her lashes, before starting on the eyeliner. “Please dress up a little? You wear the same damn jacket every day, I get it, you think the rose pattern is cool. But the people will wanna see you in something else for a change, you know? Maybe even do something with your hair, instead of just keeping it jammed under the hat all the time?”

“The hat is staying,” Sam said immediately, frown evident on her face. She glanced down at the jacket, noting it was a little grubby from going a couple weeks without being washed. “...And I guess I'll shove this in the laundry hamper. But you do know that these are like, the nicest clothes I own.”

“Borrow some of mine, then,” Sissi said carelessly. Sam raised her eyebrows. Sissi Delmas was known for a lot of things, but lending out her clothes to other girls wasn't one of them. She'd bragged to Sam before that she had a maxi dress that had cost more than the cottage Sam used to live in, which she was certain was a lie but she'd never quite ruled out the possibility. With Sissi, some things were just impossible to tell.

“You're serious?”

“Of course I am. We have to look good – no way am I bringing a shabby date.”

“And here I was thinking you were trying to be nice to me.”

“I am nice! I'm being charitable, offering my wardrobe to your lost cause!”

Sam took one peek in her wardrobe and pulled a face. “Way not my style. Sorry, Sissi. You'll have to accept me as I am.”

Sissi rolled her eyes, then beckoned Sam over. A little surprised, Sam left the closet door and joined Sissi in front of the vanity table. Sissi's arms pulled Sam in closer, her plush chest pressing up against Sam's, and their lips met somewhere in between. Sam's heart skipped. How was this happening? Fake dating was one thing, but alone like this? In Sissi's bedroom?!

Then, there was the sound of a snapshot, and Sissi pulled away.

“Wow, that turned out better than I expected!” she said with a grin, beginning to flick through different filters, leaving Sam just the slightest bit disappointed. “Hey, sorry. I know that came out of the blue, but we need to make this believable, and if people only see us kissing in public they're going to twig sooner or later that we're just putting on a show. Plus, I gotta give the fans something to celebrate the new follower count! And you always get a bit stiff when it's premeditated, you know?”

“Oh... er, yeah. Okay.”

Feeling pleasantly confused, Sam struggled out of her jacket, hoping it would cool her down a little. “Right, then. I'm going to go change, since you're so obsessed with me looking 'presentable' for today's little rendezvous. See you at breakfast?”

“You know it, honey,” Sissi said with a grin, before turning back to begin pencilling in her eyebrows.

…

At breakfast, Odd was staring at Sam and Sissi from across the room, eyes narrowed.

“Is he trying to master heat vision or something?” Jeremie asked with a furrowed brow.

The school had somewhat calmed down a little after the uproar from last week. However, that didn't stop people from staring, and Odd was one of the most obvious, uncaring that Sissi and Sam kept giving him strange countering looks.

“Give it a rest already,” grumbled Ulrich. “I don't know if they're doing this to piss you off or if they really do like each other, but you're getting nowhere just glaring at them.”

“How can I not?” he spluttered. “They're going on a date today! Sam and Sissi, who up until this week barely even looked at each other, are going on a date of the romantic variety and you don't get why I'm still in shock?”

Yumi sighed. She knew Odd wasn't liking it, but it wasn't exactly like they could go up to Sissi and Sam and demand an immediate break up. For starters, it was none of their business what their classmates did, even if Odd and Sam had some history. Also, though she'd never mention it, she was glad that Sissi had moved on to something new, since it meant she wouldn't be actively trying to get involved in Ulrich's business anymore.

She peered over at Jeremie, who was also looking a little fed up of Aelita's equal displeasure with the situation, and he cleared his throat.

“So I was thinking we could test this new program out on Lyoko,” he interrupted, and Odd and Aelita reluctantly turned from where they were kneeling upright on their chairs for a better view. “This afternoon, after morning classes are over.”

“Come on, Jer, not today!” pleaded Odd. “They're doing the ice skating today, I gotta go!”

“No, you need a distraction from this. What Sam and Sissi do isn't any of our business and we need to stop acting like it is,” Ulrich said firmly, pushing Odd back down to sit normally in his seat. He stuck his tongue out, before taking a bite of his croissant.

“Fine,” Aelita said in resign, frowning. “But I still feel like they're scheming some kind of payback.”

“Think what you want, just don't act on anything without some kind of proof,” Yumi said, arms folded like a stern parent ordering her kids not to steal any more cookies out of the jar. “Promise me?”

“...Promise,” Aelita sighed.

“Promise,” Odd echoed, with little conviction. Somehow Yumi got the feeling he would be going against his word at the first opportunity.

…

“So, I know it's been six days since our grand coming out,” Sissi began, as they walked towards Sam's locker, hands swinging back and forth. “But I'm a bit disappointed no one else has come out. I mean, we've basically made Kadic a gay-friendly zone. Where are the gays?”

“Sissi!” groaned Sam, glancing around before letting go of her hand and going to open her locker. “You can't just... say that. It's a delicate issue! We might be paving the way at Kadic, but nobody's gonna come out just a couple days after we did, you know. These things take time. Besides, it was never our agenda to lead some sort of gay revolution at Kadic in the first place, remember?”

“Well yeah, I know that,” Sissi muttered, rolling her eyes. She leaned against the locker beside Sam's, arms folded irritably, as Sam fished around for her physics exercise book. “I'm all about the payback element. But I still thought, I dunno, we'd have some confused kid come up to us asking how we found the courage, or something. I need to feel like an inspiration since we're going the mile!”

“You're impossible.” Sam shook her head in disbelief, watching Sissi as though hardly believing she was being serious. “Sissi, you can't just... I mean... you're not even...”

“Bi or gay, I know, I know.” Sissi huffed and flicked a stray hair from her eyes. “This isn't my battle to fight, I'm just a super great ally, yada yada. I still feel like I'm doing a good thing for people. Is it selfish to want to see the results of that as quickly as possible?”

“Yeah, it is,” Sam deadpanned, shutting her locker and leaning against it warily. She took a deep breath. “But I've been meaning to ask. Are you sure you're not...? It's just... you put on a great performance, you know?”

Sissi blushed, taken aback by Sam's unintended compliment. “Yes, Sam, I'm sure! But thank you for being so honest about my acting skills. I reckon I should go out for Ophelia in the Hamlet production next year.”

“You do make a very convincing thespian,” Sam agreed dryly. It stung a little to hear Sissi confirm her unwavering heterosexuality, even if she'd seen it coming, but it was better to know now than to complicate things in the future.

“Or who knows? Maybe I'll butch it up and go for Hamlet?” Sissi continued with a wink. “Think I could pull it off?”

“You wouldn't be allowed to wear lip gloss if you were Hamlet,” Sam pointed out. Sissi pulled a face.

“Come on! What kind of hero is Hamlet if he's afraid to get in touch with his femininity?”

“I mean, he's a pretty messed up guy, I doubt lip gloss is high on the agenda.”

“He just needs to take some pride in his appearance.”

As their banter grew more playful, Sam didn't notice Odd passing by until he bumped against her shoulder and she stopped in her tracks, spinning round to face him. He cringed, not expecting her to respond, while half-knowing she would anyway (after all, Sam Suarez didn't back down from confrontations when it came to Odd Della Robbia). He scratched the back of his head nervously.

“Uh... hey, Sam.”

She stood still, mouth feeling suddenly very dry.

“Hi,” she said after a long pause. The mood felt awkward, and it dug at her wrong. It was so much easier just being around Odd when they were together, even if they didn't act like it half the time. In a sense, he was her best friend at Kadic, and regarding themselves as perfect strangers felt like a bigger sham than her and Sissi's bullshit relationship.

Sissi had stopped walking and watched the uncomfortable exchange curiously. They both looked pretty unhappy to be stood near each other, but still clearly missed each other all the same. At this rate, Odd would surely ditch Ulrich and come running back into Sam's arms in record time, right?

She should have been happy, but somehow the very thought of them getting back together so easily made Sissi's chest hurt.

“You look... well,” he offered. It was like the post-break up scene of just about every coming-of-age movie Sissi had ever seen, and she rolled her eyes.

“You too,” Sam said, and her flat tone was missing its usual snark. Instead, it sounded a little hollow. She folded her arms and looked away. “How are things with you and your new... guy?”

Odd looked up, clearly surprised she cared enough to ask. “Oh. Um, okay? They're okay. How are, er, things with your new... Sissi?”

Sam snorted.

“They're great. Y'know, Sissi is Sissi, so.”

“Sissi's right here,” Sissi huffed, reaching to grab Sam's hand in plain view of Odd. “We're going to be late for class, Sam.”

Sissi taking her hand was like being pulled from underwater, and time suddenly returned to normal. The corridor was empty and the warning bell was ringing.

“Right. Er, yeah. I'll see you around, I guess.”

She gave Odd a quick nod and tried to keep pace with Sissi as they headed towards the science block. Odd frowned, raising his hand in a wave before slinking towards the changing rooms for gym.

…

“I think Sam's being blackmailed into dating Sissi,” Odd declared casually, arms folded in grim determination, as he sat himself down between Jeremie and Ulrich.

“Er, what?” Jeremie raised an eyebrow. “I'm not sure I'd go that far, Odd, I know you're upset but-”

“Hear me out!” Odd snapped. “I bumped into Sam on the way to class and she seemed totally down in the dumps when I said hi to her. And Sissi practically dragged her away from me by the wrist! It was real violent. I bet Sam's being duped into dating her!”

“Want to save this conspiracy theory for Aelita?” Ulrich ribbed, glancing over at where Jim was giving her and Heidi feedback on their track times. “She'll want to hear this one for sure.”

“You joke,” Odd lamented, fist clenched passionately, “and you mock. But it's true! They were being super weird! Sam looked so sad, too!”

“Maybe because you were talking to her and she's still not over your oh-so-tactful dumping,” Ulrich pointed out flatly. “Just because she's tougher than you doesn't mean she doesn't have feelings. Girls don't take break ups well.”

“I'm going to supervise their date,” Odd declared. Jeremie groaned, and Ulrich felt the beginnings of a migraine coming on. “I'll prove to you that there's some blackmailing going on! I mean, it's not like it would be the first time Sissi's blackmailed someone to get to you, Ulrich Dear.”

Ulrich frowned, suddenly looking a little panicked. “And why exactly would she use Sam if she was trying to get to me, Odd?” He glanced over at Jeremie, pointedly enough for Odd's face to dawn in understanding. Jeremie, on the other hand, was oblivious, watching Aelita muss up her hair distractedly as Jim waved his stopwatch around passionately, clearly spinning some tale from his days as a high school track star.

“That... that's not what I meant!” Odd defended. “It's just a theory. A weird theory, but I know what I saw, okay?”

Ulrich folded his arms, turning his gaze pointedly away, and Odd deflated a little. Tentatively, his fingers reached around to graze Ulrich's hand, carefully obscured from Jeremie's view.

“Whatever you saw isn't necessarily the truth,” Ulrich said coolly. “So you should probably drop it before you get ahead of yourself, capiche?”

Capiche? Odd wasn't sure he'd ever heard Ulrich use that one before.

He grinned.

“I'm really rubbing off on you, aren't I?”

Ulrich rolled his eyes and shoved him away playfully. “Don't get ahead of yourself now.”

…

“So, about that little encounter between you and Odd today,” Sissi began, as they traded in their shoes for ice skates at the exchange desk.

“What about it?” Sam asked distantly, trailing over to an empty bench. She began fiddling with the various buckles and straps of the hire shoes.

“How are you feeling, seeing him around school after what's happened?” Sissi pressed, flopping down beside her. Sam shrugged.

“I don't know. Okay? It was weird. Odd's my best friend, and he's my ex-boyfriend at the same time. I'm so mad at him for going behind my back, but... I miss him.”

“He's the one who fucked up,” Sissi cut in, vigilant to remind her as ever. “You have every right to walk away.”

“But I don't want to, don't you get that?” Sam burst out. She wrenched the straps away, jammed her feet inside each skate, and clamped the buckles down again in one quick, frustrated beat. “I want things to be how they were. I want to be able to run to his room and tell him what a crappy day I'm having, or lie on his roommate's bed and read his manga while Odd plays the guitar or copies my homework... I just miss being his friend, Sissi, and I'm so mixed up about it all. So if you keep bringing him up, there's no way I'll be able to enjoy this ridiculously fake date.”

“Hey, I'm sorry.” Sissi adjusted the buckles on her own skates, and leaned over to press her forehead against Sam's. “I get it. He's been a real ass, but it doesn't cancel out all the good times. And you're scared of losing that relationship even though he's the one who's ruining it.”

“Stop shrinking me,” Sam said flatly, the corners of her mouth twitching upwards into a wry smile. “Are you living out your daddy issues vicariously through my fight with Odd?”

Sissi's cheeks coloured a little.

“Well... I think the nature of the fights are pretty different, so, only a little.”

“Is he at least talking to you now?”

“This morning he passed me in the hall and said 'morning, Elisabeth'. Not even good morning, just... morning.”

“Well, really, whether a morning is good or not is pretty subjective, maybe he didn't want to assume,” began Sam.

“That's a crappy excuse and you know it,” Sissi snapped. “He can barely look me in the eye.”

Sam reached over to squeeze her shoulder.

“This is turning out to be a depressing first date,” she remarked. “Come on, didn't you want this to be perfect? We can't sell a convincing performance unless we're giving it our all, and I expect nothing less from Kadic's future Hamlet.”

Sissi's face brightened.

“You really think I can make Hamlet?”

“I mean, you're playing being a lesbian pretty well for me to be your first time girlfriend, so I have some faith in your acting abilities.”

Sam rose to her feet and nearly tripped as her ankles wobbled, adjusting to the sensation of walking on the blades for the first time. Sissi giggled and reached down to catch her, pushing her upright and taking Sam's hand in her own.

“Why thank you, Sam. And you know, I have some faith in your ice skating abilities, even though you seem pretty hopeless right now. Let me show you how to do it. I used to take classes when I was younger.”

Sam squeezed Sissi's hand, her chest tightening in yearning as Sissi led her out to the rink, but stopped when Sissi took her first step out onto the ice. She let their hands slip apart and hung back as Sissi glided forwards, ponytail sailing out behind her, and circled back around.

“Come on, silly, it's perfectly safe.”

“I'm suddenly having reservations about this, Sissi.”

“You'll be fine!” Sissi rolled her eyes, smiling, and skated over to the edge of the rink, holding her hand out. “Come here, Sam. Take my hand, and step off the edge with me.”

Well when she put it like that, with wide hopeful eyes and a coy grin, Sam was grateful it was ice and not the side of a cliff she was about to go over.

…

“So, now that Sam and Sissi have turned Kadic into their new pride club,” Odd began with a wild look in his eye, flopping down in a seat near the back of the bus, “who else do you think is bumping uglies in secret? Nicholas and Herve? I’ve never seen those two apart!”

“Knock it off,” Ulrich said, rolling his eyes as he took the aisle seat. “If you start asking stuff like that with more people around, the truth will get out.”

“If you mean about us, I figure it’s high time the gang knew anyway,” Odd muttered, arms folded as the bus pulled away from the stop. “They’ll get it sooner or later, but it’ll be easier for them to adjust to it if they don’t find out by walking in on us in a… uh, compromised position, Ulrich Dear.”

Ulrich blushed and looked away.

“I’m not ready yet.”

“Ready or not,” Odd said tiredly, “they still need to know. If we keep this up much longer they’ll get suspicious either way.”

“Odd, I can’t. Don’t ask me to.”

“I’m not asking!” Odd retorted. “I’m telling you how this is gonna go down. You’ll try and hide it, but someone will find out, and then before you know it, the whole school knows. That’s how it happened at my last school. Why’d you think I transferred over to Kadic halfway through the year?”

Ulrich stopped, and turned to stare at his boyfriend. Odd was staring straight ahead, arms folded, eyes steely.

“You never told me that before,” Ulrich said hesitantly.

“Because I didn't want to freak you out. Or make you feel sorry for me,” he muttered. “It could go badly. Or, if we have some good friends on our side who will keep our secret and protect us if it does somehow get out… which do you think is the better option, Ulrich?”

Ulrich sighed.

“Fine, I see your point. We'll do it soon. Just... not today. Or tomorrow. I want to wait until this bullshit with Sam and Sissi dies down first, okay?”

“Sure,” Odd agreed. “We can do that. But my question still stands. Do you think Herve and Nicholas are banging or not?”

Ulrich groaned and buried his head in his hands. “First of all, no! Second of all, screw you for putting that idea into my head.”

Odd snickered and patted his back.

“You're just mad you didn't think of it first.”

“Trust me, that's the last thing I've ever wanted to think of.”

As the bus headed further and further away from Kadic, Ulrich dared to lean against Odd, resting their heads slightly atop each other.

“Jeremie is probably already wondering where we are,” Odd murmured.

“I think he already worked out we weren't gonna show up at the factory. He's probably just pissed we didn't take Aelita with us.”

“I didn't want her here,” Odd said distantly. “I mean, I love Aelita, but... I don't know. She's suspicious, but her reasoning isn't the same as mine. I love Sam, maybe not the way she wants to be loved by me – at least, not anymore – but I do. We're best friends, and I have a really horrible feeling about her and Sissi being a couple.”

“Are you sure it's not just jealousy that she's moved on?” Ulrich asked, frowning. “I'd get it if you were, you know, jealous. You and Sam have history.”

“Yeah, but you're who I'm with now,” Odd interrupted firmly. “Our happiness has nothing to do with Sam. Just like... like how Sam's happiness has nothing to do with us.”

“So then why are we doing this?” Ulrich groaned. “Come on, it's not too late to get off the bus now and go catch a movie. We could make this trip into our own little date, and just forget all about stalking our classmates and trying to interrupt their happiness.”

Odd frowned.

“Come on,” Ulrich pleaded. “Get off the bus with me. We'll go get pizza.”

“I just want to see what they're like with nobody watching,” he said resolutely. “I want to see if they really care about each other. If they do, I'll stop meddling. We can leave them alone, and grab a bite to eat, or a movie, or even just go back to the factory.”

The bus pulled to a stop outside the ice rink and they marched in with purpose. The rink had a viewing area, an elevated platform overlooking the rink that didn't require booking out skates. Odd raced up to it, pulling Ulrich along by his sleeve, and he pressed his nose up to the glass.

“You see 'em?” he asked, squinting as he scanned the rink for a pair of blonde skaters all cosied up together.

“Mmm... yep. There they are. Looks like Sam's having a hard time letting go,” Ulrich remarked, gesturing outwards.

Odd followed where he was pointing, and spied Sam clinging to the edge of the rink, with Sissi tugging on her arm. She rolled her eyes fondly and glided in front of where Sam was cowering, hands on her hips as she said something that seemed to set Sam back on her rhythm again. She squared her shoulders, in a way Odd instinctively knew was her way of preparing to make a cutting reply, and his eyes drifted over to the warmth in Sissi's face as she doubled over laughing. His chest tightened as he watched Sissi take Sam's hand in her own, gently prying her fingers from the barrier, and guide her towards the centre of the rink as Sam ungracefully staggered and wobbled and clung to her.

“Looks like a pretty standard date to me,” Ulrich said quietly. “You still think Sissi is blackmailing her?”

Odd watched as Sam began to nervously laugh, windmilling her arms a little as Sissi held onto her waist, pushing her around the ice and reassuring her all the while.

“No. Sam looks... really happy.”

“So, are we at the consensus that Sam and Sissi are, after all this, just two girls in love?”

“Might be a bit early for love, but... yeah, I think they might actually be your everyday couple. The world just got way more interesting, that's for sure.”

Ulrich put an arm around him.

“So can we leave them to it and go do something we want to do?”

Odd nodded, dazed, and allowed Ulrich to lead him away, wrapping an arm around his waist as they exited the building.

“Take me out for dinner? Emotional revelations make me hungry.”

“Now that's the Odd Della Robbia I love.”

Odd stopped in his tracks.

"You... you love me?!" he asked, incredulous. Ulrich froze.

"Um... yes?"

"Well, shit. That's a first."

Ulrich shrugged, flushing red to the tips of his ears, but willing himself not to deny it.

"Not a first for me."

"Wait, so you've known how long?! And you never told me?!"

"Hey, I just told you now, didn't I?"

…

“I didn't see Odd follow us today,” Sam remarked, as the bus dropped them off outside the school gates. The grounds would be locking up in a matter of minutes, and Sissi knew they would probably get a write up for arriving back so close to curfew, but she didn't really give a shit at this moment in time.

“Yeah, me neither. I don't know if it's that he didn't show up, or that we just didn't notice him, but I had a great time either way. I didn't realise how phenomenally bad you'd be at ice skating, weren't you the one who suggested it?”

“It always looks easy on TV,” protested Sam.

“Yeah, cause they're freaking competitive skaters, hon.”

“Stop right there!”

The two of them turned as Jim came jogging over, shining a torch directly at their faces in a way that had Sam temporarily seeing spots.

“You're late!”

“Curfew doesn't kick in for another six minutes, Jim,” Sissi said innocently, linking arms with Sam. “And we were having just the most wonderful time, weren't we, Sam?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, it was very... um, passionate. P-Passionate but also PG, we definitely left room for the lord,” Sam rambled, only stopping when Sissi reached down to pinch her hand lightly in warning. Jim cleared his throat.

“Well, um, they do say spring time is the perfect time for love to blossom, especially in the, uh, streets of Paris,” he began, reaching up to scratch his stubble. “But, well, I'm sorry to say that the same rules still apply even to Kadic's, er, new celebrity couple, so, I'll escort you back to the dorms.”

“How sweet of you,” Sam said smoothly. “So, you've been reading the Kadic Times, Jim?”

“Indeed, I like to keep up to date with student life,” Jim began cheerfully. “It's also been appointed my duty to see to it that the paper's content is, uh, appropriate for the consumption of the student body. Young minds are very, ah, impressionable, they do say.”

“Oh, so you don't share the same views as my father, then?” Sissi asked. “He seemed angry about it all when he confronted me, saying how inappropriate my love for Sam is splashed over every paper in school. I imagine he hit the roof when he saw it, and I guess you got the backlash.”

Jim cleared his throat again. “Well, I'm a firm believer that kids will do as kids do, and in this day and age, we should embrace the love of people all around us. And... between the three of us, Paco King of Disco was a guy, heh, real comfortable with his orientation.”

Sam nodded sagely.

“This is... more information than I anticipated, but thanks for the reassurances, Jim,” she said, exchanging an amused look with Sissi.

“Yeah. This has given me a lot to think about,” Sissi agreed, stifling a giggle. Jim chuckled himself.

“Well, lights are out in two minutes, ladies, so no dallying, understood?”

“We hear you loud and clear, Jim.”

He turned, overly chipper, and headed back in the direction of the teacher dorms, leaving the two of them standing there in bewilderment.

“Well, I think its safe to say we know more about Jim than we ever needed to know,” Sam deadpanned, and Sissi burst out laughing.

“God! Well, I'm still impressed he had the nuts to fight my dad on the nature of the school paper.”

“In five seconds Jim has revealed himself to be a better ally to the gay community than you've been in a week,” Sam teased.

“I'd say given Paco's colourful past he's more than just an ally, wouldn't you?”

Sam paused.

“Well, now I'm inspired to go on a binge of Paco King of Disco videos. Maybe we can spot some of his flings as background dancers?”

“Like Jim would ever tell about that.” Sissi rested her head against Sam's. “It's nice to know there's someone in this school who has our backs. In a way that doesn't benefit their newspaper sales, anyway.”

“It is kinda nice,” Sam agreed. She unlinked her arm from Sissi's, folding them over her chest. “You know, today was a pretty great date. For a fake date, I mean.”

“It was! I'm not even mad that Odd didn't show up. We skated, we ate nice food, and I even won you a Totoro plushie! Am I considerate girlfriend or what?!”

“Fake considerate girlfriend,” Sam corrected, raising her eyebrows. She reached into her tote bag for the small Totoro toy Sissi had won for her and hugged it to her chest. “But, yeah. You make for a chivalrous date when you're putting on the show of your life, I'll give you that.”

Sissi grinned.

“You know what? I'm definitely going for Hamlet now. And she's gonna wear lipstick, she's gonna be chic as fuck, and she's gonna sweep Ophelia off her feet.”

She leaned over, cupped Sam's cheek and tilted it until their lips met. After a few moments, she pulled away.

“Today was fun. We should definitely have girl time again next week,” she said gleefully, before sauntering off down the corridor towards her room. “Night, Sam!”

Sam stood still, watching after her in a daze, before uttering, “Night, Sissi,” quiet enough that it was lost on her anyway. As she turned on her heels, heading back down the other side of the corridor to her own room, something dawned on her that froze her in her tracks.

“Holy shit,” she whispered. “That kiss didn't come with a camera flash.”