[Veronica, Stacy & Webster - Opposite Plot]

[plntfood]

There is something different.

Mathias isn't quite aware of it, although he feels it on some level, he feels brighter and better and just different. He can't name it, can't place it and, most importantly, he doesn't want to. Whatever is different, it isn't bad

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[saved_the_knees]

She'd woken up early, at dawn, her eyes snapping open and a horrible feeling of dread clinching in her gut. She wasn't alone, she never was, but this particular morning, it felt wrong waking up next to a boy who was seeing someone else.

Oh God, what must Veronica think?

She slipped out from under the sheets silently and crept from the room in her pajamas, changing hastily in the bathroom and making her way quietly into the kitchen to make herself some breakfast.

For an hour, she read quietly, alone in the rec room with the jukebox playing softly in the background. When it was time for some fresh air, she was dressed modestly, a towel and a bottle of sunscreen and a book stowed away in her bag, along with a bottle of water and a piece of fruit for later.

You could never be too prepared.

[plntfood]

"Hey!" Mathias shouted again, waving frantically as he got closer to Stacy. It was like she hadn't heard him or something and he ran down the boardwalk until he reached her, then stopped, grinning and panting.

"Hi," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets and rocking back on his heels, mostly just looking pleased to be standing there with her. "Where are you going?"

[saved_the_knees]

Blinking, Stacy frowned in confusion, looking at him like she'd never seen him before in her life. She knew the face, of course, but he could've walked right past her, shouting, and she might never have looked. Sounding like that, he might as well have been a stranger.

"Mathias? Hi," she hesitated, wondering if she really wanted her peaceful afternoon interrupted, "I was going to go down to the waterfall. I thought it might be quiet there."

[plntfood]

"Can I come with you?" he asks, still looking at her with that open, honest smile. "I'm going to go visit Webster later, too, I think he wants to hear about Veronica, but I want to spend some time with you. If that would be okay. Would that be okay?"

He's talking far more than he would on any other day, but he almost doesn't notice. It feels good, like some sort of wall has finally been taken down.

[neptune_sleuth]

His good cheer is infectious, surely, and Veronica can't help but be grateful she made extra sure of herself before she headed out this morning. The clothes box has been just the kindest thing, fitting her out with the sweetest little sundress she ever did see. Nervously running a hand over the full skirt, she jerks it back toward her and trots up to meet Mathias, throwing her arms around his waist with a happy sigh. "I was hoping I'd run into you today."

[plntfood]

"You were?" Mathias asks, feeling his smile growing wider still as he wraps his arms around her shoulders and leans down to catch her mouth in a kiss. That Veronica wants to see him still makes him so happy, it fills him with cheer and when he pulls back, he sighs happily.

"I was hoping I would see you, too," he admits. "Seeing you is probably the best part of my day."

[neptune_sleuth]

"Oh, Mathias," Veronica says, a little flustered as she presses a hand to her heart. "That's awfully sweet of you to say. On both counts, I mean." Fluttering her eyelashes, she ducks her head a little. "It's the best part of my day, too."

After all, the minute she spotted him, didn't her day just brighten up? And it had been so bright already. Whatever weight had been on her shoulders before seems to have lifted so utterly, she simply can't care what caused it to begin with.

[plntfood]

"You're just so great," he says honestly, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. "Things here are very hard sometimes, trying to be normal and act normal when, in fact, all my insides are sort of broken, but you make everything seem easier."

He isn't sure where this is all coming from, but it's the truth, and that's what counts. For some reason, he's just never been able to say it before, but now it feels right.

[thewordofweb]

I know it sounds stupid, but I feel almost as if I've been picked at by chimpanzees in a search for...well, something hidden and unknown. I've escaped Joe's searching hands and Blair's dancing-whims and am trying to find someone sane. When Mathias comes running, I breathe a quick sigh of relief. "Jesus Christ," I mutter, long and low. "You have no idea how true that is."

[plntfood]

"Hello," Mathias says when he catches up with Webster, offering him a grin. There aren't many people on the island he considers his friends, but Webster is certainly one of them and he's pleased to see him, especially today.

"How are you?" he asks, then launches into the next bit of his speech without waiting for an answer. "I'm very well. I saw Veronica earlier, she's the best. I think she is definitely my girlfriend now, which should make you happy, right? You wanted her to be my friend, didn't you? I suspect you did."

[thewordofweb]

My eyes widen in sheer horror. "Oh, no," I complain with a drawn out groan. "Not you too. What, did you get bit by some rabid talking virus? Are you going to start petting my hair or telling me how much you love me next?" This is all too frightening and I really could use some sanity. Just one sane person, is that too much to ask?

[plntfood]

"No," Mathias answers, looking confused. "I like you and would consider you my friend, but I feel no urge to pet your hair or tell you that I love you. Why would you think I would want to pet your hair?" That seems like a strange thing for anyone to want to do unless they're Webster's boyfriend.

"I just wanted to talk with you," he continues. "You always tell me that you would like me to tell you more things about Veronica and other things and I thought today might be a good day to share with you. Is it not? Is it a bad day? Who has been petting your hair?"