Maybe Today You Could Put The Past Away...

Jack shrugged as Vito corrected her as though to say, "Ah well, close enough." She really was not much of a dancer. She listened to music and would dance around her house, head banging and whatnot, but when it came to calm, organized dancing, she was completely out of her element.

Vito suddenly moved towards her and she realized she was supposed to go backwards. Erg... She did not like being led or controlled, and yet it seemed that was what this dancing was about. Ah well. She decided she could just follow what Vito was doing and that would keep her from getting bored. She supposed it beat sitting at the table and attempting to ignore everyone around her.

Her head snapped upwards at Vito's words, her eyebrows knitting together in confusion. Fire... friend? Jack did not remember having any friends anymore. She had apologized to Chase and Andrew, but she could not face Chase and she would not soon forget what Andrew had demanded of her. She was not sure she consider them her friends, and Jack had never been one to hold a surplus of friends.

It had to be Andrew, the more she listened. The only people Jack knew that Vito would call her friends were Chase and Andrew, and she could not see Chase being so vengeful. She looked up at Vito, shocked and confused. "Is Satin's..." He said that it had been cleaned up in no time and she realized with a jolt it had to have been soon after she had apologized to Andrew... What was going on with him?

Her brow furrowed even more and said, "Andrew?" as though to confirm her suspicions. "Wha...Why? Why would he do that?" She could not understand what would suddenly put Andrew on the offensive...

Well, she had managed to keep her feet off of his shoes, and she hadn’t fallen over yet, so as far as Vito was concerned, she was good at dancing- or, at least, would make his fabulous dancing appear even more impressive. Vito grinned; oh yes, he liked the way he thought. He stepped forward with his right foot, and then another step forward with his left- though this step was slightly smaller than the past two had been- preparing to step to the side with his right foot though he always had to make sure that Jack was mirroring his movements in order to avoid being stepped on.

“Oh no real reason; his girlfriend wants to have sex with me, and he got angry at me for some reason- as if I can help being deviously handsome…” Vito spoke, rolling his eyes, his every word sounding mocking or sarcastic, though he tried- yes, he honestly tried, no, not really- his very hardest to be nice. That brat had attempted to destroy the one thing that Vito cared about more than himself, and so, naturally, Vito couldn’t help himself.

“and I think Chase has started smoking…” Vito added as an afterthought, faking a thoughtful expression for the second time that evening.

Vito released Jack’s hand for a fraction of a second to run his hand through his hair- ahh, how we all love habits…- but was quick about correcting his positioning in order to appear as if he hadn’t done so at all, continuing with their dance. He stepped to the right on his right foot, “Oh, and before you get angry at me, I didn’t do a thing to her,” he added with a simple roll of his eyes, fallowed by that irritatingly arrogant smirk of his before ‘collecting’ his foot (the right foot comes up alongside the left before stepping to the right, and doesn't move in the diagonal) at a quick pace to match the beat of the music playing at the party.

Jack almost forgot to pay attention to how Vito responded because she was so concentrated on not falling over completely. It seemed that Vito was determined to see her fail...or perhaps it was just the music. she noticed his steps were smaller, and for that she was slightly grateful.

But at his words she stopped completely, staring at him wide-eyed her mouth tipped open slightly. She stared at him, not believing what he had said, but knowing he would not make up such a large lie. However, to believe that... it was like trying to forget who Chase was...

He had to mean Chase, but how could he? How badly had Chase abused Jack for even associating with Vito, and then she threw herself at him? While dating one of Jack's best friends!? Jack had been around Vito a lot more than Chase had, while drunk (TWICE) and she had never ever come down to that. She had always maintained some sort of control, even if Chase had accused Jack of caring for Vito more than friends...

If this were all true then Chase...she was a hypocrite. But Jack could not believe it. No, not Chase Moor, dating Andrew Thompson, ex-best friends to Jack Dyllan... But why would Vito lie? No...he would not lie about this. Not this.

Vito had paused to run a hand through his hair and Jack recollected herself, sloppily following along as she drowned in her thoughts. She felt a bit of relief at his words. She did not know if she could look at either of them the same way had something happened. In a low growl, she said "What the hell happened?" She looked up at Vito, her eyes demanding an honest answer. She was not angry at him, nor Chase (yet), but mad at the whole situation in general.

Vito sighed dramatically, as if it was going to be a long story, though he knew he would be summarizing the story so that it was actually very short- and made him sound like perfection personified, “She came to me dressed like one of the women who come to my club, and brought me up to my room. She asked me questions, drank some, stole my cigarette- she really can smoke, that girl- and kissed me. What am I forgetting? Ah, that’s right, and then said that she wanted to f*ck me, but couldn’t because she has a boyfriend,” Vito said, biting the insides of his cheeks in order to keep the amusement from showing on his face; he really didn’t feel like dealing with an angry Jack Dyllan at the moment; he didn’t have enough alcohol in his system for that.

He knew what sort of emotional trouble he was causing Jack by telling her such things; she probably could have gone on her entire life not knowing about the events that had happened between Chase, Andrew, and Vito- but being as attracted to chaos as Vito was, he had quite a difficult turning down an opportunity to stir things up when he saw a chance to. Vito pulled on his mask (a blank face), and watched Jack think as they danced on. The song was nearing the end, and he had a feeling that- what with the conversation they were having, and all- that dance would be the last the two of them shared, but he honestly didn’t have a problem with that; he had danced long enough to show off, and other than watching Jack attempt to dance, that was the only thing he enjoyed about it.

“It was all rather entertaining, but she is much too weak for my taste; you’re her friend, so I’m gonna assume you know how much she whines about her problems? It can really get on your nerves if you are one of her problems,” he added, though a few quiet chuckles managed to escape his lips, as if it were too amusing.

Vito thought about continuing the dance routine as he normally would in any normal situation and dip the female he was dancing with, but he figured Jack would trip, fall backwards, and kick him in the shin… all at once- and that really didn’t seem as if it would look attractive at all as he pictured it all in his head. Though it would be rather fun to allow Jack to embarrass herself in front of so many other teenagers her age, and it would get a lot of eyes on him…

Now, that was much too tempting. Vito turned to the side quickly and pulled Jack closer to him before lowering her just as quickly, dipping her, preparing for the loud thud that he would most likely hear when she fell backwards and hit the floor; it was all up to her balance in order for him to keep her from falling; though he was honestly hoping she wouldn’t be able to balance, he would be rather impressed if she managed to foil his plan.

Jack dropped her gaze and stared over Vito's shoulder, feeling anger rise up in her stomach at the very thought of it all. Chase... Chase had betrayed Jack... But had Jack done no worse by associating herself with the killer of her best friend's family?

No. Jack had not known. Her reasons had been innocent. She had not done anything to purposely hurt or endanger her friends, she had not put herself in any danger she could not handle, she had not willingly or purposely betrayed their trust in her. She had not contradicted herself.

She was not Chase.

Chase had told Jack to be careful. They had both blamed Jack for that day in London, saying Jack should have somehow known better, as though she had known Vito would have decided to return to tormenting Chase. Jack knew that she put up a good act, making people think she had it all together and knew what was going on... But she did not. How could they have expected her to known that? And yet, Chase's peril had been her fault, and she had been more than willing to bear that guilt...

And then Chase had the nerve to step into Satin's and put herself in the trouble Jack had been blamed for. No doubt on returning, Andrew and Chase had made up and quickly decided that it was her own fault. Somehow, she came out to be the bad guy, that was how it had to be. Vito got overlooked, because somehow they thought Jack had the ability to control what he did.

When the hell had she become Vito's babysitter?

She bit her lip and her stare turned to stone as she looked over Vito's shoulder, nodding numbly at his words. Yes. Right now, everything was wrong with Chase. She was too weak. She did whine too much... Right now, Jack could not think of one thing Chase did that did not frustrate her...

Suddenly, Vito dipped her and for a moment Jack flailed before grabbing onto his collar and the front of his vest to stop herself from hitting the ground. She had never pretended to be graceful, but that would have made her look foolish and she really did not need a headache to top off the evening. She scowled at Vito and righted herself, pushing him up also and releasing him. She yanked herself from his grip. "Just stop with this pointless vendetta of trying to drive me insane, trying ruining my reputation," she growled in a low voice. "You think that you would be kind enough to return the favor." She calmed herself down. Vito was just being his usual, irritating self. If she displaced her frustration onto him because of Chase, then wasn't she being as selfish as Chase had been? She sighed and, without looking at Vito, said, "Never mind. Forget it." A hand went up to rub her temples.

“Oooh, feisty tonight, Jack,” Vito muttered, looking straight into her eyes, the corner of his own eyes squinted slightly when he grinned, showing the tips of his teeth. He straightened and released her; he was done, it wasn’t fun anymore, she wasn’t reacting the way she usually did to his jabs at her and his attempts to make her feel like shit, and it made him feel rather… thrown off balance. Vito straightened his collar and the front of his vest, which Jack had wrinkled, and slipped one of his hands into one of the pockets in his slacks, in search of his packet of cigarettes; he could feel the nicotine fit coming on.

“Everybody will always want something from you Jack, you’ll learn that one way or another- you just have to figure out how to make that work for you,” Vito spoke with an indifferent expression in place, as he usually did when he said something as such, and lit his cigarette with a lighter he had also dug out of his pockets. He was speaking of these two people Vito knew as Jack’s ‘friends’, these two people who always seemed to expect Jack to do something more for them. Though, he knew he was walking a thin line by butting in in such a way, he also knew that those words would get Jack thinking, and he liked messing with her thought process.

And just like that, Vito walked strutted away with his cigarette held loosly in-between his lips, and sat down at the table that he had found Jack sitting at. He looked at his empty glass on the table and sighed, this party of the Ministry’s really wasn’t as entertaining as he had thought it would be, and besides having a little fun with Jack, he really didn’t see what benefit coming to the part had been to him.

Vito leaned back against the chair he was sitting in and gazed out at the party guests, three in particular; Chase, Andrew, and then his eyes landed back on Jack, who seemed so lost in the large crowd of joyful people.

Jack stared at the space that had been previously occupied by Vito just a moment before. People drifted into her frame of vision, laughing and smiling as they twirled around the dance floor and yet Jack stood there, chewing her lip as she remained motionless in the spot where Vito had left her.

How the hell did he do that? Say the things that seemed to slip past all of her pride and strength and wriggle into the cracks in her defense, drawing out her insecurities, her qualms, her secret fears. It did not seem fair. Jack had worked up that strong defense for seventeen years, and it did not seem fair that Vito could say things that seemed to shatter it and then walk away.

Maybe it was justice. Jack could identify a few times where she had told Vito something and left him, only to find more struggle behind those cold eyes that did not seem perfectly able to remain completely stoic under her scrutiny. Either way, Jack was sure of one thing.

It sucked.

He was right though. He had voiced the very thing that had haunted Jack for as long as she could remember. She had never been able to make friends very well and she had thought that had never been of much consequence. And yet the friends she did make... they were just the way Vito said. For the most part, they seemed to use her. Whether for protection, for attention, as a scapegoat, in this particular situation...

Had Jack been lied to by all of her books, all of those wondrous television programs that had portrayed friendships as little ragtag groups of people who were bound only by loyalty and acted only in selflessness when it came to each other...?

That was the problem with books and television problems... They were run by people. People that Vito had described. Using a fantasy story to make a quick buck... It was always the same.

Friends should know when friends started dating... especially each other. Jack was never one for following the love lives of her peers (they were usually too short, shrill, and overall just not entertaining) but the concept... the idea that she had not been needed, so she had been excluded... Well, that was how it had always had been. She was just a little disturbed to found that that had found a way into her friendship with Chase and Andrew.

You see!" Jack though bitterly. This is exactly why you don't deal with people. What the hell did it get you?

We had some good times, the semi-reasonable Jack said.

Yes, and look how much fun they are having without you too... Jack's nastier side always seemed to have some good points. She could think of no refute. Damn her intellect...

Who did Jack have left? She thought to herself, desperately going through the list. Her parents- Wow, she did still have her sense of humor. Riley- no, he was moving on with his life, leaving Jack behind. Elliot- he was not moving on with his life, but he was distancing himself, that was certain. Uncle Chip- he would never bother to worry about Jack's sanity. Andrew and Chase- well... Did anything even need to be said? So who did that leave her with?

Vito Dee Symons.

Jack sighed to herself as the last few weeks...months... played through her head. She could not even remember how it all had begun. Had it been when she had followed him into Satin's, or with Vito's hand around her throat. Or when Andrew had told her that Vito was terrible. Or when the poltergeist had broken down...

It was hard to tell, but it did not matter. It had all happened. She had somehow found herself pitted against her friends and one of the few people who had insight into he screwed up mess that was her mind, if not the only one. She was against them, and then brought back among their ranks. It was as though she were playing a very long game of wizard's chess and she had fooled herself into thinking she were the queen, when really she was a pawn, being played by her best friends... Never against or for them, just used by them...

And where did that leave Jack now?

In the middle of a crowded dance floor.

Andrew had been on the outskirts of the dance floor, looking into Chase's brown eyes. He felt really happy they had been able to get over their past events, even if it still bothered him that she had snuck out...twice. Maybe more. Yet, she was a free spirit, and he knew she couldn't be contained in some apartment...well at least not any more. They were moving. He swayed a little to the side, trying to seeing if he could spot anyone he had known in the crowd. Yet all he saw was just some idiot going onto his knees...probably a veela. They were all the same. Yet someone else caught his eye, someone that he had not talked to for a while.

Jaquellene Dyllan.

He let go of Chase for a moment, his eyes set on Jack. "One second," he said, walking past Chase and into the crowd. He approached Jack from behind, tapping her shoulder twice, a straight smile planted on his face. "I thought I would be seeing you here..." he said "You look nice...I just decided to go with something casual myself. Didn't know if this was a formal or casual event." Andrew wondered how Jack had been, noticing that she had a different facial change from the last time he saw her. Before, it looked like she was doing alright...yet now, it was mysterious. "There's also another thing I have to tell you about..." he said calmly, scratching the back of his neck "I think me and Chase should tell you though."

Jack had been brooding silently, not aware of the fact that she was still rooted to the spot on the dance floor where Vito had left her. People were beginning to glance at her, their expressions clearly saying Is she going to do anything or just stand there? She herself would have been content to close her eyes and turn into a statue, no longer having to deal with all this bullcrap...

Suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and saw, with a jolt, that it was Andrew. She stared at him, her face void of emotion. She could not seem to muster any. Anger and bitterness and guilt bubbled in her chest but they led to nothing, no action and no thoughts. Just existence.

He began to talk normally as though nothing had happened and it seemed as though anger was going to beat out the others. Could he really expect to push everything out of the way? As desperately as Jack wanted to pretend none of it had happened, she was fairly sure that if she did, she would end up in an asylum. And besides...he should be too angry at her to talk to her... Or too guilty... Or...SOMETHING!

And then he said he wanted to tell her something about Chase and him and she had to resist the urge to laugh or say Oh, so soon?! But, once again, she seemed incapable of mustering up the emotions to react in any way that would help her.

“Everybody will always want something from you Jack, you’ll learn that one way or another- you just have to figure out how to make that work for you.” But she had lost her touch. She was not that strong any more... Or maybe she had become too strong, too indifferent, that now she did not even have a reason to make it "work for her." What did she care with how they all ran their lives?

Without saying a word she shook her head and turned on her heel walking towards the table that she had sat at. She saw Vito sitting there already and she sighed. She did not know if she wanted his company or not, but she knew where she did not want to be and that was back with Andrew. She slid down into the chair opposite Vito and rested her elbows on the table. She ran a hand through her already messy hair and stared down at the table propping up her head with her fists, content not to speak. For some reason, she felt a lot 'safer' here then over on the dance floor with Andrew.

(Drama time! XD)

Andrew raised his eyebrow at Jack, whom had suddenly made a hasty retreat. Andrew was rather surprised, as he thought she would have been over the discussion he had with her a little less than a week ago. Yet, he knew he shouldn't have been, realizing the fact that he had made no sense during their last encounter. It didn't end very well, leading him to wonder if she had forgiven him...then he wondered if he had apologized.

He would have to now.

Nudging through the crowd, he tried to go after Jack, needing an explanation on what she was trying to do. That's when his rage suddenly hit it's peak. Out of all people to show up at the dance, that one thing just had to be where Jack was going. At first, he couldn't believe his eyes, and it showed on his face. Thoughts toke over his entire process of thought, leading Andrew into a tunnel vision. He stared directly into the illusion that the thing called eyes.

Vito Dee Symons.

He walked slowly, each step feeling like it had felt back when he had burnt down Satins. Flashbacks paraded his thoughts, a crooked smile twisting Andrew's face. It all came back to him. Every memory, every sound flooded into him like a tsunami as he began to smell the smoke and fire from the small place. Then he saw Vito again, holding the destroyed bottle in his hand. Andrew wouldn't fight, yet he was really damn close. "Vito Dee Symons," he said, more joyfully than most people would have predicted "how are you? Did you like cleaning up your place after I burnt it? It must've been pretty fun!"