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Chapter Text

"Er, what?" Molly and Scratch asked in unison. Only hearing the former, Andrea giggled.

"Wait wait wait-" Molly waved her hands about in front of her quickly, face screwing up in confusion. "Are you...asking me out...?"

Another giggle. "Yes, you cutie!" Molly stared blankly as the other girl booped her nose. She leant back and flipped her hair over her shoulder, placing a confident hand on her hip. "So what do you say?"

"Well she's got guts, I'll give her that." Scratch conceded. Molly ignored him, still deeply confused.

"I- wait. What?? Didn't you...y'know and me..???" Molly stared at Andrea in bewilderment as she made an incredibly vague gesture between them. "Y'know? My first day and all?"

For a split second, an awkward look crossed Andrea's features. Any sign of a real human emotion was quickly wiped away however as she tilted her head back and let out an incredibly false laugh. "Oh, that? Don't worry about it, Sweetie-"

"Sweetie?" Scratch scrunched up his nose as she placed a hand on Molly's shoulder- the girl doing much the same.

"It's water under the bridge! I'm like, totally over it now."

"You're over it-?

"So anyway what do you say? Icecream at Däagan Hanz, Americas best effically sourced ice cream emporium?"

"Uh...Look Andrea, I-" Any words in Molly's throat died instantly as she caught the other girl winking to her phone. "Wait. Are you recording this?!" Her voice reached pitches previously unheard of in her mortification.

"Ugh, well I was. Thanks for ruining it." Rolling her eyes, Andrea shoved the phone in her pocket.

Scratch narrowed his eyes. "Y'know, its real easy to fry those things. I could be in and out." He whispered (unnecessarily) to Molly. She glanced at him for only a moment before turning back to Andrea, deciding she was too angry to let herself consider it.

"What the heck?!" She screamed instead, throwing her arms out.

Andrea's face crinkled into an amused smile at the sight of Molly's face. "Oh relax, Cutie." She waved her hand like it was nothing. "I wasn't live streaming! I just figured I'd try for a candid scene before going all in. But no matter, my team already has a plan B." Shrugging, she walked up to Molly and began to circle her while the other girl stuttered in bewilderment. 

"I- you- what? Wait-"

"What team??" Scratch finished for her.

"Now:" Popping up from over her shoulder, Andrea held her hands up in a square and squinted. "When I ask you, you're gonna wanna really channel that whole shocked speechless thing you've got going on now- it's real cute, the shippers will die for it. But we're gonna wanna tweak the flavour. Little less 'Oh my gosh where am I'?" She held her hands to her cheeks and put on a ditzy voice. "Little more: 'Oh. Em. Gee. THE Andrea Davenport is asking me out!' Ok? We gotta really sell this."

"I don't- I-" Pausing when she registered the other girls words, Molly narrowed her eyes. She ignored Scratch's comment about her impression of her not being that bad, and tried to speak calmly. "Andrea. Listen. I'm really flattered-"

"Uh, duh! Of course you are!" Andrea stopped her rambling to herself and whirled on her. "But save that for the video, ok?"

"No- I don't want to date you!"

She stopped. For a moment the two girls simply stared at each other. The giddy grin on Andrea's face gradually straightened out. With a sigh, Molly fiddled with her hands awkwardly. "I'm sorry Andrea, but I'm not interested." She managed to say firmly. A slight twinge of guilt was attempting to creep its way into her expression, but the feeling of an cold presence softly landing on her head neutralised it.

"Thank corn." A familiar dry voice said. "Couldn't stand being a Davenport. Euch." Molly fought of an amused smile at Scratch's fake shudder. Keeping her expression as neutral as possible, she looked back at the other girl.

"Andrea? You ok?"

The blue haired girl blinked at her, seemingly coming back to reality. Once again, any sign that there was a person in there was quickly covered up by a faux, corporate laugh. "Oh Molly, you silly! You- you don't mean that." Even with her efforts, a touch of uncertainty tainted her words. Molly's face softened in pity.

"I'm sorry, but I do."

The nagging feeling in her core that she was doing something wrong was kept at bay by a cold hand patting her head and a whispered "Attagirl." Even as Andrea's face fell.

"Wow. I am just so sad to hear that, Molly." The girl dipped her head until her entire face was covered in a veil of powder blue. After a moment, soft sounds like sobs began to emanate from her.

"Oh...yiiikes...." Sucking their teeth in unison, Molly and Scratch looked at each other. To her slight disappointment (but nobody's surprise), Molly found no emotional wisdom in her bestie's eyes. Instead she had to swallow her guilt and resolve to handle this herself.

However, just as she was taking a breath to speak, Andrea tilted her head back, fanning at her eyes and wearing the most false sad look she'd ever seen. "I just-" the girl fake hiccup-sobbed. "I don't know what I'm gonna tell the Fandrea's!"

"You what."

Squinting his eyes and leaning forward, Scratch mumbled "Is she holdin' eye drops...?" Molly ignored him and brushed her now misplaced hair out of her eyes in annoyance.

"What do you mean your fans?" (She refused to use that stupid term). Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as they fell on the girls hoodie pocket where her phone had been placed.

"The Molldrea shippers! Don't you keep up with my fanbase at all?!" Andrea exploded in a flurry of exaggerated grief. Molly figured it would be wise not to tell her she didn't even follow her. "Ever since I posted about my crush on you, the Molldrea fanbase has exploded!" Reaching into her pocket (and discreetly pocketing her eye drops), Andrea shoved an impossibly sized ipad into Molly's face.

On the screen played a Clickclock of assorted clips of the two of them, mostly from that failure of a horror movie. An Atomic Pink song was blaring in the background and pink and purple filters were placed over the entire video. With a couple of blind swipes, Andrea flicked through a whole assortment of similar clips, including one by a child who looked about 7 explaining why 'Molldrea' was endgame. Whatever 'endgame' meant in the real world.

The pair squinted in mild disturbance at the selection, until Scratch voiced both of their thoughts. "Man, this is creepy." Molly could only nod.

Andrea leant back and threw an arm over her face, dramatically. "I don't know what I'm gonna tell them. They were SO invested in us, Molly, I can't believe you would do this to them!"

"I- hang on wait-" Molly furrowed her brows, indignant, even as she felt guilt crawling up her chest. "It's not fair to-"

"I just hope I don't break their poor little hearts too much..." Andrea turned around, giving an approaching Molly the perfect view of said little girl talking ecstatically about her favourite ship. She froze in place and a tiny whimper passed her throat.

"Molly?" Looking down in concern, Scratch quickly snapped his fingers in front of her face. "Moll, no. Who cares what a bunch of weird kids think- you said no."

"Yeah..." She mumbled, weakly. Shaking herself off, she nodded to herself, voice now firm. "Yeah. I'm sorry, Andrea-"

She turned around, instantly excited. "So you'll go out with me?"

"No. I..." Her eyes lingered on the girl's phone for a half second before she shook her head again to clear it. "I won't be going out with you. Im sorry. I'm not interested."

-

The walk home was quiet, except for Scratch.

"Boy I tell ya that was not on my list of things to happen today! I mean who does that Davenport think she is? That'd be like if The Chairman asked me out!" He leant backwards until he collapsed against Molly's head, laying in a nest of her hair. Much of it had been pulled out of her ponytail by his repeated movements, but she didn't seem bothered by the frizz. Or even the hair now covering her eyes. "...Molly?" Turning onto his stomach, Scratch leant over to look at her. He licked his finger and used the gooey ectoplasm to stick her hair out of her face so they could meet eyes. She barely cringed.

"Whatsup kid?"

She stopped in place. "...Do you think I did the right thing?

His face softened. "Yeah. You did."

It was nice walking at night. No one to think she was weird for hugging the air.

Chapter Text

"Thank you for the invitation, Mrs Davenport."

"Oh please, call me Paula."

"Oh, of course! I'm uh, Pete. You've got a lovely place here, Paula."

"Yeah, lotta useless junk." Scratch tapped a fancy looking vase, unimpressed. It promptly began to wobble with intent and the ghost had to jump in quick to steady it. He received a light slap on his hand from Sharon, upon turning around. "What? I fixed it! -Ow ow ow ow ow!" He was promptly grabbed where his ear would be and dragged along. Darryl gave him a sympathetic look from under her other hand's iron grip, shiny trinkets still spilling out of his pockets.

Molly skipped ahead to where her dad and Andrea's mom were talking, eyeing the large photos on the walls. Lots of very professional-looking photo shoots of the Davenports and a younger Andrea. It was a weird sight to see her hair brown. Or to see her at all lately.

"So," Sharon started, huffing to join up with her husband and their host with two boys in tow. Mrs Davenport gave a disapproving glance at her son who was still looking around with grabby hands but said nothing. "Why did you invite us here? My husband usually works for the city..."

"That's right." Pete added, placing a hand on her arm. Scratch tried to reach out for salvation, but he let the invisible ghost's arm phase through him, unsympathetically. "Although, if you have a three-way partnership in mind I'd love to be involved. Brighton could really use the funding!" Despite the attempt at a joke, there was something a little desperate about Pete's chuckle. Paula didn't seem to notice.

"That sounds nice. Maybe another time." The redhead said airily. "But actually, my husband wanted to talk to your family about a different kind of partnership..."

Soon the group approached a large pair of mahogany doors. Paula let them inside with a proud look on her face, revealing a rather unimpressively bland home office. Sitting by his desk, ranting into a phone, was Mr Davenport himself.

"No Tim, that was three shipments of mini fridges. What am I supposed to do with-?! Oh. Hold that thought, I got a meeting-" Hanging up, the man quickly leapt to his feet, arms wide. "McGee's! So lovely to see you!"

The family shared a mix of weirded out looks. A silent agreement that they were all thinking about last Christmas with distrust passed between them. Pete broke the contact first, stepping forward regardless with his hand outstretched.

"Mr Davenport! So great to see you too." 

"Yes, yes-" The other's handshake was quick, like he was neither expecting, nor wanting one. "Take a seat all of you." He said quickly upon pulling away, gesturing to the armchairs across from him. They were the nicest looking things in the room- presumably because the comfort of investors was the only thing he didn't deem worth cutting costs on.

There were only two, so Pete gave his up for Sharon while she dragged a wandering Darryl firmly into her lap, locking him in with her arms, like a seatbelt. He pouted in place. Mr Davenport, strangely, told Molly to take the other seat while Scratch reclined atop the back of it, laughing at Pete's failed attempts to look natural leaning against a bookshelf.

"I'll go get you some refreshments." Paula said, before taking her leave. Darryl whispered that he'd checked and that wasn't the way to the kitchen before Sharon shushed him.

"Now:" Mr Davenport's usual cool, brisk tone had been replaced by one filled with faux warmth and an almost practised conversational ease. "I hope you've all had a good week. No trouble at school?" He winked at Darryl, who glared in return.

"Um, no, not really." Sharon replied with a forced, nervous grin.

"You know if you don't count the fire." Scratch snarked, rolling his eyes and Molly had to hide a laugh.

"Good good! Now: I'm sure you're all wondering about my offer."

"That we are." Pete replied, his tone shifted seamlessly to match the other's false friendliness, and a confident grin forming on his face as he strutted forward. "I work strictly for the city council, obviously, but, if you've got any ideas, I would be happy to run them by the mayor and maybe see if we can get talks of extra funding going-"

"That's great Phil, but that's actually not why I called you here."

"Uh." All confidence drained out of Pete's voice instantly and he was left awkwardly standing in the middle of the room. "You- sorry?" He squeaked, beyond confused. He glanced behind him at his wife who gave him an equally perplexed look, mouthing to not look at her, she's just a Gigpig.

"It was actually little miss Molly were were interested in." Mr Davenport outstretched an arm the girl's way. The family, again, shared wide eyed looks.

"I uh..." Molly chuckled nervously to herself when she noticed all eyes had inevitably landed on her for answers. "...Thanks?" She squeaked with a shrug. Scratch sat up straight behind her, eyeing Mr Davenport with a sudden suspicion. 

"Molly?" Pete squeaked, in a way not unlike his daughter. He quickly cleared his throat. "I mean- that's great! But uh...what exactly do you need her for?"

"She's a little young to act." Sharon cut in, voice worried but firm. The knowledge that Andrea was acting in commercials from a much younger age was shared with all in the room, but none dared speak it.

 "BUT but-" Molly leapt to her feet, shooting her mother a quick glare. "If you need my help with any kind of fundraiser I'd be happy to-"

"Not quite." She wilted back into her seat, whimpering like a puppy. Scratch patted her shoulder, sympathetically.

"You see," Davenport started, standing up and pacing slowly with an excited look in his eye. "My little Andrea was talking to us lately-" Both Molly and Scratch froze up. "-and she came up with a great opportunity for both our families. Come on in, Button!"

"Hi, Daddy!" She all but zipped into the doorway, as though she'd been waiting by it to be called. "Hi Molly~" She added with a wink and a blown kiss. Scratch gagged while Molly just looked awkward.

"So," She started immediately, waltzing in like she'd rehearsed this. Poor Jared followed behind her, struggling to set up a projector screen with Andrea's phone as fast as possible where she glared impatiently at him. As soon as he'd gotten the correct image up, she sashayed in front of him and casually pushed him off to the side.

"June is approaching." She continued seamlessly, pointing to what looked like a handmade slideshow with a glittery pointer. Molly stared at the thing with wide, envious eyes until Scratch forcibly grabbed her cheeks and directed her eyeline to the screen. "That means its time for pride." Andrea switched the slide to a stock image of a pride parade, rainbow flags filling the screen. "And pride means-"

Andrea clicked a button at the same time her father leant in next to her with an excited look. "Pride merch!" They said together, excited looks in their eyes. The screen now displayed the same flags from the previous picture, instead plastered all over mugs, t-shirts, pins, blankets, toilet seat covers, you name it. They all sported the Davenport logo. Andrea held her hands to her chest, proud.

"And this year we have something we didn't have last year." She looked between the McGee's with a look of growing excitement. "A mascot!" When nobody responded, she rolled her eyes. "...Me. Thats me."

"Now, we've noticed sales are highest when the gays think they can 'trust' us." Davenport took over, using quotation marks as though it were a foreign concept. "And what better way to prove we're just like them than having our own little bundle of joy here be a lesbian?" He placed a hand on Andrea's shoulder and she leant into it with wide, joyful eyes. "Great job on the sexuality, sweetie!"

"Actually I'm bise-" She cut in, with a patient smile but he waved her off, quickly.

"Yes yes, money's money. Now:" He placed his palms together and directed them in a point Molly's way. "That's where you come in."

Molly shrunk back at the sudden attention.

Skipping forward, Andrea took out a phone (she had more than one?????) and handed it to Molly. "I told you already, my feed is SWAAARMING with Molldrea shippers." Scratch leant over Molly's shoulder to look at the 'Molldrea' fan account the other girl had brought up. Molly bit her lip.

"So:" Pressing her hands together in a similar way to her father, Andrea turned back to the projector screen and brought up a series of design sketches. They were logo like shapes, patterned with hearts and LOTS of rainbows, many with cringy text too. Andrea and a lawsuit-safe, generic girl with a ponytail got front billing. "We did a little concepting, and if you take into account my follower account, average percept of Fandreas that are Molldrea shippers, and Dad's yearly sales..." This time she flipped through a series of numbers and charts that made all but the Davenport's eyes glaze over. "The combination of average pride sales increasing from our good brand, to Fandrea's buying up merch, to news outlets paying for interviews means that basically: canonising our ship would send our revenue through. The. Roof!" Andrea almost dropped her pointer she looked so excited. Her brown eyes were blown wide and she was practically bouncing up and down.

The McGee's all shared a look, before leaning back, silent.

"Soo...you want my daughter...and your daughter to...date...?" Pete asked, unsure. He and Sharon had a silent conversation before looking in Molly's direction. Said girl was sinking into her seat, looking like she wanted it to swallow her.

"Yes! Exactly!"

"So you can get more money?" Sharon retorted, tone much dryer than her husbands.

"Well it wouldn't just be us." Mr Davenport took the remote from his daughter and clicked through to the next slide. It featured a chart and a series of numbers that made Sharon and Pete's eyes bulge. "We'd split the profits of course."

"Looks interesting." Darryl nodded slowly, with a hand to his chin. With a slow, thoughtful cadence to his voice, he asked "That all you got?"

Davenport smirked and leant in, with a hushed voice. "Well I was advised not to promise this, but if we're highballing it..." He held his phone out to Darryl. The boy's jaw dropped at the figure onscreen. Even Scratch, who'd floated over to look with a disapproving tut, quickly went silent.

Face settling into one of smug, uncaring confidence, Darryl held out his tiny child hand. "You've got yourself a deal."

"Darryl!" Molly screeched, and Sharon grabbed his hand back before the man could take it. As though it would mean anything.

"...Mr Davenport listen," She started slowly. "This...is an amazing deal for our family...it would certainly get us out of debt with the house, and put the kids through college..."

"Not to mention put us in the clear with medical bills." Pete added. He leant in and whispered to his wife, nodding at their son. "You know what he's like."

"I heard that."

"Well, yes but..." Shaking her head, Sharon turned to her daughter with a smile. "Molly, what do you think? This is your choice after all."

"I...I..." Molly was frozen, her eyes staring up at the projector screen like she was in a trance, her pupils the size of pinpricks. Anxiously she took a glance at her family, looking for comfort, but had to look away. Her parents were smiling now, but she could only see them a year ago when the car broke down. Darryl aggressively mouthing 'YES' with a harsh glare wasn't exactly helping, either.

"What do you say, Molly?" Andrea turned to her, clutching her pointer to her chest, excitedly. Scratch's grip tightened on her shoulder.

Molly let out a sigh. She felt a strong urge to hold Scratch's hand for comfort and, almost like he sensed it, he slipped it into hers. She squeezed tight as she looked Andrea in the eye- not her parents and not Darryl- and felt hurt frustration build up within her throat. "I...I already said no."

For a moment things fell silent and Molly was sure everyone in the room had just turned against her. Then, Sharon calmly stood up and smiled at Mr Davenport.

"Well, looks like that's that." Perhaps it was imagined, but there looked to be a hint of relief behind her eyes. "Thank you for the offer anyway."

"Here's my business card if you ever wanna keep in touch." Pete handed over his card and grabbed Darryl's other arm as he began to protest about all the tech he could have bought. Molly watched with wide, surprised eyes, quivering slightly.

"See kid?" Scratch said casually, leaning against her side. "Easy. Now can you let go of my hand please, you're squeezing it." He wheezed.

Molly dropped it, feeling numb. She met Andrea's eyes for a brief moment and saw the confusion and hurt in them. Her father was busy chasing after Sharon and Pete as they made for the mahogany doors.

"Wait-! B-but what about the sale? The girls don't actually have to date- it's about the brand really. Just permission to use her likeness is really all you'd need to-"

Pete glanced over the man's head at Molly and his features softened in comfort. "Sorry, but our daughter's not for sale." He weaved his way through the chairs and grabbed Molly's hand. Her grip made him wince and Scratch shot him a sympathetic look, but he held on regardless as he lead her out.

He leant in as he passed the floundering Davenport. "Oh and uh, dad to dad?" A rare, disapproving look crossed his face. "Might want to go comfort your own daughter."

Molly's eyes were trained on Andrea's as she was pulled out of the room.

-

The family chattered loudly together, once they got outside, about the nerve of such an offer.

"I mean what, he wants Molly's face plastered everywhere like that poor Andrea girl?" Sharon ranted. "Wants her to lose all her personality to commercial performance?"

"But did you SEE how much he was offering?" Darryl whined. "We could buy her a whole new personality with that! It's gotta be better than this one..." Both parents rolled their eyes.

"Now that I'm thinking about it, it was ridiculous to offer any of that money to us, anyway." Pete placed his hands on his hips and shook his head in disbelief. "The moral thing to do would be to use it to donate to LGBT charities. That's what Molly would have wanted us to do."

Scratch glanced away from his family and over to the girl in question. She was walking far in front with her head down, clutching her arms tightly.

"Hey, you ok Moll?"

She didn't look up at him, but did speak, sounding shaky. "Why does it still feel like I did something wrong?" Her voice was far louder next time, like she was letting something out that had been bottled up. "I mean- I know I didn't! It's my choice! ...Right? But she just-" She gripped her hair, knuckles white with tension. "And the money and...I know she means well but-" Scratch wrapped her in a hug.

"Hey, come on...It's over now."

"...Yeah." A small, shaky sigh of relief. Molly smiled gratefully at her friend.. "I guess it is."

It wasn't.

Chapter Text

Molly had felt off all day.

She couldn't explain it, but she had a distinct feeling like she was being watched. As she walked down the street, through the mall...it felt like there was always a presence tailing her. In a different way than usual; Scratch was at home today, but she still didn't feel quite alone.

It was unnerving to say the least. But, she just chalked it up to silly anxiety from having betaread one of Libby's short stories yesterday. The girl looked so sweet but her writing was gruesome. Yeah, that's all it was. She did her best to tell herself that and ignore the faint whispers and shadows that just popped out of sight when she looked behind her.

She couldnt ignore it any longer.

Rairs was almost empty. Usually the shop was bustling with kids staring at the cheap jewellery and crying when denied tacky pink junk (as Scratch called it) by their parents. But this time they all seemed to be flocking outside. Molly had been curious what they were looking at, but the shop assistant was weirdly insistent about keeping her inside. He also kept pausing, as though listening to something Molly couldn't hear. Was that what she looked like to everyone else?

Despite her questioning, he wouldnt let up until her bag was overflowing with giant bows and friendship bracelets and plushie pugs in little taco costumes because HOW could she say no to that? Eventually, he let her go- but the look of anticipation he wore killed any excitement for dressing up Scratch Jr in a little bowtie she had.

It became clear what was happening as soon as she stepped outside.

The crowd went quiet at the sound of the automatic doors. Molly opened her mouth to ask the many eyes on her what was happening, but a blinding spotlight right in her eyes cut her off. She dropped her bags with a yelp, covering them.

A hushed whisper went along the crowd of people. Many were looking at her as though a 13 year old being blinded was the cutest thing in the world. Others simply looked eager. A loud, familiar voice rang out through the mall and Molly's stomach sunk in dread.

"Molly!"

The crowd parted, revealing Andrea in the most over-the-top-for-the-mall outfit she'd ever seen. A blue dress that rose in the front and trailed to the floor in the back and a small, fluffy jacket to match. Her belt and shoes were covered in enough glitter to rival the spotlight in intensity- a thought that made Molly feel unbearably like Scratch- and her hair was combed back in the front into a french plait. That wasn't the most egregious thing however. That honour would go to the rose-covered, heart shaped arch she was under and the elevated ice sculpture of them she stood in front of.

The whole thing was so gaudy it put her bags of cheap Rairs tat to shame. The Davenport might as well have taped a stack of cash to her forehead. Molly squinted past the glare to try and meet Andrea's eyes. There was a clear path between them, laid out by a pink carpet covered in rose petals, but she didn't feel very inclined to move. Or able really. Heat flooded her cheeks in embarrassment and she felt the strong urge to pop her collar to cover them.

That was when she noticed the worst part. The cameras.

At certain points in the crowd were the dark reflections of a camera lens. Easy to miss but impossible to unsee. Molly felt her heart catch in her throat as those memories of today were cast in a new light. They were filming her. They were filming right now. Was this live? No, it wouldn't be- Andrea said last time that her rejection ruined the take so she wouldnt risk...

Molly looked around her, stomach beginning to churn. Crowds on all sides. Only the entrance to Rairs behind her was clear. Even if she did push through, the closest exit required a long walk of shame with the entire mall staring at her.

She hadn't risked anything.

"Attention everyone," Andrea started and Molly only just realised her voice was so loud because she was wearing a clip-on mic. "Will the most beautiful girl in Brighton come up here? I have something I'd like to ask her."

A series of 'awww's went up from the crowd. Hundreds of eyes, some familiar, some not, were locked on her and Molly couldn't get out she couldn't get out. The only way to go was forward.

So, reluctantly, she did.

'She's definitely filming' was all Molly could think as she made the endless journey, her shoulders hunched. She tried to dip her head to hide her face everytime she passed those dark, glaring lenses. 'Of course she's filming, she called me prettier than her'.

When she'd almost reached the- euck- altar, Andrea quick-stepped (not ran- Molly was guessing because of her giant heels) up to meet her and grabbed her hands.

"There you are!" She cooed. Her eyes were soft with affection, but there was something cold behind it. Not with malice per se, but a sense of...of not really seeing her. An absence of heat rather than coldness. It made sense. Cold was usually a comfort.

"What are you doing?" Molly mouthed, eyes wide and anxious and begging. Andrea's smile barely shifted, and Molly couldn't help but see it as something almost condescending.

"Molly McGee," She said, far too loudly to be a response. The microphone amplified it so much this close that Molly flinched. She didn't seem to notice. Getting (carefully) on one knee, Andrea reached into her tiny jacket and pulled out a box. For a moment, Molly's face morphed into one of unimaginable horror- before it was opened to revealed only a bracelet. A gorgeous bracelet, mind you. Gold chain in a similar style to her current one, clearly not cheap at all. It put the plastic jewellery in her box at home to shame. 

...Granted, once she realised the beautiful charm hanging from it was actually a picture of Andrea's face, it lost some of it's luster.

The crowd gasped at the gesture. Adults fawned at the cuteness, kids whined in jealousy at the sight of it. The cameras in the crowds, that she'd been keeping an eye on, twitched and Molly had a dreadful feeling they were all zoomed in on her face.

That manufactured smile spread across Andrea's lips again and all Molly could think was 'Don't say it don't say it don't say it-'

"Will you be my girlfriend?"

The air was still.

"I- I-I don't..."

Molly's legs were simultaneously jelly and frozen. If she looked down and saw those gaudy rose bush roots growing out of her feet she would not be surprised. Sweat poured down her forehead like a river. Another glance around revealed still no escape. Now that she'd made the mistake of walking down the isle she was truly boxed in. All she could see instead of freedom were adoring, cooing faces. Whispers of "Oh how cute!" and "She's tongue-tied!" filled her ears in the worst kind of whitenoise ever and it would not stop. Air felt impossible to reach.

Molly met Andrea's eyes again, silently begging, hoping she saw her distress. For a second, the other girl's face morphed into one of sympathy- only for her to nod to the box with a hopeful, innocent smile. Despite herself, Molly found herself mouthing her worst fear.

"Is this live?"

A simple nod.

The world shattered like glass around her and she felt very distinctly that she was falling, far and fast. Her brain had every expectation that she would hit the ground but, no matter how hard it braced, her shaky legs stayed strong, glued to the spot. This was live. They were watching this all over the world. They were waiting for her reaction.

No- they were waiting for her to take the bracelet. They were waiting for her to say yes.

Because that was what you did. When a girl set up an arch of roses and an ice sculpture and bought an expensive bracelet for you, you said yes. Only a monster wouldn't.

She gulped. Andrea perked up at the sign that she was ready to speak and prompted for the cameras "What do you say?"

Molly wet her lips and whimpered, quiet enough only Andrea could hear. "Scratch."

The girl blinked and her nose scrunched up. "Huh?" She asked, her confusion almost making her sound like a person. "Scratch wha-"

Then the lights went dark.

Chapter Text

"After the lights came back on, the young Davenport looked everywhere for the apple of her eye, but Miss McGee was nowhere to be found. Unfortunately, it seems this June love loses. This is Joanie Pataky-"

"Uuuuuuuuugggghhhhhhhhhh."

"Darryl, turn that off." Sharon snapped. Her features softened instantly as she knelt down and offered a tray out to the pile of blankets on their living room floor. "Cookies, sweetie?"

After a second, a tiny hand reached out from between the folds of fabric, bringing one of the biscuits back into its fluffy maw. "Thang u." A muffled voice mumbled. Sharon smiled sadly and patted the blob's head.

"I don't know why they're still playing that damn story." Scratch griped, gesturing at the tv that had very much not been turned off. "It's been a week already, it's old news. Move on with your lives already! Ya only got so long of 'em."

"It's a small town, Scratch." Pete conceded from his place on the couch. "Unfortunately, this is probably the most interesting thing to happen here in years." Another groan from the blanket monster.

"It's all over Clickclock too." Darryl added unhelpfully, swiping through his phone.

"Awww, really?" Molly popped her head out of her nest, her hair now sticking up at all angles. "What're they saying?"

Darryl glanced between his phone and his sister for a moment before sucking his teeth. "I think this is one of those moments I need to be 'tactful'."

"Oh sweet baby corn." Molly shrunk back into her blankets until only her eyes could be seen over the top.

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad." Rolling his eyes, Scratch swooped over to take a look. Before promptly letting out a low whistle "...Ok yeah. Uh... So the good news is: we're all here...together-"

Molly flopped over with a groan. Sharon rubbed where (at least she thought) her shoulder was.

"Don't listen to the boys, honey. Who cares what a bunch of people who've never met you think?"

"The kids at school think I'm a total jerk too..."

"Those losers?" Scratch cut in with what almost sounded like a laugh. "Whats so scary anyway about a bunch of middle schoolers?"

"Everything when you are a middle schooler!" She sat up and snapped. "Come on Scratch, you were there on my first day- you know those kids can be brutal." Molly turned away from Scratch in a huff, curling up further on the ground. A hand reached out from her cocoon for a cookie, which she stared at as she snapped in half, despondently. "I'm a heartbreaker." Tears pricked at her eyes. "I've become Mom."

"Don't ever say that about yourself." Sharon comforted, firmly. "Trust me on this, Moll, this will all blow over soon."

As if on cue, the same picture of Andrea they'd all been staring at for a week scrolled back on screen for the news catchup.

"Local do-gooder and town darling Andrea Davenport is still heartbroken after being left at the altar-" Molly stared at the screen with rubbed raw eyes, even after Pete made a point to turn it off. The image was burnt into her corneas anyway. Despite what she'd have expected from the girl, the photo was neither melodramatic, nor did it look staged. For once in her filmed life, the girl looked truly candid, facing away from the camera and from a believable distance. She was on her hands and knees on the crumpled and dirtied pink carpet, staring at the floor with her face covered by that familiar veil of blue. Despite the girl's track record, Molly had a sinking feeling she really was crying there.

"I'm a bad person." She mumbled, turning away.

"Don't say that." Sharon was quick to sooth, tucking her blankets tighter around her.

"Yeah, honey," Pete slipped down onto the floor, pausing for only a second to cringe over his back, before crawling over to sit with her as well. "You didn't do anything wrong saying no."

"Yeah." A familiar chill was just barely able to register atop her blanket pile as Scratch sat down. "Just 'cause she's rich don't mean she's entitled to everything. Just a lotta things."

"But i could have done it nicer!" Molly protested. "I- I know I said no before but-"

"Exactly. You said no before." Pete cut in. "She shouldn't have put you on the spot like that."

"I-" Molly clutched her blankets tighter until her knuckles whitened. "I wanted to say no and let her down gently but there were..." Staring at nothing, her eyes glazed over with tears. "So many people and I- I panicked, I-"

Cold and warm arms wrapped around her in an order she was too sniffly to process. A few seconds later, a smaller, chubbier pair joined.

Voice breaking, Molly whimpered "Why do I still feel like the bad guy?"

"...Some people just want you to feel like that because it's easier for them." Her father mumbled, rubbing her back.

"But that doesn't mean it's true."

-

It proved to be cold comfort when everyone believed it was true.

Walking into school was a horror show with all the people staring at her and whispering. Despite her protests that she'd just ruin her friend's reputation again, Libby insisted on walking in with her every day. She even sacrificed a spare jumper in case Molly ever needed to go 'turtle mode' which she took gratefully and promptly shoved in her backpack. (She loved her friend but it was summer). The comfort was appreciated (as was Scratch slamming lockers and causing books to fall on the heads of many of the kids talking about her) but it wasn't perfect. Far from it.

Andrea was in most of her classes and the way people fawned over her was impossible to ignore. Even the teachers seemed extra kind to her, always letting her answer questions first and even allowing her to leave 5 minutes early from one lesson because she got 'overwhelmed' during their reading of Romeo and Juliet. An entire classroom of eyes landed on Molly the second the door closed and she suddenly wished she'd taken Libby up on that jumper offer.

Lunch was worse than her first day. She was well avoided in the cafeteria, but the eyes on her and the glares were torture, as was the crowd around Andrea. Libby came through with a solution however. She lead Molly and Scratch down a series of corridors in the old, rundown music block of the school before kicking open a bathroom door with an 'out of order' sign with a proud flourish.

"This is where I used to eat when Andrea made me an outcast." She explained with a smile. The look on her face turned sentimental as she clasped her hands to her chest. "Ah, Memories~"

Molly and Scratch looked around the rotting room with matching grimaces.

"Uh...yeah...this is...really great, Libs." Molly managed to get out, wearing a smile so forced it might as well have been pinned in place with clothe pegs.

"I think the bad place does exist." Scratch wheezed, covering his nose.

"Oh, yeah, it's not exactly the nicest." Libby conceded, looking awkward. "But hey, at least it's out of the way! Let me tell you: NO ONE ever found me here."

"Wonder why." Scratch mumbled, dryly.

"I used to bring cleaning products to school so I didn't get sick. They should still be around here somewhere...aha!" From under a stall, Libby pulled a dusty looking duffle bag. She unzipped it and brought out a wrinkled tarp which she promptly sprayed with enough bleach to kill a gorilla from a mile away. She then laid it out on the floor, with a happy grin.

"See? Just like a picnic! ...Kind of."

Wearing the shakiest, most strained smile she'd ever donned, Molly crept forward and slowly lowered herself onto the tarp. "Yup....soo fun!"

"Ooo-" Molly froze as Libby pointed to her shoes with a worried expression. "Forgot to tell you- you'll wanna disinfect those after they touch anything. Y'know, tetanus." Libby gave a wonky smile and a shrug, like it was just another quirky inconvenience of life. Like the bus being late. "Better safe than sorry!"

Molly yelped and fell over herself, scrambling to get away from her own feet, and frantically emptied half the bleach onto the bottom of her shoes. Meanwhile, Libby was busy casually wiping off her own before resting them on the tarp. "It's easier on platform soles. Thats why I asked mom for these cool boots!"

Scratch watched the whole scene with a grimace.

"I gotta fix this..."

Flying through the door (he was NOT phasing through those walls), Scratch made his way outside. He was just passing the dumpsters around the back of the school when he slammed right into something.

"Ow!" There was a thump as the thing- the person- hit the ground and panic gripped Scratch's core. He went invisible on instinct, but if they'd already seen him-

"Watch where you're going, dude!" A familiar pair of brown eyes met his and both took pause. The tension left Scratch's body and his blue glow returned.

"Oh geez, Darryl," Hand to his chest, Scratch let out a breath. "You scared the heck outta me."

"Scratch?" Standing up, Darryl looked around. "Where's Molly?"

"Er, she's-" He tried to fight off a grimace. "Eating."

"Oooh. Yeah it's her lunch period."

"Yeah. Wait-" Scratch narrowed his eyes, confused. "Is it not yours?"

Darryl's mouth set itself in a thin, nervous line and he slowly scooted in front of Scratch's view of an open window. "Yeeeees. Yes it is." Scratch's eyes narrowed further, before a giant grin broke out on his face.

"Nice." He held his hand out and the kid high-fived him.

"Where're you going man? I thought you liked hanging out with Molly. Y'know, especially with the whole 'thing' going on." Darryl started casually as he walked towards the bustling court, hands in his pockets.

"I'm gettin' kinda sick of the 'thing'." Was the blunt reply.

"Yeah, me too. Everyone keeps talking about all the big kid gossip- you know how kids are-" He added in a knowing tone- as though he himself were not one. "I can't get away from it! And none of them even know what happened and they all think Molly's some big jerk just cause Andrea-" He mockingly emphasised the pronunciation. "Said so." He looked to the ground with a pout. "It's not fair."

"Tell me about it." Scratch grumbled. He had to make himself invisible again when they reached the main courtyard where all the kids were swarming. Over towards the middle there was a massive congregation around a particular speck of blue. "Look at her." He seethed. "I've seen realer sadness when Geoff dropped that salami sandwich."

"To be fair, it did look like a good sandwich."

"Well yeah I'd have been sad too but that's not the point. The point is- your sister's eating in a cholera factory because this brat can't handle rejection! You know, back in my day, she'd've-"

"Alright grandpa," Darryl cut off hurriedly, with a roll of his eyes. "I get it. You hate her. I hate her. But here's the thing." His fingers came up to rest by his chin and he took on that smug, calculating look. "I've been thinking of a little idea to fix all this." Scratch was quick to mimic his expression.

"What sort of idea?"

"Andrea records every second of her life- trust me, I've been stalking her socials the past week. There is NOTHING this girl won't document. So. Surely when she was bothering Molly, it only follows she had to be recording then too. At least once. Right?"

"That is a good point." Scratch added thoughtfully, tapping his chin. "And hey! She was! That first time she was trying to record us-" 'Us' still slipped out naturally sometimes. "In secret!" Darryl's eyes lit up dangerously, before Scratch wilted. "Ugh- but she stopped when we noticed before Molly technically said no."

"Well there's gotta be something else!" Darryl exclaimed, looking frustrated. "Listen-" He gestured for Scratch to come closer. "If you can get me her phone, I can do the rest. I'm sure there's something incriminating on there and once I find it-" A proud snap of his fingers. "Boom. My reputation is back to normal" 

A dry "You mean Molly's is?"

"Well yeah but I'm not allowed to say that. Come on Scratch. Basic sibling rules here."

"Ok ok, fine." Scratch held his hands up. "I'll get the phone." Pretending to roll up sleeves he didn't actually have, the ghost smirked. "Always wanted an excuse to rob a Davenport."

Chapter Text

A blue glue surrounded the girl, making her already unfocused eyes roll back in her head and her hair fly around her like wings. It was over in a split second, the entity popping out of her unceremoniously and swooping out of sight. Andrea stumbled forward a few steps, dizzy and holding her head.

"Ugh...what happened?" Her rare, normal voice spoke, free of the performative intonation she usually had. Out of the shadows, across the clearing, a figure approached.

"Nice to see you here...Davenport." It said with a smirk.

"Man." Scratch commented, swooping up beside her. "Libs' books are really rubbing off on you." She ignored him and stared down the disoriented rich girl.

"Molly?" Andrea looked up suddenly in surprise. Her brows lowered. "Oh. It's you. Come to apologise after breaking my heart?"

"Actu- wait." Molly's dramatic tone left her. "Me apologise-?!"

"-Well it's too late." She waved her hand. "You already lost your chance, so don't even think about trying to grovel for me to give you another."

"I'm not here to grovel, you stuck up-!" Cutting herself off, Molly pressed her palms together over her mouth and took a deep breath. "No. I am calm. I am calm...Andrea, listen-"

The girl purposefully turned away, making sure to flip her dyed hair as she did. Molly held back a frustrated sigh.

"I just want you to call off the hatemob your fans have against me."

A nonchalant "I told them not to harass anyone. You can't legally hold me responsible."

"Oh what, like you don't know what you're doing playing up how sad you are at school!" Scratch snapped, despite her not being able to hear him. Molly placed a hand on his back to calm him.

"Well regardless of what you said that's what's happening. And I'd really like it to stop. So if you could just make a video asking them to cut it out and owning up to kind-of-sort-of-harassing me-" She made sure to say fast and in the way least likely to cause an outburst. "-then we'll be all good. I won't bother you again."

"Hah!" A fake laugh. Andrea turned around and made a 'no way' gesture with her hands. "Not happening. Why would I go and lie to my loyal Fandreas for you? You're not even a brand."

"Well first of all it's not lying." Molly retorted, dryly. One hand had to be occupied holding onto Scratch's tail so he didn't do something she (probably not he) would regret. "You literally kept bothering me to date you when I already said no."

"Well, yeah?" Andrea rolled her eyes like Molly was being ridiculous. "Like my Daddy says- you never get investors on the first try. You gotta really wow them." For a moment, the sour look she'd been wearing cleared and her eyes widened in a look of awe as she threw her arms out in a wide gesture. 

"But-" Stuttering for a second, Molly and Scratch looked at each other to confirm they weren't the crazy ones here. "But I'm not an investor??? I'm a person!" Molly blurted out the obvious. "You can't just throw money at the situation and expect me to fall in love with you!" Andrea blinked at her as though she'd said something completely unheard of.

"Of course you can." The blue haired girl tilted her head, matter of factly. "Thats how my parents got together."

For a moment Molly and Scratch were silent and just. Looked at her.

"Anyway," Flipping her hair again, Andrea spoke. "It's not like it matters now. After what you did I think you got what you deserved. Really, all you had to do was take the bracelet. Your mistake. Have a good life or whatever."

"What a brat." Scratch spat, flabbergasted. "What, does she think she deserves you or something? Geez." His brain was doing that thing again where it gave him feelings like he was remembering a certain event but with no memories attached. "Trust me Moll, stay away from people like that."

Molly looked from her best friend to her bully and narrowed her eyes. "You know you aren't entitled to me just because you're rich, right? I'm allowed to say no."

An inhuman gasp escaped the figure making its leave. "Ex-CUSE you?!" The girl's head snapped around with an expression not dissimilar to the one she wore Molly's first day, when she mispronounced her name. She, and even Scratch, shrunk back.

"Euch..." The ghost shuddered to himself. "How'd she do that...-"

"You think that just because I'm rich I don't have feelings?!"

"I- I never said that-?"

"Well I do!" Andrea held her fist by her sides and a hand to her chest. "And I worked hard for my fanbase too!"

"...Again, never said anything ab-"

"All I wanted was to ask out a cute girl at school! I tried so hard for you and you just embarrassed me like that!"

"Wh- I embarrassed you? What about you putting me on the spot like that in front of everyone, huh?" Molly snapped, stalking forward a few steps and gesturing wildly. "What about you trying to bribe my family?!"

Andrea didn't even seem to hear her she was so busy in her own rant. "That was all I wanted- just one nice thing and you couldn't even let me have that! I don't even want for much! I only have 2 closets for crying out loud! And now you're saying it's my fault?! Like I'm the bad guy?! I did everything right! I bought you a bracelet, I offered you money, WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO GET YOU TO PAY ATTENTION TO ME?!" Tears had started to form in Andrea's eyes now- real ones this time, Scratch confirmed it. Despite her half-hearted attempts to tilt her head back and fan at her eyes, she was too emotional for it to do much good. Dramatic streaks of black began to stain her cheeks.

"...I don't think we're getting anywhere here." Molly whispered to herself, feeling...incredibly empty all of a sudden. The wriggling worm of guilt tried to slither up her throat, but today it didn't quite have the energy. Instead it lay heavy and still in her stomach. It didn't exactly feel good watching Andrea break down...but it also didn't feel good to have it confirmed that she was seen as just an object. Like a reward in a video game that pressing all the right buttons would unlock. Something about Andrea right now felt so far away. Like her words would never reach her within their lifetimes.

"No use arguing with the rich, Moll. They're from another planet."

...Molly wasn't too sure she agreed with that. Everyone could be good and anyone could enhappify. Andrea certainly had the spirit...at times. Maybe not for the right reasons, but it was there. She didn't think the girl was irredeemable or that she wouldn't ever change. But right now...

Andrea was busy trying to blow her nose as daintily as possible with Davenport branded tissues. Between her slightly exaggerated-sounding sobs she was whispering things to herself about how she didn't deserve this. Molly lowered her head and pulled out her phone.

"She's really not gonna do this on her own. Is she." There wasn't any point in pretending it was a question. Scratch shook his head next to her. She sighed.

"Alright Davenport, listen up." She announced loudly. Andrea looked down from the skies with a glower.

"What?! Can't you see I'm trying to cry here?! God, some people..."

Forcing herself to keep her frustration to just an eyeroll (Scratch imitating the girl was getting all the pettiness out for both of them), Molly just raised her phone. "You are going to make a video telling your fans to stop harassing me and admit that you were the one who couldn't take no for an answer. And if you don't-" She pressed play. "Then I'll show them."

Andrea glared at her, confused for a moment. "What? You're gonna show them a black v-"

"No- I don't want to date you!"

Her eyes widened. The sight was so satisfying Scratch burst into smug laughter and fell over himself midair. Molly tried to contain her own smirk.

"Wait- where did you get that?!" The girl snapped. "Were you recording us?!"

"Nope. You were." This time she let her smirk show through. She'd like to think she'd built up enough karma points to deserve a little smugness. Or maybe that was just her bestie rubbing off on her. "Turns out the video kept going after you put it in your pocket. Doesn't feel fun to be recorded without your knowledge huh?"

By now Andrea was swiping through her phone frantically, face morphing between fury, desperation and concern. "Wha...but how did you get it?! Did you hack my phone?! I can get you arrested for that!"

"Oh," Molly sucked her teeth. "About that. You see your dad tried to bribe my family for my likeness and I'm no lawyer but...that at least doesn't seem like good press." The other girls mouth snapped shut.

"And you know, speaking of bad press, I don't think your fans will take too kindly to learning that on..." Making a point to read the date off the screen, Molly said "May 2nd, you asked me out- three weeks before the whole proposal lifestream- and I said no. Sounds a lot like someone can't take 'no' for an answer. I think they call that a red flag." Ok, Scratch had definitely rubbed off on her. The ghost was busy fanning his own eyes as he watched her gloat, trying not to wail. "Plus, trying to use them to guilt me? Not looking good."

Eyes wide and suddenly paying complete attention, Andrea stuttered "W-wait. They- they wouldn't turn on me just because you said something." It was shaky and unsure, however. Molly raised an eyebrow.

"I mean, I have the proof. And people seemed to turn on me pretty quick, despite not even knowing me." Andrea fell silent.

"...You're such a bully." 

Molly flinched, hard. It took a pair of cold hands holding her shoulders and a quiet "'Nother planet, Moll." to get her to somewhat steady herself.

"I don't owe you a date, Andrea." She said, voice softer but firm, trying to draw strength from the chill. "And I'm sure it hurt when I rejected you but that's not an excuse for any of what you did. Just...make this right and I won't ever speak to you again."

"...Fine." She spat. "But I want to see you delete that video."

"When you uphold your side of the deal."

A growl escaped the girl, but, eventually, a nod. She turned on her heal, glaring at the ground as she stormed off. Molly watched her go with a confusing mix of emotions swirling inside her. Satisfaction, relief, lingering anxiety but most frustratingly of all, guilt. It gnawed at her insides and built up inside of her like hot air, begging for release. No matter how much she tried to bury it like the other times, it wasn't going anywhere.

"...Wait- Andrea!" She called, despite herself and despite Scratch's protests. The blue haired girl turned around with a hopeful, puppy dog eyes expression.

"If- if you really want someone to love you," Scratch's criticisms went ignored and Molly's voice remained soft. "Maybe try and be nicer? It won't guarantee anything but...it's a start."

For long moment, the two girls stared at each other. For a long moment Molly thought she'd made a breakthrough.

Then Andrea flipped her hair over her shoulder with a superior look on her face. "I already am super nice." She said, matter of factly. "I did a laptop giveaway just last month." Then she turned on her heal and walked away.

Molly watched the space where the other girl was for a long time. Scratch made a point to swoop down into her line of sight, phasing back into his blue form. "You did it Moll!" He grabbed her cheeks and gave her his biggest smile. Even a quick little hug. When she didn't respond, his voice softened. "Don't worry, kid." He said patting her back. "You did the right thing. There's no reasoning with Andrea. Sometimes you gotta look out for yourself. People like that aren't like entitled to your help or anything." She didn't respond. Only stared straight ahead. "...Molly?"

"I know."

The walk home was bittersweet.