Ya know, I really was planning on having this chapter be funny and entertaining instead of so... dark, but hey, it happens. Deal with it! :P Enjoy! And review! (Nice, short Author's Notes today, huh? Ahhhhh... So nice... J/K) ^_~ I know I made this chappy kinda messed up, so just bear with me -- no one can be in happy/lovey/sweet mode all the time, and that includes Pietro! There will be a very brief summary explaining in short exactly what all's happened so far at the end of the chapter. I needed to write it for myself to keep everything straight, so I could only imagine what the readers must be thinking! I'm sorry, I've been confusing everyone! (And confusing Pietro -- that's why he's doing what he's gonna do... yeah. That's my excuse! ::coughs::) So that's why it's there. I'll try to remember to put an updated summary thingie at the end of every chapter from now on. It makes it easier for us all! :D

One more random thing: Spellcheck is rejecting every word/phrase I have in the star (*) things and it is SO pissing me off! Grrr... :P I want my italics! (Yes, yes, it should be apparent by now that I�ve mastered the art of HTMLing this monstrosity of a fic >.>;;)

And response to... (don't bother reading unless you've reviewed/read the reviews recently) *Fire Tears: Whoa there, little horsey -- settle down and stop choking Lancie-Poo -- he can't breathe when you squeeze so tight, honey! ^_~
*Alex Destine: I have had your fic on my aol favorites list forever meaning to read it, but I admit, the 80,000+ words kinda scared me off a lil' bit... but I've started it now at least! I will review every chapter for you to make up for my slacking! ^_^ Please forgive me!! (And please don't hit me! ::cowers in the corner waving a small white flag::)
*Dark Fire: Coffee is the essence of beauty in it's purest form. Lance and Pietro understand and do not question this. (Can you tell I'm one of those people who leave extra-extra early on bad weather mornings to ensure there's time for a Starbucks run before work? Didn't think so.) ^_~
*Kelly: La-aaa-nce! ^_~ (Sorry, I had to!) And I think we all know I'm an in-the-closet dominatrix in my spare time... just prowling the streets for hot young boys in Jeeps to defile... :D
*batE: Voices is fun! When my friend got kicked out of school for truancy, I was all like "I'd say you've blown your chances at this school, haven't you?" and it was just like Mystique in episode two! Like she curled up inside and took command of the controls! Creepy! :D I do random voices all the time. (Like at work today... my boss walks in as I'm mumbling the usual Jeep-related line cuz there's a customer at the drive-up window in a Jeep... yeah, I'm not gonna get fired or anything for being a nutcase... ::gulps::) And if you happen to run across any life-size, inflatable Pietro dolls, lemme know! PietroOrnaments (TM) too! I'd pay good money for that! ^_^ (Maybe I should check out eBay again... No! I am finally over the eBay addiction; I will not give in to the temptation... ^o^)

Disclaimer: As if! No, really, if you actually believe I own any of this (makes grand sweeping gesture) then I have some prime swamp land down in Florida you may be interested in... No, seriously. I don't own anything. (Duh?)



Chapter seven: I Don't Know What You're Talking About



Pietro had decided it best to send Todd and Freddy along to school on foot, since it appeared Lance may take a while. Naturally, they groused the entire time about the fact that Pietro and Lance weren't going to school (yet) and pleaded their case most irritatingly. Pietro finally shoved the two whiners out the door himself, not caring where they went, as long as it was away from the house.

When Lance finally emerged from Pietro's room, clutching the small Starbucks bag to his chest protectively, Pietro was seated in the front parlor, looking dejected and somewhat apprehensive. Pietro wouldn't meet Lance's gaze. Lance decided not to pursue it at the moment -- mostly because he didn't know what to say to the boy. He had kissed him passionately, told him he loved him, and run away.

Not good.

Sure, it was in the heat of the moment, and lack of caffeine can do crazy things to people, yeah, but...

Lance didn't know what to do. So he went ahead and did the most obvious thing -- he returned to the kitchen to start the coffee.



* * * * *



Pietro was in a mental frenzy -- he was finally coming to terms with the fact that Lance had kissed him and told him he loved him. Pietro's plan was working almost too well, and for the first time in his life, Pietro was unsure of what to do. He could blame it on the absence of coffee, sure, but when paired with last night and Lance's less-than-resistant attitude, Pietro wondered if he hadn't gotten more than he'd bargained for -- and gotten himself in deeper than he could handle.

Pietro also went ahead and did the most obvious thing -- he freaked.



* * * * *



Lance decided that maybe school wouldn't be the best place for Pietro right now. The kid looked awfully disturbed. He stirred his coffee to a rich, creamy consistency, then started on Pietro's. Lance inhaled the sweet aroma deeply. This blend was the good stuff -- Pietro had been hoarding it for a special occasion, most likely. "Happy friggin' occasion," Lance mumbled, picking up his mug and Pietro's delicate, gold-rimmed teacup with the tulips and pansies (Pietro insisted it wasn't in the least bit �girly�) and headed to the front salon to patch things up with his friend.



* * * * *



Pietro backed away from Lance, his cornflower blue eyes blank -- totally, alarmingly blank.

His pale hands pulled at his loosely fitting rings, on and off, on and off. Lance had never seen him wear rings before. Mindlessly he dropped three rings into an ashtray. The small clatter of the rings striking crystal caused his eyes to widen.

"Pietro...?" Lance started uncertainly, offering him his flowered teacup.

Pietro looked up sharply at hearing his name. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"What?"

"What you said before -- I don't understand."

"Pietro, please, I didn't mean it," Lance backpedaled, wishing he could take back the words that had gotten him into such hot water with his friend.

Those blue, blue eyes went wide, stark, bleak, as if Lance had snatched the floor from beneath his feet. Pietro went dead white.

"People tend to blurt the truth in the heat of the moment," Pietro replied, turning to pick up his jacket and put it on. Then, slowly, he turned to stare at Lance. "I guess this just wasn't one of those times."

Lance paled.

"I am going to go to school now," Pietro stated simply, and with that last sentence, he whizzed past Lance and out the door.

He never even got to sample his special coffee.



* * * * *



Despite the already sub-zero temperatures in the Brotherhood of Bayville Boarding House, the mercury seemed to plummet another twenty or so degrees in that one moment. Lance shivered.



* * * * *



Can we all say �angst� people? Blame it on the caffeine! The caffeine!! :D Coffee is an evil addictive thing! And the lack of it forced me to make this chapter horribly angsty and bad! XD Poor Pietro's starting to wish he didn't start something he can't finish -- though not because he doesn't want to finish...

And I realize this may be kind of confusing, so let me explain from the beginning: Pietro wants Lance, Pietro makes plan, Pietro accomplishes plan (sort-of) Pietro changes/revises plan midway through, Lance acts on his own unknown-to Pietro-and-himself feelings, Lance blurts out mega serious but true three-words and kisses Pietro due to lack of caffeine, Lance feels guilty but relieved, Pietro freaks out. There. Major run-on sentence! Whew! I didn't know my attention span was that long! :D

Now, today's trivia/cool quote(s)/crazy X-Men and/or Brotherhood related thing I do (so ya'll can laugh at me)/random category thing! (TM) It's not X-Men and/or Brotherhood related, but still very cool. I learned it in 5th grade, when we were forced to copy quotes off the chalkboard every morning as a �warm-up�... gaaah. Anywhee.

"No man has a good enough memory to be a good liar."

- Abraham Lincoln

Lance should keep this one in mind. Come to think of it, Pietro should, too. ^_~

Please review! =^.^=

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